BLACK MANTA STRIKE

This submarine is first seen in AQUAMAN,and in movie it looks marvelous. But in my opinion Lego version is even better.

IT LOOKS LIKE A RAY,A PLANE, A SPACE SHIP...

The first thing I saw buying the set was it doesnt really look like a submarine,but to me it looked like a ww2 plane. And there is nothing wrong in it. This is Lego set and it is designed to inspire creativity.

There are 3 main sections of set-submarine,coral reef and minifigs.Lets start with submarine. It has smooth and aerodynamic shape. Around the middle there is round black piece that covers the cockpit. Cocpit is pretty minimalistic with small driving wheel,two stickers(to represent controls) and place for only one minifig. Behind it head is small copartment to place Manta sword. There are two shutting options-6-stud shutter and two spring loaded stud shutters. For 6-stud shutter it is only needed to spiin it on left and stud by stud will shot. Now about spring loaded. They are fun for shooting games,but because of the fact that they are standing next to the place where you hold it so you can accidentaly shoot someone in the face. It is the best idea to keep them off.

Coral reef is definitely smallest part,with only 7 parts(and I am counting shark) so it is definitely just a display part.

2 out of 3 in my opinion look excellent.Aquaman has a nice hair piece and really great torso printing.Black manta also has great printing,but his head is what is worth mentioning. It is made by 2 two connected parts that are easily flexible and make a head.There is no head piece. That are two minifigs that I love. I am very dissapointed with Mera. Thrue,printing is good but color of body is too light,face doesnt really look like actress and hair is too light.

PRONS & CONS

PRONS

-ONLY SET FROM MOVIE AQUAMAN

-GREAT MINIFIGS

-INSPIRE CREATIVITY

-FUN BUILDING

CONS

-VERY BIG

-MERA IS BAD MINIFIG AND HER WEAPON IS KINDA USELESS

OVERALL

I like this set very much and it gave me hours and hours of fun. If you want to buy it dont wait.

I saw that nobody has written a review of this set on Brickset and I figured that some of you may want to hear another person talk about their experiences with this set. So, here we go, are you ready to dive into the review? (pun intended)

This review will contain no spoilers regarding the Aquaman movie.

The minifigures: I figure that I should begin with the star of the movie, Aquaman himself. He is very detailed, even having some slightly reflective gold speckles that shine when light hits the torso at certain angles. He also sports a unique hair piece and some very expressive facial expressions that I think match the actor fairly well. This is a nice way to get the figure because he only appeared in last year's Justice league Battle of Atlantis with slightly darker colors. Mera is a very nice figure, featuring reflective pattern as Aquaman and a unique teal colored torso. Though, I think Mera could have benefited from a different expression and the hair used for Mary Jane in the Spiderman hovercraft set in 2012 or 2013. Finally I think Black Manta looks fabulous, only switching the colors from the previous from the last time he appeared to a more serious black color. The only thing I think he could have used was a generic face and maybe hair for a different look on him. But yeah, those are the minifigures for this set.

The build:I thought that the build for the set way pretty easy as the instructions were easy to follow. The stickers are a little hard to apply here, but there are only 5 in this set. Other than that, this set uses a lot of "plate stacking". It can get tedious after a while, so I recommend you look carefully at the instructions for the utmost accuracy.

The completed model:In the end, the model looks fantastic for those who wants to display it, but also plenty of play features for the kids. The primarily darker colors of dark gray and black perfectly blend with the elements of red and trans-red thrown in for a splash of color. The side build is mediocre but provides some nice scenery for the characters and sub while giving the impression the set takes place underwater.

My overall thoughts:I was very impressed when this set was first revealed and after building it, it doesn't disappoint at all. The minifigure selection is fantastic and the sub looks really awesome and faithful to the character of Black Manta. Not to mention that the model looks great on display and has plenty of play features. If you want this set, I recommend you pick it up or ask for it during the holidays because you may be disappointed if you miss the opportunity to buy this set while you still can.

Set #76095 Aquaman Black Manta Strike: Previously we’ve seen Man of Steel get three sets, Batman V Superman three sets and Justice League got two sets and a Minifigure Accessory set. When it came to the rest of the films in the live action DC Cinematic Universe we’ve seen none for Suicide Squad, one for Wonder Woman and one for Aquaman. This one. Considering the Marvel Cinematic Universe has gotten so many sets for so many movies I’m surprised LEGO didn’t try to cash in with more sets based on the films.

This is a pretty solid offering from DC Comics. It also features a very nice upgrade for Black Manta’s Submersible, a huge improvement over the original model from the comics based set.

Packaging

The box for this set shows off the set very nicely. It includes a very impressive action shot on the front and the Aquaman logo with the film character in the corner. On the back there’s another action shot showing off even more of the set, really impressive.

The manual is nice and thick with some very familiar looking cross-promotional issues. There is a small sticker sheet for a few minor details, but nothing else to speak of. The LEGO Life system was also promoted here, though not as prominent as sets have gotten since.

Parts

Loads of black elements in this set, a nice dark colour palette to choose from, with a few clear red elements for the cockpit window and seven of the reverse dishes commonly used for simulating floating with hovering sets. Two gold nuggets are also included as is several metallic silver studs.

Minifigures

Aquaman: What can I say about this figure? The Battle for Atlantis set first introduced the movie version of Aquaman and this Minifigure is using the same basic parts, but not the same basic print. His legs and torso are now printed more in keeping with his comic uniform, the movie Aquaman having changed his costume from Justice League to the more traditional appearance. For accessories he has a metallic black trident and two of the energy bursts which can be fired out of a Minifigures hand.

Black Manta: Using the same parts as the previous version, this movie Black Manta has a darker colour, a more sinister looking helmet with glowing red eyes and a more detailed armor print on his torso, as is right for a set based on a movie. This is a pretty solid looking figure, for accessories he includes a dark black sword.

Mera: Dressed in a flowing green suit Mera looks almost perfect, unlike in the film she hasn’t got the small crown she wore in the movie. Instead she uses the fairly common by now side-cut hair piece which has the one part which falls over her shoulder. Her torso and legs are printed in a scale pattern which looks sublime. For accessories she includes two energy elements which can be launched out of her hands. Due to the spare parts you could also give her a trident, since an extra comes in the set, but it isn’t official.

The build

Bag #1: Aquaman and Mera help in the construction of the lower section of the Black Manta submarine. This is an interesting build, using some nice techniques. I particularly enjoyed the construction of the wings, despite the repetitive nature of said build. Oh, you also get to make a small section of underwater plants with the shark to rest on.

Bag #2: Black Manta leaps into action to build his submarine’s upper portion. This was a relatively quick and easy build, only a few elements had stickers to apply which is perfectly acceptable for a model of this type. The entire model took no longer than an hour to build, no tricky moments or other issues.

The completed model

Black Manta’s Submarine: This submarine is loaded for whale. It features flick missiles on the side-wings and a massive stud launcher on the front. It looks very impressive too, matching the look of a Manta Ray in dark black colours. There’s space inside for Black Mamba to pilot his craft. There isn’t much else to be said, it’s a single model set, the piece of foliage is a nice extra bit of scenery, but not really much in the way to discuss. As someone who owns both sets, this one from Aquaman and the one based more on the Comics Black Manta I think I’m confident in saying that this model is a huge improvement over the original submarine. It’s also more sinister looking, if you can believe that.

Overall opinion

This is a very good set, the price however seems a bit high. It might be better if the set had been 25$ instead of 40$ CND, the set doesn’t seem to have many more parts compared to some of the 25$ price range of Super Heroes sets, if they’d included a more substantial side build it might have felt worth it. Honestly though, it’s not a bad set, but it could have been better executed. I’d still recommend this set though, Mera and Black Manta are strong reasons, but the submarine model is also extremely well done and I’m highly impressed by it. Highly Recommended.

The only set based on the 2018 Aquaman film delivers a barely above mediocre set considering the possibilities the film offered Lego. I am constantly frustrated by the choice to repeatedly release vehicle sets. The Aquaman film delivered some interesting possibilities and locations for a set. Instead we got a second Black Manta Sub.. and that's it. However this aside this set does deliver an over all ok experience.

Minifigures.

An updated release of the Khal Drogo Aquaman played by Jason Mamoa. With a new printed torso and leg piece. An accurate and cool minifigure to match the Broski himself. Love the highlighted hair piece but would have been nice to get a new face print.

Mera makes her first Lego appearance. It's always fantastic to get supporting cast figures in DC sets and Mera is a fantastic choice and the new torso and leg print is an awesome addition to any Atlantean wardrobe. The hair piece could have worked better in a redder colour and maybe even a different, flatter peace. Even a new mold with her crown would have been welcome. Either way its great to see her and at least get one new character.

Black Manta finally appears in an actual black variant. Looking far superior to his appearance in set 76027. While the black head piece is fantastic it's disappointing to otherwise only get a new printed torso for him then a boring black leg piece. I was also disappointed to not get an alternate head piece so the character could be unmasked.

Build.

The sub itself is sleek and cool looking, armed to the teeth with a rapid stud firing mechanism and flick missiles. The black colouration again suits the build and the design as well as matching the Black Manta. The cock pit opens and closes for minifigure entry and while these play features may seem basic it's suitable and worthy for the RRP.

The side build is small and provides a nice little bonus feature to mount the shark and remind you that Aquaman is supposed to be underwater.

The accessories are limited and its unfortunate that the water blast accessories included are only the hand held flick ones. Aquaman has his iconic trident which is of a standard design and then a small sword for Black Manta.

Overall, very basic but a low RRP and fairly cool minifigures and vehicle design push this into the four star category. Im glad Ocean Master was released in a later set which compliments this one and expands the possibilties of play further.