Random set of the day: Escape from Mirkwood Spiders
Posted by Huwbot,
Today's random set is 79001 Escape from Mirkwood Spiders, released during 2012. It's one of 9 The Hobbit sets produced that year. It contains 298 pieces and 4 minifigs, and its retail price was US$29.99/£24.99.
It's owned by 10,241 Brickset members. If you want to add it to your collection you should find it for sale at BrickLink, where new ones sell for around $87.10, or eBay.
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43 comments on this article
New Zealand spiders are not that big.
1 of 2 of the preview sets because they were made before The Hobbit was extended to be 3 movies instead of just 2.
Lacks a bit of substance but else a nice set. Was nice to get LotR stuff below 200 bucks back then...
Those little bags add a lot to the "webbing" feel and the printed mushrooms are a nice detail. Also a few glow in the dark pieces.
Funny how Tauriel dual wields the Dagger of Time from Prince of Persia...
I cannot deny my children fresh meat when it wanders so willingly into our midst... goodbye, friends of Gandalf...
@Maxbricks14 said:
"New Zealand spiders are not that big."
Australian spiders, on the other hand ...
I rebuilt this set a few years back purely to add some giant spiders to my Hidden Side stuff on Halloween. Of course mamma Shelob had to join them!
One of my most memorable sets, my Mom said I could pick out one, and this was it... good times
For some reason; those don't look like 'spiders' to me, they remind me more of ants...might be the way the heads on them are set up...and when compared to 9470: Shelob Attacks...:)
@Zordboy said:
" @Maxbricks14 said:
"New Zealand spiders are not that big."
Australian spiders, on the other hand ... "
So true lol.
Missed opportunity not putting Gloin in this set.
@Atuin said:
"Funny how Tauriel dual wields the Dagger of Time from Prince of Persia..."
As I said when 79012 was RSotD, it works well for Elvish steel, though.
@brick_r said:
"For some reason; those don't look like 'spiders' to me, they remind me more of ants...might be the way the heads on them are set up...and when compared to 9470: Shelob Attacks...:)"
They kinda look like scarab beetles. Matter of fact, with them standing on only six legs and the front pair of legs raised, they look very similar in shape to the scarab from 7305, which is probably what made me think that (honestly, they don't look very much like real scarabs, which have a very oval-shaped body).
@WolfpackBricksStudios said:
"I cannot deny my children fresh meat when it wanders so willingly into our midst... goodbye, friends of Gandalf..."
*Beorn
He was Hagrid before Hagrid.
As @MCLegoboy said, it's still hilarious how the magazines tried to hastily bill this as a preview set when it was obviously finalized before they bloated The Hobbit into being a trilogy. As I read the book before the sets and movie came out, I was excited to see this scene with the spiders as a set, but even then as a teenager without too much social media experience, I knew something was up. Such is the fate with all toys and merchandising set to be on shelves around the time a movie is in theaters; things change in the edit and suddenly the toy is dreadfully inaccurate to what appears on-screen, based on something shelved to be reused in a later release, or had its subject matter scrapped entirely. The obvious solution is to hold off on manufacturing of merchandise until the source material is finished, but of course they need to capitalize on a recency bias hype cycle and there needs to be *something* on the shelves to meet demand... at least it's not as embarrassing as when Transformers releases their "Studio Series" figures specifically based on screen-accuracy to a more mature market and whoops, it looks really ugly since they rushed it to market and it's based on concept art and not the finished VFX, or even more embarrassing and recent, multiple action figures that had their source material cancelled.
I really like most of the Mirkwood scenes from TDoS. Those and the Smaug scenes are the definite highlights in an otherwise overly-long, bloated movie (it's probably my least favorite film in the entire saga; either this one or BotFA).
@Zordboy said:
" @Maxbricks14 said:
"New Zealand spiders are not that big."
Australian spiders, on the other hand ... "
Melbourne, Australia spiders are tiny.
@SearchlightRG said:
"Missed opportunity not putting Gloin in this set."
"That's my wee lad, Gimli."
Love that line.
@Zordboy said:
" @Maxbricks14 said:
"New Zealand spiders are not that big."
Australian spiders, on the other hand ... "
Are drunk?
@jenanjenan1980 said:
" @Zordboy said:
" @Maxbricks14 said:
"New Zealand spiders are not that big."
Australian spiders, on the other hand ... "
Are drunk?"
Are large, if you don’t already know.
Those aftermarket prices are making me question how badly I want to hang on to my copy of this set
@Maxbricks14 said:
" @jenanjenan1980 said:
" @Zordboy said:
" @Maxbricks14 said:
"New Zealand spiders are not that big."
Australian spiders, on the other hand ... "
Are drunk?"
Are large, if you don’t already know."
And those two things are not mutually exclusive, either.
Great book that " The Hobbit" is, much was lost in the theatrical trilogy. This was Bilbo Baggins heroic defining moment where he was forced to act alone and save his friends. "Oh, here are two elves also," said the film.
Shoking a "hobbit" set without Bilbo
Attercop, attercop
Old Tom Noddy!
Fun set if it's affordable. Even back then I found the price a bit steep. Nowadays... no way.
@Brickalili said:
"Attercop, attercop
Old Tom Noddy!"
I saw someone point out that it's interesting that Bilbo knows insults that will rile spiders. One wonders if that's common among hobbits.
@Rimefang said:
"Great book that " The Hobbit" is, much was lost in the theatrical trilogy. This was Bilbo Baggins heroic defining moment where he was forced to act alone and save his friends. "Oh, here are two elves also," said the film."
Tbf, he does still save the dwarves (by himself) long before the elves even show up in the movie, so at least they got that right.
My own favourite mental association with this set is a bit out of left field--my favourite characters are the spiders, and I remember them best from the time they took over a television studio:
https://aqbn.webcomic.ws/comics/142/
This was one of only three The Hobbit sets I ended up getting--despite being a diehard Tolkien fan (my screen-name is in Quenya!), I was just too poor. This was a welcome Christmas present in 2012.
@Formendacil said:
"My own favourite mental association with this set is a bit out of left field--my favourite characters are the spiders, and I remember them best from the time they took over a television studio:
https://aqbn.webcomic.ws/comics/142/
This was one of only three The Hobbit sets I ended up getting--despite being a diehard Tolkien fan (my screen-name is in Quenya!), I was just too poor. This was a welcome Christmas present in 2012. "
"Formendacil" = "North Victor" — cool!
Lego spiders are one of my favourite kind of builds.
@TheOtherMike said:
" @Brickalili said:
"Attercop, attercop
Old Tom Noddy!"
I saw someone point out that it's interesting that Bilbo knows insults that will rile spiders. One wonders if that's common among hobbits."
I seem to remember the narration saying that the spiders didn’t actually know what Bilbo was calling them, they could just tell it was insulting. Something like “attercop was a terrible thing to hear and nobody likes being called Old Tom Noddy”. I think it’s why that bit has always stuck in my head, just the idea of these giant spiders clutching their pearls, gasping “well I never!” at Bilbo’s mild language
@Zordboy said:
" @Maxbricks14 said:
" @jenanjenan1980 said:
" @Zordboy said:
" @Maxbricks14 said:
"New Zealand spiders are not that big."
Australian spiders, on the other hand ... "
Are drunk?"
Are large, if you don’t already know."
And those two things are not mutually exclusive, either. "
Watching the Aussie Open everyone appears to be drunk, large, and in charge, including spiders, burds (Aussie pronunciation), koalas, roos, ardvarks, armadillos....
Can't wait to visit!
Ah yes, one of the many victims of when the Hobbit duology suddenly became a trilogy. I like to think that this set spoiled the inclusion of Legolas in those films, similar to Giant Man in 76051.
@StyleCounselor said:
" @Zordboy said:
" @Maxbricks14 said:
" @jenanjenan1980 said:
" @Zordboy said:
" @Maxbricks14 said:
"New Zealand spiders are not that big."
Australian spiders, on the other hand ... "
Are drunk?"
Are large, if you don’t already know."
And those two things are not mutually exclusive, either. "
Watching the Aussie Open everyone appears to be drunk, large, and in charge, including spiders, burds (Aussie pronunciation), koalas, roos, ardvarks, armadillos....
Can't wait to visit!"
The one thing I hate about Aussie is the heat. You should come to New Zealand where it’s often cold in the middle of summer! Typical NZ weather.
@Formendacil said:
"(my screen-name is in Quenya!)"
I don't know any Quenya (although I do know a bit of Klingon), but I'd often thought that your username sounded like a Tolkien elf. Nice to have that intent confirmed.
@WaterBottle123 said:
" @Zordboy said:
" @Maxbricks14 said:
"New Zealand spiders are not that big."
Australian spiders, on the other hand ... "
Melbourne, Australia spiders are tiny."
Tiny as in the Australian Peacock spider :o
Spiders, but are any of them Psycho?
@Maxbricks14 said:
" @StyleCounselor said:
" @Zordboy said:
" @Maxbricks14 said:
" @jenanjenan1980 said:
" @Zordboy said:
" @Maxbricks14 said:
"New Zealand spiders are not that big."
Australian spiders, on the other hand ... "
Are drunk?"
Are large, if you don’t already know."
And those two things are not mutually exclusive, either. "
Watching the Aussie Open everyone appears to be drunk, large, and in charge, including spiders, burds (Aussie pronunciation), koalas, roos, ardvarks, armadillos....
Can't wait to visit!"
The one thing I hate about Aussie is the heat. You should come to New Zealand where it’s often cold in the middle of summer! Typical NZ weather."
You get used to it.
@RaiderOfTheLostBrick said:
" @Maxbricks14 said:
" @StyleCounselor said:
" @Zordboy said:
" @Maxbricks14 said:
" @jenanjenan1980 said:
" @Zordboy said:
" @Maxbricks14 said:
"New Zealand spiders are not that big."
Australian spiders, on the other hand ... "
Are drunk?"
Are large, if you don’t already know."
And those two things are not mutually exclusive, either. "
Watching the Aussie Open everyone appears to be drunk, large, and in charge, including spiders, burds (Aussie pronunciation), koalas, roos, ardvarks, armadillos....
Can't wait to visit!"
The one thing I hate about Aussie is the heat. You should come to New Zealand where it’s often cold in the middle of summer! Typical NZ weather."
You get used to it."
Soooo, do giant Aussie spiders' eyes glow all the time or only when they're hot and/or drunk?
Does a cork hat keep them at bay or should I invest in a Dagger of Time before visiting?
@StyleCounselor said:
" @RaiderOfTheLostBrick said:
" @Maxbricks14 said:
" @StyleCounselor said:
" @Zordboy said:
" @Maxbricks14 said:
" @jenanjenan1980 said:
" @Zordboy said:
" @Maxbricks14 said:
"New Zealand spiders are not that big."
Australian spiders, on the other hand ... "
Are drunk?"
Are large, if you don’t already know."
And those two things are not mutually exclusive, either. "
Watching the Aussie Open everyone appears to be drunk, large, and in charge, including spiders, burds (Aussie pronunciation), koalas, roos, ardvarks, armadillos....
Can't wait to visit!"
The one thing I hate about Aussie is the heat. You should come to New Zealand where it’s often cold in the middle of summer! Typical NZ weather."
You get used to it."
Soooo, do giant Aussie spiders' eyes glow all the time or only when they're hot and/or drunk?
Does a cork hat keep them at bay or should I invest in a Dagger of Time before visiting?"
You do realize the LOTR and Hobbit films were not filmed in Australia, but New Zealand, right? Because it sounds like you are confusing the two @StyleCounselor ...
@Murdoch17 said:
" @StyleCounselor said:
" @RaiderOfTheLostBrick said:
" @Maxbricks14 said:
" @StyleCounselor said:
" @Zordboy said:
" @Maxbricks14 said:
" @jenanjenan1980 said:
" @Zordboy said:
" @Maxbricks14 said:
"New Zealand spiders are not that big."
Australian spiders, on the other hand ... "
Are drunk?"
Are large, if you don’t already know."
And those two things are not mutually exclusive, either. "
Watching the Aussie Open everyone appears to be drunk, large, and in charge, including spiders, burds (Aussie pronunciation), koalas, roos, ardvarks, armadillos....
Can't wait to visit!"
The one thing I hate about Aussie is the heat. You should come to New Zealand where it’s often cold in the middle of summer! Typical NZ weather."
You get used to it."
Soooo, do giant Aussie spiders' eyes glow all the time or only when they're hot and/or drunk?
Does a cork hat keep them at bay or should I invest in a Dagger of Time before visiting?"
You do realize the LOTR and Hobbit films were not filmed in Australia, but New Zealand, right? Because it sounds like you are confusing the two @StyleCounselor ..."
Yes, I understand. NZ has the fake giant spiders and AU has the real, giant, drunk spiders which may or may not also have glowing eyes depending upon the level of heat and/or inebriation.
@StyleCounselor said:
" @Murdoch17 said:
" @StyleCounselor said:
" @RaiderOfTheLostBrick said:
" @Maxbricks14 said:
" @StyleCounselor said:
" @Zordboy said:
" @Maxbricks14 said:
" @jenanjenan1980 said:
" @Zordboy said:
" @Maxbricks14 said:
"New Zealand spiders are not that big."
Australian spiders, on the other hand ... "
Are drunk?"
Are large, if you don’t already know."
And those two things are not mutually exclusive, either. "
Watching the Aussie Open everyone appears to be drunk, large, and in charge, including spiders, burds (Aussie pronunciation), koalas, roos, ardvarks, armadillos....
Can't wait to visit!"
The one thing I hate about Aussie is the heat. You should come to New Zealand where it’s often cold in the middle of summer! Typical NZ weather."
You get used to it."
Soooo, do giant Aussie spiders' eyes glow all the time or only when they're hot and/or drunk?
Does a cork hat keep them at bay or should I invest in a Dagger of Time before visiting?"
You do realize the LOTR and Hobbit films were not filmed in Australia, but New Zealand, right? Because it sounds like you are confusing the two @StyleCounselor ..."
Yes, I understand. NZ has the fake giant spiders and AU has the real, giant, drunk spiders which may or may not also have glowing eyes depending upon the level of heat and/or inebriation."
I'm going to allow this. New Zealand may be obsessed with using the tiniest crown ever created to rule the world, but Australia just wants to kill anyone who visits.
Doesn’t Bilbo kill a baby spider in this scene?