Review: 40260 Halloween Haunt
Posted by MeganL,
The seasonal series continues this year with 40260, Halloween Haunt. I've always enjoyed the vignette sets in the seasonals, and this one is no exception. Read on to find out why I think this set in particular is worthy of your consideration.
The front box art shows the set under a full moon and some mountains in the background. Could they be the mountains of Transylvania? There are a couple of bats pictured to set the scene. In the upper right of the box there's a graphic of a skull with two dotted lines, presumably To: and From: spaces.
The back of the box shows through a series of insets a small story for the two figures in the set. There's a gentleman (clearly a sorcerer of some kind) who has some nefarious plans for the unwitting skeleton in the set. The insets show the gentleman cooking up a brew, that once he convinces the skeleton to drink it, will turn the skeleton's head into a pumpkin. He's successful, much his amusement and the skeleton's dismay.
Inside the box, we find two unnumbered bags and a loose 4x10 plate plus an instruction booklet.
The two minfigs in the set are the sorcerer gentleman and the skeleton. The skeleton is made of parts we've seen in several sets before. However, the sorcerer (vampire?) gentleman is a slightly different story. His torso has been seen in only five sets previously (not surprisingly all having to do with vampires) and not since 2015. His Eddie Munster inspired hairpiece is similarly rare; only in six sets previously, and last seen in 76045 Kryptonite Interception.
The skeleton comes with a cup and a bone for accessories; the sorcerer only has the cup.
There are a couple of micro builds with this set. The first is a cauldron where the sorcerer cooks his brew. The set instructions show that the ingredients are rather unusual: some green cherries and a cookie. The pictures on the box show that a small pumpkin from the other micro build and a bone are added for full effectiveness.
The other microbuild is a small patch of greenery on which the small pumpkin and a mouse are added. It's unclear what purpose this adds to the set, but does add some additional detail.
The primary part of the build is a set of gates leading to a forbidding looking manor. The gates have flaming torches and swing open. They also have a red spider adorning them to deter anyone from proceeding further. There's some nice decorative work around the gate with the use of medium lilac leaves and pale lilac flowers (as a huge fan of purple, I love seeing this detail). In addition, there's some forboding decorations provided by the spikes on the top of the gate provided by 1x2 plates with vertical teeth in black, a piece that has only been seen in three pieces previously. The top of the gate is completed with a large pumpkin, which is also somewhat rare, having only been seen in four previous sets including the Disney Castle and a couple of the Scooby Doo sets.
For me the star of the set is when you open the gates. There's a path toward a castle that is outlined using a couple of 1x1 round olive green tiles. The castle is built purely in perspective; it's clearly some distance away from the gates where the sorcerer and skeleton are standing. This is the first time I can think of that this kind of building technique has been used for the seasonals and I think it's terrific.
Overall thoughts
I love this delightful little set. The scene is detailed, and what really sells me on this set is the building technique used to show perspective that we've not seen before. For the price (145 pieces, $9.99, £8.49, 9.99€) it's a great value for money. The relatively rare pieces of the minifig torso and hair, the plate with spikes as well as the larger pumpkin make up the icing on this Halloween cake.
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35 comments on this article
Looks great!
FYI, the article needs a set link at the beginning.
Nice little set. I think LEGO should come up with an updated rat mold.
I like the comic on the back.
I just want one of those Scooby Doo pumpkins! They are too cool
I might have to pick this up just for those olive green 1x1 tiles. Hopefully I can snag this after Halloween though, and get a major discount. :)
Nice little set!
The designer video for the new Millennium Falcon also describes how he used perspective to show depth down a corridor inside the ship. I wonder if the same designer was involved in this build, using depth as a design element. I think it's very clever. Has this sort of depth perception been used in other sets in the past? Or is this a new designer imparting some original innovation in the Lego designs?
@woosterlegos The first and most impressive use of forced perspective in a set is the detention block hallway in 10188 Death Star. It features 12 studs' worth of gradually shrinking hallway build before transitioning into a sticker that 'recedes' even further.
I really want this for all the parts and the perspective of the castle in the background is brilliant.
I live 2 hours away from a LEGO store. I went there recently, the exact same day this set arrived to the store. I asked about the set but the store employee said that there wasn't a shelf available and he couldn't put it out yet. It was a bummer not to get it as it wasn't unpacked.
This one is definitly on my wanted list, like all the other seasonal vignettes this year. I prefer this kind of seasonal build over last years' weird eyed monstro... brick built figurines.
Nice review! It's awesome to see forced perspective in an official set! It's not really working for me...it looks more like a framed picture. Nice parts though! Always good to see more purple.
I liked it and just built mine yesterday. Small but fun!
Love the idea, parts and forced perspective! Shame it seems to be a Lego exclusive - it wasn't out when I ordered other stuff from LEGO.com...
Hope Lego refer to the minifigure as a Necromancer or even as doresh el ha-metim rather than a boring old vampire. Nice set & good review.
Like for Teriyakqi, the perspective is not working for me. Looks like a fireplace. Maybe without the top framing it would be more convincing? Nevertheless a good little set. Thanks for the informative review about the uncommon parts.
Looking forward to this being released!
A good review that captured all the relevant aspects of this set. I was turned off by last year's monsterous build but this looks very nice.
Picked up 1 September, on my desk already. Vignettes top Brick Built for me every time.
great review and thanks for the link to Lego shop I can't find this otherwise. Why did they get rid of the seasonal section? I've found an advent calendar in city but where am I to find sets like this ? Thanks Brickset if it wasn't for you guys I'd never find these things
Is that cole's head I see?
Great set, way more appeal than last year's Trick or Treat [40122-1]. Put it in my bag on Legoshop. Now the brain cracking starts on which set(s) to add more.... aaaarrrrggghhhh
The 'necromancer' really reminds me of Lord Vampyre from monster fighters when he was probably a human. The closest would be to use the Series 1 Ninja head, but this would work great as well.
Another person who's very grateful for Brickset's direct link to the set on LEGO.com--tried and failed to find it there by myself yesterday and came to the conclusion it had already sold out--so glad to pick it up today! I think the forced perspective can be improved by raising the "castle" by the height of one plate, perhaps incorporating a 1x1 sand green plate to represent more of the trail to its gate; other than that, it's a very cute set with some nice parts!
Fun set. Definitely a pick up.
Cool, this set is better than 40122 from last year is all I can say.
@Brickyoyo Mini Head "No. 745" is in 24 sets, and they're otherwise all Ninjago, even the Dimensions Team Pack.
Does anyone know where can you buy it in Spain? Maybe in the Official LEGO Shop, but I've already checked it and it itsn't out yet...
@VictorLol In the online Legoshop.... with use of the searchbox and typing the 40260 or just Halloween it pops up...
This would go great with a Scoby Doo diorama.
I also really enjoy the small seasonal vignettes! This one is quite unusual and pretty cute in my opinion. Thanks for the great review - I picked one of these up already.
Thanks for the handy review and pictures, MeganL!
If the 'gentleman' is supposed to be a vampire, is it the first since the 1998 Fright Knights Bat Lord (which is widely assumed to be a vampire) to have a yellow head? I think so.
Not a bad set. I might get it. Mind you, I still haven't opened the Halloween set (https://brickset.com/sets/850936-1/Halloween-Set) from 2014!
I wondered about the yellow head too - I assume the white hands are gloves...
I was at my local LBR store this week and picked this up--the torso, pumpkin, and purple leaves pieces convinced me, plus I don't have any skeletons after their debut decades ago (the floppy-armed kind) so for $10 it seemed like an easy decision. I haven't built it yet, though. If I like it enough I'll call and pester the store right before and after Halloween to see if they are on clearance.
That Cauldron would be great for Harry Potter and the goblet of fire custom sets!
I bought this cute little set on an impulse and I just love it. I built it next to https://brickset.com/sets/40122-1/Trick-or-Treat-Halloween-Set and they look wonderful together!