Review: 76225 Miles Morales Figure
Posted by CapnRex101,
76225 Miles Morales Figure and 76226 Spider-Man Figure share inevitable similarities, so the simultaneous introduction of these famed web-slingers seems odd. After all, there are various unique characters to choose from, rather than repeating Spider-Man.
However, 76226 Spider-Man Figure has shown the potential of these creations, which bodes well for Miles Morales' iteration of the character!
Summary
76225 Miles Morales Figure, 238 pieces.
£24.99 / $24.99 / €29.99 | 10.5p/10.5c/12.6c per piece.
Buy at LEGO.com »
Miles Morales' Spider-Man benefits from great articulation, although lacks certain details
- Ample articulation for posing
- Perfect proportions
- Printed elements
- Noticeable gaps around wrists
- Limited ankle motion
- Angular head shape
The set was provided for review by LEGO. All opinions expressed are those of the author.
The Completed Model
Spider-Man's suit is generally tight-fitting, so the lithe proportions of this figure are surprisingly effective, sharing this advantage with 76226 Spider-Man Figure. The figures measure 24cm in height and I think Miles Morales' costume looks fantastic, accurately recreating its dark colours from different comic and video game appearances.
As mentioned in the previous review of Peter Parker's Spider-Man, articulation is a particular strength of these figures. Miles Morales includes exactly the same neck, shoulder, wrist, hip, knee and ankle joints as his more colourful counterpart. The model therefore looks great on display, presenting copious posing possibilities.
The head is capable of extensive motion, but suffers because the element designed for 76206 Iron Man Figure is re-used here. The sharp angles appear awkward and I dislike the noticeable gap beneath the head. The decoration across the front looks marvellous though, continuing onto Miles' chest, where two printed elements comprise this character's spider emblem.
Ideally, the red bands on the torso would continue over the shoulders, maintaining exactly the same width. Unfortunately, the new shoulder shells prevent that, although their curved shapes are attractive and they are helpful in disguising the shoulder joints. These represent a dramatic improvement over the Iron Man figure, where the shoulder armour greatly restricted motion.
While the shoulder joints are identical, the elbows differ between 76226 Spider-Man Figure and this design, as 2x2 wedge plates with 45 degree angles limit their motion. Moreover, the wrists are noticeably exposed and attention is drawn to these gaps by the light bluish grey ball joints, which stand out among the predominant black and red colours.
Thankfully, this model avoids the conspicuous dark bluish grey hip pieces which detracted from 76226 Spider-Man Figure, instead including black pieces. The back of the torso appears similar though, as both figures omit the spider symbol traditionally found on Spider-Man's back. The red 2x2 slider provides a suitable splash of colour though.
The shaping of the legs varies slightly from Peter Parker's Spider-Man, although only because of part availability in differing colours. The articulation is identical and the adjustable knee pads remain, which is among my favourite features of both models. Unfortunately, the limited forward movement of the ankles also remains the same, although finding stable poses is quite easy.
Overall
Extensive articulation is the best feature of 76225 Miles Morales Figure, greatly improving the display potential for the model. The use of printed elements and accurate colours are similarly beneficial, especially with a selection of trans-light blue web accessories complementing these dark colours.
However, the notable similarities between this figure and 76226 Spider-Man Figure cannot be overlooked. While natural, I find the Peter Parker design more appealing and releasing Spider-Man's two most recognised guises at once seems odd. Personally, I would rather Miles Morales had been kept for a subsequent wave and perhaps replaced with Green Goblin or similar. The model provides fair value and remains enjoyable, nonetheless.
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24 comments on this article
I need a meme of Pam from The Office saying "They're the same figure."
The head looks terrible.
He looks like his chest has a big heart design on it.
They didn’t have to do a stylish head, they just needed to do what they did with Star Wars buildable figures. I loved the head piece of Maul and Chewbaca.
As with the Spider-Man figure, I personally hate this very much. The shaping is so wrong in too many places.
The “glass half full” mentality in the comments sections for these buildable figures is doing wonders to motivate me to finish the Venom build I’ve started. ;)
Different people like different kinds of Lego. I'm sure there will be plenty of builders out there that love this sort of thing, but for me, it's just a bit meh. It's... sort of Lego, but just looks a bit clumsy.
Mind you, plenty of people hate Technic, which I love - so as long as someone likes these sets, it's no skin off my nose.
Why Lego, just why?
The Marvel buildable figures are definitely among the ugliest and boring sets of the last years... I'd rather have 10 more Spider-Man mechs than this.
Constraction is always getting screwed over by LEGO, this is just another step of irrationality.
The shape of the head sort of looks like they're going to try to use it for a Green Goblin figure as well. It definitely fits that shape, so maybe they made Spiderman look weird in order to reuse the part.
@R1_Drift said:
"Constraction is always getting screwed over by LEGO, this is just another step of irrationality."
I'll be honest, I think these figures along with some of the new Ninjago parts are LEGO trying to bring Constraction back rather than screw it over. The only real issue these figures have are the heads. If they just got a mold more fitting for Spidey, then they'd be perfectly reasonable buildable figures! The popular IP attached could be a nice gateway for getting builders familiar with this style of character creation.
I also like how this theme is trying to avoid issues that killed Bionicle and those Star Wars sets. By using mostly standard bricks, they still feel like more traditional LEGO sets rather than something completely different.
I personally think these are a great steps towards bringing all the bionicle stuff back, even if under the newish 'sccbs'.
I really dislike the head piece, especially at angles besides frontal, but I assume they wanted a catch-all mold to reuse on any planned figures in the future, maybe it'll get refined down the line.
The miles figure looks cute. The trans blue webbing is neat, too.
Peter Parker is Spider-Man.
Miles Morales is Miles Morales.
Gotta say I'm a little disappointed by the hate and anger toward these. Non-constraction fans seem to be upset that Lego is making action figure sets at all, and constraction fans seem upset that they're not the right KIND of action figures. Personally, I think these are pretty impressive—a major step up from past System-based action figure sets like Knights' Kingdom, and more detailed and authentic-looking than the early CCBS weirdness of the 2012 DC and Marvel action figure sets.
Personally I prefer the more versatile face pieces used for these over the more limited-use molds of the CCBS heads in the Star Wars action figures, though it helps that all of these so far have had mostly featureless "masks" as opposed to needing detailed facial features. The articulation also seems pretty good, and I like the varied detailing between the characters. They still aren't perfect—the necks are too thin and I'm still not 100% sold on the low-mounted shoulders. But these feel like a solid foundation for a new era of constraction, if they prove successful enough to merit it.
I'd love to at least see Gwen Stacy/Ghost Spider get a figure, since her more dancer-like physique would be interesting and a large-scale figure like this might be able to better show off some of the details of her costume than the minifigure versions there have been so far.
@burem0n0: I guess you're not a fan of the "legacy character" concept, then.
I assume both Spideys at the same time because their masks fit the head mould they already designed for Iron Man. Not that many other heroes who have a similar lack of features and even with these two it’s pushing it a bit
I don't think it's bad that LEGO is trying something different from their Bionicle/Slizer/Hero Factory styled builds of characters : https://brickset.com/sets/tag-Ultrabuild , and I know 20 years of sets of that type isn't something to just ignore.
However, different things appeal to different people, the €10 mechs are easy accessible, cheaper toys with a minifigure.
I gotta say €30 is a bit steep compared to those older sets, but at let's say €20-25 it's not bad.
As for the head, I do think it works for those 4 sets they have done so far , but for characters with distinct ears/noses/hair etc it might be an issue.
While I did collect most of the Slizers before a 15 year pause from LEGO , I'm more of a System person, and System-based technic, so more mech parts being introduced in the system world is something I do like.
Lego, please just stop with the buildable figures /facepalm
I honestly don't see a single redeeming feature about these. But accept that is just me.
The weird head shape isn't as noticeable here as it is on 76226.
As a Bionicle builder, I'm excited to see more buildable figures. I feel like we need to get through some growing pains, but these reviews and others will help provide feedback. Hopefully Lego can spring for a new head mold that is more suitable for subsequent uses across multiple figures.
As for the ankle joints, this is probably done intentionally to allow for better stability. Any Constraction builder knows that weenie ankle joints means a topple of your prized figure. I'm actually kinda glad they limited the akles this way as it provides less opportunity for disaster, and they're still poseable enough.
Looking forward to the review of Venom as well. :D Thanks Rex for the reviews!
@Lyichir said:
"Gotta say I'm a little disappointed by the hate and anger toward these. Non-constraction fans seem to be upset that Lego is making action figure sets at all, and constraction fans seem upset that they're not the right KIND of action figures. Personally, I think these are pretty impressive—a major step up from past System-based action figure sets like Knights' Kingdom, and more detailed and authentic-looking than the early CCBS weirdness of the 2012 DC and Marvel action figure sets.
Personally I prefer the more versatile face pieces used for these over the more limited-use molds of the CCBS heads in the Star Wars action figures, though it helps that all of these so far have had mostly featureless "masks" as opposed to needing detailed facial features. The articulation also seems pretty good, and I like the varied detailing between the characters. They still aren't perfect—the necks are too thin and I'm still not 100% sold on the low-mounted shoulders. But these feel like a solid foundation for a new era of constraction, if they prove successful enough to merit it.
I'd love to at least see Gwen Stacy/Ghost Spider get a figure, since her more dancer-like physique would be interesting and a large-scale figure like this might be able to better show off some of the details of her costume than the minifigure versions there have been so far."
I agree, I'm pretty happy with these figures to, but I do think the head mold needs to be revisited. Maybe something that fits into system but isn't flat at the back Maybe it systems in from the bottom or maybe a two mold thing where the front half is clutches and the bottom half has studs so they clamp together around a neck build? I also think leaving some studs and what not for room for those features we keep talking about might be a good idea.
The heads look like those designer balloons that you buy for kids for their birthday.