Review: 10366 Tropical Aquarium
Posted by Huw,
The Icons theme encompasses all manner of subject matter nowadays, and LEGO seems willing to try just about anything that it thinks will appeal to adult builders and attract new customers.
The latest such set, adding to the ever-growing collection of real-life objects made from LEGO, is 10366 Tropical Aquarium, a huge and expensive model of a fish tank, something that has not been tackled at this size before, and at first glance it looks beautiful.
Summary
10366 Tropical Aquarium, 4,154 pieces.
£399.99 / $479.99 / €449.99 | 9.6p / 11.6c / 10.8c per piece.
Buy at LEGO.com »
An intriguing and attractive display model that could have broad appeal were it not for its price
- Exceptional parts usage
- Beautiful, colourful, detailed, and different
- Fun mechanisms
- Fish won't die
- Frame arguably unnecessary
- Exceedingly expensive
The set was provided for review by LEGO. All opinions expressed are those of the author.
New pieces and recolours
There are dozens of recoloured pieces, which will be documented at New Elementary in due course. It also introduces a new fin element, which is used on the fish and some of the aquatic plants.
Construction
Your first impression when seeing the set is most likely that it'll be fun to build all the coral and sea life from the wonderful array of colours and parts, but before you can tackle that the base and backdrop need to be constructed, and doing so is lengthy and slightly tedious.
The base comprises a sturdy frame, 1 brick and two plates high – the same as the width of 2-wide tiles, of course, which are used to finish off the edges later.
It's 32 x 64 in size, with an additional row of black studs along the sides.
Eight 16x16 tan plates make up the bed of the aquarium, which are covered in mounds of 'sand', swirls in the sand, and turntable bases which are used to attach the cave and other structures at an angle.
With the bulk of the aquarium fixtures completed, attention turns to the backdrop, which comprises 20 8x16 medium azure baseplates mounted on a black-bordered frame.
The swirly water pattern is the same on the top eight plates and the pattern repeat looks a bit obvious before the tank is populated, particularly as it ends abruptly at the sides of each plate. The instructions suggest that coming up with a pattern that looked organic using just two different parts was a challenge for the designers. I think it would have looked better if the joints of all the tiles did not align with the joints between the plates.
The backdrop is attached to the base using two rows of studs along the bottom, and click-hinges for additional strength. It's also affixed to the back of the cave with Technic beams to doubly sure it's secure.
There are several mechanisms built into the model -- more of which later -- but the most interesting is that which causes one of the sea anemones to sway. It's built into a rock and operated using a crank on the side.
At the point the photo on the right below was taken, the majority of the tank's structure and decorations have been added, just the top of the cave needs to be added, which is done later on once some of the coral and creatures have been affixed.
I'm going to look at the individual plants and sea life in detail below, but here's the completed model before the front section of the frame has been added.
Overall I estimate that it took me about 12 hours to build it, over three days.
Coral, plants and invertebrates
It's not until you reach bag 25 (out of 42) that the real fun begins: populating the tank with plants, coral, invertebrates and fish.
Two branches of seaweed are the first to be added, made using dark green and transparent green Leaf 2X6X1s connected to a core of Technic axle connectors.
This 'tree coral' utilises nougat plant stem junction pieces and 1x1 round bricks.
The sea anemone attached to the mechanism in the rock uses various reddish orange curves, including the new long 'macaroni' pieces, with a Mini Hat, No. 8 on the ends.
The other anemone is constructed on hinged Technic bricks, then nestled inside two dark orange Shell 10X11X6 W/ Cross Hole pieces that form the lampshade of 21357 Disney Pixar Luxo Jr., as you will see in photos below. I think it looks wonderfully realistic.
The light yellow piece used for the specimen on the left below, which resembles sea fan coral, is a Ninjago energy element, originally used to attach claws to minifigures, e.g. this one.
The one on the right uses orange Min Hat no. 17, and reddish orange minifig-scale coral pieces.
The next four coral specimens all exhibit NPU (nice parts usage): constructed using a lot of relatively common elements that have been recoloured.
Chef's hats and pith helmets
Mop heads and broom heads:
Finally, two varieties of plant help fill the gaps on the aquarium floor and add more colour variety.
Fish and crab
Despite being two legs short of a full set of ten (a pair of pincers and 4 pairs of walking legs) the crab looks excellent. Iron Man's mask crops up frequently in botanical sets and here it has been recoloured and used for the shell.
The tank is home to just four fish: two angelfish, a rainbow fish, and a dark red 'striped brickfish', native only to the imaginations of LEGO designers, according to the instructions.
All of them look spectacular, the right-hand angelfish below particularly, with a very attractive colour gradient along its sides.
The new fin element is used for their tails, and also the dorsal and pelvic fins on some of them.
The completed model
The tank is certainly life-sized (52 x 48 x 21 cm, 20" x 18" x 8") although I'd argue that some of the contents are larger than that. Nevertheless, it looks incredibly realistic, vibrant, colourful, and packed with authentic details, far more than I'll have a chance to mention in this review.
Four mechanisms are built into it which are operated using controls on the sides. Three on the right of the tank make the anemone sway, the brickfish 'swim' and the crab emerge from the cave, while one on the left opens and closes the lid of the treasure chest.
These photos illustrate some of the model's detail, beauty, and ingenuity.
Verdict
There's no doubt that this is an exceptionally attractive and desirable display model, one that would brighten up any home or workplace.
It's bursting with detail and colour [1] and is a joy to behold. The only complaint about its design that one could reasonably make is that the black frame obfuscates parts of it when it's viewed at an angle. However, it does not take much effort to remove it if you'd prefer it to look more like a diorama than an aquarium.
One thing that has attracted considerable complaint is the price. The 4,154-piece set will cost £399.99 / $479.99 / €449.99 which, for a non-licensed set with no minifigures, seems extremely high. There are a lot of large pieces in it, but also thousands of small ones so 9.6p / 11.6c / 10.8c per piece does seem excessive. However, it is a large model and when the amount of 'stuff' it contains is assessed, it might not seem so bad.
If you have deep pockets and are looking for an absorbing and challenging building experience that results in a unique model that's both eye-catching and eye-candy, you will find it all in this set.
The fish don't need feeding and will still be alive when you come back from vacation: more good reasons to buy it!
It'll be available from the 13th of November at LEGO.com.
Minifig and goat for scale.
[1] I believe it was said at the recent Fan Media Days that it contains parts in 85% of the current colour palette. One that's missing, surprisingly, is vibrant coral.
84 likes
73 comments on this article
The colours are nice, and may provide a cheaper opportunity for people who want a big fish tank. That being said...
Get ready for massive lego sets that are only 95% complete unless you get it day 1 to get the GWP, that's two sets now, this and the Death Slice, with the feeder/purifier thing and TIE fighter respectively
The price of this plus the DLC GWP that should have been included for no extra cost is not a good look for LEGO.
No prints, no figs, just plain bricks at over 10 cents/part? Complete insanity. Especially when you compare this other multi-color display-only sets like 10315 or 10359. This should be $350 at most. HARD PASS.
If they made the aquarium from finding NEMO that would be more interesting.
Evil OGEL hard at work eh?
Re: price — “It might not seem so bad”
Ok
Great review thanks; I agree with everything said - when I first saw this I thought that looks great and was already thinking about where it could live in our already crowded house, then I saw the price which stopped that worry! As a diorama it makes more sense - removing the unnecessary frame (or even making it a lighter colour such as nougat to mimic a light wood) would also reduce the amount of parts (and price) - colossal dust trap too!
Well done, but I just want the crab
Price/pieces is less and less a good measure. Lots of sets are filled with unnecessary 1x1 plates, sometimes disguised as " inside jokes" as in Pixar Lamp and mid scale falcon, which clearly could have been bricks. We should weight the sets, assuming this is a good way of assessing the price anyway...
I don't know if it's just the photos not doing it justice, but every time I look at this set I can't help but be surprised that the fish aren't more colorful. Or perhaps I should say, more vibrant. Particularly the top two. I think the dark red used is a bit of a mistake. They look fine in isolation, but as part of the diorama the fish just don't "pop" the way I would expect them too.
Feels like 200$ creator set with no 1in3
@KyloBen1012 said:
"The colours are nice, and may provide a cheaper opportunity for people who want a big fish tank. That being said...
Get ready for massive lego sets that are only 95% complete unless you get it day 1 to get the GWP, that's two sets now, this and the Death Slice, with the feeder/purifier thing and TIE fighter respectively"
Yes, that’s an unwelcome trend that leaves a sour taste in the mouth. Especially since these are big, expensive models; they aren’t exactly impulse purchases for the majority of people buying them.
Always appreciate the reviews here on Brickset but why no mention of the Feeder/filer-thing, a GWP DLC that makes the Death Slice's lack of including the 4+ TIE Fighter in the original set seem almost non-controversial?
Combined with the price, no prints nor minifigures etc. this set seems like one of the most extortionate releases ever from TLG, and that is saying something in October of 2025.
At least there are no stickers. Perhaps that added €50 to the price...
This is almost more expensive than the real thing. What the hell LEGO...
I'll wait until a Lego display box website starts selling the perspex plates to fill in the missing glass in the tank.
@MegaBlocks said:
"I'll wait until a Lego display box website starts selling the perspex plates to fill in the missing glass in the tank."
Yes that seems inevitable and will make a good addition.
@The_Cellarer said:
"Always appreciate the reviews here on Brickset but why no mention of the Feeder/filer-thing, a GWP DLC that makes the Death Slice's lack of including the 4+ TIE Fighter in the original set seem almost non-controversial?"
I don't really consider it an essential addition, unlike the TIE. Nice to have, but easily built from your own parts if you miss out on it.
The snail is my favorite bit of the whole thing.
According to newelementary there seem to be a LOT of parts recolours, which I wonder if that inflated the price? Or perhaps vice versa, in that they did lots of recolours to justify the price.
I'd love to know how they came to the decision of making it so large, as I can't help but feel that if it was half the size, and half the price it would have been a lot better received, as it is a great looking build and lots of fun parts usage (when you get to that stage of the build). Was a smaller version ever on the table or was it a conceptualised as a £400/$500 /€450 mega-set from the start I wonder?
Love the look, but holy cats, that's expensive.
Also, I think the anemone should have a clown fish.
"There's no doubt that this is an exceptionally attractive and desirable display model, one that would brighten up any home or workplace."
I disagree... The more I see it, the more I don't like it. The colours are tacky (I particularly dislike the background and colour) and it does look a bit thrown together. The fish are mêh too.
A more natural environment with better fish and less colour would float my personal boat a lot more.
Lets say something nice about this....
It has no stickers.
I like the new bricks.
This saves me a lot of money.
The lack of mini figures doesn't put me off, the price and ugly black frame does.
I like that there are mechanisms to try and make it more realistic, that is not something I realised until I read the review.
The coral by themselves could be separate botanical sets, like 10309, I'd pick them up immediately.
After reading this review, I am more persuaded for this set, but I'll wait for a big discount. I still prefer it without the frame, unless someone produces "glass" at a good price. I have other sets on my list I want more, I'll wait until I can afford this, which might be some time.
Another set that is not well received because expensive.
And then it's 20% under MSRP everywhere two months after release.
It looks like a $300 to $350 set because that is what it will sell as.
Would buy this to make a Payakan / Avatar way of water diorama.
Besides being a very attractive looking and colorful set, it is also a nice parts pack (just not for the listed price). It also seems like a good "template" for creating your own aquarium or terrarium. I'll consider adding it to my collection when I see a decent discount for the set.
Thanks for the great review, as always (though you misspelled "anemone" several times).
Rivendell please.
It wouldn't be too bad if they got rid of the black glass-less frame, got rid of the water background, got rid of the crap fish that don't look like fish, got rid of the treasure chest and crab leaving just the underwater diorama at about half the price. As an underwater botanics set, it would be fine. But as a fishtank, it is crap.
For fishtanks of that size, the premium ones are frameless at least at the front corners so that the view is not obstructed by thick bars. And if they need a frame to hold the glass together, then premium manufacturers try to minimise the frame width. So LEGO seem to have copied the cheapest, low quality tanks with really thick frames just to show it is a framed tank.
I love the coral/anemone builds, great colors and techniques you would expect from a botanical. Fish builds I'm less interested in.
I predict this will reach $100+ clearance soon enough. Too big and expensive.
Imagine if they released the plants as separate sets to build your own Aquarium
Yes it would be difficult with ground and rockwork but it has a chance to sell better
The difficulty with this review for me, and forgive me Huw as this honestly is not a criticism of you at all, is that the biggest issue wit this set is the price point. Is it really worth that price or not. And it's hard to really judge that if the person hasn't paid for it. That's also not a criticism of how this process works with you getting sets to review. I have no issue with that.
It's just that the price point seems incredibly high for what this is. Which means that for the majority, I expect the rest of the review loses a bit of relevance. Really it's, is this set so good it justifies what A/B/C paid for it, and we can't really get that here.
@MeganL said:
"Love the look, but holy cats, that's expensive.
Also, I think the anemone should have a clown fish."
If you have 31122 "Fish Tank" already, you can use the clown fish there, either as a model to make your own, or to MOC it further to match the scale of the ones in this new tropical aquarium. Just a thought...
Like many have said here, I love the look, and my non-AFOL wife would actually love it too (she enjoys sea life, shells, sea turtles, etc., for decorative purposes), but that price is just way too high. I'll wait for the (hopefully) inevitable 40% discount, before getting it.
As someone who actually used to keep tropical fish, I was very interested… Until I saw the price.
@Klontjes said:
""There's no doubt that this is an exceptionally attractive and desirable display model, one that would brighten up any home or workplace."
I disagree... The more I see it, the more I don't like it. The colours are tacky (I particularly dislike the background and colour) and it does look a bit thrown together. The fish are mêh too.
A more natural environment with better fish and less colour would float my personal boat a lot more."
Absolutely agree.
To me it looks almost comically garish. No real life home aquarium I have ever seen seen looks even remotely like it.
And as for the price, that's beyond ridiculous imho.
I predict that this will turn up next year at the 30 to 40% discount mark like all the other undesirable sets of the recent sale at LEGO online.
It will soon be available at 30% discount at lego.com, just wait 6 months.
@MeganL said:
"Love the look, but holy cats, that's expensive.
Also, I think the anemone should have a clown fish."
Stuck in the filter, sadly.
For my needs, the most interesting part I have seen on this review is the 2x4 transclear plate used to hold the models for the pictures - is this included in the set? - because this part has not been made in transclear for quite a while (in 1986 for 5540-1 ).
When the Display box with background picture come around, this will make sense (mostly to avoid the dust). But then you will have to remove all the framing and the background - which is an awful lot of parts that you are paying for and finally do not display (probably half the set). I also wonder if said display box will allow for the controls to be extended outside the box.
It is not for me but, as always, I wish this set good luck because (1) it brings new parts, (2) it brings new recolours and I'm all for that. And for those who don't mind the price, I'm sure it'll look fantastic in a display box with a background and no framing - and potentially lighting.
Back in my day, NPU meant "Novel Part Usage".
(shakes fist at cloud)
Horrible price, I love the look of this set, amazing techniques and so many colors, however, that price with the lack of an IP or any minifigures. Yeesh
@SmilingCyclops said:
" @MeganL said:
"Love the look, but holy cats, that's expensive.
Also, I think the anemone should have a clown fish."
Stuck in the filter, sadly."
I hate to have liked that*
*according to JANG's thoughts-on-video, being stuck in the filter is a deadly for fish
Great review and even though it's not a set most people will buy, it's nice to see how it works and goes together. Thank you brickset for showing these sets off
I'm not a fan of the fish or the frame (or the price), but the rest looks absolutely excellent!
Now I'm wondering if this set will hit general distribution, if it does, maybe we'll see this show up eventually for €200. If not, I suspect very few people will buy it directly from Lego at full price.
You guys need to buy these big sets yourselves and not get them sent gratis by Lego if you really want to review them properly. How much they cost is a big factor in whether a set is 'good' or not these days
I think that we can officially retire all the theories about licenses, Disney tax, new pieces, big bricks, stickers, minifigures, printed pieces, etc... everything we always say to justify LEGO as the premiest of premiums. Those things are factors, yes, but sometimes LEGO is overpriced just because LEGO thinks they can get away with it.
@DekoPuma said:
"I don't know if it's just the photos not doing it justice, but every time I look at this set I can't help but be surprised that the fish aren't more colorful. Or perhaps I should say, more vibrant. Particularly the top two. I think the dark red used is a bit of a mistake. They look fine in isolation, but as part of the diorama the fish just don't "pop" the way I would expect them too."
Here looks to me the photography, the lighting is washing out the tones.
@drewtstew said:
"You guys need to buy these big sets yourselves and not get them sent gratis by Lego if you really want to review them properly. How much they cost is a big factor in whether a set is 'good' or not these days "
Would I personally spend 400 quid on it? Definitely not.
But that does not make it a bad set. We should remember that there are people with larger disposable incomes than us, so to dismiss it solely due to its price in our review would be doing some of our readers a disservice.
The price is absolutely insane, and while the animals look great for the most part, the backdrop and frame do not. There's a version of this set in my head that skips those entirely and looks 10x better in a real fish tank. Not to mention all of the different technic functions not being linked together for easy motorization? Lot of missed opportunities. I hate being the target market for this and being not only priced out (by a lot) but under-delivered to.
I just cannot for the life of me understand a person who would spend $480 for this. More power to you if you have that kind of disposable income, I guess.
@drewtstew said:
"You guys need to buy these big sets yourselves and not get them sent gratis by Lego if you really want to review them properly. How much they cost is a big factor in whether a set is 'good' or not these days "
Not according to the Brickset audience, apparently. Back when we did that "best set of the past 5 years" competition, I listed affordability as one of my primary criteria, and a bunch of people said that wasn't a valid factor, preferring to defend the "bigger is better" mindset and thereby justifying LEGO's outrageous pricing of sets like this one. Also, if the Brickset reviewers had to buy all their review sets themselves, we would get far fewer reviews and none of them prior to release (as this one is). I'd certainly prefer them to pay more mind to the price in their reviews, but I think them receiving review copies from LEGO is better for us.
@ACubeInABox said:
"Those things are factors, yes, but sometimes LEGO is overpriced just because LEGO thinks they can get away with it."
That's exactly correct for every business, not just LEGO. Price a product according to what you think the market will bear, and change the price (i.e., discount) until demand meets supply. I have no idea why LEGO thinks people will spend $500 on a fake fishtank, but clearly they do.
@AustinPowers said:
" @Klontjes said:
"The more I see it, the more I don't like it. The colours are tacky (I particularly dislike the background and colour) and it does look a bit thrown together. The fish are mêh too.
A more natural environment with better fish and less colour would float my personal boat a lot more."
Absolutely agree.
To me it looks almost comically garish. No real life home aquarium I have ever seen seen looks even remotely like it."
How many real-life tropical (keyword: tropical) aquariums have you actually seen? Seeing as you live in Germany, where everything is drab and grey and the use of color was outlawed around 1871. Tropical fish and coral are usually brightly colored, so these colors are perfectly realistic.
I will agree about the background color being garish, however. The idea there is clearly to brighten the overall model and make it pop on display, and reflect the typically brighter (shallow and sunlit) hue of tropical waters. It works about as well as it does in Friends sets (i.e., not that well). A more drab color, like dark blue (my personal preference), would darken the model, hiding many details in the shadows. A more realistic *fishtank* would be open on all 4 sides, of course, but that isn't realistic for a LEGO model that needs supports for the fish, etc.
All that aside, my only other big complaint about the model is that stupid "brick fish." Bricks don't float, bricks can't swim, and neither will that fish, because it doesn't have a dorsal fin - which is a necessary fish-feature to maintain balance, to my knowledge. I have no idea why the designers tried to make up their own fish instead of just modelling another real one.
Fantastic review, thanks! This set is neat to look at. I suppose it really is fun to build. But it is only a great sources for parts, that’s it. I am still laughing at the price of the thing.
@BLProductions: I may live in a country you would consider drab, but I for one am happy that I don't have to trade places!
Nuff said.
Fantastic build and review! This may not be for me, but it does make me want one thing even more than I did before: a Felucia diorama!
I love the colours. Very pretty, very fun.
I’m glad most of the fish are real fish - I’d been given the impression that they were all invented, which felt like missing the point, but one invented fish compared to mostly real ones is more of a cute easter egg. When I was quite small, my family kept fish, and I have fond enough memories of it that money and space no object the combination of charming wiggly fish with excellently NPU’d underwater botanicals would be a no brainer buy, but as ‘tis my Lego wishlist is already alarmingly long and I’ll content myself with the old Creator 3-in-1 fish tank.
I’m sure we’ll never know exactly how well it sells, short of a truly epic failure, but it would be interesting to know. Perhaps there is a hitherto largely untapped group of fish enthusiasts happy to throw money at the brick version, whether in addition to or as a replacement for the real thing (dusting aside, you never need to worry about regular upkeep tasks or these fish dying or having to get someone to look after them for holidays and such). I certainly have no objection to Lego exploring big kits outside of the IP space, so long as they keep doing small and medium ones as well. It’s more interesting to have a variety to look at whether I personally want to buy them or not.
I was not really interested at once, but this is really, really beautiful. A true and vibrant hommage to nature, as simple as it can look and yet intricate and amazing as it can be. Colors,shapes, this is so beautiful.
Could've been half the size and still effective. It's way too big and way too expensive.
reviews have completely lost connection with reality as of late
I really like the flora and fauna. I do NOT like the medium azure background. It fights against everything else, making it just a big mess of *colors* instead of particular *things*. A dark blue background would make the tank contents stand out more.
I hope they’ll do a Dogger Bank aquarium next year. But then bigger and with less color and even more expensive and as gwp a herring and two pebbles
@MeganL said:
"Love the look, but holy cats, that's expensive.
Also, I think the anemone should have a clown fish."
Needs a blue tang, too.
Has anybody already pointed out it's expensive...?
Just checking.
Great review that gives me a lot of ideas for tweaking the model. Part of the problem with the fish not "popping" is that in a real fish tank the fish do a lot more movement than even the most motile of plants, which naturally draws the eye. I'd use less of the orange coral and the red-to-purple plants, perhaps using the parts to make more brightly-colored fish. More of the dark kelp-like seaweed ropes would also help the fish stand out from their environment. I don't mind the black frame all that much--it does a good job of defining the space--but I would like to remove as much of that backboard as possible, or make it transparent. Using something this expensive as the basis of a MOC seems rather extravagant, but I don't mind waiting for a discount. If one never comes, I'll live....
Once again, LEGO trying to milk adults of every last penny, combined with GWP dlc. Feels like it really doesn't matter theme licensed or not. The adult tax applies. I love star wars, but had i been able to go back in time, Ninjago would be best pick. Lot of cheap sets, and collector sets not crazy overpriced
@ACubeInABox said:
"I think that we can officially retire all the theories about licenses, Disney tax, new pieces, big bricks, stickers, minifigures, printed pieces, etc... everything we always say to justify LEGO as the premiest of premiums. Those things are factors, yes, but sometimes LEGO is overpriced just because LEGO thinks they can get away with it. "
It is the AFOL/adult tax. Bigger set gets more eyes, so they can charge bigger prices, and stagnate production lines. Ninjago has been able to get away with lower priced UCS sets thanks to not needing to sell to adults. But I imagine that may change soon.
Kids, fetch the old newspapers, the coloured card, the poster paints, the wretched pva and the scissors that barely cut. We’re gonna make an aquarium!
It would be nice to see it submerged in a real fish tank full of water.
Hahaha, no.
@AustinPowers said:
" @Klontjes said:
""There's no doubt that this is an exceptionally attractive and desirable display model, one that would brighten up any home or workplace."
I disagree... The more I see it, the more I don't like it. The colours are tacky (I particularly dislike the background and colour) and it does look a bit thrown together. The fish are mêh too.
A more natural environment with better fish and less colour would float my personal boat a lot more."
Absolutely agree.
To me it looks almost comically garish. No real life home aquarium I have ever seen seen looks even remotely like it.
And as for the price, that's beyond ridiculous imho.
I predict that this will turn up next year at the 30 to 40% discount mark like all the other undesirable sets of the recent sale at LEGO online. "
I don't know, it looks very similar to the plastic ornaments you can buy to put in an aquarium. I doubt many people, especially in Europe, have tropical marine tanks with live coral. But yucky neon coloured plastic ornaments, judging by the number stocked on fish store shelves, they must sell.
It looks a lot smaller than it is at first glance. Once you notice that the background is made of 20 8x16 plates, that gives a much better sense of scale. It must be massive when seen in person.
That being said, the price is a huge turn off. This does not feel like 2 modulars at all, as beautiful as it can be.
@zanthrax said:
"Another set that is not well received because expensive.
And then it's 20% under MSRP everywhere two months after release.
It looks like a $300 to $350 set because that is what it will sell as."
Not in the U.S.
I was curious and took another look at the poll for this set, Tropical Aquarium:
No, it's too expensive 45%
No, it doesn't interest me 20%
No, but I like it 14%
Maybe, I haven't made up my mind yet 5%
Yes, if it's discounted 5%
Yes, eventually 3%
No, it's too big 2%
Yes, as soon as it's released 2%
That's as of one minute ago. Fascinating to see that only roughly 5% of us might be getting this set at the suggested price.
I've long wondered if anyone at TLG takes note of these in-house AFOL polls?
I don't think it's a bad set purely based on its own merits. But not only is it massively overpriced for what you get (and that GWP that should have been included only adds insult to injury), but even if that was, say, €300, I still think it would be a though sell.
Yesterday I already mentioned I see this as a missed opportunity for a modular aquarium theme consisting of much smaller base sets and add ons. But if it had to be one set, I think it would have made more sense to make it a lot less deep, and a lot cheaper in the process. More like an art set.
And one more thing: I can't hep but feel that new fin piece looks very familiar, I just can't put the finger on it. Am I confusing it with a different Lego piece with similar characteristics, or have I seen it from some other brand?
EDIT: The more I think about it, the more I get the feeling that what it reminds me of is a Fischertechnik piece. Which is an entirely different construction system so it would by no means be an exact copy. Still can't think of the exact piece, it's driving me nuts....
Thanks for the review and your remarks regarding price and value @Huw. I'm more impressed than I initially was, the functions look decent and were unexpected. Overall though I stand by my comments on the prior article - the price is absurd. I don't know how many of these TLG expect to sell but I suspect this will flop. It's nice to look at, but doesn't have the pull that an established IP does and £400 is a lot of money. If I had that burning a hole in my wallet and had to buy lego with it, there are many obvious contenders that would come ahead of this, starting with Rivendell and Barad-dur.
Anyway. At least next year's Speed Champs are off to a flyer; I'm hoping that there will be some (any) Technic sets worth buying as lord knows this year's been a bust..
I like a lot about it. But like most folks here, I will not likely ever get the opportunity to own it as it is simply too expensive for what it is and what you get. Also, it feels they put all their efforts into everything but the fish.
This might have been a fun modular exercise where the primary set comes with just the basics and then LEGO sells different fish, coral, crabs, anemonies separately. This way you could always be adding to it and customizing it.
Additionally, it doesn't appear that LEGO put any thought into motorizing the functions which is a bummer.
P.S. I like the backdrop color and don't have a great issue with the frame.
There would be no reviews of this set if LEGO did not give it away for free. Strange choice by LEGO here, who is going to buy this?
@ramnicros said:
"It would be nice to see it submerged in a real fish tank full of water."
Someone on YouTube did submerge it in what looks like a private swimming or plunge pool. And it looks weirdly good underwater :~S