This is the second LEGO DC Universe Super Heroes set to be reviewed, and so far the line does not disappoint. Now, if you bought all the previous LEGO Batman sets and think the current DC releases aren’t up to snuff, then you would be right in some ways, but if you look at the sets on their own merits, you might actually enjoy them. I had set my expectations pretty low for this set, mostly turned off by the garish color scheme on Two-Face, his cronies and the truck to be honest, but ended up liking it in the end. The MSRP is $49.99 and for that you get 508 pieces, another set hitting that golden ratio but unfortunately this is where the gravy train stops as the other from the DC Universe sub-theme fare a little worse.
Starting with Batman minifig, not much has changed with the Dark Knight from his previous version. He still has the stupid tall mask and the permanent I-just-got-out-of-the-gym-from-the-80’s-and-forgot-to-take-my-headband-off head. I wish they had made the mask normal sized, and made the face reversible so one side could be a normal Bruce Wayne face, and the other just have the white band for the mask’s eye holes and a mouth. Normal hair pieces don’t even cover the white band thanks to how low the printing goes. But if you ever feel the need to make a step aerobics gym rat sweating to Olivia Newton John’s Let’s Get Physical diorama, this is the perfect head piece.
Moving on to Two-Face, the biggest thing you’ll notice is his orange and purple color scheme. I was used to the black and white version from the animated series and the previous incarnation released with the LEGO Batman theme. I thought this one was so ugly. But then, thanks to Ken “buriedbybricks”, I found out that it’s actually comic book accurate dating all the way back from 1942. And after I learned that, I give props to LEGO and DC for being true to Two-Face’s roots. His hair piece is the same as his black-and-white version from LEGO Batman, and this time around you get his signature two-headed coin. It’s a printed 1×1 round tile in metallic silver and you get two of them thanks to LEGO always including spare bits. Since it’s a printed tile, technically you only get one side of the two-headed coin and it’s the non-scratched side, making every decision end up being the good choice. I think a scratched head coin would have been a better side to print on the coin.
You also get two of Two-Face’s goons, one to drive the truck and the other to operate the hook. They’re also outfitted with a crowbar and a piece of dynamite. The back printing on all three of the bad guys are the same.
Lastly, you get a security guard with some security guard accessories who also happens to double as a bank teller. He lacks back printing though which is curious since it seems every other minifig in the line has it.
Batman’s main means of conveyance, the Batmobile, is very Batmobileish. The design of which isn’t anything special to write home about. It’s got its trademark wing fins, a weapons system in the form of two flick fire missiles, and flames coming out of the exhaust. The cockpit is a bit bare bones and elongated thanks to the stupid tall minifig that is Batman. He’s practically lying down in the thing.
Two-Face’s truck has stickers galore to give it the graphics it needs featuring lots of stripes and bullet holes. There’s only a seat for the driver and one for the hook operator; I guess Two-Face doesn’t want to get his hands dirty, delegating the actual robbery to his henchmen. The truck has flick fire missiles on one side, and a gatling gun on the other.
The Bank building is fairly small and features fake skylights, a door, some windows, and an open back so you can access the interior. There’s a safe with a lifting ring on the top which is actually pretty funny. If there’s one piece of advice I can give to all the banks in Gotham to help prevent being robbed by Two-Face, it’s that they should remove any lifting rings attached to the tops of the safes. The safe is green for some odd reason. Most safes and vaults I’ve ever seen are gray, dark gray, or black. Silver even. But not green. It opens up where inside you’ll find some money tiles. There’s a lever on the side of the building that you flip to “blow” the windows open with the help of the dynamite which I forgot to attach in the picture. Then you drive the truck up to the front of the building and using the hook, you lift out the safe all made possible thanks to that lifting ring. And voila! Bank has been robbed.
What I liked: This isn’t necessarily a feature of the set itself but finding the new style brick separator in orange inside the box was a nice little surprise.
What I disliked: The yellow rims on the Batmobile were extremely distracting. I understand Batman’s color scheme is black and yellow, but it’s not like he wears yellow boots and matching gloves. There’s plenty of other accent colors around the Batmobile; there’s no need to make the rims as bright as the sun.
Verdict: There’s a long legacy of superior Batmobile designs that this set is going up against: Nolan’s Tumbler, Batman: The Animated Series’ art deco inspired version (my personal all time favorite), Burton’s Batmobile, just to name a few. And I think the bad flak the set has gotten based on the pictures is because of a case of tunnel vision: people are focusing on just the Batmobile and the price and immediately write it off. And admittedly, it’s not that great of a design. But if you can look at the set as a whole, with Two-Face’s truck and the small Bank building, there’s lots of playability right out of the box. As mentioned before, in terms of value, the set hits the golden ratio. Two complete vehicles, a small building, five great minifigs; there’s not a lot to dislike about the set other than the mediocre Batmobile design. It’s definitely worth picking up, in this reviewer’s opinion anyway.
Buy 6864 The Batmobile and the Two-Face Chase from LEGO Shop@Home
