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Akano

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Blog Entries posted by Akano

  1. Akano
    KK got me sick. Jerk.
     
    In other news, MAJORA'S MASK 3D CONFIRMED XIKQADRVVGSJUPOLWTW!!!
     
    I'm pretty psyched about this development and am throwing my money at the screen to make it be mine now. It's not working.
     
    Now, please excuse me while I hack up my left lung.
     

  3. Akano

    Babs Seed

    By Akano,

    SUCH A CATCHY SONG ZOMG!!
     
    Also, the CMC were very adorable in that episode.
     
    (I watched it the other day, but just listened to the song for about the fifth time.)
     
    EDIT: Also, apparently typing in darkgoldenrod as your font color doesn't work anymore.
     

  4. Akano
    Yesterday, I obtained my 4-year…Norik head? Exactly what am I supposed to do with it? ~tries putting it on his face like a mask~
     
    You know, after one year, you can control time, after two years you get power over light, three years you get invisibility, but all I have now is a Rahkshi head?
     
    The fourth year stinks. XP
     

  5. Akano

    My morning

    By Akano,

    I'd like to describe to you all the most memorable scene from my morning walk into school.
     
    I emerged from the tunnel under the train tracks and headed towards the last intersection on my walk on my way to school. In the bare bushes of one of the office buildings on the street twittered a bunch of small sparrows, not a care in the world. I watched them as they chattered, when all of a sudden a brown blur appeared in my periphery. A hawk (I believe a broad-winged hawk) was in a dive, ready to snatch up a meal from the group of sparrows. It swooped, then crashed into the bare branches of the bushes. I could tell immediately after it crashed that it was unsuccessful in its quest, and as it looked around during its shocked stupor, I could see in its face the expression of "Well, this is just great." The poor thing sat there for a moment and eventually freed itself, its ego more bruised than its body, as it flew atop the building and reconsidered what its next move was.
     
    All in all, it was really cool, and I'm glad I got to witness it.
     

  6. Akano
    Today, my brother KopakaKurahk and I were walking up and down a nearby cul-de-sac and, while he was observing some lovely Virginia creeper and poison ivy decorating a peaceful evergreen, I noticed, with the help of my insect nerdiness, a spider that I originally thought was sitting within its web waiting for prey. Turns out, the spider had already obtained its evening meal: a small, black wasp that was no longer than a centimeter. Oh, the little stinging terror tried and tried to escape its inevitable fate of being a tasty liquified meal, but to no avail. The spider had latched on to the back of its thorax and was biting hard, not letting go despite the wasps squirming and attempts of stinging.
     
    For an amateur entomology enthusiast who despises most wasps, the feeling I obtained from this scene was true bliss.
     
    For those of you out there who don't care for my insect ranting (a.k.a., if your username is not Atako ) I have another news update on the life of this Bionicle-obsessed college student. The Toa of Electricity has achieved a new first: I have a real job now! *cue the dramatic chipmunk*
     
    It's not bad. It's not thrilling either, but what part-time job is? Well, I can think of one, and it's a job one of my friends has at his college (and it totally involves insect studies ). I currently reside in a mail room mainly sending out t-shirts. I keep that job until they're all sent out, then I need to find another place to work. But, still, that's not too bad.
     
    Wow, I haven't had this long a blog entry in quite some time. Whee! 8D
     

  7. Akano
    The definition of a planet has been under scrutiny several times, and with New Horizon's recent visit to Pluto, the discussion of Pluto's demotion was on everyone's minds (at least, back in July). But I'm not going to talk about Pluto's demotion (though I think it was totally appropriate from a scientific perspective). Instead, I'm going to talk about the Moon.
     
    Should the Earth-Moon system be considered a binary planet? This sounds outlandish at first, since the Moon is a moon, obviously. It orbits the Earth as a natural satellite, just as the Galilean moons (Ganymede, Callisto, Io, and Europa) orbit Jupiter, Titan orbits Saturn, Triton orbits Neptune, and so on, right?
     
    The definition of a moon is vague, and thus there are multiple ways of determining whether or not a planet-moon system is really a binary planet. One way of drawing the line between the two descriptions is by finding the barycenter (or center-of-mass) of the system. The center of mass of a collection of N masses is given by
     



     
    where M is the total mass of the system, and mi and ri are the mass and position of the ith object, respectively. If the center of mass of a two-body system lies outside the larger object in that system, call it a binary planet. This makes sense, right? This means that the smaller body doesn't orbit the larger body, but instead they both orbit some point in space. For instance, the barycenter of the Pluto-Charon system lies outside Pluto (0.83 Pluto radii above Pluto's surface), the larger of the two bodies, while the Earth-Moon barycenter lies within the Earth (just under 3/4 of an Earth radius from the planet's center). By this definition, the Pluto-Charon system is a binary (dwarf) planet system, while the Earth-Moon system is is a planet-moon system. (Although, we are slowly losing our moon due to tidal acceleration. In a few billion years, the Moon will have drifted far enough away that the barycenter of the Earth-Moon system will leave the interior of our planet.) However, when you plug in values for the Sun-Jupiter system, you find that the center of mass lies outside the Sun! Indeed, Jupiter is the only natural satellite of the Sun for which this is true. (Does this mean Jupiter should have a different classification from the rest of the planets? Not really; the Sun is around 1000 times more massive than Jupiter, so the reason for this is that Jupiter is very distant from the Sun.)
     
    Maybe a different definition is needed to distinguish planet-moons from binary planets, then, since the Sun-Jupiter system is not a binary star (Jupiter is slightly too small to generate nuclear fusion). Another proposition is to look at the so-called tug-of-war value of a body. The tug-of-war value of a moon determines which Solar System object has a stronger gravitational hold, the Sun or the moon's "primary" (the Earth is the Moon's primary). Using Newton's law of gravitation
     



     
    we can take a ratio of the Sun's pull on a satellite to the primary's pull. The result is the tug-of-war value, proposed by Isaac Asimov.
     



     
    Here the subscripts s and p refer to the Sun and the primary, respectively; m is the mass of the body referred to by the subscript; and d is the distance between the moon and the body referred to by the subscript. If the tug-of-war value is larger than 1, then the primary has a larger hold on the moon than the Sun, whereas if it's less than 1, the Sun's gravity dominates. For the Earth-Moon system, it turns out this number is 0.46, which means that the Sun pulls on the Moon with more than twice the force of Earth's pull. This is an oddity among moons, but is not unique. It does mean, though, that the Moon, when viewed from the Sun, never undergoes retrograde motion; it moves across the solar sky without changing direction. Another way to put this is that the Moon is always falling toward the Sun (like the planets), and never in its orbit does it fall away from the Sun (unlike most moons). If you look at the orbits of the Earth and Moon from the point of view of the Sun, they dance around each other in careful step, which is unlike most other moons in the Solar System. For Asimov, this was reason enough to consider the Earth and Moon as a binary planet system.
     
    This tug-of-war value does not, however, classify Pluto and Charon as a binary dwarf planet system (they're too far from the Sun for their tug-of-war value to be less than 1). Perhaps the definition of a binary planet is a difficult one to pin down.
     
    Should the Moon be promoted to planet, just as Pluto was renamed as a dwarf planet? I don't know, but it gives us something to think about as we look up at the starry night, watching the dance of all the chunks of rock and gas hurtling through space in our sky, to music written by nature and heard through science.
     

  8. Akano

    Golden Sun

    By Akano,

    Just finished replaying the first game in the series, and it's still awesome. The world, the music, the characters, the story – all are so wonderful and charming. The soundtrack has to be some of the best music in video game history.
     
    After the long, gruelling process that is inputting a Gold level password from my Clear Data (I don't have a GBA link cable with me), I'm now starting The Lost Age. I will miss Isaac and Co. for now.
     

  9. Akano

    Recent updates

    By Akano,

    Due to the combination of the servers being taken offline and me being in school, it's been a while since my last entry. I managed to find most of my entries from Google's cache (Aug 26 - now), so they've been posted as though I had posted them on their original entry days, but the comments have disappeared into the aether.
     
    On a more jubilant note, I've been playing Pokémon Y and Ace Attorney: Dual Destinies recently (this is in no way like Tekulo's recent entry). I'm on the first part of case three of the latter, and I have to say that case two was very enjoyable. The twist was really good, and all the crazy weirdness of the people in that case now makes sense (it kind of reminds me of Turnabout Big Top from Justice for All).
     
    In Pokémon Y, I have gotten through Victory Road and am now ready to face the Pokémon League:
     







    Also, I think it's fantastic that I can customize my character with a yellow hoodie and well-matching fedora.
     



     
    My party currently consists of Keaton (Delphox), Anubis (Lucario), Lapras, Sylveon, Snorlax, and my HM user (a linear combination of Machoke, Talonflame, Pansage in near equal probability). I absolutely love the fact that the Fennekin family is based on mages, and Sylveon is absolutely fantastic. Since evolving it, I don't think I've had it faint once.
     

  10. Akano
    Barely alive! Mwee! *flop*
     
    Yeah, senior year has hit me like a ton of bricks. BTW, never try getting hit by a ton of bricks. You tend to break body parts.
     
    And I've noticed some of you *coughToMcough* have been thinking that my reason for lack of comic output is the new idea I have. Trust me, I haven't even started that yet. The real reason is lack of time and inspiration. You could call it artist's/writer's block, I guess.
     
    But, I hope to get a new comic up before I die of overlearning.
     
    If you want a sample of what I'm learning in school, here's what we did in Physics today and yesterday:
     
    You are given a ramp, a ball bearing (golf ball) and a flat surface. You rest the ramp at an angle so that the edge of the ramp meets the flat surface before the edge, so it looks like this:
     
    \
    _\_
     
    __________ <---- Floor
     
    Now, you roll the ball down the ramp and watch it hit the floor. Without marking where the ball bounces on the ground, you must calculate when the ball will hit the ground and how far away from the edge of the flat surface the ball will land. The answer should be so close that you should be able to place a cup on the ground where it is predicted to land and make the ball land there.
     
    Have fun.
     

  11. Akano

    Akano's A Graduate?

    By Akano,

    Yep, that's right, every peoples. I graduated from high school on Saturday. I feel so old.
     
    I'm sure people are wondering, "What's this going to mean for the comics?" Probably not too much, at least not until autumn, because I'm still going to be home until marching band in college starts up.
     
    And I still have no clue what I want to be when I grow up.
     

  12. Akano

    Band Camp...

    By Akano,

    Well, I've been through one week of band camp. My lips are exhausted due to all the playing. Marching I don't really care about, that doesn't exhaust me. The playing is what gets me.
     
    Why, you ask?
     
    ...I'm literally the loudest trumpet player in the band...and, no, that isn't ego talking, as much as it may sound that way... >>;;
     
    Thus my lips were killing me. By midday Friday my lips had the shapes of my teeth engraved into the inside of them. Perhaps that clears all that up.
     
    I'm really glad we're playing "The Final Countdown," one of my favorite songs to play. ^^ We played it in jazz band my sophomore year, and I'm trying to get my jazz director to bring it back this year. ^^
     
    Okay, enough band nerd talk. I'm sure I'm boring you.
     
    I have a new comic up as of July 30. I made a little block to the left for all of you with a link to both my comics and my stories. If you have free time, please take time to read if you're a fan of one or the other. I'd greatly appreciate it. ^^ The stories have been neglected for a while, but revival's allowed in the Library, so post away.
     
    Umm...I think that's it. Power to the trumpets.
     

  13. Akano

    I'm in Scotland

    By Akano,

    So, I'm currently in Edinburgh, UK for official Hogwarts business doing research with a collaborator at the local university. Things I have done include
    Vaguely losing consciousness on the plane ride over the Atlantic to adjust to new time zone. Would not qualify it as sleeping.
    Instead of checking into the hotel (which didn't allow checkins until 2 p.m. local time), climbing Arthur's Seat to the summit with my advisor like a boss.
    Enjoyed a Guinness. (Not Scottish, I know, but arguably fresher than those sold in the US.)
    Things I have not yet done include
    Tossing a caber.
    Wearing a kilt.
    Playing bagpipes.
    Trying haggis. (Will probably do this at breakfast tomorrow, though.)
    So far so fun. Also I've done research. Totally why I'm here.
     

  15. Akano

    Awesome Cartoons

    By Akano,

    As brothers tend to do, KK and I spent our Saturday evening watching a cartoon about brothers navigating an unfamiliar world simply trying to get home. Over the Garden Wall is a brilliant miniseries, and if you haven't seen it, you should. The story is captivating, mysterious, and makes you ask all sorts of questions to the very end. The animation is beautiful (similar but different to Gravity Falls), the characters are incredibly fun and interesting, and the plot doesn't necessarily progress the way you think it will, but at the same time has many familiar story elements. Also, the celebrity voice acting is done really well, which isn't always the case when you have big names in your cartoon credits.
     
    Go watch it. It's a great ride.
     
    Also, slightly related, new Gravity Falls tonight! 8D
     

  16. Akano
    As promised, I'm going to kick off my set reviews of LEGO System circa mid-late 1990s with a review of the Time Cruisers Rocket Racer (no, not the LEGO Racers Rocket Racer). Credit to BZP for the review format.
     
    (My apologies if you notice the yellow tint to the shadows; my digital camera decided to be rather yellow when taking these pictures, and using GIMP to re-balance the white left those yellow shadows as an artifact.)
     
    Presentation
    From the design of the box to the instruction manual, these are the first things you see before building the set.
     



     
    We see our protagonist, Timmy, riding in the eponymous racer through a rather dark, stormy backdrop. Pretty awesome. We can tell right off the bat that this isn't a very large set (seeing as the price was only $4.50 when it came out).
     
    Building
    Half the fun is had building the set. How fun is it to build and how easy or challenging is it?
     



     
    Not very challenging at all. The build took only a couple of minutes and was fairly straightforward, seeing as there were only 15 steps. All 55 pieces are included in the above photo, and it's not surprising that they don't take very long to assemble.
     
    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.
     



     
    Nothing too sophisticated here. The body is based on a bracket piece that saw use in the Xtreme Team windsurfer/buggy set. The propellers are pretty cool in their functionality (yes, they do spin). A simple buggy/car set with a few modifications.
     
    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?
     

    All aircraft report!


     
    The propellers are the coolest part of this set. They are connected by an axle to a smooth base that sits on the back tires, as seen in the above photo. The tires, made of rubber, grip the smooth base of the propellers on one side, and as the tires spin, the propellers spin. Now, on my set, this works well for the (Timmy's) right-hand propeller, but not the left. I think this may be because the bricks on top are not completely aligned over the hole for the left propeller, and thus the axle grips the pieces. I'm not sure though. It's still a cool bit of functionality that I'm impressed they thought to incorporate on such a small set. You really don't see that much on newer small sets.
     
    Beyond this, though, the set is mainly for you to roll on the table and go "Vroom! Vroom!"
     
    Final Thoughts
    Once it's all said and done, how does the set stack up? Should I get it?
     
    Since the original price was $4.50, it's not a bad set for that price. I got mine for $4.00 with the other Time Cruisers sets, so it wasn't a heavy additional monetary burden for my wallet. If you see this set floating around for a low price, pick it up; you get a Timmy minifigure and a few cool MOC pieces/a cool race buggy.
     
    Pros
    What's to like?

    Timmy minifigure
    Cheap set (BrickLink has one for $1.00)
    Neat functionality despite being small
    Decent variety of pieces

    Cons
    What's not to like?

    Not incredibly exciting, but it is a small set

    I honestly think that this set isn't bad at all for what it is. Back in the day, this would've made any 90's kid happy if he/she found it in their stocking on Christmas day. If you want to get some Time Cruisers sets, add this one to your cart. It's cheap, cute, and fun in its own way.
     
    Thanks for sticking around for my review. Next time we'll head into the realm of the villainous Time Twisters.
     

  17. Akano
    I got another 90s LEGO System set this week, and am currently writing up the review. I won't tell you what it is just yet, but I'll give you a hint: it was immensely popular, and I don't think it was one that I've talked about wanting to get. It was also featured in the PC LEGOLAND game.
     
    So there are three-ish hints.
     

  18. Akano

    Sick...

    By Akano,

    I hate being sick. Even though I'm home today, I really wish I could be at school. Well. Alive.
     
    I'm stuck with this really annoying cough and a fever. The cough I've had for days. Like, since Saturday. The fever I just got yesterday. It really stinks. I want to be back.
     
    I'm somewhat wondering if this is bacterial. Like maybe strep. That would stink.
     
    What's worse is that I went to bed last night thinking that I'd be better today. Nope. Had a fever this morning. Took my temperature and it was at 101°F.
     
    And I have a Calculus test tomorrow. Really would've liked to be in class to review for that…
     
    Hopefully the "MOO" Obsesser will be back to his old, well self. Sorry for the dreary blog entry.
     
    And, I think this is a record. I updated within 3 days. Woot.
     

  19. Akano
    Haldo, BZPeople!
     
    As you may have noticed, this summer the blogs were highly accented with my extreme absence since I took a trip to the northern UK. The reason for this absence is simple: I was studying for, and subsequently started taking, my preliminary examinations for continuation to my Ph.D. in physics. Last week for me was filled with three four-hour exams: one on Monday (Quantum Mechanics), one on Wednesday (Electromagnetism), and one on Friday (Classical, Special Relativity, and Statistical Mechanics grab bag). I am happy to say that I survived the initial onslaught of my prelims and am now in phase two: a twelve-hour take-home exam to be done over seventy-two hours (10 a.m. today to 10 a.m. Thursday). I have glanced at the problems but not worked on them yet, but I feel pretty good about the quantum section.
     
    In other news, the new school year is set to start in a week, but I have a class starting this Thursday. That'll be quite fun. 8D
     

  20. Akano
    It's been a good run, state of the north.
     
    I have to say, Anchorage itself may not be a good-looking city (in my eyes, no city really is), but the fact that there are mountains literally surrounding it is awesome. Best horizon ever. Of all time.
     

  21. Akano
    In continuing my trend of reviewing 90s LEGO System sets, I'm turning my criticism to one of the most beloved, nostalgic LEGO sets arguably of all of LEGO's existence.
     
    Presentation
    From the design of the box to the instruction manual, these are the first things you see before building the set.
     




     
    Ah, the desert. Something about it inspires adventure. Perhaps it's the survival aspect of it. Anyway, the box pulls off the desert background very nicely, and the action of a bunch of cavalry men attempting to catch bandits gives off the Wild West feel. Also, the back of the box has alternate models, which LEGO doesn't do anymore and is something that I personally miss a lot from the newer sets. The large set also has the flap on top which opens to reveal the interior of the box. The plastic/cardboard sheet inside was used to preview minifigs and/or exclusive/unique pieces, but seeing as mine was used, this is not the case here.
     
    Building
    Half the fun is had building the set. How fun is it to build and how easy or challenging is it?
     




     
    This set is rather ridiculous with the space its pieces take up, so I couldn't organize them completely. There are 668 pieces total, which makes for a mild build. I think I built it up within an hour, since the build isn't terribly difficult. Also, I couldn't help but hear Gerudo Valley in my head as I was building. I can't imagine why.
     


    These pieces and the 1×2 and 1×4 log pieces are extremely prominent, in case you couldn't tell.


     
    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.
     
    There are four 16×32 baseplates in this set (no, I'm not kidding), so the build is split up into four parts. First, let's look at the entrance. the entrance:
     


     

    A fort? That's easy! Feel free to follow along with my simple step-by-step instructions. I make building FUN!!


     
    The entrance is pretty...entrancey. The watchtowers are cool, even though (as seen from the back) they have no ladders to lead up to them, so one must wonder how a guard could get up there to look out from there. The doors are barricaded from the inside with a bar made from a 1×10 plate and two 1×2 hinge pieces, as are the other doors on this set. It's pretty cool how they designed that (it is a fort, after all).
     
    Now, the walls:
     




     
    The first wall is rather nondescript. Just a guard wall with a ladder leading up to the top.
     




     
    The second wall has a little more going on. There's a side entrance and a rock wall made with, which I recently found out is called, a Big Ugly Rock Piece (BURP). The cactus at the bottom of the wall hides a cache of coins. This wall also has an actual tower on it to place a sentry in, which is cool. We also have a flag like the one at the entrance adorning the tower.
     
    The final part of the set is headquarters:
     




     
    This is my favorite part of the set, as it actually has something going on other than being a wall. The headquarters reminds me of the Hydeout in the Borscht Bowl Club from the first case of Apollo Justice: Ace Attorney. It has its secrets, like the hiding place in the chimney behind the fireplace.
     


    I don't know what you're talking about; I'm not hiding anything.


     
    Or the spinning table that sends the bandit or cavalry member to the prison/floor below.
     


    You have a full house? I only have a two pair: a pair of ones, and another pair of ones.


     
     
     
    Here, you can see the Colonel and Dewey Cheatum (no, I did not make that name up) playing at the aforementioned table. Rotate the table counter-clockwise, and Dewey ends up doing time for the vast number of card-based crimes he's committed.
     


    Not pictured: The incarceration of whoever came up with the name "Dewey Cheatum."


     
    The room is accessed by its minifig regulars by a set of stairs that can also be found in the LEGO Studios Vampire Crypt, along with others.
     




     
    Now that we've covered the set itself, let's go over the minifigures:
     




     
    There are two factions. Let's first go over the bandits.
     




     
    From left to right, we have Black Bart, Flatfoot Thompson, and (*sigh*) Dewey Cheatum. Of all the figs, I think Dewey's is the coolest. His playing cards style vest and top hat clash a lot with his nasty gold-toothed scowl. It's as though class and hillbilly merged. Flatfoot Tom has a great western villain face, and Black Bart always struck me as the muscle of the gang.
     




     
    The cavalry contains three soldiers, two lieutenants, and the colonel (whose face somewhat resembles that of the LEGO Chess king). Since this set is the headquarters of the cavalry, it contains the largest number of their figures, which is definitely a plus for this set.
     


    I may have shot the sheriff, but I did not shoot this guy.


     
    This set does not contain the sheriff (but Sheriff's Lock-Up does, and I hope to find a good one soon...), but it does contain his deputy. He has a white hat and hair and a sweet cowboy vest. Not much else to say about him; however, he looks to me like he's always chill about everything, even if a gunfight were to start.
     
    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?
     




     
    Other than the doors opening and closing and the table trap that leads to the prison, there isn't really that much functionality with this set, which disappoints me a little bit. However, this set is a great setting for a western adventure, so while there isn't much to do with the set, there is a lot that someone could come up with at the set.
     
    Final Thoughts
    Once it's all said and done, how does the set stack up? Should I get it?
     


    Who shot first, Dewey or the Colonel?


     
    This set, being a very nostalgic set, is quite pricey. If you can find this set for less than $100 and you want this set, grab it. I understand why it's so loved, but I personally wouldn't place it as more important than, say, Pharaoh's Forbidden Ruins or Night Lord's Castle.
     
    Pros
    What's to like?
    Big
    Many minifigs
    Classic theme

    Cons
    What's not to like?
    Price
    Not much functionality

    I hope you enjoyed this one. For the gallery, go here when it becomes public.
     

  24. Akano

    My First BrickFair

    By Akano,

    So, it looks like both KK and I will be going to BrickFair (so long as we have friends willing to give us rides). So, if you want to meet us, BE THERE! 8D
     
    KK has said Tekulo's rather jealous about our adventure to the fair of bricks. Don't worry, Tekky, I'll be sure to take pictures and hopefully grab some good bricks.
     
    In other news, I've caught up completely with the 900 comics of Order of the Stick, and it's a fantastic series. If anyone out there has a few days to kill, it's a blast to read, check it out.
     
    As for my comics, I should make some new ones, huh? >>;
     

  25. Akano
    I've felt rather unproductive recently on BZP, so I decided to do another set review. This time, we look at the new Monster Fighters theme's largest set (for now), Vampyre Castle!
     
    Presentation
    From the design of the box to the instruction manual, these are the first things you see before building the set.
     

    The trunk dented the upper left corner of the box. Sad face.


     
    The titular castle sits here in front of a sinister, spooky background with bats trailing from the moon and a ghostly green glow emanating from the castle, its inhabitants, and the moon. The back of the box shows the secrets and interior of the castle, allowing the potential buyer to see all the features of the set.
     
    Building
    Half the fun is had building the set. How fun is it to build and how easy or challenging is it?
     

     



     
    This monstrous set (HA! Pun) has seven bags of pieces. For 949 pieces to the set, it's not too surprising that there are so many bags, but still, I think this is the largest set I've built to date (and probably the most expensive one I've ever bought). All the pieces from the seven bags are shown above, and I can tell you that it took a great chunk of time to build. Expect to set aside 2-3 hours to build this (or more, if you're not a seasoned System-building veteran. I took a bit longer, but I was taking pictures as I went. Also, I did take a couple breaks here and there to spend some time with friends ).
     



     
    Although it is a long build, it's really cool to watch as the whole thing comes together, which is one of my favorite experiences in building a LEGO set. While time consuming, I didn't find the build too difficult, but that may be due to having past experience with System sets.
     
    To be honest, the only annoyance for me was the stickers. While they do allow for LEGO to not have to print their designs on the pieces themselves (which honestly probably saves them some money), I am quite particular when applying stickers, and it's annoying when I mess up the first time. The stickers do glow in the dark though, along with many other pieces, so that adds a bit to the cool factor if you like glow-in-the-dark.
     
    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.
     
    Let's start with our heroes and their car:
     



     
    The car is a pretty slick ride. For those of you who like sand green, this is your car. I'm quite the fan of the early 20th century vibe the technology in these sets gives off, and considering that Jack and Rodney's prosthetic limbs are steam-powered, the steampunk vibe is good, too. The car is a one-seater and can accommodate either Jack or Rodney, since the right leg sits on a 2×1 grate, so there are no studs to prevent Rodney from driving it. The most notable feature of the car is the net launcher, which sits in the back, and has a sort of piston that, when pushed, makes the net fly out.
     

    It's like Spiderman's web power, only with a machine and the ability to catch bat people.


     



     
    The heroes included in this set are Jack McHammer and the leader of the Monster Fighters, Dr. Rodney Rathbone. Rodney sports a very dapper vest (with pocket watch) and bowler hat, a steampunk leg, a rapier, and a revolver. Jack has a steampunk arm, a green flannel shirt with a leather vest, a knit cap, and Mjolnir.
     

    I wouldn't doubt it if he took it right out of Thor's hand.


     
    Now, let's dive into the castle and its villainous vampire owners.
     



     
    The castle is centered on the main tower where the Moon-Eclipse-Whatchamajig stands.
     



     
    As you can see in the picture, a hinge with pin pieces is what connects the parts of the castle to each other. The main tower, though, only has connections on one side. The castle is sort of connected in a sideways U or S shape, where the main area is the top branch, the bend is the drawing room/spiky death pit tower, the middle is the gate, and the final bend/line is the prison tower. Only the main/drawing room connection is hinged, though, which allows the castle to have its layout.
     



     
    The inside of the main tower has five rooms; the attic/organ room, the solar eclipse machine room (which is more like a clock tower chamber than a room, like where Basil of Baker Street and Ratigan duel), the drawing room, the bedroom/potions room, and the coffin in the basement. My personal favorite is the potion/bedroom, as the bed is really neat and the potion room contains some cool pieces. I like how in the basement the curtains around the coffin are portrayed by bricks rather than fabric; I think that if they used fabric it wouldn't have the same feel.
     



     
    Also, the moonstone device is really neat to behold. It has a cool mechanism for revealing the moon wheel thing behind the moonstones; the moonstones are all on 90° axle joints all connected by Y-shaped axle holders. When the moon wheel is pushed out, the axles that the moonstones aren't connected to end up between two large cart wheels behind the moon disk, and so when the disk is retracted, the moonstones return to covering the disk, which is pretty cool.
     



     
    The secondary turret is cool due to the cute little map/drawing room that looks comfy-cozy until the floor falls out from under you and you land in a spiky pit of doom. However, if you survive and manage to climb into the attic, you get some treasure! I'm guessing this is the guest room of the castle.
     



     
    The next portion is the gate, which features creepy old school cast iron doors and, if that doesn't prevent you from entering, a secondary gate which has fangs as the blocking mechanism.
     

    Enter if you dare!


     
    You know, to attract the neighbors.
     



     
    The final portion of the set is the prison, where a poor, unfortunate soul has been wasting away for a while, since he's only a skeleton now.
     

    Poor guy, I just want to give him a hug.


     
    However, if either of your heroes get trapped here, you can always bust them out with the nifty lever on the outside wall of the prison.
     

    Behold, my finger's debut on BZP! Greet him with kindness, please.


     
    And now, Lord Vampyre and his wife (does she have a name?).
     



     
    As you can probably tell, LEGO seems to be enjoying making minifigures with printing on the back and front of their bodies, and it seems to be quite prevalent in this theme (as with the latest series minifigures). They also have flip faces, another trend becoming more popular (which debuted in the Studios sets that were released a decade ago. I feel so old...).
     



     
    Also, note that we get another appearance of the Series 4 Mad Scientist's flask in this set, so the piece is becoming more and more widespread. We also get a translucent green wine goblet, several gems, a toad, a mushroom, and six of the seven the moonstones (zombie moonstone not included).
     

    Note: these probably won't evolve your Clefairy, Jigglypuff, Munna, Nidorino, Nidorina, or Skitty.


     
    And last, but certainly not least, the Manbats!
     

    Not to be confused with Batman.


     
    These minifigures are definitely a first for LEGO with their arms that actually spread outward. However, they don't actually move inward/outward, so the poseability of their arms is quite limited without looking rather goofy. They have ears similar to the Elf and Werewolf Series Minifigures, but are a lot bigger and more...batlike.
     
    Also, to give you a sense of how massively huge this set is, I compared its size to the largest Fright Knights set released, Night Lord's Castle, which is the tallest castle set to date that LEGO has released.
     

    I sense a war between Vampyre and Bat Lord brewing.


     
    It's pretty incredible how far LEGO has come as far as detailed sets go, since you can really see the difference between the present day and the early 90s. But notice that Night Lord's Castle just barely keeps its title; in fact, the only reason it's taller than the Vampyre Castle is due to Willa's telescope at the top. Also note that Night Lord's Castle contains only 598 pieces in comparison to the Vampyre Castle's 949; a lot of those additional pieces go into the detail.
     
    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?
     

    Have at you!


     
    There are definitely a lot of possibilities with this set. It has several rooms which make good vignettes/settings for spooky interactions between your heroes and villains, and the appearance is right out of Halloweentown (of Nightmare Before Christmas). Along with the prison wall lever, the prisoner can be moved up and down with an axle and the moonstone device can be engaged with a similar sort of piston that the car's net launcher has. Also, the trapdoor to the spiky pit makes for some good fun.
     
    Final Thoughts
    Once it's all said and done, how does the set stack up? Should I get it?
     

    Let me play you the song of my people.


     
    This set is pretty darn cool. It gives off a great spooky aura and is perfect for anyone who is a fan of Halloween, castles, and/or the Monster Fighters theme. It supplies us with a good cast of minifigs and is definitely one of the best sets released this year. If you can afford the $99.99 price tag, pick this up; you'll be glad you did.
     
    Pros
    What's to like?

    Hugely gigantic castle
    Cool minifigures
    Cool car
    Awesomely spooky
    Some neat pieces to grab

    Cons
    What's not to like?

    The price tag

    I hope you all enjoyed my take on this set. If there are any pictures you want me to take or any aspect of the review/set you want my to clarify, just ask.
     

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