So DV posted his latest set review on Raw Jaw. I'm kinda peeved over it. It's nothing DV did (great pictures as always Pat) but the general reaction to it. Member keep saying its the best ever, first review they've read, ext. Heck, everybody I met at the conventions told me they hadn't been reading the BZP reviews... and I did a lot this summer. Guess mine just suck then.

But now that I've got to handle just about all the Hero Factory 3.0 sets, I feel that I should at least blog about them and give some quick tips instead of long-winded front page reviews that nobody will read. (Oh wait this is in my blog so nobody will read it anyway oh well)

Heroes

Bulk: The color is great, the wolf head is serious THE BEST ever, and I even like the weapons better than those that the other Heroes have, despite their shortcomings. Seriously, I can see no reason why Bulk should not be at the VERY TOP of your list of Heroes to purchase.

Rocka: The gold is cool. The small claw pieces are cool, but the longer fingers / blades ruin the whole hand. It's stupid. And the head is too large, and the face-in-the-mouth just annoys me. Seriously, the only reason to get Rocka would be for the gold.

Nex: Weapon is decent, but still a little weird. Sabertooth cat head is nice, but the teeth do hang a little low. Needs more orange armor.

Stringer: Claw is cool, but what's that stupid hook on the back of it? Helmet is okay, but just doesn't have the same personality.

Rocka XL: Oh god, Fire Lord copy. Which is fine if you never got FL (I didn't) but it still has a lot of flaws, it hard to maneuver, and has spikes poking out in every direction. He's a good grab for lots of pieces (including lots of gold!) but after that just scrap him.

The only two HF 3.0 sets I do not have yet are Furno and Stormer, so I'm not going to critique them.

Villians

Witch Doctor: (I don't actually own him, I've just handled him at conventions) Well, he's different from Fire Lord and Rocka XL, so that's a plus. Uses a ton of red ball joints, and has plenty of other cool pieces. Skull element is especially cool. The build, from what I remember, is fairly solid, but he's not a great figure for posing, since so many of his joints are reinforced, which strengthens them while also limiting mobility. And he's pricy. So I would say he's middle of the road.

Fangz: Besides the horrible name, this set is unappealing. It goes for a canine look, but doesn't pull it off as well. Spikes in the neck are also a down point. Head is cool, as is the idea of the sloping spikes on the back. (In practise it doesn't work out as nicely as the main image.) Love the trans orange armor pieces, but wouldn't say he's the best.

Scorpio: Thank you Bionicle for planting the name Scopio in my mind every time I see this set's name. The color scheme is bleh; I hate it, and I'm sure it's the reason most other people hate it. I guess the price is also high... I wouldn't know, I got it for free. People complain about the legs being different; I see the design reason for this and it works, so I think those people who complain are wrong. Tail is awesome. Lots of great pieces. Also, a FUN BUILD. I had more fun with Scorpio than any of the other HF 3.0 sets. Sure, in the end it's not the best set ever, but it hardly deserves all the criticism it receives.

Waspix: WORST SET IN THE THEME. Ooh, six limbs, like we haven't seen that before. (Ben 10 anybody. Remember, we hated those sets.) The limbs aren't even special in any way, there's just more of them than usual. And the wings are bleh. Best part about this set; the trans yellow armor and the special ball joint attachment to the back. That's the reason I bought this set. But the rest of it is just horrible. I cannot see how people keep saying this is one of the better sets.

Raw Jaw: HE'S THE BEST. I was on the wall before I bought him; but after building him and handling him, he is by far superior to the other animals. He uses different joint connections that seem wrong at first, but then it turns out they work perfectly for his posing. The fists also use the two big claw / shield pieces effectively. Of course, the tail is lame, and the jaws are horrible and clunky, but those don't take away from the rest of the set. Don't get Fangz or Scorpio or Rocka XL (or Waspix... certainly don't get Waspix) get Raw Jaw. And buy Bulk for him to fight, with maybe Stringer or Nex.

The funny thing was, I wasn't going to buy any of these sets when I first heard about them. (Well, except Bulk, I thought he looked cool from the get-go). But after getting some of them from Lego, I just had to buy the rest, and I'm fairly satisfied with them, both piece-wise and set-wise.

So there's a list of overall thoughts about the Hero Factory 3.0 sets. Have at it as you will. I dunno about the story: I'm not getting comics and it's not appearing in Flash animations, just in TV episodes on a channel I don't get.