2160 - Crystal Scavenger

Rating:
Pros: A good selection of pieces for the money. It's my favorite of the Aquaraider subs.
Cons: This set suffers from the ugliness of the sub-theme, but I would like to have seen a couple more models produced for it.
Contents: 107 pieces including one mini-fig
Price: $14.99 - Discontinued
Reviewed: 14-Jan-1998
Reviewed by: Joseph Gonzalez

This morning's supposedly surprise attack on the Aquanauts power and resource depot has not gone well at all. The first wave of Aquaraider attack subs was almost entirely obliterated by a convoy of patrol cruisers and most of the second wave of Raiders was already on its way before any warning messages were received to retreat.
Now most (if not all) Raider craft have been annihilated and any that dare rise to the surface are either quickly captured by waiting destroyer ships or sunk with torpedoes. One Raider figured it was in his best interest to allow his battered Scavenger-class sub to play possum and simply idle forward as though incapacitated, but he realizes with sudden dread that he has unwittingly moved into the intake flow of one of the station's energy turbines.
In hurried efforts to regain control of the sub, he discovers that both directional thruster props are out of commission and the sub gradually moves closer to the giant spinning turbines. Plate armor on the Scavenger sub might just slow those monstrous blades down, but not before crunching the sub like a ball of tinfoil!

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The 2162 whet my appetite just enough to try another model from the Aquaraiders sub-theme (sub-theme, now there's a pun for ya') and since it looks like three models are all the Raiders will get (much like the short-lived Unitron sub-theme for Space) the 2160 was an obvious choice, being the least expensive of the three.
None of the Aquaraiders ships are going to win any beauty contest, but they're great to acquire for green bricks and elements. The Crystal Scavenger is a one-man sub that could easily fit another standing mini-fig in its cargo area. The design is a thick barrel-like body that tapers at the tail with two swiveling "drill" appendages near the cockpit. It looks a lot like a scrappy cartoon bulldog and is a solid model.
The sub is equipped with one pilot armed with a strange chain saw device. Said chain saw snaps into a two-handled personal mini-jet (like those found in Divers sets) and I found the little trans-green element to be a high point of the set. (I haven't seen it in any other sets and I wonder if we'll see it again.) Other unique pieces include two 2x2 spring loaded elements, octagonal cockpit/nose pieces (trans-green upper, opaque black lower), and two 2x4x2 double tube-faced bricks, plus a good selection of sloping bricks. Decals for the top and bottom cockpit pieces are thankfully stickers!
While the Scavenger design is kind of quirky and it almost looks like it is going backwards, the set still has enough appeal to warrant a recommendation from me. Pick one up for a taste of this sub-theme that's almost sure not to last for long and you might find you like the set so much that you'd like to have another.