Lego Gru, Stuart and Otto 40420

 I love that this set concentrates on the more traditional denim dungareed Minions and I am pleasingly surprised at how well they translate in to a squarer look.  They are immediately recognisable as the character they represent which I was a little worried about, even with the pack shots and the images on the website.

There are no stickers, the eyes are pre-printed pieces.  I did think the Minion eyes would be stickers just because they are 1x4 round tiles but no, they are prints so always look great.

The Gru figure is so fun.  I love the use of the cheese slope to replicate his cowlick, works really well.  Even better his large nose is represented by a cheese slope which make me laugh as how could he be Gru without that big old conk!

These look great on display and the colours really pop and draw your eye.  I have them displayed in a high traffic area of the home and they make me smile every time I have to walk past them.

Definitely a great addition to the home for fans of the Minions franchise even if you don't have much Lego.

Number Of Pieces: 244

Approximate Price Per Piece: £0.08

Build Time: 35 Minutes

 Why not check out my full review of this set on You Tube:

Lego Belle Bottom, Kevin and Bob 40421

 I may well be biased here because 2 of my favourite have collided - Brick Headz and Minions!  There was no way I would not have ordered these on release date or built them the day they arrived (yeah, taken me a while to get to reviewing these).

Yes, the traditional pink brick brain is present in all the figures.  What made me laugh out loud was the fact the Minion brains are 1x1 tiles.  Yes, I am still snickering about this almost 6 weeks after building them.

The build technique is the accepted Brick Headz method.  So, you build a block frame and then embellish the outside.  Works surprisingly well on the Minions even though they are rounded characters and the nature of Lego makes these more rectangluar they are still instantly recognisable.

They look great on display but I am so addicted to the Brick Headz range I think I am going to have to invest in a special display option for them.  To think, when I first saw them I wrote them off as a model but the fun factor in the build and then how cool they look in the brick soon changed my mind.  If you are currently fence sitting on these all I can say is give them a go - you will NOT be disappointed!

Number of Pieces: 309

Approximate Price Per Piece: £0.06

Build Time: 40 Minutes

 Why not check out my full review on You Tube:

Lego Heartlake City Movie Theatre 41448

 4.5 Stars

I have been eyeing this set for a while and finally took the plunge.  My only really downside is the colour choices, it doesn't really fit in with my other Friends city sets and sticks out like a sore thumb against the more pastel facades of the other buildings in the range - to be honest that is why it is marked down a little bit.

I'm going to come right out and say it - for me the Friends Theme wins hands down against the Lego City Theme for building your own little city.  Just suits my aesthetic more.  They may be minidoll scale but as minidolls are only fractionally larger than the mini figures this is not a drawback at all.  In fact, I actually quite like the minidolls now I have worked with them a  few times.

As a playset this is a great idea, there is a lot of hinge use so you can open the sides up for easy play access.  Throw in a teeny tiny little theatre space with a couple of seats so your minidolls can actually watch that latest blockbuster premiere and there is a lot you can do with this both for display and for general play.  For some reason the photo op backdrop with the Friends logo makes me giggle and works well as a fun little inclusion.

Nothing really new in the way of build techniques but the Art Deco-esque fan on the canopy is quirky and makes for a fun build out of unusual pieces (I've never had many of the heart shaped baseplates before so they are a good addition).  Plenty of stickers to decorate the set but they are worth persevering with as they do make the set look much more complete.

Overall this is a fun little set it is just the colour choices that bemused me.

Number Of Pieces: 451

Approximate Price Per Piece: £0.10

Build Time: 1.25 Hours

 Why not check out my You Tube Review for this set:

Lego Darth Vader Helmet 75304

 What can I say, this was a no brainer for an original trilogy fan and I had to jump on the pre-order option that was available.  Then I kept looking at my calendar and sighing as I waited for delivery to roll round.  Well worth the wait for this model though.

The build was nicely challenging and took some different routes than the helmets released in 2020.  I was a bit disappointed to leave the more Brick Headz build style behind as I do love those techniques but this is a refined version of that.  I thought siting the eye pieces was going to be a challenge as they do have some play on them (yes, I did end up with a squint eyed Vader when I knocked them whilst moving the model) but they went in to place no bother.

There are only a couple of stickers but that nose piece one is a genuine pain in the proverbial.  I sort of slapped it on and hoped and it paid off - looks great on the model and just gives that extra recognisable detail (unfortunately my images are flat out refusing to upload at the moment so you will have to take my word for it).

A genuinely great build that looks truly awesome on display.

Number Of Pieces: 834

Approximate Price Per Piece: £0.07

Build Time: 2.25 Hours

 Why not check out my full review on my You Tube Channel:

Lego Imperial Probe Droid 75306

 When I saw the official pre-release images of this build I was a little bit disappointed as I do love a Droid build.  However, the more times I stumbled across the images on my social media the more I started to fall in love with this model.  By the time it was offered for pre-order I was more than ready to whip my credit card out.

I am SO glad that I did.  This was such a fun build, if a little fiddly with all those little articulated "legs" - bit tricky when you have clumsy fingers like me but the finish means it is worth the muttered cursing when you break bits off fixing the next piece to the leg.  Because of the build techniques used they are nicely articulated and I have found I do manipulate them as I walk past the display.

The stand is an incredible addition to the set.  The thought given to recreating Hoth for the display is incredible and really paid off.  From a little snowy mountain to the small drift on the information plaque it just finishes it to perfection.

Fabulous display piece that makes this AFOL incredibly happy every time I look at it (oh and it JUST fits on a standard bookcase shelf - the top antenna scrapes along the bottom of the shelf above but it doesn't bend.  Snug fit to say the least!)

Number Of Pieces: 683

Approximate Price Per Piece: £0.09

Build Time: 1.75 Hours

 Why not check out my full review on You Tube?  Click on the image below to go straight to the review:

Lego Scout Trooper Helmet 75305

 Honestly, I only purchased this set because I wanted to have all the Star Wars Helmet range.  Aesthetically it really didn't appeal to me but an addict has to do what an addict has to do.

Turns out, I am really pleased that I went ahead and got this helmet, it is much better than I thought it would be and certainly looks better built than the pack art and the site images suggest.  It is of a size with the previous helmet releases so fits in well with the others when displayed.

The build was strangely satisfying and different to the first wave of helmets - less like an overgrown Brick Headz build.  It is also much sturdier than the first wave due to these changes.  There are a number of stickers that need to be attached but as they do actually elevate the look of the finished model I was glad I persevered with getting them in the right place.

Overall, not my favourite but the build experience was much better than anticipated and the finished look makes this a great addition to my collection.

Number Of Pieces: 471

Approximate Price Per Piece: £0.10

Build Time: 1.25 Hours

 

Why not check out my full review of this set by visiting my You Tube Channel?  Click on the image above to go directly there.

Blog Update

 Wow, I didn't realise it had been more than a MONTH since I last managed to get any reviews written up and posted.  To be honest I have been totally sidetracked by starting my you Tube channel and getting sucked in to recording, editing and uploading and completely forgetting about writing my reviews.

I have a few days off next week so hopefully I can get back in to the swing of writing my reviews again and posting them here.  Just need to write myself a schedule and STICK TO IT!

Wish me luck!