Iron Man vs. The Mandarin: Ultimate Showdown

What do you get for the boy who has every lego imaginable, get him super heroes Legos. One of the best part of Lego products is how they work to integrate new storylines out in popular culture. This topical Iron Man set gave me a way to pretty safely select an item and know it wasn't replicated. My nephew is a discerning consumer of Legos. This set kept him well occupied and got voted up to one that got super glued so as to not lose parts and still be able to play with the product. more less

Overall, the LEGO 76008 set is a decent. Yes, I realise that kids like to re-enact scenes from the movie, but it offers fairly good play-value and allows children to make up their own stories, which is what LEGO is all about. The Iron Man MK17 armour is a great minifigure, the Mandarin figure looks good enough and it's nice to get these two characters in a cheaper set. more less

I feel that this set is a little underwhelming. Yes, we do get the two exclusive minifigures but the build leaves much to be desired. It was probably included because a similar looking vehicle might be showing up in the Iron Man 3 movie. more less

With an MSRP of $12.99 USD, and 91 pieces, I would pass on this set, unless you want the minifigs. It's not a great parts pack for those of you who aren't enamored by the minifigs. more less

The main problem with Iron Man vs The Mandarin: Ultimate Showdown, besides its unwieldy name, is its price. I think $10 would be far more reasonable for the set, given its 91 pieces and, well, lack of anything terribly exciting. It's hard for me to recommend it since Trevor just doesn't stick out all that much. Maybe if we had another set of armor (Silver Centurion, please) the $13 would be worth it. As it stands, though, I'm glad we got the Heartbreaker and not another Mk. 42. more less

Skip it if you care about sets. It's not worth it at the $13 the US pays and certainly not the $16-17 here in Canada. If your main concern is minifigs, then this has two exclusives and you can't complete you Hall of Armour without it. With the upcoming “exclusive" Iron Man poly containing the cheapest suit from last years sets and no Iron Patriot in sight, you may want to jump on what you can get. Wait for a sale or to pad an order if need be. more less