41045 Orangutan's Banana Tree
Posted by Huw,
It was quiet here over the weekend because I, and many other staff members and regulars, were at the Brickish Association's annual general meeting in Sheffield. One of the highlights of the weekend was a visit to the local brand store: a bus load of us descended on the store during the evening and proceeded to clear the shelves. At the end, the crowd of us standing outside surrounded by yellow bags stuffed full of LEGO was gathering quite a few quizzical glances from passers-by :-)
I was actually very restrained and didn't buy very much at all, but one thing I was pleased to find was series 5 of the Friends Animals sets, so I'll post some quick pictorial reviews of them over the next few days, starting with 41045 Orangutan's Banana Tree.
Like other Friends Animals sets, it consists of an animal and a habitat. In this case, you will not be surprised to learn given the set's title, an orangutan and a 'banana tree'. However, the tree looks nothing like any banana tree I've ever seen.
The primate can hang from a green Indiana Jones whip, sit on the perch, or descend to ground level to pick the banana.
The two 1x1 lamp holders in dark pink/BR.RED-VIOL. are not common, having appeared in only one set until now, Emma's Sports Car. Other than these and the green whip, there's nothing else really of note, parts-wise, in the set.
Like all Friends animals, this one's been domesticated and has a hole into which you can attach a bow. It's on his back, not head, though.
It's quite a bit bigger than the primate that came with the zookeeper in series 5 of the collectable minifigs.
As I always conclude when reviewing these animals sets, it's a neat little model, at the right price, that will be a hit with the target audience. From an AFOL's perspective, it's not spectacular but nevertheless a worthy addition to your collection.
Given series 4 has only just surfaced in the USA, I guess you might have a while to wait on that side of the water before you can buy this series.
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6 comments on this article
Good review, I wasn't going to get this but now I think I will. S4 is still nowhere to be seen in Chicago.
The animal could look a bit more like an Orangutan though. :(
This just looks like a large orange chimp.
A new vegetation leaf, in bright green might have been better for the banana tree?
and/or a bunch of bananas.
I am surprised that they didn't put the banana on the more "mature" tree I do not know if that was how it is designed or just how you put it, but it seems odd.
Built as designed...
It have nice parts, but that "orangutan" looks quite off.The mouth could be printer a little higher.
A good Lego orangutan would use the gorilla mask head, the long arms from the Toy Story sets and short legs. I want one for my fantasy setting to act as a Librarian. Ook...
Just DON'T call him a monkey.
I am such a Discworld geek...