[REVIEW] 41404 - Emma's Play Cube

[makoy]

Remember the round pods? Now we have cubes! This is my 29th Eurobricks RA Review, 41404 - Emma's Play Cube. Estimated reading time: 4 minutes, 20 seconds.

 

 

Overview

Name: 41404 - Emma's Play Cube
Theme: Friends
Year: 2020 (1H)
Pieces: 43
Minifigures: 1 (+ 1 mystery animal)
Price: GBP 7.99 / USD 9.99 / EUR 9.99 / SGD 14.99 / MYR 49.90

 

Introduction

It's been awhile since I reviewed a Friends set. What grabbed my attention is the introduction of the new impulse buy line up, which oddly reminds me so much of Polly Pocket, I want to check what is special about them.

True story: while I was browsing the new LEGO sets in a LEGO store few weeks ago, a stranger next to me blurted out, "Oh! LEGO makes Polly Pockets now." I awkwardly nodded in agreement.

First, let's examine this semi-open packaging. The intent is very clear--the designer of these cubes want you to be captivated by the glittery finish of the product.

At the top corner, it is also written "1 surprise pet inside" and we'll go into more detail about that shortly.

  

Packaging

 

Emma has always been my favourite Friends minidoll because her colour motif is primarily purple, and this translates to the packaging as well.  

 

Unboxing

 

I was surprised that there is no sub-packaging protecting the building instruction and sticker. Once the box is crushed, there is a big chance that any of the thin sheets could slip outside. Regardless, I guess this is the way to be more eco-friendly, with less paper and less plastic packaging.  

 

Sticker sheet

Zooming into the stickers-- anything that has no number next to it is entirely optional and is considered extra. They can be used to personalise your own play cube.

 

Inside the play cube 

Inside the play cube, you will find a carton packaging for the mystery pet and another transparent plastic containing small LEGO elements.  

 

Mystery Pet Revealed

I got a pearl gold cat! 

There are other variants - magenta, lavender and dark azure.

From here onwards, just take note that your cat could be any of these colours. 

 

Contents Unpacked

Below are all the contents of the 2 clear plastic bags. Some parts that caught my attention are the scissors, laptop and the 1x1 tile with cat portrait.

It's also notable that the part # 64570 (Bracket 2 x 6 - 1 x 6 Inverted) is new and it appears the first time in these play cube set series.

 

Build

Once you complete the build, the end result is this enclosed clam shell case..

The hinge are complete detachable and looks sturdy enough to last heavy play wear and tear.

 

A tiny room

Inside the cube is like a room for these characters where they can do their favourite activities. For Emma, it is grooming pets and then  taking their photograph.

Notice that the walls of the compartment has 2 studs near the corners to hold several pieces on the wall.

I didn't apply the stickers in this photo but later on I decided to put the fake mirror sticker on the  Trans-Clear Panel piece because the interior looks so plain. I feel that the cube could have used 1 or 2 more printed elements so that even if I do not put the stickers, the design looks fully furnished.

 

Stackable

What's really good about this new play cube is that you can stack them together like how you would do in any LEGO piece. There are 4 anti-studs at the bottom of each clamshell piece, as well as 4 studs on top for each.

if you have several of these, they look good snugly stacked on top of each other.

 

Extra pieces

You also get these extra pieces. You either hide this away or else you will have trouble keep them inside the cube because there is no cabinet or treasure box where you can hide these spares.

 

Minidolls

I am not the biggest minidolls fan but I appreciate them for what they are.

Also, I know the pet is not a minidoll and neither a minifigure, but I want to show it next to the minidoll as it an integral part of the randomised mystery item feature in this set.

 

Emma & her cat - front view

Emma has a one-side off-shoulder dress with coral flamingo birds forming a heart shape silhouette in the middle. She appears to be using a new skirt and shoe colour combination, too.

 

Emma & her cat - back view

Plain and simple.

 

Conclusion

In summary:

Pros:

• Practical pocketable storage solution 
• Exciting mystery pet collection
• Cubes has studs and anti-studs so they are stackable

Cons:

• Rely on stickers to furnish the interior which could be rather plain without them.
• No storage for spares, unless you want to store them loose inside the cube.

Review summary

Playability: 8/10 - The cube is slightly  bigger than the round pod but the slight increase in size means more real estate in adding pieces and parts to the interior, which makes it more playable.
Design / Building Experience: 8/10 - This is a great case of form following function because the cube shape is intended to function as mini-rooms that are now stackable as well.
Minidolls: 8/10 - Nothing is extra-ordinary with Emma but it appears to be exclusive to the set because her skirt and shoe colour combination is different.
Price / Value for money: 8/10 - While you get less in terms of weight and overall mass compared to the Arcade Pods, the value is offset by the unique mystery pet which is also exciting to collect.
Overall: 8/10 - The play cube addresses the short-comings of the round pods -- it's slightly roomier, has more practical shape, and now stackable with studs. Hope to see them used in other themes.

 

 

[Mylenium]

These cubes are garbage. Just another way to dump surplus Friends stuff that nobody wants. The new 6 wide brackets are pretty much the only useful thing here.

Mylenium

[makoy]

Sorry if you feel that way.

On the other hand, my kids like it very much.

[TeriXeri]

I suppose those are mostly meant for the target age, and taking the small set somewhere.

Parts count is basicly a Polybag, but with an outer shell.

And those blind bag animals at least are 1-type per set, so Emma's are always a cat of a random color, maybe they would trade duplicates or something.

Also could be turned into some form of dollhouse by stacking them.

Still, as an AFOL, expensive for purely parts compared to heart boxes (Heart Boxes having more basic bricks/plates) , and cost €7.99 instead of €9.99.

I feel small sets still have a place on the market, and the cube boxes are better packaging compared to older Pods, basicly a direct, improved successor of the 2018 pods.

Edited January 16, 2020 by TeriXeri

[makoy]

On 1/16/2020 at 7:55 PM, TeriXeri said:

I feel small sets still have a place on the market, and the cube boxes are better packaging compared to older Pods, basicly a direct, improved successor of the 2018 pods.

Agree to this. And I will likely get more of these cubes than the older pods.

[Gobias1234]

I have a daughter and a son, my husband and I have really encouraged our kids to build an inclusive Lego world.  Our Lego town is one in which Mini Dolls and Mini Figs coexist happily.  I see a lot of appeal for both my kids, I'd like to see City produce something similar- everyone seems to be on the hunt for animal molds and specialized pieces and this could be a cool opportunity to get them on the market at impulse buy prices.

My kids are huge fans of Ellie V on youtube, the first thing my daughter said is that they could use these pods to make small apartments like a recent Ellie V challenge.  Basically, tiny vignettes after they build as intended. I love the stack able design and think there is a lot of room for creativity.  We haven't broken into one yet because it is a Valentines day gift but all in all I think they will add to our creative set up.

[carebear]

I Love these! ( it's a little playset you can take anywhere )

- they make me look back to the good old days when you had mightymaxx and polypocket playsets to take with you

Thanks for this!

Greetings!

 

[Killian]

Dammit... Now I want the Emma and Stephanie cubes!