You have been waiting and here they are! Twenty Collectable Minifigures based on The LEGO Batman Movie will be available starting on January 1st, reports LEGO on Facebook. Let us know what you think of them in the comments below! Continue reading as I go more in-depth with each individual minifigure. Not much to say or analyze about this minifigure. It is pretty nice, but there are better batsuits in this series. I do not think it is based on anything specific from Batman lore, but it is of course based on a prehistoric aesthetic. The name is certainly an allusion to the film title The Clan of the Cave Bear (1986). The Glam Metal suit Batman is wearing here appears in the San Diego Comic-Con trailer, where it is worn by Robin instead and shortened in name to simply 'Glam Bat'. The minifigure looks particularly nice on the whole, with a black electric guitar and recolored shoulders-pads previously seen with lava monster Moltor in Nexo Knights this year. Not to mention, the shiny silver bat symbol around the eyes of the cowl is rather striking!
Ever since the first teaser trailer for The LEGO Batman Movie back in March, many have been wanting the chance to own Batman in his luxury bathrobe. Now that chance is here! This minifigure is definitely worth the wait although I am slightly disappointed that the robe itself is printed rather than cloth. I am sure that LEGO has a logical explanation for this design choice though. The lobster mold is equally fantastic and I am shocked that this is its first appearance as a one-piece animal. Crazily enough, lobsters as a species have only appeared a few times in LEGO before, in three very different themes: 7772 Lobster Strike, a Monthly Mini Model Build and 7985 City of Atlantis. Vacation Batman looks to be an absolutely stellar minifigure, with the first ever rubber duck flotation device piece; Nightwing mask printing on it, no less! A unique cowl with molded-on goggles is also present here. It is unfortunate though that there is no printed bat-speedo on the legs, as shown in the following promotional image from social media.
Instead we get a Hawaiian shirt, which also looks superb but still is unexpected. Woo hoo, more Batgirl variants! We only have one in DC Comics Super Heroes and another in this series' parent theme, so another is much welcome. However, and correct me if I am wrong - I do not believe this pink Batgirl look has appeared in canon before now. If anything, it is reminiscent of the common Batgirl Halloween costumes you see little girls wear each year. That fact alone makes me believe that this minifigure could prove popular with the younger, female crowd. But perhaps this is an early, prototype version of the Batgirl suit for Barbara? I assume we'll see when the film releases. Collectors will want it for the pink batarang, Barbara Gordon hair and skirt pieces too, I am sure! Dick Grayson is Robin's alter-ego in The LEGO Batman Movie and other works, although this Robin's design harkens back more to the Carrie Kelley version. LEGO Batman Movie Robin in his civilian clothing is much more akin to traditional Grayson (see actor Burt Ward's portrayal in 76052 Batman Classic TV Series - Batcave) and has made a few appearances in trailers for the film.
It is highly likely that we only see this variant in Batcave/Wayne Manor scenes (which seem to serve minor roles as a whole), if its inclusion solely in the CMF series is any indication - who knows, though! It should also be noted that Dick Grayson will be included in formal attire with 70908 The Scuttler. Dick is equipped with shark repellent which is a direct reference to the 1966 Batman film. Will we see this bat-gadget make an appearance in the film, or is it just a fun Easter egg accessory to complement the minifigure? I always used to wish that some enterprising developer would take the openworld template of Grand Theft Auto and apply it to Batman. Not just any Batman, but specifically the wonderful 1960s TV Batman, with his outrageous rogue's gallery of villains, slapstick humour and an appropriately titled gadget for every occasion. Roaming a virtual Gotham, you'd foil plots by villains both famous and infamous by land, sea and air. Heck, you could even get Adam West and Burt Ward to reprise their roles in voiceover.
Of course, Batman is all dour and gritty these days so the chances of that ever happening are lower than Joel Schumacher being asked to direct the sequel to The Dark Knight. I'm not so bothered though, since Traveller's Tales has pretty much given me the game I always dreamed of. Okay, there's no Adam West voiceover - no voices at all, as is customary for the LEGO games - and the music is taken from the Tim Burton movies rather than Neal Hefti's iconic TV theme, but this is unmistakably a game that draws the majority of its inspiration from the knowingly camp superhero spoof that many Bat-fans have spent decades foolishly trying to live down. From the general tone to overt references, this is a game that remembers when superheroes were fun. Unlike the previous LEGO titles, which suckled at the twin Lucas teats of Star Wars and Indiana Jones, this latest in the series isn't bound to any rigid movie mythology or pre-determined sequences of events. While it was always appealing to see how favourite scenes would play out in LEGO, the shift away from adaptation towards a broader licence has been most welcome.
The story isn't going to keep you on the edge of your seat, but simply not knowing what's coming next makes a huge difference, especially given the fantastic cast of characters the game offers. The nutshell version is that Batman's greatest villains have broken out of Arkham and formed three evil gangs, each with their own schemes to dominate Gotham. As well as the obvious choices - Joker, Riddler, Two-Face, Penguin, Catwoman - you also get to face the sort of daft foes that have been sidelined in the drive to make Batman more realistic. And so we get the shape-shifting Clayface, Killer Croc, the Mad Hatter and the brilliantly obscure Killer Moth. All it needs to complete the far out escapist tone is for Vincent Price to turn up as Egghead. In a major shift from the established LEGO format, you'll get to both fight these characters and play as them in their own parallel storyline. After foiling their dastardly schemes with Batman and Robin, you can throw a switch to be transported to Arkham from where you can play the same storyline from the villain's perspective, helping them to build their cataclysmic contraptions and plot their vile schemes.