Review: 71745 Lloyd's Jungle Chopper Bike
Posted by CapnRex101,
71745 Lloyd's Jungle Chopper Bike expands the superb selection of motorcycles which populate NINJAGO, completely embracing this new island environment. The model combines tremendous detail with distinctive design features, including the prominent fabric sail.
Furthermore, this vehicle incorporates excellent suspension, distinguishing the motorcycle from previous designs and reflecting the rugged aesthetic. Three interesting minifigures are provided too, including the exclusive Island Nya with Lloyd and the Rumble Keeper. These feature great detail, matching the Jungle Chopper.
Minifigures
Lloyd Garmadon seems exceptionally integrated with the jungle environment, corresponding with his distinctive green attire. The colour combination of green and dark green looks perfect here and the medium nougat accents appear similarly impressive. The leaves which decorate Lloyd's torso are fantastic while the double-sided head displays unique facial expressions and camouflage paint, differing from the other ninja.
By contrast, Nya appears remarkably neat and closely resembles past minifigures. The pearl dark grey and dark azure colour scheme looks outstanding and the textured detail is splendid. Furthermore, I love the intricate white decoration across the armour, echoing waves which are ideally suited to the Elemental Master of Water. Nya's hair component looks good as well.
Nya's head has displayed the same cheerful and determined expressions since 2017. These look reasonable but greater variation would be appreciated. Both characters carry distinctive bladed weapons which integrate golden machetes, befitting the jungle. The trans-purple and pearl gold Storm Amulet is also provided and features magnificent moulded detail.
Several intriguing characters inhabit the mysterious island, including the Rumble Keeper who only otherwise appears in 71748 Catamaran Sea Battle. His lavender skin tone appears rather unusual, contrasting sharply against the muted armour colours. The wood grain seems realistic and I like the numerous teal highlights, appearing consistent with other Keepers.
Furthermore, jagged patterns are printed across the torso, corresponding with similar designs which cover the Rumble Keeper's head. His malevolent facial expression looks excellent and I appreciate the distinctive elongated teeth. This minifigure wears a textured coolie, varying from the Thunder Keepers which are available elsewhere within The Island subtheme.
This minifigure wields a white spear which had only appeared twice previously, before these new NINJAGO sets were introduced. The accompanying shield is also new, displaying some additional angular patterns around an animal symbol. This design definitely resembles 71746 Jungle Dragon, although the characteristic spines which are visible here are missing from the Jungle Dragon.
The Completed Model
Motorcycles have appeared throughout the NINJAGO range since its introduction, diverging significantly in size and design. This model is comparatively large, measuring 18cm in length, which appears appropriate for an off-road vehicle and includes enormous tyres. They provide impressive ground clearance, allowing Lloyd's motorcycle to traverse rough terrain with ease.
Additionally, this model features a pronounced forward rake which reinforces its intimidating aesthetic. The distinctive sail accentuates that shaping too, forming a triangular profile which points towards the front wheel. Moreover, the rear axle includes basic suspension, employing rubber Technic elements which were integrated similarly on 71700 Jungle Raider.
The robust Technic frame which supports the front wheel is relatively exposed, although that structure seems appropriate here because this vehicle lacks aerodynamic bodywork. Instead, golden exhausts are fixed underneath and similar golden highlights are distributed throughout the motorcycle, including on the wheels. These hub components were introduced during 2020 and feature great moulded detail.
While the golden accents are frequent, sand green and dark green are undoubtedly the most prominent colours. They correspond with Lloyd's associated colours and somewhat resemble the Warthog from Halo which the set designer, Theo Bonner, has cited as influential. Lloyd fits comfortably inside the cockpit, where a stickered control panel also appears.
Additional stickers are applied across the armour, notably including two towards the front that continue the delineation between sand green and dark green. Furthermore, tiny hexagons are scattered across several stickers and the fabric sail, matching details on Lloyd's clothing which appears effective. That consistency between each ninja and their respective vehicles has been important since NINJAGO's launch and this example seems particularly appealing.
Unfortunately, the sail is only printed on one side, although the decoration does show through this fabric. The frame is rather simple but provides adequate support to the sail and this whole structure can rotate or tilt backwards. I think the standard position looks most attractive but the articulation is certainly welcome, especially since this joint is relatively inconspicuous.
The sail and the board underneath can be disconnected from the motorcycle easily, becoming an independent vehicle. This flying windsurfer is evidently small but features reasonable detail, including adjustable sand green flaps beside the sail and two stud shooters. There is space for one minifigure to stand behind the sail, although this area is quite restrictive and the minifigure cannot generally be seen when viewing the printed side.
Nevertheless, I appreciate the separation feature and Lloyd's chopper looks surprisingly good without the windsurfer attached. The design appears considerably sleeker in this configuration and the exposed studs immediately underneath the windsurfer look absolutely fine. However, I do prefer to display this model with the sail attached because that is its most distinctive feature and complements other vehicles.
Overall
Despite following numerous past NINJAGO motorcycles, 71745 Lloyd's Jungle Chopper Bike appears remarkably distinctive and looks fantastic! I love the rugged aesthetic which certainly corresponds with this arduous environment and the fabric sail seems perfectly consistent with other vehicles from The Island. Furthermore, the sand green and dark green colours are quite appealing together.
The exclusive Nya minifigure provides further incentive to acquire this set, especially since the Rumble Keeper is only otherwise available in the expensive 71748 Catamaran Sea Battle. The vehicle remains my favourite aspect of this set though. Moreover, the price of £17.99 or $19.99 represents adequate value in my opinion, particularly given the size of this motorcycle.
This set was provided for review by The LEGO Group but the review represents an expression of my own opinions.
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17 comments on this article
shame nya's only in one set. looks pretty cool, I really like the sail pieces in this wave
Wasn't sure about this set before the review; I was only going to consider it because of the Nya figure, because I saw it as a bit redundant (Because Lloyd has a "vehicle" in the Jungle Dragon), but this review, mixed with the appealing price point, may have convinced me.
It's a fine bike, and the suspension is fun, but I did mostly get it for the Nya figure. That and my kids love playing with it too. I don't like that Lloyd can't fit in the motorcycle with the sword in his scabbard. Also, a similar issue with Kai's sword in the last season, but the handles on these machete pieces are just a smidge too thin and anything you try to stick to the bottom easily falls off, like it's difficult to keep Nya's double bladed sword together. I wish the mold was fixed for them. And the dragon symbol that's on the shield and elsewhere in this season, I don't think that's supposed to be for the jungle dragon 711746 , it looks more like a godzilla type creature that we might get in another wave since this one is pretty small, or will at least be in the show. But if Nya doesn't end up finally get her own dragon in the season that's supposed to focus on her, that'd be kind of annoying.
Good review! While it's a shame that this is the only set in the wave with Nya, it's nice that she shows up in the cheapest non-polybag set of the wave. It's a welcome change from the early days of Ninjago where she'd typically appear in one of the most expensive sets if she appeared in a non-spinner set at all. Then again, ironically I might have preferred that this wave, if only to give me more of an excuse to buy the gorgeous-looking Catamaran Sea Battle (which I'm currently thinking of passing on simply because unlike the other sets it lacks any exclusive figures)
That said, this set is cheaper and not too bad looking either, with a windsurfer aesthetic that complements the other sets in this wave and a build that somehow manages to stand out from the scores of other motorbikes the Ninjago theme has had before. So I don't feel too bad about putting this one on my wishlist instead. And who knows? I might end up picking up the Catamaran Sea Battle anyway if for no other reason than it being a set of cool boats and me being a sucker for cool boats any day of the week.
Should have been Nya vechicle for once.
I like it but many reviews pointed that it cant stand by itself well :<
@lordofdragonss said:
"Should have been Nya vechicle for once.
I like it but many reviews pointed that it cant stand by itself well :<"
I think it actually stands pretty well by itself considering it's a motorcycle. If you set it down flat, it shouldn't tip
Can't help feeling TLG missed a trick with the single side printing on the sail pieces throughout this wave...
I for one would have definitely bought a second Catamaran Battle to have a matching set of sails (or wings as the case may be).
This is the very first set designed for TLG by freshman Theo Bonner - very talented!!
Well, I will be getting this set mostly for Nya, but the bike looks really cool and unique
For 20 bucks o think this makes an excellent toe dip into the ninja island suntheme. Also really digging how the kept more techy modern details on Nya's suit to differ it from the rest of the crew
@maxxxphinn said:
"It's a fine bike, and the suspension is fun, but I did mostly get it for the Nya figure. That and my kids love playing with it too. I don't like that Lloyd can't fit in the motorcycle with the sword in his scabbard. Also, a similar issue with Kai's sword in the last season, but the handles on these machete pieces are just a smidge too thin and anything you try to stick to the bottom easily falls off, like it's difficult to keep Nya's double bladed sword together. I wish the mold was fixed for them. And the dragon symbol that's on the shield and elsewhere in this season, I don't think that's supposed to be for the jungle dragon 711746 , it looks more like a godzilla type creature that we might get in another wave since this one is pretty small, or will at least be in the show. But if Nya doesn't end up finally get her own dragon in the season that's supposed to focus on her, that'd be kind of annoying."
It's already confirmed that set 71754, to be released this summer, will be a Water Dragon for Nya and the summer season will also focus on her.
Looks kinda like the TMNT Shredder bike from a few years ago.
@CaptainCalamari said:
"
It's already confirmed that set 71754, to be released this summer, will be a Water Dragon for Nya and the summer season will also focus on her."
where did you hear that? i mostly just get my lego news from here.
@maxxxphinn said:
" @CaptainCalamari said:
"
It's already confirmed that set 71754, to be released this summer, will be a Water Dragon for Nya and the summer season will also focus on her.".
where did you hear that? i mostly just get my lego news from here."
Price Vortex (and Hoth Bricks?) have listed a water dragon for the summer wave. Some leaked set images have also started appearing.
Still, I don’t see that Nya getting something from the spring wave as well as the summer wave would have been bad. Her brother got two Mech sets last year, and that’s besides his Legacy dragon and vehicles. She’s certainly gone long enough with no sets in which she has the starring role, as it were.
I think I used to have Lloyds Jungle Chopper on VHS back in the day.
Only now have I realized that the white thing around the rumble keepers mouth was supposed to be teeth rather than some sort of mask thing.
@maxxxphinn said:
But if Nya doesn't end up finally get her own dragon in the season that's supposed to focus on her, that'd be kind of annoying.]]
There is a rumor about 70$ Nya's dragon in summer