#6: LEGO DC Super Heroes - Catwoman Catcycle City Chase (6858)

A few days after I picked up the Lex Luthor power suit set, this was the only DC LEGO set in stock aside from the Bionicle styled figures. So maybe my Target will only be carrying one set at a time from now on? As the least expensive set featuring Batman, I decided to go with this one. I would have preferred a Batman minifigure with a normal cape rather than a rocketpack/glider, but this'll do. Obviously, Batman, Catwoman, and her motorcycle are the main draws here, but there's a little scenery included with a street corner. There's a traffic signal light, which can easily be knocked down. The box depicts Batman hitting it with a batarang, dropping in on Catwoman. Harsh, man. There's also a mailbox and a newspaper rack, as well as a few crates that are apparently meant to be knocked over in the pursuit. The motorcycle is pretty neat, and has a couple clips to hold Catwoman's whip. If they make a Batgirl minifigure, it would definitely work for her as well.

Both minifigures have double sided heads. I wondered why Bruce is wearing a headband, but after slipping on the cowl, I realized it's to provide the whites of the mask's eyes. Neat. Selina can go for the white eyed goggle look or the regular eyed look with her mask.

This is a very cool little set. It's the cheapest way to get Batman, and currently the only way to get Catwoman. Totally worth picking up.

#5: Star Wars The Clone Wars - Clone Trooper (Phase II Armor) CW2

These days it seems like I'm getting fewer Star Wars figures, partly out of not being able to find the figures I want, partly due to rising prices, and partly because there just aren't many more characters I want to add to my collection. My local Target hasn't put out any new Star Wars figures since before Christmas, but with the impending theatrical re-release of The Phantom Menace in 3-D, the revamped line up has started hitting stores. The first wave of Clone Wars figures is mostly re-releases that I'm not interested in, so I wasn't paying too much attention to it, but looking through the pegs I realized that this is a new figure that I'm actually interested in. Plain white troopers are something of a rarity, as most clone figures released have individual or unit markings of some sort. Also, the phase II clones are partly what got me back into collecting figures way back when Revenge of the Sith was hitting theaters. So naturally I picked it up. For whatever reason, it comes with a rocket pack (sure, why not) which has a launching missile. Fortunately, there's a non-launching missile replacement without the goofy looking long tail sticking out. Really, I could have done without the jetpack altogether, but it doesn't look bad. The Clone Wars line is continuing with that card game, so there is a stand, a card, and a die included. The dice are a different color now, black and gold instead of blue and white. There is also a blaster rifle included (not pictured). Coming across a new figure that you didn't know existed is a nice surprise, and this was one of those.

#4: LEGO DC Super Heroes - Superman vs Power Armor Lex (6862)

This is the first full LEGO set I've bought in years. Lately, aside from the blindpacked minifigures, the only sets I've bought were micro sized vehicles, or were the smaller army building sets. I got this one because I wanted minifigures for all three of the characters that are included, and the build itself is a pretty cool mecha. We get a business suit Lex Luthor, Superman, and Wonder Woman. Superman oddly has no boots painted on, but Wonder Woman has her lasso. The official story (there is a comic included) is that this set represents Superman rescuing Wonder Woman from Lex's kryptonite powered battle suit. Yeah, sure. I'm pretty sure it's Wonder Woman doing the rescuing in this situation! But you know, it's up to you to use your imagination to come up with whatever scenario you'd like.

Lex's power armor is pretty damn cool.

The giant gun has a kryptonite chunk inside it, perhaps as a focusing device. Rather than the fingers of the suit holding onto its handle, there is a spot for it to peg onto the hand, which is much more secure. It's also ridiculously huge. Compensating much, Lex? There's a hose that connects the gun to the back of the suit, where we see some kryptonite engines. That's how I'm interpreting them, anyway.

Overall, the suit just looks cool, with its translucent green bits and touches of purple. The ankles are on ball joints, so it's easy to pose its big feet in a stable position without having the legs just straight. The elbows and shoulders are also on ball joints, and the fingers are even articulated. Neat!

The DC LEGO sets seem to be pretty popular at my local Target, as this was the only set in stock (aside from the Bionicle-style figures) when I picked it up. I'm looking forward to seeing whatever else they come up with, as well as the Marvel sets.

#3: K'Nex Mario Kart Wii - Luigi building set

I got Mario, so I got Luigi so I could have both of the Mario Brothers. He's taller than Mario, and his overalls are a darker blue. There's not really much else to say, so have a comic to pad out this post:

#2: K'Nex Mario Kart Wii - Mario building set

After I picked up Bowser, naturally I got Mario too. He's my namesake, after all. One thing that sets these apart from LEGO minifigures is that it's not the same base body used every time, so each character gets its own shape. I would totally buy a LEGO Mario minifigure too, but I do like this approach. He moves at the neck, shoulders, wrists, and hips. Unlike Bowser, there is no movement at all in the waist. He comes packaged in three pieces. Now I'm really hoping they come out with a second series of these. We need Peach and Toad!

#1: K'Nex Mario Kart Wii - Bowser building set

So far I've been passing on all the K'Nex Mario Kart building sets because I don't have room for the tracks, and the cars that are sold by themselves don't interest me enough to want to buy them. Then I heard they were putting out individually packed minifigures, so I figured it would be a good opportunity to get just the characters I like (you see that Hasbro, this is how you should release the Kre-o minifigures!). I heard that Bowser was going to be shortpacked at only two to a case, (because K'Nex hates you, that's why) so I was worried I wouldn't be able to find one. As it turns out, I found both Bowsers. A few days before I found these, I noticed an empty spot on one of the shelves with a tag for the minifigures, so I was keeping an eye out for them. The case must have been put out not too long before I got there, because it looked pretty full. Both of the Bowsers were easy to find, one was right in the front, and the other was actually on top of all the other packages. Maybe someone picked them out and decided they didn't want them? Whatever happened, it worked out for me. It's definitely nice to be able to see which minifigure is in the packaging without having to resort to some mysterious bump codes or feeling through the packaging.

Bowser here is one of the largest minifigures I've seen. On the whole, these seem to be about the same size as Minimates, but Bowser is pretty massive due to his bulk. That's probably a factor in why he's shortpacked, he has so much more mass than the others and is thus less profitable. While Bowser is a minifigure, he is packaged as a building set, so there is some assembly required. He comes in six pieces which are easy enough to fit together, although instructions are included. He moves at the hips, shoulders, wrists, neck, and (kind of) at the waist–the shell kind of gets in the way of that. Of the minifigures I got from the series, this is definitely my favorite.