Jurassic Park Comes Alive! Lego Studio's Dino Head Attack
Written: Feb 15 '03 (Updated Mar 23 '06)
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Pros: Two figures, adorable baby dino, functional dinosaur head.
Cons: Not much replay value as a solo set, hard to find.
The Bottom Line: A nice addition to the Studio series but not much fun as a solo set.
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| Freak369's Full Review: LEGO - Dino Head Attack |
When Lego introduced the Studio series it was supposed to be a boost for the ill fated, over priced Steven Spielberg Movie Maker [1349] that had a suggested retail price of $199.99, then $179.99, now $149.99. The series as a whole was disorganized and never really carried a solid theme. They started off with Jurassic Park then switched to Spider-Man then the Spooky sets. Even with all these things against the series, it managed to tread water and survive being cut out of production. One of the earliest sets, Dino Head Attack makes for a great addition to the jungle / dinosaur theme that started out the Studio series.
Dino Head Attack
When built according to the provided instructions you will end up with a functional dinosaur head that has the ability to open and close and grasp small objects. The major design flaw is that there is only one long element used on the right side to open and close the jaw. When the boys first built this I asked them where the other piece went and they told me that there was only one piece to start with. When I checked the box, floor and empty bags I couldn’t find an additional piece so I checked out the directions and realized that there was only one guide piece. This limits the amount of weight that you can pick up with the jaw of the dinosaur and if you have other Lego elements you can easily make another one for the left side. The jaw action is operated by pressing down on the piece that extends out from the jaw and is pretty sturdy. When I first saw the box for this I immediately thought that it would break easily, thankfully I was wrong.
The cameraman seating area looks great but isn’t really that functional. The completed dinosaur portion snaps into the side of the cameraman stand but there is no way for the cameraman to open or close the jaw but he can move the back portion of the dinosaur ‘neck’ [for lack of a better word] up and down. The elements for this part of the scene are better utilized as a base for the dinosaur head, a lookout tower for the female figure or as a nesting place for the baby dinosaur. The round swiveling element that the seat rests on it a great piece to have in any scene and allows what ever is on top of it to rotate 360 degrees. It just seems a shame that these great pieces were wasted on a bad design.
Figures
This set comes with two standard sized Lego figures – one cameraman and one of the female characters from the Adventurers series. The female figure has a lot of detailing on the torso and comes with a very nice adventure style brown hat, stenciled pockets, compass and belt. Her red lipstick and long stenciled hair provide just the right amount of detail without going overboard. The cameraman is the same figure that is featured in most of the small early sets in the series. While he lacks the Lego logo on the front of his torso he does have a stenciled identification badge, sunglasses and walkie-talkie. The blue baseball cap and thick side burns are icing on top of the cake.
Of course you can’t overlook the small baby dinosaur that is also included with this set. It’s a highly detailed little baby that is solid green and almost looks like he’s smiling. He’s only appeared in a handful of sets [most of them in the Adventurers series] and is a nice addition to any prehistoric, dinosaur or jungle theme set. According to Lego, it was patterned after a baby Tyrannosaurus Rex but most of the time is simply referred to as “baby dino”. Don’t forget about the small white cat this is also included with this set. It should be packaged in one of the plastic bags so make sure you don’t accidentally toss it in the trash with the bags and box.
Instructions
The instruction booklet carries you through building the dinosaur head, cameraman seat and how to correctly assembly the figures. For the most part, the sixteen pages cover all aspects of assembly from start to finish and are a little better than some of the other sets in the series. My suggestion for beginners is to separate the pieces that are used for the dinosaur head and the cameraman seat before you start so you don’t get confused. Be sure to check out the front and back of the last page for other sets in the series and how they can be combined to make large scenes.
The Bottom Line
If you aren’t a big fan of dinosaurs or haven’t collected any of the other sets from the series, chances are this will be a wasted purchase. However, fans of the Studio or Jurassic Park themes will find this a worthwhile purchase that will add to the overall effect and detail of a play scene. I recommend trying to find this on sale at toy stores rather than paying full price from internet toy stores – this part of the series is coming to a close to make way for new products so stock up on them now while you still have the chance. This is a fun set to build and play with but without other Studio sets it loses its appeal after about fifteen minutes. I recommend this for anyone that has a child that loves dinosaurs, as a gift for adults that love cute gadgets and those that are hard-core Lego junkies.
The Stats
Set Name: Dino Head Attack
Family Set: Lego Studio
Lego Set: 1354
Number of Pieces: 92
Age Recommendation: 6 - 12
Ease Of Assembly: Easy
Time Of Assembly: 10 - 15 minutes
Cost: $4.00 [sale price]
As always, thanks for the read!
^V^ Freak ^V^
© 2006 Freak369
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Dino Head Attack
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Recommended:
Yes
Amount Paid (US$): $4.00
Type of Toy: Blocks
Age Range of Child: Whole Family
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