We were all waiting for it without really knowing if LEGO would deign to release us this minifig: Iron Patriot comes to extend the family of minifigs from the Iron Man 3 movie in the form of an exclusive bonus offered during a pre-order of the LEGO Marvel Super game. Heroes at the American merchant Walmart.

The design of the minifigure is not a surprise: it was already known thanks in particular to the poster online by LEGO recently.

No information for the moment on the possibility of obtaining this minifigure in France.

Here are the official high resolution visuals of the set 79007 Battle at the Black Gate of the 2013 LEGO Lord of the Rings wave. We have already seen these images for the most part but one of them (above) shows the wall in a configuration that was not originally intended: On finds that LEGO encourages consumers to spend twice as much to get a real "Black gate"with two leaves and two watchtowers.

This isn't the first time that LEGO has implied that it is possible to do better with two boxes rather than just one: Remember the set 10223 Kingdoms Joust released in 2012 for which LEGO advised to bring together the contents of two boxes for an even more epic scene: "... Combine 2 royal jousting sets and create a setting worthy of a great king! ..."It is clear that this extended version of the Black Gate of Mordor is more faithful to that of the film and that purists are sure to double their purchase.

It is now in a completely uninhibited way that LEGO boasts the possibilities offered by the purchase of several copies of the same box or the integration of two sets between them as is the case with the two boxes of the LEGO Star range. Wars 9516 Jabba's Palace and 75005 Rancor Pit. but this "modularity" has a cost, and two boxes imply the double of certain minifigs which one would gladly do without.

In my opinion, a clearly identified extension set with the parts necessary for the construction of the second leaf and the second tower accompanied by some additional orcs would have been more judicious.

Small precision, just not to create confusion: The visuals of the combined door via a second set visible here et leaves are edits made by a fan. It's copy-paste that was offered long before LEGO put the extended version of the Black Door online.
The fan in question talks about it on Eurobricks in these two messages on the dedicated topic: here et leaves.
The only official visual combining two boxes is the one shown above.

The announcement of the set 10237 The Tower of Orthanc probably eclipsed the sets a bit "System"from the Lord of the Rings 2013 range.

The and 79005 The Wizard Battle Logically loses a little of its superb in the face of the gigantism of the ultimate playset just presented.

But with a price that should be around 14.99 €, it will be an economic opportunity to get the minifigs of Gandalf and especially Saruman without having to give up a kidney. With a very credible Palantir as a bonus.

The and 79006 Council of Elrond is my favorite of this wave Lord of the Rings 2013: Elrond and Arwen are two really very successful new minifigs. The inventory of the set and the scene it represents make it a must in this range facing a Pirate Ship Ambush (79008) much less iconic and to a Battle at The Black Gate (79007) a little cramped.

Anyway, I'll let you enjoy these new images offered by GRogall and make up your own mind.

The figures make you dizzy: Almost 150.000 bricks, 1300 Uruk-Hai, 200 soldiers, 150 elves ... This grandiose diorama of the Battle of Helm's Deep is a real performance. Artistic but also financial, some would say.

The reconstruction is successful, the Uruk-Hai army is really dense, the defenders of the fortress are also clustered on the walls, just like in the scene of the film The Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers. The rock is sufficiently present to give this feeling of a dead end basin and the walls on which the scales of the troops which besiege the whole are based are correctly proportioned.

The only regret for me: That this diorama is not dressed with a background representing the side of the mountain, to further enhance the visitor's immersion in this epic reconstruction.

This is also a criticism that can be made to many dioramas exhibited at LEGO conventions. A few A3 sheets correctly printed and stiffened with cardboard for example could often isolate the scene from the rest of the exposed MOCs and give them more density.

To see more views of this incredible diorama, click on the image above or visit the Kentucky Brick Expo 2013 gallery at this address.

(Thanks to JeanG in the comments)

We're not going to get carried away right away because the presence of Clark Kent's exclusive minifigure with this DVD edition is not yet confirmed by the file posted on fnac.com, but it is currently possible to pre-order LEGO Batman The Movie: DC Super Heroes Unite DVD Edition at this French dealer for the modest sum of 13 € with a release date announced for July 3.

The DVD edition exists, it is for sale on amazon.com next to Blu-ray / DVD version. Both packs come with Clark Kent's minifigure.

To pre-order the DVD version on the Fnac website, it's here: LEGO Batman: the movie on fnac.com.

(Thanks to AngeLego for his email alert)