The retiring
Sometimes the best ideas are the simplest ones that are staring you right in the face. Who else but Spider-Man would make for the very best set in the LEGO Marvel series of helmets and masks?
It's quite amazing to consider that since the LEGO Marvel helmet/mask/bust collection debuted in 2020 with the release of 76165 Iron Man Helmet, it took four years for Spider-Man to have an entry in the collection, in the form of
What’s not so surprising, though, is a) just how amazing this set is, b) that it has been immediately followed up with a second entry in the form of
LEGO Star Wars has really dominated the field of LEGO helmet and mask sets over the past five years, releasing the most of any theme and offering some truly impressive and unique LEGO experiences. LEGO Marvel, by contrast, has been relatively light in exploring this specific direction, instead offering up all sorts of thematically-adjacent sets, such as buildable figures and busts of varying scales, as well as various props belonging to some of its superhero characters.
That experimentation perhaps explains in part the time it has taken for the theme to offer up
In contrast to such sets,
Indeed, anyone who has put together any of the previous LEGO helmet sets from Marvel, Star Wars or DC will recognise a lot about the construction approach of
Right from the last piece of that central support column, you are into adding red pieces specific to the more organic shaping of the mask, in and around a tonne of SNOT-related parts to which the outer shell of the build will eventually connect.
It’s a busy but relatively uncomplicated LEGO set to put together, and where you will of course most notably see that it differs most from other helmet or mask sets you may have previously built is where it is most obviously strongest, for that’s really where the unique techniques are found and the final effect is created. The biggest of these is probably how you put together and angle the part of the mask that covers the nose and mouth, because how that is shaped is as clever and unique as it is effective.
Obvious aspects to the design to one side, though, don’t rush this build, because some of the other smart techniques are hidden in the simpler stages that you may otherwise brush over – there is real knowledge to be understood in the exact placement of some of these internal parts for how they contribute to the outer layers coming together as fluidly as they do.
It’s the sort of set that gives you hands-on experience of mathematical, geometric LEGO building, but in such a subtle way that you’d be forgiven for missing it. The fact most of the build is one colour perhaps doesn’t help its cause, but look through that and you’ll find a lot to appreciate and learn from, as is often the case with the best helmet and mask sets of recent years.
The build all comes together for a final model that is exactly what you’d expect and hope it to be: a fair and accurate representation of Spider-Man’s mask (his head, really), scaled appropriately and detailed just perfectly. There’s sharp contrast in the big eyes, which are also built to a shape just perfect as an ‘expression’ of the character.
The organic nature of Spidey’s head is very well represented in LEGO form – there are a couple of small gaps or pieces sticking out a little further than ideal, but those are easily overlooked for the wider model and just how otherwise convincing it is.
Spider-Man is one of those iconic and recognisable characters for which simpler concepts like this are often the strongest. If you love all things Peter Parker, how can you look at
This LEGO set was provided by the LEGO Group for review purposes.
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