PlaymoFriends
General => Report & Review => Topic started by: StJohn on December 12, 2015, 23:58:52
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This set came out last week and I thought it would be suitable for review in this platform. The German name is Gladiatorenkampf, and I don't know whether the above will be used as its English name.
Set 6868 is one of the so-called Starter Sets, which, according to the company's spokesperson, are "a little play world of their own and thus a good start to the entire PLAYMOBIL play world" (source: PCC) − not too different from the SuperSets, therefore, and no promise for a resumption of the Roman theme. Nevertheless, it is the first Roman set to be released since 2008 or thereabouts, so some reason for joy!
I will spare you photographs of the box art, and start with the box contents, consisting of the base plate and three bags of parts:
(http://i1382.photobucket.com/albums/ah278/fk113/6868a_zpsyq2oxpbe.jpg)
Moving straight on to the finished model:
(http://i1382.photobucket.com/albums/ah278/fk113/6868b_zpsqud3oi4y.jpg)
Assembly requires handling a fair amount of stickers:
(http://i1382.photobucket.com/albums/ah278/fk113/6868c_zpsnu7z8inl.jpg)
The three klickies include two familiar faces:
(http://i1382.photobucket.com/albums/ah278/fk113/6868d_zps9ldjapzy.jpg)
The gladiator in the middle is a reissue of Special 4653 of 2006, and the character on the right has been seen many times before, albeit with different headwear and featuring among knights. We'll come back to the guy on the left in a little bit.
Moving on to the exciting new bits, the dark chariot comes first:
(http://i1382.photobucket.com/albums/ah278/fk113/6868e_zpsllrtftgo.jpg)
The black-and-gold colour scheme works very well with the charioteer, and this makes a for a surprisingly nice 'barbarian' contender to the race. The bull face on the front fixture is borrowed from the Bull Knights of the mid-2000s (set 4435 etc.). I have no idea what the "17" is about. Scythe blades in black are new, as is the mounting for a single horse, with no pole but two shafts instead. The chariot body is of the same mould as the earlier chariots, with two round projections for fastening klicky feet.
The chariot has the same cream colour as the base plate:
(http://i1382.photobucket.com/albums/ah278/fk113/6868f_zpsumiehsix.jpg)
Moving to the second novelty − the landscape, the box art shows that the walls simply slide over four squares of the base plate:
(http://i1382.photobucket.com/albums/ah278/fk113/6868g_zpsvbu2pswc.jpg)
The good news is that the walls can therefore stand on their own, and be extended to create a full-size median wall for a hippodrome. Great!
The wall is made using these parts:
(http://i1382.photobucket.com/albums/ah278/fk113/6868h_zpscbbsxj0q.jpg)
Their colour is different from the arena building of 4270. There are two types of square bases, one with one slit for holding a wall, the other with two slits. They are smaller than the statue bases of 4270:
(http://i1382.photobucket.com/albums/ah278/fk113/6868i_zpso9f8ph8o.jpg)
The bases have a fixed top, and I have not tried whether they can accommodate any other superstructure than the obelisks that are supplied with the set. The obelisks support fire bowls, which unfortunately cannot be substituted with the bowls from the arena set 4270 and the Roman emperor 4277: the holes in the obelisks are too large to hold the other bowls.
The sticker design derives from set 4270. Unfortunately, Geobra did not update the inscription for the new release, and the year "2006" is still featuring:
(http://i1382.photobucket.com/albums/ah278/fk113/6868j_zpsegvukpdx.jpg)
The friezes too are taken from 4270:
(http://i1382.photobucket.com/albums/ah278/fk113/6868k_zpsf12rqaqw.jpg)
Lastly, the single new character in the set needs to be compared with the two red gladiators previously produced by Geobra:
(http://i1382.photobucket.com/albums/ah278/fk113/6868l_zpsebzhu91q.jpg)
The new version is a pale comparison to his predecessors. The chest bands and belt have been substituted by printing, and I'm at a loss to explain his legionary helmet, let alone the 'slave collar'. On the bright side, at least he did have a chance to shave!
In sum, I think this is a fun set, and to my mind worth the money. It is not without its flaws, though. Geobra could have been a little more innovative in the sticker design, and the red gladiator is a dud, in my opinion. Small beer, nonetheless, as we finally have a chariot to which other animals than horses can be yoked. How neat is that?
(http://i1382.photobucket.com/albums/ah278/fk113/6868m_zpstblbwh6s.jpg)
StJohn
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Thank you for a very informative and interesting review.
I suppose that the 17 is the racing number for the chariot.
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The chariot is stunning! What a shame the horse looks like a pit pony.http://www.playmofriends.com/forum/Smileys/classic/smiley.gif
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Thanks for the review!
For me the baseplate takes up too much space to get that set and I already have two chariots which is enough for me even while this one looks very beautifull with that bull theme.
It's a missed opportunity that they did not continue that bull theme with the rider by giving him a shield with a bull on it or such, the wolf cap looks out of place. And he looks too medieval for this set.
Red gladiator is certainly a waste, like any other clicky with a painted on belt like that since it never goes all the way around. And the other gladiator is just a lazy reissue. He is fine I suppose, but they could have at least changed his gear a bit, or a new color outfit.
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Thanks for the review! There are some pluses to the set and I will probably get it for the chariot and the architecture pieces. Still it could have been better as others have mentioned. With all the bull themed items and helmets they've made they could have come up with a more theme appropriate charioteer I think using just existing parts.
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Somehow I think the guy with the four horses is going to win that race...
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Thanks for the review... It was already on my buy list, now I'm gonna need two ;) The news about that wall... :love:
The klickys are a disgrace. All repeats. And what is the medieval guy doing there? And why does he have a wolf head on a bull chariot!? And what's with the helmets!? So, more parts.
Seriously, sometimes I wonder WHO oks these.
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Looks like a reasonable base could have a few uses, loving the chariot and particularly the stickers when they're applied. The klickys aren't great the red ones a definite down from previous ones, the blue guy :roman: :roman:'s good but, why the medieval helmet on the blue guy and the chariot rider? he looks good but, not very roman, they could certainly have used this as an opportunity to do some new Gladiator klickies instead of just half arsedly reusing old ones. :roman:
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Thanks for the review... It was already on my buy list, now I'm gonna need two ;) The news about that wall... :love:
The klickys are a disgrace. All repeats. And what is the medieval guy doing there? And why does he have a wolf head on a bull chariot!? And what's with the helmets!? So, more parts.
Seriously, sometimes I wonder WHO oks these.
Why is the wolf head gold. You're right about the style too, they'd be better using the barbarian helmet with horns, the one that covers most of the face, not the viking horned helmet.
The base unfortunately is a waste of space. At the very least it should have been designed so that two of them could clip together to form an oval arena, it might also have encouraged people to buy two of them.
Still, it has some really nice pieces, especially for those who never got the full-sized arena.
Thanks for the review StJohn.
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Oh thanks a lot, I was wondering about this set and what it might look like close-up.
I'm especially interested in the walls and bases. They seem to match the colour of the Victorian mansions (either the yellowish-ones or the old beige/pink ones), so I'd like to use them for landscaping the Victorian garden or the park.
Nevertheless, it is the first Roman set to be released since 2008 or thereabouts, so some reason for joy!
Indeed! I am still hoping for a Roman villa :crossed: :crossed: :crossed:
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Oh thanks a lot, I was wondering about this set and what it might look like close-up.
I'm especially interested in the walls and bases. They seem to match the colour of the Victorian mansions (either the yellowish-ones or the old beige/pink ones), so I'd like to use them for landscaping the Victorian garden or the park.
I was thinking that too. Not like I need to add more to my wish list...
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Thank you for the review! I was pretty happy when I saw this set advertised - it would be nice if there was more produced for the ancient world.
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Thanks everybody for your comments!
I'm especially interested in the walls and bases. They seem to match the colour of the Victorian mansions (either the yellowish-ones or the old beige/pink ones), so I'd like to use them for landscaping the Victorian garden or the park.
Unfortunately I don't have any Victorian mansion parts to compare! I attach a picture with various well-known bits and pieces of approximately similar colour - perhaps it will help clarify matters. Is it perhaps a new shade of colour? I'm useless at telling ... (my colour vision might be a little bit defective)
(http://i1382.photobucket.com/albums/ah278/fk113/yellow_zpsiaepxvlh.jpg)
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Oh hey thanks, that's actually really helpful :)
It looks kinda pinkish, might work well with the old Victorian houses.
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I've got some information to share from the recent discussion of set 6868 at Klickywelt (http://www.klickywelt.de/viewtopic.php?f=23&t=61154/) (log-in required).
Confrère Alexius pointed out that the protection bits are distributed wrongly in my display: the red gladiator is to wear the shield, and the blue one with the trident should hold the net (I hadn't looked properly at the box, where they are equipped correctly). He also explained the smooth helmet of the red gladiator as a measure to escape his opponent's net. In Latin the two would be retiarius ("net-fighter") and secutor ("pursuer"). Thank you, Alexius!
Comrade ANDi had another interesting bit of information, which made me feel bad for calling red gladiator a "dud", namely, that the very same figure already featured in the US exclusive set 5812, which so far has escaped me. Very good news: all of a sudden I like him much more! Just add a shoulder strap and he looks considerably better. Thank you, ANDi!
Best wishes
StJohn
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Thank you kind StJohn for sharing not only the smile but that bit of relevant info, thank you.
Share ...
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On balance I think I am going to pass on this set. It has too much of the "slapped together" feel that people have noted. A strong contrast to the original Roman theme, which was strongly unified and visually consistent throughout.
Even one new gladiator would make this worth getting. But as it stands, it's not for me.
What they should do is make a set of klickies based on those friezes! Now that would be awesome.
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I really like those friezes - such a lot of effort put into them! Good review there ;D 8-)
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"Scythe blades in black are new"
are they long enough to be fashioned into a hand held mace/weapon?(with some trimming of the blades of course).....assuming the rod is klicky hand-grip size ;)