Review: 76315 Iron Man's Laboratory: Hall of Armour
Posted by CapnRex101,
LEGO revisits the Hall of Armour quite regularly, in five sets at minifigure-scale. These can prove repetitive, although they often contain desirable minifigures. The latest of these sets, 76315 Iron Man's Laboratory: Hall of Armour, also provides some new figures.
Notable among them are the Iron Patriot armour and Aldrich Killian, alongside an improved version of the Igor suit, each inspired by Iron Man 3. There are certainly problems to discuss though, with the Iron Man minifigures and the price chief among them.
Summary
76315 Iron Man's Laboratory: Hall of Armor, 384 pieces.
£49.99 / $54.99 / €54.99 | 13.0p/14.3c/14.3c per piece.
Buy at LEGO.com »
The new Hall of Armour is far too expensive, despite a couple of desirable figures
- Some appealing minifigures
- Satisfying model of Igor
- Clever nano tech scanner
- Iron Man MK42 was essential
- Abundant sticker use
- Overpriced, given the various compromises
The set was provided for review by LEGO. All opinions expressed are those of the author.
Minifigures
Iron Man MK6 debuted towards the end of Iron Man 2, returned in The Avengers and was then destroyed in Iron Man 3. The same figure appears in 76313 MARVEL Logo and something new would have been preferable, although the MK6 certainly works among the suits on display in the Hall of Armour. Moreover, the distinctive triangular arc reactor looks great, as expected.
The natural companion for the MK6 armour would have been the MK42, which features heavily in Iron Man 3 and would offer a wonderful contrast, given its predominantly gold colour. Instead we receive Iron Man MK43 from Avengers: Age of Ultron. I could excuse this in a 4+ set, where any version of Iron Man may suffice, but re-using a design from last year is very disappointing.
Having said that, this minifigure is impressively detailed and I like the helmets on both figures, each with opening faceplates. Tony's usual double-sided head is used underneath the MK43's helmet, while the MK6 armour includes a trans-light blue head for storage.
Despite its eye-catching design and importance in Iron Man 3, the Iron Patriot MK1 has only appeared once before, in 30168 Gun Mounting System from 2013. I am very surprised LEGO has taken so long to revisit the Iron Patriot armour, although this minifigure was certainly worth waiting for and is among my favourites of the year so far!
The original version was superb for its day, but this minifigure is much more detailed and I love how blue accents has been added to give an impression of reflective metal. The metallic silver details are appealing too, particularly across the helmet, which is also decorated with accurate seams to match the onscreen armour.
Printed arms would have been perfect, but my greater issue is with the back-mounted machine gun. The modern stud shooter is rather bulky, as is the 1x1x2/3 rounded brick with stud used to attach the weapon. Also, I prefer Rhodey's previous head, which featured a heads-up display on one side, to the single-sided smiling head supplied since 2022. However, this is an outstanding minifigure overall.
Pepper Potts seems a bit dull by comparison, though this minifigure does swap her usual dark orange hair element for an exclusive reddish orange piece. This colour is certainly vibrant, but I think it works for Pepper and her double-sided head looks good. Similarly, her suit is reasonably detailed, but I wish the character's white garb from Iron Man 3 had been revisited.
Speaking of revisiting characters from Iron Man 3, Aldrich Killian was in desperate need of an update! The glow-in-the-dark figure from 76006 Iron Man: Extremis Sea Port Battle was unique, but not an effective representation of the villain. This iteration is a great improvement, capturing Killian's dragon tattoos and an orange glow from his Extremis-imbued body.
I was hoping for a double-sided head to match, potentially featuring a fire-breathing face on the reverse. Instead, the designer has selected a head originally created for Han Solo. The generic smile looks fine, but the mildly annoyed expression on the other side is not at all appropriate for Aldrich Killian.
Aldrich lacks traditional accessories, but a pair of flames are provided to depict his fire abilities. More importantly, these finally give DUM-E cause to use his ubiquitous fire extinguisher! Many versions of DUM-E have been released and this one is among the best, including 1x3 rounded plates for tracks and an articulated arm to grip the extinguisher.
The Completed Model
Tony Stark develops a variety of highly specialised suits following the events of The Avengers and the MK38 armour, dubbed Igor, is probably the most distinctive. Designed for heavy lifting, this armour is substantially bigger than others, albeit not as overwhelmingly huge as this LEGO rendition suggests, given its height of 9cm.
I like the figure's bulky proportions, although the onscreen armour is a bit closer to a standard humanoid shape, without such chunky shoulders. I was concerned the bulky limbs may cause articulation problems, but that is not the case and you can create dynamic poses without much trouble. The adjustable fingers and thumbs are surprisingly useful for posing.
Igor previously appeared in 76125 Iron Man Hall of Armour, released back in 2019. There are many differences between the two designs, most evidently around the head, which employs a printed 2x2 curved slope on this occasion. I appreciate what the original design was seeking to do, using a 1x2 rounded piece with lip for the chin, but a simple curved slope looks neater.
You may have spotted a pair of minifigure hands poking out of Igor's sides. Ideally, these would be concealed, of course, but it would be difficult to hide them without making the torso too large and accommodating Iron Man inside was correctly deemed paramount. There are no controls or other details inside, but the minifigure fits quite well.
I like the pearl silver 1x2 ingots behind the head, corresponding with details of the armour from Iron Man 3. Matching ingots are mounted on the forearms as well, while the cylindrical features on the elbows also reflect the onscreen armour. The designer clearly paid close attention to little details like these, which is always appreciated.
The arc reactor on the chest and the hazard stripes on the arms and legs use stickers, which bothers me because I think figures likely to be handled, like Igor, should feature more durable printed parts. Nonetheless, the hazard stripes look good and I like the chunky feet as well.
Since the release of 76125 Iron Man Hall of Armour, all versions of this location have followed broadly the same format for modules to display the suits. Each module is four studs wide, with clips to link them together and present them in a nice curve. 76216 Iron Man Armoury changed the design somewhat and these are similar, but still not wholly consistent because the railings around the top have been updated.
I am not sure why the designers cannot settle on a single version, but at least any differences are subtle. The trans-light blue shutter elements flanking each display case look excellent and you can stand a minifigure on the 2x2 bricks in front, as shown below.
As ever, the stickered panels behind the display cases are beautifully detailed and correspond with actual minifigures. On the left is the MK43 case, with the MK6 in the middle and the MK46 on the right. The latter originates from Captain America: Civil War and the minifigure is available in 76314 Captain America: Civil War Action Battle.
A scanning device is supplied as well, seemingly used the in development of Tony's later nano tech armours, based on the stickered panel. This assembly seems rather strange, but includes an unusual function, as sliding the sideways-mounted 1x2x3 wall panel up and down makes the arc reactor on the banner piece behind appear to pulsate!
This effect works amazingly well, as the lines on the sticker in front cross those behind, which causes concentric rings to appear. I am sure the illusion has a specific name and can imagine this technique being used elsewhere, resembling a functional computer screen.
While the nano tech scanner is completely unique, the platform to assembly Tony's armour is found on most recreations of his laboratory. This example is relatively basic, but I like how the steps are designed and the trans-light blue highlights. 1x2 half circle jumper plates look superb in the middle, giving Iron Man somewhere to stand securely.
Additionally, the robotic arms are fully articulated, with enough joints for pretty much any pose you choose. Their yellow and black colours match the movies and DUM-E, so there is a lovely sense of consistency across Stark technology.
Overall
It is difficult to get excited about another version of the Hall of Armour, given how consistently these sets have been produced lately. However, I like many components of 76315 Iron Man's Laboratory: Hall of Armour, such as the Igor model, the nano tech scanner and particularly the improved Iron Patriot minifigure.
Unfortunately, there are also some obvious compromises and the other minifigures suffer as a result. Aldrich Killian and Pepper Potts are good, but could be better, while the presence of the MK43 armour is very disappointing. These problems are only heightened by the price of £49.99, $54.99 or €54.99, which is far too expensive for a set with so many avoidable issues.
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28 comments on this article
I miss inexplicably glow in the dark Aldrich Killian.
I hate the new era of "no, really, wait for clearance."
I just bought the Red Hulk CA4 set at 20% off, and even that felt painfully high.
The April Fools joke is that there’s another Hall of Armor set, right?
Ah yes, Pepper Potts, the butler. Such a horrible outfit for her. She wears a multitude of outfits, dresses, etc during any of the movies. Something different would have been much appreciated. Especially for another retread version of this set.
At this point just settle on a design and make a consistent armor collection to add onto over time, either as singles or three-packs. "Build your own Hall of Armors." The shrinkflation of these sets and their inconsistent designs are getting absurd. The original set six years ago was triple the size for only $5 more - yeah, that meant most of the areas were empty, but it actually gave a proper presence as a room.
I maintain that IRON MAN 3 is one of the most underrated Marvel movies. I actually really liked the twist on the Mandarin and the early meta commentary on superhero movie villains being so often just a pastiche of weird mannerisms and generic scary attributes. Killian is a parasite, so OF COURSE he's going to culturally co-opt his entire supervillain persona from someone more authentic. Having Killian's thugs be American veterans was a very risky choice (the kind not seen in toothless Marvel films of the now), and all of the action scenes with Tony out of the suit were gritty and grounded.
Anyways, rant over. THIS SET IS TOO EXPENSIVE and also looks like a downgrade from past halls of armor. Seems Marvel LEGO is as warmed-over as the films these days...
This is pretty lazy. I like the decision to focus it on Iron Man 3, which we haven't seen much of since the original sets in 2013, but then you give us two suits that didn't even appear in that movie, including one that wasn't even invented at the time of that movie, and a recycled Pepper Potts minifig. And neither of the Igor mechs have actually looked like the suit in the film.
The Iron Patriot and Killian minifigs are nice tho and I'm always game for the glass panel stickers.
April fools!
The amount of time and energyyou put into this joke is remarkable.
76008-1 : apologize
Set 76125 was better imo
Time to take this theme out back behind the shed. This is hard to look at.
ANOTHER Iron Man Hall of Armor??!! April Fool!! Oh, these BS guys are so hilarious. It'd be a lot easier to believe in minifig hair and left-handed instructions than this redundant piece of ...
Bring on the Duplo for Adults.
Uhm
"compromises were made" is certainly one way to describe this set.
The return of Iron Patriot is the only upside here and even there the lighter shade of blue is inappropriate. They just needed to modernize the print from SH0084, but no... I honestly wanna know who makes these decisions.
The "young Han Solo" head has quickly become the "Jyn Erso" head 2.0 - very lazy.
Overall, this set is very much like the weird Ahsoka TV show duel set. One minifig everybody wants (Thrawn / Iron Patriot), a few figs nobody cares about or already owns, and a small heap of bricks alongside.
Complaining about the price and stickers. This definitely isn’t an April Fools ‘joke’ post.
I'm looking forward to getting this (discounted, of course) and expanding my Hall of Armor display, as it looks like it pairs well with 76216 , and I was able to find a way to get that set to work well with the others.
I have no plans to get 76313 or the Age of Ultron sets, so the MK6 and MK43 minifigs are welcome for me, as is the Iron Patriot. I agree about Pepper, though; I'm tired of seeing that minifig pop up every once in a while. She needs a refresh. Also, that nanotech display is so cool!
It's Iron Man and Iron Patriot so, yeah, I'll eventually get this set...on sale. I agree that the price is ridiculous for what you get as it should be $35-40 range. Marvel must be upping their licensing fees.
@Alia_of_AGL said:
"At this point just settle on a design and make a consistent armor collection to add onto over time, either as singles or three-packs. "Build your own Hall of Armors." The shrinkflation of these sets and their inconsistent designs are getting absurd. The original set six years ago was triple the size for only $5 more - yeah, that meant most of the areas were empty, but it actually gave a proper presence as a room."
this only being slightly less than 76125 really puts things in to a shocking perspective. 9 sections for armour down to 3...
@Mister_Jonny said:
"I miss inexplicably glow in the dark Aldrich Killian."
Him and 2001 Snape are in that the "glow in the dark" club.
Such an original idea, Lego. I love it!
@xboxtravis7992 said:
" @Mister_Jonny said:
"I miss inexplicably glow in the dark Aldrich Killian."
Him and 2001 Snape are in that the "glow in the dark" club. "
Scarecrow, too. For Voldemort I think it was a fair choice.
They keep making these so they must be selling.
I found the overpriced $90 set from a couple years back for $59, and $42 last year.
Just have to wait it out for that Amazon discount ;)
I like to guess "how much" before clicking on the full article. This time I guessed $39.99 -- not even close.
The price better be the April fools...
@CapnRex101: I believe the term you're looking for is a Moire pattern.
https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Moir%C3%A9_pattern
@VaultDweller_197 said:
"Set 76125 was better imo"
I still kick myself for not getting that one. All of the Hall of Armor sets are on my wanted list, but if I could only have one, it'd be that one, in no small part because of the Mark I.
I wish Lego would do the Hall of Armor as a simple battlepack style. Release with 1 figure (a unique armor) with 2-3 sections (keep the design consistent). Have one section be where you place the figure and the related armor sticker and have the other section or two be extra space for tools, coffee machine, computer, storage boxes, etc. If they kept it 50-80 pieces and around $15, I could see that selling better. If they stick to MCU based, there's about 52 armors and 85 armors if they go the comic route. Even if they release one set a month like this, that's 4 to 7 years worth of pre-planned sets.
Or better yet, do a UCS-style Hall of Armor with 15 suits (you could pull at least 7-8 "re-uses" since the new helmet mold came out) and then throw in villains like Vanko/Whiplash, Justin Hammer, Mandarin, Obadiah and then good characters like Happy, Nick Fury, Rhodey out of the suit, War Machine, and (as previous mentioned by @chief7575) Pepper in some sort of refreshed outfit.
I see a value of 40€ and would get it for 30€. But for what Lego is asking here, I'm out.
@themanfromlego said:
"Pepper in some sort of refreshed outfit."
Backless dress at the Walt Disney Opera House in the first Iron Man film. Really Pepper mostly has that "business suit" looking going on in 90% of her appearances so I get why LEGO keeps doing it, but the "it's your birthday present for me, which I bought for myself" moment with that dress in the first Iron Man is pretty memorable. It wouldn't make sense in anything but a high end collector's set though since the scene the dress is from is lacking in action.