Collectible of the Week: Monster Fighters (Lego; 2012)

I'm posting this collectible of the week in honor of my son, Joel, who turns six very shortly.

He celebrated the birthday already, however, with a visit from  grandparents on this past Sunday.  And this coming weekend, he celebrates it again with his classmates and friends with bouncy houses, laser-tag and arcade games.

And, then, finally, Joel's real birthday arrives next week, where he'll celebrate it at school.

I had no idea that these days birthdays actually go on for weeks. Makes me wish I were a kid again!

Anyway, Joel was thrilled over the weekend to receive a whole slew of 2012 "Monster Fighters" Lego sets from his grandparents, including Lord Vampyre's Castle, the Ghost Train, Lord Vampyre's Hearse, the Swamp Creature (think Creature from the Black Lagoon), and the Werewolf.   I did have to explain to him, however, what a hearse is.  

Indeed, Joel has been becoming more and more fascinated with (child-appropriate) horror imagery of late, and he was excited to find that Lord Vampyre's castle not only includes a pop-out spider to launch at visitors, but a basement coffin for Lord Vampyre, plus a device (consisting of six "moonstones") that can eclipse the sun and turn the world to permanent midnight.  

And did I mention the torture chamber (for skeleton?) Or the trap-door with a spike-trap waiting underneath? 

I spent the better part of seven hours  on Sunday assembling the Castle. It came with seven different bags of pieces. , and Joel bailed on me after about four hours.  I completed the rest while he was asleep.  Today, Kathryn spent three hours building the Ghost Train, so it was ready for him when he came home from Kindergarten.   He loves it because the ghosts and elements of the train glow in the dark.

I must say, these Lego sets -- in addition to being incredibly expensive -- are also incredibly-well done.  They make for very fun toys, and Joel has already discovered he can go online to play a Monster Fighters video game. 

Joel still doesn't own the Frankenstein-styled set ("The Monster and His Crazy Lab,") or the "Crooked Haunted House," but the one he really has his eyes on now is the Zombie Graveyard...were corpses can spring up out of open coffins and attack...

Good thing Christmas isn't too far off...