Lego Movie 2: Benny's Space Squad

Can you hear that? Concentrate and listen really hard, and you can hear the  crying of those people who paid well over the odds for a Benny mini-figure on ebay, back when the Lego movie came out.  For those that couldn't afford the spaceship (or SPACESHIP!) or missed the double sofa set, and had enough sense not to feed the scalper economy, your patience has been rewarded. Good for you!

Parts callout- spares not shown.

Benny's Space Squad includes Benny (obviously), three other old school Lego astronauts (Kenny, Lenny, and Jenny), a little robot, and two vehicles for less than a scalper would've charged you for Benny alone.  As you should always do with Lego, you want to separate the parts by colour- if only for making your build more organised and to check against the parts call out, inside the manual.  Not that I've ever bought a Lego set with missing parts, but it's good to know everything is present and correct. Plus, you have the serial number the exact part you need, should you lose it.  This is an entry level kit, in terms of price and skill required, which can be built in no time, even by the minimum suggested age of five.

If you ask me (and by reading this blog, you kinda have) I would say the theme of this set is nostalgia. I picked this set up on impulse, and it wasn't until I put everything together I realised the Space Squad is a homage to the astronaut set from the mid-80s.. Ok, there's one less astronaut than in the original set, and the red mini-figure has been replaced with hot pink,  the accessories aren't exactly the same, and the rocket pack is missing, but as someone who had the original astronaut set as a child, this scratches that nostalgic itch somewhat. Benny, as he is in the movie,  an old space mini-figure from the 80s, hence the faded Lego space logo and his trademark snapped lower part of the his  bucket style helmet. And, like most modern mini-figures, he has an alternate face on the reverse of his head. So you can have Benny with his default, super excited, expression or a "we're all going to die!" face. The rest of the squad just have the regular, smiley face, expression every Lego figure had back in the day. Also, it seems the rest of the squad were kept in better condition than Benny, because all their helmets are intact, as are the space logo on their chests.

Benny

Jenny

Lenny

Kenny

Articulation is, well...just like any Lego mini-figure you've played with. The head rotates 360 degrees, as does the arms at the shoulder and the hands at the wrist, and the legs bends forward a little past 90 degrees at the hip, and a little bit back.

"Sorry, mate. We've reserved the double sofa for our UFO marathon"

"Right, take it all down and stick it in the truck, then down the scrapyard. We'll do money on it"

Accessories are plentiful. There's something for each astronaut- another nod to the vintage space set: a metal detector, a walkie talkie,  a spanner, and a laser canon, as well as a little robot- not unlike the filler items you never want in the Lego Star Wars advent calendar. But it comes in the classic gray and blue, with a clear yellow piece to denote an eye, with a areal on top. The arms rotate 360 degrees and the saucer part does make the robot resemble a hat stand, but it does stand nice and steady, so you only have to stress out over the main four figures falling over.

Also included are two vehicles; a lunar buggy and a one-man spaceship. The buggy is rather spartan compared to vintage buggys, with just a couple of clips to hold the figure accessories and space for a second second astronaut to stand behind the driver. The build is pretty much unchanged since I made my first mini-vehicle, back in the 80s, and that's no bad thing because it doesn't need to. Maybe it's the nostalgia talking, but there's an innate satisfaction in putting together a vehicle in next to no time, then hearing the familiar sound of the rubber tyres rolling over a hard surface as you move the buggy back and forth.  If it ain't broke, don't rebuild it.

"MAY DAY! MAY DAY! I'M CAUGHT1 AND FOR SOME REASON MY HEADLIGHTS DON'T WORK!"

Despite the lack of suspension, the space buggy rolled smooth on the lunar surface. 

"Look out, Ken. I'm gonna bin it!"

The second vehicle you get is a a little spaceship, again, a throwback to the 80s space line- depicted in gray and royal blue,  is very much like the mid-80s space scooter set, except for the sloping, blue piece that's emblazoned with the space logo. Like the buggy, its appeal in it's simplicity and nostalgic value. I can imagine a fully grown adult  seeing this, thinking "I used to have something like this as a kid" and getting as much enjoyment putting it together as a five year-old getting this as their first Lego set.

Having not seen the Lego Movie 2, I have no idea if the Space Squad have key roles or are a throwaway gag (like the multiple references to past and present sets seen in the first movie), and that will probably influence whether your average kid will want this. Rose-tinted spectacles asides, this is a decent, entry-level kit that offers aerial and car-based play value- which you can't often say about the basic Lego sets these days. And if you're an adult collector, and not snobbish about where your astronauts come from, you have an instant supply of figures for your vintage space sets.Yes, it's a shameless  tug and one's sense of nostalgia, but not enough to do your wallet any  real harm.

"I find your lack of faith disturbing"

"Guys, I'm at the location, as arranged. Guys? Where are you? And how is this radio working in space?"

"Alien life discovered."

Company: Lego


 Price paid: £8.99


Bought from: Forbidden Planet