I do love a good Lego set. The problem is, I really don’t have much room for them when I’m done building them. For that reason, I have to be really choosey about what sets I invest in. It basically can’t be just for me, at this point, it has to be something my family likes. That basically narrows things down to Disney and occasional one-offs that everyone loves. And even with Disney, there is stuff I’ve passed on because, again, space! I’ll prioritize anything from the parks, or things that I can find a place for. And that’s what made the new villains set appealing because it’s not that big. At just 1,540 pieces, it’s a modest sized set and it’s designed to be a decorative piece when completed. And since it’s celebrating the villains it had instant appeal.
Lego 43227 is basically a set of Lego books designed to resemble classic movies from the company with a few other pieces. It comes with 4 mini figures: Maleficent, Gaston, Jafar as a genie, and the Evil Queen as the old hag. Of the four, Maleficent is the only repeat from the mini figure waves. A standard Jafar was in wave two and wave three includes the Evil Queen so this does work with some other figures rather well. The films represented by the structures are the films associated with those characters plus Peter Pan, Alice in Wonderland, and The Little Mermaid (animated).
The premise of this set is essentially this: you have a small assortment of books and they’re on a shelf in a somewhat haphazard manner. There’s Aladdin, which is on its side with Beauty and the Beast and Sleeping Beauty beside it on their end. Each one of these books is designed to celebrate its villain in both color and appearance. On the Aladdin book, there’s a Jafar (sorcerer) that you construct out of Lego. It somewhat resembles stained glass to me, but not only is it decorative, but it’s also a door that allows you to store the mini figure inside. For Sleeping Beauty, the same approach is taken on the side of the book as you construct a profile view of the villainess that also opens to reveal a slot of the figure. Gaston doesn’t get the same treatment as there’s no relief of him created in Lego. Instead, he gets a drawer to sleep in. On the top of the book, is a flip-up piece for the enchanted rose from the film. A fun touch, but not as cool as a Gaston relief.
Those are just the books, there are also a couple of other items to construct as well. For the hag, we have her poisoned apple. It’s well-designed as it’s coated in green poison and it’s all done with Lego brick. It opens up to reveal a little compartment for the queen to inhabit and I really get a Star Wars/Emperor Palpatine vibe out of this one. It’s cool though. The apple can connect to the Aladdin book so it’s not just free-floating, unlike the watch. That’s just a free-floating element that’s a quick build, but looks nice when complete. It has silhouettes of Peter Pan, Wendy, and her brothers on it from when they fly past Big Ben in the film. Lego opted to play it straight with the silhouettes too and not do Lego versions of the characters. It is a bit of an odd inclusion for a villains set though. I guess this could be considered Hook’s watch? Then why does it have Peter and the kids on it?!
The other two villains represented in this set are Ursula and the Queen of Hearts. For the queen, she gets a playing card constructed out of Lego that’s pretty much the size of an actual playing card, just obviously thicker. It looks nice though as the image on the front is done with prints instead of stickers. It would be nice to get the actual queen mini figure in the set, but I guess that was just too much. The same is true for Ursula who also doesn’t get to see inclusion here, but she does have the coolest representation. For that film, there’s a Lego VHS cassette for you to build. It’s really cool when done and the top flap is articulated to reveal a fake strip of tape underneath it. Lego included some stickers of famous scenes from the film with the characters depicted as Lego figures. Definitely, my favorite part of the set. It clips onto the Aladdin book and is designed to then be tilted, but you could have it on its side if you wanted.
The build for this one is rather breezy. It’s 13 bags and a determined person could probably bang it out in an evening, but I spread it out doing 2-3 bags at a time. Some take longer than others, but most of them are pretty similar. There are stickers, which I do hate, but thankfully not a ton of them. Basically, aside from the playing card and the watch, everything you see on this set in pictures that could be a sticker, is. The only exception is the Disney 100 logo which is a printed piece. The movie titles and character images are all stickers though.
The mini figures are pretty typical of Lego. Jafar is essentially the Genie colored red and he does come with a black version of the magic lamp. Gaston is a standard mini figure with a hair piece and two faces: smug and yelling. I kind of wish they used the Hulk mini figure base to make Gaston impressively large or did something to alter his physique, but alas. The old hag uses a large brick for her lower half instead of legs. It’s the same approach Lego took with Maleficent, Jafar, and other robed characters. She has two portraits as well, angry and smiling, and comes with a little apple. Maleficent is basically the same figure we got before, but with a smiling face and different print job. They also dropped the cape and changed-up the staff a bit. I like the new staff and the smile, but I do miss the cape. At least it’s not a straight re-release though.
The last important piece to touch on with this release is the price. It’s a Target exclusive (presently sold out online, but maybe in stock at a store near you) and retails for $130. For a 1,500 piece set, that feels a little steep. I’m thinking we’re dealing with a Disney tax here and a set that would normally be 90-100 bucks is getting up-charged. I don’t love the price, I don’t hate it either as I’m used to paying hundreds of dollars for Lego just because of the sets I’m drawn to. I do think they should have just given us at least the two extra mini figures in Ursula and the Queen of Hearts. Plus, Gaston doesn’t get any items? He should at least get a sword or bow and arrow or something. I was definitely disappointed with his execution. Aside from that, I really didn’t have any other issues though. I suppose there’s a debate to be had on if Lego picked the best films for representation, but that’s pretty subjective. All of the films they did choose to represent are very popular and beloved by many so I don’t see much fault there.
If you like Lego and you love Disney then you’ve probably already made up your mind on this one. It’s a solid build experience and boasts some unique characters which is probably enough by itself to get people interested. It displays really well too and I’m left hoping that this isn’t the only set like this we get for the Disney 100 celebration. Why not a heroes version that’s essentially the same concept, but highlights different films? Pinocchio, The Hunchback of Notre Dame, Fantasia, Robin Hood – all would make for fun concepts along with several others. As long as it’s not the exact same format in different colors I’d be almost guaranteed to grab it.
If you want to add this one to your collection, keep an eye on Target’s website. I’m guessing there will be a re-stock at some point so set those notifications if you can’t find it local. These Disney celebrations tend to go on for awhile so if you missed it up until now don’t go running to eBay right away. And if a sister set does get released, I guarantee you can come back here and read my thoughts on that one too.
If you like Lego and Disney then you have some options:
Lego 71044 – Disney Train and Station
Earlier this year I did a post wondering what happened to the Lego/Disney relationship that seemed so fruitful just three years prior. It was a post born out of some frustration, but mostly just disappointment. Following the release of an entire line of minifigures devoted to the Disney brand as well as the massive Cinderella’s…
Keep reading
Disney gets the Lego Treatment
Lego is one of the most popular toy manufacturers on the planet. They’ve become known for their building block style toys that come in various shapes, sizes, and colors and can be combined to form castles, pirate ships, space crafts, and other fantastic designs. They also have struck gold with their mini figures, simplistic action…
Keep reading
Lego: Disney’s Cinderella Castle
This past spring Lego released its third line of mini figures to be based on an official license. Following two straight years of The Simpsons, Lego turned to Disney and its cast of classic characters. Going with a mix of old school, Pixar, and movie characters not touched by the existing Lego Disney Princess line,…
Keep reading
The Nostalgia Spot 
Leave a comment