C3 Minimates Mini Batmobile

The Mini Batmobile is in the first wave of C3 construction sets. It is a small set, comprising 73 pieces and 2 Minimates, Batman and his sidekick Robin.

As this is a long and picture-intensive review, covering the packaging, the 2 figures and the C3 set itself, you can use the links below to jump to a section.

Packaging | Batman | Robin | Mini Batmobile


Packaging

The packaging is a small semi-window box. The Batman logo appears at the top left, meaning these figures come from the Batman cartoon rather than the Justice League cartoon. The boxart shows off the set and the figures very well. To the right, you can see the Minimates in the window portion of the box. The first figure is totally visable but the second figure only has their head and shoulders shown.



The C3 pieces are all bagged up in the main part of the box, and the Minimates are packaged in a tray on the right hand side. Each figure also have twist-ties holding them in.


The back of the box shows the cross-sell of the other C3 sets and a "technical specification" type drawing to show off the set itself.


The Figures

Batman

The first figure in this set is Batman, who differs from the Batmen reviewed previously by being slightly more detailed. There is more detail on the face, unfortunately this seemed very easy to rub off whilst removing the cowl, meaning that now Bruce's mouth has a gap in it in one side. I've never had a problem like this with any of my other Minimates.

The costume looks similar to others released previously but there are some key differences, not all of them worthwhile. The cowl is soft rubber, the cape and the gloves too. This gives the figure a very cheap feel overall, almost like a Minimate knock-off. I much prefer the normal hard plastic used in other versions than this somewhat flimsy rubber. The cape is functionally very similar to Sauron's cape in the Lord of the Rings Minimates line, being 3 separate pieces that form out posable cape. This does work quite well, and adds a lot of menace and playability to Batman.

Batman also has his yellow utility belt and also a batarang-gun. This is a fun accessory as he looks quite good holding it aloft.

Overall, this is a poor Batman Minimate due to quality and durability issues. The cape has been well thought out but would have been a lot better in harder plastic. The torso block on my figure is also very loose and when putting the figure in the mini Batmobile sometimes his upper body separates completely from his lower body. There are much better Batman figures available in this first wave.

MMC Score - 4 out of 10

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Robin

The second figure in the set is Robin, the Boy Wonder. This is the later version of the costume than the one popularised in the 60s TV show, although it does share many similarities with that design. Robin doesn't have a full mask, instead he has his eyes hidden by a half-mask. This has been detailed quite nicely and looks good. He has a really goofy grin on his face which I don't like. I would have preferred a slightly more serious look. His hair piece has two terrible flaws. For some reason it's soft rubber, unlike every other Minimate hairpiece in existence, and therefore looks very shiny and non-hair-like. The second flaw is that it just doesn't stay on his head. Possibly down to it being soft rubber and not gripping the head block AT ALL.

The paint and detailing on the costume are top-notch, with the "R" logo in particular picked out very nicely, but the cape and gloves are again rubber. This makes them look and feel cheap and tacky. Why they didn't use harder plastics is beyond me.

Robin comes with two accessories. The first is a staff that even for Minimates standards is made out of stupidly bendy plastic. He also has a suction cup and rope, which is in fact a very cool accessory. Get a good vertical surface to stick the suction cup on and you can position Robin climbing up the side of buildings Burt Ward-style!

Overall, I was really looking forward to this figure but he suffers a lot of the same flaws as the Batman Minimate in this set and therefore scores the same.

MMC Score - 4 out of 10

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The Construction Set

Mini Batmobile

The C3 construction set is the Mini Batmobile. There is a larger (and therefore more expensive) version of the Batmobile also out in this wave, but it only has one figure. The instructions for the Mini Batmobile are fairly clear, and the set was adequate fun to put together but there are major colour differences between what you see on the box and in the instructions, and what you actually get. The colours are very plain - blue and black mainly, and the overall look isn't very eyecatching. Only the fins stand out.

The Mini Batmobile is simply a 4 wheeled vehicle with space for one Minimate to sit in. The seating area is a huge disappointment. It has no steering wheel/bat computer or even a chair, and the Minimate rattles around in it unsupported. There is only room for one Minimate to sit down. The Batman figure included in this set doesn't even look very good driving it.

The only real gimmick is that there is an "exhaust flame" piece on the back that spins when the back wheels are rotated. This is a pretty underwhelming gimmick which doesn't add much playability to the set.

Overall, this set was a real letdown. The poor quality of the Minimates combined with the insipid and uninspiring vehicle means that this is by far the worst of the C3 sets I've seen so far.

MMC Score - 4 out of 10

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