Sunday, 8 January 2017

Boon Reviews: (boot)Lego Space Batman

Today the Lupine Book Club presents a special guest review from Boon, longtime friend to the site. He takes a look at the bootLego version of Space Batman, who originally appeared in the Green Lantern vs. Sinestro Lego set. Editor's note: Please note that the Lupine Book Club does not condone copyright infringement -- all opinions are the author's own.

I think we all remember the pivotal scene in the worldwide blockbuster Avengers: Age of Ultron when Space Batman saved us all from an age of subjugation under an evil robotic overlord. And what better way to to commemorate and celebrate that life-changing moment than with a Chinese imitation LEGO set?

Manufactured by the 'LELE' corporation and part of the 'Wang World' line of collectable figures, this “deluxe” figure comes with a host of additional action and display accessories. First among them is a bounce clip gift, which allows the user to plug in their miniaturised hero effigy and dramatically launch them into action.

The figure itself is supplied as a plain set of white legs with grey pelvis joint section, a front and back printed torso, plain white arms, grey hands, a white head with a single face print and a helmet/cowl unit that doesn't quite fit right. It sits too high on the facial printing to have the eye visor piece show through the eye holes of the cowl, which is unfortunate.



Space Batman is supplied with two options for his cape, a spreadeagled, full-flight version and a more discreet flowing cloak style. Both are attached to his person by way of the simple but effective flight propulsion unit or 'jet-pack'.



Once you've concluded your movie accurate re-enactment of Space Batman's expertly choreographed action sequences, you may take advantage of the supplied standard base plate for display purposes. This branded clear plastic base proudly bears the manufacturer name and logo next to the product line word mark so you know exactly who to thank in your frequent in your daily gratitude journals.
In addition to the standard base, you are supplied with the components to assemble a rather dramatic flight arm display. This connects to a rather intricate backpack set up that allows you to display Space Batman to his fullest and most majestic. A precision-engineered balljoint at the foot of this flight stand allows for something in the mind-blowing neighbourhood of 20 degrees of offset angle from vertical.

As a play piece, Space Batman offers plenty of opportunity for imaginative play, with his cape options and jet pack giving him the opportunity for flight play. The build quality is perhaps better than I had expected, the arm joints are firm and hold their position well, as do the hands, which can be an issue in well-loved LEGO figures. The leg joints have similar rigidity in standing poses but become looser in seated positions, which leads Space Batman to adopt a leisurely slouch when not supported by a chair or backrest of some kind.

As a display piece Space Batman's major fault is clearly the ill-fitting cowl, which spoils the entire head aesthetic, and I'm reluctant to think this is a one-off manufacturing fault. Factoring in the princely sum of $2.50AUD, I think this figure is all but a must-buy if you happen across it in your local Dollar/Discount store.


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