CollectorSneker

HiddenSneker’s side blog dedicated to talking about the lego ninjago sets

[bootychomper]

Hey can some of the adult ninjago/lego enthusiasts who have built a bunch of lego sets teach me how to build big sets while being able to it comfortably on the floor and not have your back hurting an insane amount halfway through???? Bc I just finished building zanes dragon from the core series and it took me 5 hours and my back hurts so fucking bad it insane

[collectorsneker]

Take a break every 1-2 hours

[collectorsneker]

I got the new lego sets and so far I’m enjoying them so far but i figured I’ll be making separate posts on all of the sets and how I feel about them

The first set I wanted to talk about tho is Zane ultra combiner

On its own terms, it’s a pretty fun set! I like the way it all comes together. Personally I don’t really care about how it looks all separated. The builds aren’t entirely unique or interesting on their own.

I was worried for a bit about how Riyu was going to look with the mech because my initial idea of the set when it released was that it was going to look like Riyu somehow fused with the set? But that’s not the case, Riyu rides on the back which is admittedly pretty cute. I’ve seen some people complain about the lack of flexibility on the dragon wings which I don’t really get. The for what it’s worth I think the wings are fine for the set and the price, if this was a $100 set of JUST the dragon then I would understand but Riyu is a very small part of it and he still very flexible in his own regards.

I’m still on the fence about how much I like big bulky mech Zane. I think the concept is to weird for me I guess? Imagining that in show makes it seem like Zane’s gonna suddenly jack up.

Now for some more Indetailed thoughts and comparisons:

This is the second combination mech in ninjago (that I can care to remember rn) so I wanted to see how it compares to the core version

For context this wave’s combination mech retailed for about $100 usd

The core combination mech retailed for about $90 usd

As you can probably tell from the photos, this wave’s mech is a lot smaller from the core mech which is a shame because it’s $10 more expensive. The core mech also has a side build included as well which this wave does not.

This wave’s mech is also not nearly as poseable as the core mech, the arms are pretty stilted in movement and are only really able to swivel around a bit. Which I feel like for a set more expensive is a downgrade.

However this set has greatly improved the balance. One of the most annoying aspects of my core set is that it’s constantly falling over because the feet are unable to support the rest of the mech. It makes setting it up a pain in the ass. Thankfully though they did fix this in the new set! I don’t know if that’s because the new set is smaller or they changed the building methods on the feet but it’s really nice!

If I had to guess, I think the minifigure selections are probably the justification lego had for why the set costs more then core because while they both have the same amount of minifigures, core had very generic and no exclusive minifigures. While this set has Pixal and Nokt two exclusive (at the time) and very wanted minifigures.

Speaking of minifigures

I don’t really have that many opinions on the over all selection. Or on the ninja at all. But I do wanna talk about the villains.

I guess this is a hot take but I think nokt is fine. I’ve seen a lot of people complain about him and I don’t really understand why? Yeah it kinda sucks he doesn’t have his cape but that could be for playability reasons or maybe he already has to much around his shoulders or maybe we’ll get a cape version later down the line. We still have the part 2 sets after all. Who knows. But it’s not a big deal for me if he has a cape or not.

I also don’t particularly care about his face. I’ve seen people go absolutely crazy that he doesn’t have “the right grin” which is already insane in itself but he is smiling if you look closely. His face is detailed and hes recognizable so I don’t see what the big issue is.

Personally I’m really mixed on the dragonian warriors. One one hand I think the masked versions of them are really cool. They have this extremely fun play feature where you can put dragons on their armor from the back and it lines up really nicely to give them wings. That’s really creative and fun!

Not the other hand. I really don’t like how this show tries to portrays other in show cultures and this is kinda an example. I feel like after the island we should have moved on from “barbaric group of people” and yet this is still happening. I get they live in the first realm and stuff but I’m getting really tired of everyone who’s not from ninjago, shintaro or the ocean being portrayed like they’re barely civilized? In a world where hundreds of different species exist then it feels vaguely racist that humans or human looking species are the only ones who are technology advanced in anyway. Idk. You can clearly have different cultures who are technology advanced in their own way. Canonically the lion tribe from Chima exists in the same universe as ninjago and that’s a good example of diverse yet not portrayed as un advanced.

Finally I do wanna talk about one more thing i don’t think anyone has mentioned yet…

Riyu!!!

I’m honeslty really surprised no one has tried to talk more about riyus inclusion in this set because I think it’s really interesting

Besides from dreamzzz (I think) Riyu is the first time in a long time that we’ve had a brick built reoccurring character in the sets and I’m really intrigued by how the set designers are going to handle it

At first I assumed that Riyu here was going to be the same as the s2 set aside from a few changes to make it work with the mech. But no! He actually looks a lot older here. He has larger wings, he’s less bulky, and he generally just looks a bit more grown up.

I’m not sure how much of that will reflect in the show but I find it really interesting!

Personally I don’t mind that they’re going to be reusing Riyu builds in the future as long as it’s incorporate in other sets like this. I don’t care if the exact Riyu s2 build is in the crossroads set because there is obviously more to this $250 set then just a $10 Riyu build.

If I had to guess, I think the inclusion of big Zane and his classification as a minifig in this set despite being fully brick built is legos dipping their toes into the water and seeing if they can get away with having a brick build Riyu be considered a minifigure in the future. Lego has had brick build minifigures before but nothing to Zane’s or riyus size. So this really does seem like a bit of an experiment for the future.

Overall, while I do think some concepts of the set is interesting the set overall doesn’t stand out to me all that much. Especially compared to previous sets. So I think I’ll give this set a 7/10!

[collectorsneker]

A evil wizard turned my cat into legos

[hiddensneker]

Lego fan who doesn’t watch ninjago: “this set is great because the dragon looks cool and uses a unique collection of pieces! Also the minifigures have great printing and molding. Would recommend :]”

Lego fan who watches ninjago: “this mini figure is using a different hair piece from the show and the side build isn’t canon. I’m going to kill my self”

[collectorsneker]

Sorting though my lego bin

[collectorsneker]

Daily reminder I fucking hate this set

Extremely bad building technique, instructions, play features, and has extremely difficult pieces to find. only saving grace is that it was made after 2018 so it’s brown pieces don’t immediately evaporate while dissembling 2/10

[collectorsneker]

Hey random fact

Did you guys know that during 2015, there was a toys r us event where you could go in store to build miniature sets of classic ninjago sets?

There was a whole series of sets, about four of them actually. All called TRUNINJAGO 1-4

Do you guys also want to know who’s batshit insane enough to 1. Figure out these exists 2. Recreate them for their collection?

Me 😁

[collectorsneker]

Also wanted to add this cute photo I took

[collectorsneker]

Hey random fact

Did you guys know that during 2015, there was a toys r us event where you could go in store to build miniature sets of classic ninjago sets?

There was a whole series of sets, about four of them actually. All called TRUNINJAGO 1-4

Do you guys also want to know who’s batshit insane enough to 1. Figure out these exists 2. Recreate them for their collection?

Me 😁

[collectorsneker]

Also wanted to add this cute photo I took

[collectorsneker]

Hey random fact

Did you guys know that during 2015, there was a toys r us event where you could go in store to build miniature sets of classic ninjago sets?

There was a whole series of sets, about four of them actually. All called TRUNINJAGO 1-4

Do you guys also want to know who’s batshit insane enough to 1. Figure out these exists 2. Recreate them for their collection?

Me 😁

[collectorsneker]

About to jail them forever everyone say bye bye

[collectorsneker]

Now that leaks are out I’m so excited to see another 3 months of people endlessly shitting on the sets and designs and then turning around and going “oh their great and everyone who said they were lame were wrong 🥰” (sarcasm)

[pajamam3n]

walked into my room after going to get a drink just to find minifigures crawling all over my lunch sandwich like ants

[collectorsneker]

Hey can someone help me budget? I need to feed my family.

Minifigs: $25

Pieces: $10

Stickers: $15

Piece 93095 in black: $65

[collectorsneker]

I threw him against a wall bc I’m jealous he has white beautiful hair and I don’t

[crowleycorvid]

APOLOGIZE TO HIM. PUT HIM BACK TOGETHER AND SAY SORRY

[collectorsneker]

I’m sorry wu… have a butterfly

[collectorsneker]

I threw him against a wall bc I’m jealous he has white beautiful hair and I don’t

[collectorsneker]

Sorry for slow updates y’all ive been going to college so I’ve had less time to work and get sets. But I have been collecting the magazines! I have a big project for them!

[collectorsneker]

So glad brick economy has decided that my 100% fully complete NRG jay is worth… $50 lmao