Review: 70920 Egghead Mech Food Fight
Posted by CapnRex101,Batman has developed an unparalleled rogues gallery over the last several decades and some of his adversaries are almost as popular as the Caped Crusader himself. However, not every villain enjoys such an illustrious reputation.
70920 Egghead Mech Food Fight includes two such lesser known characters, Egghead and the Condiment King. Both villains are fairly obscure but appeared in The LEGO Batman Movie along with most of Batman's other enemies. I have therefore been looking forward to building this set very much indeed, not only because it features such unusual minifigures but also due to the impressive design and delightfully consistent theming of Egghead's bizarre mech!
Minifigures
The design of the Batman minifigure has fluctuated quite considerably in recent years but the version from The LEGO Batman Movie takes obvious inspiration from the black-suited figure released in 2012 with the first wave of DC Super Heroes sets. His torso is printed with the same muscle definition and symbol while the legs remain plain black. Some printing would have been welcome but this design remains true to the classic version.
However, a new belt element was introduced for The LEGO Batman Movie, featuring four pouches and a buckle on the front as well as four more pouches and some canisters on the back. The figure wears a black cape made from a pliable material and his head includes an intimidating grimace on one side and a bewildered expression on the other. Batman comes equipped with a grapnel launcher but no batarangs, unusually.
Egghead was created for the 1960s Batman television series and has made very few appearances in the comics but he still remains popular as one of Batman's strangest foes. The design of this figure is faithful to the version from the television show and includes a large head, after which the character is named, with a new domed piece on top. I like his furrowed brow and the neatly tended moustache matches the original series perfectly.
The egg motif continues onto the torso as Egghead wears a white jacket with yellow highlights along the edges of the lapels. His pale yellow shirt looks great beside the jacket and I love the cravat which resembles a poached egg! There is no printing on the back of the torso which is unfortunate, although this seems to be a consistent feature of minifigures with fabric jacket tails attached around the waist.
The LEGO Batman Movie has yielded some unlikely minifigures but I think Condiment King might be the most wonderfully ridiculous of them all! The character was created for Batman: The Animated Series and has since returned to irritate the Dark Knight on several occasions in the comics, always presenting very little threat in his attempts to rob restaurants while armed with a pair of unwieldy condiment cannons.
Condiment King's design has been updated a few times in recent years but this figure is definitely based upon the original version from Batman: The Animated Series, wearing a bright green helmet and a pale blue costume which is emblazoned with the Condiment King logo. The legs are dual-moulded to represent boots and the head is printed with two faces, one of which shows the villain eating with mustard around his mouth! Unfortunately, the green base colour of the head affects the skin tone which is disappointing as an identical quality issue has been present on several recent minifigures.
The back of the torso is not printed but this is completely obscured by the villain's large backpack which supplies him with plenty of ketchup and mustard. Black hoses link the bottles to stud shooters which fire red and yellow 1x1 round plates representing the two condiments. It would have been nice to see the cup pieces shown in the movie here, although the stud shooters do not look out of place and offer some extra play value.
The Completed Model
The Egghead mech measures just 16cm in height so is slightly smaller than I was expecting. However, the model is packed with detail and its egg theme is consistent throughout, even in relation to the weapons fitted on each arm. The colour scheme of white and flame yellowish orange is also unmistakably reminiscent of an egg so matches Egghead and stands out among the vehicles belonging to other villains.
Articulation is vital to the design of a successful mech and this model is very satisfying in that respect. The ankles, hips and elbows all feature ball joints while the shoulders use ratchet joints to support the weight of the arms. Creating a wide range of poses is therefore very easy and the low centre of gravity allows the mech to balance quite comfortably, even when it is only standing on one foot.
The rounded shape of the cockpit is marvellous, making good use of a large trans-clear canopy which has not appeared in a set since 2013. I believe the bright colour scheme is intended to resemble a soft boiled egg with the runny yolk flowing from the centre which is fun. Nevertheless, there is still plenty of room for a minifigure to stand inside and two levers are included to simulate controlling the mech.
A large claw resembling a whisk is fitted to the right arm, thereby continuing the egg motif. The claw includes three fingers which are individually articulated on ball joints, allowing it to grip almost anything. Moreover, the digits can be turned upside down to form a shovel-like shape if you wish. I like the combination of black, light bluish grey and yellow and the pearl silver details on each finger tip look superb.
A black gear beside the elbow activates the rotating claw. This is a simple feature but it works perfectly, particularly when the fingers are closed to more closely resemble a whisk. I love the sticker on the shoulder which denotes the different speed settings for the rotating claw and the entire assembly feels appropriately preposterous for a set of this kind.
Egghead's mech is equipped with an equally absurd egg cannon on the left arm! The conical barrel looks brilliant and I like the printed 4x4 dish which reveals that the weapon can fire scrambled or fried eggs, depending upon how they have been cooked inside the cannon. A disc launcher allows you to launch printed 2x2 tiles representing fried eggs and this is cleverly disguised as a magazine fitted beneath the barrel.
A flexible pearl silver hose links the egg cannon to a trans-clear tank which supplies the ammunition. Three eggs are placed at different levels inside the tank, presumably on a carousel system of some kind. A white chicken sits at the top of the tank and seems to be the source of the eggs which would cast doubt upon the 'free range' claim of the egg cannon, although it may be decorative as the chicken does not feature any printed detail.
Overall
Almost the entire range based upon The LEGO Batman Movie has been excellent but 70920 Egghead Mech Food Fight has instantly become one of my favourites! The entire premise of the set is delightfully ridiculous and the mech is absolutely brilliant, perhaps among the best that LEGO has ever released in my opinion. This is saying a great deal given how many have been produced but I believe it is worthy of such praise as the model looks fantastic and includes plenty of functionality.
The Egghead and Condiment King minifigures are equally impressive. Just seeing such wacky characters in LEGO form is wonderful and both are highly detailed, although Egghead would have been even better with some back printing on the torso. Moreover, £29.99 or $29.99 feels quite expensive in relation to the size of the mech but seems reasonable to me given its high quality. I would therefore highly recommend this set, even at full price.
I hope you have found this review informative. Let us know by liking this article and share your thoughts on the set in the comments below.
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30 comments on this article
A great review. Thanks Cap.
By far one of my favourite sets from TLBM, but a couple of key gripes for me:
- The 'flesh' colour of Condiment King's face is badly affected by the green colour of the head showing through underneath. It spoils an otherwise excellent minifig in my opinion.
- There are big gaps between where the glass canopy and the sides of the cockpit meet. Easily rectifiable, but when compared to other mechs a small let down.
Other than that, I cannot fault this set either! It has got me back into MOC'ing my own mechs for each of Batman's enemies.
This set looked fantastic from the start, and it's nice to see that it's as great as it looks! Not only one of the better sets in the theme, but probably of the year, despite its small size!
I'd like to continue to complain with what Sparky Ham brought up. Th printing on the 2018 minifigures is horrid. Jang brings it up in a lot of his videos, pretty much any that aren't printed on flesh tone or yellow is not painted enough.
At the cost of what LEGO is this is not excusable and if it keeps up I will be looking elsewhere for minifigures.
I was pretty excited but this thing costs €45 here in Belgium...
The reverse view of Egghead's head is gonna make a perfect mod for my Donald Trump minifigure.
Let us not forget that with the Egghead Minifigure we now have a bonafide Lego version of Vincent Price. The Condiment King issue is unfortunate, but it is awesome how the Lego Batman Movie line has enabled so many characters to make their way into physical form.
I'm soooooo getting this set. I've had my eye on it since pictures first came out. But, as always, it's much more expensive in Canada, so I'm going to have to wait until it goes down in price.
CapnRex101 The version of Condiment King from Batman: The Animated Series, which was the basis for the version in this set is named Buddy Standler, from the episode "Make 'Em Laugh".
I love this set I only have one set from the lego batman movie but several from the general dc universe..
Id love to get this along with the jokers low rider and the batwing..
I hope one day we see some more 1966 batman sets as egg head was a regular in that series,
I love this set! Hopefully I can pick it up on my next visit to the local Lego store!
@Saint_Squared - LEGO.com does not state which version of Condiment King this is. Mitchell Mayo is the more recent incarnation but it could well be Buddy Standler given the costume. Either way, I have removed reference to his alter ego from the review until it is confirmed.
The existance of a domed head piece opens new, possibilities (One Punch Man MOC).
I'm more interested in Marvel sets, only having Superman & Wonder Woman vs Power Armor Lex Luthor, and Batmobile & The Two Face Chase from the DC collection. But this set is gloriously ridiculous and I must have it. There must be an egg-related Marvel villain somewhere...
What a great mech. I like LEGO mechs, and this one is also unique. Very clever. The sets for TLBM have not disappointed.
Saw it at the store yesterday. It was next to TLBM Riddler car, which I hadn't bought yet. I bought the Riddler one instead. As this one is new, there's another time. Thanks for the review.
Can anyone here confirm Condiment King's torso color for me? I have a custom minifigure project in mind, but it could get pricey, so I want to be sure before I start.
Tyrell Archer: There is a Marvel villain named Egghead, too.
Yeah, Marvel also has an Egghead, and they're both bald dudes with weird heads, but that's about where the similarities end.
Unfortunately, Marvel's Egghead is not egg themed - his head is shaped like an egg! Although, if I lost the mustache and put him up against Ant-Man and Wasp, it might work...
I was planning on making the Marvel Egghead using this head-topper, a Harry Potter head minus the scar, and a to be determined body with a lab coat.
Shame about the head printing. It's doesn't seem to be an issue with the CMF though. Killer Moth from the new series doesn't suffer from the issue at all.
What's next? Lego Coneheads?
That’s a eggtastic set one of my favourite from the TLBM
Its the best set of the series by far and an awesome mech no matter how its framed. I love that its so easy to just pose and it'll stay there.
As mentioned, the figure printing is a disappointment, but this is an issue across all lego sets recently which leads me to think whatever factory they've been printed in is cheaping out on materials.
Egghead's headpiece extension mold might work for a Ki-Adi-Mundi custom fig. just a thought.
Not a fan of mustard, may change it to mayonnaise instead if I get this set.
Hilarious! A must buy!
As someone who has seen plenty of complaints over the years about "cheap Chinese plastic" in CMFs, it's amusing to see people complaining about the print quality of the Chinese-made CMFs exceeding that of figs made in other factories. Clearly Lego cuts corners on their Chinese-made figs... except when those are actually better. I hope people learn a lesson from this that quality differences are not always a matter of one country or another "cutting corners" but often based on more complex and challenging factors like diversified supply chains and the differing capabilities of older versus newer equipment.
Buying this just for the Vincent Price minifig.
Yeah Marvel’s Egghead is, believe it or not, the original Arch Nemesis of the Hank Pam Ant Man And Wasp. I think the last time he was seen was fighting She Hulk in one of her lighter more comedic runs. You could probably moc together a Marvel Egg Head figure using a Mad Scientist torso, a face with thick glasses and that bald cap piece.
@lyichir The issue between the Chinese CMF’s and other factories isn’t that Lego cuts corners. The Chinese factory has better printing because it currently has the newest most advanced figure printing machines. The problem is local laws force Lego to source plastic for the Chinese factory locally. They can’t simply use the same Bayer stuff they use elsewhere. Lego tries to match it quality wise. But Chinese plastics can be more erratic.