Review : LEGO DC 76328 Batman: The Classic TV Series Batmobile

Today we are quickly interested in the content of the LEGO DC set Batman: 76328 The Classic TV Series Batmobile, a box of 1822 pieces which is currently available for pre-order on the official online store at a public price of €149,99 and whose availability is scheduled for October 1, 2024.

As you probably already know since the announcement of this product, the new 18+ version of the Batmobile from the cult series of the 60s takes over from the more modest one from the set 76188 Batman Classic TV Series Batmobile (345 pieces - €39,99) released in 2021 and since withdrawn from the LEGO catalog.

Like many of you, I was pretty excited when the first official visuals were released. We immediately recognize the Batmobile from the series, the general lines of the vehicle based on the Lincoln Futura concept and the colors are there as well as the emblematic attributes of this car with for example the bubbles placed in front and behind each seat or the large central turbine at the back.

It's in the detail that things get a little tricky, and even if we're lenient with LEGO on the fidelity of the interpretation, there are still a few approximations and other aesthetic shortcuts on this model.

The assembly experience here is largely on the same level as that offered by other sets allowing you to assemble various and varied vehicles: floor based on elements from the Technic universe, bodywork composed of sub-assemblies with often interesting techniques, detailed and "realistic" interior fittings, we find the usual codes of the ICONS range (ex Creator Expert) and this Batmobile will easily fit into a display case which groups together other cars.

For those who are wondering, there is no steering or shock absorbers here, it is a bare minimum in terms of integrated features and you will have to make do with the trunk whose movable hood reveals a reproduction of the Mobile Crime Computer emblematic of the series.

Looking more closely and comparing the model with the reference vehicle seen on the screen, we see that the whole thing lacks a little grace and finesse in places with angles that are too sharp to embody curves and lines that are too straight to reproduce the curves of certain sections of the bodywork. This Batmobile does not dethrone the vehicle from the LEGO Creator Expert set. 10262 James Bond Aston Martin DB5 (2018) in the category "It's almost that but not quite" and the subject matter here was relatively complex.

So I'm willing to accept most of the compromises visible here because this vehicle is at least as iconic to me as the 1989 Batmobile, but I really have a bit of trouble with the wheel arches that I find, and I'm clearly not the only one, a bit too flat. I also have a hard time tolerating the gray arches that surround the four canopies and I wonder if they are really useful: they visually weigh down this area of ​​the vehicle and I think that the designer could probably have skipped these finishing sub-assemblies.

The fact remains that this Batmobile, 50 cm long, 18 cm wide and 14 cm high, sold for €150, has some assets to show with a very successful front end and a rear area that does rather well with some good ideas. The interior is just as convincing with an obvious attention to detail in terms of the upholstery and the various accessories installed in the passenger compartment.

The four bubbles, two different versions are used here for the front and the back, are delivered in dedicated packaging, thus avoiding scratches on these important elements of the model. However, expect many scratches and other various marks on the black parts, many of them are in poor condition upon unpacking. Depending on your tolerance threshold, you will therefore have to call on the brand's customer service to obtain the replacement of those which seem really too damaged.

The vehicle is here accompanied by a new Batman minifig with his rigid cape perched on the usual ledge already seen in other sets. This ledge is also a little off topic here if we take into account the very kitsch atmosphere of the series but LEGO probably thought to please the fans who accumulate similar displays already available. The figurine is obviously not on the scale of the vehicle, it is there to look pretty on the wall provided.

Robin is missing from this box, it's hard to imagine Batman without his sidekick, but we have to make do with just one figurine. The Batman minifig does not escape the usual technical defect present on the different versions of the character: the area of ​​the face that should be flesh-colored is disappointingly pale. The official visuals are, as is often the case, extensively retouched to make us wrongly imagine that this problem has finally been solved by LEGO.

The vehicle's finish is done with a very large handful of stickers, you'll have to deal with it and it's at this price that this Batmobile refers to many gadgets integrated into the vehicle and used in the series. There is also a large sticker for the product presentation plate, the latter does not have the chance to be pad printed.

On the other hand, I find it more modern than those delivered with a blue illustration in the Star Wars range. Ultimate Collector Series with here a gray pattern whose sobriety is welcome. I scanned the two boards provided, so you can get a more precise idea of ​​what awaits you at the bottom of the box and everything that is not on these boards is therefore pad printed, like the hub caps with their red logo.

This Batmobile will join my collection, and the few flaws I note here will have no influence on my decision. The public price of this product, set at €150, seems almost reasonable to me at a time when LEGO is regularly in the price gouging but I am far from being objective on the subject treated here.

If I had to keep only one flaw that seems really annoying: the wheel arches that really lack roundness. But I'll do with it, this cult Batmobile really deserved to be offered at this scale and I think the proposal is honest enough for me to make the effort.

Note: The product shown here, provided by LEGO, is as usual involved. Deadline fixed at September 30, 2024 next at 23:59 p.m. Simply post a comment below the article to participate. Your participation is taken into account regardless of your opinion. Avoid “I’m participating” or “I’m trying my luck”, we suspect that this is the case.

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