Some ratings of the Phantoka...
Kopaka Phantoka: 8/10
Great new wings. I think that the bayonet is rather small for a melee weapon, and just looks like an advanced Midak Skyblaster. Also, the arm armor keeps falling off when I try to move his arms.
Pohatu Phantoka: 8.4/10
The propellors are fun to spin, and he has two of them. Also, there is a shoulder-mounted Midak Skyblaster that fits in well. Three weapons in all, all of them with functions. These are the highlights of the set. The bad sides? There is a small kind of mask that doesn't cover his whole face (that might not be bad for you) and I think that he's too short. Well, I'm not sure about you, but I prefer taller sets.
Lewa Phantoka: 9.45/10
One of the best Phantoka, he stands tall and wears a neat mask. Also, there are two jetpacks and Matoro Twin Cutters that attach to the shoulders. Midak Skyblaster really fires!
Vamprah: 6.9/10
Good bat wings that attach to the arms. Neat hooks. Only one exclusive piece (the mask, of course) A Tridax Pod. Note that this Tridax Pod only works if you dump it on a hard surface. The bad parts? NO LEGS! Well, there are legs, but they are short and close to nothing. I would not recommend this set, but if you like blue, go ahead, he'll probably satisfy your thirst for blue things and add another Makuta to your collection. True hunter of the sky!
Chirox: 8.7/10
Very tall. Very long arms. Very skinny. Very nerd-like (just kidding). The mask is very neat, though it is not exclusive (See Mutran) Nice pieces for MOCing. Actually, I can't find many bad parts, except that he's rather skinny but tall. Like Brutaka, kind of. Not like Axonn. However, the set has no pieces that are only included in the Chirox set. (the melee weapons are part of the Jetrax T6 Bionicle vehicle)
Antroz: 8.35/10
The most in-balance of the Makuta sets, though with an abnormally small waist. However, he's not too tall (taller than most canisters) and not too short. Not too skinny and not too wide. The average of the Makuta, I would highly recommend that you buy Antroz. Also, he has cool new wings, a great Kanohi, and a Tridax Pod to explode Lewa with. Buy this set!
Mutran and Vican: 8.45/10
Mutran is practically a clone of Chirox, except for a few small differences (i.e. the weapons). Vican is hard to stand up, and like Kirop (thought not as much as Mutran resembles Chirox) Personally, I think that this is almost Chirox recolored. Not sure if you should get this one. Fans of green people (like me) should finish the deal and take him for the price of $15. Compared to the regular price for a Toa and a Matoran ($6) Mutran and Vican for $15 is a nice deal, but there aren't any pieces that aren't included in another set. That's just how store-exclusives work.
Icarax: 9.8/10
He's the best of the Phantoka. Tall. Great poseability. Four functions to keep you at bay. The Kanohi Krahkaan (with one small, almost unnoticeable difference than the 2003 Krahkaan) Let's get started. First, Icarax has many points of articulation (I haven't yet counted, but I think it's around 20) The functions. The Tridax Pod. As told in the Vamprah rating, this pod full of cute 'n cuddly (the Makuta would kill me for saying that) leeches. These leeches deserve a sentence or two to describe them. The leeches are bluish-green and have these neat little faces (they're supposed to terrorize the neighborhood and suck the light out of people) They do not really resemble actual leeches, which happen to suck the blood out of people. Anyway, enough on the Shadow Leeches. Just remember...they're nothing like they're supposed to be. Antroz is angry at me... So, next "function." The Krahkaan. Just as specified in the 2003 Krahkaan, you can flip it and see the other face on the side. The instructions say to put it with the weird face up, but I guess that you can pose it however you want. The moving wings on Icarax's back. They can be adjusted to change to many different ways. Great job, Lego designer people! And the spinning shield, which works perfectly. You just spin it, and it spins (as is the obvious) Anyway, Icarax is (in my opinion) the most awesome set of the Phantoka (though not out of all of the 2008 sets) and you should definitely buy him. Head over to a Toys 'r Us now! (or order him on Lego Shop at Home)
Next time: Reviews of all six of the Av-Matoran and the Shadow Matoran!
Yes, I have all of the Phantoka.
Also, these are just ratings and descriptions. The REAL set reviews come soon!
Saturday, May 10, 2008
Federation of Fear 8
Federation of Fear, Chapter 8
Brutaka pushed aside a pile of rubble and struggled to his feet. Around him, Spiriah and Roodaka were using shadow energy to blast themselves free. Vezon and Lariska were nowhere to be seen.
He glanced back toward the now blocked tunnel entrance. A few blasts of power would no doubt clear away the pile of rocks and stones, but Takadox would be long gone by now. There would be time to settle with him later.
"I've got him!"
Brutaka turned to see Lariska holding a squirming Vezon by the throat. "I caught him sneaking down a side tunnel," the Dark Hunter said.
"Let us track down that traitor," snarled Roodaka. "I want his shattered body beneath my heel."
"We're here to do a job," Brutaka replied. "We keep moving. All of us," he added, looking hard at Vezon.
The tunnel proved to be far more than a mere pathway. It opened upon a vast underground cavern spanned by a narrow bridge made of fibrous protodermis. Down below, the floor was littered with a massive tangle of what looked like dead branches intertwined with each other. Deep channels had been carved into the walls by lava flows over the centuries. Strange flying Rahi hung from the ceiling, their six eyes blinking slowly at the sight of intruders into their realm.
"Remind me not to let Makuta Krika arrange for my next pleasure trip," muttered Spiriah.
"This whole island is volcanic," said Brutaka. "Minor eruptions over the years, but nothing major. Tahu and Kopaka are supposed to have taken care of the problem. Otherwise, we would probably be flash fried by now."
"No Carapar, no Takadox," said Vezon in a sing-song voice. "Who will go next? Spiriah the Sullen? Brutaka the Boorish? Vezon the Vanquisher? Or Lariska --"
The Dark Hunter whipped out a dagger and flung it into the stone right at Vezon's feet. The mad half-Skakdi turned to her, smiling, and said, "Or Lariska, the wise, wonderful, and gloriously homicidal."
Brutaka led the way across the bridge. At the far side, light spilled through a narrow opening. The symbol of the Brotherhood of Makuta was seared into the stone beside that portal. Someone – maybe Krika, maybe Miserix – had marked their path, so long ago.
"What are we going to do with this legendary Makuta when we find him?" asked Roodaka. "What makes you think he will help the likes of you?"
"Miserix hates the Brotherhood for turning on him," Brutaka replied. "He would ally with three Matoran and an Ussal crab if it would get him revenge on his fellow Makuta."
"And so what will he be for you?" Roodaka pressed. "A general? A hero? A symbol around which to rally resistance to the Brotherhood?"
Brutaka shook his head. "Nothing quite so grand. He'll be a weapon, like a Rhotuka launcher or a ghost blaster. And we're going to aim him right at the Makuta fortress on Destral."
Roodaka smiled. "And who, might I ask... are 'we'?"
Brutaka smiled back, the grin of a Kavinika about to feast. "Now, now ... what you don't know won't cut you in two and dump you off this bridge."
"I hear something," said Lariska. "Up ahead... it might be a voice... or the rumble of the volcano."
"I hear something too," said Vezon.
"Shut up," replied Roodaka.
"And I see something as well," Vezon continued. "But since you aren't interested..."
"We're not," Roodaka snapped.
"Personally, I always find my comments and observations most interesting," Vezon rambled on. "You haven't truly lived until you have seen the world through the eyes of madness. Why, half the time I don't know if what I see is what's really there, or what I wish was there ... or what I pray, I beg, I plead is not."
"Why did we bring him again?" said Spiriah.
"He breaks up the monotony," said Lariska.
"I'd like to break something much more satisfying," hissed Roodaka. "I hear Skakdi make a most appealing sound when you snap them into pieces."
"But, since you seem to have no interest," Vezon continued, utterly disregarding his teammates' comments. "Well, then, I won't tell you that the floor is moving. You can find out on your own."
"The floor is...?" Brutaka repeated. He looked down. Far below, the tangled growth of dead branches had indeed begun to shift. The reason why rapidly became clear: they weren't branches at all, but the twisted limbs of thousands of crimson insects, now disentangling themselves from each other. Apparently, it was time to wake up and they were ready for their morning meal.
Swifter than anyone could have predicted, they began to swarm up the walls of the canyon on every side. In an instant, they had blocked the openings on both ends of the bridge. The surrounding rock was now gone, buried beneath a skittering sea of red and thousands of unblinking, predatory eyes.
"No, no, no," said Vezon, shaking his head. "Too late to apologize. Much, much too late."
Brutaka pushed aside a pile of rubble and struggled to his feet. Around him, Spiriah and Roodaka were using shadow energy to blast themselves free. Vezon and Lariska were nowhere to be seen.
He glanced back toward the now blocked tunnel entrance. A few blasts of power would no doubt clear away the pile of rocks and stones, but Takadox would be long gone by now. There would be time to settle with him later.
"I've got him!"
Brutaka turned to see Lariska holding a squirming Vezon by the throat. "I caught him sneaking down a side tunnel," the Dark Hunter said.
"Let us track down that traitor," snarled Roodaka. "I want his shattered body beneath my heel."
"We're here to do a job," Brutaka replied. "We keep moving. All of us," he added, looking hard at Vezon.
The tunnel proved to be far more than a mere pathway. It opened upon a vast underground cavern spanned by a narrow bridge made of fibrous protodermis. Down below, the floor was littered with a massive tangle of what looked like dead branches intertwined with each other. Deep channels had been carved into the walls by lava flows over the centuries. Strange flying Rahi hung from the ceiling, their six eyes blinking slowly at the sight of intruders into their realm.
"Remind me not to let Makuta Krika arrange for my next pleasure trip," muttered Spiriah.
"This whole island is volcanic," said Brutaka. "Minor eruptions over the years, but nothing major. Tahu and Kopaka are supposed to have taken care of the problem. Otherwise, we would probably be flash fried by now."
"No Carapar, no Takadox," said Vezon in a sing-song voice. "Who will go next? Spiriah the Sullen? Brutaka the Boorish? Vezon the Vanquisher? Or Lariska --"
The Dark Hunter whipped out a dagger and flung it into the stone right at Vezon's feet. The mad half-Skakdi turned to her, smiling, and said, "Or Lariska, the wise, wonderful, and gloriously homicidal."
Brutaka led the way across the bridge. At the far side, light spilled through a narrow opening. The symbol of the Brotherhood of Makuta was seared into the stone beside that portal. Someone – maybe Krika, maybe Miserix – had marked their path, so long ago.
"What are we going to do with this legendary Makuta when we find him?" asked Roodaka. "What makes you think he will help the likes of you?"
"Miserix hates the Brotherhood for turning on him," Brutaka replied. "He would ally with three Matoran and an Ussal crab if it would get him revenge on his fellow Makuta."
"And so what will he be for you?" Roodaka pressed. "A general? A hero? A symbol around which to rally resistance to the Brotherhood?"
Brutaka shook his head. "Nothing quite so grand. He'll be a weapon, like a Rhotuka launcher or a ghost blaster. And we're going to aim him right at the Makuta fortress on Destral."
Roodaka smiled. "And who, might I ask... are 'we'?"
Brutaka smiled back, the grin of a Kavinika about to feast. "Now, now ... what you don't know won't cut you in two and dump you off this bridge."
"I hear something," said Lariska. "Up ahead... it might be a voice... or the rumble of the volcano."
"I hear something too," said Vezon.
"Shut up," replied Roodaka.
"And I see something as well," Vezon continued. "But since you aren't interested..."
"We're not," Roodaka snapped.
"Personally, I always find my comments and observations most interesting," Vezon rambled on. "You haven't truly lived until you have seen the world through the eyes of madness. Why, half the time I don't know if what I see is what's really there, or what I wish was there ... or what I pray, I beg, I plead is not."
"Why did we bring him again?" said Spiriah.
"He breaks up the monotony," said Lariska.
"I'd like to break something much more satisfying," hissed Roodaka. "I hear Skakdi make a most appealing sound when you snap them into pieces."
"But, since you seem to have no interest," Vezon continued, utterly disregarding his teammates' comments. "Well, then, I won't tell you that the floor is moving. You can find out on your own."
"The floor is...?" Brutaka repeated. He looked down. Far below, the tangled growth of dead branches had indeed begun to shift. The reason why rapidly became clear: they weren't branches at all, but the twisted limbs of thousands of crimson insects, now disentangling themselves from each other. Apparently, it was time to wake up and they were ready for their morning meal.
Swifter than anyone could have predicted, they began to swarm up the walls of the canyon on every side. In an instant, they had blocked the openings on both ends of the bridge. The surrounding rock was now gone, buried beneath a skittering sea of red and thousands of unblinking, predatory eyes.
"No, no, no," said Vezon, shaking his head. "Too late to apologize. Much, much too late."
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
Posts
