- Thursday, December 22, 2016 11:40 AM
- DisneyDan
Hello everyone,
In today's review I am going to take a close-up look at eleven sets from the Half Shell Heroes line in the TMNT Mega Bloks range.
The first set is Donnie Skateboard, which is set number DMW40. This set contains 26 pieces, including one minifigure.
The front and the back of the box:
The contents of the box:
The completed set:
Front and back of the minifigure:
I would give this set four out of five. While it isn't particularly thrilling for me, I have to take it in the context of this range actually being aimed at a much younger audience than the regular Nick line, and definitely much younger than the comic book or classic lines. So, with that in mind, it's a fun set. It should also be noted that of the ten I am reviewing today - which is nearly the entire Half Shell Heroes range (there are some that still elude me!), this is the only one to contain Donatello, which is a crying shame. Both Mega Bloks and Playmates Toys (who make the regular TMNT action figures) are guilty of excluding Donnie about 50% of the time, and I don't really understand why. As you can probably gather from the photos above, Donnie can ball up with that shield-like thing. The purpose of that will become clear when we get to some later sets.
The next set is Raph Skateboard, which is set number DMW39. This set contains 21 pieces, including one minifigure.
The front and the back of the box:
The contents of the box:
The completed set:
Front and back of the minifigure:
I would give this set four out of five. As with the Donnie Skateboard, this one serves its purpose, and I am sure little kids will have a lot of fun with it. Again, like the Donnie set, Raph can curl up, the purpose for which will become clear with the next set, below.
The next set is Pizzeria Hideout, which is set number DMW48. This set contains 54 pieces, including one minifigure.
The front and the back of the box:
The contents of the box:
The completed set:
Front and back of the minifigure:
I would give this set four out of five. The purpose of the shield thing that I mentioned with the two previous sets now becomes clear. You can use that clip device to "fire" them at the Kraang! This is a fun set because it has some good moving parts that make the pizzeria suffer "damage", such as the swinging sign and the falling lamp post. You'll see a few of the Kraang characters throughout the coming sets (below), and I would like to point out that while the style is unique to this Half Shell Heroes line (the regular Nick line ones are much, much different), the underside of them is designed to fit both the Half Shell Hero base pieces and the regular base pieces, meaning that these Kraang can easily come invade the regular line! I do also find it interesting that across many of the sets in this line, there is a combination of the larger, chunkier "younger" pieces, and the smaller more regular style pieces. This set has a few, and as you'll see in the sets below, there are a lot more, too. As with the Donnie set, this is the only one so far that I have with Mikey in it.
The next set is Factory Battle, which is set number DPF58, and contains 56 pieces, including one minifigure.
The front and the back of the box:
The contents of the box:
The completed set:
Front and back of the minifigure:
I would give this set five out of five. This is actually my favourite set in the Half Shell Heroes line. I love that is has Kraang Sub-Prime in it - a character which we are yet to see in the regular line. Sub-Prime aside, it is actually a fun set, too. The computer workstation spins around, as does the the platform that has the crane on it. Leo also has one of those firing clip things to take out Sub-Prime.
The next set is Cookie Factory, which is set number DMW49. This set contains 43 pieces, including one minifigure.
The front and the back of the box:
The contents of the box:
The completed set:
Front and back of the minifigure:
I would give this set four our of five. I don't think this is one of the most exciting sets in the range, but it does have a Mouser in it, which is pretty neat. Again, there are moving parts which cause destruction to the factory, which I am sure younger kids will find amusing. As with the previous couple of sets, Raph has a launcher to fire himself around the room.
The next set is Leo Turtle Buggy, which is set number DMW43, and contains 32 pieces, including one minifigure.
The front and the back of the box:
The contents of the box:
The completed set:
Front and back of the minifigure:
I would give this set three and a half out of five. I actually don't see a real point to this one. Perhaps younger children will like it, but it doesn't seem to serve any real purpose and has no relevance to the TV series really. The disc fires out of the front of the car, which is about the most exciting part of it. Other than that, it's a fairly standard vehicle set.
The next set is Raph Shell Cycle, which is set number DPF57, and contains 36 pieces, including one minifigure.
The front and the back of the box:
The contents of the box:
The completed set:
Front and back of the minifigure:
I would give this set four out of five. This one is a little more exciting than Leo's car. At least Raph is a little more adventurous with his vehicle choice - this one has three wheels instead of four, and a cool cockpit covering! There is a disc that fires out the front, just like Leo's.
The next set is Turtle Chopper, which is set number DMX11. This set contains 78 pieces, including two minifigures.
The front and the back of the box:
The contents of the box:
The completed set:
Front and back of the minifigures:
I would give this set four and half out of five. So Leo got the bad deal with the car, but he gets compensation with being allowed to fly a helicopter! It's a neat design, if a little clunky. As with the cars, there is a disc that fires from the front. There is also some sort of mutagen canister firing pad. I don't know whether it's meant for Shredder or Leo, though I assume Shredder, since he would be devoid of a weapon otherwise. It is also great to get a set with a different character other than the TMNT and a Kraang.
The next set is Turtle Jet Blaster, which is set number DXV87. This set contains 77 pieces, including one minifigure.
The front and the back of the box:
The contents of the box:
The completed set:
Front and back of the minifigure:
I would give this set three and a half out of five. Raph obviously got jealous of the chopper and decided to have a flying machine of his own, but sadly it fails a little. The design of this one is not the best. Even for young kids this one is awkwardly put together and doesn't really look very stylish or flight worthy! Raph can be fired from the front of the craft at the Kraang sitting in its little pod, and that's about the most exciting part! You will notice that this set's box has the new branding on it - Mega Bloks are apparently transitioning from Mega Bloks to Mega Construx!
Next we come to the Mikey Jet Cruiser, which is set number DMW42. The set contains 34 pieces, including one minifigure.
The front and the back of the box:
The contents of the box:
The completed set:
The front and the back of the minifigure:
Over all I wold give this set three and a half out of five. It does give us another Mikey set in the range, but other than that it really isn't
too exciting, honestly. As always, you can fire a clear shell from the front of the vehicle, and Mikey can sit in the seat to steer it. An average set.
The final set is Turtle Lair Battle. It is set number DMX12, and contains 115 pieces including one minifigure.
The front and the back of the box:
The contents of the box:
The completed set:
Front and back of the minifigure:
I would give this set five out of five. The flying Kraang vehicle actually looks pretty decent, and there are a lot of fun moving parts, such as the sewer hatch, the pizza flipper and the computer that falls over. The slide is a fun idea, and including a Mouser in addition to the Kraang was a smart move to get that character in another set.
Over all it is not a bad range, though it is very Raph heavy (five for him, versus three for Leo, and just one each for Mikey and Don - but remember, there may be a couple missing that I am yet to find). It would be nice if Mega Bloks/Construx added some new characters going forward, and included Mikey and Donnie more often.
Have a great day everyone,
Dan.