Prepare To Enter The Temple of Gloom, Another Awesome Lego Studio Set!
Written: Nov 02 '01 (Updated Mar 23 '06)
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Pros: Nice set, action plate, cool pieces.
Cons: Not much you can do with it as a stand alone set.
The Bottom Line: Even thought it's one of the smaller sets in the Lego Studio line, Temple of Gloom is a must have for all Lego fanatics!
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| Freak369's Full Review: LEGO - Temple Escape |
Once again, Epinions is wrong. The correct title for this is Temple of Gloom, not Temple Escape - and while I am glad they finally added some new products to the site they could have at least taken the time to get them listed correctly.
Lego Studio is not just another money making venture between a toy manufacturer and a highly visible movie mogul – it is a whole new realm of entertainment for kids of all ages. Combining classic Lego’s with an almost state of the art digital camera – the end result is unlimited fun.
Temple of Gloom is one of the smaller sets in the Lego Studio series. It is completely compatible with all other sets in the series as well as all other Lego pieces. The one nice thing about this set is that it allows you to mix and match with the larger sets to create a one of a kind masterpiece. The number of unique pieces in this set is staggering. From a small black scorpion to the coveted red diamond to the ultra cool film canister piece – this is a must have for die-hard Lego freaks.
The Temple of Gloom is really two sets in one; a small yet fully functional drop through stage and a camera man complete with movie camera. While the instructions included with the set only give one way of constructing this set, there are several examples of other designs on the box and even more at the Lego website [www.lego.com]. For those with Lego fever, this is a great set to have just for the rare pieces I mentioned earlier. And again, you can always embellish the designs with pieces from other sets.
The Stage
The main piece to the Temple of Gloom is a stage with a drop through floor – which is extremely easy to build. My number one suggestion is that you read through the entire instruction booklet first before you start building rather than just jumping into the construction of the set. The Lego person included with this portion of the set is almost identical to Johnny Thunder [Explorer set] and comes with a painted breastplate, snappy red tie and too cool jungle hat. The bottom part of the stage pulls out resulting in the Lego person falling through the trap door. With a little playing around and a few other pieces added to the bottom you could make this small set into a larger scene and add some sharks under then flooring or even some baby dinosaurs.
Now, the ‘bonus’ pieces are what really make this set a must have. They aren’t really bonus pieces but they are rare and hard to find since only a handful of sets have them. You can check EBay or visit www.baylit.com if you find yourself needing to replace missing pieces from this – or any Lego set. My personal favorite rare piece in this set had to be the red diamond. Sure, some people call it a ruby – but not me. Of course you can’t forget the skeleton head [no body, just a head] that is also included. The black scorpion, two red flames and holders, small black pyramid and hitched lead under the stage are also excellent pieces that will bring smile to any Lego addicts face.
The Cameraman
From a distance he looks more like a doctor then a cameraman, with his white coat, small identification tag and ‘movie maker’ patch on his chest – it is easy to get them confused without taking a second [or even third] look. He comes with a baseball hat [fully detachable] and resembles – oddly enough – Burt Reynolds. Scary huh?
The camera rigging is pretty awesome – the camera has a full range of motions and rests on a movable base. The film canister that slides in and out of the camera is a very nice touch – but don’t try too hard to push it all the way it – it’s only designed to go about ¾ of the way in. Another set from the Lego Studio series called Stunt Man Catapult has the movie slate and yet another set called Backstage has a camera that has the film canister that attached to the outside of the camera.
The Test
As with all new Lego sets, the final test comes when I hand the box over to the brood. They already had a few sets from the Studio line so they knew the basic idea and principal behind the series. They really fell in love with the trap door feature and added a few pieces from other sets to elevate the platform and add some critters below it to gobble up the Lego person. While they liked the set a lot, they found that most of the pieces were best used in already existing scenes they created with the Adventurers series – so they gave it an A+ for pieces but only a B for overall play abilities.
Overall Rating
For Lego collectors this is a must have to complete the series. If this is the only set a child will have chances are they will lose interest after about 30 minutes due to the limited number of pieces. In my opinion this is a great set for the ‘bonus’ pieces – but make no mistake about it – it is a dangerous set if there are smaller children around. There are just too many small pieces that could be swallowed, the most dangerous being the red flames and the skeleton head.
I plan on buying several more of these and packing them away for Christmas. With Target butting a ton of older Lego sets on clearance to make way for the ‘new’ dinosaur and prehistoric lines as well as Bionicle, Harry Potter and Jack Stone. So I guess you could say this set gets two thumbs up from me as well as the brood – but after all they are Lego’s so even if they aren’t all that good, they still aren’t all that bad :]
The Stats
Set Name: Temple of Gloom
Family Set: Lego Studio
Lego Set: 1355
Number of Pieces: 56
Age Recommendation: 6 㪨
Ease Of Assembly: Moderately easy
Time Of Assembly: 10 minutes
Cost: $4.99 on sale at Target
Normal price ranges from $5.99 to $7.99
As always, thanks for the read!
^V^ Freak ^V^
Other Lego Studio related reviews ...
Temple Escape
Stunt Man Catapult
Camera Man
Stunt Go Cart
Director's Copter
Air Boat
Green Goblin Set
Werewolf Ambush
Vampire's Crypt
Pirate Scene
Curse of The Pharaoh
Mini Copter
Pirate Treasure Surprise
Dino Head Attack
Scary Laboratory
Recommended:
Yes
Amount Paid (US$): $4.99 - sale
Type of Toy: Blocks
Age Range of Child: Whole Family
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