Review: 7066 Earth Defence HQ

[Final Exit]

Following (read copied format from) on from the last couple of reviews posted here, this is my review of the Earth Defence HQ

Name: 7066 Earth Defence HQ

Theme: Alien Conquest

Year: 2011

Pieces: 874

Minifigures: 5 + 1 Head monster

Price: £76.99

I had an early start today going up to the Metro Centre at Gateshead to exchange an iPad and while there I decided to have a look in the Toys R Us store, be rude not too really at first I spotted some of the new City sets but non of the Alien Conquest, gutted never mind, then a TRU guy asked what it was I was looking for, and directed me to the front of the store and said that the Alien conquest sets had arrived about a week ago but they had to take them off sale as a kid had tried to buy some but the checkout had flagged them not to be sold yet!

Luckily for me that wasn't a problem today, and I think they had all of the sets available in stock, I almost bought the 7052 UFO Abduction too but settled on just the one having already bought the 8129 AT-AT this week.

Description (from lego.wikia)

Earth Defence HQ

The Earth Defence HQ is the main feature of the set. It is a large vehicle that has ten wheels. The front of the truck has a cockpit with an easily removable glass, with two guns underneath. On top of the cockpit are two smaller mounted weapons for close-range defense.

The roof of the first vehicle is dominated by a large, rotating pair of quad missle launchers. It has enough room for a minifigure to sit on it. The tow-behind trailer carries a small, single-person fighter mounted on a multi-directional jet launcher.

Fighter Jet:

The fighter jet can land on the back of the Earth Defense HQ. It has two wings on the front, and two "wings" on the sides with guns on them.

Maintenance Truck:

The maintenance truck features an alien prison canister on a universal turning system on the back.

Alien Saucer:

A minifigure can sit inside of the cockpit of the alien saucer.

Review

Box front and back

Minifigures

The set comes with five minifigures and an alien head creature, two ADU troops 1 male with a heavy duty "I'm gettin' too old for this" style 'tache and a feisty looking female officer, one ADU Inspector who's very scientific looking, one Alien grunt and an Alien commander.

Vehicles

Interior

Jet + Saucer

Red and green transparent bricks inside the cockpit of the jet are just added in as they were spare bricks.

Building

Instructions come in the form of two booklets, you start with the minifigures (is there any other way ) then on to the vehicles in the order of: maintenance truck, alien saucer, alien prison canister, fighter jet, front section of the HQ then rear section.

Nothing tricky, a nice easy afternoons building.

Ratings:

Minifigs: 10/10

Minifigs are great, the alien commander having the peg leg makes sitting him in a vehicle a bit hard but thats the price you pay for getting bits blown off you I suppose , the lack of back printing on the aliens is a tiny disappointment on an otherwise superb couple of figures.

ADU figures are great too, all of witch using unique printing in this set, the two troopers looking very much like Halo "Orbital Drop Shock Troopers"

Parts: 9/10

The parts that this set comprises of are good (if you like blue) I really liked the lap top (new to me) both the alien and ADU guns are great. Quite a few stickers but thankfully, none that cover any brick joints (my pet hate) and they seem to be much stickier than the ones that came with the sets from last year, some of which peeled off (my 7213 - Off-Road Fire Truck & Fireboat being one such set lacking in stickiness)

The main windscreen of the HQ is brilliant, and the smoked grey/brown colour, very nice.

Design: 10/10

As soon as I saw the blue multi wheeled vehicle on brickshelf I loved it, at first I thought it was someones own creation but having seen it was an actual set I had to have it! its pretty much what I've always built/tried to build only not stuffed suspension, steering, lights and magnets (maybe later ) in fact I'd love a white one for Hoth exploration.

Its brilliant, the addition of the jet and the saucer really make it a superb set, finished off with great minifigures.

The Jet launcher, is operated by a slotted wheel on the back to aim it into the air, no actual launching mechanism though, the missile pods have four flick fired missiles, both missile and jet launchers are mounted on turn tables so they can be fired off in multiple directions, depending on mission parameters

If I were being picky I'd have liked to have seen the spot lights be turntable mounted and a hinge underneath the roof mounted missile launchers, but they are very easy to retro fit, and thats probably why Lego left them out, to encourage kids imagination

Playability: 10/10

The playability is great, I'd say children will love this set, it ticks all the boxes, has goodies and baddies, flying vehicles and a big base/mobile head quarters, I could play with it for hours myself (if I still played with lego that is )

Price: 8/10

I think those over inflated Star Wars/movie tie-in licensed sets have had an effect on the pricing of the non licensed sets now, having said that it is pretty big and pretty awesome so maybe its about right, but I'd still have liked it a bit cheaper.

Overall: 47/50

Superb set, very highly recommended.

Hope you enjoyed, its my first review

Edited May 12, 2011 by Final Exit

[prateek]

Yes! I think this is the best set of 2011! It's just so complete. Nothing about this truck looks incomplete.

[Gregorovich]

Thank you very much for this fantastic review! I'm surprised at how early this has arrived, but very happy. The photos are very nice and clear, too.

The set is fantastic! The minifigures are amazing - a new female and elderly head, the new awesome aliens, and the great scientist with that hairpiece in dark tan. Do any of them have dual-sided heads? If so, could you photograph them? There's a lot of good play features, and the truck looks very good. It's also good to see the Nurse's needle used in a set. The saucer is great, and the jet is nice.

Thanks again for the review!

Edited May 2, 2011 by Gregorovich

[sok117]

Thanks forthe review!

quick question, is there any function behind the quad missiles, like a trigger or something that fires them all at once, or is it just activated with the regular flicking of your finger?

[---Vertea---]

for the Pirate, is the brain a separate part, or perhaps a rubbery texture? It looks like a different part, being all transparent and what have you but can it separate?

[prateek]

for the Pirate, is the brain a separate part, or perhaps a rubbery texture? It looks like a different part, being all transparent and what have you but can it separate?

From what I can tell, it is a trans green piece with painted details. All the alien minifig parts are ABS, from what I heard.

[Final Exit]

I was just about to write that the heads are all single sided when I decided to have a quick check, doh

both of the ADU troopers have double sided heads, scientist is single though, here are a couple of pics showing them and a better view of the guns.

The alien commander head is in three parts, trans green brain over a trans green regular head all on top of his light green face/base

The flick firing missiles fire by pressing the light grey "post box" part at the back of each side, so four will fire in one go.

[---Vertea---]

The alien commander head is in three parts, trans green brain over a trans green regular head all on top of his light green face/base

The flick firing missiles fire by pressing the light grey "post box" part at the back of each side, so four will fire in one go.

Any chance you could post pics of the disassembled alien commander head?

[Final Exit]

Here are a few close ups of the Commander

[lightningtiger]

Thanks 'Final Exit' for this review, now I was originally unimpressed by this series but this truck is quite COOL looking and I can see elements of Mars Mission being fused with Agents.

Plenty for kids to do (it will give Matchbox a run for it's money ), and that fighter....I love it (wish it was available on it's own) !

The figures have totally new heads, oh I wish Lego would stop twisting my arm all the time to buy !

You know with such detail in this set, could it be like Atlantis and end up with a cartoon movie on Cartoon Network.

Keep on chasing aliens !

[Final Exit]

Here are some Hi Res images of the above.

Edited May 2, 2011 by Final Exit

[Rocketbilly]

Nice review, thanks.

I think you've got the torso and leg pieces (and possibly the heads) a little mixed up on the ADU Troops, though.

Looks like the best set in the wave I think.

[lowbike1]

the first time I saw a picture of this set I didnt think much of it, but after seeing this, I love it, it looks like a really cool set

[vexorian]

Oh boy, the minifigs in this set are definitely the best of the line. None of the humans is hit by grinning plague. The cyborg is so much better than the usual aliens because of the three-part head that doesn't have pink details. The badass mustache face is just something you have to have.

I think I am definitely getting this one. Price is an issue but I have learned my lesson with the Galactic Enforcer, these are the kind of sets that you should not pass.

My only nitpick would be that the original pics clearly had a trans yellow wind shield. I disagree with TLG about this change.

[prateek]

Boy, was I wrong! That's awesome!

[MacK]

Thanks for the wonderful review Final Exit!

I've been waiting for more pictures of the interior and minifigs of this set. It looks remarkably similar to the Agents Mobile Command Center with a bit of a sci-fi twist. I'll certainly consider buying this set when I see it in stores that jet fighter in particular looks really nice as are all the features and details.

[Fives]

I must say this theme is beating Space Police 3 by a long shot! This is amazing! From the new face prints to the new guns, the reuse of the syringe piece to the 3 part martian heads! This is just great! Now I really want one of those martian leaders!

[Aanchir]

This is a really great review of what looks to be a really great set. Ultimately, the minifigures and parts are what amaze me here. I like that the "minifigure analysis" computer screen slope is compatible with other computer screen prints. I also am amazed with the construction of the main alien guy-- it should be noted that rather than being a commander, ToyFair preliminary box art labeled him as "Alien Pirate". The commander, in contrast, is the one in the mothership set with the tentacle-legs and a uniform like a military dictator.

The ADU minifigures are amazing as well, and you can tell by his unique uniform that Captain 'Stache is in charge of the unit. The main HQ vehicle impresses me a bit less than the Agents Mobile Command Center, which by its very nature felt huge and packed with fun features. In contrast, this vehicle feels smaller and more compressed, almost to the point of seeming cramped. Still, I love its chunky sci-fi military design, with huge tires and a tanklike body. The Vic Viper space-plane on top is also a victory for this entire theme.

Ultimately, I haven't decided whether I'm going to collect this theme. As trendy as it is, I'm going to want to save my money for other investments, and if I were to buy any sets in this theme I'd probably want to collect several of them (if not all of them). Still, I'm sure the temptation will only grow as summer draws nearer...

[Baylego]

Wow awesome set! That alien brain piece just gives me visions of epic micro alien hive ships.

[XimenaPaulina]

Amazing! I totally love this Alien Conquest set. The HQ truck really looks one bada$ monster vehicle, and the other elements effectively complement each other (ADU-Alien minifigs, ADU spaceship-Alien UFO). I agree with the others, this is probably one of the best sets of the year because of its 'completeness' and overall great set design. And this certainly adds to the notion that the Alien Conquest theme trumps the other recent Sci-Fi themes (*cough*SP3*cough*).

Thanks for sharing this excellent review Final Exit!

[Fuzzylegobricks]

Wow! Great review and the set is great and wonderful! Wonder why the kid couldn't have it

[Niku]

Man this set rocks¡¡¡

I wasnt sure about this theme, because im a Castle guy and the budget is limited, but for these sets on alien conquest an effort shall be done.

Thanks for this complete review.

[Gryphon Ink]

Nice review with stunning pictures of what looks like one of the nicest sets this year. I liked this set from the first teaser pictures we had, but wasn't really sure it would be worth saving for until I saw your pictures. Now there's no doubt in my mind - even though I'm probably not going to buy any other Alien Conquest sets, this one is absolutely brilliant and I must have it.

All of the minifigs are great, breaking a lot of boundaries. I love that the two ADU fighters are different from the norm - one older guy, and one woman! The woman looks to be the pilot of the "starfighter", BTW. I agree that you've mixed the torsos and legs. The torso you have on her bears some kind of harness with a parachute symbol on it, which would seem to match with the legs that have a chart stuffed into an elastic strap - fighter pilots have these or map pockets on their flight suits. This picture from Brickipedia supports this, although they also have a picture with her wearing the second uniform. I'm gonna go with this configuration because it makes more sense to have a young female pilot (better reflexes) and an older tank driver/commander (more experience).

The fighter itself is wicked and 10 out of 10 for swooshability. The alien fighter also looks pretty neat. And the whole thing will look badass on display AND have major playability. I think it's going to be tough keeping my kids away from this set. The only problem I can see with it is it's going to end up costing me a ton of money, because if you've got a major wicked combat vehicle defending the city from aliens, you've got to have a city to defend, and that means CITY sets which I have thus far not really been interested in collecting!

(Okay, if I had to find a REAL problem with the set, I might point out that this vehicle needs at least one more crew member - but you can get another ADU grunt in the $5 Alien Striker set, so no worries.

[Algernon]

This set is just jaw-dropping. The first pics were nice looking but not phenomenal, but after seeing your review it's become my must-have set of 2011. The entire truck is solidly built and none of the features feel tacked on. The fighter is a thing of beauty, too. What an elegant design.

My only complaint is that, at that price point, I think I would have liked one or two more ADU troopers. But still, the high number of exclusive figs makes up for it. Absolutely stunning set.

Great review, too.

[jonwil]

Why must LEGO keep tempting me with so many great parts in these new lines.

That new printed control panel with the scanner pattern would be great for a hospital or med-lab (say a CT scanner or MRI machine)

It has yet another variant of the laptop (I have yet to own even ONE :( )

That scientist guy is great (and with a helmet of some sort would be good for someone who works in a bio lab or something)

Just when I thought "I don't build space so most of the Alien Conquest sets aren't worth buying", along comes LEGO and puts cool parts for my City/Town MOCs into these sets.