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Success is just within his grasp. The adventurer can reach out and almost
touch the golden crest of Tlaloc. "Hurry up!" he hears his companions shout
from the balloon above, "the storm is almost on us!"
Just a few more vines to clear with his trusty machete and the medallion will
be his. But excitement turns to horror as he suddenly realizes that what he
thought was an old cargo net covering the altar is an enormous spider's web
that stretches up into the recessed entrance of the steeply sloped pyramid.
From the yawning entrance, a huge, bloated spider emerges and, spying the
adventurer, it becomes a speeding blur that moves toward the adventurer as
quickly as though it was rolling down the web. In a second, the enormous
arachnid is airborne and falling directly on him with a hiss that drowns out
even the distant thunder.
I'm a great fan of the 5909 Treasure Raiders set so when a similar set came out
in 1999 (despite the fact that the same year's other offerings didn't look as
good) I just had to jump on it. While the Expedition balloon appears gimmicky
and doesn't match the 5909 for as many figures or pieces, I still find myself
enjoying it and would definitely pick up another at a discount price.
The Expedition Balloon is an ensemble set of an adventurer dirigible and a
small jungle setting. This set is most unique in that the extra non-brick
"power" item is actually an integral part of the main model. The basket/cabin
portion of the balloon is an elongated, open cabin set on four dark grey
wheels. There is plenty of space for all the included adventurers. The front
section has a steering wheel set right behind a windshield and the aft section
is partially covered, containing a shelf with a skull and bell jar. Two
propellers located at the aft section provide locomotion for the craft.
The large, plastic (non-brick) balloon/container has two detailed grooves on
the bottom of it. A round 1x1 brick is inserted into the end of each groove
where they sit snugly. Grey pin elements are then run through the technic
brackets of the cabin and secured into the bricks set in the grooves. The pins
and round bricks can be wrenched free from the grooves of the balloon (with
some effort), but are still fairly secure. The plastic for the balloon seems
just a bit thinner than the more sturdy 5909 sarcophagus but would probably
still stand up to rough play (I haven't attempted to sit on the bomb and then
reshape it so I don't know exactly how tough it is). Stickers are provided to
apply to the otherwise nondescript balloon.
The additional jungle setting is basically an arched sort of structure with a
sliding altar where the gold amulet is mounted. The archway is partially
covered by a hinged spiderweb element and spider (hey, this is my first
spider!).
There is a nice array of figures: professor pith-helmet, regular adventurer,
pilot and the new bad guy (stubble and scar guy with a black adventurer hat).
Supplies include two rifles, binoculars, sword, backpack, magnifying glass and
a new amazon map (it seems like 1998 sets came with lots more supplies but
that's probably just me).
New/unique pieces to the set are the brackets which secure the balloon (I've
previously only seen these in technic sets) and two gray panels with bubble
windows (last seen in yellow and included in various Divers sets). Other
noteworthy pieces are some black boat/prow pieces, and five grey 2x1 technic
bricks with two holes.
I enjoyed this set a lot more than I thought I would. The vehicle is fun, and
inclusion of the little jungle setting makes it an excellent
standalone/introductory set.
!!!4x2ReVu Stats!!!
Rating: Four out of eight studs.
Thumbs up for: A very unique vehicle that fits in well with the theme.
Wallet-Wise: $20.00 (approx. U.S. retail) for 170 pieces.
Date: 9/30/1999
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