Review: LEGO Marvel 76190 Iron Man: Iron Monger Mayhem

Today we quickly tour the LEGO Marvel set 76190 Iron Man: Iron Monger Mayhem, a box of 479 pieces sold at the public price of 39.99 € directly inspired by the first film of the Marvel Cinematic Universe, Iron Man, released in 2008.

The set features Iron Monger, the armor of Obadiah Stane, and in principle allows to reproduce the confrontation that takes place between the first villain of the MCU and Tony Stark, all under the eyes of Pepper Potts. Those who remember the film will have noticed that nothing is to scale in this box: Iron Monger is way too tall, Obadiah Stane swims in his cockpit and the Iron man minifigure looks pale against the mech. The designer will undoubtedly have wanted to be able to afford an acceptable level of detail and the armor inevitably took volume in the process. I prefer this approach to the one which would have imposed on us a rickety mech and too little detailed to convince.

The result is therefore rather satisfactory if we forget the notion of scale between the minifigs and the armor of nearly twenty centimeters high. Access to the Iron Monger cockpit is on the other hand a little less faithful to the version seen on the screen: The front face of the torso remains fixed and you have to lift the helmet to install Obadiah Stane at the controls behind a pad-printed mask. which does not completely close the cockpit.

For the rest, the armor has all the attributes seen on screen, back jacks and weaponry included. The Gatling present on the right hand of the mech is here rather well reproduced, the missile launcher placed on the left hand is summarized in a system of ejection of parts which is in my opinion a little sketchy.

Too bad once again for the few blue pins and other red axes visible from certain angles, LEGO could make an effort on this point. We will still welcome the back of the relatively well finished mech and the integration of a phosphorescent piece decked out with a sticker on the chest, the effect is visually successful.

The big problem with the armor: the really very (too) limited mobility of the arms and legs which only allows a few vague poses without allowing a range of movements worthy of a LEGO product. The Ball Seals do their job but the various moving parts quickly come to a stop. Other LEGO mechs do much better in terms of mobility and we have a bit of the impression that this aspect has been deliberately sacrificed in favor of the finish of the limbs with the aim of offering an exhibition model more than a toy. for children.

On the side of the three minifigs delivered in this box, there is something to please collectors fans of the first phase of the MCU: We get Obadia Stane, Iron Man in Mark III version and Pepper Potts.

The Mark III armor worn here by Tony Stark signals the return of the two-piece helmet, an element replaced since last year by a one-piece version that is not really unanimous among fans. This armor is exclusive to this box and it will undoubtedly remain so for a long time, those who waited to complete the assortment of armor seen in the 2008 film to fill the alcoves of their Hall of Armour will therefore hardly be able to ignore this minifigure. The armor is really faithful to the version of the film down to the smallest detail and we will note the presence of the two pad-printed rivets on the upper area of ​​the helmet, it is very successful.

Obadiah Stane's minifigure is generally representative of the character played on the screen by Jeff Bridges, everyone remembers a big bald and bearded guy in a suit. She takes the torso of Tic seen in the set 71044 Disney Train and Station, the element being identical but delivered under a new reference in this box due to the presence of flesh-colored hands. Nothing to say about the face of the minifigure, it is rather faithful and the graphic designer gave himself to their heart's content in terms of the details of the beard. The character's outfit is not the one used during the Stane vs. Stark showdown, and the channel is off topic. We will do with it.

Pepper Potts benefits from a torso that embodies the suit top seen on screen rather well, but LEGO skips the skirt that goes with it and is content to provide a neutral pair of legs. The character's head is also that of Hermione Granger (Harry Potter), by Yelena Belova (Black Widow) and Carina (Pirates of the Caribbean).

Upon arrival, I'm one of those happy to finally see Iron Monger make it to the LEGO catalog, even if you have to accept the trade-offs on scale and build mobility. We were treated to a slew of more or less interesting and sometimes irrelevant mechs in the Marvel range, it was about time this one was available.

Obadiah Stane's minifigure is also welcome although it would have deserved an effort on the outfit to be truly faithful to the movie and a new take on Pepper Potts is always good to go. New armor in a LEGO version for Tony Stark too. For 39.99 € at LEGO ou 35.99 € right now at AmazonSo there's no good reason to skip a set that celebrates the MCU's first villain and which I think does quite well.

Note: The set presented here, provided by LEGO, is as usual involved. Deadline fixed at September 3, 2021 next at 23pm. 

Update : The winner was drawn and was notified by email, his nickname is indicated below. Without a response from him to my request for contact details within 5 days, a new winner will be drawn.