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Following on the heels of the LEGO 30001 City Fire Chief review and the LEGO 30002 City Police Boat review, comes this review of the 30050 Star Wars Republic Attack Shuttle in MINI-scale. These are related – these three sets plus the 30051 Star Wars X-Wing are all exclusively available through Target stores in the US, as part of an Easter promotion. You’ll find them in the Easter section rather than the toys/LEGO aisle. There are a few key differences – the City sets are minifig-scale and $2.99 while the two Star Wars sets are MINI-scale and are slightly more expensive, at $3.49. The extra $0.50 gets you a few dozen pieces more, although it’s a trade-off since the two City sets each comes with a minifig.

In my view, the 30050 and the 30051 are both really cool sets that are meant to be displayed on a shelf or on a desk – there should have been a small stand included (the one you see below was quickly improvised).

By the Numbers:
Set: 30050 Republic Attack Shuttle (Star Wars)
Year of Release: 2010
Type: Mini-scale or polybag (Target Easter promotion)
# of Pieces: 60 (6 extra)
# of Extra pieces: 6 (see photo below)
# of Minifigs and what kind: No
Stickers? No
Price: $3.49 at Target (USA)
Ages: 6-12
Time to Complete:

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This is going to be very similar to the LEGO 30002 City Police Boat Review. It’s nearly identical in the number of pieces, and has the same price. You can view a comparison between the 30001 City Police Boat and 30002 Fire Chief (that is a flickr gallery) if you are curious.

What you are looking at is the 30001 City Fire Chief, a small 33 piece impulse set that comes with a Fire Chief minifig. It’s basically a 4-wheeler/All-Terrain Vehicle (ATV).

Again, no idea on the availability outside of Target stores or the US in general (or outside the US for that matter). I will say up front that if I had to choose between the two, I would pick this one. If you are picking for a small child, definitely buy this one in my opinion.

By the Numbers:
Set: 30001 City Fire Chief
Year of Release: 2010
Type: City / Impulse
# of Pieces: 33 (including 2 extra)
# of Extra pieces: (2 extra, see photo below)
# of Minifigs and what kind: 1 – Fire Chief / Firefighter
Stickers? No
Price: $2.99 at Target (US)
Ages: 5-10
Time to Complete: Less than 10 minutes

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This review is for one of the impulse sets available at Target (in the US) for some kind of Easter promotion. There is also a 30001 (Fire Chief) set as well as two Star Wars sets – 30050 Republic Attack Shuttle and 30051 – X-Wing. Both of the Star Wars sets are micro-scale and while the non-licensed Police Boat and Fire Chief are $2.99, the licensed Star Wars sets are $3.49. The Star Wars sets do come with more pieces. I’ll be posting reviews of the other three sets tonight and tomorrow.

Update:
* LEGO 30001 City Fire Chief Review
* Comparison between 30001 City Police Boat and 30002 Fire Chief (flickr)

As for whether these sets will continue to be produced beyond this run, or will be available elsewhere, I have no idea. They are actually cool little sets and I think good values for the price. They are not located in the toy section in the Targets I’ve seen them – I’ve only seen and read about them being in the Easter sections. They have popped up on Amazon.com and eBay, but you’re paying more.

By the Numbers:
Set: 30002 City – Police Boat
Year of Release: 2010
Type: City / Impulse Buy
# of Pieces: 32 (including 2 extra pieces)
# of Extra pieces: 2 (see photo below)
# of Minifigs and what kind: 1 – Police Officer
Stickers? No
Price: $2.99 at Target
Ages: 5-12
Time to Complete: Less than 10 minutes

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A quick note: I was mistaken yesterday, LEGO did do some promotion of the movie on the Atlantis.LEGO.com site, but I still believe more should have been done on LEGO.com as well as the Cartoon Network website. That’s just me.

If you’ve been following the Atlantis Theme, nothing in the movie should be a surprise. I’m going to post a short review, then some notes from the movie, and then a full synopsis of the movie (all in this post). If you don’t want to be spoiled, stop reading after the short review in the paragraph after this.

My overall impression is that it was very well done. The animation was good, the voice talent was good. As an AFOL, I wasn’t cringing at anything (and they even referrenced AFOLs at the end of the movie), it was enjoyable, and I could see kids really liking it. It showcased every single one of the existing LEGO Atlantis sets except for the 8079 Shadow Snapper. It also showed or hinted at a few large sets that we know about, but that aren’t yet available for purchase (later this year). It also showed something that… I don’t want to spoil the movie, so I’ll post it at the bottom, but let’s just say that it could either turn into a huge theme on its own, or be a sub-theme of Atlantis. It used almost all of the content from the Atlantis.LEGO.com website with the exception of the backstory around Dr. Artimus Rhodes and his great-granddaughter Professor Samantha Artesia Rhodes. This was probably due to the time constraints of a half-hour movie. It will be interesting to see if the LEGO Brickmaster Atlantis book fills in any gaps. It used all of the minifigs we’ve seen in the Atlantis sets, and everything but the Neptune Carrier was scaled appropriately.

STOP READING HERE IF YOU DON’T WANT TO HAVE THE MOVIE SPOILED!!

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This review is for the 8057 Atlantis Wreck Raider which is, of course, set in the LEGO Atlantis theme. It’s kind of an in-between vehicle set in the Atlantis theme – it’s well above the impulse price and part count, but at $9.99 it’s two-thirds the cost of the 8059 Seabed Scavenger. It’s a very efficient use of parts, fits well in the theme, and thanks to the human diver and Shark Warrior, it’s a good value.

Given the low price, and that I liked the selection of parts, and kind of as a challenge to myself, I picked up another 8057 and decided to see what I could create with just two of them. I will be posting that tomorrow (Friday, January 15, 2009). It was an exercise in frustration, but still interesting.

Speaking of tomorrow, don’t forget – LEGO Atlantis: The Movie on Cartoon Network, 6pm Central, 7pm Eastern. Now onto the review.

Update: Wreck Raider Quad – a MOC made up of two 8057 sets plus a small number of other pieces.

By the Numbers:
Set: LEGO 8057 Atlantis Wreck Raider
Year of Release: 2010 (technically available at end of 2009)
Type: Mini Vehicle from the Atlantis theme
# of Pieces: 64
# of Extra pieces: 2
# of Minifigs and what kind: 2 – Human diver (Captain Ace Speedman), Shark Man
Stickers? 8
Ages: 6-12
Time to Complete: Less than half an hour (I spent more time taking and editing photos and writing this review than it took to put together!)
MSRP/Price: $9.99 US from LEGO Shop at Home , also available at Amazon.com, Target, Wal-Mart, TRU, etc. (price may vary from MSRP elsewhere)

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The Atlantis Neptune Carrier is by far my favorite set in LEGO’s newest series. This set has it all: four figures, a manta ray (which you build out of bricks), and three vehicles in one. This set is very reminiscent of the 7645 Mars Mission MT-61 Crystal Reaper set from a few years ago (Brickset link). Like the MT-61, the Neptune Carrier lives up to its carrier classification by housing a small exploration rover in its forward cargo area. A red ramp lowers out of the front; allowing the rover to roll out to embark on its search for Atlantean artifacts. The carrier’s second vehicle is located at the stern. This vehicle is a small, propeller-driven sea doo type which accommodates a single figure (as does the rover).

By the Numbers:
Set: LEGO 8075 Atlantis Neptune Carrier (from the Atlantis theme)
Type: Submarine with Mini vehicles
# of Pieces: 475
# of Minifigs and what kind: 1 Professor Diver (Dr Jeff Fisher), 1 Eyepatch Diver, 1 Regular Diver, and 1 Manta Warrior figure.
Stickers? Yes
Price: $59.99 at the official online LEGO Shop, Also at Amazon.com (price may vary) (other places charge up to $69.99, so be a smart shopper)

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This is a review of the static set from the LEGO Atlantis universe, 8061 Gateway of the Squid. This set makes a great desktop model. The set is reminiscent of a few of the LEGO Indiana Jones sets which is why I was a little hesitant about buying this set. One of the best parts of the set is that you can mount the giant black squid atop the main structure which makes this ideal for setting up on display.

By the Numbers:
Set: LEGO 8061 Atlantis: Gateway of the Squid
Type: Static playset in the new Atlantis line
# of Pieces: 353
# of Minifigs and what kind: 1 X Female Diver, 1 X Male Diver, and 1 X Squid Gatekeeper.
Stickers? One sheet of 3 stickers
Price: $39.99 at Official LEGO Store, also at Amazon.com (prices may vary at Amazon)

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