Review: 71426 Piranha Plant
Posted by TheBrickPal,
Super Mario Bros. was released for the Nintendo Entertainment System, or Famicom, in 1985, and the series has remained consistently popular since. The Piranha Plant was introduced then, and has proven iconic - even becoming a fighter in Super Smash Bros. Ultimate!
It was only a matter of time before LEGO tried to seriously do the famed enemy justice, and that has now happened in the form of 71426 Piranha Plant. But should you snap up this set, or let it wither away on the shelves? Let's find out…
Summary
71426 Piranha Plant, 540 pieces.
£57.99 / $59.99 / €64.99 | 10.7p/11.1c/12.0c per piece.
Buy at LEGO.com »
A great model that looks cool on display and won't break the bank
- Bright green galore
- Good articulation
- Clever hidden function
- Accurate to source
- Course building system compatibility would have been welcome
The set was provided for review by LEGO. All opinions expressed are those of the author.
If you'd like some musical accompaniment for this review, here you go!
Box and Contents
The packaging is the standard black box design that is common across LEGO's range of 18+ sets. However, I quite like this example, as the bright colors of the model contrast nicely with the dark background.
Inside the box are six numbered bags and an instruction booklet. The instructions contain a timeline of the history of the Piranha Plant, inexplicably ending at 2013's Super Mario 3D World.
A short blurb by designer Carl Merriam is also provided. Interestingly, the set began as a fun project while designing 71411 The Mighty Bowser, and the prototype sat gathering dust after. Following Bowser's completion, he was looking for his next set idea, and then decided to pursue making it an official product.
Construction
The entire model is built from bottom to top, in reference to Piranha Plants coming up out of green pipes in Super Mario video games.
The construction of the pipe is incredibly clever, with plenty of SNOT (Studs Not On Top) techniques used. This set is a fantastic parts pack for fans of bright green, with nine pieces appearing in the color for the first time. In fact, almost one-fourth of the set (123 pieces) is comprised of bright green!
The completed pipe looks quite nice, and captures the curves of it well.
The stem is built separately, with no attachment points to the pipe. It simply slots right into the top. I particularly love the assembly of the two leaves.
The Piranha Plant's head is built using a complex Technic skeleton, which the quarter dome bricks are attached to. It was very fun to assemble!
Reference
Source - SmashWiki
The Completed Model
The Piranha Plant looks magnificent. It really stands out, with its unique design and bright colors. The size is bigger than I expected, measuring 23 centimeters / 9 inches tall and 11 centimeters / 4.5 inches wide.
The teeth are rendered with Technic parts originally used for BIONICLE Bohrok eyes, which is a good choice. Additionally, I like the part usage of the tongue. The rounded lips also appear perfect to me.
While they look great, the number of teeth represented is actually incorrect, with three on top instead of five. However, this does not bother me, and most people will not notice this inaccuracy.
Eight printed 4x4 quarter dome bricks are used for the bulbous head of the Piranha Plant, which looks fantastic. As stated before, the construction of the leaf 'arms' is brilliant, as well. I enjoy that they can be posed in multiple ways, with two different points of articulation.
The plant looks pretty good from the back, though some Technic pieces are obviously exposed on the head. That could not be avoided, though.
There's even a hidden feature, with two yellow 3x3 circular tiles representing the Mushroom Kingdom's currency! I appreciate that these coins were included, as they feel unnecessary, but are an awesome bonus.
The coins can be put inside at the top of the pipe, and released by pushing a 2x4 tile 'button' on the bottom. Thus, rather ingeniously, this set doubles as a piggy bank! Or is it a planty bank...
Overall
71426 Piranha Plant is phenomenal! It has so much personality, which is helped by the level of poseability and the coin dispensing play feature. It would look wonderful as a desk accessory in an office, or near a TV in a gaming setup. I went with the latter option, myself!
There are minor issues that I mentioned, but none stop me from highly recommending this set. Some integration with the course building system would have been interesting, like an interaction tile to swap out on the head, but it's not that big of a deal. Even the price of £57.99 / $59.99 / €64.99 is fairly reasonable to me - perhaps not for the price-per-piece ratio, but for the volume of 'stuff' provided.
This is definitely one of my favorite sets of the year, which I never thought I'd say when rumors of this model first emerged. For those who want an affordable, amazing LEGO Super Mario display piece, look no further.
Thanks to Huw for the photos.
137 likes
44 comments on this article
@Ridgeheart said:
"Yes, okay, it's a really lovely model, but can it SING?
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6YO6JE5lF8E"
Unfortunately not!
I was pleasantly surprised by this set, too. I've hardly played any Super Mario games so have no attachment to the source material but nevertheless I thought it is a very well designed and fun model that looks right at home with my 'real' botanical collection plants.
It's an excellent bright green parts pack, too, with many appearing in the colour for the first time in this set. https://brickset.com/parts/in-71426-1/colour-Bright-Green
I bought this for my son for Christmas, and had been wondering if that was a good call. Thanks for this helpful review - it completely justified my purchase!
One nitpick - the pot might work better in dark orange. But then I guess it wouldn't be a good bright green parts pack....
@ForestMenOfEndor said:
"I bought this for my son for Christmas, and had been wondering if that was a good call. Thanks for this helpful review - it completely justified my purchase!
One nitpick - the pot might work better in dark orange. But then I guess it wouldn't be a good bright green parts pack...."
If it were meant as a pot, dark orange would work—but I think this is meant to be coming out of a green pipe like in the original games.
I do wish they had figured out some integration with the course builder system (since giant Piranha Plants aren't unheard of in Mario games), but as a display model this still looks great.
It would have been nice to build a longer stalk/ stem like in the games when the plant pops out of the pipes and snaps after the characters. Otherwise this indeed looks like a fun little set once you can get over the price or an irresistible discount calls...
This would be an interesting item in a Botanical Garden.....
Looks awesome, apart from the printed pieces.
On the packaging they look brilliantly white (as per usual) while in the actual set they look almost pink since LEGO cheaped out on the ink quality (again as per usual). When I see on sets from other manufacturers what is possible I get really annoyed that LEGO expects to get away with such shoddy prints.
@AustinPowers said:
"Looks awesome, apart from the printed pieces.
On the packaging they look brilliantly white (as per usual) while in the actual set they look almost pink since LEGO cheaped out on the ink quality (again as per usual). When I see on sets from other manufacturers what is possible I get really annoyed that LEGO expects to get away with such shoddy prints. "
I was gonna mention the pink tint, but didn't want to beat a dead horse. It is annoying, though! Hope they improve in the future, but I'm not optimistic…
@TheBrickPal : I wouldn't call it beating a dead horse, it's calling out LEGO for their shoddy quality while asking premium prices.
I wonder why so many people simply accept this as if it was a given that is unchangeable.
Like I said, the competition is way ahead, and those customers who are willing to broaden their mind can get so much better quality.
Just recently I bought sets from three different alternatives, and added to the fact that their sets contained not a single sticker, their prints were lightyears ahead of LEGO's. And not just the brilliance of the colours, even white on any darker colour, but also print matching across several pieces (which is also often a low point in LEGO prints).
I always make the connection between price and quality, and to me that relation is way off when it comes to LEGO these days.
@AustinPowers said:
" @TheBrickPal : I wouldn't call it beating a dead horse, it's calling out LEGO for their shoddy quality while asking premium prices.
I wonder why so many people simply accept this as if it was a given that is unchangeable.
Like I said, the competition is way ahead, and those customers who are willing to broaden their mind can get so much better quality.
Just recently I bought sets from three different alternatives, and added to the fact that their sets contained not a single sticker, their prints were lightyears ahead of LEGO's. And not just the brilliance of the colours, even white on any darker colour, but also print matching across several pieces (which is also often a low point in LEGO prints).
I always make the connection between price and quality, and to me that relation is way off when it comes to LEGO these days. "
I agree with you, but to me it is beating a dead horse when it's a problem across LEGO's entire portfolio, and isn't unique to this set, so it's not really worth mentioning again and again. At this point they know that the printing needs to improve. Whether that happens or not, I don't know. But I hope so!
Maybe I simply missed the part where it was mentioned in the review, but I think it is very important to add that the head is very heavy and thus limits the poseability or at least the stability of the pose you would want to achieve.
Plant, good.
Printing, bad!
Hulk, SMASH!!
Only one coat of paint is fine for Lego. New moto: 'Only the cheapest is good for these suckers.'
Dead horse beaten. Bad horse!!
EDIT: It will look perfect next to ol" pink Commander Fox.
Are there any images of it front facing? I hope, like most mario characters, it looks absolutely cursed when directly looking at you
@beige2 said:
"Are there any images of it front facing? I hope, like most mario characters, it looks absolutely cursed when directly looking at you"
https://images.brickset.com/sets/AdditionalImages/71426-1/71426_alt3.jpg
@Lyichir said:
" @ForestMenOfEndor said:
"I bought this for my son for Christmas, and had been wondering if that was a good call. Thanks for this helpful review - it completely justified my purchase!
One nitpick - the pot might work better in dark orange. But then I guess it wouldn't be a good bright green parts pack...."
If it were meant as a pot, dark orange would work—but I think this is meant to be coming out of a green pipe like in the original games."
_smacking my head_ Of course you are correct. The reference picture in the article threw me!
@TheBrickPal said:
" @beige2 said:
"Are there any images of it front facing? I hope, like most mario characters, it looks absolutely cursed when directly looking at you"
https://images.brickset.com/sets/AdditionalImages/71426-1/71426_alt3.jpg"
Yikes. That was quite the jumpscare
@ForestMenOfEndor said:
" @Lyichir said:
" @ForestMenOfEndor said:
"I bought this for my son for Christmas, and had been wondering if that was a good call. Thanks for this helpful review - it completely justified my purchase!
One nitpick - the pot might work better in dark orange. But then I guess it wouldn't be a good bright green parts pack...."
If it were meant as a pot, dark orange would work—but I think this is meant to be coming out of a green pipe like in the original games."
_smacking my head_ Of course you are correct. The reference picture in the article threw me!"
My bad. The photo used in the Wikipedia article - https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/4/4c/PiranhaPlant.png - is more in line with the set, having the pipe instead. But the Smash render photo I ended up using is more detailed and in a higher quality, so I thought it worked better. For some reason, I couldn't find the photo with the pipe anywhere else online!
Long time Super Mario fan here. I can’t wait to get this set! It looks phenomenal, and I do want to set it next to my Switch.
@TheBrickPal said:
" @ForestMenOfEndor said:
" @Lyichir said:
" @ForestMenOfEndor said:
"I bought this for my son for Christmas, and had been wondering if that was a good call. Thanks for this helpful review - it completely justified my purchase!
One nitpick - the pot might work better in dark orange. But then I guess it wouldn't be a good bright green parts pack...."
If it were meant as a pot, dark orange would work—but I think this is meant to be coming out of a green pipe like in the original games."
_smacking my head_ Of course you are correct. The reference picture in the article threw me!"
My bad. The photo used in the Wikipedia article - https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/4/4c/PiranhaPlant.png - is more in line with the set, having the pipe instead. But the Smash render photo I ended up using is more detailed and in a higher quality, so I thought it worked better. For some reason, I couldn't find the photo with the pipe anywhere else online!"
No worries! Thanks again for the review!
Great to see more of your reviews, BrickPal. You have a really nice writing style.
I couldn't stop laughing when I saw the "musical accompaniment", I knew exactly what it was without clicking on it.
"the number of teeth represented is actually incorrect, with three on top instead of five"
Could this be a deliberate design choice that allows the 3 teeth on the top row to mesh with the 4 teeth on the bottom row?
Does it dance when the sun shines on it? Probably won’t fit on my cars dashboard anyway.
@StyleCounselor said:
"Bad horse!!"
He rides across the nation...
I am looking forward to this set more and more.
@Andrusi said:
" @StyleCounselor said:
"Bad horse!!"
He rides across the nation..."
A paint job only Dr. Horrible could love.
@Andrusi said:
" @StyleCounselor said:
"Bad horse!!"
He rides across the nation..."
the thoroughbred of sin...
when first saw this, I thought of Little Shop of Horrors. plan to buy it because of that.
@AgentKallus said:
" @Andrusi said:
" @StyleCounselor said:
"Bad horse!!"
He rides across the nation..."
the thoroughbred of sin..."
I never thought the comments on a Super Mario set review would have Dr. Horrible's soundtrack running through my head... (Side note: One of my spellchecker recommended replacement for "Horrible's" was "Horribleness." Which I do not have a Ph. D in...)
This set is close to $100, in Australia.
I would like it, but not that badly.
@AustinPowers said:
"Looks awesome, apart from the printed pieces.
On the packaging they look brilliantly white (as per usual) while in the actual set they look almost pink since LEGO cheaped out on the ink quality (again as per usual). When I see on sets from other manufacturers what is possible I get really annoyed that LEGO expects to get away with such shoddy prints. "
They expect to get away with it because people continue to buy their products despite years of bad printing and rising prices. Why would they change it if people keep buying the products? The only thing that registers is a sale, or no sale!
@Celloguy said:
" @AustinPowers said:
"Looks awesome, apart from the printed pieces.
On the packaging they look brilliantly white (as per usual) while in the actual set they look almost pink since LEGO cheaped out on the ink quality (again as per usual). When I see on sets from other manufacturers what is possible I get really annoyed that LEGO expects to get away with such shoddy prints. "
They expect to get away with it because people continue to buy their products despite years of bad printing and rising prices. Why would they change it if people keep buying the products? The only thing that registers is a sale, or no sale!"
And that's exactly what I mean.
I can't fathom why people keep buying overpriced products with such a quality level.
The only reason I can think of is that they have not yet seen what is actually possible (and at better prices too) .
One should really go to a LEGO store, buy this set, open it there and then in the store and then hold the prints next to the shot on the packaging and angrily ask the staff if that's supposed to be the same colour. And then produce a printed piece from an alternative manufacturer to show how it is and can be done right.
I would love to see the looks on their faces and the reactions of other customers. Also the excuses the staff would try to provide, if any. Then one should demand to return the product because of false advertising.
The other alternative would be to write a complaint to customer service, provide images of alternatives, and ask what they propose to do about it. I bet you the only answer you will get is that you can return the product for a full refund.
They just don't care about quality even though their motto is "only the best is good enough". That in itself is a slap in the face of any intelligent customer.
And that is one of the reasons I keep bringing up alternative manufacturers again and again. Lots of those are worth being made known and acknowledged for the quality level they provide. Especially since the ones I mean are far from being "clone" or "knockoff" companies that many people believe them to be when they hear the term "alternatives".
Companies like Cobi, the just recently revived Kiddicraft, CaDa, BlueBrixx Pro, etc.
@AustinPowers said:
" @Celloguy said:
" @AustinPowers said:
"Looks awesome, apart from the printed pieces.
On the packaging they look brilliantly white (as per usual) while in the actual set they look almost pink since LEGO cheaped out on the ink quality (again as per usual). When I see on sets from other manufacturers what is possible I get really annoyed that LEGO expects to get away with such shoddy prints. "
They expect to get away with it because people continue to buy their products despite years of bad printing and rising prices. Why would they change it if people keep buying the products? The only thing that registers is a sale, or no sale!"
And that's exactly what I mean.
I can't fathom why people keep buying overpriced products with such a quality level.
The only reason I can think of is that they have not yet seen what is actually possible (and at better prices too) .
One should really go to a LEGO store, buy this set, open it there and then in the store and then hold the prints next to the shot on the packaging and angrily ask the staff if that's supposed to be the same colour. And then produce a printed piece from an alternative manufacturer to show how it is and can be done right.
I would love to see the looks on their faces and the reactions of other customers. Also the excuses the staff would try to provide, if any. Then one should demand to return the product because of false advertising.
The other alternative would be to write a complaint to customer service, provide images of alternatives, and ask what they propose to do about it. I bet you the only answer you will get is that you can return the product for a full refund.
They just don't care about quality even though their motto is "only the best is good enough". That in itself is a slap in the face of any intelligent customer.
And that is one of the reasons I keep bringing up alternative manufacturers again and again. Lots of those are worth being made known and acknowledged for the quality level they provide. Especially since the ones I mean are far from being "clone" or "knockoff" companies that many people believe them to be when they hear the term "alternatives".
Companies like Cobi, the just recently revived Kiddicraft, CaDa, BlueBrixx Pro, etc."
I don't think that being rude and disruptive to Lego store employees (who have no control over the manufacturing quality of the product they sell) would help anything, actually.
@AustinPowers said:
" @Celloguy said:
" @AustinPowers said:
"Looks awesome, apart from the printed pieces.
On the packaging they look brilliantly white (as per usual) while in the actual set they look almost pink since LEGO cheaped out on the ink quality (again as per usual). When I see on sets from other manufacturers what is possible I get really annoyed that LEGO expects to get away with such shoddy prints. "
They expect to get away with it because people continue to buy their products despite years of bad printing and rising prices. Why would they change it if people keep buying the products? The only thing that registers is a sale, or no sale!"
And that's exactly what I mean.
I can't fathom why people keep buying overpriced products with such a quality level.
The only reason I can think of is that they have not yet seen what is actually possible (and at better prices too) .
One should really go to a LEGO store, buy this set, open it there and then in the store and then hold the prints next to the shot on the packaging and angrily ask the staff if that's supposed to be the same colour. And then produce a printed piece from an alternative manufacturer to show how it is and can be done right.
I would love to see the looks on their faces and the reactions of other customers. Also the excuses the staff would try to provide, if any. Then one should demand to return the product because of false advertising.
The other alternative would be to write a complaint to customer service, provide images of alternatives, and ask what they propose to do about it. I bet you the only answer you will get is that you can return the product for a full refund.
They just don't care about quality even though their motto is "only the best is good enough". That in itself is a slap in the face of any intelligent customer.
And that is one of the reasons I keep bringing up alternative manufacturers again and again. Lots of those are worth being made known and acknowledged for the quality level they provide. Especially since the ones I mean are far from being "clone" or "knockoff" companies that many people believe them to be when they hear the term "alternatives".
Companies like Cobi, the just recently revived Kiddicraft, CaDa, BlueBrixx Pro, etc."
What a “noble cause.”
This is like deranged behavior. You’d rightly be escorted off the premises.
@Prof_Physika said:
"This is like deranged behavior. You’d rightly be escorted off the premises."
Funny you should say so, because both here in Germany and even more often when in the US back in the day I have witnessed exactly such kind of customer behaviour at several stores (all kinds of stores that is) - but the results were opposite of what you thought. In fact in all those cases the staff apologized and tried to accommodate the customer as best as they could.
Which actually is just what their job is. "The customer is always right (even if he isn't really)" is what sales staff learn as a golden rule from day one after all.
And why is demanding to get what you pay for "deranged behaviour"? Especially in cases like this, when what is shown on the box to make you buy the product is so different from what you actually get.
Plus, I didn't propose one should throw a tantrum, roll around on the floor, or threaten to do damage to the premises or staff.
By "angrily ask" I simply meant to be forceful enough to make them notice that you are very unhappy with the product.
And seriously, @Lyichir, why shouldn't the staff at a store (of any brand) be exactly the ones you should turn to? They are the face to the customer first and foremost. Perhaps the US mentality is different (but to be honest it didn't seem like that to me - quite the opposite actually), but over here the staff at any store is the go-to address if a customer has a problem with a product. It's not some anonymous customer care hotline or service form on the net.
Great product! LEGO, please make more like this.
Love the build and very sturdy, looks good next to Bowser. Highly recommend this, hope they bring out a few more.
Finally, a plant I might be able to keep alive!
@Ridgeheart : believe it or not, I could actually laugh about your post. After all I love sarcasm and irony.
There's just one thing I didn't understand. Who is this "Karen" and what has her hairstyle got to do with anything? Up to now I considered myself quite versed in Internet memes, but I have never heard of a Karen of any kind so far.
This set is at the top of my Christmas wishlist. I main Piranha Plant in Smash Ultimate, I expect that every time I look at this thing on my desk it will bring back fond memories of attacking my friends with spiky iron balls, clouds of poison gas, and vicious chomps.
@AustinPowers said:
" @Celloguy said:
" @AustinPowers said:
"Looks awesome, apart from the printed pieces.
On the packaging they look brilliantly white (as per usual) while in the actual set they look almost pink since LEGO cheaped out on the ink quality (again as per usual). When I see on sets from other manufacturers what is possible I get really annoyed that LEGO expects to get away with such shoddy prints. "
They expect to get away with it because people continue to buy their products despite years of bad printing and rising prices. Why would they change it if people keep buying the products? The only thing that registers is a sale, or no sale!"
And that's exactly what I mean.
I can't fathom why people keep buying overpriced products with such a quality level.
The only reason I can think of is that they have not yet seen what is actually possible (and at better prices too) .
One should really go to a LEGO store, buy this set, open it there and then in the store and then hold the prints next to the shot on the packaging and angrily ask the staff if that's supposed to be the same colour. And then produce a printed piece from an alternative manufacturer to show how it is and can be done right.
I would love to see the looks on their faces and the reactions of other customers. Also the excuses the staff would try to provide, if any. Then one should demand to return the product because of false advertising.
The other alternative would be to write a complaint to customer service, provide images of alternatives, and ask what they propose to do about it. I bet you the only answer you will get is that you can return the product for a full refund.
They just don't care about quality even though their motto is "only the best is good enough". That in itself is a slap in the face of any intelligent customer.
And that is one of the reasons I keep bringing up alternative manufacturers again and again. Lots of those are worth being made known and acknowledged for the quality level they provide. Especially since the ones I mean are far from being "clone" or "knockoff" companies that many people believe them to be when they hear the term "alternatives".
Companies like Cobi, the just recently revived Kiddicraft, CaDa, BlueBrixx Pro, etc."
As someone who previously worked in a Lego store, please don't do that. It won't accomplish anything besides making the staff (and everyone else in the store) very uncomfortable. There's nothing they can do at the store level besides forward your complaints to customer service, which is exactly the place such comments should be directed in the first place.
I agree completely that Lego's quality has been going the opposite direction of their prices, but making a fuss in person will not help.
@legomaster65: don't worry, I wasn't going to do that anyway. I said "one should", i.e. a hypothetical scenario. I certainly am not going to such troubles for what is ultimately a lost cause.
I vote with my wallet because that's the only sensible thing to do in this case.
@AustinPowers: I assumed, but it's hard to read intent through text.
It's really all one can do, but I worry that it won't have any net effect as there are so many people still buying everything regardless of the cost increases and quality decreases. I think Lego has become far too comfortable being the world leader in construction toy manufacturing; there's much less incentive to maintain a consistent level of quality if people will buy it anyways.
@legomaster65: completely agree, and I think it's really sad too. But at least for myself I am happy that I have so many great alternatives to choose from nowadays. Sometimes I still choose LEGO, if they have a set I like at a price I think offers good value, more often now I choose one of the alternatives. Especially since I am a huge Star Trek fan and only a casual watcher of Star Wars, it's clear who gets my money these days.