At first I wasn't real sure what Hasbro's motivation was for releasing this Ninja Lightning Cycle when they already have one released with the Dragonhawk dropship. There are differences, spring-loaded versus friction-powered (among other minor differences) but not really enough differences to warrant a purchase necessarily. Let's get more in depth below.

PACKAGING

The art is terrific and the presentation works well. Snake Eyes leaps off the package, soaring into the sky, and really gives the consumer an idea of how cool this set could potentially be. The idea that the hovercycle would soar off a ramp into the air is a neat concept, and is laid out well in the Mission Manual:

So the concept is neat enough...how does it execute?

The Toys

First of all, I really do dig the design of this new dropcage. It's kinda cool how Snake Eyes faces to the rear, and I really dig the angled look of this cage, it's a lot more exciting than the straight up rectangular cage that the Dragonhawk came with. It's got the same crosshair/latch system as every other docking connector with every other applicable vehicle.

The bike itself is a lot wider and feels a little more sturdy than the Dragonhawk version. I'm sure the friction-powered motor inside probably takes up more room, but regardless the bike feels more stocky and a little tougher. The rear tire has a wider, almost double-tire configuration, probably what powers the forward motion. I do have to say the propulsion system here isn't all that intuitive, but you just kind of rev the cycle forward and then let it rip. I was kinda surprised at how fast the bike moved, it really does truck along on the kitchen floor. I even raced it against the Quad, and it really blew it away. It doesn't always stay on course, though, so using the ramp with it can be a challenge. ;)

Speaking of the ramp, this feature is interesting, I suppose. You basically flip the drop cage over, separating the two green sides, and this raises the ramp up at a slight angle. As long as you can get the bike lined up properly, it hits the ramp and jumps just fine. The low angle doesn't allow for a very high or exciting jump, but it works well enough. It would have been cool if maybe the bike had the "hover mode" built in somehow, but so far neither of the 2.5" format Lightning Cycles have allowed for that particular feature.

The Snake Eyes figure simply isn't a figure. Snake Eyes himself looks remarkably similar to the one on the Dragonhawk version of this bike, but this Snake Eyes is firmly attached. He does not come off, I would expect for balance reasons. So, thus, kind of hard to consider him a separate figure since he's technically just part of the bike.

Yet another Ninja BAT in this first series, and yet another fantastically designed, sculpted, and produced mini figure that I find myself really loving. I'm not sure why the Ninja BAT's end up looking so dramatically cooler than many of the other figures, but for whatever reason, they do. The low crouching run of the figure above just looks really, really neat, the android's face looks mean and glaring, and he just looks ready to tear through something. The semi-translucent orange base works very well, the metallic silver paint is great, and the figure just overall comes out looking really nice. It's another case of the perfect way to do an unmovable mini "figurine". If Hasbro can stand back and look at the various Ninja BATs, then base future figures off of those poses (if they continue to do non-articulated mini figures) I think things will be a solid step in the right direction. I think part of the problem comes when Hasbro tries to combine SOME articulation with SOME dramatic design, and ends up kind of failing in both regards. The Ninja BATs all seem to just totally embrace the non-articulated mini-statue feel and just end up looking really, really cool.

That's not to say that I prefer that format. If Hasbro is going to with one consistent design scheme for the small guys, I hope they decide to start running off base figures with similar articulation, but if they're going the mini figurine route, they should think about going all out like the Ninja BATs.

3 3/4" Compatibility

Well, Snake Eyes doesn't even come off the bike, so this is pretty much a non-issue. Trust me, the motorcycle would be too small...you'd be better off buying a Snake Eyes w/ Ninja Lightning cycle from Valor Vs. Venom and not worry about modifying anything here.

Overview

This set is pretty redundant, honestly, especially if you have the Dragonhawk already. Besides the Ninja BAT (which, to be fair, is a pretty neat mini figure) and the new drop cage, there isn't a whole lot here to make it a worthwhile purchase, especially to Dragonhawk owners. The bike moves kind of fast, the jump-ramp is okay, but nothing really jumps off the page. If you really want a bike and don't want to drop the Dragonhawk cash, go ahead and pick it up, but if you're buying a 'Hawk anyway, I don't see any reason to buy this.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

    Top of the Page  
text links HomeThe StoryThe SeriesThe ToysThe FilesThe ForumsThe Staff