Divers

Divers
Years:	1997–1998
Subtheme of:	Town
Related themes:	Aquazone Aqua Raiders Atlantis

Divers is a subtheme of the Town theme that was centered around maritime exploration and was introduced in 1997. All its twelve sets were released in that single year. They were still for sale and featured in catalogs in 1998 but the theme was ultimately phased out in the following year.

The theme's sets featured mini submarines, divers and underwater bases as well as surface ships and various forms of sea life. Unlike the futuristic Aquazone theme the Divers sets were more realistic and set in the present. Due to its largely unprecedented setting, many new LEGO elements were introduced with this series.

Description

Larger sets like 6560 Diving Expedition Explorer featured surface ships and an underwater scape to explore

The eponymous "divers" of this theme were involved in underwater treasure hunting and the exploration of the sea life, mostly sharks. The design of their equipment is based upon present day technology. The relatively high level of realism shows also in the use of real world diver down flags on the ships. Some of the sets also included a detailed underwater landscape built onto a Baseplate which served as varied backdrops for the dives. 6559 Deep Sea Bounty even included a whale skeleton on the seafloor. The sets had a great selection of sea creatures in them. Many of these sea creatures are unique or very rare.

The 2007 theme "Aqua Raiders" can be considered a partial revival of Divers. While Aqua Raiders focuses more on treasure hunting than exploration, it still retains a certain level of realism instead of being too futuristic like Aquazone.

Vehicles and equipment

6442 Sting Ray Explorer contains one of the larger but nonetheless typical submarines of the series

Since this theme focused mainly on maritime exploration, the main features of this theme's sets were seagoing vessels, such as submarines and ships. The divers of this series were in possession of five major ships, which are all relatively unique designs. The biggest ship is included in 6560 Diving Expedition Explorer. It is primarily a transporter for a submersible and is equipped with a large crane for hoisting it. It superstructures comprise a repair hangar for the sub and the bridge above it. A very unique boat is included in 6559 Deep Sea Bounty. It has a catamaran hull and is equipped with a crane for a shark cage. The other three ships, included in 6441 Deep Reef Refuge, 6557 Treasure Hunters and 6558 Shark Cage Cove, had a largely similar overall appearance. They consisted of a six studs wide hull with a small deck house at the front and flat storage space at the rear. They were all equipped with rope winches that in some cases ended in cranes.

The sets included a total of seven submersibles, which all had a dome-shaped window on the front. Only two of those subs, included in 6599 Shark Attack and 6557 Treasure Hunters shared the same design, all others were unique designs. Most submersibles had only enough room for the pilot, as the two mentioned before, and the ones from 6559 Deep Sea Bounty and 6560 Diving Expedition Explorer. The last one was also the only smaller sub with robot arms. Only two subs were large enough to contain an additional crew compartment in the back and had also robot arms at the front. These two were included in 6442 Sting Ray Explorer and 6441 Deep Reef Refuge. The submarine contained in 1782 Discovery Station, was the most unusual. It was the only one that was white and was equipped with four robot arms.

The divers also had two bases. An underwater research station, included in 6441 Deep Reef Refuge, and a larger offshore platform.

New Pieces

Although the theme made good use of many underwater specific pieces that were initially released with Aquazone, it introduced many new pieces such as the one-piece inflatable boat, and a diving mask, the scuba tank and the harpoon gun, which all reappeared in Aqua Raiders ten years later.

This theme also made some additions to LEGO's sea life with animals like the manta ray, which did not reappear after 1999, and grey sawfish heads which were reused in the imperial flagship in the 2009 pirates. A black version was available in the set 4789 Alpha Team Aquatic Mech from Alpha Team.

Other exclusive parts are the red and blue diver down flags.

Sets

All sets were introduced in 1997 and were available until 1998.

top • bottom

Image	#	Set	Pieces	Figures	Price	Released
	1782	Discovery Station	316	4 + 1 skeleton	$54.00	1997
	2536	Jetski	25	Female Diver	$2.00	1998
	2871	Diver and Shark	14	1		1997/1998
	5389	Divers Accessories	37			1998
	6441	Deep Reef Refuge	433	5	$59.99	1997
	6442	Sting Ray Explorer	147	3	$20.00	1997
	6555	Sea Hunter	30	Diver		1997
	6556	Scuba Squad	72	2		1997
	6557	Treasure Hunters	139	3		1997
	6558	Shark Cage Cove	185	3		1997
	6559	Deep Sea Bounty	348	5	$44.00	1997
	6560	Diving Expedition Explorer	464	6 + 1 skeleton	$79.00	1997
	6599	Shark Attack	63	2	$10.00	1997

Other Underwater Themes

• Aquazone (1995 - 1998)
• Alpha Team: Mission Deep Sea (2002)
• Aqua Raiders (2007 - 2008)
• Atlantis (2010)