Futuron: Box Retrospective part I

I feel it would be a disservice to not bring up the Lego company's old alternate designs.  They were a great part of my childhood, apparently a source of much frustration for other children, and a delight if they were actually figured out...when they were good.

Sadly they aren't offered on the boxes anymore, which is a great oversight, but given how specifically the sets are built today, I can't blame the Lego group, the sets are no longer made with an eye towards variety, but rather towards accuracy; I'm looking at you licensed themes. This has led to some interesting trade offs, which I'm not prepared to talk about...so

On to the boxes.

First up I want to thank msilverm for posting a picture of 6810 Laser Ranger's alternate models.  It's the only one I could find.
Source: http://www.brickshelf.com/cgi-bin/gallery.cgi?f=133323

I really like the background colors used in Futuron.  They blend together to really make the theme colors, (or lack of them), pop in the image.



The first thing that grabbed my attention here is the little robot.  It's very clever with its limited palette of pieces, but there is so much character to it.
The little scooter is also very nice, It's got a bug eyed look that just screams chibi-Futuron
And then there's that long ship on the bottom...I'm not really digging it, it just seems like an alternate model bent on using the 2x8 white plate, and not a particularly good attempt at that.



Second up since I'm using Brickshelf it's 6848 Strategic Pursuer
Airmauro thanks Alsazian and I in turn thank the both of them for these pictures of the box.
http://www.brickshelf.com/cgi-bin/gallery.cgi?f=350720

I was a good decision by the Lego group to show Strategic Pursuer tilted as it just doesn't look so good standing straight up.



The back of the box shows the window's rising function...eh, okay.
I'm kind of fond of that cannon, radar thing at the top right, and the space craft isn't bad, but the floating robot boxer is just weird.

 

Third Box: Represent 6884 Aero Module
This one is just from Airmauro
http://www.brickshelf.com/cgi-bin/gallery.cgi?f=320693

The box does a good job of bringing life to the otherwise uninspired construction of Aero Module.  Yes it's got the window, and yes the wing locking system is excellent, but at the end of the build it's still heavily reliant on far to many uninteresting pieces that don't work great in many combinations.



The designers did their best, but hamstrung as it is by a wealth of plates the models appear stretched and empty.  As it turns out the Lego company did use the window on one of the alternates.  It might be the best alternate, but it's a prisoner to the previous construction, and less interesting overall.

 

You know what, Airmauro has a really cool idea on Brickshelf, which I'll get to in a moment.
Here's 6925 Interplanetary Rover
http://www.brickshelf.com/cgi-bin/gallery.cgi?f=322165

Excellent photography and placement gives the set a lively presentation.



The Robot and spacecraft on the left side are pretty cool, but I'm not sold on that top right rover.
Overall I think the models do a good job showing off the part variety, and the cars at the bottom are a nice touch.  I'd most likely build the robot if I were still a kid with loads of free time.

 

Last but first, but wait what?

Anyways, here's 6830 Space Patroller, the outset model I blogged first.
Brought to you by Stevebd
http://www.brickshelf.com/cgi-bin/gallery.cgi?f=469255

It took a bit to find a box to show you and it's a bit damaged.  But what can you do?



Overall I think the designers really nailed the alternates with this one.  There's a robo dog, a satellite tower, and a pretty good pair of unique space craft.  The set looks elegant and simple when built, which only serves to highlight just how well it brings together many disparate elements.

 

If you're interested Airmauro has a museum section among his Brickshelf Folders where you can find many boxes with alternate models posted.  Cool stuff.
http://www.brickshelf.com/cgi-bin/gallery.cgi?m=AirMauro

This ends the first retrospective.

Lego 6810

Today is a big day, I am reviewing a set with the black Futuron astronaut.  He is one of the rarer Futuron spacemen, so I won't get to do this very often.  Let's relish the moment.

Ahh, sweet perfection, bliss, that grand feeling.  Here is Laser Ranger; one of the best examples of  tiny Lego sets.  It is also a fine Futuron model.  If you were only to have one Futuron set, and you were buying on pocket change; then look no further; this is your set.

Like most of the Futuron line Laser Ranger features moving parts.  In this case they are the wings and rocket boosters.

The Black Futuron Astronaut came in three sets, 6810 Laser Ranger, 6885 Crater Crawler, and 6703 Minifig Pack.  It is my personally held opinion that these are all above average Futuron sets.  Someone at Lego must have loved this minifig color.

Alas, poor Yorick! I knew him, Horatio

― William Shakespeare, Hamlet 

Laser Ranger came out in 1989 and was the last Futuron set to provide the Black Futuron astronaut, but it was the first and only year of Space Police, which borrowed the shirt and altered the hands to white.  I am of the opinion that this uncommon minifigure could potentially be available in greater numbers than Blue and red, if not yellow.  All one must do is procure the parts.  Of course, this could lead to a drastic decline in Space Police numbers, so I don't recommend you run out and do this yet; as I'm not done collecting Space Police.  It would be inconvenient for me if they suddenly got even more expensive.

Notable unique Futuron parts include:

The goblet times two in white.  Pretty spiffy for such a small set.  This is the only set to get more than one white cup and there are only eight other sets to contain the part.  2 Belleville sets, 1 Juniorized Pirate set, 1 Harry Potter set, and 2 castle sets adding an additional re-release for each of them, (Wow)  I expect then that in a very real sense only three of these sets are the sort that would invite consideration from you, the typical readers of this blog.  This set is the cheapest way to get these cups in quantity, though Guarded Inn and Knights challenge are certainly the most desirable.

This wall piece times 2 in white...I could have sworn Futuron had more of these.  Oh well, learn something new everyday.  It's not particularly rare otherwise.

Other notable parts include

The White grille is only shared with Star Quest, and Laser Ranger has two, giving the Futuron theme three in total.

Finally, we come to an anomalous part from Classic Space.  This piece is also only shared with Star Quest and the implication to my mind is a Futuron connection with Classic Space, suggesting direct lineage.  It is a good print, one of my favorites in fact, so I can't fault its use here. It's fairly common in white.

To Laser Ranger's credit there is a nice selection of specialized and transparent pieces within the set, though it is a bit spare on basic pieces, having only two standard plates and one sloped brick with a print, all the other pieces are specialized.
It's an interesting challenge to build something distinctive with this set.  Here's what I came up with for my alternate build.

It's a handy little space scooter, ready to zip from crater to base and whither the moon dust goes.

Final score A
Pros: Black Spaceman, nice parts, classic space print
Cons: Lacking in basic pieces

Lego 6848

It is my pleasure to bring you another quaint entry from Futuron's exhaustive theme.  Today I bring you Strategic Pursuer, the only true mech in the Futuron lineup.

The Mech is by all accounts hunting rogue Black-tron miscreants, though during work hours I could see this little dude helping to load a certain space train at the depot given its arms and claws, or even doing dangerous repair work on damaged spacecraft.  If only taken at face value this set brings a welcome variety to the Futuron theme.  I kind of wish more Futuron sets had been built with a goal towards dockwork.  I mean, the train carries cargo, and the common theme of the series is carrying something smaller; albeit not in this instance.   The whole cargo carrying thing would be most prominent in the later theme M-Tron.  It certainly seems as though Futuron was presaging that immensely excellent play feature called crates.  Of course to be fair, even Classic space had crates aboard space ships from time to time; and in my opinion, a good crate and carrying combo will always win over flick fire missiles any day.  For one thing, crates don't vanish into thin air like missiles do if you're too enthusiastic with your flicking.

Of course packages do get lost in the mail, but who are we to kid ourselves, this is the future.  Nothing bad ever happened in the future.  Unless those Blacktron dudes showed up.

Strategic Pursuer is an intriguing design that pushed the limits of Lego building technology for the time.  It wanted to be a walker, but was restricted to a degree by the choice of hinges from the then current selection.  It was visually successful to a degree, but from a play perspective the footwork is just not quite there.  Tilting is no problem, but walking?  Not so much.

The other sophisticated building technique is in the arms.  The Lego designers swung the plates out at a 45 degree angle.  This added a bit more scope of movement to the reach and function for the mech.
This also serves to highlight the restraints still holding designs of the time back.

I'm one to fuss about new Lego not being what I grew up with, and that's my own personal nostalgia.  I think the sets of today have marvelous functionality, and looking at Strategic Pursuer certainly highlights just how well the newer mecha have turned out.  It's just that I grew up with Lego that looked a certain way, and they were beautiful, and they still are, whereas the back of Exoforce robots make me shudder at the hideously exposed rear ends.  There are some construction solutions I just can't get behind.

Here's a selection of unique to Futuron parts.

First we have this angle plate in black.  There are two of these in Strategic Pursuer, and while the theme contains several in the white color, this is the only set with black.

 Second we have this inverted slope in white.  The set has two of this piece, and the theme contains no other examples in any color.  It's too bad as this is sometimes a very handy piece.

The only other piece that might be notable is this octagonal window.  Of course you can get two of these in Stardefender 200, and with that set hovering between 30 and 50 dollars it'd be criminal not to.  But if you're that cash strapped, then this set is certainly a good way to add the window to your collection.  It is the solid top variant, as opposed to the cross axle variant introduced in Spyrius.

Overall the set is a decent mix of pieces, favoring plates over bricks as the Futuron theme is wont to do.  I get annoyed by the high plate count; but only because I have plans for building a purist mothership with the Futuron parts sometime in future, and all the plates with smatterings of bricks are making me wonder how well my plan will work.

But enough said about the set, lets see what else it can be.

For its size Strategic Pursuer feels quite varied in its part selection.  There are only nine unique parts (primarily from the yellow spaceman) but the variety of parts and their quantity are greater than the finished model would have you believe.  Broken down this set just feels big.

And here are some spacecraft.

All in all 6848 is a very nice set that brings a lot to the table, it doesn't quite hit a home run, but if anything its failings only serve to highlight just how close it was to perfection.

Final score A-
Pros: Excellent Part variety, octagon canopy, decent second hand prices
Cons: Yellow Spaceman, almost good articulation

Futuron 6884 Aero Module

Hello again, everyone...returning to Futuron yet again I have found another classic construction toy to talk about from childhood memories of pictures in pamphlets.  Psych!

Today's Futuron vessel of choice is 6884 Aero Module, an elegant space ship reminiscent of its big brother Star Defender 200.  Whereas Aero Module's big sibling is a beautiful ship sporting excellent aesthetic, Aero Module is an example of ingenious engineering with simple bricks.  As Shakespeare was once misquoted, Simplicity is the heart of functionality.

Before I get into the parts, or the model itself, I want to talk about the hallmark of this set's design.  Right there for all of you to see is one of Lego's biggest windows, usually reserved for the rarefied airs of the big sets, yet here it is on a small set.

In an even stranger twist, this is one of the Lego company's most ingenious uses for the piece.  The window sits on hinges so it can be raised and lowered, nothing special, Star Defender 200 (see below) can do that as well.

But unlike with Stardefender 200's loose canopy, you can lock Aero Module's window in place by opening the wings, or airfoils,

All of this is done with two hinge plate assemblies, and two 1x3 plates above those bricks at the back of the wings.  No special jiggery poke was needed to get the job done, just good old fashioned part placement.

Ta Dah!

whichever you prefer.  It's amazing how perfectly the window's shape allows for this mechanism, there's not a millimeter of extra wiggle room betwwen the window and car console.

The window and the robot's seating placement combine to keep the tiny car firmly planted until you want to remove it.  This is some stellar planning.  The result is a swooshable spacecraft.

Alley-oop...

Hey this ain't sO?

It's time to find a new mineral on this little moon.

Next to its big brother Stardefender 200 the shape of Aero Module is not as expressive, sure it's got a robot, and a Blue Astronaut, but it's basically a window set over bricks and plates shaped solely to fit the window for the least amount of money.

The surprising thing is that the design succeeded in being clever, and elegant.  I would argue that this is one of the nicer looking Futuron sets; except that its copycat central fuselage has to stand in the shadows of Futuron's flagship 6932 Stardefender 200.

The headlights/lasers, under-body engines, and wings don't call attention to themselves, but provide just enough spacey goodness to boost the look, and ensure that kids won't be disappointed by the smorgasbord of plates come Christmas.

I wish this set had been in plenty for my Christmases, as the window ceased to be available to small budgets after it's initial arrival in 1987.  My guess is that after its initial release the Lego designers were baffled as to where else they could take this piece within the smaller sets, and so it remained exclusively a large ship/base window forever after; much to my childish chagrin.  Well till '96 anyway; when it was retired, never to be seen again.

Aside from the window, the Aero Module also contains the Blue Astronaut, which is personally, my favorite color among the four, Yellow (Overused), Red (Criminally underused), Black (Too much similarity with Space Police), and Blue (just right).  I drooled at the possibility of ever having any Futuron minifigs.

The single greatest incitement of this drooling was found within the pages of the 1990 Idea Book seen here.  Golly I loved this book, I didn't know what the futuron sets looked like, save 6990, but I had to have them.  Looking back on it now this idea book is actually pretty useless as I've exceeded its best ideas, but there's my childhood infatuation; make of it what you will.  I'll come back to this at some point in a future post.

In an analysis of parts 6884 is rather shabby, after the window it doesn't seem to offer much.  But I should remark upon the excellent cabin, the control scheme mix is among the best in theme.  Even Star Defender 200 has nothing on this...

Most of the Futuron Unique Parts are on the robot, and all of the robot parts are only unique by color.  For brevity's sake, here's the whole thing.

The blue Space Control panel only shows up in two space sets, Cosmic Charger holds the other one, and if you want my opinion...Cosmic Charger is just a friggin motorboat with wings that's only as good as its parts; Oh snap!  I just insulted a Classic Space set... pretty good parts though...

As for the robot arms, I like that you can get them in blue, it's just a great color for them, sure you could also get them in any of four classic space sets, but you probably won't find them in a cheaper model than 6884.

 

 


6884 Aero Module is Futuron's sole proprietor of the following plates:

One 6x8 white plate, completely unique to Aero Module, there are no others within the theme in any color.  Fairly vanilla piece all told.

The small wing, left and right, again in any color.  A bit less vanilla than the above 6x8...

Funny, I'd consider these wings a staple of any respectable space ship, if you want to build Futuron Purist creations, then definitely consider it for the wings; they can be handy, if under appreciated.  I hadn't even noticed, but now it's so obvious, Aero Module is the only Futuron set with actual wings.

Now that I've gone through all that preliminary blowhard stuff, how does the set do for construction possibilities.  I'm actually very curious because that window just begs to be used, but is it possible to use it in an alternate build without giving up the coolness factor?

The designers gave it a shot, and skipped it three out of the four times.

Overall the alternates reveal the heavy use of plates.  On the one hand the designs do look good, but they fail to excite me, they lack, that something extra that a better part mix might bring.  Maybe my tune will change when I've tried building them, but for now...

Here is my Slave 1 inspired take on the giant window.  I'm not especially impressed, though the landing gear holds it up rather well, and as a side note, I only had 7 pieces left over after finishing.

Upon updating this post I've made a new alternate, I'll leave the old alternate picture for your curiosity (Not worth rebuilding) , but I believe this one is a fair bit nicer.

From dead on you can see the very steep incline of the wings...I'm quite happy with the headlight cluster as well...one minute I thought 'this will be stupid,' and then I looked at it and by gum it works!

Realize your ideas, and learn your lessons, from the many failures you will discover success...

This is much more to my liking, it doesn't stretch the set's limits quite as much, but by golly, it's swooshable.  And just because I bragged about 7 leftover bits last time...this only left out 1.

Upon revisiting this set I'm definitely smiling more about it, the bright jewel like colors pop in the pictures and I definitely am happier with both the set, and this blog post.  I won't change my rating, but it will be noted as a strongly recommended B+.

Fare thee well readers, until next time.

Final decision: B+
Pros: Still reasonably priced used, Giant Window, Blue Spaceman
Cons: Glorified Plates Pack