886 - Moon Buggy

Rating:
Pros: Nice, quaint design which adds continuity to the Classic Space theme
Cons: Tanks often fall off
Contents: 15 pieces including 1 mini-fig
Price: Discontinued
Reviewed: 7-Aug-1997
Reviewed by: William

Amid the lonely dunes of Alpha-Lego II, a single space rover was scouting the outlying mountains near the main rocket base. If the solitary astronaut does not turn back in several minutes, the harsh night winds of the barren, crater-pocked world will blow he and his small vehicle deep underneath the thin surface dust by dawn.
But wait! He sees a small light over the dark, hilly horizon. As it flashes and fades, it seems to draw him nearer. What was this strange phenomenon?
It could not be a comunication signal, or his scanning devices would detect it. As he approached it, his mind slowly was cleared and erased, and he continued to walk...no, he floated now, in an eerie paralysis, toward the ever flashing and strangely phosphorescent glow.

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There's not too much one can say about this set, with only 15 or so pieces and a vehicle which is only 7 studs long. This model was duplicated (to the piece) in 483-Alpha-1 Rocket Base, 493-Space Command Center, and 6970-Beta-1 Command Base. A similar version (with single-piece difference) appeared in 497/928-Galaxy Explorer.
To the best of my knowledge, Moon Buggy was only available in the USA in a value pack, in combination with 889-Radar Truck and 6824-Space Dart-1 (this value pack became my first Lego set, in 1984).
I admit that for a set this small, four stars may be a high rating. But I believe that this set, and others in its era, prove that you don't need more than one set to have a good time. The story above is evidence that with only one set, a story can unfold itself, even with a small model such as this.
There are only two cons in Moon Buggy: a) The tanks on the front of the car are not securely attached, and therefore they fall off if the car is overturned, and b) it is small. While diminuitive size is not a bad thing in itself, you've got to admit that there is more you can do with a 6986-Mission Commander than with a tiny one-man car.
Still, just for the simple beauty of the design and since the set has very few cons, I think that Moon Buggy deserves a rating of four stars.