The Westerners theme was one of the boldest, most stereotypical themes LEGO had ever done. Yet it was and remains the only LEGO theme focused on the American Wild West. Why this is, no one is quite sure, but it is probably similar to the Pirates theme in that LEGO intends to reboot it at some point in the near future. With the success of the CUUSOO Western Town project recently, I'm fairly certain the theme will be revived.

That all being said, let's have a look at the Sheriff's Lock-Up, the first of six sets I'll be reviewing of the Westerners line.

Innovations: The Westerners theme introduced to the world the "log" brick, a normal-sized brick that when coupled with other similar bricks looked like log walls. The Sheriff's office was the only building in town created completely out of them next to Fort Legorado. There is much to like about the Lock-Up, from the sloped pseudo-false front porch and building to the crenelated jail cell. But none of these were innovations unique to this set. The only real innovation was a bit of mechanics in the jail cell that caused the wall to blow open. A spring-loaded Technic piece rigged to pop out when a 1x2 plate was inserted into a gap in the wall did the trick, and boy it was fun to do over and over again.

Lack of Inspiration: However much I love the Westerners theme, there are always places where it lacks a certain flare. First and most importantly, the buildings are all very small with open backs. That's to be expected, but it provides little room for play. The jail cell too is overly detailed, which is unusual. The crenelation on the roof is not stylistically appropriate to the time, more appropriate to a castle than a block house. It's understandable that LEGO didn't want to just make a simple grey brick beside the Sheriff's office, but that would have been more appropriate. And like all of the LEGO minifigures of the 1990s, these figures are basic at best with no back details, simple face designs on the good guys, and generic repetition of figures among the series as a whole.

What it Got Right: Where the Sheriff's Lock-Up went right is in the balance of Sheriff and Deputy with inmate and conspirator. It also made certain to include a horse, though two or three would have been better. The stickers on the windows and on the roof are excellent, while the printed TNT, wanted poster, and playing cards are always fun to have around. The little details of the sage grass and the barrel were always hallmarks of the Westerners line, adding that extra touch that made it great. Even the raised flooring of the Sheriff's office is appropriate to the time and looks good.

Possible Improvements: Were this set to be remodeled and re-released, I think the cell block should be in darker grays with a much more solid feel to it. No wood bricks on its roof. The office itself should be larger, with a few more deputies, and the cell block could also be moved inside to match the Wild West stereotype better. The horse could definitely use the Lord of the Rings updating, and the windows could be printed, but otherwise most of this set is pretty well-done.

Minifigure: Where the Westerners did the most good but also the most wrong was with its characters. First off we get the sheriff. His face is the same we have seen on Pirates since 1989 and it still is unimpressive. The hat was the new style cowboy hat in a unique color with a printed star in the center, so no complaints there. His shirt shows a proper gentlemen in a grey suit coat and bowtie accompanied with a pocket watch and sheriff's star. The pants, though, are plain black and for whatever reason, he is wearing black gloves. Overall, a good figure in need of improvement. The cowboy has sandy blonde hair which is cut off awkwardly and seems more appropriate to the City theme. His white hat is unique to him and he is wearing a leather jacket over a red undershirt. Plain blue pants complete an ensemble that today would require printed pants for certain. Is he a deputy or just a cowboy? We'll never know.

There are two bad guys with this set, and neither are the leader. Bandit #2, as BrickSet calls him, is a mean guy with broken gold teeth showing and a rare printed nose. He wears a brown cowboy hat, black bandana, and grey pants. His shirt is red and stretching in parts, with printed suspenders and a black gunbelt. Today, the belt would be on the hips, leg paintings would show guns, and he'd have some sort of back painting on his bead. Still, a pretty unique individual here. Bandit #3 has most of his teeth in tact, but one is gold. He wears a black top hat, black gloves, and dark gray pants. His shirt shows a green blazer over a card symbol-checkered button-up, with a string tie and pocketwatch chain. He seems like he likes to gamble...a lot!

How it Compares: Overall, this is an excellent set and its original pricing was perfect. It includes four figures, a horse, and a nice set to play on with a fun trigger mechanism and little treasures in the Sheriff's office. It remains incomparable to modern sets because no Westerners sets have since been remade, but the hope will be that the entire line will get a reboot soon. If you ever get a chance to buy this set, pick it up ASAP.

At no point in LEGO's history prior to 1996 did it produce such an elegant and well-designed town as it did with Gold City Junction. This little treat does everything it advertises, and with the addition of the Sheriff's Lock-Up set, the town shines as a light to all other LEGO themes. But what makes this set so special, read on...

Innovations: Just like the Bandit's Hide-Out set, this set uses many of the same "explosion" mechanisms that became central to the 1996 Western theme. In this case, though, LEGO put the detonation spots in two different locations: in the bank and on the carriage. The bank's explosion opens up the vault, catapulting a money chest into the road. The wagon's sweet spot is under one of its $ sign logos and explodes the back of the wagon off, sending another chest of money flying. Most of the set's action ends there, which is why this set doesn't get a 10/10 review, but there are other innovative parts, such as the raised floors off of the beige baseplates, and the excellently-done false fronts on the buildings. Even the roof of the General Store is done well, though later developments could have made it look much smoother.

Lack of Inspiration: This set exudes inspiration, but it still lacks in some specific areas. For one, it is a simple set. It takes up a lot of space, but is relatively simple with only a few gimmicks. Another thing to note is that almost all the people are copies of previous sets except for the general store owner and the banker. The addition of these two figures is significant, but it is unfortunate that no female figures were included in the 1996 line at all. Finally, I feel this set really needs a third building. For its price point, $49.99, it was a bit expensive and a third building such as a post office or a saloon, would have gone a long way to making this set perfect.

What It Got Right: Still, the set got a lot right. There is money galore in this set, from bursting bank vaults to golden coins. It also included a canon and a sign that reads "LEGOREDO" suggesting that this town is beside Fort Legoredo, and also that this town may not actually be called Gold City. The inclusion of stickers for the signs and windows is extremely nice thematically, although printed bricks is always preferred. The instructions even included an insert that corrects a problem with the building of the wagon, which remains the only set I own that has a correction in it. Overall, the visual style of this set is amazing, even if the set is a bit expensive for what it includes.

Possible Improvements: With time comes improvements. The Western Town CUUSO set that has been proposed will basically be a masterfully enlarged version of this, with realism that wasn't even possible in 1996. If price were not an issue, this set could really use an additional building: the saloon. A western town without a saloon is lacking in authenticity. Additionally, the buildings could all use expansions and better inventories, and a stage coach would be very welcome. More varied minifigures would take the cake. And, of course, a real firing cannon since the US did not import firing cannon until 2008.

Minifigure: This set included six minifigures, only one of which was a bad guy. He was Bandit #1, the leader of the pack, the all-black, brown-hatted man with a black bandana over his mouth. A good choice for the set, though a crony would have been nice to have on hand. To fight the bad guy, the set came with a single cavalry soldier with his blue kepi cat and uniform and white bandana. His face is the same as that used by Pirates seven years earlier. The sheriff is also included, keeping the peace in his dark gray shirt and black pants and a grey hat with a star on it. His face, too, has been used since the Pirate days. The fourth regular is our generic cowboy friend, wearing his leather vest over a red shirt and blue jeans, and wearing a white hat over his white hair. Nothing especially special about him since he was included in almost all of the 1996 Western sets. Now we meet our two new friends. First off we have the cowboy in a dark leather vest and blue shirt with brown slacks and a grey hat. His face is gruff because he means business, but he ain't a bad guy. Second up we have the banker, who is finely detailed with gold-rimmed glasses, a pencil over his right ear, a black vest with money in a pocket, and a pocket watch. His dark gray pants seem out of place in this otherwise finely detailed figure. As said earlier, a woman would have been nice in this set, as would another bad guy, but those will have to wait for a reboot of the series.

How it Compares: Until another western-themed town comes out, this will have to be it. It is a wonderful set that gave me hours of playtime even if it was simple in many of its gimmicks. Combined with the other 1996 sets, it fits perfectly as the town center of a small boom town in the Wild West. I'd recommend this set to anyone interested in the theme, although I wouldn't pay a fortune for it. I feel like it will be replaced sometime before long...

QUALITY SCORE: 9/10

Like every good theme based around structures rather than vehicles, the bad guys always need a set of their own. You can see this in numerous LEGO series, though many neglect the bad guy base. It's unfortunate, really, but a good thing LEGO did not neglect it here, because the Bandit's Secret Hide-Out is one of the most visually interesting sets in the Westerners line.

Innovations: Every little trick in the Westerners series seems to be done here in this set, with more to boot. Extensive use of large, molded rock bricks allows for a lot of open space inside the Gold Mine and elsewhere. Yet, the entire set could have just been a small cave. Instead, it has an old office building built on the mountainside, a gun rack mounted nearby, a train-wheeled canon that shoots out of the mine like a mine car, and even a bucket that falls over on unsuspecting people. Add to those collapsing stairs, a hidden card room, a horse carrying supplies, and a few hidden treasure caches. This set definitely goes all out with the details and the playability.

Lack of Inspiration: Honestly, this set lacks no inspiration. The only thing limiting it is its price, which was $39.99 at the time of release. This lower price point made the five—yes, five—preconstructed rock bricks necessary. And the set makes good use of them, but behind the rock is a somewhat awkward cardroom that logically makes no sense; the inside of the mine is far more spacious than a real mine would be; and the "A" shaped rock on the roof is wide open on the backside. Using real bricks could have achieved the same visual quality while addressing these problems, but the price would have probably gone up at least $10. Other small things, such as the rolling gun, are cool but illogical.

What It Got Right: The set got its playability down, which some of the other Westerners sets, specifically Fort LEGORADO, lack in droves. Just see the innovations list above, this set is FUN! Perhaps its best part is that it includes all three bandits, as well as two soldiers. It also comes with three horses and a new baseplate which most LEGO fans wish was more widely available. They also weren't cheap with the shrubgrass bushes, which are everywhere. This set definitely looks good.

Possible Improvements: With increased playability comes a loss somewhere. I've already mentioned the preconstructed rock bricks, but other gimmicky things could also have been better handled. The canon could have been installed and an actual minecar could have been included. The mine itself was a missed opportunity that could have been fun to look into. The new Lord of the Rings horses show just how dated these horses were, and I believe a new go at this series would improve the visual splendor tenfold, which is saying a lot regarding this set. A second baseplate would have been nice, but that's just me. :-)

Minifigure: This set comes with the lot of them. All three bandits are included—Bandit #1 with his mustached scowl under a black bandana and all around black clothes, Bandit #2 with his redneck charms alongside his rotting teeth, and Bandit #3 sporting his tophat and top-class green sports coat. To rival these two come two soldiers from the Fort: the cavalry lieutenant wearing an uncharacteristic white bandana around his neck alongside his saber, and his subordinate soldier with his kepi hat and gold-chrome trumpet. This set leaves nothing to wish for regarding minifigures, though a modern rendition of this series would certainly improve the quality of the figures, with full-body art patterns and double faces.

How it Compares: Bandit's Secret Hide-Out remains one of the best bad guy bases in LEGO's history, sitting right beside Castle-themed palaces and Space-aged fortresses. It's simple and cheap, but that does not make it bad, and LEGO has come up with little to rival it for what it is. If you collect Westerners sets or anticipate collecting them, this set is a must-buy and a fun addition to any Westerners theme.

QUALITY SCORE: 9.5/10

Only one scene from Return of the Jedi made it into the inaugural run of Star Wars LEGOs back in 1999. That scene was the iconic speeder bike chase through the Endor forest. Although much has changed in later speeder designs, the overall look has changed little.

Innovations: Taking advantage of the new LEGO laser strut used on the Snowspeeder and X-Wing sets, the speeder bikes use two each to link the back portion of the bike to the maneuvering flaps in the front. Snowshoes from the Ice Planet 2002 series act as the repulsorlifts underneath, while a backpack rounds out the rear. Overall, the set did a great job of showcasing what a speeder bike looks like.

Lack of Inspiration: Despite the success of the set, the speeders do appear rather bulky compared to their legitimate brethren from the film, and the small tree that Luke stands by is a joke at best. The branches are not suggestive of the types of trees found on Endor, and the brick-built trunk is more like a pile of brown squares. The laser canons underneath the speeders also leave a lot to desire, especially since LEGO doubles them as forward supports when the speeders are not whooshing.

What It Got Right: The set still got the feel right. Two speeders were an excellent choice, since one just would make the set seem cheap. And at a price point of $9.99, the set wasn't too overpriced for including three figures. While the tree is lame, it provides the right environment all the same by grounding the speeders into a specific setting. The art on the box further reinforces this in a way that sets today don't always accomplish.

Possible Improvements: Rounding the speeder off has been tried in numerous later models, all to mixed results. The problem is that being only two-studs wide, the set cannot really sacrifice any more space for rounding. And because minifigure's legs don't spread, they cannot adequately straddle the bike like the scout troopers do in the film. This is something that can probably never be corrected, at least not at this scale. The decorative tree would have been better with a simple triangular branch rather than the tropical fern, and the trunk should have been made of rounded bricks rather than square ones.

Minifigures: When this released, all three minifigures were new and unique to this set. Indeed, the two scout-troopers were the first stormtroopers available until the TIE Fighter set released in 2001 with a standard-issue trooper. That makes the figures in this set extra special. And they were well-done too. There is no doubt that the troopers represent those from the film, and LEGO even went the extra distance to provide the figures with real faces behind their visors, showing a stern expression beneath their visored eyes. Luke Skywalker, on the other hand, appears downright generic, but the inclusion of his green lightsaber (rather than the blue included with his other sets) and his Endor clothing still make his entry important.

How it Compares: Speeder bikes have been made and remade numerous times over the years, the second generation appearing in 2002's Ewok Attack (7139) set. In that model, the basic build was followed, though the top of the bike was streamlined better with a curved piece, and the back used a slightly different, though unimpressive, race-car piece. 2009 introduced the current version of the speeder bike, and one that accomplishes a bit more detail at the cost of pre-built pieces. Almost the entire bulk of the set has been replaced with a three-wheeler chassis, while the forks are no longer laser struts. Still, it doesn't look any closer to a film speeder than this initial version. 2003 began the strange habit of including snowtroopers on speeder bikes at the Battle of Hoth, and to count, there are virtually the same number of "snow"speeders as there are standard-issue models. Sets in 2003, 2010, 2011, and 2013 all included a white speederbike, while sets in 2011 and 2012 included Endor-stylized speeders. It's only a matter of time until LEGO begins making desert, water, and other types of speeders. But in the end, and for all the additional curvature, the original speeder bikes do the job just fine. They blend in with the later models almost seamlessly, and are fairly simply to build from second-hand parts...minus the figures of course.

QUALITY SCORE: 8/10