Set Review - #10277-1: Crocodile Locomotive - 18+

The Crocodile Locomotive was released in the US on 3 July 2020. If you follow what I write, it took quite a while for it to finally get shipped here, but thanks LEGO for the extra 1,000 VIP points. This set contains 1,271 pieces and retails for $99.99. That works out to $0.079/piece which isn’t too bad in my opinion.

You can watch the official LEGO Designer video on YouTube here.

If you want a review from someone who is a big train fan and into LEGO trains, you can see the Brick Model Railroader’s review at their site here.

Finally, one last plug. There have been a lot of comments about this set in terms of its design. JANGBRICKS has a video where he explains some of the fixes he’s made. You can give your own opinion, but feel free to use his fixes or modify your set as you desire.

Onto the review!

Here is the box. It is the new 18+ designed box. It no longer shows the play features or minifigures. Instead it highlights the design with some shots showing the detail. The title of the set is listed on the front with a design around it. Finally the bottom of the box has a dark gray stripe of greebling which lists the 18+, set number, and number of pieces

The box contains nine numbered parts bags (2 one, 2 two, 2 three, 3 four), an bag without a number containing the large plates and train wheels, and then the instructions and sticker. The set has mostly printed elements, but the data plate has a large sticker for you to place.

The first set of bags builds the base. The base reminds me of the bases on Architecture themed sets with the one stud wide black tile around the edge. Instead of using the standard LEGO track, you build the track yourself which takes a bit of time repeating the steps and placing a lot of 1x1 plates. It is interesting that they chose to put tiles in the center, but plates on the outside of the rails. I wonder why that was?

There are two 1x4 bricks in the center for you to attach the locomotive to for display purposes. Also, you can see the sticker on the ramp piece which describes the set.

Here’s an up-close look at the sticker. I think I was mostly able to center it and I didn’t get any large air bubbles. There might be one small one, but it is not noticeable at a quick glance.

This set comes with two minifigures. A male with the old style had and a female with black hair (no hat with hair?). They both have the same torsos and legs. As shown, they have some tools available to hold which can also be stored inside the train. Nothing super exciting about these minifigures, but no complaints from me on them either. They go well with the set.

The second set of bags completes the center section of the locomotive. The build starts with the Technic elements needed to motorize the locomotive (if desired). You then build the cabin area and the control areas for the minifigures.

While the set is an 18+ set, the build was not overly challenging. This part went together pretty smoothly for me. I was thankful to not have stickers to place. From this picture you can see the fans in the compartment and then two printed tiles on the side of the section which repeat on the other side.

Two more pictures… first is a closer shot of where the minfigures sit. Each figure has a wheel, two dials, and a brake handle. There is also a clip directly behind them to store the toolbox and wrench. Not a lot of comfort here and don’t lean back or let the train stop fast to have a tool hit you.

The second is the crew seating area. This section pulls out easily so you can place the motor and Powered Up Hub inside the compartment. I like how easy this is as compared to the Emerald Night (#10194-1) which required some decent overhaul to motorize it.

Here’s a peak inside the compartment without the crew positions in place. You can see the Technic elements where the motor will go. Everything went together pretty easily and seems to run smoothly without the motor connected so we’ll see what happens with the motor.

The third set of bags completes the front and back of the compartment as well as the top. Most noticeable are the pantographs on the top. I placed one in the up position and one lowered. The pantographs took a bit of time to piece together and were a bit challenging to do given all of the small connections you have to make. They are pretty fragile as well so not something you’d want younger kiddos playing with. The top also had a bit of color with the red whip pieces as wiring and then a few spots of dark green to liven up the gray and brown color scheme.

The front and back have a one piece window frame that you insert a one piece clear window into. It makes the model look smoother and I can see why they did it, but it would have been interesting to see how you could have brick built the window screens.

Here’s a side view of the center section.

The last set of bags finish the set. They also build the front and back sections of the locomotive. These builds are identical and I built both sections at the same time. It was a bit repetitive, but for the most part this was the most advanced part of the build that provided a bit of challenge. Nothing crazy, but it seemed like more pieces and the use of different techniques.

I saw a few reviews where there were complaints about the black background of the instructions and the dark colored pieces. I concur that this was a bit of a challenge, but I managed to figure out the build okay.

Two more photos… one a side view of the whole locomotive and one is a front view so you can see the detail there.

Overall, I am pumped to have another train to add to the collection. It’s not my first choice for a set, but I can’t complain about having one. The build is not super challenging, but it was technical enough to keep me interested. The color is a bit bland, but that’s the least of my complaints. The price per piece is decent and the initial sell out seems to be over on Shop @ Home.

I can see why people have complained about the gap between the cab area and the front/back sections. It could have been easily fixed in the design process, but I agree that if it is that big of a deal to you, fix it yourself. For now, I’m okay with the locomotive as is, but I may look to change it in the future.

I have a motor and hub finally, but I haven’t installed it yet. Stay tuned for that post and I’ll give an assessment on how the locomotive actually runs. (here is my post on motorizing the train)

In the meantime, happy building!

Set Review - #71027: Series 20 Collectible Minifigures

I just posted my review of #71026: DC Super Heroes and now once again I am late to the game. Series 20 was released back on 19 April 2020. The packs retail for $4.99 each. As I mentioned previously, I don’t want to pay that much so I have been waiting for discounts. I bought a few from LEGO.de here in Germany. The price here is 3,99€ so the few that I purchased there worked out to be around $4.30 to $4.50 after the exchange rate kicked in. Not the best price, but I’ll take the slight discount. I then found some locally for $3.45 and then Amazon.com had them for $3.44.

The bottom line is if you enjoy collecting the collectible minifigure series sets that LEGO produces, be patient with your purchases and you can get them at lower prices.

I’m not going to spend time talking about each minifigure. Instead I will give some overall comments.
-I’m a fan of the non-licensed collectible minifigures and I like the creativity that goes into them and the ability to use them in MOCs or with other sets.
-The costumed minifigures have been great through the years and LEGO didn’t disappoint with Series 20.
-I’m still frustrated with the dispersal of minifigures and how it always seems like you get extras of the ones you’d want least. I don’t need that many Super Warriors!
-Good to see that half of the series is female characters. As a kid, I remember arguing over who got to play with the few female minifigures that we had because they just weren’t made a lot. Now we have a bunch which is awesome!

That’s it on this one. I look forward to a late review again on the next collectible minifigure series.

Happy building!

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Piñata Boy and Drone Boy

Viking and Tournament Knight

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Martial Arts Boy and 80s Musician

Breakdancer and Athlete

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Pajama Girl and Brick Costume Guy

Super Warrior and Pirate Girl

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Sea Rescuer and Space Fan

Llama Costume Girl and Pea Pod Costume Girl

Set Review - #71026: DC Super Heroes - Collectible Minifigures

This series was released on 1 January 2020 yet I’m releasing a review in late July 2020? Why the lag?

The retail price was too steep for me at $4.99 per bag. No thank you!

As the series nears retirement (I assume), the sales have started. I picked some up from Amazon.com with a limit of three for $2.99 and a limit of 27 for $3.44. I also found some locally for $3.45. If you’ve held off, not is the time to start looking for sales. Avoid paying the full price. If you paid full price, wait for the price to drop for future Collectible Minifigure series so you can avoid shelling out $5 each.

The series contains 16 minifigures. The packaging is still the larger bags versus the original smaller bags. Additionally, some of the minifigures have parts that come in a separate plastic bag. For a company striving for sustainability, this doesn’t make sense to me…

Before I go further, I will fully admit that I am not a Super Heroes fan whether they be DC or Marvel. I am not into comic books, I rarely collect the LEGO sets, and I have only seen a few of the super hero related movies that have been released… well ever. So my review will focus on the minifigures themselves versus how well they depict specific characters or who the character exactly is in what theme.

Of note for this series, each minifigure comes with a 1x2 black jumper plate and the poseable clear piece to put your minifigure in different positions while on display.

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Metamorpho is definitely a multicolored figure with orange right hand, reddish/purple left hand, clear left leg, and brownish right leg. I’m sure someone creative can figure out how to reuse these parts. The giant hand has a space to clip it onto the minifig hand so it is a standard minifig arm just holding that piece. Not much else going for this minifig.

Green Lantern comes with the lantern and a clear holder to hold a green 1x1 circle tile. The lantern is quite large as compared to the minifigure, but I guess it has to be in order to fit into the LEGO world.

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Bat-Mite comes with a 2x3 tile of a comic book. he has a small cape and mask too. The interesting thing about this figure is it comes with the poseable piece, but since he has the small legs, they don’t bend so it limits his poses.

Huntress is next. She comes with a crossbow and black cape. The mask is printed on her face and the face has 2 expressions (mouth opened and mouth closed). She also has a utility belt and the package came with 2 so you can use the second one elsewhere. I like the darker purple color.

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Mister Miracle has two capes along with a large gray chain and the set comes with 2 handcuffs. Of the purchases I made, this one seemed the be the rarest one from my limited subset. I only got one of these in multiple orders.

Star Girl comes with an interesting translucent orange sparkly piece mounted on a gold colored staff. She has 2 facial expressions as well (mouth opened or closed. Her utility belt is printed on the outfit versus separate. Not sure how LEGO decides what to print versus how to outfit a minifig. Anyone?

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We’ve seen a lot of both of these so did we have to include them again? Joker has a giant pink beehive (I know, it is not really) and then a 1x2 joker playing card tile. Batman comes with a long rope and a batarang in blue. I would have rather seen some other figures than these again, but as a non-fan of DC Super Heroes it doesn’t matter what I think.

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Bumblebee comes with a set of wings and two yellow lightning bolt type things to hold. She has 2 facial expressions (mean and smiling). I don’t recall seeing a hair piece like that before either. I like this minifigure!

Flash has a fun hat and then this bolts coming out the back as he runs along. Nothing super exciting about this character as presented.

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More repeats we’ve seen before although I’m sure a big fan will correct me and say we have not seen this exact Superman or Wonder Woman in these specific forms. Superman comes with a copy of the Daily Planet which I think is new. Wonder Woman has her lasso which has appeared before.

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Cyborg has an interesting helmet and oddly printed head. I wonder if this costs more to build pieces that aren’t used elsewhere? He comes with a small purple chain.

To quote “The Big Bang Theory…”

“Aquaman sucks!”

I don’t know what he should look like, but the giant oddly green fish along with the Fabio hair and slightly unshaven face makes him look somewhat ridiculous. The left arm doesn’t do anything to save him. Sorry LEGO.

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Sinestro appears similar to Green Lantern with the over-sized lantern and a yellow 1x1 circle tile. Nothing too exciting here.

Cheetah comes with a green money bag. She has 2 facial expressions… both look mean, but one has an opened mouth. Replace the face and this becomes a fun costumed minifigure.

As a collector of these minifigures, my series is complete, but overall I am not impressed. Come up with something better next time LEGO!

Set Review - #60233-1: Donut Shop Opening - CITY

This review was a few weeks in the making as I had my helpers build this set with me. They don’t have the interest in cranking out a larger set and they want to play with everything as it is built (which is fine). So here is #60233-1: Donut Shop Opening. It was released on 2 August 2019 in the US. It contains 790 pieces and retails for $89.99. This works out to $0.114 per piece. A little steep… especially for a CITY set. I picked it up at Smyth’s here in Germany for around $55. So if you can be patient and wait for a better price, it’s worth it to wait to score a better price.

The box is pretty big for a CITY set. The front gives a picture of the assembled set, the set number, and the age range. The set was purchased in Germany and it does not have the standard US LEGO set markings like we are used to in the States. It just lists the age range and set number, but not piece count or set name.. It also highlights the police minifigure known as “Duke Detain.” I had never heard the name before, but the set is not meant for old people like me. The back shows some play features of the set.

The set contains eight numbered parts bags, a parts bag with some larger parts that is not numbered, and the instructions and stickers come sealed in plastic.

There are six instruction booklets and numerous stickers on a sheet. As mentioned, they come wrapped up so they were in good shape when I took them out of the box.

The first bag builds a police motorcycle with handcuffs and a paddle to direct traffic. Unlike the motorcycles I grew up with, this one requires some assembly versus being a one piece item. It also contains a few stickers.

I will say that I was horrible as a kid at applying stickers to sets and I’m still not that great at it. My 6 year old really wanted to put the stickers on so I agreed. I still have some of the sets from when I was a kid that have lopsided stickers on them. Well my kiddo showed me how it is done and they actually are pretty straight, mostly centered, and are probably placed better than I could ever do it. So after this part of the build, I sat back and watched.

Also in this bag is a taxi. The build of the car is very simple and there’s a 2x8 space for two minifigures in the car (driver and passenger). No ability to put bags or anything else in though.

My 6 year old asked why LEGO always has you assemble the minifigures first. I don’t know. Does anyone? Three minifigures in this bag. They include the taxi driver, “Duke Detain,” and your standard LEGO criminal minifigure. Duke has sun glasses and then eyes on the other side of his head. He also comes with a helmet for riding his motorcycle. The criminal comes with a standard issue crowbar.

The second bag builds a news van with two crew members. The van has some nice play features with a spot to place a minifigure by four different slope brick screens and you can raise the satellite dish on the back of the van. The roof raises up so you can easily access the bag. The two minifigures are a female news reporter with a microphone and a male camera operator. The camera is quite large and barely fits into the van with both minifigures inside. There is a storage box on the side of the van where you can store the microphone.

Bag three builds a small toy shop. It has minimal detail and is not fully walled, but it is a CITY set and is meant for play versus display. The opportunity is there to turn it into a much larger and fuller shop. This build is full of stickers and most of the front is just the clear plastic windows and doors, but it has some fun details. There is a small brick built train, a minifigure hat with a propeller, a bear, a net, and a guitar as options in the toy store. Two minifigures in this build. One is a female store worker and the other is a boy with a skate board.

The build includes a sticker sign to advertise a sale, a green bin to place the net in, and two brick balloons on top of the building. It’s all very simple, but could easily be incorporated into a larger scene and expanded upon.

Bags four and five build the CITY Coffee shop and the associated bike coffee cart. Bag four builds the two minifigures, the cart, and starts the Coffee shop. Bag five completes the shop. The shop is small, but has a decent number of details to include the use of textured 1x2 bricks, a dark blue Technic wheel cover piece (I’m sure there is a technical term), and some sticker signage.

Outside the shop is a small ATM which comes with some 1x2 cash tiles. On top is a small Technic build where you can tip over the donut once you install it into place. We have not tried it out yet as my 2 year old has absconded all of the vehicles to drive around and particularly enjoys the crane and donut it can raise up.

Something not often seen are errors in the instructions. We actually found two in this section. My 6 year old caught one and I caught the other.

My kiddo built the assembly as it shows, but didn’t check the number of pieces on the top. When she went to install it on the shop, it was one brick short as shown. The next page shows the correct height of bricks and uses for of the textured 1x2s as listed. You just have to figure that out because the instructions don’t do it for you. Not a major problem… more of an annoyance.

My kiddo caught this one that happened earlier in the build. It says there is only one gray slope brick, but the picture on the bottom shows two. The set comes with two and we went with two as well. Maybe someone at LEGO had trouble counting?

Bags six, seven, and eight build the truck, crane, and donut. Bag six builds the truck part with the cab and minifigure. There isn’t anything too special about this other than the front includes the fairly new triangle tiles which allow for a fun design that is not all at 90 degree angles. The minifigure comes with a coffee mug which I guess you need to drive a big truck.

Bags seven and eight build the trailer, crane, and donut. The trailer includes some supports that rotate out and fold down to stabilize the truck when you move the crane around. There are also some tools to attach the donut with and then the build to hold the donut. The crane part is fairly simple to assemble, but my six year old had me do it. You use a few Technic pieces and attach some bricks and then you can spin a piece to have it rotate up or down. The arm of the crane moves in and out, but there is nothing to stop it from coming all the way out. This isn’t a big problem as it can easily be placed back in. The crane comes with a brick chain versus having string and a hook. This works pretty well for the donut.

The crane has become my 2 year old’s new favorite thing to play with and he enjoys that he can lift, lower, and swing around something with the crane like he sees at construction sites nearby where we live.

The donut is a simple build for an adult, but my 6 year old had a bit of trouble lining it all up and following the SNOT build. Nothing she couldn’t tackle with a bit of help. Glad to see the pink side of the donut has printed sprinkles versus stickers. I’m also a fan of the use of SNOT to get both sides of the donut. It definitely makes it seem more realistic.

Overall, this set has a lot you can do with it and includes some great play features. While it could easily be integrated into a CITY scene, it doesn’t need to be as there is a lot you can do just within this set. The build isn’t anything special, but that is expected for a 6+ CITY set. The price is too much in my opinion. I recommend waiting for a sale on this set versus getting it at full retail. I found a good one in Germany and hopefully the same can be done in the US as well. This set will be a year old soon and I’m sure retailers will want it off their shelves.

My 6 year old had trouble with some of the build, but she was able to do most of it by herself. It was a good opportunity to build together. My 2 year old took anything we finished with wheels once we were done and tested it out to make sure it would fit with all of his other vehicles.

I’m not a MOC builder, but I enjoy trying to take simple CITY sets and making them better. I think this one has a lot of potential to improve on the buildings. Now I just need to get my brick collection back…

What are your thoughts on this set?

Happy building!

(Struggling at) Building a Non-LEGO® Construction Set

The purists out there have decided to never check out this site again after that title. To be honest, this is not something I normally do, but my kiddo was given a set as a gift and asked me to help her build it. So we were off and building.

The set is made by the company First Gear®. I had never heard of them, but they are based in Iowa. Looks like they design them there and have them produced in China. The set specifically is a Wegman’s delivery truck. For those of you not familiar, Wegman’s is a supermarket chain in the northeastern-ish US. So let’s do a quick review (if you dare).

And a quick note, I am reviewing this on my own and am not receiving any compensation from any companies.

Here’s the box. The front does not even list the name of the company which made it. It does highlight Wegman’s and shows a picture of the set. The back gives a story of the Wegman’s company and shows more of the set. I didn’t take a picture of the contents like I normally do. The pieces were all just inside the box loose without any bags. There was an instruction booklet too (which I also didn’t get a picture of).

Building was not easy. Compared to the studs of LEGO® bricks, the tolerances were just not there. You really had to force some pieces together and I had to get a LEGO® brick separator to pry some pieces apart.

Additionally, the instructions made it challenging to decipher colors. Black, dark grey, and brown all looked similar. My kiddo started the model on her own and a few pages in, we realized she had used the wrong colors and had to take the set apart and start over. In the end I made at least one error with a 1x1 black plate and a 1x1 grey plate. Whoops!

The picture below shows the pieces and what they look like. You’ll see that some of the studs are not uniform and this was true throughout the set.

Another issue…look at the pieces in the picture below. Believe it or not, they are different. The instructions do not specify the difference very well and I only figured it out when we were installing the side mirrors and the two pieces I had left were not the same size. So 1x2 cheese slope like pieces with different slopes… Should our favorite brick company try this or would it mess up the geometry too much?

Here’s the minifigure. Hands look somewhat similar, but that’s about it. The top of the head is actually hollow so glad there’s a hat.

The set itself doesn’t look too bad. It has some good play features and looks pretty realistic. There were a lot of stickers to include stickers that stretch across the entire trailer sides. The wheels don’t turn well and are full up ABS versus a rubberized type material. In the end my kiddos enjoy playing with it and it was a gift so we didn’t spend any of our money on a non-LEGO® set so I probably should limit my complaints.

Have you built non-LEGO® sets before? Any thoughts or opinions to share?

Happy building (with LEGO)!

Set Review - #10270-1: Bookshop - Creator Expert

I finally completed my COVID-19 quarantine build and it took a lot longer than I planned. I think I’ve had the set for over a month now. It’s all good. I completed the 2,504 piece set released in the US on 2 January 2020 for $179.99 ($0.072/piece) and here’s my review.

It’s been out for a while, but here’s the designer video linked on YouTube in case you missed it.

The front of the box shows the set completed with some of the features inside like the ladder, the airplane toy, and the various minifigures. The back shows some of the details of the insides of the set and then what it looks like next to some of the other modulars. In my opinion, the 3 sets they show do not go together at all. #10264-1: Corner Garage and #10260-1: Downtown Diner seem to be different architectural genres and don’t look right next to the Bookshop. Not a big deal when you factor the set in by itself though. Moving on…

The set comes with 18 numbered parts bags numbered one through eight. There is one bag with some larger plates that is not numbered. There are two green base plates which are both 16x32 studs. The two instruction books are sealed in a plastic bag. No sticker sheet!!!!!! WOOHOO!!!!!!!!

The bookshop is the first part of the build. The first set of bags starts with the ground floor to include the sidewalk outside and the flooring of the shop itself. I like the colors of the tiles and if anything they are good for use in other builds if you don’t like the set. This bag includes a boy minifigure in a scarf and hat with a toy airplane. As with most Creator Expert builds, you get a piece separator.

The second set of bags finishes the first floor and the book shop itself. It comes with a male minifigure holding a book titled “Moby Brick” and a flower. The bookshop has a used bookshop feel versus a more modern mega store type shop. I like the style used and the various methods of making it look like there are different books on the shelves. The only trouble I had was trying to tell apart the sand yellow 1x1 plates and the warm gold ones (had to look up the color names in Brickset). Or maybe those aren’t the colors I confused? Either way, later on in the build I had to re-build a bookshelf as I realized I used the wrong colors. Not a big deal, I just didn’t catch the mistake earlier.

The third set of bags builds the living room area of the upstairs apartment. There is a chair, a grandfather clock, a lamp, and a patio outside in the back where minifigures can enjoy beverages together. Nothing super interesting about this floor. I like the clock and chair builds, but there isn’t much else to the floor. Not a bad thing… just that’s it.

The fourth set of bags finishes the book shop with the top floor. The facade on the front is awesome. I like the use of colors with the brick red and light gray. Using tiles to complete the facade detailing really helps it stand out.

I think this is a change from other builds, but don’t quote me… this build does not remove the entire roof to get to the room below. Instead it removes just the back portion so you can get to the room. It’s a fun technique to use and it helps with the details versus a flat roof you can pull off. The room itself is simple with a bed and a chameleon in a tank area. Not a lot of space to add other furniture, a bathroom, or anything else. I get it. We’ll take it.

Next is the birch tree. This is the first time we’ve seen this technique used and I like the addition of the fall colored leaves. The bird in the nest is a new detail I have not seen before either. Along with the fencing at the bottom, I like this method. I’m not sure it is super realistic, but it fits into the LEGO world well.

Finally, this bag includes a female minifigure with a large amount of hair on top. I can’t imagine having to tame that amount of hair on top.

The fifth set of bags starts on the apartment next door. There is a crawl space under the apartment with some storage and a mouse trap. Out back is a miniature garden with a pumpkin and some other greenery. I like how the designer used the shield tile to make the stairs curve. This is the first time I think we’ve seen this done. The front also includes a lamp post and some flowers.

This set includes a male minifigure. He appears to be older with his gray hair and he has some facial hair along with a red plaid shirt.

The sixth bag finishes the first main floor of the apartment. I am a huge fan of what Brickset calls the light bluish green bricks and tiles. The white outlining with tiles and the windows go well with that color. The inside has a bunch of detail with a fireplace, a table with a tea setting, some furniture to store various items, and a window seat type area.

Much like the bookshop build, the stairs take up a bunch of space. Not sure how to get around this other than adding in elevators. Not a big complaint, but an observation.

I’m a big fan of the rounded window on the front. This is not the first time it has been done, but I like the way this one was done.

This set of bags comes with another female minifigure.

The seventh set of parts bags starts the second floor. Inside there is a larger bed and a small dresser or chest for storage. Outside, I am a fan of the printed house number on the triangle tile with the white triangle slopes as the outline. I also like the use of the circular type pieces in the dark blue over the top of the rounded windows on the floor below.

The eight set of bags finishes the set out with the roof and patio area. The roof and windows are great and the dark blue with the bluish green go together well. The chimney picks up again after not continuing from the first floor into the second floor (oh well). Once again, the room is smaller and there is a patio area for the minifigure to hang out on. Like the bookshop, the back comes off versus the whole roof. I think this works although I would have preferred three full floors versus a crawl space and two floors.

Here’s the final completed set. Overall I think the outside looks great. The inside doesn’t have a ton of detail, but for my purposes I usually have them either displayed or as part of a city scene so the inside isn’t as important. Also I could look to expand the inside or make the buildings taller. One of the joys of building with LEGO bricks!

I don’t have my #10243-1: Parisian Restaurant set with me, but I suspect this set would look great next to it. I can’t wait to some day be able to line up all my modulars next to each other. It should look pretty cool!

In terms of pricing, the modulars seem to keep creeping up in price, but thankfully the piece count has remained high. However, I will point out that this set contains a lot of smaller pieces so you’ll have to make the value assessment on your own. I do think LEGO has a strong fan base for these sets and they can continue to expect people to buy them if they keep them highly detailed and intricate. I took advantage of a Double VIP points sale as well as the free with purchase set #40370-1: Steam Engine so that made the purchase a bit easier. Typically these only go on sale at the end of their lifetime which will be a few years from now. Recently it has been over the Black Friday shopping weekend at a 20% off or so price and they go pretty quick.

In summary, keep these sets coming LEGO, but don’t jack the price up too high!

Happy building!

Wrap up

Set Review - #40370-1: Steam Engine

I wrote about the 40 Year Anniversary train set released in March 2020 as a gift with purchase back in this post. My set arrived and I had a chance to put it together. Here’s my review. The set contains 188 pieces and 1 minifigure. It is no longer available from LEGO so time to find it on the secondary market if you missed it (sorry).

If you want an in depth review from some LEGO train experts, check out the Brick Model Railroader’s review at this link. They go way more in depth into the model that I ever could. I will just give you my opinions.

Here’s the box. It’s nothing too special other than it does have the old logo on the bottom right of both sides.

The contents are 3 parts bags, a sticker sheet, and 4 large pieces to include 2 red 2x16 plates and 2 light gray 6x10 plates. The instruction booklet focuses on the build only and doesn’t have any fun details about the anniversary or the history of LEGO trains. It’s a gift with purchase set so I guess they can’t put too much into it. While I am not a fan of stickers, I do like the metallic look of these stickers. The silver color goes well on the set. Especially the 40 year sticker.

The build isn’t broken down in the instructions or by bag so I picked a few logical points. You start with the minifigure dressed in the old outfit with 2 dots for eyes and a line for a face. You also build the base of the set which is very similar to the Architecture line of sets only you have to apply the sticker for the set name versus having a printed tile. You also attach the 40 years sticker here.

Next is the base of the train. I can’t remember the last time a set came with 2x10 bricks. The base is pretty simple only it includes some Technic pieces which I’m pretty sure were not included in the original set.

And then the final thing. It is mostly studs on top and is a pretty simple build. There is no magnetic buffer so you’ll either have to use one or create one if you plan to hook this up to a train. The buffers are a fun design and something I’d consider using on a MOC in the future if necessary.

So If you look at my front and back view pictures, you realize that I need to space the wheels out a bit more so the engine can fit on the stand. Otherwise, you get a crooked display like I have. Whoops.

Overall, it’s not a bad set. As a train fan, I like it as it goes back to the original days of trains, but it has a few of the modern upgrades. I would have preferred for it to be displayed on a track, but I’m sure that didn’t happen due to cost and the goal to keep this set small and cheap to produce.

If you want to get this set, sadly you’ll have to get it on the secondary market and I’m sure it’s going for quite a bit by now. There’s no telling if LEGO will offer it again or not.

As to whether this is a sign of things to come at LEGO, it’s hard to say. I doubt the train theme will pick up with any force beyond what is out there. Would I love to see a Creator Expert style train line again, you bet? I’m not keeping my hopes up though.

What are your thoughts? Is this a sign of changes at LEGO? Or just a fun set to remember an anniversary?

Happy building!

Set Review - #80105-1: Chinese New Year Temple Fair

I’m excited LEGO has continued with this special edition theme of sets related to Chinese culture. This is the third one. The first was #80103-1: Dragon Boat Race and the second was #80104-1: Lion Dance. #80105-1: Chinese New Year Temple Fair was released on 15 January 2020 in the US. It contains 1,664 pieces and 14 minifgures. It costs $119.99 in the US which works out to be $0.072 per piece. I found it locally for around $99. Be on the lookout for discounts in your area if you can find them. It’s priced well already, but a $20 discount is even better.

Onto the review…

The box is bright red and picks up the theme with fireworks, a rat for the “Year of the Rat,” a depiction of the set, and then showing all of the minifigures. The back shows the various play features.

The set contains 10 parts bags. They are labeled one through nine with two bags labeled numbered one. There are three instruction booklets that are packaged and in good shape. Most importantly there are no stickers! WOOHOO!

The first two bags include a tree with some decorations to include some banners and a lantern. The tree is a simple build, yet it still fits in well to the overall design.

It also includes the first stand for the fair. This stand is a food stand with some cooking food on a stick, some cookie type items, some chicken legs, and some fun cake type items with faces. There is a red flower bouquet attached to the stand as well. There is a small cooking area with some extra supplies, a knife, and space for the minifigure to work. My favorite part of the stand is the roof. I like how the designers were able to replicate the look of Chinese architecture and that each stand was done in a slightly different way to make a similar styled effect.

This bag includes the first two minifigures to include a stand vendor/cook and then a happy festival attendee.

The second bag includes another stand. This one is a toy stand with a lot of fun details. There are some lollipop looking items, some balloons, and then various toys to include a small airplane, a panda bear, a duck, a rabbit, and a rat.

I included this stand in a picture with the stand from the first set of bags as they are connected by a string with lights, lanterns, and banners.

Additionally, you get two more minifigures. One is a vendor and the other is another male minifigure attending the festival.

The third bag starts the temple build. It begins with the base. I like the base as it includes a great flower design with the 1x1 flower piece and some greenery for leaves in the front. The stairs are a simple yet useful design as they added in studs for minifigures to be fixed to and they added in some design other than increasing the number of plates to climb up. I’m also a fan of the greenish colored pieces under the light gray arches. I’m not sure what they are called, but I like the effect it achieves.

This bag includes a boy minifigure. He has a red scarf and his holding a… um… I’m not sure what it is. Anyone know?

The fourth bag starts the structure of the temple gate. The build is fairly simple, yet full of detail. You can see initially some of the printed tiles that add to the design. Along with the lanterns and the gold colored pieces, it really stands out. The pieces on either side of the door are the brown 2x2x2 “box” pieces used in other sets stacked on top of each other. It’s a great technique to get some texture versus using plain bricks.

This bag includes a female minifigure with a small purse.

The fifth bag starts part of the roof of the temple entrance. The color scheme really pops with the yellow, orange-yellow, gold, and red. I like how it sticks with the Asian roof theme used elsewhere.

You get a girl minifigure with a scarf and holding a lai see or red envelope typically given as a gift with money in it.

Bag six adds part of the roof section with more printed pieces with Chinese calligraphy.

You also get a male minifigure holding a baby bottle (a hint of what is to come).

The seventh bag finishes off the temple with the second layer roof. It is built in the same manner as the first layer and looks equally impressive. My only complaint is that it is just this gate and not an entire building. Perhaps that would be a future challenge… building the full structure.

One note in building the roof slopes is to make sure the orange 1x1… um… I’m not sure what the new pieces are called. “U’s” or tunnel looking pieces? Whatever they are called, you just have to make sure they are in line. If they are not all straight, the build doesn’t look as good. I had to adjust a few as the angle I put them on were slightly off. Not a big deal, just something to pay attention to when building.

The last bag had a male minifigure with a baby bottle. This one has the female minifigure, the baby, and a stroller. The female minifigure has a fun hat on over her hair which is new (I think). The stroller is fine although a bit big. The parents have to put their arms up in order to push the stroller. I may have to look into adjusting this later on.

The eighth bag come with another stand and another tree. The tree is very similar to the last tree. The stand sells some pottery type items and some microfigures in various colors. The set comes with a bunch of extra microfigures too which is a nice bonus.

You get two more minifigures in this bag. An older adult female and then a younger one.

The ninth bag assembles the last stand which is a shadow puppet theater. The highlight of this build is the cool shadow theater pane that is printed and not a sticker. It goes along with the rest of the set which doesn’t have stickers. Yay for the amazing number of printed pieces! This bag also assembles some fire crackers, and some gifts to sell or give away.

You get two more minifigures. An older male to run the puppet show with his microfigures and dragon for the show and then a boy with a lai see envelope. The boy has a fun winter hat which I don’t recall ever seeing before.

The final part of this build is another strand of lights with Chinese lanterns and a banner to connect the stand from bag eight and this bag.

So that does it. Here’s a picture of the full set. It’s not a great angle, but you can see everything you get. There is a lot going on in this set which definitely helps to justify the price. Besides the great price per piece, you get 14 minifigures, the temple entrance area, two trees, and the four stands. To encourage you to spend money, this one goes well with the other two Chinese themed sets. You could easily make a larger themed “China Town” or festival area. I’m thankful to have found this one at $20 off, but probably would have paid full price had I not seen the sale.

Finally, a few pictures a little closer and at different angles. LEGO has said they’ll keep these around for six months or so. We’ll see how long they stay on shelves, but don’t wait too long to buy if you are interested. As of the writing of this post, LEGO is running double VIP points so it might be a good opportunity to scoop this up (along with a few freebies).

I was very positive on this set. What am I missing on the negative side?

Happy building!

Set Review - #80104-1: Lion Dance

After two regional exclusives where everyone was mad they had to buy on the secondary market, LEGO has stuck to their word. #80103-1: Dragon Boat Race was released in 2019 and in 2020 so far two sets have been released. The first one I’ll review is #80104-1: Lion Dance and it was released on 15 January 2020 in the US for $79.99. With 822 pieces it works out to be $0.91 per piece. I manged to pick it up locally for ~$67 so I can’t complain.

I didn’t do any research behind the traditions behind the set, but the Brother’s Brick did. Check out their set review here if you want to learn more about the choice of colors and symbols used.

The box is bright and colorful with the set displayed on the front with a rat for the”year of the rat.” The back shows some of the play features and details of the set up close.

This set contains six parts bags and an instruction booklet that is wrapped to protect it. Additionally, you’ll notice there is no sticker sheet. WOOHOO!!!! There are a lot of printed elements in this set, but no sticker attachment required.

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The first bag begins with a minifigure holding some lettuce to feed to the lions and two lions with identical builds. The lions both have minifigure legs attached into 2x6 bricks. The remainder of the lion is built off of there. The slopes on the side of the dragon are all printed which was awesome! The lion’s head has some fun details and piece usage with white banana pieces, white frogs, and the printed eye pieces. The head can rotate up and down and the mouth can be opened or closed.

Of note, this bag includes a teal piece separator for when you just can’t pry apart those plates.

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The second bag includes a minifigure with fire crackers, three minifigures who play music (cymbals, a drum, and a gong), and then another dragon with a similar build technique as the previous two, but with some slightly different details and colors.

I like how the musicians were done. Especially the use of a large wheel as a drum. The stand they are on works great to fit them all and they tie into the color scheme of the set well. The drummer is on a spinning piece so you can move him back and forth as if he is drumming.

Lion number three has a slightly different mouth and some gold details along the edge of the body. Other than that, it is built pretty much the same except for the mostly white coloring.

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The third bag is the stage. The lions don’t exactly fit on the stage after it is built and I didn’t try to have a dragon balance on one of the poles like shown on the box. Seems like it would fall over pretty quickly unless you got the center of gravity just so. And while it may not work great for a minifigure, you should definitely check out some of the videos of Lion Dances on YouTube. There are some crazy stunts that they do and the set will make more sense to you after you see what is going on.

The front paneling pieces in the center of the stage are pretty cool though. Could be useful in other MOCs down the road.

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The fourth bag builds the last 2 lions and then a minifigure with Chinese calligraphy on a scroll or tablet. The lions use the same technique as the other 3 only have slightly different coloring with a focus on the color gold.

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Bag 5 starts the gate structure. It’s a simple build, but I am a big fan of the printed tiles. The design on them is very cool and so is the coloring. You also get some more teal pieces and some gold fencing for decoration.

This bag includes an older male minifigure holding a paint brush. Supposedly it is the mayor and he is finishing painting one of the dragons.

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The last bag (number six) finishes off the gate. The roofing is added, more frogs appear, and brightness of color abounds. The yellow and orange really make this gate stand out. I like how the designers achieved the Chinese architectural style without getting too crazy into detailed building.

Lastly, you get a minifigure dressed as a rat for the year of the rat. He rounds out a great assortment of minifigures in the set which help to make the set worthwhile.

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Here’s the final set. Overall I think it’s great. You get 8 minifigures (not including the legs of the lion dancers) and some great pieces. There are no stickers and a lot of great printed pieces with some fun new details. Building this set really made me want to create my own scene with crowds watching, food stands, and other details. I’ll add that to my list of all the things I want to build in my spare time.

I definitely recommend this set and I think this line is worth it. I hope LEGO continues this line and comes up with other similar ones. Hopefully like me, you can find this one on sale to save some money. Just keep in mind that the shelf life of the set will not be long. I believe it is only supposed to be 6 months so don’t wait (can someone confirm that?).

What are your thoughts?

Happy building!

Set Review - #75946-1: Hungarian Horntail Triwizard Challenge

This should be it for the 2019 Harry Potter serts. #75946-1: Hungarian Horntail Triwizard Challenge was released on 1 July 2019. It retails for $29.99 in the US. At 265 pieces, it works out to be $0.113/piece which seems a bit steep to me. Let’s dig into this one to see if it is really worth it.

The front of the box shows the built set in animated action. I think it would be better if the design was all brick built, but I figure they have to split out the bricks to show what you actually get in the set. The back shows some of the play features to include the tent opening and the movement of the dragon.

The contents are 2 numbered parts bags, a small sticker sheet, the instruction booklet, and the dragon’s wings.

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The first bag builds Harry, Fleur, and the dragon itself. Given the scale of the set, I think the dragon was done quite well. The details and coloring are fairly close to what you see in the movie and thankfully it was not just a giant BURP that you attach to the wings.

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The second bag finishes up the set with the tent used by the Triwizard Champions and then the chain to hold down the dragon that is guarding the golden egg.

The tent is a very simple build and doesn’t have much exciting to it. The stickers go inside the tent.

The egg and the holder are rather plain. From a play standpoint, it meets the mark, but it could also go well as a part of a larger MOC recreating the scene from the book/movie.

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This set comes with 4 minifigures. They are the 4 Triwizard Champions… Harry, Viktor, Cedric, and Fleur. They are all in their uniforms for the dragon challenge. I think this is the first time they have appeared in these outfits, but I’m not sure. Each one has wands and Harry has his broom.

Overall, this set doesn’t have much to it. The price is a bit steep in my opinion for what you get even with the 20% off sale from Amazon.com. If you’re looking to pick this one up, definitely wait for a sale. The dragon is a pretty cool, but beyond that, the set lacks anything exciting. However, it could be a good start to a larger MOC if you are looking to re-create the scene from the movie/book.

What are your thoughts on this one?

Happy building!