Reviewing Fanhome’s 1989 Batmobile 1:8 Scale Build-Up Subscription Stages 20-23

The next package in my Fanhome 1989 Batmobile Build-Up subscription has arrived.* You may notice that this group of build stages has only four issues. There have been some fulfillment hiccups that started a while back with the tariff situation. It’s no secret that these parts originate in China. That kerfuffle got sorted reasonably quickly, but then Fanhome was having some issues with shipping partners and their warehouse. 

The company has since moved into a new warehouse and is in the process of resolving supply and fulfilment issues, but once in a while, one particular build stage will take a little extra time getting to the builder. Issue 19 in this build is one of those. Luckily, the subsequent issues aren’t dependent on the missing part (yet), so I will go ahead and continue building, and then go back to bang out stage 19 when it arrives. 

On a tangentially related note, this is the first Fanhome subscription that I’ve done that does not include printed materials with the build stages. I suspect this also has something to do with the tariff situation, since a massive percentage of comics, books, and magazines distributed in the US come from Canada. We all know what was happening with our neighbors to the North and those bizarre tax increases. I am not a fan of the digital “magazines.” 

Stage 20

The first featured vehicle in this batch of build stages is the “Coke bottle” Batmobile from the 2006 Stalked story arc. Specifically noted in the comic is the on-board DVD player, which allows Batman to watch one of Poison Ivy’s “home movies” while he’s driving back to the Bat Cave after rescuing an unconscious Ivy. That’s distracted driving, sir. 

The twentieth build stage requires assembly of the left machine gun’s housing. There are some really cool details here, including a spring loaded charging handle. They call it a firing pin, which isn’t really accurate. The charging handle is external. It allows the operator to manually pull back the internal bolt to load, unload, and clear jams. The firing pin is inside the bolt. They’re all connected, but this part is not quite what they’re calling it.

Stage 21

I don’t recognize the featured vehicle in this issue. The text says it’s the “1976 Batmobile,” but I have no idea what the source material is. This is a cool looking car, with seemingly Vette-inspired lines and loads of cool hidden gadgets, but I just can’t place it. 

For the build stage, the left machine gun is completed with a barrel, barrel shroud, and ammo belt. The design is solid, and everything is plausible. I am a little annoyed that the mislabeling continues in this set of instructions. The disintegrating belt is labeled “bullets” and the barrel shroud is labeled “housing.” While the front end of the barrel is generally called the “muzzle,” the specific part here is a flash suppressor. 

Stage 22

The featured vehicle in this digital pamphlet is the “New Look” 1964 Batmobile. Batman #164’s take on the iconic Bat-ride was the first to come around in more than a decade. It featured a lot of firsts. It was the first convertible, had the first integrated mask on the hood, and was the first Batmobile with fins. The specific size, shape, and features of the car varied at times from panel to panel, because comics. It was pretty consistently drawn as a two-seat roadster that drew heavily from the 1953 C1 Corvette.

This issue’s build stage involves assembly of the left side disc launcher and a couple of the discs that will be stored within. 

Stage 23

Issue 23’s featured vehicle is the late-’60s style race car from Detective Comics #394. It featured gull-wing doors on a sleek streamlined body. This is one of the lower profile Batmobiles. I say “lower” because it’s still a ridiculously expensive looking ride with dark blue paint and yellow accents. Most folks would turn their heads if this thing passed them on the freeway, which is the last thing you want when you’re an anonymous detective working the back alleys of a crime-riddled Gotham. Just saying, it doesn’t exactly blend into the shadows.

The build stage comes with the housing for that left fender-mounted machine gun, a couple Bat-discs, and a cover for one of the openings in that left fender. The only actual building for this stage is snapping the halves of those discs together. 

One of the things that Fanhome has been very consistent about across all their builds is building excitement and keeping interest. These subs can take almost two years to complete, so it’s important to keep builders engaged. The very first package had that massive center hood piece in it. That piece’s size and weight really set the tone for the scale of this massive build.

The fender weapons are solid. They’re heavy. They have little details like spring-loaded charging handles. The order of assembly is brilliantly structured to keep me engaged and looking forward to each new set of build stages.

*Fanhome provides this subscription to me free of charge for the purposes of review.