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Lunch Time (Part 11)

KDog

on Jan. 14, 2010

THE RETURN OF BLACKTRON?

Blacktron, the badass baddies of Lego's original Space line, have been resurfacing in subtle ways in the current Space Police 3 theme.

The most obvious cameo is the torso of Rench, the criminal included in the Raid VPR (5981) set. His torso is clearly a slight update of the original Blacktron torso, black with white straps. But there's also a neon green Blacktron II emblem on the chest! I highly recommend this set. Besides having a new Blacktron torso (which you can use to make new Blacktron pilots with helmets and such), it includes a sleek little Space Police fighter and an officer that has the sweet new tall helmet type. First of all, it's sealed (unlike some past SP3 helmets and all Classic Space helmets), a good thing to have in the vacuum of space. Secondly, the visor actually clicks into place and doesn't rise, which is novel and looks awesome. The official bio for Rench, by the way, mentions nothing about Blacktron.

The second Blacktron appearance is way less obvious, and could just be a coincidence. Although, I'd like to think it was an intended homage since we know the set's designers are familiar with Blacktron. :-) I'm referring to Set 5982, Smash 'n' Grab, which I featured recently in the comic. At first, it looks like it has nothing to do with Blacktron. It's a purple space tow truck, after all! But look closer - the hood, roof and towing arm of the vehicle are all black and yellow (black with yellow stripes on the hood and roof), which is VERY reminiscent of the original Blacktron designs.It seems like old Blacktron could still be lurking about in some way, even if the driver, Squidtron, seems unrelated.

Will The Lego Group bring back Blacktron for good? We'll see, but the return of Space Police itself and these homages make it seem possible. After all, Blacktron was the regular nemesis of Space Police I & II! Let's hope…


- This is not an official Lego Blacktron comic; this is a tribute.

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