In the January 2018 LEGO catalog, I picked five must have sets (click here to read about them). The Lex Luthor Mech Takedown was actually the number one set on my list. This was a purely Minifigure driven buy. I don’t have much need for a Mech, but I really wanted the Firestorm Minifig, and I also don’t have Cheetah or Lex Luthor. This is not the first Lex Luthor Mech. I actually missed out on the last one. It was set 6862, Superman VS Power Armor Lex. It came out in 2011, and was the first set to feature Wonder Woman. It came out at the end of my LEGO “dark ages”, just before I started collecting again after a 15 year hiatus. While this was a Minifigure purchase, I was pleasantly surprised by this set.
SET SUMMARY
NAME: Lex Luthor Mech Takedown
SET #: 76097
THEME: DC Super Heroes
COST: $49.99 CAD
BRICK COUNT: 406
MINIFIGURES: 5
RELEASE DATE: January 1, 2018
SUMMARY REVIEW: 90%
VALUE: 90% ($0.12 per brick is right on the current average.)
BUILD: 90% (Great build, a little more rear detail needed though.)
MINIFIGURES: 96% (Great Minifigs, awesome brick:fig.)
ENTERTAINMENT: 85% (Ok build-time, but awesome fun set.)
REVIEW
VALUE: 90%
For $49.99 in Canada, you get 406 bricks in this kit. That means that each brick will cost you $0.12. That is right on the average for the January 2018 catalog (click here to read my review). It is not the best value I have seen, but it is still very good. I give Lex Luthor Mech Takedown 4.5/5 (90%) for value.
BUILD: 90%
The first build is a small jet pack for Batman. I am neither here nor there about it. It has adjustable wings and jet engines. There are two stud shooters on the front. The main build is, of course, Lex Luthor’s mech. For a set that I bought for the Minifigures, I was pleasantly surprised with this build. I really like it. The mech features 17 points of articulation, many of which are able to move on multiple planes. I also like that Lex Luthor’s control pod is able to eject for a quick escape from the Justice League. The back of the mech is a little bland, and could have been fixed with a handful of pieces. But, again, this is a really nice build otherwise. Since I will not be keeping mine built for space reasons, I have left the stickers off of it. It still looks pretty cool in spite of that. I give it 9/10.
MINIFIGURES: 96%
There are five Minifigures included in Lex Luthor Mech Takedown. While you are getting another Batman and Wonder Woman in this set (I have countless Batmans, and this is my fifth Wonder Woman), every Minifigure in this set is at least a new variant if not an entirely new character for LEGO. Each comes with some form of head gear/hair with the exception of Lex Luthor, while only Lex and Firestorm do not have a double sided face. All of them have front and back print on their torsos, but only Wonder Woman has leg printing. I was a little disappointed that Wonder Woman’s leg printing does not extend around the back of her legs, and they are just plain red. For accessories, you get two Batarangs, two Lasso of Truths, a spear, and a printed canister of Kryptonite gas (I think). However, the coolest accessories are definitely the new blasts of nuclear plasma that come with Firestorm. They can actually be joined together with the help of studs to make some awesome plasma blasts. I give them 69/75 (92%) for design.
With 406 bricks, you get a brick-to-Minifigure ratio of 81:1. That is excellent, and earns a full 5/5 (100%) for its ratio score. Averaging that with the design score gives the Minifigures in Lex Luthor Mech Takedown an overall Minifig score of 96%.
ENTERTAINMENT: 85%
This set took me 70 minutes to build. At $49.99, that means that each minute of build time cost me $0.71. That is a satisfactory value, and earns 3.5/5 (70%) for build-time value. The set is pretty awesome though, and if I had more shelf space, I might be inclined to keep it built. This set would be awesome to play with for any kid. I give it 100% for enjoyment. Averaging the build-time value and enjoyment gives this set an entertainment rating of 85%.
OVERALL: 90%
This set is a lot of fun. I bought it for the Minifigures, but I was really pleasantly surprised with how much I ended up liking it. While the build time you get it not the best, I can see anyone getting a lot of play time out of this. You also get a great value per brick, and an awesome build, with great characters. I highly recommend Lex Luthor Mech Takedown. Feel free to leave your thoughts on this set in the comments below, I would love to hear them!
Until next time,
-Tom
I like it but I am not going to buy the Lobo set for the back of the mech unless it is at least 20% off. at least this set has 2 builds I like to get Firestorm. Neither here nor there about Lobo and have a krypto from the polybag. I do wish Fifestorm was the original Ronnie Raymond especially since the head is like Ghostrider, glued to the fire part.
Yeah, I was a little surprised to find the fire was glued to Firestorm’s head (I didn’t get the Ghostrider set). I will probably skip the Lobo set too. Thanks for stopping by!