Lego Studio Directors Copter - Stephen Spielberg Arrives In Style!
Written: Sep 13 '02 (Updated Mar 23 '06)
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Pros: A few nice pieces, director figure, movie camera.
Cons: Copter is very basic, limited number of pieces, very little replay value.
The Bottom Line: If you are a fan of the Studio series this will make a great addition to your collection.
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| Freak369's Full Review: LEGO Director's Copter 1360 |
The Lego Studio series produced some very impressive sets, but with the good also comes the bad. The smaller sets that were issued to ease the sticker shock of the larger set were so skimpy even hard core collectors had a hard time justifying $2.99 or $3.99 for them. The lack of extra pieces, inability to customize scenes and vehicles and lack of interesting figures were all complaints voiced by Lego lovers and while Lego did a little better with the Spider-Man series, it did nothing for the smaller sets already on the market.
Since I had already stared collecting all the sets from the Studio line, I had to get this to complete the series. Much like the Stunt Go Cart I didn’t go crazy and pick up a lot of multiples of this set. Once I opened the first box I realized that this was pretty much a wash. The pieces were broken down and used in other scene or added to the stock of Lego elements for the brood. I personally saw absolutely no use to have the copter assembled since it is small, has only one functioning blade and almost zero replay value.
The Copter
Even though this is a functional little copter, it’s still bare bones in the perk department. The rotating blade on the top of the copter is nice but that’s about the only thing that’s truly interesting. There are two side attachment pieces on the left and right side of the copter, one of which is for the movie camera. The copter itself takes about two minutes to assemble and the director about a minute.
If you are looking for a building adventure, look elsewhere. There really isn’t much that you can add to this copter without making it look worse than it already does. There are only a few places where extra pieces can be placed and outside of adding larger wheels or side step panels this copter is almost impossible to enhance.
The Director
The director, in my own personal opinion, has a striking resemblance to Stephen Spielberg. Maybe it was an oversight by the designers of the set or possibly something done intentionally – but that’s the way I feel about this figure. Spielberg had a lot to do with the creation of the series as a whole and this possibly could have been a small tribute to him for his help. In any event, the director is a nice little figure but nothing to get too excited about.
His stenciled torso features a brown vest over a white button down shirt, security identification tag and tie. On the back of the torso is a small stenciled movie slate that is the signature logo of the series. The facial features include a beard and moustache, stenciled eyeglasses and topping it all off, a black baseball cap.
The Instructions
Don’t be shocked when you see the size of the instructions for this set. It’s a large sheet that is broke down into panels. The front side of the sheet deals directly with the construction of the copter and the director. The rest of the panels are comics, an ongoing theme with the Studio series. Overall the instructions are clear and to the point and the illustrations guide you through the construction process with no room for error.
The last six panels give you instructions on how to build a futuristic looking plane that can be constructed from elements found in the following Lego sets – 1360 [this set], 1361 [Camera Car], 1362 [Air Boat] and 1363 [Stunt Go Cart]. There are six simple sets that outline how to build this unnamed ship / plane but the hardest part is selecting the pieces from the four sets in order to start the construction process. This is one of the main reasons why people active searched for these set when they were first released. This made me think that Lego had these small sets planned with a specific purpose – to get kids to ask for the other three sets to build the “new” plane.
The Bottom Line
This isn’t an essential set by any stretch of the definition. If you are avid collector of Lego sets or have part of the Studio series then picking up this set certainly can’t hurt. If you are looking to pick up some cool pieces for your stock inventory, this set will offer you about five interesting pieces however these are readily available from other sets. Since this an extremely small set this would make a good stocking stuffer or reward but shouldn’t be the only set a child has to play with.
For those that have an existing Lego Studio scene, this would make a great overhead addition. You can use fishing line to hang the copter above the scene or use the clear suspension poles that came with Star wars sets. There are a number of ways to suspend or hang your flying vehicles; the key is finding one that doesn’t take away from the overall aesthetics of the scene itself.
The Stats
Set Name: The Director’s Copter
Family Set: Studio
Lego Set: 1360
Number of Pieces: 24
Age Recommendation: 6 - 16
Ease Of Assembly: Easy
Time Of Assembly: 5 minutes
Cost: $ 2.99
As always, thanks for the read!
^V^ Freak ^V^
© 2006 Freak369
Other Lego Studio related reviews ...
Temple Escape
Stunt Man Catapult
Camera Man
Stunt Go Cart
Director's Copter
Air Boat
Green Goblin Set
Werewolf Ambush
Vampire's Crypt
Pirate Scene
Curse of The Pharaoh
Mini Copter
Pirate Treasure Surprise
Dino Head Attack
Scary Laboratory
Recommended:
Yes
Amount Paid (US$): $2.99
Type of Toy: Blocks
Age Range of Child: Whole Family
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