Review: LEGO 76058 Spider-Man: Ghost Rider Team-up

August 8, 2016 | 38

It’s August, which means that Australians will finally get their hands on the second half of 2016 sets very, very soon. I got a little impatient and ordered some of the new Super Heroes sets through LEGO.com because I felt that waiting two months for the new sets to arrive in stores here is the silliest thing ever.

The second half of 2016 catalogue contains some really juicy new Super Heroes sets and the debuts of a bunch of much-anticipated new characters as minifigures. One such set that I was particularly looking forward to was 76058 Spider-Man: Ghost Rider Team-up which finally gives us an official Ghost Rider minifig.

Cast aside any unfortunate memories of the awful Nicholas Cage movies and enjoy my review of 76058 Spider-Man: Ghost Rider Team-up!

Name: Spider-Man: Ghost Rider Team-up
Set Number: 76058
Pieces: 217
Price: AU$39.99 | US$19.99 (Buy from LEGO.com [AUS] [USA] [Amazon])
Exclusive to: N/A
Minifigs: 3
Theme: Marvel Super Heroes
Year of Release: 2016
Instructions: Book 1

So first thing’s first – you may be wondering when the new 2HY sets will start appearing in Australia? I don’t really know. Retailers have been hinting that they’ll arrive in mid-August, so if all goes well, we should start seeing them trickle into store shelves as early as this week or next week.

I like Ghost Rider as a superhero. I just think that the premise of a motorcycle stuntmen who makes a deal with the devil to save his father, who then transforms into a spooky skeleton that is bathed in hellfire and rides a fiery motorcycle is one of the most bizarre and outrageous things in the world – I just love the absurdity of it all.

I also like Nicholas Cage’s Ghost Riders movies – in a “they’re so bad that they’re good” kind of way. Mostly because I remember watching the first one in the cinema and cringeing over how bad it was. Seriously, go watch the trailer or even better yet – the entire movie if you’ve never seen in. It’s literally one of the worst movies of all time!

The movie’s infamous reputation is probably why it’s taken us this long to finally get a Ghost Rider minifigure but the wait is pretty damn worth it. Ghost Rider is a pretty iconic Marvel character and his entrance into the LEGO Marvel Super Heroes universe is welcomed by all Marvel fans.

Accompanying good Johnny Blaze is the ubiquitous Spider-Man and also another new face – the Hobgoblin.

Spider-Man is the same old Spider-Man minifigure. It kinda irks me that LEGO have not bothered to update him for like 3 years and that we’re still getting the same design in 2016. It’s gotten to the point that I go “Oh, another Spider-Man” and quickly chuck him in my spare minifig bin as I must have like, close to 10 of these guy by now.

It causes me to wonder – how many of these minifigs did LEGO actually manufacture in 2012 that they’re still trying to flog this version off? I have a conspiracy theory that LEGO dramatically overestimated the world’s reception (and demand) of the Amazing Spider-Man reboot starring Andrew Garfield and made way too many of these minifigs, in what must’ve been a humongous empire of planned (then scrapped) Spider-Man themed sets. Just a hunch…

Spidey does come with a brand new accessory – he has a new “webbing piece” which is snazzy looking as it creates that “web-shooting” effect to use on his foes. As cool as it looks, it’s not without flaws as it’s quite large and heavy which means that Spider-Man has issues balancing if you intend to pose him while holding on to the webbing piece.

It does look great for photos and is a big step up from the white string pieces that LEGO usually equips Spider-Man with – I just wish that they had made it a little smaller to fit Spider-Man’s scale better.

Here’s a look at the Hobgoblin minifigure. Admittedly, I’m not that familiar with the comic book character – save that he’s some sort of Green Goblin copycat and that he used an enhanced version of Norman Osborne’s Goblin Formula to give himself powers? Something like that, I reckon.

Despite the character’s unoriginal origins, I do really like the Hobgoblin’s design which translates beautifully into a LEGO minifigure. The bright, in-your-face orange and dark blue colour scheme works really well as a toy. I love his bright orange hood, and orange tattered cape.

He also has a pretty sinister looking face, which is tan-coloured and has a grotesque, almost monstrous look thanks to his skin deformities and bright red eyes. The Hobgoblin’s torso design is pretty unremarkable as there aren’t a lot of intricate details, just two leather straps that go across his chest and waist.

Here’s a look at his bright orange tattered cape, which looks very much like the capes that the Ringwraiths from the Lord of the Rings theme had, only this one’s in a blinding shade of orange.

Here’s a look at the Hobgoblin’s back printing, where you can see a small leather satchel printed on. He also has an alternate face, with a slightly angrier expression. The Hobgoblin comes with a printed Pumpkin Bomb which has a flame piece attached to it.

All in all, a great debut for the Hobgoblin minifigure who nails his visual identity thanks to his vibrant colour scheme and some really cool details like his weapon and face printing.

The star of this set, and rightfully so is the Ghost Rider minifigure, who makes one heck of an entrance into the LEGO universe. After 2 awful movies, you could argue that this stunning example of a minifigure can somehow absolve the cinematic sins of Nicholas Cage.

LEGO have gotten all the details right with the Ghost Rider minifig. His trademark look, the skull enveloped in hellfire is brought to life using a particularly interesting technique – a brand new head which has the flames moulded to his head.

When I first opened this set, I was pretty surprised as I had expected his fiery hairdo to be a removable hair accessory. It’s a pretty interesting design choice, fusing the both together but the results are brilliant – the moulding quality is superb and the translucent flames really kick Ghost Rider’s appearance up a notch.

Ghost Rider’s torso has some really cool bits of detail, such as his “core” being on fire and his signature leather jacket and chains running across his body.

Here’s a look at Ghost Rider’s back printing, where we have the continuation of the chains as well as more flames peeking out from the holes in his leather jacket.

To drive home what an excellent minifigure Ghost Rider is, the cherry on top of this very delicious cake is his accessory – a fiery trans-orange chain which is simply perfect for Ghost Rider.

I was quite surprised to see that they’ve added in some instructions on how to properly dislodge minifigs from the Super Jumper in the manual. In case you were wondering, Super Jumpers have been known to damage minifigure legs which is why I avoid them like the plague. You’re free to use them if you wish, but I prefer not to take any risks.

Here’s a look at the sticker sheet included in the set.

The first thing you assemble in the set is the Hobgoblin’s glider, which like the character’s origins is “heavily inspired” by the Green Goblin’s glider. It’s fairly basic, with some purple elements and flick fire missiles but on its own, there’s nothing particularly noteworthy about it.

It does serve as a good prop for the Hobgoblin and also as a nice little stand for the minifigure to stand on.

The next thing you put together is a small street corner. It has some nice details such as a very tall traffic light pole, some street signs, a trash can and some newspaper boxes. It all looks pretty normal, but this street corner contains some interesting Easter Eggs and references.

First up – the street names. I did some research and discovered that Bleeker Street (spelled Bleecker in the movies and in real life) is the location of the Joe’s Pizza, the pizza place that Peter Parker gets fired from in Spider-Man 2 (Sam Raimi one). Second Avenue is also the location of Doc Ock’s laboratory in the same movie.

The two newspaper boxes have stickers on their sides, featuring two different competing newspapers in the Marvel Universe – the infamous Daily Bugle, edited by J Jonah Jameson, known for its dramatic fear-mongering of all things Spider-Man and Front Line, another newspaper, edited by investigative journalist Ben Urich, which has a more serious headline about the Vulture (an iconic Spider-Man foe) terrorising New York City.

In each newspaper box, there are 2 stickered tiles for each newspaper. I didn’t really like the stickered tiles and wished that they were printed. In the trash can is some rubbish, with a green plant element and a bone.

The Hobgoblin comes a Pumpkin Bombs and some “flame pieces” which allow you to simulate explosions or flames when he starts terrorising the poor street corner. I guess newspapers are pretty combustible. Maybe the Hobgoblin hates the free press.

The main build of this set is Ghost Rider’s Bike, which like its rider, also does not disappoint. It has a pretty simple shape, with a larger rear wheel and its covered in flames. It does look a little toy-ish and doesn’t really resemble a “chopper” that Ghost Rider is known to ride, but for a LEGO set, the shape is mostly done right.

Here’s a look at the bike from the side. It does look a little long, but I do appreciate how tightly its designed. It feels very sturdy in the hand, and there are some attractive angles and features such as the exhausts and the slightly angled front.

Of course, you can’t miss the sweet flame elements that generously blanket Ghost Rider’s Bike.

Here’s a comparison with Batman’s Bike from 76053 Gotham City Cycle Chase – it does look pretty similar and the sizes match up. If there’s one particular flaw about Ghost Rider’s Bike, I would say it’s the colour scheme. I feel that there’s a little too much black in it, and would’ve much preferred some silver or (at the very least) some more grey elements to give it a bit of definition.

Some extra skulls or bones littering the bike would’ve been pretty sweet too.

What I liked:

• Ghost Rider minifig is perfect
• Hobgoblin is well designed
• Ghost Rider’s sweet fiery bike
• Plenty of Marvel Easter Eggs

What I didn’t like: 

• Recycled Spider-Man minifigure
• Bike could use some extra colour

Final thoughts: This is the kind of set that all Super Heroes sets should aspire to be. It packs plenty of value, doesn’t break your wallet and offers up some really well-designed minifigures – most of all, it feels like a great all-round complete experience.

At AU$40, this set is not at a very intimidating price-point. It comes with 2 great minifigures (and Spider-Man), one of which is an extremely popular Marvel character. Ghost Rider is stunning and fans will undoubtedly be very pleased with the minifigure’s design. His flaming hairpiece is gorgeous and his flaming chain whip is such an amazingly fitting accessory to go with him.

Hobgoblin might not be the most popular supervillain on the planet but he makes up for it with an interesting minifig design – the bright colours just work so well on him. I also like his minifig’s head, which I think is pretty underrated in this set – you can reuse it for a fantasy monster, given that it looks pretty evil looking, with the sallow skin and bright red eyes.

In the set, you get a nice balance between playability and display potential. The little flame pieces that come with Hobgoblin are pretty useful in turning the street corner included into a chaotic fiery scene. The street corner also works well with everything else, giving the other elements like Hobgoblin’s Glider and Ghost Rider’s Bike some much needed context and a sense of location. 

Ghost Rider’s Bike is well done – it’s got a sturdy design which should hold up to rough play and also looks great on display. The colour is a little drab with too many black elements but the flames that envelope it do a good job of seizing your attention.

All in all, this is a really good entry level Super Heroes set and a must-buy for LEGO Marvel fans, purely because of Ghost Rider. I expect it to be one of the more popular sets this year, since Ghost Rider has a pretty large following and LEGO have kindly slotted him into a pretty affordable set.

76058 Spider-Man: Ghost Rider Team-up is a LEGO Super Heroes set done right and an excellent introduction to the second half 2016 Marvel sets.

Rating: 4/5

Thanks for reading! If you’re planning on getting this set or already own it, I’d love to hear your thoughts on it in the comments section!

To read some of my other reviews, head on over to the Review Hub to catch up on some of my other Marvel Super Heroes reviews.

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Here’s hoping that the new August wave of sets start hitting Australian shelves soon so I can bring you some more new reviews in the coming days. Stay tuned!