Special Edition Jetrax T6 Review
Entry posted by Aanchir
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Thanks to money obtained from a summer job, I was able to provide my brother Lyichir with a very special Christmas present: The Special Edition Jetrax T6! He has given me permission to review it here in my blog.
Presentation
From the design of the box to the instruction manual, these are the first things you see before building the set.
Jetrax's box is, like Mazeka's, very similar to that of the Rockoh T3. If you want an in-depth look at the motifs of that box, visit my Rockoh T3 review Like Mazeka's though, there are some significant differences, particularly in the special edition version of the set:
- The word BIONICLE with the signature Ignikaman in the "O" is gold on all sides of the box.
- The box is waaay larger-- even in height to Takanuva's box but about twice as wide.
- Beneath the nose of the vehicle on the front of the box is a big ol' yeller circle (similar to Mazeka's), screaming "Limited Edition" above and "New Color" below a graphic best described as {New Antroz standing} {plus sign} {Jetrax in landing position}.
- The words "Limited Edition- New Color" appear in yellow text on the left side of the box in three languages.
The layout of the box is almost identical to Rockoh's aside from these points. Interestingly, though, we notice some facts about the vehicle sets in general-- each has a completely unique backdrop on the front of the box. While all depict the swamp, they are different places in the swamp, and I noticed while browsing sets in Target once that the Axalara T9's even shows the Codrex with a distant Rockoh T3 emerging.
On the back of the box the layout is just as similar. An actual-size Antroz stands in front of the folded yellow Jetrax T6, beneath the BIONICLE logo, the name "Jetrax T6 (which, while not as prominent, is also gold-colored), and a picture of presumably some Danish kid's hand holding Jetrax T6 by its handle. A sidebar to the right shows the other two T-vehicles, and four images run along the bottom of the box-- the first showing the Jetrax unfolding when the top button is pressed, the second showing it folding when the bottom button is pressed, the third showing the cockpit closing over Antroz, and the fourth showing a hand using one of the Midak Skyblasters. All but the last have easy-to-understand arrows explaining each scene's action. The B.I.O. code and the LEGO logo appear in the bottom right-hand corner along with the set number.
Moving on, we see that like the other T-vehicles the yellow Jetrax T6 has three instruction booklets and three bags of parts (notably fewer bags than Rockoh's four). You'll surely be in a hurry to open the first of each. The instruction booklets are much like Rockoh's, with a Phantoka and Av/Shadow Matoran blurb on the back of the first, a Mistika blurb on the back of the second, and a large boxed set blurb inside the back of the first. Notably, though, the Jetrax has the T-vehicle set blurbs (including, surprisingly, the blue version of the set alongside the other two sets) on the two-page spread before the one-page blurb for Vultraz, Takanuva, and Toa Ignika, the third of which kind of spoils the consistency of the page with his "hexagon tunnel" backdrop rather than the swamp backdrop of every other set's "window" The window frames, by the way, have our favorite Codrex pattern of concentric circles around the Ignikaman.
Building
Half the fun is had building the set. How fun is it to build and how easy or challenging is it?
Instruction booklet one begins by instructing you to open bag one, containing Antroz's parts. Antroz is a simple build whose appearance will be addressed in detail in later sections. His mask notably varies from the masks of the Pohatu and Lewa figures in the other T-vehicles in that it uses a red pin to attach to the head, thus eliminating the need for a hole in the front. Was this worthwhile? I cannot say. You are then instructed to open bag two and begin building the Jetrax T6. For its awkward shape and largely pin-and-beam structure, the center part of the craft's body is rather sturdy. It also looks clunky as it is being built, but will take on a more streamlined appearance later in the same instruction booklet. The instruction booklet ends when the structure of the cockpit is complete.
The next instruction booklet addresses the cockpit's rollcage and details such as the handlebars, auxiliary engines, and rear landing gear. Several Kopaka Nuva Phantoka Blizzard Blades appear near the cockpit, laser beam pieces included. I am unsure if these are meant to resemble blasters or some sort of targeting system (essential for Antroz's vision). About halfway through this instruction booklet Antroz is hooked into the cockpit and the third phase of building (using the third bag of parts) begins. This essentially consists of the wings, handle, and massive engines, possibly the best-selling sections of the craft. It uses the popular four-knob gears also featured in the other T-vehicles as well as older sets like the Ussanui. Gear functions may be back, but the old toothed variety of gears from the Toa Mata may very well have disappeared without any sort of fanfare.
The last instruction booklet is where the action features of the set begin to come together. This means lots of beams, pins, and rubber bands. At multiple points during construction a hand is shown pressing the large beam either above or below to switch from open to closed mode, since different parts of the wings are easier in different positions.
When Lyichir was building this he misaligned the central beam, attaching it one hole too low. Believe me, you do not want to do this. When the craft seemed finished the action feature failed to work as spontaneously and Lyichir had to undo several parts of the construction to fix this problem. Pay close attention to this part, people.
Once the wings are finally attached via several pins, the Toa Matau Aero Slicers that cover the connection points of the two sections are the last addition. At last the Jetrax T6 is done!
Set Design
Now that the set is complete, we can critique how it looks from every angle. New or interesting pieces can also be examined here.
Antroz's vehicle form is, unlike Lewa and Pohatu's adaptive vehicle forms, scarcely like his original form. Besides some vaguely familiar patterns on his forehead and the shape of the new mask's eyes, there are few similarities between this form of the Jutlin and the other, although to be fair some forms of the Kraahkan have been worse in regard to similarity. His armor is entirely different. I am able to forgive this, however, because I notice that it is almost the same as Icarax's in several ways, despite having simpler but still similar feet and shorter lower arms. Perhaps the set designers originally planned for Icarax to ride it, but changed their minds for some reason? Maybe they wanted a more familiar character, i.e., a non-exclusive set. Perhaps the story team found it impossible to give Icarax a role that helped to fulfill The Plan. Or perhaps the set designers just wanted to reflect Antroz's role as a fitter deputy leader for the Brotherhood. No idea, but my drawings will find a way to explain this as the story has not.
Newly-colored parts in the Jetrax T6 abound, from the yellow Bitil wings/Onua shields to the silver Krika front leg pieces. Surprisingly, my brother's Jetrax T6 had light bley-looking handlebars (Jaller Mahri torso armor for the less-aware) rather than the silver featured in the instructions and images of the set. Since a similar thing happened with my younger brother Meiko's Onua Mistika set's blaster, it seems to be just discoloration, but don't forget that these things happen even today.
There is also one new part to BIONICLE-- a large dark bley System wheel piece, previously featured in the Vikings and Castle sets as well as a firefighting hovercraft and next year's steamroller. Clearly LEGO sees no objection to the use of these moderately-detailed pieces outside old-fashioned lines like Castle and Vikings, and I agree that they work fine on this set as part of the large engines.
Some people will be disappointed with several of the set's pins. Not only are the standards in bright, high-visibility colors (blue 3-length pins, blue pin-axles, red 2-length axles, etc), but some of the pin-axlehole pieces (the types used to attach Kopaka Phantoka's wings on) are in red. Not all of them are in this color, though, only those used to attach the wing section to the nose, and these are largely covered with the aforementioned aero-slicers.
The spikiness of the overall vehicle is in sharp contrast to the other two with their flowing curves and simple angles. It's no wonder this was the vehicle chosen to have a Makuta pilot in the set rather than a Toa Nuva. It still looks O.K. with a Toa Nuva rider, however, but there is a catch.
Antroz attaches to his seat with a pin on his back, as well as axles on the vehicle that attach to his feet. For this reason Kopaka cannot fit nearly as snugly without some modification. Sorry to you who planned to put the vehicle's owner behind the controls. Thankfully Kopaka's color scheme is not as bad as I'd feared against the vivid yellow, not that he ever rides this version of the craft in story.
Speaking of the yellow, the reason Lyi wanted this version was in part that it matches the other two T-vehicles better than the severe amount of silver on the original. Broad areas of color better match Rockoh and Axalara, so that might be something to bear in mind when buying this set.
Playability
The other half of the fun is in playing with the set. How well does the set function and is it enjoyable to play with?
The action features of the set work like a charm in most cases. When the cockpit's rollcage is open, it does flop around a bit, but thanks to a piece of flex tubing it holds its shape when not being handled and stays in the right shape when closed.
The wings work well with their folding feature, and when closed the Bitil wings on the engines become nearly vertical. The action feature is operated by pressing the Matoro Mahri armor on the nose of the vehicle flat-- this opens the wings. When the wings are open, the central beam mentioned earlier sticks out past the bottom of the handle-- one can press this manually or simply land the vehicle with a firm press against the floor to fold the wings back. The landing gear near the cockpit works well for either play or display.
The Midak Skyblasters of the vehicle are easy to reach even when holding the handle of the vehicle-- unfortunately, the amount of force it takes to launch these is hard to exert when one hand is supporting the weight of the vehicle, and aiming the blasters as you whoosh the vehicle around is difficult.
Final Thoughts
Once it's all said and done, how does the set stack up? Should I get it?
Pros
What's to like?
- Action features cause a dramatic and exciting transformation in the vehicle, and work like a charm
- Several yellow parts for your collection, or just for a vivid shelf display of the set
- Good-sized vehicle that looks like a conceiveable flying machine.
What's not to like?
- Simple Antroz figure lacks much similarity to his older form
- Yellow parts aren't nearly as easy to use in MOCs as silver ones
- Hard-to-launch blasters on a heavy vehicle
Overall, I don't like this set as much as the Rockoh, but it is certainly just as much worth the cost. There are several reasons to buy either version of the set, but I think Lyi was right to want the yellow special edition version. But be wary-- store exclusive sets don't always stay on the shelves as long as regular ones. If you want it, buy this set while you can!
With all due respect,
Aanchir: Rachira of Time
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