Review: 76439 Ollivanders & Madam Malkin's Robes
Posted by CapnRex101,
76422 Diagon Alley: Weasleys' Wizard Wheezes was released last year, introducing a new range of relatively affordable Diagon Alley shops. This series provides definite potential and continues with the appealing 76439 Ollivanders & Madam Malkin's Robes.
Ollivanders is perhaps the most famous shop in Diagon Alley, so is an essential addition to the street, while Madam Malkin's Robes has never appeared in LEGO before and provides something completely new. However, these buildings seem relatively cramped, which could present an issue for their interiors.
Summary
76439 Ollivanders & Madam Malkin's Robes, 744 pieces.
£79.99 / $89.99 / €89.99 | 10.8p/12.1c/12.1c per piece.
Buy at LEGO.com »
These shops are small, especially given the price, but nicely detailed
- Attractive and accurate architecture
- Efficient use of interior space
- New wand accessories
- Satisfying character selection
- Buildings are quite small
- Roofs are façades
- Rather expensive
The set was provided for review by LEGO. All opinions expressed are those of the author.
Minifigures
Harry Potter memorably visits Ollivanders in The Philosopher's Stone and his minifigure is dressed accordingly. This unkempt shirt has appeared a couple of times before in the larger Diagon Alley sets and reflects the character's clothing onscreen, while this double-sided head was introduced last year, featuring updated glasses and two happy expressions.
Draco Malfoy encounters Harry at Madam Malkin's in the book, although not in the film, which creates an opportunity to include another of Harry's soon-to-be classmates. Padma Patil is an ideal choice because the character has appeared just once before in 75981 LEGO Harry Potter Advent Calendar, so I am pleased to see her again.
A new double-sided head has been designed for Padma and I believe this is our first minifigure head in sienna brown, which is a colour previously limited to mini-dolls. The minifigure features matching hands, of course, but the torso originates from 21335 Motorised Lighthouse. I am not convinced this is something an eleven-year-old girl would likely wear, but at least it is distinctive.
The owners of the included businesses are supplied, beginning with Garrick Ollivander. The friendly wandmaker has undergone some updates since last appearing in 75978 Diagon Alley, as a dark brown jacket has replaced his prior dark red attire. The precise colour of Ollivander's attire in the film is debatable, but I prefer the more vibrant dark red shade, personally.
However, the wandmaker's traditional cravat looks splendid and I like his double-sided head, particularly for its alarmed expression, as Harry's early attempts at magic cause chaos in the shop! Madam Malkin looks excellent too and presumably allowed the graphic designer some freedom in creating her appearance, as Malkin never actually appears onscreen in the films.
Using lavender and medium lavender colours for her dress was certainly a good choice, based on the colours of Madam Malkin's shop. Additionally, I love her flamboyant hat, complete with a trans-pink plume, as well as the tape measure hanging over the minifigure's shoulders. Also, an exclusive warm tan head has been created for the character and looks superb.
Two generic minifigures complete the selection, reminiscent of those in 40500 Wizarding World Minifigure Accessory set. Maybe a pair of extremely minor characters from the films could have been chosen instead, but this unnamed duo suffices. The wizard cleverly re-uses Pippin's torso from 10316 The Lord of the Rings Rivendell, while the witch's torso is completely new.
I like its olive green colour and the dashes of vibrancy around the collar, including dark orange accents, which complement the medium nougat dress fairly well. In addition, the dual-moulded hair and hat element looks lovely and I was pleasantly surprised to find another character with a unique double-sided head.
The witch carries a dark tan wand and a bunch of flowers, while the wizard comes with a dark orange wand and uses a wheelchair. This seems uncommon in the Wizarding World, but I like the wheelchair's new reddish brown colour, which suggests it is made from wood and therefore suits the old-fashioned setting associated with Harry Potter.
The Completed Model
Those flowers relate to the witch's flower selling business, from a simple cart. I like the medium nougat crate on top and the flowers inside look nice, but the design is quite basic. A signpost to other shops in Diagon Alley is also provided and could hint towards future sets, given a sign for Madam Malkin's Robes was present in 76422 Diagon Alley: Weasleys' Wizard Wheezes, above advertisements for Magical Menagerie and Sugarplum's.
Ollivanders and Madam Malkin's Robes are two of the most recognisable shops from Diagon Alley in the films, both featuring distinctive exteriors. Also, they are perfect companions in this set because their contrasting dark and vibrant colour schemes work well together, even though the two shops are located some distance apart in the movies, on opposite sides of the street.
As with 76422 Diagon Alley: Weasleys' Wizard Wheezes, the difference in size between these buildings and the rendition of Ollivanders from 75978 Diagon Alley is stark. These models feel tiny after constructing the larger shops, measuring only 15cm in height, excluding the chimney on top. Nevertheless, the smaller design captures the essential features of Ollivanders, despite its predecessor's inevitably superior detail.
These shops are smaller than Weasleys' Wizard Wheezes too, although that seems accurate, based on their relative sizes onscreen. The box suggests the combination below when linking the buildings together, which looks lovely to me. I like the gradual change in heights along this parade and separating Madam Malkin's from the Weasleys' business is helpful, as purple and lavender shades tend to conflict.
However, the above arrangement bears little resemblance to the movies. Although there are many differences between films, I think this configuration is closest to what we see onscreen, with Ollivanders positioned furthest down the road and Weasleys' Wizard Wheezes separated from its neighbours. Fortunately, any arrangement is possible.
Madam Malkin's Robes is the smaller and simpler of the two shops, readily recognisable by its colourful façade and two doors, flanking a bay window. I am impressed the designer managed to recreate the latter feature at this scale, cleverly connecting 3x3 curved window frames at an angle to form a narrow bay window, in proportion with the doors.
Notably, the 3x3 curved window frames have never been available in lavender before and their extensive use on Ollivanders is just their second appearance in black. Technic pins are located on either side of the shop to connect to its neighbours, although that conceals the stickers on its walls, including posters for the Nimbus 2000 broomstick and a missing egg. I assume the latter is the dragon egg Hagrid wins from a mysterious gambler.
The other side advertises Madam Malkin's wares, such as Hogwarts apparel and elegant hats. Another sticker is applied on the sign hanging outside the upper floor, matching this location in the movie. The scissors mounted over the right-hand entrance also correspond with the source material and the brickwork texture looks excellent as well, albeit lacking from the side walls.
The building is relatively shallow, but I do not consider that a problem because characters are not shown visiting Madam Malkin's Robes in the films, so little is known of its interior. Even so, this model includes all the expected features, such as mannequins showing off different outfits, hats on display and fabrics available to purchase.
A traditional cash register is also included and looks nice, with a printed galleon returning from 76417 Gringotts Wizarding Bank - Collector's Edition beside it. I like the dark red details on the floor and the mannequin incorporates an uncommon torso, initially designed for Alfred in 76252 Batcave - Shadow Box. However, the connection between the 1x1 truncated cone and the 1x1 rounded plate comprising the base is rather fragile.
Furthermore, I find the stickered wall panels a little disappointing. I understand using them for simplicity, but there is certainly enough room to build details like the light fixtures or a shelf, so stickers are not ideal. A better window display would have been good as well, but that probably was a justifiable victim of the limited space.
Similarly, the floor area on the upper level is severely limited. 6x6 wedge plates provide easy access to the ground floor, but leave very little space for furnishings. With that in mind, I think the designer has used this room efficiently, including a charming sewing machine with various fabrics hanging above and another mannequin. The hats are beyond the reach of minifigures, but they look great too.
Two fabric capes are also provided, hiding another sticker on the panel behind them. I like how the external colours continue inside, between the flooring and the wall stickers. The roof is less satisfying though, consisting of a mere façade. This looks fine from the front, but it should really extend further, especially since roof panels can easily be designed to open for access.
While superficially similar, so the shops match when joined, Ollivanders is actually constructed quite differently. The sides of the model open outwards to show rows of wands, so this building is even more of a façade than Madam Malkin's. Despite that, the wand shop's exterior matches the source material, including dark stonework and tall bay windows, covering multiple floors.
However, the proportions of the windows could arguably be improved. The black band dividing the windows should be closer to halfway up, so another layer of the bigger bay windows would have been effective. On the other hand, I like how this model replicates the smaller windows on the upper floor, so the shop's exterior is still dominated by enormous windows.
The interior, meanwhile, contains stacks of wands and a moving ladder to reach them all. The shop certainly looks as chaotic as seen in The Philosopher's Stone and the lack of depth does not bother me, once again. After all, Ollivanders is packed with shelves full of wands during the films and not much else, so including a few shelves is enough, in my opinion.
Another old-fashioned cash register is placed inside, standing beside the ladder's guide rail on the floor. I like the idea of this sliding ladder function, but it is designed to be quickly removable, so the ladder feels loose and does not move as smoothly as I expected. The folding shelves on either side are perfectly integrated though.
The colourful wand boxes on the window displays look superb. Only one is actually removable though, containing Harry's wand, which is represented by the usual dark brown piece. Various new wands are also included, however. These are packaged in accessory bags, similar to the energy blasts or web elements commonly seen in Super Heroes sets.
Each pack contains twelve wands, divided between six designs. Reddish brown and medium nougat packs are supplied in this set, adding more variety. These accessories are a bit bigger than the existing wands, so they cannot fit in the wand boxes introduced in 75978 Diagon Alley, but minifigures can hold them, as normal. Moreover, these wands are beautifully detailed and some are inspired by specific wands from the films.
For example, the wand topped with a carved snake head strongly resembles Lucius Malfoy's wand, albeit in alternative colours. Even so, the designs are generic enough to apply to many characters. I did wonder whether these pieces would replace the existing wands, but I assume not, since providing whole packs in relatively small sets could seem excessive.
Overall
Diagon Alley is a memorable location in the Wizarding World, so I am pleased that LEGO has produced smaller and more affordable versions of the shops, succeeding 75978 Diagon Alley. Although not quite as detailed as the bigger set, 76439 Ollivanders & Madam Malkin's Robes looks appealing on display and both models include all the essential features from the movies, inside and out.
Interior space is limited in both cases, but more room is not really needed. After all, Ollivanders contains a wide selection of wands and Madam Malkin's Robes includes the expected clothing and fabrics. The minifigures are splendid as well, although I find the price of £79.99, $89.99 or €89.99 expensive. I would expect more substantial buildings for that amount of money, or even a few more characters to populate the shopping scene.
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33 comments on this article
A whole lot of new wands!
A wizard in a wheelchair if it had the proper J.K. Rowling treatment would be named "Legs NoWork McWheelie" so let's be glad LEGO had the idea first.
You'd think a disabled wizard would at the very least get around in a flying seat mounted on a pair of brooms. A wheelchair seems so... muggle.
Not that its right, but I don't recall the HP books or films ever having a disabled wizard. Good for Lego.
The wheelchair bothers me. We see Moody with a magical eye that can see through the back of his head (I know he also has a prosthetic leg, but I don’t know if it’s magical or mundane). Wormtail gets a magical silver hand to replace the one he severs. Unless this wheelchair is magicked to be self-driving, it seems out of place in the setting. I’ve never read the books, but is there any other reference to prosthetics, mobility aides, or similar devices? And I just realized Harry’s got glasses the whole time, so maybe the wheelchair is less of an issue than I was thinking. Exactly what is the problem with “muggle artifacts” that Arthur actually has a job investigating their “misuse”?
I'm gonna be the one to say it.
I find it hilarious that the stock image for this set, the image that gets plastered on toy shops all over the world, has the signpost hovering and clipping into the building.
@Ridgeheart said:
"I see Blacktron's moved into the world of wizardry. I'm okay with this."
Dang it, you beat me to it. Was going to say Ollivander's should probably take off as it is probably wanted by the Space Police.
While perhaps logic would state that the wizarding world would largely eliminate realistic disability, I really like that LEGO went ahead and did something more inclusive than the official book and film series did in their published material. While wizards might realistically not have to deal with disabilities, real people who read the books do deal with it and don't have magic to get rid of their conditions, and so it makes the fantasy world feel more accessible and relatable if the characters share similar problems. It's a nice way for the sets at least to say that disabled fans would not be excluded from this world.
@xboxtravis7992 said:
"A wizard in a wheelchair if it had the proper J.K. Rowling treatment would be named "Legs NoWork McWheelie" so let's be glad LEGO had the idea first."
I'm suddenly very certain that the only reason we never heard about a wizard in a wheelchair in the books is because the name "Andy Capp" was already taken.
@PurpleDave said:
"The wheelchair bothers me. We see Moody with a magical eye that can see through the back of his head (I know he also has a prosthetic leg, but I don’t know if it’s magical or mundane). Wormtail gets a magical silver hand to replace the one he severs. Unless this wheelchair is magicked to be self-driving, it seems out of place in the setting. I’ve never read the books, but is there any other reference to prosthetics, mobility aides, or similar devices? And I just realized Harry’s got glasses the whole time, so maybe the wheelchair is less of an issue than I was thinking. Exactly what is the problem with “muggle artifacts” that Arthur actually has a job investigating their “misuse”?"
It's very inconsistent. Surely Harry's eyes could be fixed, or magical contacts used at least, but no. When Harry loses all the bones in his arm, he's got to drink a foul potion and spend a long night painfully regrowing them, no wand waving instant solution. Why not regrow Moodie's leg? Likely because there's some talk of injuries due to curses and magical accidents often being permanent. Also, there's no mention of a magical medical school... One of the Weasley twins loses an ear that can't be regrown. Meanwhile, Hermione drinks a potion that turns her into a cat by mistake but she is healed. It seems very consistent with in-world inconsistency to me for a working-class wizard without access to high-cost magical remedies to need a wooden wheelchair that probably has wacky features like it can make tea on demand, but isn't even self driving.
It's funny how tiny these are compared to the massive UCS Diagon Alley buildings, but the price doesn't seem exactly "affordable" considering the humble depth and scale and minifigures on offer. The wand moulds are nice, the wheelchair in brown is going to be very useful for disabled figures outside of a modern setting, and the shrunken façades do look cute.
The Madame Malkin Minifigure looks good, I'll have to Bricklink one, but the rest is a bit well, underwhelming for the price
Love the new wands
$90 is crazy
@BrickBoriqueno:
Hermione wasn’t healed. That much I know. The potion is temporary, so at some point the effects just wear off, even if you’re waxing philosophical with Draco in the Slytherin Common Room.
Harry might just be out of habit. He grew up in a muggle house, wearing glasses until he was old enough to go to Hogwarts. By that time, it might have felt weird to him if he wasn’t wearing them. Now, Dumbledore wearing them is a different matter. I consider that Trelawney’s are actually magical, because the amount of distortion we see in the film should require something well beyond “coke bottle lenses”, and she doesn’t even really have those.
I prefer the MOC Madam Malkin’s by Scarlet Patronus (look them up on Insta), which is made the match the larger Diagon Alley set.
I’ll pick up the official one when it goes on offer around Black Friday, and use it as a parts pack to upgrade my larger Diagon Alley!
@PurpleDave said:
" @BrickBoriqueno:
Hermione wasn’t healed. That much I know. The potion is temporary, so at some point the effects just wear off, even if you’re waxing philosophical with Draco in the Slytherin Common Room.
Harry might just be out of habit. He grew up in a muggle house, wearing glasses until he was old enough to go to Hogwarts. By that time, it might have felt weird to him if he wasn’t wearing them. Now, Dumbledore wearing them is a different matter. I consider that Trelawney’s are actually magical, because the amount of distortion we see in the film should require something well beyond “coke bottle lenses”, and she doesn’t even really have those."
The polyjuice potion is only for human transformation, so using it (accidently) for an animal was outside the normal, intended to be temporary effects. Maybe permanent, maybe temporary, maybe just cat fur for life... Hopefully she wasn't allergic.
The wheelchair is technically impossible for a wizard. Now, I get it, representation and inclusion are important, but still. All paralysis can be repaired, and any amputation can be either regrown or replaced by a near-perfect substitute in the wizarding world. That being said, I still like that there is now a brown wheelchair element.
@PurpleDave said:
"The wheelchair bothers me. We see Moody with a magical eye that can see through the back of his head (I know he also has a prosthetic leg, but I don’t know if it’s magical or mundane). Wormtail gets a magical silver hand to replace the one he severs. Unless this wheelchair is magicked to be self-driving, it seems out of place in the setting. I’ve never read the books, but is there any other reference to prosthetics, mobility aides, or similar devices? And I just realized Harry’s got glasses the whole time, so maybe the wheelchair is less of an issue than I was thinking. Exactly what is the problem with “muggle artifacts” that Arthur actually has a job investigating their “misuse”?"
In answer to your queries, Professor Kettleburn (the care of magical creatures teacher before Hagrid) had magical prosthetics on all of his limbs much like Moody's leg, and Arthur Weasley has to look into the misuse of muggle artifacts because some wizards would bewitch them as a form of muggle baiting.
The only reason Mody's leg and George's ear could not be regrown is that they were removed by dark magic. Otherwise, anything can be fixed.
The "hide user comments" feature is proving its worth again...
I love how detailed the Harry Potter buildings are getting! Like the 76423 Hogwarts train station from last year for example
"Flourish & Blotts - Write This Way". Snort.
@legOtaku_official said:
"I'm gonna be the one to say it.
I find it hilarious that the stock image for this set, the image that gets plastered on toy shops all over the world, has the signpost hovering and clipping into the building."
Well according to the 360 view we should be getting a multicoloured pack of wands as well...
https://www.lego.com/en-gb/product/ollivanders-madam-malkin-s-robes-76439
@Yardsale19X said:
"The "hide user comments" feature is proving its worth again... "
That feature’s getting a real workout lately!
Now we just need “hide replies to blocked user”.
It's interesting that the tan and gray have been swapped since the last Ollivander's. It looks to me as though it should be all black based on Google images, but I suppose the variety is more visually interesting.
I don't think there's any real internal coherence to the logic of Harry Potter's setting, so I think the wheelchair fits in fine. The tape measure for Malkin is a nice touch that I imagine would make that torso harder to reuse. What was Padma wearing in the movie, was it anything like this?
I'm just picturing repurposing the Harry Potter torso from this set by putting standard size minifig legs on it and having an old guy with his pants belted up under his waist!
@RogueWhistler said:
"
I don't think there's any real internal coherence to the logic of Harry Potter's setting, so I think the wheelchair fits in fine."
THANK YOU, someone finally says it! Once you start applying any kind of logic to the world of HP it *completely* falls apart. I mean, this isn't really a criticism - it's a literal MAGICAL WORLD - but it does make me feel a type of way when people are basically griping that the wheelchair shouldn't be included because it "doesn't make sense."
Lots of people in Brickset comments get weird whenever LEGO includes more visibly disabled people in sets! It's very much telling on yourself!
You either get bley spaceships from the Mouse or "whimsical" shops and buildings from the Witch. That's the state of licensed evergreen Lego.
The figs and exteriors are nice. But, the buildings are tiny and shallow. Hard to compare with the other DA. The new wands are fun. Price is poor.
@chrisaw said:
" @Yardsale19X said:
"The "hide user comments" feature is proving its worth again... "
That feature’s getting a real workout lately!
Now we just need “hide replies to blocked user”."
The simplest way is to hide the users that repeat those comments.
I love all the torso prints here, as well as the flat cap and top hat. Sadly Harry Potter is the only way to get more formal/less casual attire for minifigures.
The tape measure round the neck is cool.
I really like the brown 'wooden' wheelchair, will be great for my 1950s modular hospital.
However it's a damn shame this is so overpriced. Lego is greedy and there are definitely sets where they basically must just write down random numbers on pieces of paper and pull them out of a hat. Anyone who tries to defend outrageous prices needs their head checked.
Thank you to everyone who actually wanted to engage with the set in the comments. Sadly, however, it appears pointless debate is the order of the day, so the comments have to close for the time being.