LEGO Batman: Allies

Huntress, Batman, Robin (Damian Wayne) Nightwing, Batgirl, Commissioner Gordon

As a lifelong fan of Batman, and a nearly lifelong fan of LEGO, when LEGO announced a Batman line in 2007, I was immediately onboard.  LEGO did a great job with Batman for a few years, and then restarted the line last year, expanding it to include the rest of the DC Comics universe (Superman, Wonder Woman, Aquaman etc.).

But when you've known Batman as long as I have, you need something more.  So I've updated some of my Batman LEGO customs and added some new ones.

Batman, Red Robin, Huntress, Robin, Nightwing, Batgirl, Commissioner Gordon

The Batman Family has changed and expanded over the years--the Robin I grew up with also grew up, so Dick Grayson, once the Boy Wonder, has become Nightwing. LEGO released him in one set about five years ago, and the only thing I changed about that minifigure was the hair.  The others are all new, including Tim Drake (the third Robin, now "Red Robin), Damian Wayne (the current Robin), and a personal favorite of mine, Barbara Gordon as Batgirl.  I updated my Huntress and Commissioner Gordon minifigures to give them the "light flesh" faces instead of yellow faces, since the LEGO  Super Heroes line uses more realistic skin tones than classic LEGO does.  LEGO has finally released a Commissioner Gordon this year, in a set based on The Dark Knight Rises...I'm thinking I'll keep my cartoon/comics based version around too.

Muppet Batman: Commissioner Gordon and Alfred

Some of my favorite Batman characters aren't superheroes or supervillains--they're the "civilians" that help Batman in his war on crime. The two most important, and long-time favorites of mine, are Commissioner Gordon and Alfred Pennyworth. Once I saw that Palisades Toys' Reporter Kermit came in a trenchcoat, and Rowlf in a tuxedo, it wasn't much of a jump to make two of Batman's greatest allies.

Kermit was a pretty easy makeover--a little white moustache made from Sculpey at the end of his nose (perhaps Salesman Grover sold it to him before selling him a moustache comb?), and that's it. I didn't repaint any of the rest of the figure, so he's a good enough Commissioner Gordon already.

I did make a little accessory for him from a broken Animal drumset and Muppet Show TV camera: the Batsignal. Because, as good a cop as Commissioner Gordon is, without the Batsignal, he's pretty much another cop in a deteriorating city bedeviled by costumed supervillains.

Commissioner Gordon ready to flip the switch, summoning Batman and Robin.

The Dynamic Duo--looks like Robin's getting a scolding. It's probably about the short shorts.

Rowlfred was even easier in some respects, because I didn't resculpt anything for him. The tux he was wearing was already perfect for Alfred Pennyworth's butlering, so I just painted the vest and pants a different color to make him a little more manservant and a little less grand pianist. I also put some gray in his fur to age him up a bit--Alfred's a nice surrogate father figure for Bruce Wayne. It helps if he's older. Maybe not Michael Caine old, but older.

Man's Best Friend and a Gentleman's Gentleman.

Cleaning the Batcave. There's probably some scolding here too. Guy can't catch a break.

Close up of those eye wrinkles and gray fur. He needs Just For Dogs.

The crime-fighting and Batcave-cleaning protectors of Gotham City.

Next up: the villains!

LEGO: Gotham Allies

When LEGO first announced they'd be coming out with Batman playsets, minifigures, and video games, I figured it was too good to be true. They made some great sets, many of Batman's worst villains, and some of his allies like Butler Alfred Pennyworth, Nightwing (the "old Robin") and the new Robin.

But it wasn't enough. The toy line only lasted two years, which wasn't enough time to make all of the characters that were demonizing and defending Gotham City, so I had to take matters into my own hands. The first ally I made was one of my favorites, Commissioner James Gordon. Commissioner Gordon has been Batman's closest friend since forever, manning the Bat-signal from atop police headquarters. How could LEGO not make him. My first attempt just had Jim in a bow tie and suspenders; he ended up looking like an old Jimmy Olsen more than Gotham's police chief. I also made his daughter, Barbara Gordon. She used to be Batgirl--after a run-in with the Joker left her paralyzed, she kept fighting crime as the computer genius Oracle. I need to make a better wheelchair for her, and that shirt she's wearing, which was supposed to be a kind of sexy look, is more muffintop than I expected. She'll get an upgrade someday.

Commissioner Gordon (v 1.0) and Oracle

So I updated Commissioner Gordon, giving him a long tie instead of a bowtie. I still like his moustache and glasses, so I left those alone. Ideally, he'd be wearing a trenchcoat, but since LEGO hasn't ever made one of those, and I don't want to restrict his movement too much, I'll keep him in shirtsleeves for now. Alongside him is the new Batgirl, Cassandra Cain. She's got a black cowl and facemask that entirely covers her face, so that part was easy; I gave her a more slinky utility belt and an updated Bat-logo, more like what she wears in the comics--a sort of hand-stitched looking costume.

Updated Commissioner Gordon with Batgirl

The final Bat-ally for now is Huntress, a more ruthless version of Batgirl who happens to be a school teacher during the day. Getting to take out her frustrations on punk kids by beating them after-hours sounds pretty good sometimes--no wonder she's so brutal. Her purple and black costume was pretty easy to make--simply a Severus Snape body from Harry Potter, with Dumbledore's purple cape. I added a large crucifix to her costume (a big part of the character at the time) and painted a mask on her li'l face. She turned out well, and I like her as an addition to the "set." There will be other additions to this set as I go on--new characters like Red Robin, Damian Wayne, and Misfit would all be easy enough to make. But this will do for now.

Huntress and Commissioner Gordon in front of Batman, Robin, and Nightwing