Set #6857 The Dynamic Duo Funhouse Escape: Has it really been that long? Well folks this marks my 500th review on Brickset, I have reviewed 500 LEGO sets/Books/Gear and Games counting this set.

Well really nothing more to say there, no need to overinflate my contributions to the site or anything like that. But what a set to mark this milestone, yep this is one killer set from 2012 DC Super Heroes, read on and find out why.

Box/Instructions

The box for this set is great. The design is that awesome DC Super Heroes one I find very enjoyable, a great improvement from the original Batman boxes as I've said before. It showcases the set perfectly, reveals the Mini-Figures and the basic story idea behind this set quite well and is just all around fun to see on the shelf.

The instructions continue the theme of easy to follow and designed much better from the original Batman instructions. They are also quite large, these are some of the largest instructions I have next to the Star Wars Republic Cruiser from The Phantom Menace sub-theme. They are so large that they keep from being mangled because they are hard to bend or curl, this can't be said for the sticker sheet as that is much smaller, fortunately the way they package this set it is random chance that will lead to damaging the paperwork.

Parts

This set is loaded with great parts, first of all this is my first exposure to LEGO Train Tracks, there are two tracks in this set for the roller coaster portion of the Funhouse and it looks impressive. The rest of the set includes a slew of parts, difficult to single out many of them.

You've got a purple large bucket, the string with studs, a brick seperator, the single staircase piece in black and even some nice technic wheel attachment pieces for the Batcycle. Overall this is a great set for parts. (And a lot of nice colors.)

Minifigures

Five awesome Mini-Figures are included with this set.

We have the blue and grey suited Batman with the Blue Cape, a common sight from DC Super Heroes 2012 with excellent printed detail and batarang accessories. Double-sided facial printing, double-sided torso printing and the impressive cowl piece.

Next up is The Joker, as I said in Batwing Battle Over Gotham City I really love this update to the Joker Mini-Fig. Nothing much new to say about his design here, he includes a different accessory with this set. A walkie talkie piece with a red stud attached to be a remote control device for the dangerous Bat-Trap being used to threaten Robin's life. Not as fun as the accessory he originally came with back in 2006, but much better than the re-imagined flag gun in Batwing.

Robin is available in a few sets, he has a double-sided torso print with his red and black costume, plus a double-sided facial print showing frightened and determined Robin. He also has a black cape, and comes with handcuff accessories for being trapped by the Joker and lowered into the dangerous purple bucket full of Joker acid or something.

The Riddler; I really like this Mini-Fig in spite of certain minor flaws. He has a double-sided torso as well and a single sided facial print. He's wearing a grey bowler hat with a question mark printed on it, and he's carrying a regular red crowbar for his question mark cane. It works, but it doesn't really match the cane we saw in the two LEGO Batman games. Still he works as a great Mini-Fig and one of the nice additions for a Joker themed set.

Harley Quinn is the stand out Mini-Fig from the set, she's got everything you want to see in a Harley Mini-Fig except perhaps her large hammer accessory. She's the only Mini-Fig in the set without a character specific accessory actually. Still she's just awesome, with the red and black jester uniform print, double-sided torso, double-sided head and some great detail work for her print.

The build

This is a numbered bag set, it has 3 bags. Bag #1 is kind of weak because it only has the Batcycle and the Dynamic Duo. The build there is fairly fast and a bit dissapointing because it's over so quickly, it's still an interesting vehicle.

The other two bags build the Funhouse, 2 is the bottom floor and 3 is the upper floor, this build more than makes up for the limited build in bag 1. It's a very satisfying build as you work to create a fully functional funhouse with many great play features matching the funhouse design. We'll cover that in the model.

The build for the funhouse has one minor issue of being too large for the bottom floor, by which I mean that when you're building this set and not building it on a hard surface like a table or desk it can fall apart in your hands while you're building it. Just because of how big it turns out.

The completed model

The Batcycle is an ok vehicle model from this set. It's certainly a unique looking vehicle compared to ordinary LEGO Motorcycles, there is one sticker for the bat symbol detail, other than that no stickers. It's a pretty fun little bike for Batman to ride, but it isn't the main reason for buying this set.

The Funhouse is where it's at and while it does load pieces down with stickers for detail work instead of printed bricks (the only issue where this might not have been the best idea is the two doors for the roller coaster cart area, as the Joker face's smile doesn't match up nicely compared to if they'd just printed half his face on both sides.) still it's a pretty loaded set.

It has a Riddler Question Box on the first floor with an extra Riddler Mini-Figure head and hat, ask it a question to proceed, there's a trapdoor on the top floor where the winch holding Robin is also located. There's a moveable floor, a massive swinging hammer and the roller coaster cart that can be pushed down the ramp and through the doors.

So many fun play features and the design just looks great, it matches up pretty nicely with the overall design seen in the two LEGO Batman games when visiting the Joker's hideout at the funhouse. It works as a great structure and a great play set for the younger fans. The build for the winch area may need some help for younger builders though... I mean I'm an AFOL and when it comes to tieing knots in LEGO strings I still need ocassional help myself, those strings are so thin and small my adult fingers have trouble sometimes.

Overall the Funhouse model is great fun and looks awesome on the shelf.

Summary

This set is one I highly recommend, it's the only way to own Harley Quinn in her actual uniform (Arkham has her as Harleen Quinzel) and this is one of only two sets that features the Riddler. Plus the model built in this set is just really worth it, it is loaded down with awesome accurate to funhouse design features and it includes a beefy looking Batcycle to use when crashing the party and rescuing Robin.

The price is satisfying also, for under 50$ (Unless you get it at TRU Canada where it's marked up.) you can own a great model, five brilliant Mini-Figs and a nifty little Batcycle. Don't pass this up as it will eventually retire and become really hard to find.

i recently got this set at toys r us in augest and imedeatly started the build in the car and had a great time after.

except for the fact that the whole set with tax and all came to-64.04$.

14$ more than it should have been

but oh well...

Pros

• great minifigs
• booby traps
• …

Cons

• hard to place joker face sticker
• poor bat-pod

over all im happy i missed out on the original batman theme so this theme left me exstatic

so if u can find it at regular price buy it for a very good time.

This is a very nice set, with lots of good, rare and exclusive figures and parts.

Instructions

Also includes mini-comic book.

Parts

Lots of good parts:

Roller coaster pieces

fish

Cable

Purple barrel

And lots of other purple pieces.

Minifigures

2 out of 5 minifigs are exclusive. (Harley quinn and riddler)

the other 3 figures are semi-exclusive.(Joker, Batman, Robin)

I think they are all very nice figures:

Joker, I like the old version more.

Harley, I like the new version more.

Riddler, I like the new version more.

Robin, I like the new version more.
and then batman. both versions are good.
Plus, Riddler has an extra head (and hat)

The build

OK, some parts don't stay together very well (specifically the doors on the roller coaster)

The completed model

Fun to use.

Summary

It was easily worth the cost. (I guess that is why it is hard-to-find)

This set was unexpected and showed up surprisingly on LEGO.com months after the other DC sets were revealed. I think I'd call it the best in the line, and of course it's hard to find, so fittingly and unfortunately, I got it last.

Though it doesn't exactly have a counterpart in the Batman line, The Riddler did share a hideout with Bane in 7787 The Bat-Tank: The Riddler and Bane's Hideout. Just compare the two (and make sure to take your eyes off of the Bat-tank and look around it); Riddler is obviously getting a nicer hideout by teaming up with Joker than he did with Bane.


I can't find a decent sized, official image of this set to put here. Please maximize the photo at the side for a better view.

Box/Instructions

I really like the box art on the front; the bright and colorful funhouse against a yellow sky. Batman looks a little strange and The Joker is floating, but other than that it's fine.

I'm not so sure about the scene on it though; Riddler is running down the stairs wielding a crowbar to fight Batman, who is still on the Batcycle. I'm sorry, but Riddler is supposed to be smart, not muscular. It looks like that is mixed up here. If anyone was to fight Batman, it would be Harley Quinn, she's the only one with a chance at defeating him.

Also, though not as apparent as in 6860 The Batcave and 6862 Superman vs. Power Armor Lex once again, the muscular man (Superman, Bane, or in this case, Batman) is rescuing the captured damsel in distress (Wonder Woman, Poison Ivy, or in this case, Robin). ;)

The back of the box doesn't look as good. The blue and yellow just don't go well together; the red and light blue of the Marvel sets is nicer; the yellow/blue will clash with anything on the back of the box.

There is one instruction book with pretty much the same image as the front (with the normal modifications of course). It has the same, light blue pages as the other DC sets with The Joker, Batman, and Superman showing up occasionally.

The comic was, strange and hard to understand as always. The artwork was nice, but the comic itself was difficult to understand. Still, at least it isn't Batman trying to rescue part of the LEGO Club logo for Police Commissioner Max like how The Avengers are for S.H.I.E.D. commander Max.

Parts

There is a very nice variety of parts, and at 380 for $40, it's a pretty good price. Especially considering licenses, the track pieces, some large parts, it's a "hard to find"/store exclusive, and the two sought after minifigures. There is a large selection of colors, but none are really in abundance and only appear on a few parts. There is dark blue, black, silver, gray, yellow, purple, red, green, and white. Really, only black has a good variety, but I can think of uses for some of the others, not that I'm going to tear this apart any time in the near future.

I do wish that this set came with more accessories; Harley Quinn should have her mallet, and Riddler his cane. The crowbar really doesn't work for it, it just makes him seem even more messed up. Think about it, a muscular man in tight green spandex who gives riddles, wears a bowler hat, and whose weapon of choice is a bright red crowbar.

There is a good variety of large and small parts, and some of the recolors were new to me, even though none of the parts were (except for the bowler hats and train tracks).

There was another orange brick separator included, like in the Batcave and Batmobile sets.

Minifigures

Batman

Please see my review of 6860 The Batcave for my thoughts on this Batman.

I will add something on to that though; I have noticed a few people on here complaining about Batman wearing blue and not black. Though it really doesn't translate to LEGO, Batman's basic costume originally was black with blue hightlights; the blue is supposed to show detail and make him look three-dimensional. Though I may not mind it just because I like Adam West.

Robin

Again, see my review of 6860 for my thoughts on Robin. This one had no printing errors, unlike the Batcave one which didn't come out too well. In fact, the only minifigure here who had any printing problems was The Riddler.

The Joker

A different review this time, but please my review of 6863 Batwing Battle Over Gotham City for my thoughts on this Joker. There was a slight variation between the two, but it's probably random. The one from this set didn't have the Y on the head stud while the one from 6863 did. Actually, all of the minifigures from this set did, except for Harley Quinn. Looking at a few other Super Heroes minifigures I had by, I found both Catwomen I had and a black Batman didn't have the Y, but Wonder Woman did. Probably just random. I guess that all heads are switching over to the Y-less type and they're cycling out.

Harley Quinn

I said in my review of 6863 Batwing Battle Over Gotham City that I thought Harley my rival Joker for my title of best DC minifigure. She doesn't. She's really good I think, much prettier than before, but just not colorful enough. She wears black, red, and white, just like she's supposed to, but she needs a little more variety outside of that than dark red accents and spades and aqua eyeshadow. Giving her blue eyes, like the original, would help, and make her look even better. I wouldn't be against giving her cool yellow teeth like The Joker either. I do like this Harley, but I can't say that it's better than the other easily. The face is prettier, but that's the only big difference, but the old face looked more evil (not that I'd call Harley evil, more misguided, yet still insane) if you're into that look for your villains. The torsos aren't too different, the newer one just uses LEGO's new design for a female shape and a more angular bib. Aside from the colors, my only real gripe is that she's pretty much defenseless. Yeah, she has gymnastics, but she lacks her trademark hammer or at least a gun (but as I said in my review of 6864 Batmobile and the Two-Face Chase, LEGO seems to be against giving minifigures guns in this theme, they can have them on their vehicles, but Maxie Zeus forbid they carry them).

The Riddler

My first impression when images surfaced was that he was awesome, I was obviously looking at the bowler hat and purple hands. But now, he's too muscular. Even though I said in my review of 6860 The Batcave that I kind of had a problem with Robin that went along with The Riddler, it's actually compared to The Riddler. Robin is fine, Riddler is just muscular, when in reality, he should be less than, or just as if LEGO wants to be lazy (which I'm okay with in this case), as muscular. Riddler isn't supposed to be like this, he's thin. He's meant to challenge Batman's intellect, not his strength. And as Adam West once said, "This is ridiculous, he's even smaller than you." (Note, that was the Dick Grayson Robin, not Tim Drake like this one).

Anyway, aside from that big problem (in my book), he's fine. I like the face, the other one wasn't bad, it looked evil, but too sinister, which isn't one in the same as evil and is something Riddler can do without (especially since he almost has a moral code; he can't just kill someone, he has to build a death trap to do it). Maybe it's just my own interpretation of him though.

I like that the bowler hat is included, but I don't like that he's wearing it with his spandex. I do enjoy this Riddler, it's just, well, he's kind of messed up. I mean, he's depicted as a muscular guy wearing a bowler hat charging at Batman while threateningly wielding a crowbar. Something's just wrong about that. Enough for this to be the third section where I mention the problems with it, at least.

Unlike Harley though who felt a little bland, Riddler isn't disappointing. He's better in person than I thought he would be.


I've customized Riddler a bit, giving him Bruce Wayne's hair and a custom staff, and now he looks better. I just wish I could do something about those muscles, without buying the old torso.

The Build

I don't buy sets for the build, but this one was pretty interesting. There was a good intergration of large and small parts, on the funhouse at least. The batcycle was very average and I remember flipping through the instruction pages building it better than actually putting pieces on it. If I remember, the build lasted just under an hour. Not much else to say really.

The Completed Model

It was longer than I thought it would be, and slightly taller. The different colors surprisingly work well together, even though the colorschemes of all three villains are used and you'd think they'd clash. Red/green, yellow/purple, and black/white are all opposites. Somehow, it manages to look good. I don't know how, but I think it may be the brown.

The stickers went on okay, except for the ones on Joker's splitting door; it's impossible to get those to match up. The really should of been printed.

The batcycle has some nice ideas, like the wheel armor and the tail fins, but doesn't look good. I tend to forget that it was included though and still think that the price was worth it. I scrapped it for the pieces about a week later.

Summary

This review is overdue, I know. I took two hours to write it a few weeks ago, then thanks to glitches, it was erased. I would recommend this set easily; I think that it's the best of the line. In fact, since this is my last review, I'm going to list the sets from what are in my opinion the best to the worst (and remember, I own them all).

6857 The Dynamic Duo Funhouse Escape
6860 The Batcave
6862 Superman vs. Power Armour Lex
6864 Batmobile and the Two-Face Chase
6858 Catwoman Catcycle City Chase
6863 Batwing Battle Over Gotham City

I wouldn't call any of them bad (except for the last one, maybe), but this is just how I feel they are in comparison to each other.

I've enjoyed getting a second chance at Batman with this theme, and a campy approach too (I've mentioned I actually like Adam West, right?) and they added Superman and Wonder Woman to the line-up, even though I'm not a fan of them I'm happy to have them. I look forward to this theme coming together in LEGO Batman 2: DC Super Heroes, so long as it doesn't focus on Superman too much and doesn't forget Batgirl, Nightwing and all of the wonderful villains that were in the first game that never made it to sets.



And, I leave you on this note for the last of my Super Heroes reviews (for the first wave at least). Hope to see you soon; Same Bat-time, same Bat-channel.

For the full review, including pictures, Adam West clips, bonus photos, and more, see here ---> http://lego.wikia.com/wiki/Review:6857_The_Dynamic_Duo_Funhouse_Escape/Berrybrick

I bought this set, and I must say it's one of the best sets I've bought in the last few years! I'm going to review the set in 4 categories: Minifigs, Vehicle(s), The Funhouse, and Playability.

Minifigs:

1. Batman: A very cool minifigure. I like the blue and gray from the old comics and the 60s show. His cape is very stylized, and there's a lot of detail on him, including his Utility Belt and six-pack.

2. Robin: Again, very cool minifigure. He seems more tougher in black and red than in his usual "rainbow" of green, red, and yellow. His scared face is perfect for when he's hanging upside-down over a vat of acid.

3. The Joker: Better looking than the first incarnation! He looks really sinister and crazed. I prefer the new hair than the old "Vampire" one. His purple suit has a lot of detail, including the squirt flower.

4. The Riddler: Again, better than the first. I really like the bowler hat, and the crowbar works really well as his "?" cane. His torso shows a six-pack, although he was never buff in the comics, as far as I know.

5. Harley Quinn: Once again, better than the first. Her outfit really works, with the whole red and black pattern. I do wish she had a weapon, though. It would've been cool if she had her big hammer.

Vehicles:

1. Batcycle: Kind of cool, but prefer the Batcave's Batcycle better.

2. Harley's Cart: Cute, moves really well on the track.

The Funhouse: Really cool. It makes up for what the old Batman theme lacked: a hideout for the villains. I love all the traps, which are: the giant hammer, moving floor, and trap door. The Riddler's little stand (maybe like one of those question-answering things), is cute too. The crane works really good, too.

Playability: Lots of playability, made up of the crane, the cart and track, the trap door, the opening Joker door, the Batcycle, the moving floor, and the giant hammer.

Minifigs: 10/10

Vehicles: 9/10

The Funhouse: 10/10

Playability: 10/10

Buy this set!