Lego is no stranger to building epic sets as tie-ins timed with the release of big movies, but the upcoming SHIELD Helicarrier set (via Wall Street Journal) might take the cake in terms of scale. Lego’s version of the floating command and control vessel used by Marvel’s fictional global super spy and defence agency is made up of just under 3,000 pieces, and includes small quintets, fighter jets and even runway support vehicles, as well as five mini figures and 12 microfigures designed to match the Helicarrier’s scale.
The set is huge, and has a higher price tag to match ($349.99) but it’s not nearly as big as it might’ve been. The Helicarrier was originally submitted to Lego’s Ideas site, which crowdsources concepts for new sets based on user submissions and consumer voting on said submissions. A Helicarrier was submitted by user YoSub Joo on May 13, 2014, which quickly met the threshold required for a concept review by Lego itself. The original model was designed to use 22,694 bricks, however, and be 85.4 x 45.3 inches in size.
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Lego’s version is a relatively modest 2,996 pieces, and measures only 31 by 17 inches, but Lego did mention in a comment on the original posting that the size of Joo’s original creation went far beyond anything Lego has ever produced for general consumption.
The official SHIELD Helicarrier also has a control deck tucked away under the runway for use with the included microfigure set, which includes Iron Man, Captain America, Nick Fury, Hawkeye and eight shield agents. New for the spring collection will be SHIELD agent Maria Hill (played by Colby Smulders in the films). The set will make its official debut at next month’s Toy Fair in New York and hits retail in March.