And it's not me saying it, but LEGO. I contacted the manufacturer for two problems: Batman's blue cape missing from the set 6858 Catwoman Catcycle City Chase (see this article) and the color error of the hands of Two-Face and his two henchmen in the set 6864 Batmobile and the Two-Face Chase (see this article).

Regarding the Batman cape, it is sent to me by the LEGO after-sales service who recognizes that the absence of it is voluntary but embarrassing and does not hesitate to send this item to those who request it.

Regarding the 6864 set, LEGO confirms to me that it is indeed a design error on the box and that the minifigs were well planned to be delivered with the hands in Flesh. The error on the box will be corrected with the next production wave for this set.

If like me, you are annoyed that you did not have Batman's blue cape in the 6858 set which is still the cheapest in the range allowing you to get the blue version of this minifigure, contact LEGO by email and ask them to send it to you, it shouldn't be a problem.

Just a quick note to tell you that I just ordered the two mini sets 30056 Star Destroyer et 30058 STAP, and that the seller also offered me the 30057 Anakin's Podracer.

I will not expand here on the price of these sets, but I would point out for your reference that the 30057 is currently available in the USA from Toys R Us for $ 4.99. Expect to pay it at least double on Bricklink, as usual with this type of sets.

I can't help it, I love these mini sets.

No trace of 30059 MTT for the moment at this seller, nor elsewhere.

As usual at Calin and Christo, we do not joke with the quality of the customs and the photos which are used to present them to us.

Today Calin presents us his custom Dooku minifig with a screen-printed face by Christo and hair designed by Calin. This superb photo also features two particularly successful Assassin Droids customs.

They are designed using parts purchased from CloneArmyCustoms: Chest and head in Chrome Silver and these same two pieces in Black. CAC also sells these two pieces in Dark Bluish Gray.

It also offers us an update of its custom STAP which therefore displays a new color scheme which I find successful. In the background of the photo, a MOC from Droid Carrier that Calin promises to present one day.

You probably remember the Batmobile from SHARPSPEED, specialist in vehicles of all kinds, which I was telling you about in this article in November and which had caught my eye.

Well, Adam Janusick does it again with this version 2 of his favorite Batmobile. We immediately note the Tumbler influence on this MOC, in particular at the level of the front axle and SHARPSPEED admits having kept only a tiny part of the previous MOC. 

This Batmobile is bigger, less connoted Racers and I have to say that I find it just as successful, although I really liked the compactness of the first version.

To discover this new Batmobile in detail, go to the flickr gallery by SHARPSPEED.

Received today the January / February 2012 issue of LEGO Magazine. Nothing very exciting for AFOLs, but we are not the target of this support.

However, I note the presence of a short but nice 4-page comic strip on the Star Wars theme (of which I put a photo above) and in which we find the X-Wing of the set 9493 X-Wing Starfighter, the Tie Fighter of the set 9492 Tie Fighter as well as the minifigs of Luke and Jek Porkins.

This allows me to bounce back on the news of brick set about the release of a specific LEGO Magazine for girls highlighting the new range LEGO Friends.

I'm not sure what to think of this new range, but LEGO's strategic choice to divide the communication media according to the type of target does not seem to me to be wise. Bringing girls into the world of LEGO involves integration into the community of children who are LEGO fans, not by sectoring them into a pink universe populated by ice cream, puppies and pretty sports coupes.

You will tell me that the border between the two universes is porous and that the girls will be able to interact with the boys in the City universe for example. But I don't believe it, and the choice to design minifigs that are completely different from the ones we know may frustrate girls who show interest in classic LEGOs.

The future will tell if LEGO made the right choice, but as we have seen with other projects in fields such as video games, for example, LEGO is testing many concepts and will ultimately only keep those that are prove profitable over time.

The Friends range comes up against Petshops, PollyPockets, Zhu Zhu Pets and other Barbie dolls in a market that has its own codes and trends. The success of the range will largely depend on the possible contagion effect in schoolyards.