Review: 76134 Spider-Man: Doc Ock Diamond Heist
Posted by CapnRex101,
Doctor Octopus is among Spider-Man's most menacing foes and started his criminal career during The Amazing Spider-Man #3 from 1963. The devious scientist has accordingly appeared in minifigure form on multiple occasions and the latest design is found in 76134 Spider-Man: Doc Ock Diamond Heist.
The new 4+ range been created for a younger audience than most Marvel Super Heroes sets, although some of the models in this set look quite appealing. Of course, the exclusive Doctor Octopus minifigure may entice many older fans so I am hoping that it will prove to be the definitive comic version of Doctor Octopus!
Minifigures
An updated Spider-Man minifigure has been produced for the latest wave of Marvel Super Heroes sets, featuring a red torso with blue highlights and a new spider emblem on the torso. This figure represents a great improvement over the version from 2012, especially on the mask where Spider-Man's eyes now feature metallic silver details, but this minifigure lacks dual-moulded legs. The hero comes with a strand of web fluid and a large web.
Super Heroes sets rarely include civilians but this Dock Worker is an excellent addition to set, offering some additional play value. The orange jacket is relatively common and features metallic silver stripes on either side along with a radio which is placed in a pouch on the worker's belt. However, the reddish brown head is only available in one previous set so is extremely rare.
Doctor Octopus has appeared in nine different sets and the latest incarnation is unique. Its green and yellow colour scheme takes inspiration from the Spider-Man comic books and Otto wears a dark bluish grey and metallic silver harness around his abdomen, securing the robotic arms. I love this design and think it looks even better than the version from 76059 Spider-Man: Doc Ock's Tentacle Trap which can be directly associated with the villain's earliest comic book appearances.
Unfortunately, this minifigure does not include dual-moulded legs but the head is decorated with two expressions, one of which appears delighted while the other seems slightly concerned. However, the most notable feature of this Doctor Octopus minifigure is the mounting for his robotic arms. This piece was originally created for the Outriders in the Avengers: Infinity War subtheme but it works very nicely here. The pearl silver arms look rather short but could easily be upgraded for greater articulation.
The Completed Model
Spider-Man employs a selection of vehicles in the current wave of Marvel Super Heroes sets, many of which seem unnecessary given the hero's innate abilities. This aircraft is a notable example and I think it appears fairly dull as both wings and most of the fuselage are formed using a single blue component. The resultant model is therefore very sturdy but its proportions look strange in my opinion.
There is plenty of room to place Spider-Man inside the cockpit and the wing-mounted disc launchers are excellent for play, although they look out of place. Moreover, the aircraft lacks a vertical stabiliser which is disappointing. On the other hand, I do like the printed 4x4 curved slope towards the front of this model and the hand grip at the back could be useful, as though Doctor Octopus is desperately clinging to the plane!
Doctor Octopus is also equipped with a vehicle, featuring his classic green and yellow colour scheme as well as two robotic arms on the back. These are comparatively short but their articulation is superb and the arms can grip accessories, including the trans-red jewel and sack which are both included. A 2x4 tile towards the bow of the boat is decorated with Doctor Octopus' emblem and there is space to place the minifigure inside the cockpit.
Furthermore, you can store some accessories in an area beneath the robotic arms. This hull element has not appeared in green and yellow before so it could be useful for other creations, although these lurid colours are not particularly versatile! Nevertheless, I think this boat looks good and appreciate the inclusion of an unusual vehicle for Doctor Octopus.
However, the dockside crane is probably my favourite of these three models. The structure is simple but would not look out of place in a City set, presumably because LEGO cranes frequently include the same large components when designed for any age group. It is constructed on a dark bluish grey base so feels sturdy and the boom can rotate in conjunction with the cab. The boom makes ingenious use of a yellow roller coaster track section which has not been manufactured in this colour before.
A short ladder allows minifigures to travel between the water and the dockside but there is no ladder for the dock worker to access the crane. A flaming cylinder rests on the wharf along with a larger container. This is decorated with a printed diamond which seems unwise as advertising the valuable contents has evidently inspired Doctor Octopus to steal them. However, only two jewels are included and their trans-red colour is unusual. Red diamonds do exist but a trans-clear element may have been more suitable.
Overall
The most appealing aspect of 76134 Spider-Man: Doc Ock Diamond Heist is undoubtedly the brand new Doctor Octopus minifigure and that does not disappoint. I love the updated torso design and the bracket which supports the arms is marvellous, even though the arms themselves could be improved. In addition, the dockside crane and Doctor Octopus' boat both look pretty good on the whole, despite their basic construction.
Spider-Man's aircraft lacks detail though, especially towards the rear where a vertical stabiliser should have been included. This set costs £24.99 or $29.99 so I think it offers good value for younger Marvel Super Heroes fans. Those who only wish to collect a new version of Doctor Octopus should probably focus upon the secondary market and purchase that minifigure separately.
I hope you have found this review informative. Let us know by liking this article and share your thoughts on the set in the comments below.
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22 comments on this article
For me, every set to feature Doctor Octopus so far has been pretty boring. This is no exception.
Ok set but hasn't got a patch on the spider crawler or mechs for 2019..
I'm liking this new 4+ range. When I was young, I received several juniors construction vehicle sets and think the new ones look great!
Do any or all these vehicles in the new range actually exist in any of the various Spiderman worlds?
I want a revival of the construction sets.
The tentacles on Doc Ock are very wimpy
@aleydita - Yes, although only rarely. I think the Spider-Mobile is probably his most famous vehicle and that was created in response to requests from toy companies during the 1970s. Recent issues of The Amazing Spider-Man have featured motorcycles, boats and aircraft as well.
https://brickset.com/sets/60209-1/Diamond-Heist also seems to suffer from the 'not a diamond' confusion.
@capnrex101, thanks. All seem incredibly superfluous given his abilities, as you say.
I quite like the use of the yellow rollercoaster pieces for the crane, I could see those being useful for making "proper" cranes and similar structures.
That said, I don't get why LEGO discontinued the Juniors theme. It made it abundantly clear to parents of those youngest kids what products were appropriate, they'd even usually be placed together since they were in the same theme. Now those same parents will have to scour the entire LEGO section to find those 4+ sets that previously all were placed together. Don't really see how it benefits anyone bunching them together with other sets.
... so, a ruby-heist, then?
Thanks for the review!
Finn now works at the docks on the MCU Lego wolrd now
In the ultimate Spider-Man cartoon spider-man himself questioned his need for vehicles. S.H.I.E.L.D.'s response was that it allowed him to do things faster and with less muscle strain. So even with his abilities it helped him even more. Don't want to show up to the battle already exhausted from web-swinging everywhere! Lol
I just can't get past that the bottom of the plane is a single piece, it feels like the late 90s/early 2000s all over again. Yes, they're supposed to be easy for young kids but it only takes about ten parts to build it the regular way - how hard could it be? I mean, people asks for everything from specific minifig accessories to a remotely decent train track selection, we try to accept that they can't make everything 'cause making new moulds is bloody expensive, an then they suddenly have the resources to create THIS? Lego really needs to re-think their priorities.
@axeleng: being the father of a toddler who owns these plane bottoms I can attest to their usefullness for kids. Either the airplane breaks and he can fix it himself or he takes the hull adds a few pieces and has a recognizable plane. Putting ten pieces together to get what you had before is difficult for younger kids
@Andhe @Zordboy, https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Red_diamond. I would say, LEGO criminals' tastes have become very specific and very expensive :-)
The play theme is classic Spiderman: Spidey Saves the Docks from Doc Ock. I hope Parker got pictures for J.J.
@axeleng: While the number and size of pieces needed to build a hull like this from scratch is not too extreme, in general these sets are aimed at kids who have just graduated from Duplo and so probably don't have much experience building models or following instructions that don't simply consist of vertical stacking from a sturdy base. So things like attaching parts to the BOTTOM of what you've already built instead of the top, as is often required when building a vehicle with a multi-piece hull/fuselage/chassis, doesn't come naturally to them. Frankly, most Duplo vehicles, hardly any of them require ten pieces at all, let alone to construct their chassis or fuselage.
And creating big specialized parts to help kids transition more smoothly from Duplo to System is hardly a recent phenomenon. The Fabuland theme of the 80s introduced far more highly specialized parts to construct buildings and vehicles than Juniors sets have, and many of those builds also employed even less advanced building techniques. Consider 3625-1 , a very typical Fabuland airplane set containing a mere 8 pieces, or 3642-1 , a fire truck with just 18 pieces. By comparison, 60206-1 has 54 pieces including a 32-piece airplane. And 60212-1 has 64 pieces including a 39-piece fire truck.
Fabuland was also even more averse to small parts than Juniors is, with chunky pre-assembled figures and hardly any 1x1 or 1x2 plate/tile elements. And Juniors sets make much greater use of SNOT techniques and unusual connection styles like Technic pins than Fabuland did. If anything, LEGO appears to have much MORE confidence in this age range's building ability than they did back in the late 70s and early 80s, let alone in the early 2000s.
While I understand that this set is supposed to be easy for younger kids, I still thinks the base-and-wings piece is too large, complex and specialized. While the Fabuland plane also uses few and specialized pieces each of them isn't as large as this one, and that set both looks better and seems more suitable for a kid who's just graduated from Duplo. With the spider-plane I feel that a kid who doesn't have the skill/patience to build the bottom still would have trouble building the top - at the very least the wings should've been separate pieces.
I'm not very impressed with the new Doctor Octopus figure. The new bracket is still fantastic but those arms are downright puny considering what was used for Iron Spider earlier this year, much less the arms Octopus usually has. The new torso just feels like a rehash of an outfit we've seen before, and even if it looks a little better, I'd rather have seen something different.
they're turning spider man into batman, I can't wait for "the web cave" to come out
also does anyone know if they're coming out with spider man: into the spider verse sets?