Review: 11203 Bluey's Family House
Posted by benbacardi,
Bluey is a standout animated children's TV show of the past few years, with beautiful illustrations and excellent storylines. Many characters and moments from the show have become very well-known, including the house that the Heeler family protagonists live in, a delightful suburban family home in the city of Brisbane.
In the five Bluey sets LEGO have released this year, two of them focus on the house—one Duplo, one System. Today I've taken a look at the 4+ set that depicts both the house and the garden, and is the only set to come with all four of the Heeler family! Let's see how well 11203 Bluey's Family House lives up to the home portrayed by the show.
Summary
11203 Bluey's Family House, 382 pieces.
£59.99 / $69.99 / €69.99 | 15.7p / 18.3c / 18.3c per piece.
Buy at LEGO.com »
A great rendition of the Heeler family home, including the garden, with plenty of nods to the show that children will love.
- Most aspects of the house captured
- Easy to build but not dull
- Includes all four family members!
- Very small kitchen and bathroom
The set was provided for review by LEGO. All opinions expressed are those of the author.
Instructions
Before I dive into the review proper, the instruction manuals were packaged in an interesting way I'd never seen before. Usually, they're either loose, in a plastic wrap, or in a cardboard envelope. This time, they were in a sealed paper bag decorated with images of instruction manuals.
Tearing open the bag the seal provided revealed the six instruction manuals nestled inside. I'm not sure of the benefit to this over the usual cardboard envelope, but it was interesting to see!
Minifigures
As you'd expect, both Bluey and her younger sister Bingo are included in the set. I previously wrote about my initial impressions of the minifigures in my review of 11202 Bluey's Beach & Family Car Trip, and the figures in this set are identical. The same medium legs, moulded heads, and printed torsos.
In the show, Bingo is slightly shorter than Bluey, as you'd expect in the age difference between a five-year-old and seven-year-old. In minifigure form, however, they're identical.
Of the five Bluey sets released so far, this is the only one to feature all four family members—and as such is our first introduction to Bandit! Just like Chilli, he shares the same moulded head piece, with unique printing distinguishing him from Bluey. It is hard to tell them apart from just their head, however, as the only real difference is the flecks of grey in his hair.
Chilli is identical to her appearance in 11202 Bluey's Beach & Family Car Trip. Overall, the more I see the minifigures, the more they grow on me. Perhaps my initial reaction was unfair!
Finally, we can see the whole family together as intended! I'm not sure why LEGO chose a slightly different blue for Bandit's toes and hands—in the show, there doesn't appear to be a difference at all.
Bluey predominantly shares her dad's colouring, and Bingo her mum's. However, Bluey has multiple spots of colour on her back, and Bingo just one—the opposite is true of their parents. A nice subtle nod to genetics that I'm sure the show designers enjoyed including!
And I couldn't resist recreating the famous opening credit sequence with the game of musical statues:
A handful of accessories for the girls are dotted throughout the set. Bingo holds a wand (a nod, perhaps, to the episode Featherwand—though a feather would have been more appropriate) and a pizza box, with a Bluey-specific print identical to that shown in the episode Pizza Girls.
Bluey's wearing a crown, holding a magnifying glass, with a rainbow-coloured cape draped about her neck. This is a direct portrayal of her outfit in Queens, shown below.
The cape is an excellent recreation, although in some lights the large "LEGO" symbol printed on the reverse is very visible through the fabric and is rather unsightly.
Finally, two other well-known Bluey "characters" are involved—the loveable (or hated depending on your viewpoint!) Chattermax and the garden gnome Jeremy. They both make recurring appearances in the show, and it's great to see them represented here—a printed minifigure head for Chattermax, and a printed 1x1 round brick for Jeremy's body.
The Family House
Set in Brisbane, the Heeler family's house is designed in architecture typical of the area, known as Queenslander homes. However, as is common with fictional buildings, it exhibits TARDIS-like properties—that is, it is considerably larger on the inside than the outside, and the interior changes throughout the show to fit whatever needs to be portrayed.
LEGO doesn't have that luxury, so the set designers have opted to choose the most common rooms shown in the show, and build miniature versions of them that can join together to complete the overall look of the house.
For reference, here's an illustration of the house as it appears on the show. I'll include other screenshots from relevant episodes as we take a look at each room.
The Playroom
As a 4+ set, the rooms are built in a similar manner to other houses aimed at the same range, such as 10788 Gabby's Dollhouse. The walls are primarily large panels, placed on 8x16 plates, and topped mostly with tiles and the odd stud to enable easily being taken apart for play. The downstairs of the house is built first, with a white picket fence and letterbox on the outside. The printed panel shows a timber-framed window typical of a Queenslander property.
Inside, the front door opens straight onto the children's playroom. A keyboard sits against one wall, and the large wall panel is decorated with some iconic illustrations from the show, such as Unicourse, the sticky gecko, and some kids illustrations. With a nod to the episode Phones, where Bluey and Bingo play at restaurants with their grandad, a small red-and-white-striped shop is included, with an printed phone tile and a pineapple. Also very iconic is the large kiwi rug that makes an appearance in many episodes—here, two halves are printed on 2x4 tiles.
Chilli and Bandit's Bedroom
Moving upstairs, Chilli and Bandit's bedroom is built next, along with a small en-suite. This time, the printed wall panels depict the bed's headboard, and a framed family photo between two shutters, and a mirror on the bathroom wall. The rooms are built very simply, and come together very quickly, targetted well for the age range.
Bluey and Bingo's Bedroom
Bluey and Bingo's bedroom is another place packed full of iconic moments from the show. Located under the eaves of the house, they share a large circular stained glass window, represented in LEGO with detailed printing on a pair of 1x8 slopes. Both beds use printed tiles to depict each girls' bedspreads, a rainbow pattern on Bingo's and a bone pattern on Bluey's. Between the two beds stands their bedside table, on top of which is the salt lamp that gives their bedroom a calming orange glow at nighttime.
Another of the Heeler's beautiful large round rugs, this time a watermelon, fills the space between the beds. The room also contains part of the chimney that tops the house, complete with bone-shaped weather vane.
The Kitchen
Moving back downstairs, the second section of the house is half as wide as the first, and the kitchen fills the ground floor here. In the show, the kitchen-dining area is at the rear of the house, opens out onto the decking above the garden, and has a large breakfast bar and numerous kitchen cabinets. This has been much reduced here, with the kitchen represented by only a stove and a couple of cupboards with nothing but a banana inside. A couple of mugs sit on the table, along with a cupcake and Bingo's long-awaited pavlova.
The Bathroom
Above the kitchen sits the bathroom, with a very small footprint in this LEGO version. Only the bath is included, with the printed wall panel depicting the plants on the wall behind it, and foam letters (spelling the word Bluey) that they play with in numerous episodes.
The space is limited, understandably, but the Heeler bathroom is significantly bigger than just the bath tub in the show!
In the small attic space above the bathroom, LEGO have chosen to include the queen's throne that Bluey and Bingo sit on in the episode Queens, as a perfect place for them to sit while wearing their queen regalia and bossing their sister and parents around. The throne, topped with tennis balls in the show, is built from only a handful of pieces but immediately recognisable. It's meant to be located in the playroom, but I'm glad LEGO found a way to include it, given Bluey's outfit.
The Completed House
As mentioned before, the playroom and two bedrooms can be stacked to build up one side of the house…
… and the kitchen and bathroom connected to complete the build. The house is very open, allowing easy access for play, and comes apart into its respective rooms very easily.
From the other side, it is pretty dull, with the only details coming from the printed windows or the picket fence and letterbox. That's not really a problem, however, as this side isn't particularly intended for play.
The Garden
Finally, a small section of the Heeler's garden is included, complete with the large Royal Poinciana tree, surrounded by a circular bench. A butterfly sits on one of the branches of the tree, a creature Bingo names Flappy in the episode Slide. A bottle sits next to a tap, which has spilt some water on the ground along with a suspicious-looking dog poop. The other side of the tree is Bandit's barbecue, an hotdog (do they call them that when they themselves are dogs?!), and a red balloon. The balloon is a nod to one of the earliest episodes, Keepy Uppy, and is attached to the rear of the barbecue by a transparent rod on a Technic pin, allowing it to rotate and the balloon be bounced up and down.
Verdict
The 4+ age range is tricky spot to hit—easy enough that younger builders won't find it too challenging to put together, but also including enough detail to produce an interesting build. I think 11203 Bluey's Family House manages this well, and is a great rendition of the Heeler family home. The majority of the iconic rooms from the show are included, and it's good to have a section of the garden too.
I was a little disappointed with size of the kitchen and bathroom, neither having room for much detail at all—something more the size of 10788 Gabby's Dollhouse would have been great, with equal-sized rooms on both sides of the house. This would have either pushed the price of the set up, however, or not included the garden, so I am glad they didn't.
This is the most expensive of the Bluey sets, and I think the price is already a little on the high side, but it is the only one to include all four family members, and the only way to get a Bandit minfigure at all. Of all the Bluey sets released, this would be the one to get.
I did spot the long dog, this time…
11203 Bluey's Family House will be available at LEGO.com from June 1st for £59.99 / $69.99 / €69.99.
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29 comments on this article
These comparisons of the show places with models sections are definitely showing how this set is lacking! The resemblance is rather minimal, its very underwhelming to see. My kids would nitpick about that constantly.
"It is hard to tell them apart from just their head"
Bluey has a lighter blue part between her yes, which Bandit doesn't have.
I think the figures are great. I didn’t expect much and I think they turned out fine. The sets are clearly not much worth for adults, but I love how many references they have placed in each set. I hope we can get an 18+ set someday where the house can be explored more, although accuracy is impossible to capture. I want all the characters for my collection, I have only seen Season 1 of the series so far.
The packaging for the instructions might be new for 2025. I experienced it in Star Wars 75409.
@benbacardi said:
"The other side of the tree is Bandit's barbecue, an hotdog (do they call them that when they themselves are dogs?!)"
*a hot dog
And we as humans have a dessert called lady's fingers so I don't think that's a problem
I discovered the other day that Hamish Blake plays in Bluey! He's Jack's dad, apparently, and appears in one episode.
@benbacardi I am glad you found the long dog this time!
Those staring eyes.. why didn't they give those figures some emotion? Set looks good for a 4+ doll house.
lego does like screwing trees from licence sets
Cute set and I love the Chattermax and gnome. Regarding the paper envelope, it certainly weighs less and therefore likely cost less to produce and ship. Probably a bit easier to open for kids. I like it.
It looks like there are two head moulds for the dogs. The ears appear to be different. Maybe it has to do with the different color moulding.
I assume the paper instruction bag is replacing the aforementioned plastic-wrapped instructions.
Since I’m an idiot, where is the long dog?
I get that the shortest legs have the compromise of not sitting, but the kids really need to be shorter.
Still mulling over whether I get these sets or the Duplo sets for the Bluey fan in my household. The youngest fan that is, we are all fans. :)
Is Bluey Medium Blue? That color hasn’t been used at all this year and may be on the verge of being retired.
@Bri3k_b01 said:
"Since I’m an idiot, where is the long dog?"
Behind the unicorn stick thingy in the kids' playroom :)
@stephan3321 said:
"It looks like there are two head moulds for the dogs. The ears appear to be different. Maybe it has to do with the different color moulding."
You're right, Chili definitely has a different mold. I think the other three are the same, but it's a little hard to be certain due to the height differences in the lineup.
@thor96 said:
"These comparisons of the show places with models sections are definitely showing how this set is lacking! The resemblance is rather minimal, its very underwhelming to see. My kids would nitpick about that constantly."
Your kids are 4-year olds that complain that their toys don't look enough like the source material? Good thing they weren't around in the '80s then... ':-)
As someone not very familiar with Bluey, other than having seen an episode or so in the background, I think it's great @benbacardi provided images from the actual cartoon to compare, and I wish more reviewers would do so with LEGO sets based on other franchises.
While I agree with @thor96 that Bluey's Family House appears to be lacking in detail from an adult's perspective, I'm sure most other 4-year olds would be very happy with this without complaining that the set doesn't look exactly like in the cartoon. Heck, even from an adult's perspective I still feel they managed to put in a fair amount of detail for such a simple build. I mean, it has more detail than any Fabuland set ever had...
This is actually quite good. Best set in the theme, for sure.
For this price, the set deserved at least 2 more new molded pieces.
Especialy for that front window.
How Gabby could had SO many new molds, and this theme is lacking?
@alLEGOry_HJB2810 said:
"I discovered the other day that Hamish Blake plays in Bluey! He's Jack's dad, apparently, and appears in one episode."
He appears in a second episode, but only briefly. He works at Hammerbarn and gives them directions, I think he only has a single line from memory. The later episode where he is a Dad who gets lost driving and can’t remember where his son’s school is because he always uses Satnav which isn’t working is one of my favourites.
@KyloRen0806 said:
"I hope we can get an 18+ set someday where the house can be explored more, although accuracy is impossible to capture."
There’s zero chance that a children’s show like Bluey gets an Icons set in the next decade
@ha21 said:
" @KyloRen0806 said:
"I hope we can get an 18+ set someday where the house can be explored more, although accuracy is impossible to capture."
There’s zero chance that a children’s show like Bluey gets an Icons set in the next decade"
Lol- I hope this is sarcasm.
@Kynareth said:
" @ha21 said:
" @KyloRen0806 said:
"I hope we can get an 18+ set someday where the house can be explored more, although accuracy is impossible to capture."
There’s zero chance that a children’s show like Bluey gets an Icons set in the next decade"
Lol- I hope this is sarcasm."
At first impression, it doesn't seem wrong. However, the show began seven years ago. Time flies.
In ten years, an eight-year-old who started watching in 2018 would be 25, perhaps a young professional with plenty of disposable income and significant nostalgia.
@StyleCounselor said:
" @Kynareth said:
" @ha21 said:
" @KyloRen0806 said:
"I hope we can get an 18+ set someday where the house can be explored more, although accuracy is impossible to capture."
There’s zero chance that a children’s show like Bluey gets an Icons set in the next decade"
Lol- I hope this is sarcasm."
At first impression, it doesn't seem wrong. However, the show began seven years ago. Time flies.
In ten years, an eight-year-old who started watching in 2018 would be 25, perhaps a young professional with plenty of disposable income and significant nostalgia. "
It might be true, though. Had the sets been regular and not 4+, it could’ve happened. At least more sets in the range would also be great if they introduced other of the series’ characters. Right now we only got Chloe.
@ha21 said:
" @KyloRen0806 said:
"I hope we can get an 18+ set someday where the house can be explored more, although accuracy is impossible to capture."
There’s zero chance that a children’s show like Bluey gets an Icons set in the next decade"
Yeah its hilarious that Lego dont like money.
Its neat to see the inclusion of the jar of Vegemite (in the kitchen with the yellow lid)
I am extremely disappointed in this set. My family are huge fans of the show and we were hoping for something a little more special. Apart from the nods and printed parts, it could be anywhere.
The front of the house is all wrong, the kitchen is a joke, the bath(room) is laughable at best. We have bought the kids better Bluey toys for far less money. I am sorry to say that I am very disappointed in Lego at this poor attempt.
@The_Sly_Fox said:
"I am extremely disappointed in this set. My family are huge fans of the show and we were hoping for something a little more special. Apart from the nods and printed parts, it could be anywhere.
The front of the house is all wrong, the kitchen is a joke, the bath(room) is laughable at best. We have bought the kids better Bluey toys for far less money. I am sorry to say that I am very disappointed in Lego at this poor attempt. "
Wow,
You must be fun at parties!
Are your children as upset and disappointed as you, with this set designed for 4+ year olds?!…..
@lemish34 said:
" @The_Sly_Fox said:
"I am extremely disappointed in this set. My family are huge fans of the show and we were hoping for something a little more special. Apart from the nods and printed parts, it could be anywhere.
The front of the house is all wrong, the kitchen is a joke, the bath(room) is laughable at best. We have bought the kids better Bluey toys for far less money. I am sorry to say that I am very disappointed in Lego at this poor attempt. "
Wow,
You must be fun at parties!
Are your children as upset and disappointed as you, with this set designed for 4+ year olds?!…..
"
I am so so sorry that my opinion is so offensive to you that you feel it the need for a personal attack.