REVIEW: 44014 Jet Rocka

[Brickthing]

Set name: Jet Rocka

Set Number: 44014

Price: $35USD , 35 Euro

Pieces: 290

Year of release: 2013

Peeron

Bricklink

Brickset

The Packaging

The second half of the Hero Factory sets this year continue the Brain Attack theme and style set by the first, with bright green packaging seeping with the infectious yellow influence of the brain slug creatures. Jet Rocka is the largest set of the year, and is the only set to come packaged in a traditional cardboard box, since both Funro XL and Dragon Bolt have made the transition to the resealable plastic packet.

Front

When you walk into the LEGO aisle of your local toy store, the Hero Factory sets should be easy to spot with their bright high contrast colours. While you may have trouble singling out a specific Hero Factory packet, Jet Rocka stands out with a very large (but thin) box, showcasing Rocka heroically jetting through the city, firing at multiple unseen villains in the sky and on the ground below! The background art isn’t terribly colourful or interesting compared to previous years, but it conveys the scene well and puts all the focus on what’s actually in the box; Jet Rocka.

Back

Flipping the box around, you get a clear demonstration of the jetpack’s play features, which include Zamor launchers, flick fire missiles, trigger controlled wings and a pivoting windscreen.

Rocka’s Hero Core comes with a code worth a tremendous 3000 Game Points, for use online. Inflation must be rampant during the monster crisis, since last year the comparable Speeda Demon only came with 900 Game Points! The cynic in me thinks that this is a devious marketing strategy to make the new sets seem more valuable than the old sets, but the other side of me thinks it’s working! Buying Hero Cores on Bricklink for their Game Points will be complete anarchy if it wasn’t already.

The sides of the box contains the usual warnings and disclaimers, plus some odd alternate language names; Rocka Reactor and Rocka Ultrasónico. I personally preferred BIONICLE’s use of fictional names for vehicle sets, because it avoided a set in story needing multiple distinct names due to a word or pun not translating properly.

Contents

Pry open the cardboard flaps, and you’ll find the contents of the set split between three bags, with the large Power Miner wheels thrown in separately. One bag is for Rocka, so there’s the potential challenge to bag build him! Also included are the instruction booklet and a dreaded sticker sheet, although the stickers are excellently designed and generic enough to be useful for other creations.

Pieces

Bag One contains Rocka’s parts, which are a healthy mix of armour, bones and smaller pins/detail parts. Compared to previous vehicle sets (aside from Speeda Demon), the focus has always been on the vehicle over the rider, but Rocka “Five” manages to include a fair selection of useful shells in Gold and joints in Dark Bley, unless you already have most of the previous iterations of Rocka.

Bags Two and Three contain the pieces required to build the jetpack, and they consist largely of Technic beams, connectors, pins and axles. This set is invaluable for creating larger MOCs with a Technic based construction, but you get very little in the way of weapons and armour parts compared to a regular sized Hero Factory set. Pieces of note include 8 total Phantoka/Makuta – Matoran connectors, 6 White panel fins and a large selection of Light Bley connectors/beams, including 6 new 1x3 beams with perpendicular axles, which serve the purpose of the 1x2 beam versions, but without the half-stud offset on the perpendicular axle.

This set only features one recoloured part – an Apple Trans-Green windshield, which isn’t very exciting for Bionicle MOCists, but would be of interest to Spaceship builders. However, there are a fair number of interesting pieces especially if you don’t have many Brain Attack sets yet, particularly the Trans-Green shells and 4 rubber reinforced bone sockets. Rocka comes with the same helmet, head and visor as his other iteration earlier this year, which is great for using the helmet as a shoulder armour piece.

Instructions

There is only a single instruction booklet, which is large in area and satisfyingly thick. I’m glad it wasn’t split over multiple thinner instruction booklets, although the model probably wasn’t large to warrant it.

The instructions are clear and easy to follow, and I had no trouble differentiating the different colours. It’s a bit strange at first to see the Technic beams rendered without the inter-pinhole recesses, but it’s necessary to keep the instruction images clean in the later stages of construction, otherwise all the overlaying beams and holes could become a maze of meaningless black lines.

In the back of the booklet there are the usual adds for the other sets of the wave, in this case the menacing Dragon Bolt and the Stormer/Frost Beast pair. The Hero Factory show and this page suggest that Dragon Bolt is Rocka’s pair, but there is no combiner model to affirm that (and there is a combiner model between Dragon Bolt and Surge). Jet Rocka is the odd set out in that sense, but hopefully he might receive his own combiner/alternate model instructions online or as part of the Club magazine

There is also an add for the Chima constraction sets, who we find heroically battling it out in the jungle, amongst scenic skies and floating mountain rocks. There’s a QR code as well, which leads to a TV Spot on the Chima website.

Finally there are ads for a Brain Attack warping app, and the LEGO club. I won’t spoil the image on the back of the booklet. Now, onto the set!

Build

First, let’s start with Rocka…

Rocka comes together in a matter of minutes, and despite being a simpler build than a normal Hero or Villain set, his construction is interesting in the way it differs, with a long torso bone and multiple reinforced joints on the sets. It’s great to see the useful Technic motor shaft 1/2 offset axle pieces being used as handles for the jetpack.

Next up is the jetpack!

The first half of the construction process starts off with a confusing array of Technic beams, and it’s difficult to discern the purpose of what you’re making, but gradually as you add the gears and hook up the colour coded red trigger it becomes clear what each beam structure does.

Once the Technic frame is complete, you add wings, a tail fin and the display windscreen. The Apple Green swords suit the wings perfectly and demonstrate that even though some of the new Hero Factory pieces feature very little connection points, they are still tremendously versatile and supportive of creative use.

We then attach the jetpack to its rider, but it’s still missing something…

Of course, jet boosters! Sadly they’re unable to rotate, but they’re fixed at a nice angle and are very well connected.

Finally we add weapons, and with that, the build is complete!

Finished Set

After swooshing it up and down the house, I've found that Jet Rocka is an impressively sized model that looks great and handles fantastically. First let’s look at the two parts individually; Rocka and the jetpack.

Rocka ‘n Roll

There’s no denying that Rocka is a basic figure – a skeleton of bones with some colour appropriate shells on top. The Constraction system is amazing though, because a simple build such as this yields a completely playable action figure, with proper proportions and 13 points of articulation (18 if you count the visor and core claws). In a way it’s a shame that this set didn’t introduce a Brain Attack form for a character currently lacking one such as Stringer or Nex (or introduce a new character entirely), but Rocka’s colours do suit the jetpack wonderfully.

Reinforced Joints

It’s great to see that while Rocka has several design oddities, they all exist to allow Rocka to fit into the jetpack better and with less hassle. His reinforced leg joints are great for posing on one leg, but more importantly they support the weight of both Rocka and the massive flight pack.

Don't Look Back

Rocka suffers from a horrible case of open back syndrome, but it creates more space when connecting to the jetpack, and it’s not a problem once Rocka is installed. The torso shell is also placed further forwards and higher than usual to allow the size 3 shells on the shoulders. It looks odd from the back, but it does provide the set with an extra 3-beam w/ balljoint.

Eagle Droid

The jetpack can’t stand in an upright position on its own, instead adopting a form that looks a bit like a bird of prey. The jetpack attaches to the back of Rocka via a Phantoka-Matoran connector, and the windscreen fits comfortably over his shoulders. One unfortunate problem with the connector is that it has no preference over whether it will stick to the jet pack or the rider when you detach the two again, but it’s only a minor hassle and you’ll spend most of the time with this set with the two paired up in flight, not continuously linking up and breaking apart.

A red trigger on the handle at the back of the jetpack flings the wings up and the Zamor launchers forwards. If you pull the trigger quick enough, the launchers can knock the windscreen closed in the same swift motion.

Load up process

(Trans-Green under Blacklight! )

Being a Brain Attack hero, Rocka has a core cage and safety visor, which become superfluous once he’s safely behind the jetpack windscreen. Still, they look cool and contain some great parts, so it’s a pro that they’re included instead of not.

There is no frictional resistance in the trigger for the wings, so they will fall into a closed position when the jetpack is upright, and an open position when the pack is horizontal.

From the side you can see how large the thrusters of this jetpack are! The tail fin ingeniously functions as the handle for swooshing, and the third point of a very stable tripod stand when on the ground. It’s possible for Rocka to balance the jetpack without the tail fin, but the fin allows Rocka to stand normally with no tedious balancing required.

Again we see the size of the thrusters, and the impressive wingspan of the set. (The wings have been propped open with a 1x2 plate lodged in the wing folding mechanic.)

Flying through the sky!

The real highlight of the set is the playfeature that isn’t explicitly directed on the back of the box; swooshing – the art of running a LEGO model around the house while making plane noises. With enough imagination (and recklessness), even the LEGO Taj Mahal can be fun to swoosh, but this set is an absolute joy to swoosh, right out of the box. If you enjoy Hero Factory and swooshing, you owe it to yourself to get this set, because Jet Rocka has the perfect weight, balance and handle controls to provide a fantastic swooshing experience.

Alternate Pilots

Since Hero Factory has deviated from clone builds, not every Hero fits into the jetpack, but it’s usually as simple as removing the back armour to expose the appropriate connection pins.

Ultimately since it’s all made of LEGO, there’s always room to make the adjustments required for any character, set or MOC, to take a joyride through the skies!

Final Thoughts

Colour Scheme - 10/10 – The colour design on this set is excellent – the aeronautical White and Light Greys of the jetpack neutrally fit with a wide variety of potential pilot colours, while the Apple Green cohesively ties Rocka and the Jetpack together. There is a clear separation between the White aerofoil areas and the Light Grey mechanical underworkings, and while there are the usual blue and red pins, they don’t stand out in garish locations.

Parts - 6/10 – At 290 pieces, Jet Rocka definitely gives you an appropriate amount of pieces for your dollar, but it isn’t a good parts pack for most builders. There are a lot of Technic beams and connectors, but there are better Technic set part packs for Technic builders, and the set doesn’t offer as many useful Hero Factory bones/shells/special parts as what an individual Hero Factory figure would include. The primary recoloured part – the windshield would be easier to pick up on Bricklink, for the System builders that might find it more useful.

Design - 10/10 - Text

Articulation - 9/10 – Rocka comes with all the standard points of articulation you’d expect from an action figure, and the jetpack only lacks rotatable thrusters, something which I’m sure was considered but was ultimately deemed unfeasible for a model this size.

Quality - 10/10 – There are no problems with the quality of the joints or plastic, and the set is sturdy enough to take a good beating from many ill-fated Buzz Lightyear dives from the second story railing.

Overall - 45/50 – As a model, this set is fantastic, and I would highly recommend it. It has a solid, functional design that is extremely fun to play with, and looks fantastic as well. It carries a bug-like vibe that suits the Brain Attack theme, but it would work well for a Hero on any mission, either Rocka or any character of your own choice. The set falls down with the parts that it offers, but only because the design is so tight that there is no room or need for superfluous and extravagant pieces, other than on the pilot who is generic by design, since he’s not the focus of the set. If you’re looking for pieces, opt for buying a couple of the smaller sets instead, but if you’re looking for a high speed jetpack swooshing adventure (and let’s be honest, who doesn’t want a jetpack? ), Jet Rocka is definitely the answer.

HQ Brickshelf Gallery

[Dorek]

I'll be getting this eventually, but this was a fantastic review that got me even more jazzed up. Looking forward to more!

[Zachattacx]

Eh.

The jet pack is honestly the show here and it looks great, but Rocka sucks.

It's really nice that the jet pack can fit other heroes and Cragger :p.

Overall it's good enough to be a set to pick up, and because you can put different heroes I think I'll scrap Rocka for parts.

[Rocketbilly]

Thanks for the great review! I think the jetpack is quite nice but the Rocka figure is easily his worst incarnation. Of course that doesn't matter much to me at all, I'm just happy that LEGO are still producing Hero Factory vehicles.

I really like the use of the swords on the wings here, but I think if I get this set I'll replace the green blades with silver ones. In fact I may replace all of the green parts with silver or white ones to make the vehicle as neutral as possible (and of course replace the windscreen with a clear one)

[Aanchir]

I'm pretty disappointed in this set, personally. Rocka himself seems way too tall and bony for his own good. Sure, he still has decent proportions, but those come at the expense of him being very poorly-armored for his size. What makes this most frustrating is that he and the jetpack could easily have been designed to be smaller, and thus the jetpack would also be more compatible with other heroes.

It seems to be like something I've been seeing to a great extent with various Hero Factory sets: the figure's height varies according to the set's price point so kids feel like they're getting their money's worth, even if the set already has a fair value in parts. There's no reason why this HAS to be the case, but for a kid you expect more expensive figures to be bigger, regardless of whether they already have more weaponry and armor than their smaller counterparts. The medium-sized Breakout sets had this issue to a certain extent, and Rocka here has it even worse. It's a real shame too, because this year the medium-sized heroes were in fact reduced in height by one module, which made their proportions a lot more bearable.

The jetpack is nicely designed, if not especially streamlined. Its function seems all right, though I somewhat wonder why the launchers are designed to aim downwards when the wings are spread and in the horizontal position, and upward when the wings are retracted and in the vertical position. It would seem that the reverse would be much more intuitive: have the launchers facing forward whether the wings and figure are in the vertical or horizontal position.

Overall, this set doesn't especially excite me, and while the same was true of Speeda Demon to an extent, I doubt I'd warm up to this set as easily. But that's OK. Saves me some money to spend on Dragon Bolt, Stormer, and Surge.

[MakutaDreadscythe]

I'm gonna have to say I'm conflicted on this one. The price is somewhat off-putting, especially for a jetpack that doesn't have universal support for the figures this wave, only really fitting with the Rocka included in the set (I mean, just look at Evo in the jetpack. Super awkward!). A second Rocka seems quite unnecessary as well, though my lack of caring for the pilot does allow me free reign to use him as parts for a more unique character. The jetpack itself does look cool, and I like the functionality more than Speeda Demon. I do wish it could stand on it's own though, rather than being dependant on the pilot. The fact that there is no specific villain to fight also disappoints me. Yeah, I've seen the show, I know he fights Dragon Bolt, but still, another villain specifically for Jet Rocka to fight would give the set more purpose. As it stands the set seems rather pointless in the scope of things, though knowing me I'll eventually pick it up anyway.

[Lyichir]

This review answered the main question I had which determines whether Jet Rocka is a good set or not: is it swooshable? Having built it on LDD I found that neither the figure nor the jetpack were outstanding, nor wer they bad. But your testament to the set's handling is enough to convince me that Jet Rocka would be awesome to play with, and for a great deal of Hero Factory's audience, that's what will matter.

[ShiningStar]

Hmm, I may have to pick this set up now! I will be in the States soon, and they have sets for a lot cheaper than Canada, so it may be worthwhile to invest in Jet Rocka while I am down there

[howie28]

Did you get this, Evo and Cragger shipped to you specially, because Australia and I assume NZ won't get them till September

Anyway, great review. This set looks nice, I can't wait for Wave 2 to come out here!

[Aethersprite]

Thanks for the review, great pictures as usual. I was on the fence about this set, but now I think I won't be getting it. Unlike Furno Bike or Speeda Demon, the Technic assembly here isn't covered up as well, and looks really messy. The splash of colours don't help it look good as well. It's not a bad set, just not worth the steep price tag for me.

Interesting poll you have there, by the way! The vehicle definitely is more important for me. After all, it's the main part of the set. What I loved about the Bionicle vehicles of 2008/2009 is that they placed emphasis on the vehicles, whilst the figures are mostly rehashes of current characters. After all, don't we already have so many action figures to pilot our vehicles with? The HF line so far has been quite disappointing with their vehicle lineup. Hopefully we'll see something better next year.

[ZORK64]

When I saw the leaks of Jet Rocka, I thought "Meh".

When I saw pics pics of the actual set, I thought "Slightly better, but still meh".

Now, after reading your review, I start to warm up to him.

I'm generally not too fond of Rocka, but you managed to make very sweet pics of his jet pack, which really starts to warm up to me. Since I already own almost the entire summer wave, I'll pass on him for now though, maybe I'll pick him up if I can get him once he goes on sales.

Oh, by the way...

The jetpack can’t stand in an upright position on its own, instead adopting a form that looks a bit like a bird of prey.

Do I see a Furmanism here?

[coolkwins]

There's just an unfinished sort of feel to this set.

Don't get me wrong, this is still a decent set, but something's missing.

Maybe it's the fact that there are WAY too many holes and colors in the jetpack.

Maybe it's the fact that Rocka is such an overdone character.

Maybe it's that Rocka is just very poorly made.

Something's not clicking. [no pun intenended].

[Brickthing]

The vehicle definitely is more important for me. After all, it's the main part of the set. What I loved about the Bionicle vehicles of 2008/2009 is that they placed emphasis on the vehicles, whilst the figures are mostly rehashes of current characters. After all, don't we already have so many action figures to pilot our vehicles with? The HF line so far has been quite disappointing with their vehicle lineup. Hopefully we'll see something better next year.

I definitely agree with the sentiment of the figure being unimportant, but it's difficult to find the line for acceptably cutting down on the quality of the figure in order to improve the vehicle. Pohatu on Rockoh T3 was great as a generic Toa, but his proportions and dis-similarity to the original character were distracting.

Do I see a Furmanism here?

I wish it were, but I don't know nearly as much about Transformers as I perhaps ought to.

There's just an unfinished sort of feel to this set.

Don't get me wrong, this is still a decent set, but something's missing.

Maybe it's the fact that there are WAY too many holes and colors in the jetpack.

Maybe it's the fact that Rocka is such an overdone character.

Maybe it's that Rocka is just very poorly made.

Something's not clicking. [no pun intenended].

For a Hero Factory set, I think it's overly Technic based, without the neat weapons and armour slapped on top that you'd usually expect. Dragon Bolt is similar in that respect, where the Hero Factory theme has matured enough to be comfortable using standard System and Technic where the Hero Factory system simply doesn't suffice, but in the case of this set the part selection and Hero Factory vibe suffers for it.

[ZORK64]

I wish it were, but I don't know nearly as much about Transformers as I perhaps ought to.

Well, to be honest, me neither. I only learned of the Furmanisms via the TFWiki entry since I don't pay that much attention to the comics, though I own by now one Transformers comic, whose story and script is indeed written by Simon Furman. And re-reading it just to spot all the Furmanisms is surprisingly entertaining.

[BrickBuilder3213]

Look on the bright side, you guys! If you like Bioformers, you could make this into the Maxer Drone (by DrScorpionX). Or better yet... Combine Maxer Drone, Strider Drone (Evo/Aquagon), Thunder Blast (Surge/Dragon Bolt) and Cryo Drone (Stormer/Frost Beast) to make the Dynamo Combiner! :D

[ToaJaller78]

Look on the bright side, you guys! If you like Bioformers, you could make this into the Maxer Drone (by DrScorpionX). Or better yet... Combine Maxer Drone, Strider Drone (Evo/Aquagon), Thunder Blast (Surge/Dragon Bolt) and Cryo Drone (Stormer/Frost Beast) to make the Dynamo Combiner! :D

.....Are you DrScorpionX? Or are you promoting him?

[BrickBuilder3213]

I'm just sayiing that if you don't like the Jet Rocka set, you should try that as an alternative. Heck, you could even use the jetpack as part of a full-size mech.