Set Review: 41500, 41501 & 41502 Infernites Mixels
Sunday, March 30th, 2014 at 5:47pm by Andrew, BZPower News Manager
Why write one review when you can do three? Today we're looking at the Infernites Mixels, namely 41500 Flain, 41501 Vulk, and 41502 Zorch, as well as their Max form. How did this batch of Mixels turn out, and are they ones you need to add to your collection? Continue on to check out our video and read my full thoughts on the sets!
Presentation
From the design of the box to the instruction manual, these are the first things you see before building the set.
The Mixels each come in a plastic pouch that's fairly durable - moreso than a normal polybag. It's more like the Hero Factory bags but without the ability to stand upright. They're bright and colorful and show off both the set and the cartoon form, along with all the other information you'd expect. There's also a clear window so you can see inside, but since the parts are in a separate bag within the bag, it's not very effective.
The back shows the three Mixels combining into Infernites Max; the entire first series is also there, urging you to collect them all. It's a pretty simple package, but it gets the job done.
Building
Half the fun is had building the set. How fun is it to build and how easy or challenging is it?
At 45, 58, and 69 pieces, these sets aren't very large or complex. The Infernites are also very symmetrical, meaning the arms and legs are always mirrors of each other. There are a good bit of SNOT techniques incorporated, which does help to mix it up, if you'll pardon the pun.
The combiner is more of the same, just on a slightly larger scale. Infernites Max will go together in no time, and the hardest part will be disassembling the original models. (Hooray for brick separators!)
Set Design
Now that the set is complete, we can critique how it looks from every angle. New or interesting pieces can also be examined here.
Parts-wise, the highlight of these sets are the new ball-and-socket joints, without a doubt. They are awesome pieces and I look forward to seeing how people decide to use them. The runners up are the new eyes - I absolutely love the Technic ball with the eye print. You can easily turn them to give your characters a variety of expressions. The tile eye is cool too, but not as exciting to me. Finally, there are some nice teeth pieces here.
Overall, you get a lot of red, dark red, and black bricks, plates, slopes, and brackets. It's a good selection and definitely has plenty of useful parts for building.
Flain has short, stubby arms and legs with a big head to contrast them. I like the dark red curved slopes and flames on his head, as well as his sever underbite. The teeth pieces on his feet make great claws, although the feet as a whole feel like they could be a bit bigger. The arms are simple clips, but they compliment the rest of the build well.
Zorch's head looks like it's something right out of the Muppets Creature Workshop. The handlebar as a unibrow is fantastic and it goes well with the Technic eyes and the teeth. He's got a small body with some really long legs that make him look built for speed. The curved slopes on his arms make them look pudgy and useless, kind of like a Tyrannosaurus rex. The T-rex didn't have flames shooting out of its back though, and I'm not sure if these are supposed to be tails or evidence of his speed.
Vulk is a squat little cyclops with oversized hands and feet but no real limbs in between. The eye with the black tooth pieces as ears makes for a good face, and the use of a hinge to angle it over the teeth makes him look less threatening than Zorch. Each of his hands have three fiery fingers and his feet use dark red cheese slopes for toes to good effect. Since his head is essentially his entire body and he only has one eye, he reminds me a bit of Mike from Monsters, Inc.
Nixels are the bad guys in the Mixel world, and I hope they pack a punch somehow, because size-wise they're not cutting it. This little guy would be cute if it wasn't for that mischievous and evil expression on his face, what with his cute little hands and ears and feet. A simple build the comes as part of Zorch, it's a nice little touch.
Infernites Max is the combiner of Flain, Zorch, and Vulk. He only uses about two-thirds of the pieces from those sets, making him about twice as large as your average Mixel. His face is rather ferocious - his mouth is full of teeth and there's fire coming out of his ears and mouth. The curved slopes are put to good effect in shaping the head. His arms are long and gangly, with hands similar to Vulk's. Unfortunately, his legs are short and stubby, despite there being leftover ball joint pieces. His body has a good amount of bulk befitting a combiner of his size.
Playability
The other half of the fun is in playing with the set. How well does the set function and is it enjoyable to play with?
The Mixels are made for play! With five to eleven points of articulation each, there tons of poses you can put them in. Their expressive faces make them great for role-playing too. And of course, if you have a Nixel or two, you can have them do battle, even if it's a bit lopsided.
The Infernites Max has thirteen points of articulation, meaning more posing fun to be had. He's tons of fun to play with, although since I had to take all the Infernites apart to make him it's a bit lonely. Time to buy more Mixels!
Final Thoughts
Once it's all said and done, how does the set stack up? Should I get it?
Pros
What's to like?
- New ball joints!
- New eyes!
- Nice designs with lots of character
- Good variety of red and dark red parts
Cons
What's not to like?
- It would be nice to have more points of articulation, especially on the legs
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At only $5 each, the Mixels are a great value. While I don't feel the need to collect them all, I'll continue to pick some up for the new joints, eyes, and for the fun of the designs. I don't think you can go wrong with any of the Infernites, although I think Vulk is my favorite.
I hope you all have enjoyed this review - your questions and comments are always welcome in the Talkback. We've got plenty other set reviews in the works, so keep checking back for them along with the latest LEGO news, right here on BZPower!
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