The Brickset 2019 Holiday Gift Guide: Part 2
Posted by CapnRex101,
The second part of our 2019 Brickset Holiday Gift Guide focuses upon sets which cost between $25 and $50. The group includes 103 different products and you can view them all here to make your own selections.
See what members of the Brickset team have chosen after the break...
CapnRex101
75894 1967 Mini Cooper S Rally and 2018 MINI John Cooper Works Buggy (£44.99, $49.99, 49.99€)
Speed Champions will be undergoing various changes next year. However, some excellent models became available during 2019, including 75894 1967 Mini Cooper S Rally and 2018 MINI John Cooper Works Buggy that contains two of my favourite cars from across the entire Speed Champions theme!
Of course, the 1967 Mini Cooper S is undoubtedly the highlight of this set and looks absolutely magnificent, capturing fantastic detail and exhibiting enjoyable building techniques. Moreover, this buggy differs dramatically from any other Speed Champions vehicles and compares favourably with its source material.
Younger fans might appreciate sets with more exciting minifigures and greater functionality though, in which case I would recommend 70422 Shrimp Shack Attack. That model incorporates several fun transformative features and accordingly offers considerable play value.
You can read our review and purchase it at LEGO.com.
MeganL
41378 Dolphins Rescue Mission (£34.99, $39.99, 39.99€)
There are several worthwhile sets in this price range. Since I focus on mainly Friends sets, I'll make my official recommendation there. While I generally don't like to recommend more than one set in a particular sub theme, 41378 Dolphins Rescue Mission is another excellent set in the marine rescue series. You have the requisite cute animals, including a new baby dolphin.
I love that this theme has the Friends out and doing some great work. The build experience of the shipwreck is great, no matter your age. Plus I think the introduction of a Friends antagonist (at least for a while) is notable in itself. Another great option is 70825 Queen Watevra's Build Whatever Box!, which provides for an amazing amount of play with essentially 5 5-in-1 builds.
If you're shopping for an AFOL, for this price range I would recommend the gorgeous 80103 Dragon Boat Race or (especially for Bay Area locals like me) 21043 San Francisco.
You can read our review and purchase it at LEGO.com.
Huw
80103 Dragon Boat Race ($49.99, £44.99, 49.99€)
The three sets produced for the Asian market are all exceptional and among the best LEGO has made this year. Unfortunately two of them were not widely available but this one, 80103 Dragon Boat Race, can still be purchased at shop.LEGO.com.
It's colourful, creative, playful and there are 15 -- yes, 15 -- minifigures in it, for less than $50. So, it's something of a bargain too, particularly when you consider that a similarly sized licensed set with around 600 pieces and just a couple of figures would set you back at least $60.
You can purchase it at LEGO.com.
Are you hoping to receive anything within this price bracket and what would you recommend to others? Let us know in the comments.
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18 comments on this article
"...more than one set in a particular sub theme" pun intended? ;)
There are very nice CLASSIC sets in this price range. And i think, that the best themes for a general LEGO gift are CLASSIC and CREATOR.
So my choice is https://brickset.com/sets/31095-1/Fairground-Carousel
I would vote for 70420: Graveyard Mystery. Very good for any Halloween display.
For me the best out of this range is going to have to be 75248 Resistance A-wing Starfighter.
For young girls...
41164 Enchanted Tree House
For Ninjago fans...
70674 Fire Fang
For Star Wars fans...
75258 Anakin's Podracer – 20th Anniversary Edition or 75233 Droid Gunship
For Harry Potter fans...
75958 Beauxbatons' Carriage: Arrival at Hogwarts
And if you aren't sure, just go with...
70827 Ultrakatty & Warrior Lucy!
...a GIANT, ANGRY, APOCALYPTIC UNICORN-CAT. My personal favorite.
My picks:
* If you’re a boat person, get the Dragon Boat Race.
* If you’re a car person, get the 2018 Dodge Challenger SRT Demon and 1970 Dodge Charger R/T. It’s a mouthful, but you’ll probably love it.
* If you’re a building person, get the Paris set from the Architecture line. If you want Minifigure-scale buildings, get Shrimp Shack Attack.
And that’s about all I can think of.
I think 76119-1: Batmobile: Pursuit of The Joker would be a good gift for a Dc fan.
60230 People Pack - Space Research and Development great figs (15 total, accessories and an alien head too!) ALL for just $40 bucks.
If you don't get the new big 1989 batmobile with the free smaller version, get the 76119 Batmobile Pursuit of The Joker for $30 bucks and mod it.
Even though considered a Junior-Set the 76138 Batman and The Joker Escape is a cool small play set for anyone for $40 bucks. Lots of great printed elements in here.
I’d say one of the midrange Star Wars sets, Particularly the Death Star Escape or Anakin’s podracer.
I really enjoyed the D'va and Reinhardt set. I didn't know what Overwatch was. Liked the look of it as there were two equal looking builds and thought it might be good to do with my kids (boy and girl)... great fun for all of us.
A lot of great sets in this range. I can't fault the Batmobile (so iconic that even non-Lego fans would appreciate it), but if we're talking Hidden Side, I thought the Shrimp Boat was fantastic.
But agreed about the Dragon Boat race. I'm so glad that one was a wide-release.
For me, 70827 Ultrakatty & Warrior Lucy would be a good choice, considering that you get two iconic characters, along with a model containing playability, posability and great aesthetics. That would be perfect for a kid or adult alike, whether or not they've seen the movie. Also, 70421 and 70422, both medium range hidden side sets, would be great depending on whether the reciever prefers vehicles and playability, or structures and integration into a city layout, or even just great minifigs.
@FlyerBeast - I was wondering if anyone would catch that :-)
@Mr_Cross
My mom is getting me the set for Christmas (her closet isn’t a very good hiding spot lol). I’m a big Overwatch fan so I’ll probably enjoy building and displaying the set, but I can still see why people who are unfamiliar with the game would like it.
@TheWadkyWookiee
My brother has the Podracer set, it’s pretty fun to swoosh around but there’s not much to do without another Podracer at a similar scale. The Death Star Escape Set has some really great Minifigures (still haven’t gotten the new Leia hairpiece), and it’s about 30% on Amazon in the US.
@Brick_Cuppy
I’m not a very big Frozen fan (I’ve seen the first one once or twice) and I’ve never bought a Minidoll set for myself, so the Treehouse doesn’t interest me very much (don’t get me wrong, I see the appeal). I haven’t seen the new Ninjago season but Fire Fang looks like an interesting set, the serpentine Minifigures and giant snake seem like they’d work really well in a fantasy MOC or stop-motion. The Droid Gunship looks like a solid build but I’m not sure what I’d do with it; I honestly don’t remember the Gunship appearing in Episode III. I love Harry Potter and the Beauxbatons Carriage is an interesting set, but it doesn’t play a big enough role for me to want to get it that much. Ultrakatty looks like an enjoyable build.
@woosterlegos Funnily enough, I started collecting Hidden Side to make a Halloween display and didn't manage to get my hands on that one until November!
@MeganL That set you recommend has a very Life Aquatic feel about it.
Great recommendation. Good looking build with bright tones for display.
I would be pleased to receive any of them as a present. Unfortunately, I am the only one among my family, friends and relatives who will read this article filled with good ideas :)
80103 Dragon Boat Race
70422 Shrimp Shack Attack / 70419 Wrecked Shrimp Boat
75977 Junkrat & Roadhog
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75964 Harry Potter Advent Calendar