The first of these is The Batmobile And The Two-Face Chase. Five Minifigures are included in this set, Batman in his black costume, my personal favourite outfit for the Dark Knight, and a simple Security Guard for defending the small bank. Naturally we also get Two-Face, a particularly brilliant Minifigure and my second favourite of all the villains after the Joker. Finally, a pair of Two-Face Henchmen are included, who wear the same clothes, but have different faces, both of which look suitably tough and rugged.
There are three components to this model, a small bank which contains a green safe for Two-Face to steal, a lovely new Batmobile, and a large truck which Two-Face uses as his getaway vehicle, painted in his unique orange and purple colour scheme. Both vehicles include flick-fire missiles, and Two-Face's Jeep has a crane arm on the back which can be hooked onto the safe. There is a nice selection of pieces in this set, but for the the best has to be Two-Face's coin, which is printed with some excellent designs.
Next up is the largest of last year's DC Super Heroes sets, The Batcave, and a wonderful set it is too. Being the largest set, it also contains the most Minifigures, six in all, including Batman in his comic book Batsuit, Bruce Wayne in a rather dapper looking blue suit, and the Boy Wonder himself, Robin, who is based on the Tim Drake version of the character from the comics. For the villains, we get a superb Bane, which is printed with huge amounts of detail on the front and back, along with Poison Ivy, who is imprisoned in the Batcave according to the box artwork.
Bane is equipped with a huge red Drill Tank, on which the drill turns as you turn the caterpillar tracked wheels and you can launch a couple of flick-fire missiles. Batman rides a Batcycle, one of two released in the first wave of these sets, and my personal favourite. The Batcave itself has some rather nice blue and yellow highlights and includes opening doors to let Batman's vehicles in and out of the cave, the Batcomputer with a chair for the Caped Crusader to sit on, and a brilliant costume changing feature, which is ingeniously designed and works perfectly. A prison cell is also included as well as some crime-fighting equipment for the Batman to use and a red telephone with which he can contact Commissioner Gordon.
The last of 2012's DC Super Heroes sets is perhaps the most popular with most as it is the only one which is not a remake of an older model, that being The Dynamic Duo Funhouse Escape. Five Minifigures are included, from Batman and Robin in their comic book guises, to the Joker (who is identical to his appearance in set 6863, The Batwing Battle Over Gotham City). Two new figures also come with the set in the form of the Joker's loyal sidekick, and fan favourite, Harley Quinn and another of my favourite villains, the fiendish Riddler, who here wears a charming bowler hat and his classic green costume.
Another Batcycle is included, this one with some nice tail fins and exhausts and a nice sleek design.The Funhouse itself is divided into sections, a flight of stairs and winch for hoisting the Boy Wonder into the air over a deadly purple vat of Joker Toxin (and a fish). Here Riddler has a trapdoor and of course a hidden clue for the Batman to escape from this particular trap, a single arrow pointing out the danger among the numerous arrows on the wall behind. In the centre is a huge mural of the Joker's face and a section of wobbly floor, and on the far left is a falling hammer, a riddling machine obviously installed by the Riddler and a small roller-coaster so that Harley Quinn can escape Batman's clutches if you so wish. The huge number of fun play features and a great selection of Minifigures make this set a winner in the eyes of most, but for me the highlight set of the first wave has got to be set 6860, The Batcave.
In my next post I will look at the exclusive Super Heroes Minifigures which have been produced over the last couple of years, and quite what the fascination is, which I and many others suffer from, surrounding them.
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