Set Review: 70206 CHI Laval

[Hapori Tohu]

LEGO was kind enough to send us a batch of the LEGO Legends of Chima constraction sets for this year, so of course we're going to review them. We're kicking things off with 70206 CHI Laval, the brave but often problem-causing hero of the group. And don't worry, if you're bummed that these sets aren't available in North America, we're giving away a copy too! So continue on to watch our video and read the review!

 

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[GreatKhanArtist]

We really need some decent pics of everyone for spoilers before reviewing these! There is no coverage of Nuremberg on the website. Release dates?

[Vorahk1Panrahk2]

Man, that shield attachment is indeed awful. I'm also not entirely sold on his melee weapon which seems a bit busy with the two blades and the flame thing at the end. Nor is that Zamor sphere function anything to write home about.

 

What does really impress me, though, is the visual aesthetic. I'm a huge fan of the color scheme and I think the printing, especially that on the shield, is gorgeous. With that in mind I think this set would be far better for pure display (and MOCing) than for anything else.

 

Thanks for the review!

[dviddy]

We really need some decent pics of everyone for spoilers before reviewing these! There is no coverage of Nuremberg on the website. Release dates?

They will be available sometime in the summer (already on Amazon.uk from some retailers) but only in Europe and probably Asian markets. They will not be available in North America.

Edited May 26, 2014 by DeeVee

[Aanchir]

I like that method of attaching the shield, personally. It's a bit wobbly but not enough to be problematic, in my opinion.

 

I dislike the new torso shell. The pop-out CHI orb seems a bit pointless, since these characters ostensibly reprsent the CHI-enhanced versions of the characters and thus have no reason to be without a CHI orb. Plus, the torso looks just plain empty without a CHI core inserted. I'd have much preferred a torso shell with better connection points and a less spherical CHI orb that works similarly to the Hero Core from the Hero Factory sets.

 

The new weapon piece is cool, and I love its versatility (CHI Cragger uses it for an axe, CHI Laval for a sword, CHI Fluminox for a bow, and CHI Panthar for... whatever it is that he carries). But its ornateness bothers me because it seems like it would be out-of-place on any MOC with a more sci-fi/mechanical aesthetic. I much preferred the more generic (and thus, less specialized) appearance of last year's weapon pieces, even if they had fewer connection points.

 

The new piece which excites me the most is the new shell detail piece used for his shoulders. Even though it currently only comes in Warm Gold, it still looks like it'll be every bit as useful as previous shell detail pieces like the spherical one from Breakout wave 1 or the square one from Breakout wave 2.

 

The comparisons to the Laval minifigure are rather unfair because that minifigure is not depicting the same costume at all. The Laval minifigure for the "fire and ice" wave has no blue colors of any kind: see this set. Also, comparisons to the eye colors are unfair because the glowing eyes of the constraction sets are again supposed to represent CHI-enhanced versions of the characters. Official character portraits always represent this with blue eyes, while the constraction sets use blue eyes for good characters and red eyes for evil characters, but in any case it makes sense that the characters would not share the minifigures' yellow eyes.

 

But anyway, good review. Overall, I think the new CHI Laval looks pretty nice. Good color scheme, nifty armor, and a very unifying fire theme. But at the same time, his piece count is somewhat underwhelming compared to the other new constraction sets, especially considering that this year's Hero Factory sets also boast great piece counts. And he is definitely one of the more generic builds, unlike the new CHI Cragger who has improved on the complexity that last year's CHI Cragger already had.

[Wazdakka]

I think the new blade used on both Cragger and Laval looks absolutely stunning. It vaguely reminds me of Gresh's weapon.

[Mesonak]

This set is quite bland, boring, and general uninteresting, yet it still manages to pull of a nice, well-rounded appearance and feature a few nifty parts. I likely won't get it but it appears to be an okay set.

 

-Mesonak