REVIEW: 76052 Batman™ Classic TV Series – Batcave

[VBBN]

Set Name: Batman™ Classic TV Series – Batcave

Number: 76052

Parts: 2,526

Price: US $269.99 - CA $329.99 - DE 249.99€ - UK £229.99 - DK 2499.00 DKK

*Euro pricing varies by country. Please visit shop.LEGO.com for regional pricing.

Release Date: March 2016

LEGO Description:

Drive the villains out from Batman’s Batcave!

Help Batman™ and Robin™ to drive the villain intruders from the Batcave, featuring a Bat Lab with Batcomputer, plus the Batmobile with stud shooters, Batcopter with flick missiles and the Batcycle. This special model, based on the classic 1960s TV show, also has a Wayne Manor section with an exterior wall to climb on and Bruce Wayne’s study featuring the iconic Batphone and a false bookcase that slides open to reveal the secret entrance to the Batcave. Before spiraling down the Batpoles into the Batcave, change identity from Bruce Wayne™ and Dick Grayson™ into Batman and Robin (separate minifigures included).

• Includes 9 minifigures: Batman™, Robin™, Bruce Wayne™, Dick Grayson™, Alfred Pennyworth™, The Joker™, Catwoman™, The Riddler™ and The Penguin™.

• This LEGO® model of the Batcave as seen in the classic 1960s TV series features 2 Batpoles for Batman™ and Robin™ to slide down, a selection of Bat-gadgets, helipad, plus a Batmobile and Batcopter.

• The Wayne Manor section of the model features Bruce Wayne’s study with the iconic Batphone, a hinged Shakespeare bust with secret button underneath, sliding false bookcase to access the Batpoles, and assorted elements including decorated wallpaper bricks, wall lamps, framed portraits, a framed fish and trophies. It also includes an exterior wall for climbing, with an opening roof for easy access to the Batpoles and an aerial element.

• The Batcave incorporates a hi-tech, 2-floor Bat Lab with Batcomputer element and a variety of detachable accessory elements, including a lie detector machine, table, chest of drawers, Bat-gadgets and test tubes with translucent elements. Also includes the iconic Batcave entrance for the Batmobile and a helipad for the Batcopter.

• The Batmobile features a dual cockpit with iconic Batphone, 2 stud shooters, an opening trunk, dual exhaust and sign stickers.

• The Batcopter has an opening cockpit for a minifigure, bat-inspired wings with 2 flick missiles, spinning rotors and a spinning propeller. A villain minifigure can grab onto the back of the Batcopter for more aerial battle action.

• The Batcycle features a driver’s seat for Batman™, translucent headlight element and a sidecar for Robin™.

• Also includes a cat.

• Weapons include The Joker’s TNT, Catwoman’s whip, The Riddler’s TNT and The Penguin’s umbrella.

• Accessory elements include Batman’s 3 Batarangs, rope, grappling hook and handcuffs.

• Includes separate minifigures for Batman™ and Robin’s alter-egos, so enter the secret doorway as Bruce and Dick, and slide down the Batpoles as LEGO® DC Super Heroes!

• Batcave measures over 18” (46cm) high, 22” (56cm) wide and 7” (20cm) deep.

• Batmobile measures over 2” (6cm) high, 8” (21cm) long and 2” (7cm) wide.

• Batcopter measures over 2” (7cm) high, 8” (22cm) long and 7” (19cm) wide.

• Batcycle measures over 1” (4cm) high, 3” (8cm) long and 1” (4cm) wide.

Hello and welcome to my review of the 60's Batcave! Before we begin I would like to give a huge thank you to The LEGO Company for providing this set to Eurobricks to be reviewed. I do want to stress that all of the opinions in this review are of course my own.

When it was revealed that we were getting a $270 Batcave, my expectations were pretty high. We have already gotten a few larger-scale Batcaves, namely 7783 and 6860. This batcave not only brings in a larger amount of pieces, but also the theme of the 60's television show! Is $270 a steep price, or is it worth getting your nostalgia on? Let's find out.

Box and Contents

Front

The front of the box of course shows the set information and a photo of the set itself. The minifigures are displayed at the bottom left, with their names appropriately placed in some action-bubbles. Also note that the classic TV series logo is present here.

Back

The back of the box shows some of the set details, and once again throws in the cheesy comic-style sound effects.

Instructions

There is quite a hefty sticker sheet here.

To avoid mass amounts of pictures, if you would like to view the parts inventory, please visit here. You can also see which elements are brand new to this set.

Minifigures

Batman and Robin

One of the strongest selling points of this set will undoubtedly be the minifigures. This set comes with a slew of 9 classic Batman characters; A Mr. Freeze figure was also designed, but is being released as a polybag instead of being thrown into this set. Now as with most modern day LEGO sets, the minifigures have been spread across various steps in the build, to prevent people from opening boxes in the store and stealing the bag containing all of the minifigure parts, however I will look at all of the minifigures first.To begin, let's look at none other than Batman and Robin. Both feature some excellent printed detail, even including side printing on the legs. They also feature two-sided heads, with the alternate choices being a determined Batman and a terrified Robin. I'll be honest, as a person who does not collect LEGO System sets often, I am not always up to date on what is new. The last minifigures that I have had in hand with capes were the Batman Begins Batman from the UCS Tumbler and Batgirl, and both had the standard "paper" cape. Batman and Robin here feature softer capes, much like the capes you would find on larger Constraction figures, which makes it easier to seat them in the batmobile.

Bruce, Dick and Alfred

The next round of figures we will look at are Bruce Wayne, Dick Grayson and Alfred Pennyworth. Of the figures in the set, Bruce and Dick are the least interesting in my opinion, though we do get back printing on all of the figures, and alternate expressions.

Penguin, Joker, Riddler and Catwoman

Next up we have the villains. Firstly we have Penguin. As far as I know, Penguin wasn't super short in the 60s show, so I don't know if the short legs were really needed. He doesn't have a dual sided face due to the hat, and really I just don't find him as interesting as the other figures since you could have pretty easily swapped in a different Penguin- I think I would rather have just gotten Mr Freeze here instead, and had Penguin as a random polybag. I think one of my biggest issues here is that Penguin feels a bit pointless in this set, I just don't really find that there is much for him to interact with in the overall set. Next is Joker, who is, appropriately enough, very bright. The Riddler was the first villain in the show, and the figure is based off of the look of Frank Gorshin, as opposed to John Astin, who only played the character for a few episodes. Catwoman is my favorite figure from the set, she looks stunning, with a great print and hairpiece. I assume she is based off of the Julie Newmar Catwoman. The other three villains come with alternate face prints, including a goofy Joker face and maskless Catwoman.

Building

Batmobile Build

The Batmobile build is pretty simple, given the relatively boxy shape of the vehicle.

Overall

The 60s Batmobile is a great design, and I'm happy to finally get it at a minifigure scale. While I am still hoping for a UCS scale one to go along with the previous two models, this one will have to do for now. So is it good? Well, it's not great. It's a bit too boxy and loses a lot of the really cool angles of the real thing. The center rim caps are printed which is nice.

Profile

It's not an awful design as a toy, but it really seems a bit bland once you compare it to the real thing. The rear fins are pretty thick, though other than that the profile is alright.

Front

Here's where the design falls apart. There really isn't much at the front here that looks like the real thing. The headlights should be at the upper corners, and since they are so pushed in, the orange lights next to them are pushed even closer in. I understand that the vehicle was made narrower to make the garage smaller, but I think too much was compromised here. Also I would have liked for the red outlined intakes to be added on here, even if it were by stickers, since the lack of red on the front takes away a lot of the streamlined look.

Rear

The back is, again, quite simplified, but we get some of the important details. Please not that there should not be any "plate panel lines" along the red stripe there, it should be one solid piece. I was missing a 4x8 red plate that should have gone back here and had to compromise.

Trunk

Two pairs of handcuffs and three batarangs are thrown into the trunk.

Joker

Night on the town

Wayne Manor Build

As we begin the first module, we create the base and add on some pillar to give it height. Slap some plates on, and build 4 identical window segments.

Inner workings of the facade

While you might have gotten some hints of the popular Module Buildings line, by no means does this section follow a similar build. Instead, there is a lot of SNOT going on here, with the tan struts adding most of the support. I really can't say I like this approach, as it makes the set feel empty and flimsy instead of the very solid builds of the Modular Buildings or Ghostbusters HQ.

Building Further

We construct the face of the Manor and place it on. The yellow section builds one of the sets play features, that we will have a closer look at later. Then you construct a rock formation, something you are going to get very, very used to doing by the end of this build.

Adding on

We mount some fireman poles in gold and the floor of the wayne manor section to tie the build together.

WALLPAPER

We start off the Manor section with some woodwork and those lovely printed 1x4 bricks with a wallpaper design on them.

Other Manor bits

Next we construct the desk, bookshelf which uses 1x2 jumper plates as books, and the globe. The bookshelf is constructed with a handle to be used for the sliding function.

Sliding mechanism

Here we mount the bookshelf to the tower. The tan construct are added to the sides of the tower to flesh out the top a bit more. Also notice that the top portion of the pole are added.

Roof

The roof of the manor is a large plate with some tiles thrown on, and a makeshift gutter. It's effective, though I find this one-sided cutout of the manor very odd.

Completed Manor

It's not much, but I have to be honest that this is my favorite part of the build. It looks great, for what small portion there is.

Building the Batpile

The Batpile gets pretty repetitive. You build the gray segment with the sand green rail 8 times, and the central Batpile sides are also made in a similar fashion. We also build up mirrored sides with some tan BURPS. While most people usually despise BURPS, they are at least a nice change of pace from the tedious custom rock formations. Also, I'm not sure why LEGO chose to use tan pin/axles instead of black pins at the sides to connect the three modules together. Sure it "connects" them, but there is nothing that actually holds the Helipad or Manor to the middle section here.

Falling in

This actually brings me to another point about the Batpile- this main segment is only mounted by four studs, so it's a bit wobbly. I believe this is so the main central piece can be removed in case you drop something into the top that you can't retrive, like a small accessory or one of the three sticks of dynamite that Riddler includes.

Computers

Holy batmachines, Batman! We build a slew of retro looking machines. And a cabinet. Erm, well I find it a bit odd that the official LEGO description states that we get the Batcomputer, yet none of these are recognizable as the main unit, which is weird considering they are all specifically made stickers for the set.

Gray boxes upon gray boxes

Added to the Batpile

You can place them all inside the Batpile segment, as shown in the instructions. This is pretty lame, considering there is really no place to put any of these machines other than in there (which makes them inaccessible for the figures.)

Helipad build

The final segment is the helipad and entrance for the Batmobile. After you are done sweating from the painstaking process of lining up the helipad stickers, you will disappoint yourself by trying to drive the Batmobile through the entrance. It doesn't work. The only points where the tires actually touch the gray pieces are at the very top points at each side, so basically the only thing the Batmobile does is scrape and bang against the base. I'm not sure if it's because the Batmobile is so low or the base is too high, but this is a really sad outcome regardless. I also want to point out the rock structures to each side of the pad- These are "modular" in the sense that they are attached by two pins, and you have to swap that large chunk on the right over to the other side if you want to connect this to the Batpile segment. The same must be done on the Manor segment.

Batcycle

This isn't the more advanced one with the white side panels, but rather the much older styled one. The side car isn't as streamlined as the real thing, but it's a small and simple build and works well enough.

Batman the daredevil

Lab equipment

(The tape player and Lie Detector were pictured before with the bat equipment to show the complete picture, but you do not actually build them until this step.) The lab equipment is pretty neat, the 1x1 round tiles have a silver cap printing on them to make the bottles more interesting.

Batcopter Build

We don't get the Batboat, but we do get the Batcopter. It wasn't used in the Television series due to budgeting reasons, but was used during the film. The canopy has the upper half of the bat printed on it, and overall this looks pretty good. It is a little difficult to put the control sticks into a minifigure's hands, but that's a minor complaint.

Completed Set Inside

The biggest issue I have with this set in terms of it's overall layout is that there is hardly anywhere for anything to go. The machines, lab equipment, and other miscellaneous stuff just sit out and about, since the set wasn't build with any kind of large baseplates underneath it.

Completed Set outside

The outside of the Wayne manor is the only attractive thing here, and it looks quite out of place with the other batcave elements to the side of it.

One Job

Pole Mechanism

If you want to send Batman and Robin (or in this case, a very dizzy Alfred) down the poles, you can set them on the yellow technic construct, and mount there hands to the gray handle. There's no fancy trigger here, you just pull down on the gray balljoint to move the platform down, and you must do it on both sides if you want to send both down at the same time.

Sliding Bookshelf

There isn't really a connected function, but rather you tilt the statue back to reveal a button, and can slide the bookshelf over to reveal the top of the poles. I'm a bit annoyed here- this segment of the cave was made extremely tall to accommodate the fireman poles, yet the function doesn't extend to this portion here. Granted, I don't know how the Bruce and Dick 1x2 tiles would have been able to be utilized then, but I'm sure LEGO could have gotten creative. (And yeah, I can already see a lot of laughs around the "Dick" sticker.) Also notice that the green sticker advertises the wanted file for Mr Freeze, making it all the more disappointing that he is a (possibly exclusive) polybag set.

Overall

I have very mixed opinions on this set. At $270, I would expect either a really great display piece, like the UCS Tumbler or Ghostbusters Firehouse HQ or SHIELD Helicarrier, or I would expect an action-packed playset. This set struggles to be either of those, it really doesn't know what it wants to be. It's not a great display piece; There's a lot of unfinished looking segments, no floor for the extras, and the manor section is quite tall. It's not really a great playset because the only "features" it has is the batpole/platform and a sliding bookcase, both of which require manual effort to achieve instead of any neat functions. (And, the batpole section is quite tall, leading back to the issue of that module being too tall) For $270 you aren't getting a fantastic deal on parts when compared to the Ghostbusters HQ, and most of the coolest looking textures here are created through stickers. The main draw to this set is undoubtedly the minifigures (And I have already seen quite a few of these Batcaves being sold on BL for $100-150 off sticker price without the minifigures.) The brick-build cave formations are neat, though the solid plate walls on the Manor module are quite off putting. I also really like the build of the Batpile and the Manor interior/facade.

I know a lot of people have very split opinions here too. Many think that it would be better if it had been split up into 3-4 individual 60's themed sets instead of one larger one. Personally, I think the Batcave works as one full set, but I really there was something more to really "pull" the set together into something cohesive and make space for the extra stuff that's included.

Would I recommend this set? I would really only jump on this if you are an absolute diehard fan for the 60s show, or you want to minifigures but don't want to pay aftermarket prices for them. Overall, however, I really find that this set has trouble figuring out what it wants to be, and it comes at a quite a high cost. Share your comments and be sure you leave your vote in the poll!

[Jim]

I think it's a pretty decent playset, but I agree with your sentiment that it's missing the WOW-factor in order to justify the price. Noted; I am not the biggest fan of the franchise, so maybe I'm missing something.

Nice review though!

[Blondie-Wan]

Huh. I, on the other hand, am not a particularly big fan of the '60s show and movie, but I do think this set is pretty sweet. I guess I'm not as harsh a judge as the reviewer. Oh, well.

Sadly, I'm sure I won't be able to afford several other D2Cs that are higher on my priority list, let alone this one, but I would certainly like to have it.

[Im a brickmaster.]

Yes, I think this is just that. A really big, really expensive play set! Just the kind I would like if I was a rich little kid, but I'm not a diehard of Batman '66 so it's a pass for me. Excellent review VB!

[JGW3000]

Best part is Alfred coming out of the closet in the first picture, no wonder the minifigs from this set are proving so popular . For me, MEH, for my kids, POW! I guess TLG hit the target market again.

[Aethersprite]

Thanks for the detailed review! I'm not a collector of Superheroes sets but the large sets like the UCS Helicarrier, Tumbler and Arkham Asylum have always impressed me. This one, however... I think the word is underwhelming. At that price, it needed to be spectacular, but it's just mediocre.

[WhiteFang]

VBBN, thank you for doing up this spectacular review. It was an enjoyable and enriching read. It is kind of nostalgic for people who grew up with classic Batman. Well, those people are probably adults right now and is likely to have spare cash to acquire this D2C set. I personally enjoy playing and building up playset. This is one good example of it. I do look forward to acquire it, but will definitely get it after I secure the GB HQ. That is my top priority list at the moment for my exclusive wishlist.

[Captain Britain]

Thank you for the great review! Some brilliant little pics in there too haha. This review has made me want it all the more! Already wondering how I can extend the mansion/office part a little! The minifigures are what wins it for me completely though. I collect the minifigures and every now and then a set will come along where I'll want to keep it in it's entirety.. looking forward to getting this on display!

[Churchill]

Thanks for the well done review. It just makes sense that the Joker himself would be the first one to use Robin's sticker in a new "creative" way.

[ZO6]

Nice review!

I picked up this set the morning that it was released and spent around 8 hours building it at a leisurely pace. As I assembled each section of the cave, I began to realize that this set was going to be massive. While many people are complaining about the price of the set, or that it has a poor price-per-piece ratio, when I saw the completed set in front of me I couldn't help but be impressed. Next to the recent modular buildings, the Batcave is significantly larger. Sure I would have liked to have paid less for the set, but I don't feel it's horrible value when compared to other Lego offerings.

The set looks fairly ugly in pictures, but quite a lot better in person. The large 16x16 dark tan plate between Wayne Manor and the bottom of the batpoles is still very ugly, as are the exposed beams at the sides of the structures. Otherwise everything else looks really good, and pretty detailed. The bright colours of the minifigues, the vehicles, and other details help to distract ones eyes from the uglier portions of the model. I agree that the set is in a bit of a weird place - it isn't the most amazing looking thing ever, and it isn't the most highly playable kit either. I wouldn't say that it downright fails as either a display piece or a play set though. The recent UCS Helicarrier didn't have the good looks of most UCS Stars Wars models, nor did it have much in terms of play features. I don't think a model needs to be categorized as a display model or play-set and excel at one or the other to be a good Lego set. In the case of the Batcave, I think all the contents of the kit add up to make something special. I'm very happy with my purchase! (I do wish that there was a can of Shark repellant Bat-spray, and the actual Bat Computer)

BTW, the Batcopter did show up a handful of times in the TV series. I've been re-watching the whole '66 series and I'm halfway through the 3rd season. The Batcopter showed up a couple times either near the end of the second season, or at the start of the third.

[DarthBrickus]

Thanks for the review!

Looks like Arkham Asylum will keep its place as the center of my DC-Comics display. Aside from Batman, Robin and the vehicles, this looks utterly skipable.

[Writers Blocks]

Thank you for this review! I've been really excited about it, and I love that TLG made it. For what it is, it's pretty great.

Your analysis that it's not a playset, not yet a display piece is apt. For the price, I think I'd rather pick up Jokerland and some smaller sets to collect the minifigures that represent the version of the characters I'm more familiar with.

When they do a Batman: TAS Batcave, though, they can have all my money!

[VBBN]

Thanks everyone!

I have changed my opinion about one part of the set- the batpoles not being connected above and below the floor. The thing is, you can have Batman & Robin waiting on the yellow platforms. So you can have regular Bruce and Dick reveal the bookshelf, take them out of the scene and quickly drop Batman and Robin down the poles without having to set them up. Not really useful to me as someone who only displays sets, but it kinda goes along with the 'quick change" feature of the first Batcave set.

BTW, the Batcopter did show up a handful of times in the TV series. I've been re-watching the whole '66 series and I'm halfway through the 3rd season. The Batcopter showed up a couple times either near the end of the second season, or at the start of the third.

Ah thanks for that info. I've never really gotten into the 60s series and haven't watched it in its entirety (I'm a college student right now, so I didn't exactly grow up watching it, and it's kinda hard to get into it if you didn't grow up with it I feel.) though I do love the designs of everything from it. So for some things I had to consult the Wiki and it wasn't as helpful as I thought it would be

[Panthro]

Nice review!

I picked up this set the morning that it was released and spent around 8 hours building it at a leisurely pace. As I assembled each section of the cave, I began to realize that this set was going to be massive. While many people are complaining about the price of the set, or that it has a poor price-per-piece ratio, when I saw the completed set in front of me I couldn't help but be impressed. Next to the recent modular buildings, the Batcave is significantly larger. Sure I would have liked to have paid less for the set, but I don't feel it's horrible value when compared to other Lego offerings.

The set looks fairly ugly in pictures, but quite a lot better in person. The large 16x16 dark tan plate between Wayne Manor and the bottom of the batpoles is still very ugly, as are the exposed beams at the sides of the structures. Otherwise everything else looks really good, and pretty detailed. The bright colours of the minifigues, the vehicles, and other details help to distract ones eyes from the uglier portions of the model. I agree that the set is in a bit of a weird place - it isn't the most amazing looking thing ever, and it isn't the most highly playable kit either. I wouldn't say that it downright fails as either a display piece or a play set though. The recent UCS Helicarrier didn't have the good looks of most UCS Stars Wars models, nor did it have much in terms of play features. I don't think a model needs to be categorized as a display model or play-set and excel at one or the other to be a good Lego set. In the case of the Batcave, I think all the contents of the kit add up to make something special. I'm very happy with my purchase! (I do wish that there was a can of Shark repellant Bat-spray, and the actual Bat Computer)

BTW, the Batcopter did show up a handful of times in the TV series. I've been re-watching the whole '66 series and I'm halfway through the 3rd season. The Batcopter showed up a couple times either near the end of the second season, or at the start of the third.

Start of the third. Surf's Up! Joker's Under!, if I recall.

Spoke to someone in the Lego shop about this set the other day. It's over priced and underwhelming. The only thing worthy of the purchase is that Batmobile, which they could easily have released as a standalone kit.

Edited March 4, 2016 by Panthro

[Darth Malgus]

Got it, strangely don't feel excited to build it now.

[Markalus]

Thanks for the well done review. It just makes sense that the Joker himself would be the first one to use Robin's sticker in a new "creative" way.

Yes. So many potential uses for that sticker; one of the few highlights of the set.

[Godtshep]

Excellent review. I'm also impartial about this set, but I'm sure many creative MOCers will have fun with the 'dick' sticker!

[Bolingbroke]

a very good review, yes. wish more reviews were like that. id buy two of these if they were 200 euro. the tan pieces would come in handy for tattoine mocs and id make a bigger study/ mansion facade. but at 280 euro, lol, no way.

[r5-j2]

Thank you for this review! I've been really excited about it, and I love that TLG made it. For what it is, it's pretty great.

Your analysis that it's not a playset, not yet a display piece is apt. For the price, I think I'd rather pick up Jokerland and some smaller sets to collect the minifigures that represent the version of the characters I'm more familiar with.

When they do a Batman: TAS Batcave, though, they can have all my money!

Totally agree..I was brought up with the original series, but WB Animation really kick-started Batman as an art form for TV (along Tim Burton`s cinema visions) and Batman TAS deserves the Lego treatment..................only at a more realistic price point.

[MysteriousSir]

My main disappointment in this set is how much the price is brought up by the lack of design focus, even though it was obviously intentional. I really want a batcave, not a fan of the prior one and not willing to pay the markup for the original, so I was hoping for this one to be a good one for around 100. I would have much preferred them do a 100 dollar 66 Batcave with a more singular design and a say 120 dollar Wayne Manor one that connected together.

[rossrifle5150]

I'm working on a MOC Batcave. After I built this set, I tore down what I had and started from scratch, using this set as the starting point. Though it was certainly overpriced ($370 CAD after taxes), I'm going to get a lot of fun out of it, and it's given me some direction for my cave.