REVIEW: 75950: Aragog's Lair

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Set information

Name: 75950: Aragog's Lair
Theme: Wizarding World
Year: 2018
Pieces: 157
Price: $14.99, GBP xx.xx, xx.xx€
Resources: Brickset, BrickLink

Hello everyone and welcome to my review of the smallest mainline Harry Potter set in the Wizarding World Wave 1, Aragog's Lair! Before we begin I want to give a very special thank you to LEGO for providing these sets for our reviews. In the old harry Potter lineups, we saw two different variations of Ron's not-favorite giant spider. Let's take a look at those old sets;

 

Oh dear- large Spiders really didn't turn out so well with the Lego techniques back in the day. Has Lego improved since these previous iterations? Let's find out.

Box 

Front

The front of the box showcases the Harry Potter as well as the Wizarding World logos. Ron and harry look none too happy to be stuck in a forest full of Spiders 

Back

On the back we see the few functions / play features  of the set outlined.

 

Minifigures

Ron & Harry

Our minifigures in this set are Ron and Harry, two characters you are going to get a lot of variations of if you collect this line. Both are captured with their short legs as well as pull-over outfits. I believe these are some of the best face prints we've gotten for these characters, certainly looking back at the original yellow-toned minifigs in the original HP lineup we have come along way.

Alternate Expressions

Both have frightened alternate expressions.

Rear

Both also have back printing, which is to be expected for most minifigures these days.

Accessories

Accessories wise, there's quite a bit to see here. First there is a very nice little lantern piece which i believe is new- we also have a two-piece candle, featuring a very versatile white candle and the orange flame. Of course it wouldn't be the Wizarding World without wands, and once again if you are collecting these sets (and the collectible minifigure series) you will have tons of spares to update your older HP figures. Each wand comes in a set of two, and we have two different colors here. Something I found neat is how the base of the handle is a small ball joint, which can allow you to point the wands forward.

 

Tree

Building

Next we begin to build the tree, which starts off in an interesting way to make way for a flick-fire feature.

Adding webs

We add in some plant life, and of course some webs for the smaller spiders to hang around on.

Tree Front

From here we can look at the new spider mold, which actually looks very realistic and quite terrifying. We get them in two colors, and in total we are treated to five of them in this set. Now onto the tree, it's a small build but serves it's purpose as a place to arrange these spiders. It features a small flick-fire web (printed piece). Overall I feel that this is an acceptable side-build, it's certainly more fitting than the strange web contraption that the original Aragog set had. 

 

Rear

Here we can see the back of the flick-fire function. Lego is really putting those new leaves to work here.

Flick-fire feature

Aragog 

Build

Something that I really appreciate is how much Lego focuses on stability in sets now. Sure you will still have pieces that can easily be knocked off, however animal builds have improved greatly. Aragog is no exception.

Front

Aragog looks fantastic; the shaping here is great, it perfectly evokes the look of a spider, and absolutely blows the old Aragogs out of the water. as mentioned previously, the stability is also good- nothing is really prone to falling off.

Rear

Articulation

Aragog does feature some articulation; Moving mandibles, his thorax can swing upward, legs can go up and down, and some of his legs are able to rotated forward or back. Like most spider-type creatures, you aren't going to get anything crazy poseability wise, but he looks much more natural and organic than his older precursors. 

With Smaller Spiders

Here's another look at those smaller spiders, which also gives you an idea of his size.

Completed Set

Now that we see everything in this set, its time to ask, is this set worth $15? At 157 pieces and 14.99, the set is right at the standard PPR ratio. We do get a fair amount of new parts, such as the spiders and minifigure accessories, and with the tree build, the set feels like a good value at this price point, and so I believe it was priced fairly- Should you get it? I guess that depends on how much you like Giant spiders; If you are just a casual Lego fan, the main draw here would be a really nice spider build, especially if you missed out on the LotR Shelob set. As a Harry Potter set, this is great for those of you wanting to increase your list of magically monstrous creatures, and is most certainly worth getting regardless of if you have any previous versions of this 8-legged fellow; I doubt we will see any better versions of this scene, and I feel that my opinions on most of this wave will be "if you are a fan of the series, get it." 

 

What are your thoughts on this set?

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Dear Eurobricks,

This review is now live for your viewing, enjoy!

[Johnny1360]

Nice review for a small set. Everywhere I check this is the only HP set I can find, just empty shelves. That is the only reason I am even considering this set, so I will probably pick it up on my next visit to the store. Thanks for the insight to what's good about it. 

[zoth33]

I think its a pretty good set for $15.  I like the look of Aragog.  The new wand pieces, candle piece, printed web piece are nice.  And you get 5 small spiders.  Overall you can't go wrong picking this one up.  Thanks for the review.  

[Nick Wolfe]

I think that compared to the last two versions of Aragog this spider is a great improvement but I keep wanting to compare it to the Shelob set which was a phenomenal giant spider. It does feel a bit like a step down from that and I'm still tempted to let Shelob keep doubling as Aragog. Although this spider's face does look really similar to the way it does in the movie i think the legs are just too small.

[meepinater]

It looks like a great set, especially for new pieces and pieces in rarer colors.... all for a good price! I think $15 is the cheapest I have seen for a decent lego set... they are really getting expensive.

 

thanks for the review!

[JopieK]

I really like the accessories! The set is just another HP set, but the details are getting better and better.

[Black Numenorean]

Thank you for the review.

An another set for a HP fan

[WhiteFang]

This set is definitely nice and I am looking forward to pick this up and cast it as the leader for the Mirkwood Spiders in the 79000. Thanks for sharing another fun review with us. 

[LegoFjotten]

Thanks for the review. The set looks nice enough, but without any exclusive minifigures I won't be getting it.

[HistoryMan1987]

I think this is a good standard for the cheapest set in the series but not much in it if you aren’t looking to ‘play’. 

[Miss Feklista]

Thank you for the review! :)

Today I bought this set and enjoyed it very much. I agree with you, Aragog really improved. However, I think his legs are too short for the body though they have a very interesting articulation. :)