High-Tech Knights Are LEGO’s Best New Idea In Ages

High-Tech Knights Are LEGO’s Best New Idea In Ages

Transforming robot horses. Cybernetic demons. A king piloting a mech. LEGO’s Nexo Knights line has launched and it’s the best.

Announced back in October of last year, LEGO’s new Nexo Knights line officially joined the animalistic warriors of Chima and the spinning ninjas of Ninjago on store shelves this month.

Slated to be one of the brick company’s tent-pole properties, the futuristic knights will be battling the minions of a dark magic-infused court jester everywhere this year, from lunch boxes to T-shirts to television screens. But first LEGO needs to build a strong foundation, and they have got just the bricks to do it.

1 January was a massive release day for LEGO, with the $US350 ($480) Ghostbusters Firehouse HQ, a bunch of smaller sets based on Star Wars: The Force Awakens, a new wave of Bionicle and a bunch of LEGO Friends releases. But that’s not why I was at my local LEGO Store yesterday. I was there because the day before I picked up eight Nexo Knights sets from Toys’R’Us, and I needed more.

A total of 17 different sets make up the launch line-up for Nexo Knights. Those include two sets we saw when the line was announced — Jestro’s mobile base and the knights’ rolling Fortrex. I stayed away from those two pricier sets, as I wanted to get a feel for the franchise first.

Thankfully LEGO provided a perfect way to do this with a set of six “Ultimate” figures. Each $US9.99 ($14) package includes a knight or enemy and a stand to hold various weapons and power-infused Nexo shields.

High-Tech Knights Are LEGO’s Best New Idea In Ages

Here’s Ultimate Macy, the female knight. She comes with her massive mace, a flaming axe and some whipping vines. The idea is that the weapons and shields on the stands can be swapped out, giving her several different configurations.

The shields are a big part of the Nexo Knights branding. Each one can be scanned into the Nexo Knights mobile game, granting its powers to the player. It’s a simple beat-em up, but scanning things is always fun.

High-Tech Knights Are LEGO’s Best New Idea In Ages

Ultimate Aaron comes with an assortment of shooty weaponry, including bananas. I’m guessing he’s the goofy one of the bunch.

High-Tech Knights Are LEGO’s Best New Idea In Ages

Ultimate Clay has whirling sword arms sprouting from his back. Also a shield and random flames, but whirling sword arms. I really don’t need an adjective for those. They speak for themselves.

High-Tech Knights Are LEGO’s Best New Idea In Ages

Ultimate Robin is tiny, but he has missile launchers on his back, so I wouldn’t mention that to his face. He also has chicken, so he’s the Leeroy Jenkins of the team.

High-Tech Knights Are LEGO’s Best New Idea In Ages

Ultimate Beast Master is a bad guy, who does not come with Ultimate Tanya Roberts so he doesn’t matter.

High-Tech Knights Are LEGO’s Best New Idea In Ages

Ultimate Lavaria, on the other robotic spider leg, matters a great deal. If she weren’t so obviously a villain, she’d be my hero.

High-Tech Knights Are LEGO’s Best New Idea In Ages

I picked up the $US40 ($55) Rumble Blade but haven’t put it together yet. I am saving it for last, because it’s a vehicle that splits into several other vehicles, one of which is a giant flying sword. I have to build to that level of greatness.

Instead, I put together the $US20 ($27) Lance’s Mecha Horse set.

High-Tech Knights Are LEGO’s Best New Idea In Ages

It’s a mechanical horse, ridden by Lance. It’s a theme in the Nexo Knights. A couple of sets come with much smaller mechanical horses.

High-Tech Knights Are LEGO’s Best New Idea In Ages

But you know how knights named Lance roll.

High-Tech Knights Are LEGO’s Best New Idea In Ages

They roll in giant mecha horses that have transformed into vehicle form. Note the robotic sidekick.

So I bought all of those sets at Toys’R’Us the day before the official launch. Then I hit up the LEGO Store at North Point Mall in Georgia and picked up two more.

One of these was the $US25 ($34) Infernox Captures The Queen set. It came with the smaller hover horse above, as well as this fellow here.

High-Tech Knights Are LEGO’s Best New Idea In Ages

He’s big, he’s mean, and what’s that inside his mouth?

High-Tech Knights Are LEGO’s Best New Idea In Ages

Why hello, Queen Halbert. Nice birthmark. You’re looking quite fetching, and not even a bit digested. Good, good — we wouldn’t want to anger the king. Not when he’s piloting a mech.

High-Tech Knights Are LEGO’s Best New Idea In Ages

Not to mention rocking a killer beard.

King Halbert comes in the $US30 ($41) The King’s Mech set, which so far is my favourite piece.

High-Tech Knights Are LEGO’s Best New Idea In Ages

Why does he even need knights? He’s got a massive robot with a giant sword. One of its hands is a ship piloted by a smaller robot.

High-Tech Knights Are LEGO’s Best New Idea In Ages

And on top of all of that, he doesn’t even need to be inside the machine for it to work.

High-Tech Knights Are LEGO’s Best New Idea In Ages

The set even came with an extra beard to the minion trying to take him out with a ballista can get in on the act.

High-Tech Knights Are LEGO’s Best New Idea In Ages

The Nexo Knight line is off to an amazing start, and my wallet certainly feels it. I’ll have the rest of the launch sets by the end of January, and I’ll be counting the days until more arrive after that. Where do they even go from here?

I’m placing my bets on massive bio-mechanical LEGO dragon.


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