0
Set Name: The Dynamic Duo Funhouse Escape (what a mouthful)
Set #: 6857
Theme: Superheroes
Subtheme: DC Superheroes
Subsubtheme: Batman!
Parts: 380
Minifigures: 5
Year of Release: 2012
Price at Release: USD 40, GBP 40, CAD 50, AUD 90, EUR 50 (varied)
Buy it? Inventory? Bricklink LEGO
Just browse the picture? Flickr set
INTRODUCTION
Apparently, this set is proving a little bit troublesome for good folks out there to get their grubby paws on. Some speculate that the reason for its rarity is that (in the US) it's a TRU exclusive, or that LEGO didn't make enough, or that LEGO is correcting minifigure printing errors, or something. But I say hooey. I say that this set is a wee bit rare for the very reason that I bought it: because it looks awesome. I'm not a huge Batman fan; I wasn't running out to get all of the new sets, and I only ever got the small Catwoman set back in the day. But the Funhouse called my name. So many figures. So many colors, such an apparently good price. Lucky me, there were plenty of copies of it when I got to the LEGO store. So let's see, is this set worthy of being rare?
BOX
Maybe I will take box pictures at some point. Key word: maybe. I don't have a studio setup big enough for them right now. The box is nice, fairly large, prominently displays minifigures, looks FUN, etc. Nice packaging.
INSTRUCTIONS
The front of these is the same as the box (so you get some insight into the box, yay). It's got the bright Funhouse set on a very dingy junkyard/industrial background, which makes sense, but also doesn't. What is this weird, popping, open-air structure doing in the middle of a brown junkyard? Logically, this set should be a slice from inside a building, sort of, but don't think about it too much. Comics don't make sense, so neither should this set.
Steps are very slow, which makes the single booklet quite thick. I like a nice thick booklet, though. It makes the build feel substantial, and this one actually is, so it's all good. Now that black is outlined in white, color differentiation is no problem. The one odd thing about the build is that the minifigures come in different numbered bags, so you don't build them all at the beginning. Maybe this way keeps the kiddies more interested!
In the back there is a page with CG play features, each of which is actually significant (unlike in SW, where taking off a cockpit counts as a play feature). These are similar to pictures on the back of the box, but on the box the pics look more like they are of physical LEGO (though they are more likely renderings). The box ones look better to me.
There is also this ad for LEGO Batman 2 in which very skinny Superman is about to bowl over Batman. Good stuff.
The parts take a double spread, but I didn't photograph them. Go look them up on Bricklink or something.
COMIC BOOK
There is one. It's as big dimension-wise as the instruction booklet, but it isn't very impressive. There's nothing wrong with it per se, but it's just the type of thing that used to be in a LEGO Magazine or something like that. There is really no reason for it to be its own separate booklet; it could've just been in the back of the instructions as some comics used to be (in the original SW line, for instance).
Yeah, I didn't take any pictures of it.
MINIFIGURES
Alright people, fess up. How many of you bought/want this set just for the minifigures? Well I didn't, which is rare. The thing is that this set is about both the minifigures and the set (unlike in SW again where they make you buy a set for the minifigures and throw in a craptastic cannon that nobody wants so Hasbro won't sue their pants off).
There's no denying that these are a bunch of beauts. I present you with my favored sides for them first (besides Robin; I love both faces on him). These are all great. Like, seriously, no complaints. Harley is cute, Joker looks wicked, Riddler is Riddler, Robin looks smug, and Batman just looks crazy hyper. What I really like about these is that none of them look too serious (why so serious, right?). I don't have many of the old figures, but it seemed like their faces especially were kind of… dark. Batman certainly was. These are just amazing.
Here are all the reverse faces (besides for Riddler who doesn't have one). I don't much like the reverse Harley and Joker faces; they're alright, but it looks like they were doing big smiles for a camera and the picture was taken at the wrong time. I'm not wild about this side of Bats either, but I guess he has to be serious some time. The scared Robin face is amazing; it cracks me up. Riddler needs some love in text still, so I'll mention how awesome his hat is and that he has purple hands. They could've gone grey on the hands, but purple looks so cool! Props to LEGO for that.
We got some back printing up in here. Nothing totally mind-blowing, but still nice to have all around. I like Joker the best; those back-of-coat buttons are impressive. You can see that Robin's printing is a little messed up, but I can't say I'm throwing a nitty fit about it. It's not like I look back there much anyway.
Only two face prints get obscured by headgear, so I've revealed them for you. Batman is in his classic 'workout' outfit. I'll echo others in saying that LEGO should've done one side with the white bandana eyes and the other with just a normal Bruce Wayne face (throwing in the hair, of course). I would've liked to see this stern side without the bandana and the gung ho side with.
ACCESSORIES
The amount of accessories in this set isn't stellar. It's basically one each, but not even because the handcuffs and fish don't really go with Harley and Robin. Back in the old Bats sets old Batty would get tons of accessories and the bad guys all had machine guns, but here Bats gets one measly Batarang and all Joker gets is a walkie-talkie. Who's he talking to anyway, his mother? I understand why they gave the crowbar to Riddler, since it sort of looks like a question mark, but that's lame. They should've molded him a special cane. The crowbar just looks like a crowbar. The barrel is great, though, and it has two trans green cylinders in it as well.
BUILD
No in-build pictures, sorry. The build is pretty straight-forward, but there are so many different things here and there to build that it stays fun the whole way through.
BATPOD
It wouldn't be a Batman set without a vehicle for Batman, now would it? NOPE. That's why we get this… interesting… vehicle for Batman. I really don't know why I'm being mean to this vehicle. It's barebones but it looks neat and rolls like a charm. The bit of dark blue and shark fins on the back are pretty nice too.
The one thing that's not great about it is how big it is. I don't know what the designer was going for, but the vehicle ended up rather long and kind of clunky. It's hard to make a small single-person vehicle in LEGO without using illegal connections or very creative techniques, and it shows in the size of this vehicle.
Another problem is that, like nearly every Batman vehicle, it messes with Batman's cape. You can almost position the cape behind the chair so that it doesn't get crumpled, but not quite. I wouldn't want to leave Batman with his cape on this ride for too long.
I guess the one upside is that it looks like Batman's cape is blowing in the wind.
FUNHOUSE
This is the one and only time you are going to see the entire thing in a shot, since my setup isn't quite big enough. With the track coming out, this set does take up quite a footprint. What can I say on this overview? This set really POPs, and in a perfectly realisticish way. The dark tan and brown really blend together well with the bright colors to create a true-to-life carny style. It's so pleasantly colorful in a way that isn't over the top.
There is so much going on here too; just look at all of those different things! Let me point out here too how many big parts there are: the staircase, rail parts, big wall pieces. Typically, this many big pieces would lead to a low piece count for a set, but the FUNhouse still has 380 pieces! Amazing!
The back is really quite bare, and there isn't much to do here. There is a little bit of room underneath to put the minifigures, but not much. I don't mind this, though. This is the rare type of set (like the Batcave) that doesn't exactly need an 'interior.'
FUNHOUSE - Guided Tour
Let's take a look around this place, ok? Ok. We'll start with the Riddler box on the bottom left. This is clearly styled after a traditional "pay a little money, get some weird advice" thing, although of course, it's a Riddler head in there. I don't know if this is actually out of any Batman source material, but LEGO has styled it quite nicely with a mix of green, trans green, dark green, and white. Certainly quite Riddler. Do note that on the box, Riddler has a different head and there's no green brick under him. I wish we had got a different head, but oh well.
The other side is quite bare. The sticker on the panel is lovely and carnyish, but other than that there's not much to see here. I don't understand why there is a railing piece at the back, nor why there are 2x2 black jumper plates between the red wall panels. One could stick the barrel or position figures on them, I guess.
Now, the upstairs. I love all of the different colors from the different villains coming together here; they surprisingly don't clash too much. The new railing pieces used at the front make excellent curvature on the model. There are so many things to see here; let's get to it!
I'll start with Riddler land on the right. First, a classic trap door. I have removed some pieces so you can see it better, but there are no problems accessing it with all the pieces there.
It's simple; pull the pin and Robin goes blamo. But wouldn't that help him escape the FUNhouse? Seems like more of an easy exit than a trap to me. Maybe it's just to not let Batman save him.
There is a really nice design element to this trapdoor: they put a smooth bottom piece on just one of the sides, so with the pin in on the same side the trapdoor sits flush with the part around it. It isn't quite as clever as the awesome trapdoor in the Flying Ninja's Fortress (since this pin still comes out), but it's always nice when the trapdoor sits flush. With the Danger Ahead sign and an arrow, though, it's pretty blatant that the door is there.
Up above is Riddler's crane, from which he dangles Robin. I love the white arch pieces here, and the use of brown on the arm part to make it look wooden. The one element I don't understand is the use of this piece on the left side. I've put Riddler on it, which I guess might be what it's for, but I'm still a little unclear on why it's there.
What makes this crane especially nice is that no old-school threading is necessary! I was worried that because it doesn't use an actual threaded part, there wouldn't be enough friction and with a minifigure on it would just fall, but that doesn't happen! You can crank it to any position!
Now for Joker's (or Harley's, but if it was then Joker wouldn't have anything) little pad. Yeah, there's some dust on it, get over it. Honestly, I wasn't sure what this was when I was building the set and I'm still not. I know what it does, though.
You put on a minifigure and turn the knob on the back, like so.
The problem is that with a minifigure pressed down normally, one turn won't do it. So, you turn that little knob back and forth a few times, and presto! The minifigure plops off. Most logically, this is another way to either break people's necks or stop Batman from doing something. In the comic book, Joker jumps on one side and launches Harley away, but that doesn't make any sense at all, so I'll stick with my version.
HAMMERTIME! The other play features so far have worked, but this one works like a charm and is so much fun! What could be more FUN than smashing minifigures with a giant hammer? Nothing! Each time I did this, Robin went a different distance, but that might've been due to how hardly I pressed him down on the jumper. If you only put him on lightly, he'll really go flying!
Finally, we get to Harley's cart. In the comic, this is used as an escape vehicle for Joker and Harley, which I think makes the most sense. They certainly wouldn't be launching Batman and Robin away, because then they could escape! But again, maybe every play feature in here is just to stop Batman from rescuing Robin.
Push the knob, and WHEE goes the cart! Simple and effective!
Down on the rails we get this little Joker doorway, which is the one flaw in this set. It was a nice idea and all, since amusement park cart rides often have opening doors along the way, but these NEEDED to be printed. With stickers, it's nearly impossible to get these to match up well. I tried for a long time, and still doesn't look great.
It's still fun ripping Joker's head apart, though!
WHOLE SET and CONCLUSION
Alright, the gang's all here. We've got a nice big building, rails, a Batman vehicle, a full cast of characters. Just look at the picture above. Doesn't that look cool? Yes, yes it does. The Funhosue simultaneously is wonderfully colorful and realistic, built on large pieces while still having a high piece count and not feeling juniorized. There is so much about this set for everyone: pieces in cool colors (like purple) for parts lovers, five wonderful minifigures for minifigure lovers all unique or available for a lower price than in their other sets, and a great-looking model for people who like to display sets as they come. Plus, there's a sticker sheet for sticker lovers! Hooray!
I'm really getting tired of the grey, grey, and grey in Star Wars sets, so this set comes as a much needed dose of colors. It's hard to find many faults in this set. 7666, another 'rare' set, was nice and all, but this is amazing.
RATINGS
Parts: 10/10 - Big parts, small parts, cool colors, less cool colors, and 380 parts! Superb!
Build: 10/10 - With all of the different sections in this set, the build never gets dull.
Design: 9/10 - I had to dock one because of the Joker door stickers. Those were supremely annoying. The Batpod is also a little weak, but it's excusable in light of the wonderful Funhouse.
Minifigures: 9/10 - The double headband on Bats is annoying, and the wide-mouth sides of Harley and Joker are a little weird. But the lineup of figures is undeniably great (as is Robin).
Price: 10/10 - This is a steal in the US. The price is truly right.
Playability: 10/10 - There is so much to do, this is almost like an ultimate playable set. All of the features work well too.
Overall: 9.7/10 - Go get this. Really. Do it. Unless you are really opposed to superheroes or pleasantly bright colors, you can't be disappointed.
I've been on the fence about picking up the Batcave, and I think I'll forgo it, since there is a Robin in this set. Poison Ivy isn't worth throwing out a $100.
) ! 
) .
!
