krimimimi

Absolutely gutted. Found the Hogwarts art mosaic set at a good price at an online store and ordered one, went to open it last night and more than half the contents were missing, including those base pieces, so it's just an extremely expensive collection of some of the 1x1 round tiles. Some rat bastard had opened it, stolen bunches and very cleanly resealed it. Reminder to always carefully check the tape strips and to be cautious about waiting to open sets until your rights to return them may have lapsed. (Not sure if that's the right English, but you know what I mean.) Had pre-ordered the March 1 sets (here's hoping they arrive intact... *side eye*). @BrickMatit, I think I, too, am most looking forward to finally getting my hands on Madam Pomfrey. That hat is just beautifully done. Hey @Alas_Earwax, good on you for delurking. (Team #greyroofs, but I think @Tommy9 is correct, the green does work better with the grey rock pieces. Although I would argue the 2018+ system connected beautifully, they just needed some dungeons of their own.)

One of the things I liked about the Burrow set was the way it sort of unfolded into rooms, incorporating the display area into the tableau despite a relatively small footprint of its own. I picture Grimmauld doing something similar, the stairs swinging out, the table placed in the area beside it in the same way the living room in the Burrow could be removed from the set for play. (I loved the way they stashed everything in the set for storage, too. No lost parts.) The kids could lurk on the stairs with their Extendable Ears as the adults had their super secret meetings, their dungbombs at the ready to check for Imperturbables... I've been looking forward to seeing the Black family tree in lego format for years now. (Was that in video game too?) And as @Prometheus87 said: festive. I'll skip the quotes, because it would be nice to see some cheer, and I'm sure they can do better than a single wreath if they try...

@Retro Brick Reviews you forgot the "double heck with it" version where they don't represent the other buildings at all.

I would be satisfied with a sticker. And they've included shrunken heads in the theme, both in sticker (Hogsmeade) and printed part (Knight Bus) form, so taxidermied elf should surely be within the range of possibilities... St. Mungo's - aside from the fact they don't seem to be doing sets / locations that weren't in the films (they even avoided the rather obvious opening to put Padma as a Ravenclaw in the Divination set instead of Parvati), does anyone know if there was even source material for St. Mungo's in the lego HP video game? I want the Bagshot / Nagini build, but people here have rather convincingly assured me it will.not.happen.

@BrickBob Studpants When I think of Grimmauld, I usually picture the interior and the front, probably about the format of one of the DA builds, maybe a story taller and narrower, but that's it. I don't need the neighbouring buildings, because that was only ever a short special effect or an establishing shot. If they want to honour the Secret Kept aspect, then two panels of partial neighbouring buildings that slide across the front to cover it and then out to the sides when exposed would do it, and it would help enhance the row house effect in the process, but I genuinely care less about them than the doxies in the curtains. In addition to the gimmick inflating the cost without adding too much value to the set (if that distinction makes sense?), it would be a repetitive build as it would mirror the already built front of the Order's HQ, only in 'cleaner' and 'better maintained', plus it's easy to MOC if we care to, we'd literally have the plans for it. Instead give me a stair that swings out like in DA with the portrait of Walburga and the elf heads mounted on the wall any day. (Also, shoutout to whomever it was here that suggested the mounted heads a year or so ago. I didn't know I wanted it until you mentioned it, but now it absolutely needs to happen. )

I'm hoping that's because one of the summer sets stacks with it and remedies the situation, maybe even the Dark Tower / Sirius' Rescue set. (That said, Micmac did a great job, as always.) They could be trying to break the sets down into more fiscally manageable bites. It's a pity we don't have pictures of how they're meant to integrate yet.

It's definitely premature to guess that about the AC. For one thing, we don't even know the $120 set is No. 12. What do we have so far? There's been a leaked piece suited to Tonks' hair (although that could just as easily happen next year or in another CMF series, if it even does), and we have the information it's supposed to be a play set (as opposed to buildable maxifigs, say). Plus we're already getting two decent sized castle builds this summer already, so a third seems unlikely. It speaks for No. 12 as a possibility, but that's all it is, nothing more. Even if it were Grimmauld Place, that doesn't mean the AC is related to it, although it has the advantage of being Christmassy, which was something last year's lacked. Then again, that fact proves everything might be on the table for this year's, too. It could be completely random again.

I think I'd prefer to see the OotP Grimmauld Place to the Durmstrang ship / Second Task set. Aside from simple personal preference (although I'd definitely like to get the Second Task at some point), what also makes a difference for me is it would open up the waves more. Instead of a single set or two going outside of the expected time window, it makes it feel like anything's possible, which is more exciting. Right now we as fans focus on a couple of films and make lists of missing scenes we'd still like to see, and then are often disappointed when something isn't covered because we're sure it won't be for years yet (if at all). That would change it up quite a bit. Far more scenes are possible, and if one of your favourites isn't included? No worries, if not this year, perhaps the next? It also has the added benefit of making it more difficult for the knock offs to predict what's coming, which I imagine helps TLG. They must need some lead time to make the rip offs, too. Last year we saw pix in April and were able to pre-order the sets then.

No, you're right, we had the name earlier and couldn't make much sense of it, which (perhaps pessimistically) I assumed that was the reason we had it that early. Iirc, we didn't have 'Diagon Alley' until August, though.

In a Gringotts set? Can't picture it in the least. But someone upthread already pointed out if they made only one quote set, that would probably be the one to make. (If it gets me the doe, I'm okay with it.) I think most of the other quotes I'd choose are Dumbledore's, who isn't one of my favourite characters, so they doesn't work as well for me anyway.

Yeah, whenever I've seen Ron sold out somewhere (I check other countries at irregular intervals), Hermione and Harry have been sold out, too. How much you like the characters aside (so disregarding the distinction between close seconds and distant seconds), I imagine if you can only get one keychain, boys would gravitate towards Harry, as would some of the girls, and the remainder of the girls would lean towards Hermione, which leaves poor Ron out in the cold on both counts. (How can you not like emo-Snape tickling the ivories??? If I were any good at modding the hair, I'd have converted a Harry fig by now... ) Wondering, and this is directed at everyone, not just you in particular, why would you consider a DA expansion with Gringotts to be preferable to one without, if that's your opinion? Is it primarily impatience driven? For my part, I assume if it's a DA set without, that I will almost definitely see a Gringotts set eventually, so aside from increasing the overall expenditure on DA/KA - which ultimately I control by deciding to buy the DA sets or not - that's the way to get more sets I like. They are unlikely to release an Eeylops or Potage's on their own, say, but Gringotts could will definitely happen. Sooner or later. Few? I don't think we'll hear anything until August. On the upside, it'll will keep us busy.

Ha! Now I have Potter Puppet Pals going through my head. And on that note, if they want to give us Snape and a piano (with candelabra of course) for the next maxifig set, I wouldn't say 'no'. I wonder if the keychains are any indicator for TLG. Here and in the UK, to name two countries, Harry and Hermione have been sold out for a while, not even back orderable, but Ron's... still available.

Sounds like it might be three stories high. The courtyard / arcade with a width of 24 studs (coincidentally the same width as the hospital wing, so theoretically stackable if it has the proper depth) and then it said there's a two story tower on top of it, which would help with the tower visual otherwise fairly absent. Not sure what they'll do with those 8x8 cubicles, and no information was provided. 16x8 could have made a decent enough common room, 8x8, not so much.

Glad to hear it. (Packing lego makes me nervous...) Yes, in the 2021 AC there were three repeat torsos, but it was something that had appeared nowhere else that you'd legitimately need multiples of for a scene, so I was rather pleased to see it. The 2019 AC had a repeated Dumbledore and a McGonagall that was very nearly a repeat (except her head was a face short, having only one side instead of the two the alternate version sported). However the trio were original in that set, as was Flitwick, the golden statue and technically the snowizard as well for a stonking six exclusive minifigs and two repeats. Unfortunately most folks complained about the House flags... You can't win the all.

I mentally put the pause in the wrong place when reading this and shall now henceforth refer to Quidditch as 'Filler Ball', as that's simply better and more accurate in every way.

Presumably used in multiple sets (Stuntz, for instance), but they try to make new things with an eye to future useability. You don't coincidentally make Tonks hair, you make it and find other purposes.

That plus they skipped the match entirely. Hey, I can't even display Icons. I assume some of you live in sprawling underground complexes with limitless space and kilometres of bare walls that simply need filling. That's the only explanation I have for some of the collections out there. I want the dead unicorn and Quirrellmort with straw. The rest doesn't matter. Or Tonks appears in an AC.

Or a map of the Wizarding World, complete with nano-micro-miniscale Anglia and Express and Hogsmeade and DA and Hogwarts with pitch, Forbidden Forest and Hagrid's Hut.

Hope the move went well. Reminder that technically all six minifigs in the 2021 AC were exclusives. The one I consider the least exclusive (if that's a thing) amongst them is Harry who appears with a different head piece, and even then the only other version of the minifig is in a very expensive set. So I wouldn't rule out some cool minifigs for this year's AC. I too splashed out for a Madam Malkin's and Pottages MOC, and I haven't even built DA yet. That street is highly captivating. A Horcrux D2C (excellent idea; perhaps including Gryffindor's sword, the Sorting Hat and maybe a Basilisk fang?) seems not unlikely at some point if Icons does well, but the inclusion of Riddle's Diary in that set probably makes it less likely we'd see it this year, aside from having sculptural sets two years in a row. Sirius' Rescue, can't help thinking this set is in part to get us a Sirius and a Buckbeak this round, reducing the number of minifigs we need in the Shrieking Shack set and freeing the inevitable Hagrid's Hut remake up to include Fang and Norbert(a). Not strictly a professor, but we had the Infirmary included in the previous Clock Tower, and yet bizarrely there not only wasn't a Poppy Pomfrey included, there wasn't even one in the series. ETA: ninjaed by sebastian666.

Beyond the Leaky Cauldron and Gringotts (which I agree make good standalones), Eeyelops Owl Emporium where Harry gets Hedwig Madam Malkin's Robes for All Occasions where Harry first meets Malfoy (in the books) and they all get their school robes Magical Menagerie where Ron goes to get medication for Scabbers and Hermione acquires Crookshanks (both of whom put in an appearance in one of the Shrieking Shack scenes, whether they're in that set or not) Slug and Jiggers where students go to get potions ingredients Wiseacres Wizarding Equipment, Broomstix and Potage's Cauldron Shop are some that stood out visually. Rosa Lee Teabag's or Sugarplum's Sweets Shop also come to mind. I'd rather see Borgin and Burkes in Knockturn Alley than some of those, though. And while it didn't serve a role in the stories, another shop that really stood out visually was Dystyl Phaelanges. I think they could do something special recreating that. That's the sort of store that's perfect for a set like DA (II /KA), because it's highly atmospheric, but there's no scene you're 'missing' by not having it in your collection. People would be happy to get it if they can afford it, not enraged they're missing out. Those are expectations they wouldn't have to manage, so it seems a more judicious choice than a location like Gringotts, say. As for a D2C Quidditch pitch, given all the time the movies spent there, an excellent argument can be made for it, but I also don't think we'd get so many minifigs in a set like that. If anything it feels like more of a display option for figs you have than a way to get us the missing minifigs. For one thing they don't seem to do that (28 minifigs just for the four teams?), and for another, having demonstrated a willingness to give us unnamed minifigs as part of the collection (first in last year's AP and now in the trunk), a Quidditch team is a great way to increase diversity, which they've stated as a goal. In fact, it's more suited there than usual as the gloves the players wear solve the hand colour issue more organically than students wearing mittens in the Great Hall / their common rooms / dorms does in the trunk set. (Plus I just can't see them gating the Ravenclaw uniforms behind such a high price tag again; people would go barmy. ) That at least feels like AP material, which would also help get around the fact we don't know who was even on most of the teams most years. MOCing is required.

They also wrote 'that's actually a 2in1' so I'm wondering if in addition to indicating McGonagall's robes are going to be black they're hinting at a DH2 scene? Not sure how that would fit in to the Dumbledore's office scenario, but coincidentally she, Snape and Dumbledore are the three Headmasters/mistress during the course of the story. The castle never recognised Umbridge as Headmistress, so it probably doesn't matter that she isn't in the set. @BrickFunatic I agree that I'm a little disappointed not to get Umbridge's office (at Hogwarts). I can't believe we didn't get a Knight Bus or yet another Anglia. After they gave us two Fords in such short order in the last series (instead of Hagrid's motorbike), I was sure they'd go to that well again, but no. Very pleasantly surprised. Letting go of a rigid 'sets from which movie appear when' format lets them adjust the product cycles more organically. So they could give us the KB next year or the year after, and not have to wait three just because they're not reissuing it this year. That's such an improvement.

I've started MOCing it, because the lego designers and I are probably not on the same page here. Currently eyeing Wilma Flintstone's legs. Need to find a white buttoned shirt to use as the top... I suspect I'll have to suffer without the cap... ETA: Ross Geller's top in white perhaps? The belt is a little unfortunate...

I now really, really, really want McGonagall AND Snape in their sleepwear, a fig whose existence I had never imagined until five minutes ago, and yet now it needs to happen. He'll have a night shirt, knobby sallow knees... Slippers! Perhaps a teddy bear... I'm not sure what else the consummate Slytherin would have, a stuffed snake seems... unfortunate in light of the series' end. Oh, and one of those pointy flannel caps (complete with tassel) my grandfather used to have, but I never saw him wear... That would suit him well. Where would you put anything else then? As a fellow space challenged person, I appreciated that DA is probably about the smallest footprint we'd see for the price. It folds together to a size of two modular Creator Expert builds where everything else sort of sprawls.

Thanks for the heads up. I checked the original wording, and they say the scenery is based on OotP (golden fountain definitely fits) which can be translated incorrectly in this case to 'scene' (instead of the correct but contextually redundant sounding 'set'), perhaps explaining some of the confusion. It didn't stop them with the Ninjago city sets though, plus DA will have only been on the virtual shelves for two years when this D2C is released, for much of which it was unavailable in parts of the globe. And as a comparison, the nanoscale castle looks to be getting a four year run. I could see them putting a theoretical DA II off for another year, releasing DH Gringotts as a stand alone set next year, and using that to help drive more interest for the DA I and II sets. Plus I still can't see them locking a minifig scale Gringotts behind such a high price tag and potentially cutting out so many fans.

I'm really hoping they'll keep expanding Hogsmeade. So next year we might see OotP Harry and Cho at Puddifoot's and the formation of the DA at the Hog's Head, say. (Which makes Cho's inclusion here unfortunate, as that becomes less likely...) But I think your read on the distribution isn't unlikely, plus we still have the retail exclusive set, and 2 PoA & 1 GoF sets from the March wave. Oh, maybe Cho's alternative face is sleeping, and this is a way to give us another victim to recover in GoF second task...