Krusty Krab Adventures

The Lego Racers McDonald's toys got me back into Legos, although ironically not into Lego Racers. Of course one of the drawbacks of Legos is that they're kinda pricey. Someone once told me: You know when Lego's started got so expensive? When you started paying for them yourself.

So I've been wavering on this Krusty Krab Lego set for a while now. The price was just to steep for me. Then I found it on clearance at Target and I was very pleased. (Each store clearances different items. It's like a treasure hunt with only a small chance of happiness!)

The Krusty Krab structure is rather nice, offering some ingenious play value. There's a safe that opens and closes, a grill, cash register, and Lego burgers. They're all made very simply, but they look great. There's some ingenious use of blocks and pieces to create a building structure that's more complex than it seems. And I really like the glass door pieces. They make it seem like a real building.

But the reason I wanted this set is the Patty Wagon... GET IT! It's a hamburger car! A CAR DESIGNED TO LOOK LIKE A HAMBURGER! INGENIOUS!

Seriously, I love this thing. It's ridiculous but plausible at the same time!
The final thing in this set is the Lego figures themselves. Mini-figs they call them. This has always been my sticking point with Legos. Since I'm big into minimates, the Lego figures feel like a letdown. They're not as detailed, have less articulation, and their accessories aren't all that. I feel like Lego mini-figs are there so it doesn't look like the vehicles are driving themselves, but I guess I'm in the minority. For some reason Lego's decided that each mini-fig tends to be worth $3-5 a piece. So if you've got a lot of mini-figs in a set it costs A LOT more. I just don't agree with that, but I'm not in charge, so I'll try not to rant on this in the future.

These Spongebob mini-figs are a mixed bag. One the one hand they look good. To match the cartoon's look they've customized the figures with new pieces and paint that's more detailed than you usually see in a Lego mini-fig. But to meet the scale of figures, the smaller pieces have smaller leg pieces which are made smaller by not having the joing in there that allows them to sit. Yup, Spongebob & Mr. Krab can not sit down. They stand only. I found that amazingly disappointing. Still, Spongebob is an ingenious mini-fig.