Mega Bloks Booster Frame: Made from 3 sets designed to make this: Sets #97131, #97133, and #97170
Technical Specifications:
Build Time: 20 minutes (5 to take apart existing smaller sets, 5 to sort pieces and to to build)
Set Piece Count: 162 (piece count only includes parts for Booster Frame, base and EVA minifig. No weapons or the other two minifigs counted toward piece count)
Minifig: Teal EVA Spartan
Weapons: N/A
Accessories: N/A
Price: $30 (This is actually $10 each for three numbered sets)
And on with the pics!
Here are all three boxes lined up. I LOVE the way MEGA made the one side of them make a larger graphic. EXCELLENT design there!
Here are all three sets completed. Now ready for disassembly to then start building the Booster Frame. Don’t they look great together?!
All three set pieces sorted out.
The first few steps shown here. At the point it kind of reminds me of an X-Wing, without the wings…
The next steps of the Booster Frame. Note the inset graphic. It shows the placement of some strategic “pins” to keep the wings in an upward slanting position while horizontal. A great design solution!
The base for the booster frame.
Curiously these two pieces were NOT included in the instructions. However, I came up with the perfect solution for using them. You’ll see that in just a second.
Various views showing the completed set, sans the minifig. This really is a nice design, if a bit small by comparison to the ship in the Halo Legends cartoon.
And finally, here you see the minifig piloting the Booster Frame. Note the insert shows that I clipped on those two pieces to the red foot pegs. Then I was able to attach the minifig EASILY into place. Before attaching those pieces, the minifig had a tendency to flop around or fall off the ship. So I highly suggest using my fix for this.
Summary: As a set made from three individual sets, I like what was designed. It’s a little small to scale, when compared to the cartoon version. Still, that’s not a detractor at all for me. I’m just happy to have this ship. I honestly never thought we’d get it as it IS an obscure vehicle. But then…I should know better by now. MEGA are GREAT for giving us ships of all sorts from Halo!
Overall Rating: I give this set 9 out for 10 medals. It’s worth it to have a sleek looking small obscure ship form Halo. Having the set be a little bigger and include a Watcher to make up for what I think is a slight disadvantage in the Forerunner set, and this would have earned a perfect 10 with me.
Just one thing to point out that others have commented to me prior to this review. Some have complained about piece count and price. The cost of the three sets brings this to $30 before tax. You get a ship that has 162 pieces. That puts it at around the $16-17 range. Now consider you have three minifigs and count one weapon each for them. Each of those minifigs would be $3.50 sld seperately. So that’s another $10.50 toward the total. After all of this you still have 5 other weapons from the three sets to account for. This in my opinion makes the whole of the three sets WORTH the $30 you pay for them.
Some folks tend to think narrowly here and only want to say the Booster Frame costs $30. Not so, you also get the minifigs and weapons as I said, which easily make up the difference. And that excellent packaging, especially with the one side making a larger graphic… WIN!
That all said, I HIGHLY recommend this.
I need to once again thank my wife for getting me this. Another early Birthday present. As I’ve been saying, she’s the best!
-Sal
