I love science based LEGO sets. I also love the realistically designed space themed sets. This is the second City Space set that I have acquired, the first having been 60080, the Spaceport. I really enjoy the Spaceport, and I got it on sale. Same deal with this little kit. I picked it up for 20% off the last time Toys R Us was having a City theme sale. For a little set, it sure has a lot of little features to make any LEGO collecting science geek happy!
Set Summary
Name: Space Starter Set
Set #: 60077
Cost: $12.99 CAD ($10.40 on sale)
Brick Count: 107
Minifigure Count: 4
Manuals: 1 (32 pages)
Release Date: May 18, 2015
Summary Review: 90%
Value: 95% on sale ($0.10 per brick, which is a very good value)
Build: 90% (a tiny bit more scientific accuracy needed)
Minifigs: 88% (great value, but not super detailed)
Entertainment: 85% (again, great value, but it is not a stand-alone set)
Review:
VALUE: 95% on sale, 90% at full price
With a piece count of 107 bricks, and a full price of $12.99, this set has a cost per brick of $0.12. That is actually pretty good, earning it a score of 90% for value. If you get it on sale, like I did, it actually comes down to $0.10 a brick, which is not quite enough to bump it up a category on my rating scale (click here to read about how I rate sets). It is close though, sitting just on the edge of 4.5/5 and a full 5/5. I will give this set 95% for value on sale.
BUILD: 90%
There is not much to dislike about this set. I really like the mini-build jetpack that comes with one of the astronauts. The little lander for the other astronaut is super cute and fun as well. I really enjoyed the little probes on it, and the satellite dish for relaying information back to the scientist in charge. The piece-de-resistance for me personally was the lab bench though. I am a scientist at heart, and the little computer attached to a sample analysis station is just a hoot for me. The only point this set loses is that the lab bench is attached to a little rocky area. It doesn’t make sense that the scientist would be analyzing space debris outside without a spacesuit. I suppose the material could have been transported back to a lab, but the set-up still doesn’t make much sense to me in that context either. The samples would be tagged and boxed, and certainly not haphazardly on the floor. That’s just me being picky though, the set is really fun regardless.
MINIFIGURES: 88%
With four Minifigures and 107 bricks, you are getting one Minifig for approximately every 27 bricks. This is an awesome value. On sale, you would be paying $2.60 per Minifig (if you ignore the other pieces in the box for a moment. At full price, that number goes up to $3.25. In both cases, you are paying less per Minifig than you would buying a Minifigures Series packet. Comparing this to Fun in the Park – The City People Pack (click here to read my review), you are paying one whole dollar less per Minifigure on sale, $0.35 less at full price, and none of them are stupid ape-children. This set gets a full 5/5 for Minifigure value.
As for the Minifigs themselves, lets begin with the astronauts. The two are nearly identical, and can be differentiated only by slightly different facial expressions. Neither one has a double-sided face or any printing on the legs. But, both have front and back print on their torsos. Both of them come with a life support system with a nice gold visor. One of them has a mini-build camera attached to the life support system, and a little jet booster pack. The other astronaut comes with a blue cap to wear when he is not all suited up. I will give the one with the baseball cap 7/10 (due to lack of double-sided face, and no front or back leg printing). The other one earns 8/10, losing points for the same reasons, but gaining one back because of the neat little builds that add to his life support system.
The female scientist and the launch worker are identical to the ones that came with the Spaceport. A little more originality would have been nice, for example, swapping out the hair piece or face for another one. I will likely end up doing this myself. Neither one has a double-sided face or any leg printing. But, again, both have front and back printed torsos. The launch worker comes with a wrench, but the scientist does not have any little extra accessories. I suppose one could argue that the lab bench is her accessory, and it does have three nice, printed tiles on it. The launch worker is also depicted with the camera that comes with the set on the box. If we count the camera as his, then he earns 7/10. The scientist gets 8/10, earning a little extra for those printed tiles.
Overall, the design scores for these Minifigures average out to 75%. If we add in the Minifigure value score, this set earns 88% overall for its Minifigs.
ENTERTAINMENT: 85%
As usual, I made a little stop-motion video while building this set, so it took me about a half hour to build. It will probably go much quicker if you just straight-up put it together. For me, having bought this on sale, it translated to about $0.35 per minute of time spend building. That is a very good entertainment value, and gets this set 4.5/5. At full price, you are looking more in the range of $0.43 per minute, which is 3.5/5.
This is not a stand alone set. It needs to be incorporated into other sets or scenes. As I mentioned before, the science part of it also does not fully make sense. So, I will certainly keep this set around, but I will modify it to suit my needs in future MOCs. As such, I give it 4/5 for enjoyment. Combining this score with the entertainment value brings the overall entertainment score for this set in at 85% on sale, and 75% at full price.
OVERALL SCORE: 90%
This set is a really good deal whether it is on sale or at full price. You are paying less than the current average cost per brick in either case. You also get some nice little science builds. The Minifigs are also a big part of what boosts the value of this set. It is hard to get inexpensive, genuine LEGO Minifigs, but this set gets your four. If I had to summarize my complaints about this set, I would have to say that it could have used a touch more thought and planning where design of the lab bench and Minifigures were concerned. Overall, I do really like and recommend this set. My final verdict is an awesome 90% on sale, and a really good 86% at full price.
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Until next time,
-T.N.B.
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