Okay, so it sounds like something out of a Dr. Seuss story. But this "glinch" isn't a tiny-hearted, green-skinned critter who gets off on cancelling Christmas. This glinch, actually, isn't even a thing. It's a metamorphosis.
GALIDOR tells the story of young Nick Bluetooth who stumbles upon a mysterious egg-shaped space craft. With a little help, Nick travels to far-off space where he makes new friends and takes on the evil Gorm, who's bent on conquering the Outer Dimension. Thanks to a funky "glinching" power, Nick can transform his limbs with a mystical creature to help get through some tough times.
Besides the standard kids' TV show, Galidor's also got the standard toy line. Er, make that a nonstandard toy line. Lego's first foray into the action figure market is truly an interesting beast. The toyline combines your standard action figure features with what's made Lego so popular over the years: building things.
NICK BLUETOOTH, boy of a thousand arms
© 2002 Lego
Each figure comes in pieces that you need to assemble. No, there aren't 400 pieces to put together for your NICK BLUETOOTH figure, more like 10 or 12. But the neat thing is that you can put different pieces together (like replacing Nick's arm with a funky metallic "power arm"). That means you can also swap pieces (weapons, arms, legs, even heads) between Galidor figures and create all sorts of wacky combinations. It's a fun feature that's reminiscent of the classic MICRONAUTS line from a few decades back.
As for size, Galidor clocks in at a pretty big clip. Averaging around 8" each (but jumping all over the scale), you certainly get some bang for your buck. Lined up on a shelf or desk, these figures actually look quite impressive, not to mention some nice sculpting and paint applications. (Big bad GORM is a wicked purple and black, with a spooky insect-like mask.) Another plus in Galidor's favor is some action features. Most figures have some sort of action, whether it's moving head pieces (like on the robotic JENS) or Nick's punching "power arm."
The only real negative is that since the figures are "assembly required," the articulation isn't so great. Try bending an arm a little too quickly and the whole thing just pops right out. There's standard articulation at arms, knees, legs, etc., but it's just difficult to really get these guys into crazy poses without them falling apart a few times in the process. (Thankfully, it's pretty easy to snap all the pieces right back into place.) And while there are assembly instructions on the back of each figure, with so many options, it can get a bit confusing as to where everything goes exactly.
NEPOL may be short, but he's large on attitude. Plus he's got SHIMMEL to ride.
© 2002 Lego
Diehard toy collectors might actually be turned off by the more "kid-themed" approach to the line. Considering it is a kid-themed line, however, that's understandable. But regardless of whether you watch the show or play the game, some of the creatures and bad guys are real sweet looking and would fit in quite nicely on even the most discriminating of toy shelves.
Bottom line is that GALIDOR is an impressive first-line from the fine folks at Lego. Whether you love or hate the customizable aspect of it is entirely a personal preference. But whatever the case, Lego's reminding us all that the whole point of toys is to play with them.
Questions? Comments? Let us know what you think at feedback@cinescape.com.
LOGIN
REGISTER
RSS
HOME
