Review: 75957 The Knight Bus
Posted by CapnRex101,
LEGO has produced numerous renditions of the famed Knight Bus. 75957 The Knight Bus seems remarkably authentic when compared with past designs, more faithfully resembling its onscreen counterpart. The updated window arrangement looks marvellous and I am quite impressed with the detailed interior too.
Moreover, these new minifigures are effectively decorated so correspond precisely with the film, improving upon earlier versions of the same characters. The price of £34.99 or $39.99 seems reasonable too and I have therefore been looking forward to assembling this interesting set.
Minifigures
Several versions of Harry Potter are available but this example, featuring a dark blue jacket and dark tan trousers, is noticeably prolific. That is not entirely surprising as Harry wears the same casual attire throughout Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban and looks superb here. I am particularly pleased with the realistic creases on his shirt but white stripes are missing from each arm, unfortunately.
However, the new double-sided head undoubtedly captures some emotion and I like the textured hair piece. This component was designed to replicate Harry's hair style from the earliest movies but works here in my opinion, even though a specialised part would have been preferable. The figure includes a dark brown wand and a trunk which contains a letter, a chocolate bar and a trans-yellow potion.
Stan Shunpike has appeared in each minifigure-scale rendition of the Knight Bus and this example is my favourite. The character sports an attractive purple cap with a black brim which looks perfect when compared with the movie. His uniform is similarly excellent and I love the metallic silver ticket machine hanging around Stan's neck. Furthermore, his unkempt facial hair and surly expression look great.
I am equally satisfied with Ernie Prang, whose invariably alarmed facial expression looks marvellous. The white facial hair and round glasses both appear faithful to the source material and his olive green cardigan is brilliant too. Its intricate patterning looks particularly impressive and I like the muted colour scheme, faithfully replicating Ernie's onscreen clothing.
The Completed Model
Eight years have passed since 4866 The Knight Bus was released during 2011 and this brilliant model represents a considerable improvement over past versions. The vehicle measures 16cm in both length and height so its proportions seem more accurate when compared with the movie and the shape of the bus is almost perfect, due primarily to the shallower angle of its front windows above the cab.
Furthermore, the cab has been updated substantially and its construction is deceptively complicated, comprising several brackets and curved slopes which form an elegant arch above the left wheel. The headlights look wonderful and I like the radiator sticker, although a brick-built design might have been preferable. The shrunken head is delightful too, swinging with the motion of the Knight Bus!
An interesting 1x3x3 window frame, along with the corresponding window element, has been created for this model. This has enabled the designer to include the correct number of windows on both lower decks which is excellent. Their height is somewhat disappointing though as these windows should be narrower. Nevertheless, I am fairly satisfied with this design and the black stripes between each deck look lovely.
Two black tiles are positioned above the rear platform, advertising that the Knight Bus can reach any destination on land. This detail takes direct inspiration from Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban while the rear platform offers enough space for minifigures to climb aboard. Moreover, the wheels are accurately scaled with the surrounding bodywork and include appropriate purple highlights.
Accessing the interior is exceptionally simple as the top deck is removable and one side of the model swings open, as demonstrated below. Unfortunately, there is insufficient room for a staircase between levels but the furnishings are attractive. I particularly appreciate the resplendent chandelier that hangs beside an advertisement for the Daily Prophet, albeit supplanting seat space on the upper deck.
Beds replace standard seating during overnight journeys aboard the Knight Bus, although this model only includes one bed. Nevertheless, it appears nicely detailed and opens to place a minifigure inside which is fun. In addition, the bed slides across two 1x8 tiles so replicates their dangerous motion from the film while Ernie Prang sits in the driving seat at the front.
The uppermost deck appears rather bland by comparison, simply containing a printed newspaper tile and Harry's trunk. Perhaps another bed could have been positioned here, although adequate storage space is important. Fortunately, the available area is easily adaptable for seats or additional beds and can be accessed by removing the roof panel.
Overall
75957 The Knight Bus is undoubtedly my favourite rendition of this popular vehicle. Its shape seems more authentic than past models and the updated windows look splendid in my view, despite their inaccurate proportions. Furthermore, the interior includes outstanding detail, particularly for the lower decks where furnishings move around chaotically!
The minifigures are superb too, although many comparable Harry Potter sets include wider selections and Sirius Black, in his Animagus form, would have been a great addition here. Moreover, the price of £34.99 or $39.99 seems rather expensive given the Knight Bus' relatively small size. Even so, it looks wonderful on display so is a worthy addition to any Harry Potter collection.
I hope you have found this review informative. Let us know by liking this article and share your opinion of the set in the comments.
This set was provided for review by The LEGO Group but the review is an expression of my own opinions.
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20 comments on this article
I'm getting this soon, I love it hope lego make a polybag version of it too like they did a few years ago..
Looking forward to picking this up and either turning it into a two level touring style bus akin to the one in 60200 Capital City, or into a luggage store. The sign "All Destinations" screams to be used for a travel outfitters store :) All of those purple windows would also look great for a modular style building... ok maybe I need two lol.
Great review, Cap'n. I also thought it was a very enjoyable build.
Thankyou, Still waiting for it to drop in price, but WOW that is very Bright Purple.
As I mentioned previously, I'm excited about the windows themselves because of the possibilities they bring, just not so impressed with their use here specifically.
I've also stopped collecting LEGO Harry Potter, which means if I bought this set for the windows (which is extremely unlikely), I'd have to go to the trouble of selling the box, instructions and minifigs just to try and recoup some of the cost, even if doing so ends up providing more value for money than BrickLinking the windows alone.
Sure, I did BrickLink the two sets of steam train wheels from the newest Hogwarts Express for less than $16 Australian including shipping, but that's an order of just two parts (when counting each set of wheels as 1 part).
Love this set! Although quite simple, it looks fun to build and a bit nostalgic!
Just a little nitpick, you might want to lower the brightness/saturation on your camera so the bus doesn't look like it's Violet.
Shame they couldn't also use the 1x2x3 window frame in purple (seen in the previous Knight Bus 4866) instead of clear panel pieces, which I think detract from the otherwise pretty good look.
Hope they make the new windows in red, then it ought to be possible to build a model of the London Transport RT, the bus that the Knight Bus is based on.
Where's the shrunken head?
@ajm390 I was just about to say the same thing!
Have purposely not bought any HP sets as I don't want to get sucked into the theme but I'm going to have to get this some time.
My Lego City will be swamped with purple buses since I have never missed a Knight Bus ×2 lol, who needs London buses?
^^^The Shrunken head can be seen through the windscreen
No offense meant to anybody, but I feel like, this is my least favourite Knights Bus out of all of them. I don't think it looks good at all. It feels like there's a lot more stickers than the past version (which isn't worth the trade-off of more detail), and that upper floor looks terrible, with the awkwardly-placed windows and odd gaps between the pieces. And I'm lamenting the loss of those train window panes and frames, which seem to have gone the way of the dodo and Exo-force.
^ Don't worry, we're ALL mourning the loss of train windows.
"Sirius Black, in his Animagus form, would have been a great addition here"
Yes definitely! Hopefully we will get him in a future set..
Thanks for a great review :)
I quite like this set overall, but will be waiting for a discount first.
Speaking of pricing, I was surpised that CapnRex said in the beginning of the review that
"The price of £34.99 or $39.99 seems reasonable too"
while at the end he says
"the price of £34.99 or $39.99 seems rather expensive"
How can it be reasonable and rather expensive at the same time?
:-)
Having been on many a night bus in my yoof after being out clubbing I have no wish to recreate the experience.
I built this set last night and quite enjoyed it. Only a few stickers so no issue there. Pretty good design in my opinion. Looks great alongside my HP collection.
This is a great time for HP collectors, I think. All these remakes are perhaps not perfect or the best iterations, but with some discount you get some serious value for your buck, more so than for the older sets on Ebay. I feel like with a couple of sets you can already play very well - or put up a nice display on your shelves. And I feel like this belongs here to spice things up a bit. This, the Express, Great Hall and Hagrids Hut + some minifigs makes a great display for probably a little over 200€. Good value.
I dunno. It looks ugly, reminds me of a greenhouse made from the junk.