Ladies and gentlemen, I’m sure by the time you read this article, some of the lucky ones among you will have gotten their hands on these new lovely LEGO DC CMF characters already. They’ve been circling the social media for some time now, and I, like many others, am looking forward to getting a few myself. Today, I’d like to share my first impressions and thoughts on them.
Before I start, though, I’d like to say that even though I have been a huge fan of Batman since I was a child, my knowledge of some of these characters are very little. I mean, think about it. Both Marvel and DC seems to have been creating an endless amount of characters. How is it possible to keep track of them all? Combine that with my dark ages for American comics (they were replaced by Italian comics for a while), and I’m ashamed to say that I didn’t even know Green Arrow was DC’s before I started watching the series.
Thankfully, I’m a quick study. Arrow, Flash, Supergirl and then Legends of Tomorrow quickly pulled me to the DC Universe once again. I started watching animations, reading more comics, and paying more attention to the characters. Even with that, I’m still a stranger to some of the minifigures in the LEGO DC CMF series. So I’ll try to approach this article from a more AFOL point of view, rather than a DC fan point of view.
Batman and Bat-Mite
And just like that, my AFOL point of view goes down the drain. My apologies, but Batman will always be my first and all time favorite. Besides, I believe this is Batman as he first appeared in Detective Comics, so it’s nice to finally have him. The shape of the cowl, the bat-logo, even the “life line” are great references to the first ever Batman issue. I’m not sure why his hands are lavender, though. Any insight on that would be much appreciated.
As for Bat-Mite… I first learned of his existence in LEGO Batman 3: Beyond Gotham. I immediately fell in love with his idiotic appearance, and have been wanting to get one ever since I’ve seen the custom versions appear here and there. Despite my lack of knowledge, he seems to be almost as old as Batman himself. He first appeared in 1959, and continued to be a part of Batman’s adventures for five years. After that, he was mostly removed from the comics, but continued to appear from time to time. Here, he’s holding an issue of Detective Comics where Batman first appeared.
I think it’s great to have these two characters as homage to the first Batman comics, and for me, they are definitely at the top of my must-get list.
Bumblebee and Cheetah
Okay, now that we got the bats out of the way, I can go back to being an AFOL. My next two favorites of the upcoming LEGO DC CMF series are Bumblebee and Cheetah. Now, I’ve only seen Cheetah from a few animations, and that’s how I know she’s one of the bad ones. Bumblebee? Well, I didn’t know she existed until LEGO came up with DC Super Hero Girls. I thought she looked cool, but I never bothered to check out who she is, or what her powers are. However, looking at the images, I really like her hairpiece. LEGO has been making similar hairpieces this year, if you think about the nice curly haired family at the People Pack Fun Fair set. If they have another daughter, I think this hair piece will go nicely with her. The overall look is appealing as well, at least to me.
When I look at Cheetah, I don’t see the version I know from the animations. This one seems to be wearing a costume, rather than being a half-human half-cheetah creature like her previous minifigure. However, the brand new moulded headpiece she has seems like a doorway to more animal costumed minifigures for the non-licensed CMF series.
Huntress and Stargirl
My knowledge of these two ladies comes directly from the TV series Arrow and Legends of Tomorrow, although I did come across Huntress in a few Batman comics as well. A quick image search of her shows me that her minifigure version is quite accurate, not to mention very stylish. As far as I know, it’s the first time we see her hair piece in black. It has been used in She-Hulk, Wonder Woman, Ms. Marvel and Hermione before, but all in different colors. If I were to make one change, I would combine the hair with a mask, similar to the one Batwoman has, but a printed mask and a separate hair piece does seem better for re-using the parts, so it seems reasonable.
Like I mentioned before, I only know Stargirl from Legends of Tomorrow. I’m not extremely excited to have her as a DC fan, and not even as an AFOL, either. However, her appearance resembles the character nicely. My favorite part is her smile, which looks like an exact replica of her smile in the comics. As for the braces… well, her non-hero self must have them, otherwise LEGO wouldn’t have included that detail. Her staff looks great, too, and as far as I know, it’s a brand new part.
Her hair piece isn’t anything new, and while she appears to have mostly straight hair in the comics, it appears LEGO chose to reflect her on-screen appearance, both from Legends of Tomorrow and her own upcoming TV series.
Green Lantern and Sinestro
I’m probably one of the few people who liked the 2011 movie Green Lantern. I mean, even DC makes fun of it in Teen Titans Go to the Movies: “There was a Green Lantern movie… but we don’t talk about that.” For me, it was an introduction to the character, so even though I know there are other members, I immediately think of Hal Jordan when someone says Green Lantern. From comics and animations, I’m also familiar with Jessica Cruz, Guy Gardner and John Stewart, but it’s the first time I’m hearing of Simon Baz.
After a quick look at the images from comics, I can say the minifigure is a great representation of the character. The printing of his uniform and mask is quite accurate. The lantern and the power ring are excellent, and I think it’s the first time we’re getting a power ring in physical form. These two accessories can easily be used with the previous Green Lanterns LEGO has released.
There has been a Sinestro before, in 76025 Green Lantern vs. Sinestro. This one, however, seems to be reflecting an older version of Sinestro when he used to wear a blue and black outfit, rather than a yellow one. Personally, I prefer yellow. And while his skin color is spot on, I would have expected LEGO to make a few improvements on his general appearance, like combining Talos’ head piece with a hair mould to reflect the character better.
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Like Simon Baz, Sinestro comes with his own lantern and power ring. I have a feeling we’ll be seeing other lantern corps members in the future.
Aquaman and the Flash
Both Aquaman and the Flash had various minifigures of them before the LEGO DC CMF series. We have a short, medium and long blond haired version of Aquaman from the comics, as well as a dark brown haired one from the movie. As for the Flash, we have one with yellow boots, several without them, and one from the Justice League movie. We even have a mini-doll version of him.
The one here, though, seems to be representing a whole different Flash: Jay Garrick. And I have to admit, it’s an excellent representation. From his helmet with the wings to the printing of his torso and legs, everything is spot on. In my opinion, he reflects both the comics version and the Jay Garrick from the Flash TV series really well. Considering he was the original Flash to begin with, I think it’s a nice touch LEGO decided to recreate him in minifigure form.
Aquaman seems like a nod to the one from the comics some 25 years ago, where he loses his hand and replaces it with a harpoon. Both the harpoon hand and the armor print on the right side of his chest (which continues on his arm with a metallic colored arm part) look great. His legs have green scales printed and they continue on both side of the legs, giving him even more detail.
He has a fish companion, and according to the Bricklink database, it’s the first time we’re getting the fish in this color.
While I prefer the medium-length haired Aquaman and the one played by Jason Momoa in minifigure form (I mean come on, who can resist that guy?!), I really like the details on this one. I think he will be a great addition to any DC Comics fan’s collection.
Metamorpho and Mr. Miracle
I remember seeing Metamorpho briefly in an animation before, so he wasn’t a total stranger to me. Mr. Miracle, on the other hand, was. A quick search on both characters showed how well they’re represented in minifigure form, both in terms of appearance and accessories.
Apparently, Mr. Miracle‘s best known power is to get out of impossible situations. In other words, he’s an escape artist. Therefore it seems fitting that he comes with handcuffs and a chain. The detailed print on his torso and legs, along with his dual moulded arms and legs make him a fantastic minifigure. Even if you’re not familiar with the character, he’s a good addition to any collection. I especially like his smile, showing his optimistic side even though he grew up on Apokolips.
While Metamorpho appears to be the only minifigure without any accessories, his appearance is probably the most colorful of all – quite literally. His torso is split into two, orange and magenta, which also continues on his arms. He has a big-fig fist to reflect his elastic powers. His legs, like his torso, are half made of mud (light brown) and half gas (trans clear). Since he can transform into solid, liquid, gas or plasma state of any material, this seems fitting (not to mention results in having a very interesting minifigure). He has a white head with an “I can do anything” smile.
Joker and Cyborg
Joker is probably the only minifigure in this series with so many different variations of him – apart from Batman, of course. We have Joker from the classic TV series, Tim Burton’s Joker, Heath Ledger’s Joker, the LEGO Batman Movie Joker, along with a few others. Many of them have different torso prints and head/hair pieces, but the color scala stays mostly between purple and green.
This one, however, uses a lime green hair piece that hasn’t been seen on a Joker minifigure before. He wears a white suit with a lavender shirt inside. He looks very much like the Joker from Frank Miller’s The Dark Knight Returns. Brickset’s review says there is no alternative face print on the back, which, when it comes to Joker, really is disappointing. He has a candy floss and a playing card as an accessory, and the print on the playing card is a nice touch, too.
Cyborg seems to have gone under a huge makeover. His helmet is a different mould than all of his previous three minifigures, and his outfit seems to be a reference to the earlier comics, when his armor wasn’t completely covering his body. He comes with a purple chain as an accessory, which is also a reference to his first appearance in Tales of the New Teen Titans.
Superman and Wonder Woman
I have to say these two are among my least favorite ones in the LEGO DC CMF series. I mean, okay, I admit that there are subtle changes in Superman‘s design, but at first glance, he looks very similar to the Superman minifigures before him. And while Wonder Woman‘s outfit seems to be representing her earlier appearances, using the same tiara-hair combination from previous minifigures disturbs that feeling.
As for accessories, Wonder Woman has the same lasso of truth as the previous ones. Superman’s accessory is an issue of Daily Planet, and honestly, it seems more appealing to me than the minifigure itself.
Final Thoughts
Overall, I think the series as a whole is pretty good – for DC fans. I appreciate how they made minifigures of characters that otherwise wouldn’t appear in sets, and how they mostly stuck to the first appearances of some of the better known characters. I like the accessories included with almost every character, though if it wasn’t for the lanterns, I’d probably say that LEGO didn’t care much to create unique ones. Also, the ratio of 13 heroes to 3 villains does seem a bit unfair. I may not be a huge fan of villains, but they do deserve a fighting chance at least, right?
So, what are your first impressions on the LEGO DC CMF series? Are you getting the whole set? Or just a select few? Let me know in the comments!
Images of LEGO DC CMF series are taken from Brickset. Other minifigure images are taken from Bricklink. The rest is taken from Google 🙂
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