[LEGO Review] 76199 : Carnage

I will be reviewing this set about an amorphous extraterrestrial parasitic villain called Carnage, set number 76199.

Watch out for more of these head sculptures as we review them in the coming days.

Out of the box, there are 3 numbered plastic bags, 1 sticker sheet and 1 instruction manual. Frankly not a fan of huge stickers but let’s check them out later.

Unlike the Iron Man Helmet  instruction booklet, which contained a lot of history and references about the superhero in the, we only get a 2-page summary on the design process about this set, which is more in line with the head sculptures from Star Wars last year.

There are 3 bags which progressively build up the entirety of the head sculpture. First bag is just the lower jaw and the base of the head, along with the stand.

Of course, the insides of the mouth needs to be pink, right? What else could it be?

Just as previously designed head sculptures, you won’t readily think they are stable but these come with a surprisingly sturdy base thanks to the Technic parts that hold the vertical stand securely.

There are more pinkish elements thrown in with an array of bright yellow parts for high contrast. These make the build easy and less challenging but if given a choice, I would have preferred less wildly colourful parts inside. Thankfully, they will be totally covered later on.

From the moment you set your eyes on this set, you know that the iconic pointy teeth and aggressive eyes of Carnage really makes this a striking display. Half-way through the build and I am truly excited to see the end results.

Bag 3 completes the whole model. In the picture below you can clearly see the printed nameplate of Carnage in 4 x 6 modified tile with studs on the edges.

And ta-da, it’s done!

Oh wait. I forgot to put on the stickers. On purpose.

Psyche!

Carnage looks weird without those black veins so I felt compelled to put them on later. On the other hand, this gave me a chance to think how Deadpool may look, in this form, if you only focus on the head and the eyes.

Below is a gallery of the head sculpture without stickers.

It looks a little less intimidating, don’t you think?

Now, with stickers on, it really makes a ton of difference because it  makes the head sculpture look more bad-ass and ferocious. I do appreciate the design of the stickers but at the same time, I also felt that these are necessary to be printed to complete the character. Otherwise it would not capture the essence of the supervillain. This is like 75902 The Mystery Machine scenario once again wherein the real essence of the model is not printed, but instead, added in only as stickers.Below is a gallery of the head sculpture with expertly applied stickers made by yours truly.

   Just like the other head sculpture that came before this, it follows the same building principles but the approach of each head sculpture is slightly different. For Carnage, the overall shaping is really in-you-face and very sharp. The only reminiscent part of this build from the other sculptures is the top and sloping back side of the head. If there is one little gripe about this set that I can’t forget is how easily the eyebrows detach even with a small nudge. The big red wedges are held only by 2 studs on each side of the face. Other than that, the build is really solid and could take a great shake without crumbling down. Since these sculpture pieces are meant to be displayed, and not played with,  I would have preferred that some of the build-strengthening budget were allocated to the parts-printing budget instead.

In summary, 76199 is a decent set that fans of Carnage can fully appreciate. At £54.99 / $59.99 / 59.99€, the set appears to be in middle range when compared to the similar head sculpture sets. Despite the disappointing stickers, it would be a crime not give this set a fair score of 3.5 out of 5. Could have added another half star if those were printed parts.

Comment below and share what you think about this set review. Take your time. This is Akira signing off.

The set used for this review was sent to us by The LEGO Group for the purpose of an honest review. Provision of sets do not in any way influence or guarantee a positive review.