Official Pix of the Summer Sets! Part Two.
May. 4th, 2025 02:02 am![[identity profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/openid.png){kind=small}
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acciobrickPart two in our exploration of the official announcement of the lego Harry Potter summer 2025 sets. You can see the following sets here beneath the fold in part two of this three part series:
76445 Hogwarts Castle: Herbology Class
76451 Privet Drive: Aunt Marge's Visit
76450 Book Nook: Hogwarts Express
From the 2025 summer wave of sets:
76445 Hogwarts Castle: Herbology Class | 3 minfigs + 3 Mandrakes, Trevor | 390 pieces | 50€
At fifty euros, this is a pricey addition to the castle, but considering 76386 the Polyjuice Potion Mistake retailed for 20 EUR and had about half the footprint, I don't think this is unfairly inflationary. It's also not one of the "placeholder" rooms that appear to be leaving a lot of people feeling like they're paying for the Hogwarts contents twice. As for Herbology vs. PPM, you can legitimately argue about the minifig count. In the 2021 set, we had four plus the new mould for cat!Hermione's head and the alternative minifig versions of Crabbe and Goyle (which should only count on a checklist, as the only thing gained was a hairpiece). Here we only have three minifigs, Professor Sprout, Hermione Granger and Neville Longbottom, all in their Herbology gardening smocks, but we do have a new mould (!) for the three Mandrakes (allowing for a few different handholds), which considering the Dreamlings / Grimspawn are counted as minifigs in the Dreamzzz line... Well it obviously has an impact on the budget here as well even if they aren't counted towards the included minifigs. As design choices go, that one unfortunately counts against them by too many people's calculations, which is a shame. Marketing should tackle that. Plus new moulds are great. Other than that, there's a spider, either to torment Ron or to provide Trevor with a snack... Actually, they've very nicely upped the spider count in the sets this series, including them here and there, so we'll have enough to suggest the CoS scenes from the Forbidden Forest with Aragog that sent Ron squealing. Very nice touch. The 2021 series had extra frogs, and while pretty, they aren't nearly as story relevant as the spiders.
I'm still on the fence about purchasing the Main Tower (space/budget), but this was a set I had planned on getting. In view of that, I think I'm grading this one a bit more harshly, but I'm just not as impressed with the plants as I expected to be, as lately lego have really wowed on the planting front. Fortunately that's not too difficult to copy from the Friends 41757 Botanical Garden set or the Ideas set 21353 The Botanical Garden. I appreciate they're both more expensive (and in the case of the Ideas set, substantially more so), but I had expected to see some more creative planting / part repurposing in this set. It's Hogwarts! Where's the bonkers? Where's the mohawk? Where's a saxophone?
What we get instead is a fountain with a lily pad bloom. I can't see if there's a lily pad as well, although I'd hope so to make sense of the flower. Either way, I've no idea what wizarding world plant it's trying to be. They've snaffled the potion explosion from Snape's classroom (in a new colour!) to represent Neville's grown Stinksap squirting Mimbulus mimbletonia, instantly recognisable, and used the scoops of ice cream once again for the plant in its younger form. Horklumps, sort of mushroom like, grow in the entryway to the class Dirigible Plums have been suitably represented, although if the tree trunks extending through the roof are meant to be part of the plant (let's face it, it could be, but then the pieces are sort of all purpose, so it's impossible to say), then it really required a few more orange balls to show that. At least one anyway. As for the red (skirt) flower with what appear to be light flesh coloured wrench pieces... I'm guessing it's meant to be the Venomous Tentacula, although if those blooms are in any way canon, then only in a video game. Hmm. I'm also blanking on the purple soft serve / icing / poop shape. It feels like this sort of approach is more successful when you recognise (or are told) what they're going for. Then again, considering the Devil's Snare from the Main Tower, it's probably safe to say they aren't using the firm's plant people in this theme, more's the pity. Let them shine, lego! Bloom and grow forever...
Other than that, the greenhouse folds together nicely reducing the footprint, and has quick remove and tidy up platforms for the planting and to make the set feel larger during play. Love that here (it's less well implemented in the Privet Drive set, for example). We can remove two banks of planting, one Mandrakes and one purple swirls under glass (a cloche, normally for forcing a plant's bloom, but here I'd imagine as it's particularly aggressive or stinky (more so than the MM? 🤔) - again, awaiting some explanations) and the Mimbulus mimbletonias of varying ages. A pair of golden secateurs (we shall assume magical properties and not decadence), a shovel, and a watering can are also included.
As for the build, there's a spot of oddness with the direction of the arches, easily changed obviously, where in the official version the finished side seems to face the part that I assume will attach to the castle, and the unfinished bit faces outwards. It's a choice? 😋 I think I'd have been tempted to orientate them so all four face inwards or outwards, but if you're mixing and matching, then clearly so the finished part facing outward isn't immediately covered up by another build. The colour has also received a mixed reaction, but I like the castle tan shade for it. For me, it fits in better with the rest of the castle, and they did the same for the greenhouse in 2020 in the 75969 Astronomy Tower set. The exterior seems more pleasing there, though, with the contrasting dark orange tile stripe. The use of the grey palisade pieces here is comparatively less satisfying. But I like that they've retained the dragon head sword hilt pieces on the roof, and was amused by the addition of the umbrella.
76451 Privet Drive: Aunt Marge's Visit | 5 minifigs + large Marge, Ripper, Hedwig | 639 pieces | 90€
Complete with thin and float / bloat large Marge! She's definitely the highlight of the set, although I do rather like the conservatory. We also get assorted other Dursleys: Dudley, Uncle Vernon, and Aunt Petunia plus Harry Potter and Hedwig and Ripper. Even just from the front, we can see the first three years are obviously reflected in the design choices, overflowing mailbox (PS / SS), locking Harry in his bedroom and the ladder for Uncle Vernon to install the bars (CoS), and the eponymous Aunt Marge naturally (PoA).
My initial "take my money!" response, however, has been tempered somewhat by the interior shots, and I think I'll have to sit with it a bit to see how I end up feeling about the set. The inclusion of Harry's under stair domicile is appropriate (Philosopher's Stone again). The move to the first (second) story bedroom is also a nice inclusion, and one we had anticipated from the grate on his window. With an affordable Ford Anglia on the shelves at present, that scene from Chamber of Secrets is also easily completed. Ditto this winter's Knight Bus for fleshing out the Prisoner of Azkaban escape from 4 Privet Drive, Aunt Marge, enraged Dursleys, and Padfoot / Sirius Black / not!the Grim. Those are three excellent choices, and I love the large Marge (not so) mini-fig and Ripper. On the other hand, the living room feels incredibly cramped (effectively only armchair, fireplace, and oddly placed telly), I remain as always lukewarm on the explosion of WCs in the sets as they're boring and (saving battles with trolls, the brewing of Polyjuice or the entry to Chamber of Secrets, because Hogwarts is clearly superior...) domestic or Muggle baths don't particularly lend themselves to play. I suspect they may have added it to shrink the size of Harry's room, which - when paired with Dudley's snacks, television, larger bed, desk, chair, and computer - helps illustrate the difference between the boys' status in the household, Harry's in the box room. Not that the list was subtle, but the fact Harry has more posters / pictures, a House pennant, and his own snack in the form of Bertie Botts Beans diminishes the visual impact on that score somewhat, but heavens help them had they delivered an empty room (which is also not canon), so fair dinkum.
Beyond that, I like the conservatory from the exterior, less so from the interior. The dining area is ... weird, and I'm not at all sure of the colour choices. I understand the desire to make it a unit quickly removed as a piece for setting up outside the building, but the approach (or more accurately: the result) just doesn't work here as well as it does in the Herbology Classroom. And with its mini galley kitchen, I think this isn't so much a set to replace the previous version of 4 Privet Drive as a parts pack to MOC them both into one.
76450 Book Nook: Hogwarts Express | 2 minifigs (Harry Potter and Ron Weasley), Hedwig, and Scabbers | 832 pieces | 100€
More pictures haven't changed what I originally had to say about this set (copied below to save you the click), which I suspect is both its strength and weakness, probably more so the latter. It's nicely done, but lacking in the sort of details that inspire several paragraphs or even a closer look.
> Small detail I liked: the steam at the base of the engine's wheels. Nice. Very authentic.
> So a couple of thoughts. I'm not a huge fan of ye old steam and metal horses / train sets, but this set is cute. Huh. Unexpectedly appealing, and of course I'm a fan of footprint sensitive sets, so: win on that count for sure. They are still calling it a Book Nook, which is interesting. I've now seen several shots of the Sherlock Holmes Book Nook, which by contrast is very definitely a Book Nook, unlike this one which seems more like bookends, and there had been some discussion on that count. Possibly we'd gotten the name wrong? Nyet. That is not the case. Also, both sets can be split apart, and perhaps the Sherlock Holmes one is also able to be deployed as bookends, but none of the pictures I've seen have shown it used in that fashion, which seems like a marketing fail if that were the intention. Also unlike the SH set, the Harry Potter one doesn't make lots of sense as a Book Nook. Displaying it that way means the carriage is parallel to the engine and headed in opposite directions, ditto Harry and Ron, which... odd? On the other hand, as bookends, they make perfect sense. I do appreciate the ability to display in different ways, however, so let's let that slide. Other than that, as said, cute, and compared to the Hogsmeade Station set, I think it holds up alright in terms of price. I can see these Book Nook sets being popular.
The only thing I have to add is the carriage is narrow and doesn't overwhelm visually when the set is displayed as a Book Nook, but obviously it still doesn't make sense.
And that's it for part two. Part three coming up soon.
76445 Hogwarts Castle: Herbology Class
76451 Privet Drive: Aunt Marge's Visit
76450 Book Nook: Hogwarts Express
From the 2025 summer wave of sets:
76445 Hogwarts Castle: Herbology Class | 3 minfigs + 3 Mandrakes, Trevor | 390 pieces | 50€
At fifty euros, this is a pricey addition to the castle, but considering 76386 the Polyjuice Potion Mistake retailed for 20 EUR and had about half the footprint, I don't think this is unfairly inflationary. It's also not one of the "placeholder" rooms that appear to be leaving a lot of people feeling like they're paying for the Hogwarts contents twice. As for Herbology vs. PPM, you can legitimately argue about the minifig count. In the 2021 set, we had four plus the new mould for cat!Hermione's head and the alternative minifig versions of Crabbe and Goyle (which should only count on a checklist, as the only thing gained was a hairpiece). Here we only have three minifigs, Professor Sprout, Hermione Granger and Neville Longbottom, all in their Herbology gardening smocks, but we do have a new mould (!) for the three Mandrakes (allowing for a few different handholds), which considering the Dreamlings / Grimspawn are counted as minifigs in the Dreamzzz line... Well it obviously has an impact on the budget here as well even if they aren't counted towards the included minifigs. As design choices go, that one unfortunately counts against them by too many people's calculations, which is a shame. Marketing should tackle that. Plus new moulds are great. Other than that, there's a spider, either to torment Ron or to provide Trevor with a snack... Actually, they've very nicely upped the spider count in the sets this series, including them here and there, so we'll have enough to suggest the CoS scenes from the Forbidden Forest with Aragog that sent Ron squealing. Very nice touch. The 2021 series had extra frogs, and while pretty, they aren't nearly as story relevant as the spiders.
I'm still on the fence about purchasing the Main Tower (space/budget), but this was a set I had planned on getting. In view of that, I think I'm grading this one a bit more harshly, but I'm just not as impressed with the plants as I expected to be, as lately lego have really wowed on the planting front. Fortunately that's not too difficult to copy from the Friends 41757 Botanical Garden set or the Ideas set 21353 The Botanical Garden. I appreciate they're both more expensive (and in the case of the Ideas set, substantially more so), but I had expected to see some more creative planting / part repurposing in this set. It's Hogwarts! Where's the bonkers? Where's the mohawk? Where's a saxophone?
What we get instead is a fountain with a lily pad bloom. I can't see if there's a lily pad as well, although I'd hope so to make sense of the flower. Either way, I've no idea what wizarding world plant it's trying to be. They've snaffled the potion explosion from Snape's classroom (in a new colour!) to represent Neville's grown Stinksap squirting Mimbulus mimbletonia, instantly recognisable, and used the scoops of ice cream once again for the plant in its younger form. Horklumps, sort of mushroom like, grow in the entryway to the class Dirigible Plums have been suitably represented, although if the tree trunks extending through the roof are meant to be part of the plant (let's face it, it could be, but then the pieces are sort of all purpose, so it's impossible to say), then it really required a few more orange balls to show that. At least one anyway. As for the red (skirt) flower with what appear to be light flesh coloured wrench pieces... I'm guessing it's meant to be the Venomous Tentacula, although if those blooms are in any way canon, then only in a video game. Hmm. I'm also blanking on the purple soft serve / icing / poop shape. It feels like this sort of approach is more successful when you recognise (or are told) what they're going for. Then again, considering the Devil's Snare from the Main Tower, it's probably safe to say they aren't using the firm's plant people in this theme, more's the pity. Let them shine, lego! Bloom and grow forever...
Other than that, the greenhouse folds together nicely reducing the footprint, and has quick remove and tidy up platforms for the planting and to make the set feel larger during play. Love that here (it's less well implemented in the Privet Drive set, for example). We can remove two banks of planting, one Mandrakes and one purple swirls under glass (a cloche, normally for forcing a plant's bloom, but here I'd imagine as it's particularly aggressive or stinky (more so than the MM? 🤔) - again, awaiting some explanations) and the Mimbulus mimbletonias of varying ages. A pair of golden secateurs (we shall assume magical properties and not decadence), a shovel, and a watering can are also included.
As for the build, there's a spot of oddness with the direction of the arches, easily changed obviously, where in the official version the finished side seems to face the part that I assume will attach to the castle, and the unfinished bit faces outwards. It's a choice? 😋 I think I'd have been tempted to orientate them so all four face inwards or outwards, but if you're mixing and matching, then clearly so the finished part facing outward isn't immediately covered up by another build. The colour has also received a mixed reaction, but I like the castle tan shade for it. For me, it fits in better with the rest of the castle, and they did the same for the greenhouse in 2020 in the 75969 Astronomy Tower set. The exterior seems more pleasing there, though, with the contrasting dark orange tile stripe. The use of the grey palisade pieces here is comparatively less satisfying. But I like that they've retained the dragon head sword hilt pieces on the roof, and was amused by the addition of the umbrella.
76451 Privet Drive: Aunt Marge's Visit | 5 minifigs + large Marge, Ripper, Hedwig | 639 pieces | 90€
Complete with thin and float / bloat large Marge! She's definitely the highlight of the set, although I do rather like the conservatory. We also get assorted other Dursleys: Dudley, Uncle Vernon, and Aunt Petunia plus Harry Potter and Hedwig and Ripper. Even just from the front, we can see the first three years are obviously reflected in the design choices, overflowing mailbox (PS / SS), locking Harry in his bedroom and the ladder for Uncle Vernon to install the bars (CoS), and the eponymous Aunt Marge naturally (PoA).
My initial "take my money!" response, however, has been tempered somewhat by the interior shots, and I think I'll have to sit with it a bit to see how I end up feeling about the set. The inclusion of Harry's under stair domicile is appropriate (Philosopher's Stone again). The move to the first (second) story bedroom is also a nice inclusion, and one we had anticipated from the grate on his window. With an affordable Ford Anglia on the shelves at present, that scene from Chamber of Secrets is also easily completed. Ditto this winter's Knight Bus for fleshing out the Prisoner of Azkaban escape from 4 Privet Drive, Aunt Marge, enraged Dursleys, and Padfoot / Sirius Black / not!the Grim. Those are three excellent choices, and I love the large Marge (not so) mini-fig and Ripper. On the other hand, the living room feels incredibly cramped (effectively only armchair, fireplace, and oddly placed telly), I remain as always lukewarm on the explosion of WCs in the sets as they're boring and (saving battles with trolls, the brewing of Polyjuice or the entry to Chamber of Secrets, because Hogwarts is clearly superior...) domestic or Muggle baths don't particularly lend themselves to play. I suspect they may have added it to shrink the size of Harry's room, which - when paired with Dudley's snacks, television, larger bed, desk, chair, and computer - helps illustrate the difference between the boys' status in the household, Harry's in the box room. Not that the list was subtle, but the fact Harry has more posters / pictures, a House pennant, and his own snack in the form of Bertie Botts Beans diminishes the visual impact on that score somewhat, but heavens help them had they delivered an empty room (which is also not canon), so fair dinkum.
Beyond that, I like the conservatory from the exterior, less so from the interior. The dining area is ... weird, and I'm not at all sure of the colour choices. I understand the desire to make it a unit quickly removed as a piece for setting up outside the building, but the approach (or more accurately: the result) just doesn't work here as well as it does in the Herbology Classroom. And with its mini galley kitchen, I think this isn't so much a set to replace the previous version of 4 Privet Drive as a parts pack to MOC them both into one.
76450 Book Nook: Hogwarts Express | 2 minifigs (Harry Potter and Ron Weasley), Hedwig, and Scabbers | 832 pieces | 100€
More pictures haven't changed what I originally had to say about this set (copied below to save you the click), which I suspect is both its strength and weakness, probably more so the latter. It's nicely done, but lacking in the sort of details that inspire several paragraphs or even a closer look.
> Small detail I liked: the steam at the base of the engine's wheels. Nice. Very authentic.
> So a couple of thoughts. I'm not a huge fan of ye old steam and metal horses / train sets, but this set is cute. Huh. Unexpectedly appealing, and of course I'm a fan of footprint sensitive sets, so: win on that count for sure. They are still calling it a Book Nook, which is interesting. I've now seen several shots of the Sherlock Holmes Book Nook, which by contrast is very definitely a Book Nook, unlike this one which seems more like bookends, and there had been some discussion on that count. Possibly we'd gotten the name wrong? Nyet. That is not the case. Also, both sets can be split apart, and perhaps the Sherlock Holmes one is also able to be deployed as bookends, but none of the pictures I've seen have shown it used in that fashion, which seems like a marketing fail if that were the intention. Also unlike the SH set, the Harry Potter one doesn't make lots of sense as a Book Nook. Displaying it that way means the carriage is parallel to the engine and headed in opposite directions, ditto Harry and Ron, which... odd? On the other hand, as bookends, they make perfect sense. I do appreciate the ability to display in different ways, however, so let's let that slide. Other than that, as said, cute, and compared to the Hogsmeade Station set, I think it holds up alright in terms of price. I can see these Book Nook sets being popular.
The only thing I have to add is the carriage is narrow and doesn't overwhelm visually when the set is displayed as a Book Nook, but obviously it still doesn't make sense.
And that's it for part two. Part three coming up soon.
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Date: 2025-05-07 08:20 am (UTC)