“I love it when a plan comes together。” "Hannibal" – John Smith's quote may be well suited to the current situation, as Lego Ideas' "The A-Team: Van and Crew" (Dragon Strike Team: Vans and Crew) successfully received 10,000 votes and entered the censorship stage. This will also be part of the Tianlong Special Attack Team's plan, which will subsequently be subject to the second round of official review in 2021 along with 32 other works. Before that, let's take a closer look at it.
We already met fan designer HenkvdL05 (aka Henk van der Linde) a few weeks ago when his first work, "Thunderbolt Ranger: KITT and FLAG Mobile Command," successfully went through the censorship phase. His love for Lego was rekindled by his son after nearly two decades of cessation, but it wasn't until the lockdown in 2020 that the two of them had the opportunity to explore the LEGO world in depth. Over time, Henk discovered a community of Lego fans and also signed up for an Idea account about 11 months ago. In December, we saw the first mini-work submitted by Henk, which was created as a platform competition.
After the first model appeared on the Idea platform in March, in early July 2021, the Tianlong Strike Team van was finally unveiled. Henk clearly hit everyone's interest, and with this, only 57 days later, the 10,000 votes were achieved.
Henk reverted the famous van in Dragon Strike Force with about 470 parts. The width of the model is 8 studs, and of course it includes all members of the Draco team, with four figures, namely Hannibal-John Smith, Facebook-Templeton Pike, Weird-B.A., and Wolf-Modoc.
We can easily open the cab doors and rear doors and place the protagonists in the van. Two team members can sit in the back seat and can be easily accessed through sliding side doors. In the rear area, you can also see some technical aids that will certainly play a role in a certain task.
In one video, we can see the front and rear headlights lit up, but unfortunately this may be just a demonstration effect, because in the introduction of the work, we did not find any description of the lighting function. The same thing happens on red decorative lines, which must be achieved with stickers if in a real model.
The dimensions of the van are about 18 cm long, 8 cm wide and 10 cm high. For more information, we recommend watching the video introduction below.
According to Wikipedia, the TV series "The A-Team" was first broadcast on January 23, 1983, by NBC. There are 5 seasons in total, divided into 90 episodes and 4 double episodes. The film tells the story of four Vietnam Veterans who are unfairly interrogated by a military court for disobeying military orders, and they are unwilling to escape from prison and hide in Los Angeles. The Dragons were one of the most successful American television series of the 1980s, with an audience of more than 20 million households and was even nominated for an Emmy Award.
"The A-Team" aired in the United States for a total of 5 seasons, the status at that time was similar to China's Journey to the West, the character image has penetrated into the hearts of the people, penetrated into the mass culture of the United States, and the music and characters of "The A-Team" have appeared from time to time in many popular film and television dramas and entertainment programs. China only aired the first season, which belongs to the good memories of childhood in the 70s and 80s.
Let's look at the likelihood that this model will successfully pass the review. First of all, to look back at Idea's past, it is true that there are similar works, but this work is the first model of the same type to reach 10,000 votes, and the other designs have not raised enough support.
Back in 2016, a Dragon strike team character had already appeared in the LEGO series. LEGO Dimension 71251 B.A. Baracus Fun Pack has 73 parts, including a B.A. minifigure and a mini-version of the van.
Thanks to the huge success of the 80s TV series, the Tianlong special attack team has a high status in everyone's minds, and at an auction this spring, the truck that the Tianlong special attack team was filming, GMC Vandura, was auctioned off for about $85,000. In contrast, the 2010 version of the "Dragon Strike Force" movie was less than ideal at the box office, with about $110 million in production costs ending up with only $177 million in global box office revenue.
However, the topic of the work is very good, there is a certain user base, and with the help of computer technology, the model is finally presented very well. The only possible question is whether the van would be more suitable for the LEGO Creative Masters series, which already has James Bond's cars, such as the 10262 Aston Martin DB5.
Still, it feels like it has a chance. What do you think? Have you ever watched the TV series? Do you like this design?
So far, 33 works have entered the second round of official review of the LEGO Idea platform in 2021, and the other 32 works are: House of Time, Medieval Fortress (Castle), Apartment, Minastilis, Genius Nanny, Carl's House, John's Medieval WaterMill, Basement and Sewer, Copenhagen Newport, Great White Shark, Thunderbolt Ranger: KITT and FLAG Mobile Command, Outer Solar System Explorer, German Traditional Lodge, Gamestop Classic Shop, Rusenberger Jaguar 8X8 Airport Fire Truck, Aircraft Engine Workshop, Scooby-Doo Mysterious Machine, Floating Island (Tension Balance), Medieval Harbor, Brick Walk, Movable Mini Golf, Female Scientist in Front of the Computer, Snow Tavern, Medieval Tavern, Boston Dynamics Quadruped Robot Dog Spot 1:4 Power Model, Bulletproof Boy Scout "Dynamite", Cosmetic Clothing Store, Space Shell, Type A Forest Chalet, Lifeguard Cabin, Movie Set, Imperial Isle Fort.