If you’re a comic book movie fan, you’re probably well aware that Michael Keaton will be making a triumphant return as Batman shortly in The Flash movie. He appeared in two of Tim Burton’s comic book films, 1989’s Batman and its sequel, 1992’s Batman Returns.
LEGO has just released an enormous set commemorating Batman Returns, and they sent me one to build. Let’s take a look at how it went, and my thoughts on the LEGO Batcave Shadow Box.
The LEGO Batcave Shadow Box, set number 76252, is a 3981-piece kit that includes 7 Minifigures. It is a more complex set, meant for adults 18+. When completed, the shadow box will be 12″ high, 21″ wide, and 6″ deep.
The set retails for $399.99, and is available now on the LEGO webstore.
What a chonky box! Of course, it’s no surprise, considering there’s almost 4,000 pieces inside.
Inside of the Batcave box, you’ll find the 3,981 pieces divided up into 38 bags, comprising 29 stages of building the set. And as always, there are bags of smaller pieces within many of those bags.
There are 4 books to guide you through the assembly, as well as one sticker sheet.
Besides the easy to follow, step-by-step assembly instructions, you’ll also find information about the design of the LEGO Batcave Shadow Box set in the books, as well as information about Batman Returns peppered throughout.
Smartly, in the first three stages of the Batcave build you’ll assemble Batman and the iconic 1989 Batmobile.
I have the now-retired 1989 Batmobile set, and I was impressed with just how well the new, smaller version looks.
Like they usually do with their sets, LEGO spreads out the assembly of the Minifigures, so they’re a little treat to look forward to during the various stages of the build.
Here are the other ones you’ll put together:
There are two different versions of the batsuit; you’ll use the one with the cloth cape for driving the Batmobile or placing into the costume vault, as the plastic cape won’t fit in either of those.
After building the Batmobile, the rest of the build is devoted to the Batcave and the accompanying shadow box elements. As you can see from the following photos, the assembly for stages 4-29 moves back and forth between the three sections of the Batcave that make up the shadow box.
It was at this point of the build where I actually hit a bit of a snag. There’s a misprint on both pages 94 and 95 of the 4th book. The parts guide at the top corner tells you that you’ll need (2) of the 1×1 bricks for those assemblies, but the illustrations show just (1) of those bricks for each. It took me a moment, but it soon became clear that the illustrations were correct. So if you build the Batcave yourself, keep that in mind!
Other than that little hiccup, the rest of the assembly of the LEGO Batcave Shadow Box went along without a hitch:
And with that, the Batcave was complete!
On the back of the set are all the knobs you’ll need to operate the various moving features of the set like Batman’s command chair and the light-up batsuit vault.
There’s a secret compartment where you can store the flame for the Batmobile when it’s not in use:
Other features include a weapons vault that opens and closes, a door for the Batmobile that slams shut, and changing pictures on the monitors in the Batcave.
The LEGO Batcave Shadow Box is my longest LEGO build to date. With almost 4,000 pieces to the set, I’d say it took me in the neighborhood of 15 hours to complete, spread out over several days. But LEGO does a fantastic job of pacing the assembly, so you’re never bored. Even though there’s a lot of grey and black bricks in the set, I never felt the fatigue of repetition setting in.
And when the build is complete…what a gorgeous piece! Granted, you’ll need a lot of table space to open up the Batcave completely for play, or when you just want to show it off to your friends. But when the set is closed up, it takes up much less room. The LEGO Batcave is visually striking displayed that way, and currently stands unique as the first LEGO shadow box.
I’m a big Batman fan, and especially a fan of Tim Burton’s Batman and Batman Returns, so it was a joy to assemble the LEGO Batcave Shadow Box. The actual build is full of fun and interesting sub-assemblies, and as with most LEGO sets, there’s always real pleasure in seeing the completed product start to take shape throughout the build.
You can purchase the LEGO Batcave Shadow Box right not on the LEGO webstore. If, like me, you’re a fan of Batman and LEGO, then you’re going to want this set.
Click That Brick! is a look at LEGO building sets that appeal to the geek in all of us. I’ll be bringing you previews and reviews of various LEGO sets, like the Ulitmate Collector Series X-Wing Starfighter. So be sure to keep your eyeballs peeled for more great LEGO content here on GeekDad.
LEGO provided a Batcave set for evaluation, but had no input into this review.
Click through to read all of “Click That Brick! Let’s Get Nuts: A Review of the LEGO Batcave Shadow Box” at GeekDad.If you value content from GeekDad, please support us via Patreon or use this link to shop at Amazon. Thanks!
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