Review: 71812 Kai's Ninja Climber Mech
Posted by CapnRex101,
71812 Kai's Ninja Climber Mech certainly shares similarities with other NINJAGO mechs, but this model's slender proportions and four arms are distinctive. Additionally, the claws on the upper climbing arms look impressive and form part of some interesting functionality.
However, I wonder whether this apparent focus on function has gone too far, given the exposed Technic elements on those extra arms. The visible string seems odd too, although I think the silhouette of the mech looks superb and its articulation is surprisingly effective, including an ingenious ankle mechanism.
Summary
71812 Kai's Ninja Climber Mech, 623 pieces.
£59.99 / $69.99 / €69.99 | 9.6p/11.2c/11.2c per piece.
Buy at LEGO.com »
Kai's Ninja Climber Mech is highly articulated and looks impressive too, on the whole
- Remarkably versatile articulation
- Interesting mech design
- Clever hook function
- Very tactile and fun for play
- Upper arms look unfinished
- Needed another villain
The set was provided for review by LEGO. All opinions expressed are those of the author.
Minifigures
As normal, a new wave of NINJAGO sets brings new versions of the ninja, dressed in climbing gear on this occasion. Climber Kai and Climber Jay each wear a new dual-moulded shoulder armour piece, with intricate golden details on their shoulders. These elements pair well with the hoods introduced last year, which still lack texture when viewed from the front, in my opinion.
Nevertheless, the complete head wrap assembly looks excellent and the torsos are beautifully detailed as well. Ropes with attached carabiners are wrapped around them both, befitting their climbing specialisation for this season. Also, the heroes are equipped with new golden climbing hook accessories, pictured below, plus their usual katana.
Wyldfyre accompanies the ninja and includes a new hair element, replacing her dual-moulded hairstyle borrowed from Monkie Kid last year. The new piece looks good, but I wish the metallic gold crescent from the prior minifigure had remained. The fiery decoration on her torso and legs looks splendid though, with the Ninjargon letters 'WF' on the back. Unfortunately, this character does retain the same head, displaying only one expression.
There is only one villain provided, so Jordana appears to be heavily outmatched, despite her attached wings. This assembly is fairly simple, but its colour scheme matches other Wolf Clan equipment and I like the curved swords mounted on each wing, again corresponding with other sets focused on the Wolf Clan.
Jordana herself remains unchanged from her appearance in 71808 Kai's Elemental Fire Mech, other than a trans-clear neck bracket replacing her fur collar from the earlier set. The dark blue armour looks great and complements the purple design across Jordana's torso and legs, which features the words 'Wolf Moon' in Ninjargon, beneath the Wolf Clan's crescent-shaped sigil.
As a former resident of Imperium, Jordana's face is adorned with some silver circuitry and two expressions, both of which appear suitably evil. I also like the hair element, making its debut in dark red, even though it varies slightly from Jordana's hair in the animated series. Moreover, the dual-moulded sword looks fantastic, combining pearl dark grey and trans-red plastics.
The Completed Model
The titular mech is unlike anything seen in NINJAGO before. Although the body shape bears a resemblance to 71785 Jay's Titan Mech, the spindly limbs are distinctive and certainly give this model a unique character. Of course, the extra arms are also helpful in this regard, recalling the legs of a spider, which would be appropriate on a mech designed for climbing.
However, the spindly limbs lack elbow or knee joints, so I was concerned this would be another mech with poor articulation. In fact, an incredible ankle design essentially removes the need for functional knees on this occasion, as dynamic and stable poses are easy. In addition, the wrists on the lower arms are highly articulated and even the upper arms seem reasonable, but proper elbows would have been ideal.
The head is also articulated on a ball joint. Kai cannot turn his head though and I think it looks odd when the mech's head is angled while its pilot continues to face forwards. Additionally, the head is smaller than I would prefer and does not stand out when viewed from a distance, which is a shame because a closer look reveals plenty of detail.
As well as a ball joint, the head is connected on a click hinge, so it can be raised to access the minifigure placed underneath. Kai slots perfectly inside the cockpit and the surrounding armour looks splendid, featuring some stickered flames and flame yellowish orange highlights. I like the interesting body shape too, with particularly thick armour directly in front of the minifigure.
Furthermore, I love the shape of the upper arms and their dark red colour, which matches Kai's shoulder armour. The 4x4 curved bricks with ridges look perfect and the flame yellowish orange accents, repeated from the torso, are attractive as well. The static elbows could be better, but as mentioned earlier, the ball-jointed wrists provide a great range of motion.
The fingers and thumbs are also articulated, wrapping around the mech's gold-bladed swords. These weapons are actually attached to the hands with Technic pins and they look marvellous, using katana for ornamental details, or maybe sword breakers. Sadly, there is nowhere to store the blades, but at least adding connection points would be a simple modification.
Unlike the comprehensive detail on the main arms, the additional limbs for climbing are rather lacking in detail. There are no unsightly colours, but the exposed Technic beams are awkward and I find the arms' asymmetry strange because there is no obvious reason for the differences. The left arm includes a static hook, while the right arm is bulkier and its hook can extend.
When stowed against the arm, this hook is attached to a Technic axle, with the string hanging underneath. I would understand needing the string to hang loosely for a function to launch the hook, but no launcher is included, so there should have been a proper method for wrapping up the string. Similarly, there was certainly an opportunity for additional detail around the Technic beams on each arm.
The arm may look somewhat unfinished, but its function is outstanding. The full weight of the mech is comfortably supported by the hook and the string, so you can suspend this model on display or hanging from a tree as shown here! That being the case, I am unsure why the other arm lacks this function, as both hooks being attached to strings would allow swinging poses.
This function is made simpler by the weight of the mech, which is surprisingly light, given its height of 23cm, excluding the upper arms. The central section of the body is therefore rather thin, comprising various Technic pieces. Although the blue Technic pins are clearly not ideal, I think the Technic spine works brilliantly, resembling an actuator of some kind.
I find the exposed Technic elements on the legs successful for the same reason. The contrast between the bulky thighs and the slender lower legs looks great and I like the stickered details across the legs and feet. Additionally, the shape of the feet is impressive and they are relatively substantial for a mech of this size, ensuring complete stability.
Even more importantly, the ankle articulation is exceptional. The feet are attached using large ball joints and further reinforced by Technic rams on the back, providing ample motion forward and back, without affecting their movement to either side. A similar building technique was used in several BIONICLE sets, such as 8699 Takanuva, so I am glad to encounter this mechanism again.
Overall
Although none of its functions are especially complicated or creative, few mechs can rival the sheer fun of 71812 Kai's Ninja Climber Mech. The hook supporting the mech is enjoyable and the versatile articulation also came as a nice surprise, thanks in particular to the dynamic ankle joints. Whether hanging from its hook or standing, stability is a defining feature of this mech.
Unfortunately, certain areas of the model are noticeably lacking in detail, while the decision to include asymmetrical upper arms is confusing when the hook with the string could easily have been repeated. Also, the presence of only one villain is disappointing, given the price of £59.99, $69.99 or €69.99 and the obvious imbalance for play. Nevertheless, this is an unusual and fun addition to the range of NINJAGO mechs, offering fair value.
94 likes
28 comments on this article
awesome set review thanks
Seriously though, remove the fourth arm and it looks almost exactly like the Crimson Typhoon from Pacific Rim.
Digitigrade legs with late-2000's Bionicle style piston support? This might be the first Ninjago mech to seriously tempt me.
I was looking forward to this. Nice review as always.
Nice review!
I agree that this would be nicer if both hooks were extendable, instead of just one. Still, overall I think it's a cool and creative mech design.
Love the helmet design and leg shape, but don't see this being on the same level as Zane's Titan Mech or Jay's Titan Mech. Hope we get something similar to those soon.
@Rabrickzel said:
""technique was used in several BIONICLE sets, "
Bionicle return confirmed true if big "
Those rumours were confirmed to be faked sadly. We will have to continue with the brick built figures.
Look out! It's the Ninjago version of General Grievous!
@Maxbricks14 said:
"Look out! It's the Ninjago version of General Grievous!"
I now have the urge to but this and give him four swords, one for each hand.
When i pick this up, i will probably try to mod this into Crimson Typhoon from Pacific Rim.
It's like a LEGO Mech version of the Khorne Ghorgon from warhammer 3
@CapnRex101
Robes with attached carabiners are wrapped around them both, befitting
Robes or Ropes?
I prefer ropes…
I'm not a fan of mechs, but this one looks special. I would love to see a small army of these in different recolors
@CapnRex101 the Ninjago villains almost always seem to be at a disadvantage in the sets. Even when they equal or surpass the number of heroes in the same set, the heroes always seem to have a gigantic vehicle or creature on their side. Long gone are the days when the villains got their own fleet of vehicles and/or creatures to rival those of the Ninja.
This is what I imagine a Bionicle G3 or an Exo-force remake would be. I need this set. The piston technique was last used in 2283 Witch Doctor, one of my favorite CCBS figures too.
@SearchlightRG said:
" @CapnRex101 the Ninjago villains almost always seem to be at a disadvantage in the sets. Even when they equal or surpass the number of heroes in the same set, the heroes always seem to have a gigantic vehicle or creature on their side. Long gone are the days when the villains got their own fleet of vehicles and/or creatures to rival those of the Ninja."
So true, 71772 : The Crystal King seems to be one the last, literally 3-4 minifigs + big monster vs just Lloyd.
I do like this mech, and I enjoy the Ninjago mechs in general ...
But Kai already has a mech, in this very line. I thought they were pushing their luck by giving Sora a second mech within six months of the first one, but giving Kai two of the damn things, in the same line?
Something about it is just rubbing me the wrong way.
C'mon guys.
That new ninja armor easily ranks as one of the best in the series. Easily.
@AverageChimaEnjoyer said:
"Seriously though, remove the fourth arm and it looks almost exactly like the Crimson Typhoon from Pacific Rim. "
Maybe that's the reason for the asymmetry?
I appreciate the review. And the piece count is there. But I don't see a $70 set. Maybe if I see one built in person...
@nashikens said:
"I appreciate the review. And the piece count is there. But I don't see a $70 set. Maybe if I see one built in person..."
No doubt. NJ used to be the bargain theme. No longer. I'll grab this if it hits 50%.
@TeriXeri said:
" @SearchlightRG said:
" @CapnRex101 the Ninjago villains almost always seem to be at a disadvantage in the sets. Even when they equal or surpass the number of heroes in the same set, the heroes always seem to have a gigantic vehicle or creature on their side. Long gone are the days when the villains got their own fleet of vehicles and/or creatures to rival those of the Ninja."
So true, 71772 : The Crystal King seems to be one the last, literally 3-4 minifigs + big monster vs just Lloyd."
That’s about the standard these days: the villains get one or two decent builds a wave, compared to half a dozen or so for the Ninja. The villains end up with hoverboards.
@Graw said:
"Love the helmet design and leg shape, but don't see this being on the same level as Zane's Titan Mech or Jay's Titan Mech. Hope we get something similar to those soon."
There's a rumoured Cole Titan Mech coming in summer, and it seems to be the biggest mech so far!
@SpaceNinjaWarrior said:
" @Graw said:
"Love the helmet design and leg shape, but don't see this being on the same level as Zane's Titan Mech or Jay's Titan Mech. Hope we get something similar to those soon."
There's a rumoured Cole Titan Mech coming in summer, and it seems to be the biggest mech so far!"
I’m so excited for it. Cole is my favorite ninja. Hopefully it has the piston elements too. Supposedly it has the dune blades in pearl gold too!
Tiny head is totally an EVA reference
@ThoughtLash said:
"Tiny head is totally an EVA reference"
"Get in the mech, Kai."
Wyldfire Should be a NinjaGo Ninja just like Arin and Sora!
I like the concept of the mech but it doesn't look too appealing to me personally. I understand why it looks so light and spindly to accommodate all the functions, and I also think those functions are quite neat and certainly a refreshing type of set from Ninjago.
But $119 AUD at RRP seems expensive, and even at $89 at Kmart is still a bit too much. Especially because Climber Jay is the only exclusive minifigure, and just like his Dragons Rising Season 1 suit, it doesn't look like he'll be made canon anytime soon. I've got the 4+ set with Kai and Wyldfyre anyway, and I plan to pick up 71808 Kai's Elemental Fire Mech which will have Jordana.
Also, the Jordana minifigure's hair piece actually matches her new hair style from the show exactly! You will notice that her hair has been changed on her new Wolf Clan outfit, as shown in the trailers.