Review: #7051 Tripod Invader

[RobExplorien]

LEGO Alien Conquest #5071 Tripod Invader
Review by RobExplorien

Today's review will be on a set, which is a mixture of Town and Space. Alien Conquest was not a very long lasting theme, having only been active in (early) 2011. Nonetheless, the theme marked the revival of the classic dish-shaped LEGO spacecraft, just like the UFO theme from the late '90s. This time, the aliens attempt to destroy humanity, a scenario which had not been known in former Space years for LEGO. That's why the secret services set up a special defense unit, the ADU (Alien Defense Unit).
This review will cover the #7051 Tripod Invader, a set from May 2011, sold at a retail price of $19,99 (according to Brickipedia). 

 

The Alien Conquest logo is nicely done, and with the greenish colours of the box, I get that old UFO feeling back. Aged 7-14? Hmm, LEGO just doesn't seem to learn from TFOL's and AFOL's . The Tripod Invader is pictured in action, with the human fleeing with fear. But watch out, the Alien Clinger is hungry for...ehm...hair!

I was also surprised that the box is not very thick (excuse me if I'm not using the correct term). Is LEGO saving up on space? They should, as I often notice how much room there is left in the box when I open a new set.

The back of the box shows that the saucer is detachable from the legs, and how to safely lock up a human. Another funny feature is the facial expression of the human minifigure, and how it changes when the Alien Clinger takes place over his head. His hair covers up his 'second face', and won't make him look mutant-like unless he goes bald.

 

A recurring part of my reviews, the contents:

• 165 pieces (including spare parts)
• instructions
• sticker sheet with 8 stickers

 

Something LEGO does best are instructions. It's always (or at least mostly) very well explained how to build the set. An inside peek at the instructions (if you look carefully, you can see alien language in a darker-green colour than the background):

 

Next up are the minifigures. I don't know if I should consider the Alien creatures as minifigures as well, but they do consist of minifig-parts (well, the Alien Clinger can be seen as headgear). The hair on the businessman looks good with relief, and all three look very detailed too with printings on both sides. The raygun of the Alien Trooper makes him look even more dangerous. I'd say there's only one minifigure missing, the ADU-trooper.

 

The building consists of four parts:

• Minifigures
• Saucer
• Legs
• Laserpart

After the minifigures, the building starts on the saucer. The cockpit is pretty big for this Trooper, but the round shape makes it look more like a 'classic' saucer (as you see them in cartoons). The transgreen prison pod at the rear reminds me of two things; the transgreen parts of predecessing Space themes (like Blacktron and UFO), and the old prison pods from Space Police. The saucer has two smaller lasers at the front, and the Alien Trooper probably controls both movement of the saucer and those lasers with the two joysticks in the cockpit.

I bet you've already seen the stickers on the saucer. The UFO theme had printings instead of stickers, so I wonder why LEGO chose for stickers this time. I'm not a fan of them, but still add great detailing to the set (the alien language on the sides and the bumper sticker saying "We've been to Earth").

 

Now for the legs of the tripod. I'm impressed with the way of linking bricks with eachother at this part. I wouldn't have come up with this way of building. LEGO Technic parts are used to attach all three legs with eachother in the middle. This makes the legs still moveable to the inside or outside. I've already attached the laserpart on the legs, to show you where the saucer will be mounted on. This laserpart also has stickers (this is where the remaining 4 stickers had to be placed), and the laser itself can be moved freely into a lot of positions.

 

The result after half an hour of building is the Tripod Invader. The LEGO citizens do not like aliens that much, especially when it comes to Alien Clingers. By the way, watch out for that laser he's pointing at him.

I always wonder what extraterrestrials will think of us when they see how we perceive spacecraft. What if our thoughts are completely wrong, and extraterrestrials have completely different looking spacecraft.

 

Where is the ADU when you need them. The businessman is already caught by the Alien Trooper, and he's planning on catching more pesky humans. Can you spot the Alien Clinger in the image below?

 

I do have trouble getting the saucer off the legpart. I can't take it off easily, and need to use force to detach the saucer from the legparts. You can also see what I mean by saying 'this makes the legs still moveable to the inside or outside'. By the way, it was inevitable for the businessman to overpower the Alien Trooper. He has a suitcase, the Trooper a raygun, two smaller lasers and one big one, an Alien Clinger, a prison pod and the whole Tripod Invader itself.

 

Having this set examined and tested, I come to the following conclusion:

• Boxart fits with the theme (greenish look), and the dimensions are storage-friendly (not a very thick box).
• Instructions, what can I say about those. It speaks for itself, well-explained building. Don't have much to say about this.
• The stickers weren't necessary for the saucer. The UFO theme had printings, and I can't see why this saucer shouldn't have them.
• The Tripod Invader is a nice looking set, with detailed stickers and minifigs, and an interesting way of building the legpart. The cockpit seems a little bald, and doesn't have a control panel, which I think is essential for such a set.

Lots of moveable parts and alien accessories (Clinger, raygun etc.) makes this set fun to play with, but the saucer is stiffly placed on the legpart, and pretty hard to just take off with ease.

 

Rating
Design: 8
Quality: 7
Fun: 7
Price: 8

[Cyrem]

While I've never been a real fan of this theme, the little walker without the ship on top looks cool.

Thanks for the review.