[Review] 71732 Epic Battle Set - Jay vs. Serpentine

[Garmetrowolf]

Did you know, snakes only eat 6-30 meals a year? Why am I bringing up snakes here? Because today I’m reviewing 71732 Epic Battle Set - Jay vs. Serpentine.  I couldn’t wait to get this set because of the cool looking trans-neon green activated golden weapon parts and the new Serpentine (who could very well be Rattla making his first appearance in a Legacy set). Should you get this set? Read more to find out.

Set Information
Name:  71732 Epic Battle Set - Jay vs. Serpentine
Theme: Ninjago
Year: 2021
Pieces: 69
Minifigures: 1
Price: £8.99 / $9.99 / 9.99€
Resources: Brickset and Bricklink

 

1. The Box:

The box features the new and exclusive Epic Battle Jay swinging his activated Golden nunchucks straight at poor Rattla lookalike's head (anyone notice that he's weirdly kind of smiling even though he's about to be smacked in the face?). The interesting thing about this box is that it’s actually much flatter than most of the other types of small Ninjago sets which likely saves cardboard, despite appearing to be bigger. The cardboard is laminated and of high quality but still easy to open.

 

 

The back features a surprised looking Jay being attacked by the Serpentine warrior (wielding a blade made from one of the original nunchuck handles in reddish brown and a large white claw/fang piece) from behind the snake statue. It also shows some of the other collectable figures from the Ninjago Winter 2021 line and demonstrates how the spinner works (more on that later in the review). The bottom features the usual text explaining where Lego parts are born and a choking label that reminds us that although Lego may be shiny, we still shouldn’t eat it.

 

 

2. The Figures:

The main reason I bought this set was to get this figure which I have compared to the original Rattla from 2012 (image curtesy of Bricklink because mine is lost somewhere in the abyss that is my room) . For those of you who don’t know, Rattla is a scout, and the first Hypnobrai tribe member to be released in the Legacy line. The original Rattla (right) appeared in five sets, mostly in 2012. The new, sand blue Legacy figure, in my opinion, is way better. I love his silver knee guards, and the curved lines on his torso that look hypnotic but also remind me of Darth Maul's tattoos (which I really like). Looking at the two figures, it’s very clear that Lego’s figure designing has improved since 2012. The new figure's torso is much cooler than his 2012 counterpart. In fact, the only thing I like more about the original figure is that it has printing on the cobra hood. New guy does not, which is a shame.

 

 

 

The printing continues onto our friend's back. It seems a bit odd that Lego printed on the back of his head, which will normally be covered by the cobra hood piece, but didn't print on the back of the cobra hood piece itself. Still, the printing on the back of his head is a nice touch. I also appreciate how the strap across his chest on the front also continues onto his back, which adds to his coolness.

 

 

This version of Jay in his Epic Battle suit is exclusive to this set. I have to admit, I wasn't a big fan of the Epic Battle suite until I saw it in the photos (for starters, adding the words "Epic Battle" before anything just makes it sound terrible) . Now that I have this figure, he's grown on me quite a bit. I particularly like the contrast between the blue and white on his uniform. The head is the same one we've received for a number of years. While an update would be nice, the piece works just fine here.

 

 

Jay's printing continues onto the back and includes a cool insignia. According to my Ninjargon decoder (a fancy chart somewhere on the internet that contains the Ninjago alphabet), the letters on the back spell "vs." Absent anything from the show, my guess is that this is because the set is called "Jay vs. Serpentine." 

 

3. The Weapons:

In the Ninjago series, four golden weapons, (the Sword of Fire, the Nunchucks of Lightning, the Shurikens of Ice, and the Scythe of Quakes) were created by the First Spinjitzu Master (Garmadon and Sensei Wu's father.) These weapons contain enormous strength and are a very big plot device in parts of the Ninjago series. It is extremely exciting to get all of these weapons in one set, especially in their activated forms. This is the only set to contain them in trans-neon green (with each other Epic Battle set containing them in a different exclusive color to make your bank account all the lighter). The set comes with two of each activated weapon part.

 

 

I am impressed with the amount of detail that went into these pieces. The shurikin, sword and nunchucks are all based off of actual Lego pieces in existence. This can best be seen by comparing the normal and activated nunchuck pieces. The activated shurikin and sword pieces have a similar level of detail, while the scythe seems to be completely new. Hopefully, we'll also see a non-activated scythe to accompany it at some point in the future.

 

 

4. The Main Build:

The main focus of the build is on the figures, so as you would expect, the rest of the set is a bit less exciting. That being said, the statue is cleverly constructed, and looks pretty menacing. I like the use one of the horns that first appeared in black in 70795 Mask Maker vs. Skull Grinder as a tail. I also appreciate the pearl gold bars and fangs which are always fun to collect, even if they've become more common with the release of the Chinese New Year Sets. The statue does not have a play feature itself, though the side structure can be knocked down by a spinning either figure. This is the main play feature.

 

The spinner works surprisingly well. When spinning Jay, the weight of the activated nunchucks makes him roll particularly smoothly. When snake dude is on the spinner, he certainly has enough force to knock down any Ninja or annoying younger siblings in his path.

5. Final Thoughts:

So, should you pick this bad boy up? Here's my breakdown.

Playability: 8/10 - The figures are the main draw of the set, and the statue and sidebuild themselves doesn't really do much. But the activated golden weapons, and spinner still provide a good amount of entertainment, and it is fun to battle the two figures against each other.

Building Experience: 5/10 - Meh. The statue is solid, but the rest of the set doesn't have much to offer in the way of building.

Design: 10/10 - The spinner works very well and I like how the statue looks. The golden weapons and figures are also extremely well designed.  

Minifigures: 9/10 - I love both of these figures. Rattla/ the Serpentine Warrior/Serpentine dude/ whatever else you want to call him is just as great as you'd expect (though the lack of printing on his cobra hood is annoying). Lego has really improved figure printing and Epic Battle Jay is surprisingly cool.

Price: 5/10 - Frankly, this is where the set suffers. At 69 pieces for a set that costs £8.99 / $9.99 / 9.99€, that's roughly 13.0 pence, 14.5 cents, or 14.5 Euro cents per piece. Any way you slice it, that's significantly more than the golden standard here in the States of .10 cents a piece.

Verdict: 8.5/10 - Most people buying this set want the two figures or the activated golden weapons. These things do not disappoint. The statue is also pretty cool as a display piece. The spinner works well, even if the set doesn't have many other play features. While the high price per piece count makes it hard for me to give this set full marks. I'd still pick this up, especially if you can nab it on sale.

Edited February 16, 2021 by Garmetrowolf

[JintaiZ]

Nice review! I agree this set is a bit overpriced, but $10 is just a low enough price in general...

[Pirean_Grammaticul]

i believe the scythe piece is an "activated" form of the scythe included with the ninjago weapons pack, but extended slightly; otherwise very good review! personally i'm a huge fan of the snake structure compared to the other 3 models, and the figures do their job (although i expect rattla with the euphemistic face to be available in more sets than this) so solid overall package for $10. here's hoping this summer gives us figures for lloyd and nya.

(also not a member but have you considered applying for eurobricks' reviewer's academy?)

[Garmetrowolf]

2 hours ago, JintaiZ said:

Nice review! I agree this set is a bit overpriced, but $10 is just a low enough price in general...

Agreed. Definitely still worth it if you want any of the figures or weapons! I'm curious how the other sets compare to this one as this was the most appealing to me because of the Serpentine. I might have to order them and see for myself.

2 hours ago, Pirean_Grammaticul said:

i believe the scythe piece is an "activated" form of the scythe included with the ninjago weapons pack, but extended slightly; otherwise very good review! personally i'm a huge fan of the snake structure compared to the other 3 models, and the figures do their job (although i expect rattla with the euphemistic face to be available in more sets than this) so solid overall package for $10. here's hoping this summer gives us figures for lloyd and nya.

(also not a member but have you considered applying for eurobricks' reviewer's academy?)

Thank you for pointing that out about the scythe! I didn't know that at all. Now I'll have to get that part. I agree, Rattla guy does seems like the kind of figure who will be slipped into sets later down the line (hopefully with a set with LLoyd (with his cool Ron Weasley hair) or Nya).

And this is my second review for EB Reviewer's Academy so I still have lots to learn. I appreciate your encouragement!