Fabuland Review: #3605 / #324 Ricky Raccoon and His Scooter

[Shadows]

Ricky Raccoon and His Scooter

Theme: LEGO / Fabuland / Figure with Accessories

Set #: 3605 (US), 324 (World)

Year: 1980 (US), 1979 (World)

Pcs: 3 (box indicates 2)

Figs: 1

MSRP: ?

Brickset | LUGNET Guide

The Set

Box Front - Ages 3-7? Huh?

Box Rear - Alternate possibilities! Walking next to the scooter. Waving at a passerby. Riding into the sunset.

Give them a break, it's only 2 pieces.

"I wonder what's in here?" ponders Marky Monkey.

"Good thing I have this handy whacker hammer to help get this box open."

"Oh my! What an odd place to put one of those!" exclaims Marky. Suddenly, it roars to life.

VRRRROOOOOOMMM! A shiny red scooter comes flying out of the box, running the surprised Marky over and leaving him for dead.

The unknown rider seems unaware of the carnage he's caused and rides off happily.

Just then, the dark cloud of guilt hits Ricky (at least that's the name on his insurance card) as he comes to a startling revelation, "I ran over a poor monkey back there, didn't I? I'd better go back and help him!" Ricky spins around and returns to the scene of the crime accident.

Ricky Raccoon to the rescue! Sure, he caused the accident in the first place, but he's returned to take the still stunned victim to the plastic surgeon (the only kind they have in Fabuland) for help. I'm sure they'll become fast friends, laughing about that funny day when Marky Monkey simply opened a box and was run over by careless Ricky Raccoon and his shiny red scooter.

Oh yes, I'm sure they'll laugh. A lot. Uh huh.

The Review

What is there to say, really? It's the equivalent of a Fabuland Impulse and I'm sure it was originally sold at a very affordable price, much like a current impulse. Who wouldn't be thrilled to find something like this today? Well, I just bought the two sealed copies I used for this review from an eBay seller for a very reasonable price (do a search, he seems to have cases of them). I debated opening one, but thought that it would be nice to review a 'new' set from the distant past.

Unlike a modern set, the box is about as wide as a standard impulse and only about 2/3rd's the height of one, just barely large enough to hold Ricky and his Scooter. No wasted space here. Matter of fact, he was actually standing on the scooter facing the wrong way in the sealed box, which seems to be the most efficient way to package him, so clearly LEGO wasn't into oversized boxes for this one.

The packaging also differs from modern sets in that the parts weren't sealed in a bag of any kind and it included a small Fabuland catalog to promote the rest of the line. The 'instructions' for the set consist of a short story where we learn that Ricky continues to be a reckless (but not wreck-less, I'm sure) driver, choosing to do acrobatics on his scooter.

I found photographing them a bit too difficult, but I may scan and share both the catalog and instructions at some point. For now, the instructions may be viewed via these links: Pages 1/2, 3/4, 5/6, 7/8

Now for the review portion of our program. Basically, it's a figure set aimed at a younger audience, so there's only so much one can say. It's a nice figure and a vehicle. It might have been nice to include an accessory, some reason for Ricky to ride around, perhaps a package or a basket with something in it. The whole thing balances very well, so it would be fun to roll around, or perhaps send down a big slope hurling at amazing speeds until Ricky crashes into a wall. Marky suggested this idea for some reason. So, taking into account that it was probably inexpensive, it would be really hard to give this less than a 9/10 when you take into account both the target audience and the intent of this set, which it seems to do very well.

Design: 8/10

Price: 10/10

Playability: 10/10

Overall: 9/10

And there you have it, a fine little set full of fun, nostalgia and potential vehicular homicides. What more could you want?

Edited May 12, 2011 by Rufus
Indexed!

[Brickthing]

Good review considering the size of the set, but what is the third piece?

Also, wow those instructions are a bad influence on children! First the scooter acrobats, then the town picture shows a cat climbing in a tree and a mouse jumping off the stairs with a spade!

[Shadows]

what is the third piece?

According to Peeron, the US set includes 3 pieces but the rest of the world received one with 2. In reality, both boxes indicate 2 pieces. I think they counted the scooter and each wheel to make 3 and just put Ricky in the minifig category. LEGO clearly counted it as Ricky and the scooter, 1 + 1, considering each an 'interlocking piece'.

Also, wow those instructions are a bad influence on children! First the scooter acrobats, then the town picture shows a cat climbing in a tree and a mouse jumping off the stairs with a spade!

Fabuland is deceptively sweet, clearly hiding an evil just beneath the surface. It was the theme that introduced the sledgehammer and the large axe and shovel as well as a very large (but colourful!) saw. There's a reason for this.

In the FBG, we call that the Fabuland Edge.

[rriggs]

This is just way too simple a set to interest me. At least larger Fabuland vehicles and buildings do have a bit of construction about them!

I can maybe see the appeal to a Fabuland collector for the figure and to ensure the completeness of a collection but as a set I can only rate it low.

Cheers

Rog

[Zepher]

It's such a sweet little set. If only the world was more like this now a days.

[Scouty]

Nice Review! And a cute set. Wish I had a Fabuland figure...*Nudge* *Nudge* *Wink* *Wink*

I found photographing them a bit too difficult, but I may scan and share both the catalog and instructions at some point. For now, the instructions may be viewed via these links: Pages 1/2, 3/4, 5/6, 7/8

It looks like each and every manual was hand painted/drawn.

[LuxorV]

Great review of a great little set I'm proud to own myself

Thanks for sharing ImperialShadows, and for bringing back the old FBG spirit yet again

LuxorV

[WhiteFang]

It has been a long while since I last saw a FBG's contribution. For a 3 piece inside this small little Fabuland Impulse set, you sure write a lot for one simple review. Your creativity is just so wonderful, with those crazy pictures of yours, these are some value added content. It's very nice to see a review from you.