The Last Naughty Elves

The December 2007 Buy-Me-Mizer promotion ends in a few hours, and I thought this would be a good time to highlight the (presumably) last of the Naughty Elves to escape my Workshop.

Three more Elves join the ranks, bringing the horde to 9 members. The three new NEs are:

• Minski
  
• Santa Pimp
  
• Blinder
  

To view photos and data on the all of the Elves, click here.

Transformer Challenge - Final Hours

The December Challenge has entered the final hours - if you're finishing up a build, best get to it! Photos need to be in my mailbox by Midnight EST tonight!

Right now there are eight entries - here's a sneak peek of the entry grid. Check back tomorrow to read all about them - and find out who won!

VS

Epidode 329

Read the comic here.

Mary Sue is right - this has been the busiest month in Reasonably Clever history. (Well, in terms of the comic, anyway.) On a normal "once a weekday" schedule an average month has 22 strips. We entered December on #272 and we're ending on #329 - that's 58 strips, or over two and half month's worth of content.

In the meta sense, Whiskey should be happy - he did get some new LEGO items for Christmas. That's the torso from the new Indiana Jones figures he's holding in the last panel.

Epidode 328

Read the comic here.

To me, this strip feels like the real end of the Advent story - a nice bit of closure for a month of madness.

Oh, there's still some loose ends to tie up - next week we'll be dealing with the presents Santa left for the group. And then...well, you'll just have to keep reading to find out.

Epidode 327

Read the comic here.

And there you have it: The big secret about the advent calendars. They're just meant to waste your time.

A couple of people have asked for better images of the sled - tomorrow's strip has some nice shots of it, and in a "ready to move" condition. Don't expect too much out of it, though, it was like a ten minute build that was originally just going to remain wreckage.

Transformer Challenge Update

Yes, the December Challenge is still happening. I've just decided to post all of the entires at once - when the contest closes. (So far I have entries from Doug, Pumpkinetics, George Fox, and Dan Main.)

I know this is a change from the normal "post as I get 'em" methodology, but there's only a week left to the challenge anyway.

Next time we'll go back to the normal routine...and hopefully pick a contest that will garner a few more entries!

Epidode 326

Read the comic here.

Ah, Santa. Even after they destroy his sleigh on his ride home from the mother of all long days, he still has enough Christmas Cheer to hand out gifts.

It's interesting to note that the Santa here in RC and the Santa over in S-Team don't look anything alike. They must have come from different malls.

Epidode 325

Read the comic here.

With Santa's appearance, we've reached the conclusion of the Christmas Marathon. The Advent arc will take the rest of the week (or so) to finish up, then we'll be moving on to new territory.

Man, that was a lot of comics.

Episodes 321, 322, 323, and 324.

Read the comics here and here and here and here.

Part II of the Christmas Marathon. Part III will be up later tonight.

Episodes 318 and 319 and 320

Read the comics here and here and here.

Part One of the Reasonably Clever Christmas Marathon. Check back later for Part II!

Merry Chirstmas!

Merry Christmas, everyone.

(Or however you choose to celebrate this season. Please modify the above to the festive greeting of your choosing.)

Thank you to everyone who took the time to visit my little ego-centric corner of the web this year. Particular thanks to Ian Healey, the Forumites, Mike and Beth, people who have emailed, and those who take the time to comment here in the blog - it's really nice to not just talk to myself. The site wouldn't be the same without you.

Here's hoping the new year holds all that you wish it to.

New parts in Buy-Me-Mizer

Just a minor update: I added a few new parts this morning to the Buy-Me Mizer.

Three new heads (Agent Smith, A goofy smile, and a solid orange option) and a new accessory: a brown dog.

Total combinations now at 97,338,150,912

Episodes 316 and 317

Read the comics here and here.

Just because the Advent Calendars have given up their last treasures doesn't mean the adventure stops here. Tune in tomorrow for the exciting conclusion! It's like four hundred strips long, so it'll keep you busy while waiting for Great Aunt Agnes to finish her mush before you kids are allowed near the presents.

Advent Madness: Day 24

VS

Well, this is it. The final day of the LEGO Advent season. Looking back, what have we learned?

We learned that CITY, while repetitive, can still come up with a good mini-model or two. That it's steeped in repetition tradition, and will hold on to its core themes even to the point of being a bit stodgy.

We learned that Belville, for a first time Advent Calendar, did a heck of a job. $10 cheaper than the CITY calendar, filled with rare and unusual parts, and even a couple of interesting mini-models. It lacked the structured order of the CITY, but still managed to tie everything together in a vague sort of way.

So now, without any more pointless introduction...Day 24.

DOOR NUMBER TWENTY FOUR

"Young fool. Only now, at the end, do you understand."
- The Emperor, Return of the Jedi

As in years past, the final door of the CITY Advent holds a holiday treat. Unlike previous years, there's no Santa Mini-figure to deliver presents. The one figure that should be repeated every year doesn't make an appearance.

But, in his stead, is a tree. A tree decked out with Christmas lights and candles, with gifts a-plenty underneath.

It's an interesting choice - LEGO has a couple of one-piece Tree models that are very nice. Instead we get the most complex mini-model of the year. Plenty of pieces, lots of details.

True, it doesn't look as sleek or pretty as a pre-made tree, but that's not what CITY is about, is it? CITY isn't about nature. CITY is about a fake tree made from plastic that you have to build yourself. Sure, it looks sad, but you built it. Who really should take the blame?

DOOR NUMBER TWENTY FOUR

Belville, as expected, takes a more elegant route. The tree here is one of the two models I mentioned in the CITY review - only cast in super-rare swirls of white and green. Previously only available in last year's Holiday Train the 2005 Belville "Snow Queen" set, these trees have been a highly sought after part. And the Belville Calendar has just made them much more plentiful.

The small presents that accompany the tree are much more glittery than their CITY cousins - more blocks and tiles for that stained glass window.

But there's really not much building to do here. And that, sadly, is really the theme of Belville. It looks great, but there's not a lot of building to be done.

JUDGMENT:

I've decided to call a truce here on Christmas Eve - today's battle ends in a tie. Both CITY and Belville delivered a solid, Holiday-Themed end to their journeys. And, as I talked about already, each one is truly a winner in terms of serving the Calendar's theme.

The total score finds that the Belville Calendar was slightly ahead - a final score of 14 to 11. But look closely at that scorecard. Every day was a coin toss - and if you didn't want a bunch of oversized LEGO pets to deal with, the CITY would have been the right choice for you.

The final Judgment is this: LEGO, you did a decent job. There's room for improvement, but then, there always is.

Next year, though, let's give CITY a rest and try a new theme out, eh? Please? For me?


TODAY'S WINNER: AND

THE MATCH GOES TO:

Episodes 311, 312, 313, 314 and 315.

Read the comics here and here and here and here and here.

Caught up again. Tomorrow's installments are ready, so they should go up on time in the morning.
The story will continue with a massive update on Christmas, so be on the lookout. Starting the 26th, I'm going back to a once-per-weekday schedule.

Sorry for the delay, but, as I posted earlier, I was without power for a bit. It's hard to do much when you can't charge the battery for the camera or run the PC...

Advent Madness: Day 23

VS

With yesterday's loss to Belville, the CITY calendar gave up all hope to take the Season's Championship. At best, if today and tomorrow grant CITY wins...it can end in a tie.

It's somewhat shocking that this close to the final door there's even a question of who is going to win the title. I thought for sure, with all the repetition and lack of interesting models that CITY would be dead and buried by this point.


DOOR NUMBER TWENTY THREE

Continuing the 2 (or 3?) day Police Sub-Theme, we have this computer and workdesk.

Or....is it. Looking closer we see that it's got a flashing blue light and a credit card scanner. Maybe this is actually a K-Mart checkout lane!

No, there's a chair. And K-Mart employees would never have a chair to sit in while serving customers.

So I guess it is a police theme.

The green color is also a bit off - when was the last time you saw a police set with green highlights?

Eh.

The computer monitor and (printed!) keypad are both nice post-season parts. But there's not much of a model here, no extra pieces, and no holiday theming.

CITY - you have one more day. Can you find the holiday spirit?


DOOR NUMBER TWENTY THREE

I was going to write how the Belville theme had gone meta on us - that elements best suited for life in a dollhouse now include a small dollhouse. That perhaps if the calendar had gone on for another week or two, we'd have Belville scaled doll house items - completing the circle down to another level.

Instead, I'd like to go back to some of my earliest hopes for the Advent Calendars. I've always suggested that the best thing LEGO could do would to be highlighting more than one theme in a calendar. That instead of CITY Sub-themes, maybe we'd have a week of CITY, then a week of EXO-Force, then a week of Belville, etc.

Look at today's little wee castle.

That's right. You've spotted it.

Castle. Another currently-in-production LEGO theme.

My wish came true! Sure, it's a reach, but I'm going with it.

JUDGMENT:

Today's CITY is stronger than some of the week Belville doors, but it was easily overpowered by the magic of today's Belville cross-theming.

Don't go away, though. Even if CITY can't win (or tie), they may still have a shock ending for us tomorrow...

TODAY'S WINNER:

Power Back On

Due to an ice storm we lost power here for a while. It just now came back.

I'll be getting updates to the site posted as quickly as I can. Thanks for your patience.

Advent Madness: Day 22

VS

Just a warning for those of you reading the strip as well: I have to help a loved one with some shopping today, so the stips will be up late. Still today, but late.

As to the calendars...this is it. THE BIG THREE. The score is running very, very close. Can CITY do the unexpected and force a TIE? Or...dare I imagine it...best Belville for the next three days and take the WIN?


DOOR NUMBER TWENTY TWO

Hrm. Well, so much for taking all three days.

Yes, another complete repeat. Here's the standard recap:

• Hat, Torso, Legs: 2005, Day 4 (The first Police sub-theme door)
• Head: 2oo7, Day 13
• Accessory: Seen quite a bit, bur first on 2005, Day 2

Assuming we've got a Holiday theme behind Door 24, we're looking at a two-day Police Sub-Theme. Which isn't particularly bad, but, as usual, the execution is lacking. With all the different police-themed torsos that LEGO has on hand, they decided to revisit 2005 again. And, as I griped about on Day 10, they've decided to duplicate yet another face in a single year.

Here was a great chance to surge ahead with a totally new sub-theme, or figure, or, well...SOMETHING. Maybe, gosh, I dunno, THREE DAYS OF HOLIDAY STUFF.

But no. We get Day 10's "Oil Jr" in a police suit.


DOOR NUMBER TWENTY TWO

*RUBS EYES*

Stares at today's build.

*RUBS EYES AGAIN*

No, I think it's real. That's a Christmas Wreath.

An interesting, if simple, build. And an extra part.

Someone catch me, I may faint.

JUDGMENT:

You're kidding right?

TODAY'S WINNER:

Set Review: (7621) Indiana Jones and the Lost Temple

Okay, you asked for it, so here it is. The first of my reviews of the LEGO "2008 Sneak Peek" lineup.

I started with my favorite of the bunch, Indiana Jones and the Lost Temple.

Click the picture to read the review, but be sure to come back here to talk about it!

Wigswap Theater Presents...

Whiskey's hair makes just about anyone look like Guy Gardner.

Advent Madness: Day 21

VS

Day 21. Just three more doors to go - how much Holiday Goodness is hiding behind those innocent looking portals? A lot? Some? A smidge? A dollop?

In years past, CITY has had a strong Holiday Finish - pulling otherwise somber calendars out of their nose-dives and into the light. Will we see that again? Or has LEGO given up on CITY to let Belville shine just that much brighter?


DOOR NUMBER TWENTY ONE

The final day of the Janitor sub-theme brings us what I consider to be a very nice mini-model. This trash bin has a hinged lid with enough space inside to hold the extra "junk bits" and quite a bit more. The design is sleek, easy to build, and can easily be incorporated into much larger models. I can see this same design as a storage area on a tank or starship - or a slightly modified version working as a stand-alone cargo container.

No, there's nothing Holiday Themed about it, unless you count it as a place to shove all that pointless wrapping paper at the end of a gift-opening frenzy.

Still, points for continuing a new theme with a new build, for having useful (if common) parts.


DOOR NUMBER TWENTY ONE

I'm guessing that this is meant to be another pet-bed. It has similar styling to the cat-bed we saw earlier, and adding a second mini-figure bed to the furniture tally doesn't make much sense.

Maybe this is for the puppy from yesterday's haul.

It also comes with a Bionicle "Zamor Sphere" in gold - which is being labeled as a "toy ball" in this context by most sites. Just to be difficult, I prefer to think of it as a Horta egg from Star Trek. Resting on a very fancy egg-warming tray.

In the post-season part view, today we have a few more "stained glass" elements that might be good, but those are balanced by the iffiness of four big fake flowers in trans-glitter-purple and some pink arches. And I've yet to find a good use for those spheres.

JUDGMENT:

A tough call today - Belville looks like more fun, but CITY has the better model. In the end, my builder's instincts won out, and CITY took the day.

TODAY'S WINNER:

Episodes 307, 308, 309, and 310

Read the comics here and here and here and here.

307: Completing the Uncle Norman three-day sub-theme. OJ gets ready to make his move.
308: Furthering the Fireman/LOLCAT II plot. They get ready to make their move.
309: Harvey, Earl, and Scotch. They get ready to make their move.
310: A Brief Interlude.

THERE. All caught up with the comics.

Man, once I get past the 24th, going back to one strip a day on weekdays only is going to be so nice.

Score!

I had to mail out some Mini-Mizer orders, so I had to brave the holiday shopper afternoon traffic. As such, I "accidentally" stopped at Toys R Us while out, on the off chance they might have stocked tomorrows items early.

They had - but the shelves were bare.

Luckily, I spotted some of the "good stuff" in Overstock, and thanks to some helpfully tall fellow customers, we all soon had goodies to buy.

Of note, I picked up

• Indiana Jones: 7620 Motorcycle Chase
• Indiana Jones: 7621 Indiana Jones and the Lost Tomb (The best of the current offerings, IMHO)
• Spongebob: 3830 Bikini Bottom Express
• Racers: 8150 and 8151 (Glow in the Dark)
  
• Star Wars: 7669 Anakin's Jedi Starfighter (Just for the hair. Had to have the hair.)
• A couple of Bionicle Sets. (8692, 8693, 8949) to get me up to the $100 mark to use my $10 off coupon. Shut up. They look cool.

I'm going to have a lot of reviewing to do in the next couple of weeks. Anything you'd like to see me talk about first?

Toys R Us 2008 Preview

I know I still owe you guys reviews of the 2008 Exo-Force and Racers sets I picked up a couple of weeks back, but I thought those of you in the US might want to know that another wave of goodies is due to hit the shelves tomorrow. Check out this screen-cap from their on-line copy of tomorrow's sale advertisement:



Those are the new Star Was, Indiana Jones, and Sponge Bob sets. I know where a chunk of my LEGO budget is getting blown tomorrow...I hope I can still find that $10 off a $100 purchase coupon they mailed me...

Advent Madness: Day 20

VS

I was all excited about how the poll was working - many of you were voting, and I thought I had another way to add some fun interaction to the site. Then I got a report that the blog was now causing pop-up ads. Not a good thing. The only advertising I do are those Google Adwords over on the side, as they're fairly benign and usually bring in enough per-month to cover most of my hosting costs. Pop-ups, however, piss me off, and thus the poll had to go. (It was a "free" service - I guess you get what you pay for.)

Anyway, it looks like I was vindicated anyway - when I shut things down CITY still had a pretty impressive lead.


DOOR NUMBER TWENTY

Janitor week continues with a trash can, tool rack, and some random bits of trash. I could add something pithy about how TRASH and this year's CITY tie closely together, but by now I'm sure you've already figured that one out.

Eh. At least it's a new sub-theme in CITY Advent history.

DOOR NUMBER TWENTY

I'm not a dog person by nature, but even I have to admit this little pooch is pretty cute. He comes complete with an "I want Chicken Tonight!" meal.

The only real complaint I have is that the dog is Belville scaled so, once again, in Minifigure scale this puppy is a hulking giant. Considering he came from a Belville calendar, I can't really make that negative carry too much weight.

Yes, the puppy is a rare part. The last (and only) other time he's appeared in this color was in 2005's Belville "Princess and the Pea" set. The chicken leg, too, is hard to find. So is the plate, now that I think about it. So that's three-for-three.

JUDGMENT:

Sorry, CITY, Belville just has the better assortment today.

TODAY'S WINNER:

Episode 306

Read the comic here.

I know I've skipped over yesterday's Belville strip - it'll show up later. I needed to explain OJ's actions first and it flows better with the two Uncle Norman strips in a row.

I think you can see in today's strip that Norman and Nephew's torsos are indeed the same LEGO Part. The differences in color in the strips is caused by the strips being a reflective silver color - it comes off as anywhere from white to grey depending on how the flash hits it.

Trust me, if LEGO had given me a variation in the part, I'd be delighted to highlight the change.

Episode 305

Read the comic here.

Wednesday Part I. A bit of a heartwarming tale, since most of the Advent strips have been such downers this year.

Episode 304

Read the comic here.

Tuesday, Part II.

Yeah, I know I'm falling behind again. Next year, remind me not to schedule home repairs and Advent Madness at the same time...

Still, I'll work up Wednesday Part I over lunch. And you did get a strip yesterday.

As to today's strip, I wonder who Fox thinks she's addressing when shouting out her wishes. The Advent Calendar itself? The mysterious forces behind the Advent Stream? Santa?

Advent Madness: Day 19

VS

For those of you who missed it, there's a speck of controversy over my choice of CITY over Belville for yesterday's match-up. I figured it would be a good time to try out a web-poll to see if it was just the squeaky wheels complaining, or if there was a real movement to give the Pooh-bear the win.

Right now the poll is showing 2-1 in favor of CITY. I'll leave it open until this time tomorrow, just to catch any straggler votes. But it looks like I was right after all. Neener.
(Link to vote: Click here)

Moving on, let's see what Day 19 has for us.

DOOR NUMBER NINETEEN

Wow. I don't even have to look back to previous years. Does today's torso look familiar to you? It should. We got one exactly like it back on Day 4. Yes, the CITY advent has already run out of ideas and is repeating itself.

The face is from Day 10, 2006, and the broom and legs are from Day 13, 2006.

Well, at least the black baseball cap is new to the CITY Advent. Yippidee-do.

DOOR NUMBER NINETEEN

Belville returns to the "Food" sub-theme today with this giant plate of ice cream. Or maybe it's a punch bowl? I'm not 100% sure, but it does look tasty.

The parts are also quite tasty. The big dish has been a part of the Belville world since the 90's, but this is the first time I've seen one. It has never had a crossover into the main LEGO themes, which is shocking, as it's going to be a very useful piece in the post-season.

The 1x1 round dots aren't overly special, nor is the 2x2 cylinder. The ice-cream topper, however, is another rare piece. We did see some identical ice cream back on Day 6, but the only other place to find this part in this color is in 2006's Belville "Winter Palace" set. Personally, I don't see having two super-rare parts in the same calendar as a drawback, particularly when they're mixed in with other, new, super-rare parts...


JUDGMENT:

No questions today. CITY has failed in a most spectacular fashion.

TODAY'S WINNER:

Do you Demand A Recount?

VS

Okay, I've gotten some good emails and blog comments suggesting that my decision of CITY for Day 18 is just plain wrong.

So, just to see how it goes, I've decided to put it up for a vote.

Poll may have been causing pop-ups. It's gone.
Final tally was 68% For CITY, 32% for Belville.

(Sorry, RSS folks, looks like you have to be at the actual post to vote.)

More Naught Elves Revealed

I've been remiss in announcing the Naughty Elves as they shipped. You might remember the first Naughty Elf to be revealed: Thugsy.

Well, say hello to his compatriots:

• Lucky
• Lumpy
• Blast Cap
• Darth Minimus
  
• Mimer

To view data on the Elves, click here.

Advent Madness: Day 18

VS

Is it repetition, or a holiday tradition? A shocking alternative viewpoint that I'll be ignoring for the rest of the countdown.


DOOR NUMBER EIGHTEEN

Completing the three-day Trains sub-theme we have this signaling device. Now, as I've discussed recently, I'm not a train guy. I have no idea if this is an accurate mini-model or not. (I assume at least one of my readers is better versed in all things train-like than I. Feel free to enlighten the rest of us in the comments.)

I do wonder, though, why there are four lights, but only two colors. Wouldn't a four color system make more sense?

Anyway, as I mentioned in today's comic, the lights are at least red and green, making them vaguely Christmas-y. (In the same way a traffic light is vaguely Christmas-y) I should also acknowledge that the red and white "danger" striping on the earlier CITY barricades was also sort of "Candy Cane-ish".

Yes, it's a stretch. But I'm trying to give CITY a chance.


DOOR NUMBER EIGHTEEN

Another "mystery to me" door. The teddy bear I get. It falls in to the "Fairy Princess Bedroom theme" The barrel of yellow dots and the shovel? No idea.

It is meant to be a Winnie the Pooh mention, with the props being a barrel full of honey?

Is it...um....a social commentary on "Gold Diggers" and how they're really teddy bears at heart?

Does anyone know of a fairy tale or children's story that might fit this mix of items?

JUDGMENT:

The teddy bear is a rare piece for LEGO - but that's the only thing that the Belville door has going for it. After deducting a few points from Belville for "they just picked up some random crap and put it in the same baggie", CITY ended the day with a clear lead.

TODAY'S WINNER:

Episode 303

Read the comic here.

Tuesday, Part I.

The first draft of this strip is here.

I was in the process of writing this blog post when I realized that the Alert needed to make some sort of sound...I was writing down what the joke should have been when I realized there was no reason I couldn't go an actually fix the strip...it had only been up for a couple of minutes.

So I did.

Advent Madness: Day 17

VS

Just a week to go - or a week and day, depending on how you're counting.

So far the week days in Belville have been balanced by a surprisingly strong showing from the CITY. It can't last much longer - I have this dread feeling that both calendars will be letting us down in a big way before we reach the end. It's inevitable.


DOOR NUMBER SEVENTEEN

It's a bench.

With a clock.

So you can sit and wait for your train, and occasionally get up and walk a bit to check the time, because you certainly can't see the clock while you're seated.

It's not a bad model. The clock piece is pre-printed and not a sticker.

But...yawn...not much to keep one going.


DOOR NUMBER SEVENTEEN

I'm calling this another "Storybook assortment." For, indeed, it even comes with a storybook. I can't think of any Fairytales that involve a frog and a gem, though.

Well, it's a pretty large book. Maybe these are props from two different stories.

JUDGMENT:

Today's race was fairly close - there were a lot o parts in the CITY door, a couple of them are even useful. But Belville came with a frog, and, as readers of my web-comic will attest, I do so love them LEGO frogs.

TODAY'S WINNER:

Episodes 301 and 302

Read the comics here and here.

Making the train Mini-figure into an Auditor was inspired by the fact that my workplace is undergoing a routine audit this week, and that my wife's office underwent an audit last week. Tis the Season, I guess.

Why did Harvey and Earl want Scotch along on their trip? Was it just a cheap way for me not to have to deal with a second identical frog character? Or perhaps, something more sinister? Time will tell.

Snack Size Serenity: Version 3

I had to spend some serious time in the workshop this weekend just sorting through the piles of stuff that had accumulated. I parted out a couple of sets, cleaned off the workbench, and generally tried to get things back into a mode where I could get some actual creative building done.

One thing I did find time to do was to tweak the design of the Snack Sized Serenity model a bit. Ever since LEGO introduced the new turbine-style jet engines I've wanted to incorporate them into the model. Here are the results:

I have to say, I like these better than the X-wing engine mounts I had been using. I also replaced the plain grey radar dish on the top of the midsection with a pre-printed version from a Spider-Man set. (It was originally the front of a vault that Doc Ock was breaking into.)

Here are a couple more shots of the tweaks. Don't know if I'll bother to update the building instructions - it's a fairly easy change to the side engine mounts and a complete replacement of the side engines...nothing too complex.

(But still enough to call this a new version!)

Advent Madness: Day 16

VS


We got hit with a lot of snow here in Michigan today. The white is a big improvement over the dead-grass-brown we've had to look at for the past few weeks. Clearing it away might not have been a lot of fun, but it was pretty.

I came to today's doors hoping for a bit of holiday flavor to complement the weather. Care to place bets on how well that went?


DOOR NUMBER SIXTEEN

Just to save time for anyone who decided to go look for duplication: Day 10, 2006.

It's not so much the repetition that gets me today, so much that the head I use for my own little mini-avatar (See the BLOG icon in the menu bar) ended up on a train-themed torso.

Long time readers will know it's a personal battle for me not to get sucked into the world of LEGO trains. I figure I've already sacrificed one room in our home to a building area for just "general stuff". I really, really, really don't have room to do a train layout.

Or so my wife assures me.


Anyway. Today being the start of a new mini-theme, I suppose we have two more days of train-related fun to wade through. Yee haw.

DOOR NUMBER SIXTEEN

Well what do you know. A fireplace. With a giant Snowflake sculpture on top.

That sounds like a holiday themed door to me!

That snowflake piece is pretty cool. It's cast in translucent purple, and would be an interesting join for some SNOT (Studs Not On Top) building in the post-season.

The rest of the parts are pretty common, excluding a second "snowman hat" part (We saw it for the first time back on Day 10 of this year.)

But still - it was nice to see something warm after being out in the snow for several hours.

JUDGMENT:

While a mini-fig (even a repeat mini-fig) is nice, Belville once again manages to serve up some Holiday Goodness right when you least expect it. Beyond just the cool parts, the mini-model was recognizable and well constructed. I'm sure it won't last, but for today, all is right with the world. In Belville, at least.


TODAY'S WINNER:

Episodes 299 and 300

Read the comics here and here.

Strip 300 - another milestone, if you think of milestones as "things that are evenly divisible by 100."

The two calendar storylines have diverged about as far as I dare let them - the next few days will see things start to careen back together into the jumbled mass/mess that is traditional for the Reasonably Clever Advent.

Episode 298

Read the comic here.

Saturday, Part II.

Since OCTAN has been discussed so heavily in the blog lately, I figured it deserved a mention in the strip as well. I figure it's sort of an all-purpose liquid of some kind.

Indeed, much like a LEGO Red-Bull. Of course, nothing tastes as nasty as Red Bull, so what better way to enjoy it than in smoothie form?

Episode 297

Read the comic here.

Saturday, Part I.

Change for its own sake rarely works out well. My day job focuses on computer work - and many are the complaints I've heard about Vista and the "oh, it looks pretty but it's completely worthless" nature of the changes that Microsoft made.

Advent Madness: Day 15

VS

We've passed the halfway point, how are our calendars doing?

So far CITY has been running the same race that it has run for the past three years - three-day mini-themes starting with a mini-figure, the occasional mini-model of interest, but mostly just bland items that really don't show off the creativity and scope of the CITY theme.

Belville, as a brand new Advent theme, doesn't have to worry about the "boy, have we seen this before" problems that have been plaguing CITY. For the most part we seem to be setting up a large room full of stuff for the pink Fairy character we received on Day One. We've had furniture, pets, and the occasional stink-bomb.

Reading that, you'd think that in the day-to-day comparison CITY would be left in the dust. Not so! Entering today's review the Calendars are tied at 7 doors each. But there's still some time to go, and the end game has yet to be played.


DOOR NUMBER FIFTEEN

I'm guessing that Day Thirteen's figure is less of the "Mechanic" we've seen in previous years, and more of a "Gas Station Clerk." Why? Because today we have what appears to be a cash register and display rack.

The Red/Green/White color scheme has been used for years by LEGO to represent their fictional "OCTAN" brand of oil/gas/whatever. Both yesterday's set and today's have the familiar striping, putting them firmly in gas station land, as opposed to "Qwik Stop"

Heh. Another dropped opportunity for LEGO. A CLERKS crossover theme!


DOOR NUMBER FIFTEEN

Belville gives us another puzzler today. It's clearly a flag and a bit of luggage.

It's not a holiday theme. (Unless they're thinking holiday travel. A real stretch.)
It's not any fairy tale that I'm aware of.
It IS pink and white, the default colors of this calendar.

I dunno. I'm not inspired to write anything snarky about it. It's not a bad group of items. It just feels...random. Is Belville starting to slip?


JUDGMENT:
I had posted in comments earlier that I was trying to keep from looking at the running score, lest it influence my day-to-day judgment. Since I obviously changed my mind about checking the score, does the fact that today begins with the caldndars tied at 7 doors apiece make me more likely to throw things one way or another?

I'd like to see Belville stomp CITY's butt. That's not hard to tell.

But here I am, throwing the tiebreaker to CITY. Why? Because CITY today's mini-set is a lot better than the Belville one.

Damnit.


TODAY'S WINNER:

Episode 296

Read the comic here.

What's this? Yet another scheme? A vegetable scheme?

If Earl is a vegetable, how can his heart be in the right place? He has no heart! He's a carrot, not a head of lettuce!

Episode 295

Read the comic here

This is just one-half of today's update - I have to head off to my office Christmas Party and didn't have time to finish the second strip yet.

I know everyone knows that yesterday's mini-figure has the "OIL" shirt. But pretend, for suspense's sake, that you didn't know about it until the last panel of 295. The strip reads much better that way...

Advent Madness: Day 14

VS

Everybody's working for the
Weekend. Everybody wants a new
LEGO Advent Battle.

- "Advent 14", a classic LEGO Haiku


DOOR NUMBER FOURTEEN

Could it be? It's not holiday themed, but....yes....it just might be....

IT IS!

A CITY mini-model we haven't seen before! Wow. After the past few days, I was afraid LEGO had given up on CITY completely. Perhaps not!

So. Now there's just the slight problem of figuring out what the heck it is...

I'll agree with the on-line guides and say "Car Wash Kiosk" It's an odd concept, but one that wouldn't be out of place at a smaller gas station or something.

Now if only they had given us a bikini-model yesterday to man the kiosk, instead of Oil Jr....


DOOR NUMBER FOURTEEN

Today from Belville we get a very storybook-themed item: A magic plant! In among the poison oak there's a magic flower that grows diamonds.

Or, perhaps it's more subtle than that. Perhaps this is based on the early versions of fairy tales - where everything was dark, evil, and out to eat the children.

Perhaps the shiny gem is just a lure to get the plant's prey in close enough to capture them with a burst of mind control pollen!

Yes, I think I like that option better.


JUDGMENT:

In a rare treat, both doors were pretty interesting today. I'm giving the win to CITY for more parts, a more complex build, and because they made the transition from "hairbrush in Belville" to "scrub brush in CITY" very believable.


TODAY'S WINNER:

Why does the universe hate me?

At my office we're doing "Secret Santas". It's a gift exchange were you buy small items for a randomly-selected co-worker for a week.

In our office we try and make things easier for our Secret Santa by writing out a short list of gift ideas. Of course, at the top of my list was "LEGO."

My Santa missed Tuesday, and promised to make it up to me with a very nice gift on Wednesday.

Yesterday, I got this:

In case you can't make it out, those are four small bags of MEGA BLOKS.

The evil opposite of LEGO bricks.

And I'll have to be nice, because odds are the person who bought me these just didn't know better. I mean, it's not reasonable to expect them to know how MEGA BLOKS make my skin crawl.

But, man, it still stings.

Advent Madness: Day 13

VS

No. No. NO. No. NO.
NO. NOOO. NO. No. NO. No. NO.
No. No. NO. NO. NO.

- "Advent 13", a classic LEGO Haiku


DOOR NUMBER THIRTEEN

I...I just can't. I can't keep doing this.
Look, by now you know the routine. Just imagine the snarky comments around the following facts:

• Day 15, 2005.
• New face, different color legs.
• But all the rest the same.

All the same.


always the same.





DOOR NUMBER THIRTEEN

This is truly an "accessory" door. A couple of bottles (Red and White wine?), a mug, an apple, and a banana. And a couple of extra dots that could be wine stoppers, could be meatballs.

The fruit are rare LEGO bits, the banana in particular.

But otherwise, not a lot to report today. At least they let us build the bottles out of a few smaller bits, rather than just giving us Belville-standard bottles.


JUDGMENT:

CITY...I wanted to give you the day. I really did. But I can't. You know I can't.

TODAY'S WINNER:

Episodes 293 and 294

Read the comics here and here.

Two different approaches to stress today - Fox kicks back with a lucky Door win, Whiskey goes nuts with yet another visitor to the set.

I probably should have had Floyd make her joke about her arms earlier...but I didn't have a good spot until now. And to let it go even longer would have probably been worse. Eh. Hopefully one of the two strips earned a chuckle from someone.

December Challenge: Too much?

I'm starting to worry that I'm asking too much in the December Challenge. I've had a few folks email me saying as much, and an equal number looking for some hints as to how to get started.

My thought was: if you have any small transforming toys lying around (And I just sort of assumed everyone did) you could look at it and just...copy the bends and twists that make the transformation happen. Yes, I know, that's a bit much to just wish into existence.

That said, I've done some looking on Brickshelf for inspiration, and I've found some neat galleries that might help with ideas and construction tips:

• The Gift
• Trypticon
• Racecar
• Transform-Bot
• Transformers: Evolutions
• X-Wing Fighter
• Prime

But what do you guys think? Shelve the challenge for next year when there's more time to build? Go ahead and see if anyone can figure this out by the end of the year?

I'm tempted to just let it run and see what happens - but the crushing disappointment of a contest that no one enters...can my fragile ego survive that?

VS

Advent Madness: Day 12

VS

Twelve Maids a-milking,
Rabbit, carrot, and oil drum.
Joy lives only in song.

- "Advent 12", a classic LEGO Haiku


DOOR NUMBER TWELVE

PROOF! PROOF that LEGO is annoyed that the CITY Advent Calendar continues to sell; that they'd rather see it die. That bean-counters have beaten LEGO's model team into submission and all that's left is a semi-trained monkey to assemble each year's CITY Advent.

Yes, this door is another repeat - this time of Day 17, 2005.
But go look! 2007 is actually a stripped down version! In 2005 we got two more pieces!

GAH! Why does it have to hurt so much?


DOOR NUMBER TWELVE

I didn't mention this in the strip (yet), but the rabbit it scaled to interact with the larger Belville characters, just like the first LOLCat. That makes it rather large in the Mini-Figure world. To attempt a rough scale translation - it's be like meeting a 5' bunny on the street.

Kind of intimidating. Yet this rabbit has appeared in one CITY set - the Holiday Train. (Although it could be argued it was meant as a stuffed toy.)

The bunny comes with a carrot accessory, as well as an extra tuft of greens as an extra piece. Or maybe they're suggesting the rabbit got hungry waiting for day 12 and had already eaten half of its supplies. I dunno.

JUDGMENT:

If you think today is going to a stripped-down rehash door, you haven't been reading the other advent blog entries.


TODAY'S WINNER:

Episodes 291 and 292

Read the comics here and here.

291: In this strip I poke gentle fun at my wife, who spends way too much time squeeing over the baby animals at Cute Overload.

Earl was a last minute addition, mainly because when I was assembling the strip a stray voice bubble made it look as if the carrot had something to say. Since I'm always interested in the opinions of produce, I let him talk.

And I can always use another character, right? Particularly one Zombie Wash is going to want to eat.

292: Mary Sue has a valid concern about any large grouping of fanboys. At every convention I've ever attended there was always at least a small clump of "unwashed" by the end of the weekend...

Whiskey in the Buy-Me-Mizer

Due to popular demand (and a lucky parts acquisition) I've been able to add Whiskey Tango into the Buy-Me-Mizer.

Both of his heads (the "Angry" and "Less Angry") are in there. Both heads are dual-sided, so you only need one of each to complete all four of Whiskey's facial expressions.

I also added another new torso (a second version of the green shirt with camera), a brown spear and a Castle pole-arm. Oh, and one more "standard" female face option.

Current combination total is at 95,180,574,720

Advent Madness: Day 11

VS

Day Eleven is upon us.
Holiday Cheer absent from this world.
Weep for the children.

- "Advent 11", a classic LEGO Haiku


DOOR NUMBER ELEVEN

Well, it's new, whatever it is. I think it's supposed to be a tiny wee dock. But, man, is it ever wee.

Maybe it was built by and for the Lilliputians.

The red clip on the base is actually an extra piece. Not that you can really tell.

I almost...almost...find myself wishing LEGO had included a sticker to make the warning sign a bit more useful.


DOOR NUMBER ELEVEN

So we've gone from a blocky snowman (the most holiday themed item to date - even the candy-striped radar array from CITY falls short in comparison) to...a piece of castle wall.

A PINK castle, at that. I suppose it would throw off attackers.

"Say, Nigel, why is that castle pink?"
"Can't really say, Bob. It certainly doesn't look as foreboding as the black onyx walls manned by the Wizards of Keep-Onmoving. "
"That's true. Do you think they're pushovers or something?"
"Why do you ask?"
"Well, there's a huge knight in pink barding charing towards us with a giant axe wrapped in flowers."
"RUN AWAY!!!!"

But as an advent item, it really isn't that impressive.

JUDGMENT:

Belville has a tiny part of a castle wall. Four pieces, no real construction challenge to speak of.
CITY has a bunch of parts, even if the final model is a bit mysterious.

They're both useless, but Belville is the more useless of the two. This time.

TODAY'S WINNER:

Episodes 289 and 290

Read the comics here and here.

Okay, 289 is fairly self-indulgent. I have a minor in art history, but never get a chance to use it.

To learn more about Duchamp and the Found Art movement, click here.
It's really some interesting stuff, and it can change the way you look at everyday objects.

And, to bring things back on-topic - Seeing things in new ways is a key for advanced LEGO building, you know.

Advent Madness: Day 10

VS

Day ten. If this were a boxing match, both fighters would be very, very tired. And would probably like a sandwich or something. I know I would.


DOOR NUMBER TEN

*sigh.* Say "Hello again" to Day 19, 2006. That's when we last saw this outfit. But the head? Say "I can't believe LEGO would be that cheap" and turn back to Day Four of this Year's Calendar.

Yes, despite hundreds of already-designed Mini-fig faces at their beck and call, LEGO decided to repeat heads among the eight or so mini-figures we can expect within the CITY Advent Calendar. Was it a cost savings? Was it laziness? Or just a lack of respect for the customer?

I should have seen this coming when LEGO "updated" their City Workers figure pack to have nothing but the bland "LEGO Smile" head.

I guess this proves there's no individuality in the CITY.


DOOR NUMBER TEN

I'm getting tired of all these pets and bits of room dressing. Can't we return to some sort of Holiday theme? Even just a Winter theme? Please????

Wait...what?? Today's item is a SNOWMAN? Amazing!

Well - sort of amazing. It's not much of a mini-model. And it might be a Schmoo rather than a snowman.

But, my goodness, it does indeed seem to be a holiday item.

How unexpected.

JUDGMENT:

My ire at CITY runs at a new feverish level, but Belville gives me snow to cool it.

TODAY'S WINNER:

Episode 288

Read the comic here.

No, I don't know where the Fireman found the hat, eyes, or broom. Just work with me here; I've got 48 random items to incorporate into a storyline.

I suppose it should count for something that the Fireman doesn't refer to their "evil plan". Just...."our plan."

Actually, spamming the world about a box of LEGO fire seems a bit more like "evil", no?

Advent Madness: Day 9

VS

These little intro blurbs are getting more difficult to write. Today's percentage done is 9/24 or 37.5% complete.

Does that make you happy or sad? Discuss.


DOOR NUMBER NINE

I've been drivin' all night, my hands are wet on the wheel.
There's a voice in my head that drives my heel.
My baby call said I need you here.
It's half past four and I'm shifting gears.

When she's lonely and the longing gets too much,
She sends a cable coming in from above.
Don't need no phone at all.
We got a thing that's called radar love
We got a wave in the air
Radar love
Golden Earring, Radar Love (1973)

Okay, so we have a (maybe) Pilot. And a luggage cart. And now...a radar tower? Maybe it's one of those tiny CITY airports that has like two planes and a runway overgrown with weeds. Somewhere far away from the BIG CITY, maybe in a small Alaskan tourist trap somewhere.

As mini-models go, it's not too bad. At least it has a turntable piece so the tower can rotate.

DOOR NUMBER NINE

Up until now I had been able to at least guess what LEGO intended the Belville models to represent. Sure, I may not agree with their idea of "Chair" or "bed", but at least there was room for discussion.

And then...there was Door number 9. The only reason I was able to eventually puzzle it out is that the box art shows a similar design in use. Can you guess what it is?

Don't worry, I'll tell you. It's supposed to be a sled.

With a lamp on it.

I think.


JUDGMENT:

Both doors are uninteresting. Both doors have the same number of parts. But at least I knew what the CITY door was supposed to be. Sorry, Belville. Better luck tomorrow.


TODAY'S WINNER:

Epidode 287

Read the comic here. That's right. Comic. Singular. I can't keep doing these two-and-three comics in a single day posts. I'm falling behind as it is!

So LOLCat2 and the Fireman are off on a sled ride. I'm sure it's a harmless get-together.

At some point I'm going to have to give our Airport person a name. Suggestions?

All you do is Talk Talk Talk

I promised the members of my old forum that I'd make a post like this every once in a while.

Want to chime in about something, anything? An amusing link to share? Just want to gripe? Here's the thread to do it in.

Enjoy.

Episodes 284 and 285 AND 286

Read the comics here and here AND here.

A triple comic update. Man, I hope I don't need to do too many of these. I thought it'd go quick, but trying to figure out how to handle 286's effects took waaaay too long.

Things that I almost did, but didn't:
Draw big cartoon "X"es over the LOLCat's eyes in 284
Have Morpheus-Cat licking at the blood with "Lick Lick Lick" sound effects

Yeah, there's a reason I went with the "Santa-tised" thing. Sometimes my head is a scary place to live in.

Oh: Further reading for those of you who didn't get the Black Cat/Firecracker joke.

Advent Madness: Day 8

VS

Hey! An update before noon! It must be the weekend!


DOOR NUMBER EIGHT

Oh, CITY. You were doing so well, too. I had high hopes that yesterday's mini-figure was a pilot...not ground crew. But I guess that's all he was meant to be. Today you have him schlepping luggage to and fro.

Yes, Day 8, my dear friends. The day of the Luggage Cart.

Let's compare with last year's luggage cart, seen on Day 5, 2006. Go look. I'll wait.

Well, in comparison, we have an actual bit of building to do. That's a plus. And if you do have last year's calendar you now have enough luggage to keep things from falling off on this years set. Good luck getting things to balance with only the two cases provided today.

The parts themselves feel bland and mis-matched. Maybe they were going for a realisitic color scheme, but today's door just looks "last minute, need an Airport sub-set, what have you got??" to me.

Sorry, CITY, I'm not impressed.

DOOR NUMBER EIGHT

Perhaps I was too hasty in declaring that Belville was free of sub-themes. Right now it looks like we'll have two of them: Furniture and Pets.

Or, like today, a combination of the two.

Today we get a little cat basket/bed thingie, some dots that are either balls of yarn or cat droppings that hint at the need for medical attention.

Oh yeah, and a tiny, that is to say Mini-Fig scaled, cat. With a printed face! (Not a sticker. Oh my. Can you imagine trying to apply a cat face sticker? Not fun.)

Anyway, the fringe of the bed-thingie are very useful parts when building mini-fig vehicles. They allow room for the figure's arms while allowing an easy match-up with the standard width on LEGO canopies. So good re-use potential there.

JUDGMENT:

Today's doors are almost an inverse of Day 7. City gives us a nearly unrecognizable mess, and Belville gives us someone new to add to our adventures.

Sorry, CITY fans, today is firmly in Belville territory.


TODAY'S WINNER:

Advent Madness: Day 7

VS


Seven days in, Seventeen to go.

I've noticed that some folks have been lifting my Advent review photos to use on Brickshelf. That's fine, but please put a mention about Reasonably Clever somewhere in the folder description, eh? Just to be polite.


DOOR NUMBER SEVEN

Day seven is an (3n+1) day, so that means we get a new CITY sub-theme. Looks like this time it's going to be "Airport."

We saw this torso last year, and the head is also recycled. The combo of parts, though, is at least a unique mix. It feels almost like we're seeing a new Advent character.

DOOR NUMBER SEVEN

Okay - more furniture. The on-line guides are listing this as "Chair and Desk Lamp", but honestly I'm not seeing it.

Oh, the lamp is clear enough, if a bit iffy in the construcion. But that other thing is supposed to be a chair? Would you sit on something with that uncomfortable of a back?

It looks more like a writing desk to me. Or maybe an altar. Yes, that's it. A Pagan altar of sacrifice. That'd fit into the fairy tale theme - provided you were reading one of the early, bloody versions of Little Red Riding Hood...

JUDGMENT:

I really don't care for today's Belville offering. Neither model is very interesting, recognizable, or well crafted.

CITY, at least, gives us a cheery looking mini-figure to start off a new three-day sub-theme.

For the first time in a few days we have a clear winner.


TODAY'S WINNER:

Episodes 282 and 283

Read the comics here and here.

The LOLCat continues its reign of terror. Don't worry - he'll be gone before the weekend's out.

Still no idea where the CITY side of the story is headed. Such is the mystery of writing for the Advent.

OH. And just because it's sort of funny: The strip would have been late today, regardless. Remember the renovations we're doing to our house? Well, the contractors managed to sever our phone and data lines earlier today. We just got the internet back a short while ago. (Thanks in large part to some superior customer service from WOW. A tech in and out in under an hour on a Friday evening? Amazing.)

It's my birthday...

Things are going to be a bit delayed today - you see, it's my birthday.

While I do have the day off from work, that just means I have a chance to actually go out (in the daylight!) and see and do things. As a result, the strip and countdown will be going up later this afternoon. I trust you'll understand.

I did get myself an early present - most of the 2008 Exo-Force sets that have shown up at Toys R Us (They were having a "buy 1, get 1 half off" sale.) and a couple of the new "Glow Racers". Look for reviews of those sets to start appearing over the next few days.

Episodes 280 and 281

Read the comics here and here.

The two calendars seem to be heading off in divergent directions at the moment - I'm not sure where CITY is headed - the missing Fireman is sure to be important at some point, though.
Oh - and since I forgot to do this yesterday: For those of you who don't know what OSHA is, here's a summary.

Over in Belville...well, since the LOLCat got such a great fan response yesterday, it only makes sense to bring it back for an encore today. If you aren't familiar with the whole "LOLCat" phenomenon, may I suggest you spend some time over at http://Icanhascheezburger.com

Advent Madness: Day 6

VS

I have to say, I'm so not in the holiday spirit for today's reviews. The home repair that kept me from getting Day 4 out in a timely manner is being...difficult. So difficult, in fact, that last night the wife and I had to stay at a hotel because some, shall we say, essential plumbing wasn't quite ready at the end of the day.

*grumble grumble*

Okay, LEGO, let's see what you've got for me today. It had better be good.

DOOR NUMBER SIX

Another barricade.

Okay, I guess this is more of a "road sign" or "warning sign" than a barricade. But a big arrow pointing downwards - not a particularly good sign. Get it? NOT A GOOD SIGN.

Ha. What an awesome joke. I am teh funny today.

There are also a few extra pieces. Yesterday's door also had these same three bits as extras. I don't think that has any sort of cosmic significance, though.

DOOR NUMBER Six

Belville. Hrm. In the strip I joked that they seemed to be working their way through the seven deadly sins. We'd seen lust (the bed, the bottle of lotion) and greed (the chest of gems) already. I guess that makes today GLUTTONY. We've got a goblet of ice cream, a giant croissant, and a jug of wine. Not a bad spread, honestly.

The gold-toned plate is a nice accessory, and the food pieces are somewhat hard to find, but other than that today's set is really pretty plain. Not a lot of complex building going on.

JUDGMENT:
Today's CITY set uses the same "build the decoration out of tiles, rather than a sticker" choice that I admired in yesterday's offering. Plus, they used a bunch more of the transparent orange dots that I love.

Belville has...food.

I think CITY takes the day for having an actual mini-set to build.



TODAY'S WINNER:

Episodes 278 and 279

Read the comics here and here.

It really is a nice barricade. Finding a use for it this early in the story was a bit of a pain. At least I didn't have to animate it as part of the Legion of Barricades like I did last year...

As to strip 279 - I can't take credit for the LOLCAT. No, the blame honor for that twist rests squarely on the shoulders of my close personal friend Angie. She made the comment, and I just ran with it.

I was just going to make fun of how out of scale the Belville animals are with the standard LEGO-mini.

Honest.

Advent Madness: Day 5

VS Door number 5 - just under 1/4th of the way into these calendars. What are we seeing?

In CITY, we're still on familiar re-treaded ground. There's nothing particularly "Holiday" about the items, but they are very much CITY themed. The mini models haven't been particularly inspired, but that could change at any time - the past two years each had a couple of days that were quite spectacular. We can only hope this year's calendar holds the same sort of happy surprises.

Over in Belville we're seeing a more global "Holiday Princess" theme. I was going to say "Ice Princess", but there's been too much pink for that. (Get your minds out of the gutter: I just meant that an Ice Princess theme would be in whites and blues) We seem to be filling a princess' room with all the necessities - sort of like watching a doll house come together.

I'm undecided if the "one theme, one calendar" in Belville works better than CITY's "new sub-theme every three days". At least we're seeing a bit of creative difference in LEGO's choices; had Belville been a clone of CITY I would have been really disappointed.

DOOR NUMBER FIVE

A barricade. We've seen barricades-a-plenty over the past two years, but, to LEGO's credit, none of them were quite like this one.

Back in the day, LEGO used to produce a lot of bricks with graphics printed directly on them. In recent years they've moved to a more cost-effective "Have the kid slap a sticker on it" method. I can't say I'm fond of the stickers - I can never get them to go on straight. Why do I bring that up? Because this barricade neatly skirts the sticker/printed issue by making the "caution" strip out of tiles. This, to me, is a great solution. Yes, I know I'm a geek. It's no secret.

Bonus points to CITY for including extra little tiles for post-advent building. And one more bonus point for the use of trans-orange for the 1x1 rounds - I just love trans-orange.

DOOR NUMBER FIVE

Not having three-day themes to work with makes figuring out how these items work together a bit trickier. And when the items themselves are wacky? Well, that doubles the challenge.

Today's door held a strange assortment of items - A huge cat, a small wall, a bucket, and a transparent purple fish. I guess it's a sort of "insta-pet" for our Princess. (Is it a bedroom for a Princess? Or are we making a room for the Pink Fairy from day one? It occurs to me that we just don't know. Curse my non-intuitive grasp of the Belville universe!)

Anyway. A Cat. A Wall. A Fish.
Today's door was designed by Dr. Seuss.

JUDGMENT:
How could a transparent purple fish lose? Today goes to Belville for the surreal approach.


TODAY'S WINNER:

Advent Madness: Day 4

VS Running a bit late - so without any undue buildup, let's go over what showed up on the 4th.


DOOR NUMBER FOUR

Like the past two CITY Advent calendars, each "theme" appears to run three days. So, with "Fireman' played out, we now move on to "Construction Worker."

Have we seen this theme before? Of course.

Have we seen this particular mini-figure before? Very, very nearly. Say "Hello again" to Day 9, 2005 after a nap, a shave, and some Prozac. He's given up his jack hammer for a pick axe, and has a more cheerful face, but otherwise...repeat.

No holiday cheer to speak of, no extra parts...a sad way to start the sub-theme.

DOOR NUMBER FOUR

A transparent pink treasure chest. I wonder at the logic. I mean, a chest is meant to keep things safe from theft. Isn't making it transparent a bit of a tease? And then to put a giant crystal on the top at decoration...I dunno. Maybe it's not a chest so much as a decorative reliquary.

Either way, it comes with a bunch of gems in pink and trans-clear - very rare colors as far as LEGO gems go.

I guess it continues the "Princess Bedroom" theme...if Belville can be said to be following a theme at all at this point.

So...some nice rare parts, but otherwise...meh.


JUDGMENT:
I'd like to give this one to CITY. A Mini-Figure is truly more fun than a chest, even if it is full of rare gems. But after deducting points for the re-run content, Belville edges ahead for the day.

TODAY'S WINNER:

Episode 277

Read the comic here

Yes, I'm poking fun at the lateness of this strip in the first panel. It's not often I miss a day; sadly life has been a bit hectic these past couple of weeks.

My first draft had Pinky and Fox talking about donating some of the gems to Whiskey to pay for fire damages. It really didn't work after the reveal that the fire wasn't a fire, though. I think the new dialog is much funnier, anyway.

Slight Delay

Sorry, everyone. I don't have today's material ready quite yet.

(We're redoing the bathroom in our house, and demolition of the old begins tomorrow morning. Getting everything out of the way took a lot longer than I had planned.)

I do have the photos taken - so I'll be able to catch up over the course of the day tomorrow. (Hooray for break time!) I may even (gasp) get a bit ahead of the publishing schedule.

Anyway, though some of you might be wondering what was up.

Episode 276

Read the comic here

I was lucky that today I could handle both Belville and CITY doors in a single strip. I don't think I'll have that luxury very often.

Still...big happenings in the CITY side today, no? Things are falling apart a lot faster this year, despite Whiskey and company being "on site" to keep things running smoothly.

Advent Madness: Day 3

VS

Advent Madness day three. Can today's presents cheer my cranky mood? Let's find out.

I was talking with my wife about the CITY Advent rehashes last night. She pointed out that there are some families with heirloom Advent Calendars that enjoy the same set of ornaments/toys/whatever year after year. That there are some advent calendar options that are just a piece of candy every morning. So maybe, just maybe, I might want to give CITY a break.

This point of view is backed up in some of the blog comments I've gotten - people who didn't experience the 2005 (or any previous year's) calendar first hand don't have the negative reactions that I do - to them, these are indeed new toys.

These are good points.

I still don't care, though. These products aren't marketed as a "re-use every year" item - they're meant to be new and fresh each time. And, in the bigger picture, CITY is a rich and diverse theme - there's no NEED for repeats. This is just LEGO being lazy and I'm going to continue to call them on it.

Neener.

Anyway, on with the countdown.

DOOR NUMBER THREE

A box of burning chemicals. Yay.

Like yesterday, this is a repeat with variations - Day 23 of 2006 was a burning oil drum. In terms of continuous Advent Action, that happened just four doors back.

It's part of the "Fireman theme" to have something to extinguish, I suppose. But when I saw today's item all I could think of was some homeless CITY mini-figure lighting trash on fire to stay warm, as the LEGO CITY has never released a Homeless Shelter kit. (Can you imagine the outcry if they did, though?)

In terms of part re-use...meh. A box, some 1x1 cones and cylinders, and some fake flame. All common, all bland.

DOOR NUMBER THREE

I guess yesterday was a bed, after all. It must have been, as today's door held this lovely little nightstand. Complete with lamp, mysterious bottle, and hairbrush.

As far as theming goes, this is every bit as lame as today's CITY door. In the comic I've suggested that these items might have a hidden "adult theme" to them, but as a door-by-door review we can't even give it that. These are just...not very festive.

The only redeeming factor is part re-use. Some of those elements are in unusual colors (the 2x2 radar dish in particular) that can probably be put to good use after all this is over.


JUDGMENT:
Like yesterday, neither set really has a clear lead over the other. I'm going to toss this one to Belville for having better parts.

TODAY'S WINNER:

Advent Madness: Day 2

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Advent Madness continues into its second day.

Speaking of madness, I had to spend most of today at work. In fact, I'm still at work while I'm writing this. So if I'm a bit grumpy in this review, please forgive me.

DOOR NUMBER TWO

Well, it's not as bad as yesterday, but it's still a repeat. City 2005 Day 2 had a fire hydrant and some other Fireman-related accessories. Of course, back in 2005, two of those accessories were rare and cool parts like a blue flame and a backpack model not seen in years.

Here in 2007 the model of the hydrant is a bit more realistic looking, maybe.

More frightening, though, is that today's door comes with a couple of axes - making the 2007 recreation/re-release of Day 1, 2005 complete. If I weren't able to use this nonsense as a plot point in my comic, I'd be really, really, really annoyed. (Rather than just really, really annoyed.)

One small plus for today's door: Extra parts. Got to love the extra parts. None of them are particularly rare or cool, but hey, extra parts.

Yes, it's a stretch. I'm trying to be cheerful.

DOOR NUMBER TWO

I'm not exactly sure what this is supposed to be. I'm guessing it's supposed to be a bed of some sort - that's how the on-line guides are referring to it, anyway. I think it looks a bit too uncomfortable for a bed. No pillow, no blanket, no sheets - this is little more than a cot. And what's up with the leafy canopy?

To add to the strangeness, the canopy is topped with a small, transparent blue crown accessory stuck into a 1x1 cone. And, just to be safe, LEGO included a second crown for one the first gets eaten by the vacuum cleaner.

In the realm of "after Advent part usage" today has some good bits - the four transparent/glitter legs on the bed will make great stained glass windows in a Castle rebuild somewhere, and the canopy is supported by two chrome-colored posts that will feel right at home on a space ship.

But I've no idea what to do with those crowns.

JUDGMENT:
I'm still annoyed at CITY's rehashing of old themes, but I'm going to have to give them today's Door. More extra parts and some nice accessories does beat out the utter strangeness of Belville's cot/bed/whatever.

But just barely.


TODAY'S WINNER:

Episodes 274 and 275

Read the comics here and here.

I decided that if I have to do more than one strip on a given day, each one is getting an individual number. Maybe this way I can finally start catching up to Ian's page count...

It's really turning out to be flashback city with the CITY calendar. I'll gripe about that in the Advent Madness post, but it's worth mentioning here, too. I'd be completely disgusted with LEGO, except that the Belville calendar, by virtue of being "first in the series", continues to delight.

Well, okay, maybe "delight" is too strong a phrase. It's hardly a Classic Space or Castle calendar. But man am I sick of seeing the same sets over and over in CITY. (And it's only Day TWO!)

If you haven't read the 2005 Advent Countdown, I suggest you go and take a look. It appears that it might just be important to this year's plot...

Advent Review: Day 1

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Each day, in addition to the comic, I'll take a look at each calendar's offering in more detail here in a separate post. In these posts I'll be taking a look at the two Calendars and evaluating them on General Coolness, Holiday Theme, and Nifty LEGO Pieces.

Each day, one Calendar will WIN and one will LOSE. And at the end of the month, we'll total up the daily results and declare a WINNER.

Hope this doesn't suck.

Okay, with that out of the way, let's take a look at the prizes behind

DOOR NUMBER ONE

I had a feeling.

Right out of the gate, like the past few years, we get a Mini-Figure to begin our adventure. If I were to look for a bright side, at least it's a heroic Firefighter and not a bum or something else City-Themed.

The sad part? There's nothing at all new about this figure. If the only LEGO products you ever received in your life were the Advent Calendars, you'd already have all of these parts from two years ago. As a matter of fact, the ONLY difference between December 1, 2007 and December 1, 2005 is that this year we get a saw accessory instead of an axe.

Shame on you, LEGO. Very, very LAME.

DOOR NUMBER ONE

So what do the Belvilleians get on December 1st? A Christmas Fairy!

Now, this is more like it. Sure, there are only two pieces, the sadly non-articulated Fairy and her pink wand - but at least there something festive about this present. You get a feeling that after a few drinks she might be the life of the party. (No, wait, that's the Green Fairy.)

True, she's not in scale with the standard LEGO mini-figure. The Belville theme has much larger figures, however, making her size "cute" rather than "hulking."

Today's CITY door may have the advantage in part count and playability, but I'm still giving today's WIN to Belville. The cheap repeat nature of the CITY door is just too loathesome to do otherwise.


TODAY'S WINNER:

Episode 272 and 273

Read the comics here and here.

Sorry for the late posting - I'm still not in the groove for this "daily updating" thing, and housework and errands got in the way. Fair warning: I have to spend most of Sunday at work, so tomorrow's update is likely to be a bit late as well.

Anyway, hopefully the "Double Strip" nature of today's offering makes up for the delay. I don't know if I'll need two strips every day through the month (gosh, I hope not), but the Advent Story tends to be a bit more than I could cram into 100 panels. (25 days, 4 panels a day)

Why is the Fireman Australian? It might just be the first plot point.

But probably not.