MOD: 6862 Superman vs. EXTRA-powered armor Lex

[Tereglith]

Hello, eurobricksers. It's just me, friendly old Lex Luthor, hijacking an account to tell you about some modifications that I've made to my powersuit. Surely I'll be able to take down superman now that I have.... KNEES!

Dramatic pose by Tereglith, on Flickr

These knees, previously denied me by the cruel Lego designers, will allow me to destroy superman once and for all. But more importantly, they also allow me to do cool poses!

Observe: here I am getting in touch with my 70's side, with more aplomb than ever before! (thanks to my knees)

Disco Lex by Tereglith, on Flickr

I can now take down Superman with a move this old Japanese man taught me - It's called the Crane Kick, impossible to defend against. What? Karate Kid? Nope, never heard of it.

Crane Kick by Tereglith, on Flickr

I can squat! Or at least bend down. Sort of. It's handy for discharging waste materials from the dorsal vent, anyway. What? Why are you looking at me like that?

I can squat now! by Tereglith, on Flickr

I can even emulate my favorite rum mascot, Captain Morgan:

Captain Morgan by Tereglith, on Flickr

But knees aren't all I've added. My longer arms mean that I can now lift things more effectively! (and throw them at Superman, of course)

Benchin' a cube by Tereglith, on Flickr

I have a gyroscopic balance system for when that annoying Man of Steel steals my shins, too.

Very funny, Superman by Tereglith, on Flickr

Perhaps most importantly, once I've grabbed Superman, I have the ability to threaten him with the gun without putting him down on the ground again! I lost more battles that way...

I can finally threaten him! by Tereglith, on Flickr

All in all, I think this new design just cuts a much more dashing profile. The old one was cute, but this one really reflects how awesome I am, don't you think?

A more dashing profile by Tereglith, on Flickr

Part of it is the gravitas of the dark green in the torso. And check out how well balanced that puppy is!

Torso by Tereglith, on Flickr

It's a lot taller, as well. In fact, it's as tall as the Seattle Space Needle! Ha ha, just kidding - that's my solid-platinum scale replica of the Space Needle that I keep in my bathroom. It pays to be rich.

Size comparison by Tereglith, on Flickr

Well, I think now that I'm done showing off, it's time to take this suit out for a spin and fight Superman one last time. I've gotta win this time, right?

You're a jerk, Superman

I hope you had as much fun looking at these pictures as I did making them. Knees open up a whole exciting world of possibilities. And yes, that is really my Superman figure holding up the powersuit with no trouble or digital manipulation at all. When you get the balance right, minifigures can hold a whole frikkin' lot. Try it at home!

This MOD mainly came about as I was playing with the set after building it and was consistently stymied by its lack of knees. It was cute, and I still think it's a great set, but I wanted to make it better. So I went to my LEGO collection and made some thighs. But then the legs were proportionally way too long, so I built the torso to be bigger as well (and in the process finally got my money's worth out of 4192 Fountain of Youth). But then the arms were too stubby, so of course I had to re-do the upper arms as well, and by the end it was almost entirely new except for the hands, feet, and shins. The final count is 284 pieces for the new version, hence my topic subtitle.

I don't consider this quite finished yet, but I'm not sure if it ever will be. I'd need to find the two instances that I own of this piece to bring the shoulders up to snuff (they'd go on the axles sticking out of the torso instead of the balls) and I'd need to buy like six more of this piece to make things more secure, as the equivalent axle-and-ball constructions I have right now have an unfortunate tendency to fall apart if moved too vigorously.

Anyway, thanks for looking/reading. Larger photos and more poses can be found on my flickr, just click any of the pictures in the post. I'm open to suggestions for how to further improve the armor, so C&C are welcome. Lex would love to know what went wrong.

Edited January 24, 2012 by Tereglith

[TheLegoDr]

That is amazing. I already wanted to get that set, now I really want to modify it like yours! Very impressive. Knees make the world go round.

[CorneliusMurdock]

Very nice. And the pictures are hilarious.

I was going to mod mine so the one arm is less a hand holding a gun but rather a an arm laser cannon. I'll have to give mine knees now, too.

[surrideo]

Great modification to one of the best sets of the first wave. Thanks for sharing the pics especially Superman lifting the mech, don't shake the table....

[Oky]

Hehe. Very nice, Tereglith Luthor! The lack of knees was a pretty big flaw, as were the asymmetrical arms, but you solved it quite elegantly. Perhaps your next modification could be to make your cockpit airtight so that you don't get frozen when the Man of Steel breaths on it.

And yes, Superman is a jerk.

[chump]

Now it is a worthy opponent to Dr. Inferno's 8970 Robo Attack. Who would win?

[JackJonespaw]

Very nice MODs! Go knees!

[Vindicare]

What a great and funny way to show your MOD! Very nice. The added articulation is good, what evil genius doesn't want to do the hustle? I have yet to see this set in stores, but am eager to get this for Superman!

[B-Lister]

I tried doing this with mine, and failed, so it's nice to see it can be done.

[Derek]

This is cool as a MOC, but I like the simplicity and creativity of the original.

Nice work though.

-Derek

[just2good]

Nice power suit you got there, Lex!

The pictures with the narrations cracked me up!

[Mr_Malfoy]

Nice suit, Tereglith, uh, I mean, Lex!

[LEGO Train 12 Volts]

Amazing mobile suit!

The last picture is absolutely outstanding!

Great work!

[Rocketbilly]

A superb modification there, very nice work. It certainly looks imposing. The drak green is great too, though I understand your frustration at the joints falling apart - all of my old ball pieces seem to just slide off the axles with very little effort at all - a shame really, they've got such potential for things like this.

Edited January 29, 2012 by Rocketbilly

[Tereglith]

Thank you for all your kind words! It's nice to see some people appreciate my work, even if the people of Metropolis don't.

Knees make the world go round.

I'll have to give mine knees now, too.

Very nice MODs! Go knees!

Knees are indeed excellent. I highly recommend them. Unfortunately, I've found that they also make the powersuit WAY harder to drive. I suppose I should have added in a couple extra levers when I made it more complex...

Now it is a worthy opponent to Dr. Inferno's 8970 Robo Attack. Who would win?

You DARE question the supremacy of the Lexbot? Surely I would defeat that upstart Inferno. His suit is designed to trade blows with puny agents, while mine can withstand hits from the Man of Steel himself! ... provided he's being nice that day...

Hehe. Very nice, Tereglith Luthor! The lack of knees was a pretty big flaw, as were the asymmetrical arms, but you solved it quite elegantly. Perhaps your next modification could be to make your cockpit airtight so that you don't get frozen when the Man of Steel breaths on it.

And yes, Superman is a jerk.

While the aspersions you cast on my original suit seem rather insolent, I'm glad you like the new model. And your suggestion is a good one; my solution was to install an automatic parka-applier inside the cockpit. It... it didn't work out so well. I'm also heartened that you recognize my foe's true colors. He's such a jerk, for serious.

I understand your frustration at the joints falling apart - all of my old ball pieces seem to just slide off the axles with very little effort at all - a shame really, they've got such potential for things like this.

Indeed, I too was disappointed with the pieces' tendency to fall apart. I blame it on the manufacturer; Bruce over at Wayne Enterprises was supposed to send me those all-in-one joint constructs, but instead he sent me these shoddy conglomerations. It's almost like he knows what I'm up to...

Thanks for sharing the pics especially Superman lifting the mech, don't shake the table....

The last picture is absolutely outstanding!

Would you guys believe that it stayed in that position for a good hour after I took the picture? Because it did. It was pretty amazing. Superman's head just fit right into the basin created by some of the top back pieces and it all balanced perfectly.

In all seriousness, thanks for all your kind comments. This is one of the most positive reactions I've ever gotten to a creation, and for once my photography was passable as well!

[h-7]

That is a great mod! You made an awesome set even better.