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Xin Qi Le is back with the last of their carded, then boxed, then bagged bootleg offerings. The sad part is, just like limburger cheese, no matter how many times they wrap the goo inside, it's still going to stink.
When it comes to bootleg LEGO impulse sets, it's not too surprising to see a lot of them are race-car themed. When you're trying to appeal to a child in under 30 pieces, it's hard to go wrong with a mini-figure and something for it to drive. At first glance the XQL #107 Mini Racing Car is just another in this sad tradition.
When we move closer, though, past the cheap blister card and to the box, we find that there's a strange twist on the standard go-kart theme. This is no ordinary car!
Yes, the Mini Racing Car is....propeller driven!
This bootleg is all about the cheat - the poor stock NASCAR drivers in the background art have no chance of keeping up with this sleek rip-off! It's 25 pieces of pure win! (If by "win" you mean "breaking the rules so badly that they shatter and lodge in your eye like a splinter of glass coated in Tabasco sauce.)
This bootleg is all about the cheat - the poor stock NASCAR drivers in the background art have no chance of keeping up with this sleek rip-off! It's 25 pieces of pure win! (If by "win" you mean "breaking the rules so badly that they shatter and lodge in your eye like a splinter of glass coated in Tabasco sauce.)
The back of the box breaks free of the "three photos of slightly different versions of the same model" standard we've seen on all the other XQL bootlegs. Instead we have another copy of the art from the front of the box, and a "photo op" pose, shown below.
The sides of the box show the driver (featuring a strangely colored green version of the LEGO Coast Guard torso) waving while standing at the side of his car. For some reason they decided that one pose wasn't good enough - and opted for a second with the figure's helmet off.
I guess when you're out of ideas, you're just out of ideas.
I guess when you're out of ideas, you're just out of ideas.
The instruction sheet is pretty standard - although the quality of the drawings is down a bit. (Check out the huge tires and awkward scaling of the mini-figure. ) The set comes with the 25 parts promised on the box, most of them with the "HOLI" stamp on the studs.
The driver is very similar to yesterday's 4 Wheel Stakeboard rider - in fact, other than the black gloves and the replacement of his hat for a helmet, they're the same parts. Senior ElStupido rides again!
Here, Senior ElStupido approaches his sweet bootleg ride. Sure, the colors and designs don't completely match the box illustrations, but why start now?
And here's Senior ElStupido sailing off into the sunset. If you look, you'll see that he's missing his left hand in this photo. That's because it fell off somewhere between the last shot and this one and vanished on the floor somewhere.
I'm sure at some point I'll be waling around barefoot, step on it, trip, and crash through a window.
Bootlegs, after all, are dangerous toys.
I'm sure at some point I'll be waling around barefoot, step on it, trip, and crash through a window.
Bootlegs, after all, are dangerous toys.
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As always, many thanks to Joe from The Undiscovered Playthings for sending me this set to review.
As always, many thanks to Joe from The Undiscovered Playthings for sending me this set to review.
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6 comments:
That was short.
Chris has pretty much said what he needed to say in all the previous posts. Now I think he just wants to get these miserable bootlegs out of the way A.S.A.P.
Cat's mostly right - the problem with being at the tail end of this batch is that the really goofy elements tend to start repeating themselves.
Tomorrow I introduce a new "brand" - with new packing gaffes and toy issues. I'll be able to go into some new detail there. And Friday I have my first of the "slightly larger than impulse" knock-offs; again with a bit more to talk about.
Daily Fail is still evolving - I have a feeling that over time the reviews will get more compact, with a tighter focus on the unique goofiness of a particular bootleg.
Back when I ran BootlegToys.com I had a little "rating grid" that helped cover the basics - I'll probably introduce something similar here, too.
Anyway, once I have these reviews down to more of a system I can put them into the queue faster - leaving more time for other projects.
Just hang on for a few weeks - things will settle into a routine soon enough.
"If by "win" you mean "breaking the rules so badly that they shatter and lodge in your eye like a splinter of glass coated in Tabasco sauce" Wow. harsh. I would never wish that fate on anyone
wow... I found something on this company!
http://www.tradekey.com/profile_view/uid/2360739/Xin-Qi-Le-Plastic-Products-Xiamen-Co-Ltd.htm
Actually, there's an extremely large difference between these bootleg toys and limburger cheese: some sane people actually LIKE limburger cheese, even after they try it. I can't imagine a sane person liking theese, especially after they try them out.
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