This year, LEGO released five Advent calendars for the holiday season. One is themed after the Guardians of the Galaxy Holiday Special, which debuted on Disney+ on November 25. Two more are based on licenses: Star Wars and Harry Potter. Another is themed after the girl-centric LEGO Friends line, while the final one is themed after the longstanding LEGO City line. Here are our reactions and thoughts after building and photographing the first three.
Advent is the preparation season leading up to Christmas. Different churches follow different traditions; some adherents will fast in the days leading up to Christmas. Other churches will sing special hymns and cover specific readings or themes during Sunday sermons. But much of how Advent persists, at least in popular culture, is through decorating the home with a tree, wreath, or lights.
An Advent calendar can be part of this preparation. Originating with German Lutherans in the 1800's, an Advent calendar is typically a diorama display with 24 miniature "doors"–one for each day of December leading up to Christmas. You open one door on each day, and inside each one is a small item–typically, a bit of chocolate or a toy–or less commonly, religious iconography to center the person's faith. Advent calendars are ideal for children–or children at heart–so it's no wonder that LEGO has made this an annual tradition.
Typically, when you buy a LEGO set, the box it comes in is purely functional and serves no purpose other than to store the build. But with the LEGO Advent calendars, this is not the case. I cannot stress this enough: Do not open the box from its sides, and do not tear the box, because the box itself is the Advent calendar. There's a large cardboard flap covering the broad side of the box, and underneath it are 24 perforated "doors." Each door leads to a separate compartment within the box, and inside each compartment is a small plastic bag filled with LEGO pieces–1 of 24 miniature builds based on a theme.
On the inside of each flap door is a picture of its respective build, which also doubles as your instructions; there is no separate booklet to explain how to put these together. In theory, this means that the single picture must be self-evident enough to convey what is typically depicted in multiple steps.
This is, for the most part, adequate instruction; the simplest builds are minifigures with a single accessory. But there are other builds, with layered bricks and tiles, where you can't see all the pieces from a single angle. These require a bit of guesswork. I assumed, for the most part, that I should practice symmetry–what I do for the right side of the model should also be done for the left side of the model. That worked out well 90% of the time.
There was one build where I had to backtrack because I had a piece left over. Despite it not being in the picture, it became obvious where it went, because of where the finished set lacked stability and required reinforcement. And because these miniature builds are no more than 15-20 pieces at the most, it wasn't too arduous to go back and rebuild it. But it can be a bit frustrating, for those who want that signature, LEGO instructiveness. LEGO might consider enclosing a small instruction booklet in the future; the packages say 6+ and 7+, but some of these barebones instructions would likely trip them up.
The Guardians of the Galaxy Advent Calendar (see it at Best Buy) is based almost entirely on the Holiday Special. So, if you or the person you're buying this for hasn't seen it, you need to do so. Otherwise, many of the calendar's builds, such as the massive candy cane, will be lost on you.
The set includes six mini-figures: Quill, Mantis, Drax, Groot, Rocket, and Nebula. Drax and Nebula have customized Christmas sweaters; Drax has a picture of Baby Groot on his, and Nebula has two sides on hers: Thanos and the Infinity Stones on her front, and Nebula and Gamora on her back.
The other parts of the build are accessories, mostly. There's a big gun. There's Christmas holly. And therein lies another problem with these calendars—knowing which accessories go with what, or that they're even supposed to go together. The gun is Rocket's, obviously. The holly goes is Groot; I know this from the end credits scene in the new Holiday Special. But there's also three tiny builds that combine to form a larger spaceship build. I could easily imagine that a child would not know these elements are supposed to fit together. And again, an instruction booklet would rectify this problem.
The Star Wars Advent Calendar (see it at Walmart) is mostly spacecraft and droid builds from the movies. My favorite was a miniature AT-ST Walker, which the designers depicted in perfect minimalist fashion. I loved the Advanced TIE Fighter, which again captured the key design elements of the build in a very spare, suggestive manner. And in terms of Christmas-themed accessories, you cannot get cuter than R2-D2 in a Christmas sweater.
Other builds were more obtuse. There is one that resembles a white door frame, with icicles on top. I had to look at the box cover to realize that this was supposed to be a Wampa cave; you're supposed to combine this with the Luke Skywalker figure and recreate the scene on Hoth from Empire Strikes Back, when the Wampa captures Luke and hangs him upside down.
The best builds were the ones that were independent and did not require the other builds to make sense. And that is why the Harry Potter Advent Calendar (see it at Walmart) was my favorite of the three I built. Each of the 24 miniature builds is a visual reference to the books/movies, and, with the exception of one of them (Would it be too much to get a Hagrid mini-figure along with the Hagrid motorcycle?), does not require the others to make it enjoyable. The references occur in book order, beginning with The Philosopher's Stone on December 1 and ending with The Death Hallows on December 24–-you build 3-4 sets per book.
The only drawback to the Potter calendar is that the holiday theme is close to non-existent. The Hedwig build came with a dreidel, but other than that, it's all key moments from the books, and not even from the holiday portions of the books. But a dedicated Potter fan is unlikely to care. They'll be happy with the oddball randomness of the builds, and most capture the whimsical spirit of the franchise. We get a couch with Professor Slughorn's head sticking out of it. We get Quidditch hoops, decked out with the Gryffindor and Slytherin colors. We get a miniature Hogwarts Express, a miniature Whomping Willow (complete with the Weasley car in its branches), and a miniature Room of Requirement. You get a miniature Gringotts Wizarding Bank, with a Ukrainian Ironbelly dragon perched atop it.
The Potter set also has phenomenal mini-figures. You get a Moaning Myrtle. You get a Neville Longbottom, complete with the sword of Godric Gryffindor.
I was unaware of Advent calendars until a few years ago. My parents were secular, and although my family celebrated Christmas in a broad sense, we focused exclusively on the "family" and "togetherness" parts of the equation, rather than on the religious aspects. Years later, I married a Catholic woman, and I learned more about the ceremonies and the traditions that lead up to Christmas. But it was only when we had our son that I learned about Advent calendars.
I would recommend these LEGO Advent Calendars with one caveat; the person receiving it has to know the source material fairly well. The minimalism of the sets means that the builder will have to figure things out on his or her own, with little context outside of pre-existing knowledge. As for me, I'll probably be buying at least one of these per year, moving forward, based on whatever my son is into at the time. He's nine years old, which means his interests change quickly.
LEGO Guardians of the Galaxy Advent Calendar (Set #76231, 268 pieces), LEGO Star Wars Advent Calendar (Set #75340, 329 pieces), and LEGO Harry Potter Advent Calendar (Set #76404, 334 pieces), retail for $44.99 each. They are available now.
Continue reading...
Advent is the preparation season leading up to Christmas. Different churches follow different traditions; some adherents will fast in the days leading up to Christmas. Other churches will sing special hymns and cover specific readings or themes during Sunday sermons. But much of how Advent persists, at least in popular culture, is through decorating the home with a tree, wreath, or lights.
An Advent calendar can be part of this preparation. Originating with German Lutherans in the 1800's, an Advent calendar is typically a diorama display with 24 miniature "doors"–one for each day of December leading up to Christmas. You open one door on each day, and inside each one is a small item–typically, a bit of chocolate or a toy–or less commonly, religious iconography to center the person's faith. Advent calendars are ideal for children–or children at heart–so it's no wonder that LEGO has made this an annual tradition.
Typically, when you buy a LEGO set, the box it comes in is purely functional and serves no purpose other than to store the build. But with the LEGO Advent calendars, this is not the case. I cannot stress this enough: Do not open the box from its sides, and do not tear the box, because the box itself is the Advent calendar. There's a large cardboard flap covering the broad side of the box, and underneath it are 24 perforated "doors." Each door leads to a separate compartment within the box, and inside each compartment is a small plastic bag filled with LEGO pieces–1 of 24 miniature builds based on a theme.
On the inside of each flap door is a picture of its respective build, which also doubles as your instructions; there is no separate booklet to explain how to put these together. In theory, this means that the single picture must be self-evident enough to convey what is typically depicted in multiple steps.
This is, for the most part, adequate instruction; the simplest builds are minifigures with a single accessory. But there are other builds, with layered bricks and tiles, where you can't see all the pieces from a single angle. These require a bit of guesswork. I assumed, for the most part, that I should practice symmetry–what I do for the right side of the model should also be done for the left side of the model. That worked out well 90% of the time.
There was one build where I had to backtrack because I had a piece left over. Despite it not being in the picture, it became obvious where it went, because of where the finished set lacked stability and required reinforcement. And because these miniature builds are no more than 15-20 pieces at the most, it wasn't too arduous to go back and rebuild it. But it can be a bit frustrating, for those who want that signature, LEGO instructiveness. LEGO might consider enclosing a small instruction booklet in the future; the packages say 6+ and 7+, but some of these barebones instructions would likely trip them up.
The Guardians of the Galaxy Advent Calendar (see it at Best Buy) is based almost entirely on the Holiday Special. So, if you or the person you're buying this for hasn't seen it, you need to do so. Otherwise, many of the calendar's builds, such as the massive candy cane, will be lost on you.
The set includes six mini-figures: Quill, Mantis, Drax, Groot, Rocket, and Nebula. Drax and Nebula have customized Christmas sweaters; Drax has a picture of Baby Groot on his, and Nebula has two sides on hers: Thanos and the Infinity Stones on her front, and Nebula and Gamora on her back.
The other parts of the build are accessories, mostly. There's a big gun. There's Christmas holly. And therein lies another problem with these calendars—knowing which accessories go with what, or that they're even supposed to go together. The gun is Rocket's, obviously. The holly goes is Groot; I know this from the end credits scene in the new Holiday Special. But there's also three tiny builds that combine to form a larger spaceship build. I could easily imagine that a child would not know these elements are supposed to fit together. And again, an instruction booklet would rectify this problem.
The Star Wars Advent Calendar (see it at Walmart) is mostly spacecraft and droid builds from the movies. My favorite was a miniature AT-ST Walker, which the designers depicted in perfect minimalist fashion. I loved the Advanced TIE Fighter, which again captured the key design elements of the build in a very spare, suggestive manner. And in terms of Christmas-themed accessories, you cannot get cuter than R2-D2 in a Christmas sweater.
Other builds were more obtuse. There is one that resembles a white door frame, with icicles on top. I had to look at the box cover to realize that this was supposed to be a Wampa cave; you're supposed to combine this with the Luke Skywalker figure and recreate the scene on Hoth from Empire Strikes Back, when the Wampa captures Luke and hangs him upside down.
The best builds were the ones that were independent and did not require the other builds to make sense. And that is why the Harry Potter Advent Calendar (see it at Walmart) was my favorite of the three I built. Each of the 24 miniature builds is a visual reference to the books/movies, and, with the exception of one of them (Would it be too much to get a Hagrid mini-figure along with the Hagrid motorcycle?), does not require the others to make it enjoyable. The references occur in book order, beginning with The Philosopher's Stone on December 1 and ending with The Death Hallows on December 24–-you build 3-4 sets per book.
The only drawback to the Potter calendar is that the holiday theme is close to non-existent. The Hedwig build came with a dreidel, but other than that, it's all key moments from the books, and not even from the holiday portions of the books. But a dedicated Potter fan is unlikely to care. They'll be happy with the oddball randomness of the builds, and most capture the whimsical spirit of the franchise. We get a couch with Professor Slughorn's head sticking out of it. We get Quidditch hoops, decked out with the Gryffindor and Slytherin colors. We get a miniature Hogwarts Express, a miniature Whomping Willow (complete with the Weasley car in its branches), and a miniature Room of Requirement. You get a miniature Gringotts Wizarding Bank, with a Ukrainian Ironbelly dragon perched atop it.
The Potter set also has phenomenal mini-figures. You get a Moaning Myrtle. You get a Neville Longbottom, complete with the sword of Godric Gryffindor.
I was unaware of Advent calendars until a few years ago. My parents were secular, and although my family celebrated Christmas in a broad sense, we focused exclusively on the "family" and "togetherness" parts of the equation, rather than on the religious aspects. Years later, I married a Catholic woman, and I learned more about the ceremonies and the traditions that lead up to Christmas. But it was only when we had our son that I learned about Advent calendars.
I would recommend these LEGO Advent Calendars with one caveat; the person receiving it has to know the source material fairly well. The minimalism of the sets means that the builder will have to figure things out on his or her own, with little context outside of pre-existing knowledge. As for me, I'll probably be buying at least one of these per year, moving forward, based on whatever my son is into at the time. He's nine years old, which means his interests change quickly.
Where to Buy 2022 LEGO Advent Calendars
LEGO Guardians of the Galaxy Advent Calendar (Set #76231, 268 pieces), LEGO Star Wars Advent Calendar (Set #75340, 329 pieces), and LEGO Harry Potter Advent Calendar (Set #76404, 334 pieces), retail for $44.99 each. They are available now.
Continue reading...