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** Note: all pics link to high-res versions on my flickr stream **
Introduction and Overview
Impatient for the release of the new Harry Potter 4842 Hogwarts Castle, I built my own version using reference pics from the catalogue and fbtb's excellent photostream from Toy Fair. Due to parts availability there are some colour differences but I actually prefer some of my changes! As far as I can tell, the overall structure is 99% accurate, but I have changed some interior details
The main difference is the lack of tan corner castle walls and dark tan log bricks and arches. I bought lots of tan wedge pieces but found that I liked them better with the notched side mainly facing outwards for that ridged column effect. I also tend to think the castle looks better in all tan than it does with a mix of dark tan and tan. I also tweaked the sand green roof and made better colour choices for some of the tiling. I do like the original's stained glass windows, but didn't have the right trans-bricks boos!
It was a joy just to work out what the designers had done. I tell you what, this monster chews up tan bricks! It looks like it will be an amazing parts pack.
The inside is crammed with detail. Harry Potter sets have always been one of the best lines for great interior detailing and play features, and this set is no exception.
The tour begins! First stop, the Great Hall
Let's begin our magical mystery tour of Hogwarts Castle with the most stunning room - the Great Hall. We haven't seen this in LEGO form since 2001 - and I did like the soaring heights of that verison, although the skinny footprint did mean it turned to topple. This one has a much broader ground area to avoid that problem.
You can see that in the absence of brown windows, I've used dark green ones. I've also got rid of the ugly bley tiles on the sand green roof and changed the jumper plates on the crenellation to a more coordinated tan.
The entrance to the Great Hall. Imposing!
Inside, a capacious feast awaits the students of Hogwarts. On the menu: roast turkey, cake, croissants and green cherries. Don't eat it all at once! You'll be sick.
There's a lectern for whichever teacher is speaking, with two wooden chairs on either side for faculty to rest. The Sorting Hat can be rested on the pearl gold slopes on the lectern if you wish to re-enact that ceremony. (Go on Harry, turn to the dark side - you know you want to!)The flambeaux can also be detached and waved around dramatically or used to light a bonfire, whichever you prefer.
Ooh, Hermione has a love-letter! Clearly not from Ron, he's too busy stuffing his face, as usual. Face it people, Herms settled a bit, considering the other high-class man-totty she had on offer *sigh*
The cake is a work of genius. Who needs special pieces for such things when basic bricks exist!
Gryffindor Tower/ Astronomy Tower/ Room of Requirement
Next let's take a look at the gloomiest part of the Castle containing a locked case containing a mysterious book and the Vanishing Cabinet linked to Borgin and Burkes' store in Knockturn Alley. I think all the red-brown bricks with bars dotted here and all over the rest of the facade are intended to be easy Dementor hand-holds when they're terrorising the students.
Before we venture inside, we can see the modular system which connects the parts of the Castle. Basically little submodels with connecting Technic pins plug into 1x2 Technic bricks at the base of each submodel. It's a clever and very flexible solution. I imagine the official release will use proper 1x2 Technic bricks with pins rather than just pins as I have (in tan the 1x2 brick with pins is quite rare.)
And plugged in! The castle is quite heavy so it's best to break it up into two sections before carrying the whole thing around.
The modular nature of the system means that more towers and rooms can be easily added any way you like, either repeating the official sections or creating your own. Eg, the set comes with common rooms for only 2 Houses but you could easily add another tower and make your own. Brilliant!
The furthermost tower is most traditionally castle-like, with a solid, blocky appearance and crenellated roof. The soaring tower containing the Gryffindor and Slytherin common rooms has a whimsically stepped mini-roof detail.
Severus Snape can view the stars using this telescope atop the Astronomy Tower.The mysterious locked cabinet contains a book of dark power - here, I've used Tom Riddle's diary. Ssssh! Pushing the headlight bricks attached to the flexible handcuffs causes the trans-clear panels to move along a rail and the book to be revealed.
The Room of Requirement seems to have had a spring clean and contains only this imposing looking cabinet, with metallic bolts adding to the ominous feel.
Connected to Borgin and Burke's store in Knockturn Alley, the Vanishing Cabinet allows trespassers to move secretly into Hogwarts without anyone knowing.
Who could possibly be hiding behind these wooden doors? Let's find out.
Uh... maybe not.
Sorry, wrong license, Nizam!
Aah, that's more like it - He Who Shall Not Be Named, Except When He Is, Which Is Like, Constantly - yes, Lord Voldemort himself - resides inside!
I love this soaring roof detail and it's a clever little build. This is the tower that contains the Owlery and the Gryffindor and Slytherin common rooms - not book-accurate but it would be impossible to fit everything into one LEGO set!
I like the use of sand green corner slopes to expand the Belville roof piece. I hated those green half cones used in the 2007 Hogwarts - they looked dreadful and were just lazy. This new Hogwarts has a much more detailed level of sophistication overall.
The Owlery has room for a few birds. I am very much looking forward to the new printed and highly detailed owls coming in the new set.
Probably the least exciting area, and one I made the most changes to me - mainly from laziness and since the flags in this section pf the official set rely on stickers.
The Gryffindor common room on the top has some kind of push/ pull function where if you push the plate with handle on the outside, something pops out from the fireplace in the common room (Sirius Black message perhaps?). I didn't worry about putting this in my version.
On the middle level, Mr Fitch and Mrs Norris explore the halls looking for miscreants.
But wait, what's behind that blank looking wall?
Rotate the turntable and reveal the Gryffindor Knight!
On the ground floor, Draco Malfoy rues the day he ever laid eyes on Harry Potter. Like all congenitally evil types, he prefers dark green furnishings, black goblets, and the company of snakes.
Dumbledore's office and the Hogwarts Entrance
The final submodel contains the entrance to Hogwarts and Dumbledore's office - again, a rendition of which we haven't seen since 2002.
This is a nice, solid little castle-type building too. The Hogwarts tile is one of the few printed pieces in the new set - I get the feeling they only used it since it was also being used in the Hogwarts Game set and they could spread the printing budget around a bit. (Overuse of stickers is the bane of the new line as far as I can tell, although the designs and figs are overall fab,)
This is a two-storey building, with the Sorting Hat on the roof and Dumbledore's office and the entrance below.
On the ground floor is a cabinet with some trophies and a chest containing the spell tile from the Dragons Wizard Impulse set, as seen in the catalogue pics - the designers really are recycling every printed piece they can!
The spiral staircase is one of those things that AFOLs generally hate - I can't say I mind them, although they do take up a lot of space for something that is essentially useless since figs can't stand on the steps without immediately falling off.
The potions originally shown in the Toy Fair pics were kind of dull so I've taken the opportunity to spice up Dumbledore's magical cabinets with more exotic ingredients. The orb and microscope are in the set. I've also given Dumbledore pearl gold trim on his chair - let's face it, he deserves it.
The topmost roof is recessed for a very practical reason - so you can easily place Dumbledore on his chair without breaking the furniture! Haha!
Hogwarts Interior - general pics
Here's some more shots of all the parts of the Castle assembled together. There's a lot crammed into this set! All the colours and details definitely make it enticing and thoroughly enjoyable to play around with.
The students of Hogwarts play 'Spot the Dementor' much as Muggles play 'Where's Wally?'
It really does just look so lovely.
Oooooogh! Headspin! You can pretend you're on a broomstick whilst viewing this pic, ha!
Massively detailed and filled with bricky goodness, 4842 is easily the best of the four Hogwarts Castles and the most satisfying to build, with the 2004 version coming second, the underrated 2001 set coming third, and the vile abomination of the 2007 version (greenhouse excluded) a pathetic last.
Modular arrangements
The modular connection system means you can recombine the set in many different ways. Here's one option!
Even changing the angle of the hinges makes the Castle look wildly different - this is the same as above, just with the towers placed at different angles.
Another rearrangement. Love the Dementor weather vane.
Caption fun!
Albus Dumbledore's dreams were so strange that even a Dementor dared not intrude on his odd mental hallucinations. Whatever could they mean?
'Give me back my outfit, you purple pantalooned poser!' screamed the Series 2 Vampire.
'Take a number,' said Snape. 'Dastan wants his hair back first.'
Conclusion
A brilliant set! I can't wait for the real thing, especially since the official figs look so brilliant and there are many nice new parts. I am not looking forward to the horrendous sticker application - I can live with small decals like newspapers and paintings where it would be silly to have printed tiles, but having stickers on 8 identical castle corner pieces will just look cheap. From learning how to put this set together, I do appreciate just how many parts there are and I think it is easily the best of all the Hogwarts Castles. It has the right mix between solidity, detail and playability - and doesn't feel flimsy or gappy like some of the earlier incarnations. With only 4 weeks to official release, you may start getting excited now!
