As part of my 30th birthday celebration, my wife treated me to a mini-shopping spree to the LEGO Store where I picked up three Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtle sets, the first of which I’ll be reviewing here is the Kraang Lab Escape.
This is the smallest set in the TMNT line at 90 pieces, but with that you get two minifigures: Michelangelo and a Foot Soldier and of course Kraang (which I don’t necessarily count as a minifigure).
Where’s that f*cking piece?!?
Now, I’m not one of those LEGO reviews that breaks down the condition of the instruction manual or take pictures mid-build. I’ve been building LEGOs for 25 years there are no breaks, just little plastic bricks that need to be put in their place. So here is the finished product ….
I’ll freely admit that I’ve only seen about half of an episode of the new TMNT cartoon, so I’m not well versed in the actual plot, or if this little lab escape even occurred in the show. This is a very fun and quick build, Kraangs walker had flick-fire missiles, the top rotates and the legs are for additional (but limited posing). But hell, you guys just want to know about Mikey right?
The shell is a essentially a back pack that slides over the head post, and his nunchukas are three separate pieces. I found the printing on both minifigures to be well done. Kraang is actually a pliable piece of plastic, and a blank pink minifigure head sits inside of his brain body.
With a $12.99 MSRP, you’re paying roughly $0.14 per piece but for those of you that want to make sure you get all four Turtles this is the cheapest set in which Mikey makes an appearance. For a buyers guide of sorts, check out my article on Infuriating LEGO Math: Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtle Edition, which lays out the least expensive means to obtain all four of your favorite ninja teens.
Overall, I’m quite pleased with this set. It took me longer to take the pictures for this review than to actually build it, and you aren’t stuck with a ridiculous vehicle or playset that will fall by the wayside in your TMNT display. Kraang’s Lab Escape earns an official star rating.