Review: 40901 Ministry Munchies & The Daily Prophet Stands
Posted by CapnRex101,
76476 The Ministry of Magic - Collectors' Edition was revealed a couple of weeks ago and 40901 Ministry Munchies & The Daily Prophet Stands is designed as its companion, featuring another of the fountains seen in the Ministry's atrium in the movies.
However, the set is not tied exclusively to the Ministry of Magic, as it will be available with any Harry Potter purchases of £115, $130 or €130 or more on LEGO.com, starting on August 29th.
Summary
40901 Ministry Munchies & The Daily Prophet Stands, 152 pieces.
This is a worthy addition to the Ministry of Magic, but unremarkable alone
- Complements the Ministry of Magic well
- Attractive fountain design
- Missing centaur and goblin statues
The set was provided for review by LEGO. All opinions expressed are those of the author.
Minifigures
I find it extraordinary that 76476 The Ministry of Magic - Collectors' Edition does not include the Minister for Magic himself, Cornelius Fudge. Although I am glad the character is supplied here, he should definitely be in the bigger set. Regardless, this is a good minifigure, sporting a striped suit and bowler hat and using a head designed for Captain Picard from 10356 Star Trek: U.S.S. Enterprise NCC-1701-D, which I think works.
While casual attire is quite unusual in the Wizarding World, the Daily Prophet Vendor closely resembles a character seen briefly in Order of the Phoenix. The torso with dual-moulded arms returns from 21350 Jaws and the head debuted in 11375 Ferrari F2004 & Michael Schumacher earlier in 2026. Ideally, the shirt would feature Daily Prophet branding, but this is a reasonable alternative.
The Completed Model
The cavernous atrium in the Ministry of Magic is a bustling location onscreen, containing a few stalls set up for passing Ministry workers. 76476 The Ministry of Magic - Collectors' Edition has been criticised for its atrium feeling empty, so these items should be useful. However, much like Cornelius Fudge, they should really have appeared in the main model from the beginning.
Harry passes the Daily Prophet stand en route to his trial in Order of the Phoenix, advertising a newspaper with the headline 'Dumbledore: Daft or Dangerous'. The stickered sign matches the movie, whereas the printed newspapers arrayed on top display the classic 'The Boy Who Lies?' headline, which is a bit of a shame.
Ministry Munchies only appears very briefly in the background of a few shots, but the shape of the roof and the globe on top is accurate to what little is seen. Another sticker is applied on the front and the various cakes and biscuits available look lovely, potentially adding some colour to the broader atrium scene.
While a single structure in the books, the Fountain of Magical Brethren is separated into two in the films, with a wizard statue on one fountain and a witch, a centaur and a goblin on the other. The former already appears in 76476 The Ministry of Magic - Collectors' Edition, so I am happy to see the second statue here, featuring similar sand green, dark green and trans-green colours on its base.
However, the fountain is still nowhere near complete, without the centaur and goblin. Maybe it would be too much to ask for that many figures in a gift-with-purchase, but that being the case, both fountains should really have been included in the Ministry of Magic already. Even so, I am quite impressed with the witch statue, featuring a hair element new in pearl gold.
Overall
I have written words to the effect of 'this should probably have appeared in 76476 The Ministry of Magic - Collectors' Edition' a couple of times in this review, which really sums up my opinion of 40901 Ministry Munchies & The Daily Prophet Stands. The individual components are nicely designed, but Cornelius Fudge and the complete statue should definitely be in the Ministry.
Unfortunately, we do not own the large set to show these items arranged inside, but everything should fit, given the amount of empty space in the atrium. On its own, this set is not particularly appealing, though as a companion for 76476 The Ministry of Magic - Collectors' Edition, it looks good enough and seems pretty essential to me.
Thanks to Huw for the photos in this review.
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22 comments on this article
I saw AshnFlash review and this set fits poorly on the main ground. Terrible design, it makes the main set worse. That was an odd Lego dlc...
Pretty disappointing
It’s the Death Star tie fighter all over again.
I can't really see how it would fit in the large set either, but it would look good in the old 76403 Ministry of Magic, so I hope I might get my hands on it. It would have been cool if the set included the centaur, the goblin AND THE HOUSE ELF as well ...and was a normal retail set, rather than a GWP.
@ohrmazd said:
"It’s the Death Star tie fighter all over again. "
not really. that one was locked behind the 1k death star. this one you can get anything hp and can get it. like dumbledore book nook gets you the polybag and this, and dumbledore book nook isn't available in retail
Don't feel any great need for the set itself but some great pieces here, like the trans-dark green quarter-arch tiles and the gold minifig hair and cape.
A promo that's actually an anti-promo... oh well, another month of waiting for better then! (Had to wait until the 11th for August to start too)
And yet people will buy the large overpriced set in droves, leading to even higher RRPs (and more insane profits) in the future.
As long as so many people apparently are happy with not getting their money's worth, nothing will change.
@rebelpilotJYZ said:
" @ohrmazd said:
"It’s the Death Star tie fighter all over again. "
not really. that one was locked behind the 1k death star. this one you can get anything hp and can get it. like dumbledore book nook gets you the polybag and this, and dumbledore book nook isn't available in retail"
I suspect that "The Death Star tie fighter all over again" more likely refers to the apparent removal of a critical set element to market as a GWP and less so to the high paywall and need to buy at launch.
@AustinPowers said:
"And yet people will buy the large overpriced set in droves, leading to even higher RRPs (and more insane profits) in the future.
As long as so many people apparently are happy with not getting their money's worth, nothing will change."
I think you set this comment to go live on the wrong review. :o) That being said, it seems pretty clear that LEGO consumers do not share this concern to such a degree as to alter their buying patterns....yet.
LEGO working overtime on those record profits.
> Complements the Ministry of Magic well
I guess some people might see it as negative, because we have missing Minister of Magic and extra fountain.
Still, if we look at fountain in books and in movies this is a joke.
@rebelpilotJYZ said:
" @ohrmazd said:
"It’s the Death Star tie fighter all over again. "
not really. that one was locked behind the 1k death star. this one you can get anything hp and can get it. like dumbledore book nook gets you the polybag and this, and dumbledore book nook isn't available in retail"
Maybe in Canada, in Europe we can buy it at retailers cheaper
@yellowcastle said:
" @rebelpilotJYZ said:
" @ohrmazd said:
"It’s the Death Star tie fighter all over again. "
not really. that one was locked behind the 1k death star. this one you can get anything hp and can get it. like dumbledore book nook gets you the polybag and this, and dumbledore book nook isn't available in retail"
I suspect that "The Death Star tie fighter all over again" more likely refers to the apparent removal of a critical set element to market as a GWP and less so to the high paywall and need to buy at launch.
@AustinPowers said:
"And yet people will buy the large overpriced set in droves, leading to even higher RRPs (and more insane profits) in the future.
As long as so many people apparently are happy with not getting their money's worth, nothing will change."
I think you set this comment to go live on the wrong review. :o) That being said, it seems pretty clear that LEGO consumers do not share this concern to such a degree as to alter their buying patterns....yet."
I know. I just find it totally bewildering, because none of the people I have met my entire life were that indifferent about their purchases. From my experience everyone tries to get their money's worth on basically every purchase ever made.
And most LEGO sets these days are such terrible value for money, at least at RRP, that I have a hard time imagining anyone willingly walking into a shop and just going "I'll have one of these, thank you very much".
VFM is entirely subjective
@AustinPowers said:
" @yellowcastle said:
" @rebelpilotJYZ said:
" @ohrmazd said:
"It’s the Death Star tie fighter all over again. "
not really. that one was locked behind the 1k death star. this one you can get anything hp and can get it. like dumbledore book nook gets you the polybag and this, and dumbledore book nook isn't available in retail"
I suspect that "The Death Star tie fighter all over again" more likely refers to the apparent removal of a critical set element to market as a GWP and less so to the high paywall and need to buy at launch.
@AustinPowers said:
"And yet people will buy the large overpriced set in droves, leading to even higher RRPs (and more insane profits) in the future.
As long as so many people apparently are happy with not getting their money's worth, nothing will change."
I think you set this comment to go live on the wrong review. :o) That being said, it seems pretty clear that LEGO consumers do not share this concern to such a degree as to alter their buying patterns....yet."
I know. I just find it totally bewildering, because none of the people I have met my entire life were that indifferent about their purchases. From my experience everyone tries to get their money's worth on basically every purchase ever made.
And most LEGO sets these days are such terrible value for money, at least at RRP, that I have a hard time imagining anyone willingly walking into a shop and just going "I'll have one of these, thank you very much". "
@Belboz hits the nail on the head. "Value for Money" (VFM) is very important to me in real life (IRL) and definitely with my LEGO purchases (MLP). :o)
But that valuation process is not static. I paid full RRP $299.99 for 21335 Motorized Lighthouse because it was worth it to me and I saw no realistic future where it would be discounted this side of the pond. I wasn't, however, able to pull the trigger on 40955 Maersk Dual-Fuel at $149.99, even at 4X Points.
I find I'm getting more choosy with which sets I buy (missed my first modular, D&D, BTAS, Disney Castle), but my overall LEGO spend is probably the highest it's ever been. So, maybe LEGO knows what they're doing?
@yellowcastle said:
" @rebelpilotJYZ said:
" @ohrmazd said:
"It’s the Death Star tie fighter all over again. "
not really. that one was locked behind the 1k death star. this one you can get anything hp and can get it. like dumbledore book nook gets you the polybag and this, and dumbledore book nook isn't available in retail"
I suspect that "The Death Star tie fighter all over again" more likely refers to the apparent removal of a critical set element to market as a GWP and less so to the high paywall and need to buy at launch.
@AustinPowers said:
"And yet people will buy the large overpriced set in droves, leading to even higher RRPs (and more insane profits) in the future.
As long as so many people apparently are happy with not getting their money's worth, nothing will change."
I think you set this comment to go live on the wrong review. :o) That being said, it seems pretty clear that LEGO consumers do not share this concern to such a degree as to alter their buying patterns....yet."
Yes that was exactly what I meant. A GWP that should have been part of the set originally but instead removed and offered separately and not as a set just ready to purchase. Once the GWP runs out then people are forced to buy it on the after market while the set tied to it remains as a standard stock product is difficult to swallow as a consumer.
@yellowcastle said:
" @rebelpilotJYZ said:
" @ohrmazd said:
"It’s the Death Star tie fighter all over again. "
not really. that one was locked behind the 1k death star. this one you can get anything hp and can get it. like dumbledore book nook gets you the polybag and this, and dumbledore book nook isn't available in retail"
I suspect that "The Death Star tie fighter all over again" more likely refers to the apparent removal of a critical set element to market as a GWP and less so to the high paywall and need to buy at launch.
@AustinPowers said:
"And yet people will buy the large overpriced set in droves, leading to even higher RRPs (and more insane profits) in the future.
As long as so many people apparently are happy with not getting their money's worth, nothing will change."
I think you set this comment to go live on the wrong review. :o) That being said, it seems pretty clear that LEGO consumers do not share this concern to such a degree as to alter their buying patterns....yet."
I think this is a better example of the Death Star TIE Fighter complaint than the actual Death Star TIE Fighter. The TIE is a vehicle that presumably sometimes leaves, and the Death Star bay was (I'm told) designed to alternatively accommodate the small Millennium Falcon.
@AustinPowers said:
" @yellowcastle said:
" @rebelpilotJYZ said:
" @ohrmazd said:
"It’s the Death Star tie fighter all over again. "
not really. that one was locked behind the 1k death star. this one you can get anything hp and can get it. like dumbledore book nook gets you the polybag and this, and dumbledore book nook isn't available in retail"
I suspect that "The Death Star tie fighter all over again" more likely refers to the apparent removal of a critical set element to market as a GWP and less so to the high paywall and need to buy at launch.
@AustinPowers said:
"And yet people will buy the large overpriced set in droves, leading to even higher RRPs (and more insane profits) in the future.
As long as so many people apparently are happy with not getting their money's worth, nothing will change."
I think you set this comment to go live on the wrong review. :o) That being said, it seems pretty clear that LEGO consumers do not share this concern to such a degree as to alter their buying patterns....yet."
I know. I just find it totally bewildering, because none of the people I have met my entire life were that indifferent about their purchases. From my experience everyone tries to get their money's worth on basically every purchase ever made.
And most LEGO sets these days are such terrible value for money, at least at RRP, that I have a hard time imagining anyone willingly walking into a shop and just going "I'll have one of these, thank you very much". "
I think there is also a difference between longer term and newer LEGO fans. People that were used to cheaper sets and heavy discounts 10-25 years ago will probably complain more about prices than newer fans that are used to higher prices.
Don't think I'll ever be getting the big Ministry of Magic set. This gwp was just barely enough for me to participate in Harry Potter week. Only because I still had 2 sets left on my retirement list. Now I don't have to think about Harry Potter till next year.
I just ordered Dumbledore's Office to pick this set up. I likely don't have any use for it. I do have 2 of the old Ministry, so maybe one day I'll MOC something up. But I doubt I'll ever consider the new UCS version.
An unnecessary GWP which couldve been part of the set or its own set with the conditions buy set to get for free or purchase for £20. Sad to see this not adressed as a negative comment
@ohrmazd said:
"It’s the Death Star tie fighter all over again. "
Not exactly; 40771 didn't have a monofig.