As announced in the pages of the previous issue released in December 2022, the March 2023 issue of the Official LEGO Batman Magazine is available on newsstands today for €6.99 and comes as expected with a "biting tire" Batcycle. with space to install a minifig not included. This magazine is also switching to laminated paper bags from this issue.

This magazine seems to resume a normal periodicity after the winter break and the next issue is announced for April 28, 2023, it will allow you to obtain a minifig of...Batman with his "Jet".

For those who are interested, I remind you that the instructions for the various mini-models delivered with the magazines published by Blue Ocean are available in PDF format. on the publisher's website. Simply enter the code on the back of the bag to obtain the file, 212325 for assembly instructions for the Batcycle delivered with this number.

Today we take a quick tour of the content of the LEGO ICONS set 10317 Classic Land Rover Defender 90, a box of 2336 pieces which will be available as a VIP preview from April 1, 2023 at the retail price of €239.99. You already know it since you follow, Land Rover is celebrating its 75th anniversary this year and it was therefore an opportunity to collaborate with LEGO to pay tribute to one of the legendary models of the brand. The choice fell on the Defender in version 90, a vehicle marketed between 1983 and 2016.

This product will allow its buyers to assemble three versions to choose from: a version with a V8 engine and its flat bonnet, a five-cylinder Turbo Diesel version and its domed bonnet and an "Expedition" version which makes use of all accessories provided. The necessary modifications are documented in the instruction booklet which, after assembling the structure common to the three vehicles, allows you to go directly to the next section according to your preferences. Going back from one to the other later will be a little more laborious, you will have to play the game of the seven differences a little.

If the two motors supplied are interchangeable without having to disassemble anything, this is not the case for the front cover and its support, which will have to be modified to integrate the curved area. Some parts also come to block the spaces left on the bodywork to fix the luggage rack there, they will have to be removed to switch to "Expedition" mode. The over-equipped version seems visually coherent to me, but that's a little less the case with the two standard versions: the Defender then seems to me aesthetically a little too high on its suspensions.

Everyone will agree, the subject treated lends itself rather well to an interpretation based on LEGO bricks. The Defender is a "cube", so the LEGO version is inevitably stunningly realistic except for a few aesthetic shortcuts. The lines are there, the new wheel arches are very appropriate and the angles linked to the use of certain parts are not chosen here out of spite, as is sometimes the case on other models.

This Land Rover Defender of 32 cm long by 16 cm wide and 16 cm high is here delivered in a color Sand Green, a choice that may seem relevant, this color being close to the idea that we have of this vehicle when it is mentioned. But regulars of this color at LEGO know that it often involves rather unsightly color variations and this is once again the case here, especially at the level of the doors. The visible junction between the pieces already breaks the uniformity of the flat surfaces, but it makes sense since these are LEGO bricks, and these color differences only reinforce this effect.

As far as I'm concerned, I would have preferred a Camel Trophy version of this Land Rover, the over-equipped version of the vehicle would in my opinion have been more credible and more attractive for all those like me who only knew the Defender in their youth. with its ocher color and stickers on the doors. Especially with the two sand removal plates provided which obviously evoke the rally-raid and the desert.

This vehicle from the ICONS range, or Creator Expert for those who knew this defunct label at LEGO, is an almost surprising mix of classic parts and many elements drawn from the Technic universe. These allow to obtain some notable refinements such as a functional steering, a playable winch as well as a complete set of suspensions. This last technical detail is significant on a show model which in principle is not intended to do too much under its bodywork apart from a few openings and simple moving parts, especially for an all-terrain vehicle.

We therefore obtain here a real top-of-the-range toy that it will be possible to evolve in rough terrain to measure the effectiveness of the four integrated suspensions. Be careful all the same when handling, some sections are just simple stacks of slightly fragile bricks, exhibition model stamped 18+ obliges.

In the standard version of the Defender, the hard-top is easily removable to allow access to the interior of the vehicle, the layout of which is very neat. It will be a little more laborious with the "Expedition" version. The upholstery is well executed and the cockpit, on the right, then becomes accessible to easily manipulate the steering via the steering wheel, it's always easier than sliding two fingers through the door to have fun with the integrated steering.

LEGO provides two small stamped Land Rover logos but everything else including the model name placed on the front of the bonnet is based on stickers. The two stickers to be aligned carefully to get the correct spacing between the letters E and N add an extra color gap to the vehicle, it's a bit of a shame.

Do not expect protected glazing to minimize potential scratches, LEGO seems to have definitively abandoned the good idea of ​​the individual protective sheet present in the sets 10300 Back to the Future Time Machine et 75341 Luke Skywalker's Landspeeder. Besides, in my opinion, LEGO misses the opportunity to create a totally flat windshield like on the reference vehicle and is content to deliver the usual glazing with its rounded edges flanked by two stickers to break the curve of the item delivered. The result is a little disappointing but we will have to deal with it.

The slew of accessories delivered in this box is interesting with a jack, a tool box, a fire extinguisher and two jerrycans whose finish is very neat even if they seem a little oversized. All these elements can be hung on the vehicle, they bring a welcome touch of color but they also contribute to inflate the inventory of the set and therefore its public price.

I'm not sure that it was absolutely necessary to hang a shovel and a pickaxe on the hood as well as two other tools on the sides of the vehicle, but the adventurer atmosphere of the machine is only reinforced even if the bodywork disappears a little more under this abundance of additional elements. Those considering doing something else with the wheels of this Defender will have on hand here not four but six pretty rims and the tires to match.

Finally, I think this vintage-looking Land Rover Defender is a nice surprise despite its flaws. It may seem a little redundant with the larger one, 42 cm long by 20 cm wide and 22 cm high, from the Technic range set. 42110 Land Rover Defender released in 2019, but it should find its audience among anyone who has ever used this vehicle or who simply wants to expand their collection of LEGO cars by incorporating this off-road machine that has become a classic.

Too bad for the color chosen and the associated aesthetic defects, I will skip it because the only version that immediately comes to mind is that of the Camel Trophy.

Note: The product shown here, provided by LEGO, is as usual involved. Deadline fixed at March 30, 2023 next at 23:59 p.m. Just post a comment under the article to participate. Your participation is taken into account regardless of your opinion. 

Update : The winner was drawn and notified by email, his nickname is indicated below.

Today we are very quickly interested in the content of the LEGO Marvel set 76251 Star-Lord's Helmet, a box of 602 pieces already in pre-order on the official online store and which will be available from April 1st at the retail price of €79.99. Via the title of the product, LEGO sells us this construction as being a helmet, it is actually more of a mask than anything else and it is not its additional function of pencil holder, put forward on the official visuals, which will contradict me.

The manufacturer therefore tries to explore the limits of the usual format which generally allows us to obtain more or less successful reproductions of various and varied helmets, we cannot blame him for this desire to try out slightly less conventional variations. , this expands the range of opportunities offered by the format.

Since it is a derivative product that features the accessory and not the complete head of the Star-Lord character, LEGO does not provide us with the hair that would have made it possible to "close" the object on its upper part. It is an aesthetic bias that allows the product to retain its status as a full member of the range of helmets and other masks, and not to become by extension a head or a bust.

The assembly process here is a little different from that of other products based on the same format: this time it is a question of pressing the different faces of the mask around the central section which will remain hollow. We could as usual discuss the overall finish of this mask but it is once again not a high-end model, this derivative product is just a modest interpretation of the accessory imagined to stay in the imposed budget, the latter being, as you have seen, revised significantly upwards.

No stickers in this box, the four elements flanked by patterns and inscriptions are therefore pad-printed. The effect obtained thanks to the two nicely executed eyes is visually very convincing and the presence of some golden pieces around the eyes contributes to give a "premium" look to the object. I'm less of a fan of the two purifiers not connected at their ends, yet it's the purpose of these accessory elements to be connected to the main structure. Be careful when attaching telephone handsets to the cheeks, they are only attached on one side and tend to come off easily.

It's hard to fault anything more than this reproduction in an 18 cm high LEGO version, the product should appeal to Star-Lord and LEGO fans who don't want to spend crazy sums to afford a very tall model. range of the thing. It's fun to assemble, easily identifiable, the finish is globally convincing with an alternation between visible studs and very balanced smooth surfaces and the whole thing will stand out on the corner of a shelf or to hold a few comics. Too bad that the base is not a little weighted, the bookend side would have been interesting if it had been fully assumed.

Impossible not to mention in passing the very high public price of this derivative product which is sold for 80 € in a 35 cm high box much too big for what it contains. It is in my opinion excessively expensive and it will therefore be appropriate to wait until the set is offered at a lower price elsewhere than at LEGO.

Note: The product shown here, provided by LEGO, is as usual involved. Deadline fixed at March 28, 2023 next at 23:59 p.m. Just post a comment under the article to participate. Your participation is taken into account regardless of your opinion. 

Update : The winner was drawn and notified by email, his nickname is indicated below.

We end this quick overview of the three new additions to the LEGO Indiana Jones range expected for April 1st with a look at the contents of the set. 77015 Temple of the Golden Idol, the biggest but also the most expensive of the three boxes planned with its 1545 pieces and its public price fixed at 149.99 €.

Fans of the franchise already know this but it may be useful to specify it for others: this is about assembling a diorama that reproduces the opening scene of the film Raiders of the Lost Ark released in halls in 1981.

The sequence lasts a good ten minutes on the screen and it contains its share of scenes that have become cult for a whole generation, so it was logical that LEGO is seriously looking again at the subject after the very minimalist but still very exhaustive set 7623 Temple Escape marketed in 2008.

I'm not going to make the suspense last, I think the designer of this new set has accomplished his mission brilliantly. This top-of-the-range derivative product does have a few flaws that I will mention below, but everything is there and with a good dose of interactivity capable of satisfying all those who will make the effort to spend 150 € in this box.

This is, however, a pure exhibition product imagined in the form of a linear diorama which distills the different sequences seen on the screen. LEGO could have been content to give us static snapshots of these different moments without encumbering themselves with various and varied mechanisms, many would not have been choosy for all that. The set offers an interactivity which may also seem a little anecdotal compared to the primary purpose of the product but which ultimately proves necessary to really have the impression of enjoying it a little more after having patiently assembled it. It's LEGO in the truest sense of the word, with what I find a compelling combination of building fun and functionality.

The diorama is divided into three sub-sections that must be linked together via a few pins before definitively "sealing" the construction by installing a few finishing elements that overlap the different junction areas. This last point does not pose any problem, the three sections are not really intended to be separated anyway and it is the overall linearity of the scene that takes precedence.

Was it necessary to bend the diorama slightly at the risk of increasing its size? I'm not sure that this aesthetic bias, which probably reinforces the immersion a little, was the best choice, but that's how it is and you'll need to provide space on your shelves with a footprint of about 51 cm long. for 19 cm wide.

Some may regret that LEGO did not isolate the most cult of these sequences in separate products to increase the level of detail and finish, there was indeed enough to fill a few boxes with the scene of the chasing ball Indiana Jones in the corridors or that of the withdrawal of the idol from its base with its consequences.

These two scenes are somewhat summarized here in a very symbolic way, but it is indeed the whole diorama and its minifigs that save the furniture by integrating them into a coherent suite faithful to the sequence seen on the screen. go and return.

Indiana Jones and Satipo enter the premises, the young future traitor finds himself with a slew of spiders on his back, the trap encountered on the way is present on the right of the first module as is the chasm to be crossed next using of the lasso which occupies the second module and the room in which the idol is exhibited finally arrives with the third module.

Indiana Jones replaces the sculpture with a bag of sand to compensate for the weight of the object, everything begins to crumble, the stone door of the second module closes, Satipo passes through it, the ball arrives, Indiana jones comes out narrowly and falls on Belloq accompanied by a handful of Hovitos warriors. The set is visually rather exhaustive except for a few details and pitfalls, in particular thanks to the finish of the minifigs provided, and all those who have seen and re-watched this sequence on a loop should in my opinion largely find their account in it.

The various integrated mechanisms are well designed, they work every time and the possibility of activating them via the wheels placed on the front of the diorama guarantees an easily accessible and coherent play experience.

No hidden or hard-to-reach knobs or levers, all functions are available here at your fingertips. The counterpart to this very well done integration of the different mechanisms: the back of the diorama is lined with Technic beams. Nothing serious, this product is anyway designed to be exclusively exposed from the front.

A luminous brick is integrated into the idol room, its activation is combined with two other functions: the sinking of the base of the idol and the collapse of the adjacent wall. For once, I'm not going to criticize this light brick from another age that it is impossible to leave on permanently: this technical limitation is used wisely here with temporary lighting that perfectly underlines the dramaturgy of the scene. . The combination of the different features works perfectly, I'm satisfied.

This exhibition product does not escape a large sheet of stickers, once again graphically very successful, which it will be difficult to do without. These different stickers really contribute to the finish of the diorama but LEGO could have at least made the effort to stamp the black pieces which present next to the logo of the film a few lines of dialogue without much interest and in English only.

Everything that is not on the sheet of stickers that I scanned for you is pad-printed, so this is the case for the four round pieces that cover the knobs and the eight decorative elements placed on the front at the foot of the diorama.

The endowment in minifigs is very limited here with only four figurines. It's hard to blame LEGO, the construction only depicts the sequence that takes place inside the temple. Out of ten minutes, nine only concern Indiana Jones and Satipo. Some mummies identical to the one seen in the set 77013 Escape from the Lost Tomb would probably have been appreciated, as would a few additional Hovitos warriors, just to reinforce the squad that awaits the hero when he leaves the temple, knowing that Belloq is provided.

The pad prints are successful on the background with real attention to detail: a double-faced head for Indiana Jones, one of the faces of which reproduces the cobwebs encountered during the hero's exit, the spiders in the back and the t Satipo's torn shirt or the sweat stain on Belloq's back. On the form, Indiana Jones' neck is once again too pale to match the color of the figure's head. Same observation for that of Belloq. The Hovitos warrior also suffers from a noticeable difference in color between the hips and the sides of his loincloth. The golden idol is identical to that of the set 7623 Temple Escape marketed in 2008, but here it is flanked by a new reference. Two hats provided for Indiana Jones is the rule in this series of three sets.

As you will have understood, I am rather seduced by this derivative product which is clearly aimed at a nostalgic adult clientele. The exhibition potential is obvious, the built-in features are well designed and allow you to really enjoy the set and the set remains compact without overdoing or omitting too much. This will therefore be the only set that I will buy from this first wave of derivative products, the other two seeming to me in comparison a little too minimalist and difficult to present on the corner of a shelf as it is.

Note: The product shown here, provided by LEGO, is as usual involved. Deadline fixed at March 26, 2023 next at 23:59 p.m. Just post a comment under the article to participate. Your participation is taken into account regardless of your opinion. 

Update : The winner was drawn and notified by email, his nickname is indicated below.

LEGO today unveils the ICONS set 10317 Classic Land Rover Defender 90, a box of 2336 pieces which will be available as a VIP preview from April 1st at the retail price of €239.99. The Land Rover brand is celebrating its 75th anniversary this year and it is therefore an opportunity for LEGO to offer us a "classic" version of the Defender after that of the set from the Technic range. 42110 Land Rover Defender marketed in 2019. Exit the olive green, we go to the Sand green.

The 32 cm long and 16 cm wide vehicle has a few refinements: steering, suspensions, functional bonnet and doors, two different engines to assemble the version that suits you the most, three front bonnet variants, a winch, two additional tires and a roof rack capable of accommodating the slew of accessories provided.

We will talk more about the contents of this box in the coming days.

10317 CLASSIC LAND ROVER DEFENDER 90 ON THE LEGO SHOP >>

(The link to the shop redirects to the version of the official shop for your country of connection)