Summary

IMHO one of the most intriguing sets to appear in the Lego Movie 2 range was Metalbeard's Sea Cow. I like the ridiculousness of the Metalbeard character, and this trike seemed to be just as crazy. The build is easy and fairly quick. There are no stickers. Overall I like the design, which seems to be inspired by Metalbeard's Sea Cow itself - with a high forecastle and stern. I It is mostly well finished, few if any off-colour pieces are visible (thankfully). The minifigures/characters are nice. I like the shark with the eye-patch.

Overall this is a fun set, with, all things considered a barely acceptable price. The price is high, but then again, there are quite a few big and unique pieces (Benny, angry Sweet Mayhem, the wheels, the shark).

Build experience

The build is fairly quick and easy. No stickers, no tricky or difficult sub-assemblies. It all comes together quickly, in about 60 minutes. The build sequence is logical. There are quite a few off-colour pieces used early on in the construction, but those are thankfully covered up from most sides. There is quite a bit of stud-on-side construction for the sides of the trike. I did not come across many special pieces: the wheels are nice, the guns as well.

The recommended age is 7+. I did not see anything that makes me think that younger children would not be able to build the set. There one potential issue I see is the many small pieces used in the construction. There are quite a few spare pieces, and one of the most interesting ones is a spare/second blaster for Sweet Mayhem

The minifigures

There are two official minifigures in this set: Angry Sweet Mayhem and Apocalypse Benny. Both of them are actually unique to this set.

Apocalypse Benny has a damaged classic spaceman torso, and a helmet with a damaged (and fixed) chin strap. He has a nice cyborg right arm, a welding apparatus carried on the back, and a welding visor attached to the helmet. He has two faces, a happy face and a scared/sad face. They are well done.

Sweet Mayhem itself is found in other sets, but angry Sweet Mayhem is not. Personally I am not a fan of the Sweet Mayhem style of minifigures, but I have to say, this one is well done. She The wings are nice, the print is excellent. An added bonus is the option to have her wear a normal hair cut rather than a helmet.

The little star is not listed as a minifigure, but is a nice character to add. If nothing else, it could become a decorative piece in another MOC.

The build

The trike seems to be inspired by something steam-punk, motor gang and Metalbeard's Sea Cow mixed together. The whole shape of of the main body resembles that of an old galleon - the engine depicting the high forecastle, and Metalbeard's body corresponds to the stern of the ship. The engine design is very good and convincing. I like Metalbeard's arms: the dual cannon and the shark-shooter. The shark-to-be-shot-with-metal-eye-patch is a highlight of the set. The crow's nest is nice, and pretty much the only place where a minifigure can be put. =

The weakest part of the build is the front fork. It definitely looks nice, but there is quite a bit if flex in them. There is also plenty of room for torque, so in theory rough play might end up deforming the Technic beams.

Play vs Display

Despite the somewhat week fork, the trike seems great to ride around. The three shooters work well, though the ammo for the guns - once shot - might be hard to find. The trike can be handled easily by kids. There are some small details attached but by and large they seem to not come off too easily.

The Heavy Metal Motor Trike is also quite a nice display piece. It is well finished enough, few truly ugly elements are visible. It would work well as a display piece.

The verdict

MetalBeard's Heavy Metal Motor Trike is a set the looks of which you either like or dislike. I liked the build, and the result is a suitably crazy vehicle. I also like the result. The minifigure characters are good and fun. The biggest issue is its RRP. It is quite high, and overall the set is not extremely big. Overall, I think it a nice set, but see if you can get it at a discount.