A Road-Plate Story
Our story begins with three friends, Albert, Benjamin and Clarice, who like every afternoon gather after school for a good time.
But this is a special occasion, they're going to try Benjamin's new tuned wheelchair, so Albert picks up his mountain bike and Clarice her skateboard, and they're about to find a place to jump and race.
After several laps on the outskirts of the neighborhood, sharing jokes and anecdotes from high school they find a crossroads (set 60304) in a semi-urbanized area. Researching the area, they see that it is perfect for them, there is a straight road that is great for racing, and at the crossroads there is a pedestrian crossing with bumpers that will be amazing for jumps practice, and due to the area is not finished, it is perfect because there are neither cars nor pedestrians that can be disturbed.
The area is completed with some traffic signal, a couple of traffic lights and solar panel-operated streetlights (they have a 1x2 glow in the dark plate) that will be great and useful to practice at night. And a small trees area and flowers that will come cool to lay down yourself to the ground and rest.
As the weeks progressed, the three friends increasingly enjoyed their place to practice the sports they like, and almost every afternoon, after school, there they go and spent hours and hours between jumps, pirouettes and races.
Benjamin has always been a boy who has not been limited by his handicap, and that has led him to qualify for the state stunt championship in a half pipe, which will be held at the end of the school season. This classification, in addition to a great personal merit, has allowed him to sign with an energy drink brand that will sponsor him.
Benjamin's sponsors, ViTa Rush, an energy drink based on citrus, decide that, in order for Benjamin to practice and train for the championship, invest in a skate park (set 60290) which they build right next to the crossroads where the three friends gather in the afternoons.
The skate park consists of a small street platform, to maintain continuity with the crossing, a good palm tree that shades them on hot days, as well as a half pipe for Benjamin to practice his jumps and stunts, a wall for graffiti artists, another somewhat smaller ramp that is Clarice's favorite and a rocker where to practice balances, where Albert spends his afternoons trying to do pirouettes and not fall in the attempt. All supervised by Jessie, the person who accompanies Benjamin from the sponsor company, so that he does not lack anything, and that is why the area is full of fences, sponsor billboards and energy drinks.
Benjamin made third in the tournament, but instead of being upset, he decided he would try even harder for the next tournament. But that third place was a change in his life, in addition to being the first disabled teenager to participate in the stunt tournament, he had entered the podium. He continued to go to train with his friends Albert and Clarice at skate park, and as he became better known in the city, people began to go and watch him train and cheer him up. This caused that area on the outskirts of the city to be increasingly known, and therefore the first businesses began to appear (set 60306).
Taking advantage of the sports facilities Benjamin uses to train, and the increasing influx of visitors and athletes, a bike shop has opened with cycling equipment, right next door, to replenish energies has opened a coffee shop with freshly made croissants and pretzels. Taking advantage of the construction of these businesses, the street has been extended, and outdoor gymnastics equipment has been installed next to the coffee shop to expand the offer of sports to practice. As vehicles already begin to appear in the area, in addition to a new pedestrian crossing, with their corresponding bumpers, a bike path has been installed, for more safety of athletes. In addition, it appears that the area is starting to be important to the town hall, since it already has a maintenance truck assigned to the area.
As the weeks go the area becomes more and more well known and being an area on the outskirts of the city it has a tranquility that many athletes enjoy, this circumstance causes the first homes to appear, which must respect environmental standards indicated by the town hall (set 60291).
One of the first houses is an energy efficient three-height house with large windows to take advantage of sunlight and brick. This is where Benjamin's family has moved, so he is near the training area and where he meets his friends. The house has solar panels for power, and a parking and recharge area of the family electric vehicle.
While Benjamin trains or plays with his friends, his father and brother, George and Michael, respectively, spend their time playing hockey on the access road, or with the game console. His mother, Violet, prepares something to eat at the barbecue on the terrace, while Denise, his sister, gives Wolfie, the family dog, a good bath.
In recent weeks, as our friends prepare to enjoy the winter snow, the neighborhood has grown, being a favorite one of the citizens (set 60292).
New stretches of street have been paved, with new pedestrian crossings, more self-sufficient streetlights and traffic signs have also been installed. The town hall has installed a clean recycling point, with its container truck, and as mall park with swing for babies. A car wash and a charging point for electric vehicles have also been installed by Octan and Octan-E, Octan's eco-friendly subsidiary. In addition, in the new building of the neighborhood a pizzeria has opened and on the first floor there is a kendo dojo, which expands the sports offer of the neighborhood. A neighborhood that is our friends Albert, Benjamin and Clarice, home. Where they are happy to play and enjoy their favorite sports, do not hesitate and move to Sportsville, the coolest neighborhood in Lego City!!
Author's Note: Dear Readers, let me explain why this story is.
Actually, this should be another blog post where a review of each of the five sets listed in this story would have been reviewed, which are the five ones including City's new road plates system. But when I opened the first one of them, which is basically a street expansion set, I was invaded by a feeling back to a youthful age where I enjoyed not only the construction of the sets, but also the stories I imagined with them.
As I have been assembling the successive sets, this feeling was still there, reaching a point where I was enjoying my imagination more than the construction, which, as can be seen at a glance of the boxes, does not involve any mystery, nor challenge, which also complicates the possibility of a review. That is why I have chosen to invent a story where I gradually linked the appearance of the next set, as if it were the child I was, and with the sensations so pleasant and with the enjoyment of that story that I have had throughout the assembly of the sets.
After all, we must be aware that they are City sets, and not a Creator Master Builder product or an 18+ set, but I insist, that does not mean, that the bad feelings that left me my previous review of set 60271, Main Square, has disappeared in favor of being able to imagine a story, and recover that facet of our personality that perhaps because we are adults more than once we parked.
That said, I'm going to comment on a number of good, bad points that I think these sets have. On the negative side I will comment on several points, one important in my opinion, is the scale, the vehicles barely fit in their lane, within this new system of road plates, which also adds a negative curiosity, when the vehicles face the bumpers, they do it with the chassis, the wheels do not time raise it and lower it, unless the opposite lane is invaded and both bumpers are passed.
Another negative aspect that I see to the road plates system is how the curved layout will be made so far, we have been presented straight and a "T" cross where the vehicles rotate, but apparently, I do not see clear what a curved section will be like.
It should be noted that it is not a system that will work with modular buildings, not only because of the obvious that these are built on baseplates, but also, given the scale of the road plate, the street is disproportionate in terms of width.
Finally, a suggestion, it would have been interesting that 2x4 gray and gray with white stripe tiles, as well as some 1x4 too, would have been included to be able to join the different sections of road plates of the different sets between them, only those who needs the set are included, being short then at the time of joining two sets.
Many things to mention as a positive, the first bet to introduce several characters with disabilities, it is true that a few years ago a person was already in a wheelchair, but in this case LEGO® introduce a person who surpasses himself. They also feature a blind character along with his guide dog. Dog that is new, in one of the sets comes in brown and in another comes in tan.
All the time as you build the city it transmits that eco-Friendly city feeling, the streetlights are solar, the house also has solar panels, there are several electric vehicles and charging stations for them, a bike path... it takes very much in the line that big cities tend to do today. Also there is a balance in terms of equality between men and women, several of the characters who could give the feeling of having responsibility are female minifigures, such as the operator of the recycling truck, the fire fighter, the maintenance person from the town hall or the kendo teacher. Thinking in the children who will play with them it is a success.
Definitely, as AFOL don't expect to enjoy great construction techniques, but as a LEGO® user you still want to recover that childish part of the stories, and by the way, take advantage of the road plates system, which I think is a great success for City sets.
We wish to thank LEGO for providing this set for review. The opinions in this review are not supported or endorsed by LEGO.
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