Harry Potter Advent Calendar - Day 18
Posted by CapnRex101,
Our final banner appeared yesterday. Hopefully the next seven days will therefore provide some interesting items and another minifigure seems probable on day eighteen.
Portaberto...
Professor Flitwick has appeared twice previously but this minifigure is brand new, wearing an elegant light bluish grey waistcoat and bow tie. This attire is inspired by Umbridge's appraisal of the professor during Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix and the 'In Noctem' deleted scene from Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince. The accompanying bow tie looks lovely and two spares are provided.
Furthermore, this double-sided head is unique. One side appears cheerful while the other represents singing and the silver glasses look superb. The dark brown hair component is authentic too. However, many popular characters appear across the Harry Potter series and deciding to include an alternative version of Flitwick seems odd, particularly since this figure has no relationship with Christmas.
Overall - 4.5 - Another exclusive minifigure is welcome and Professor Flitwick looks marvellous here, although there are many other characters I would prefer.
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Theodore Roosevelt :)
Considering the first Flitwick came in the 2010 Hogwarts castle and the second in a CMF series, I’d say this is a worthy inclusion.
I’ve been waiting for this update because I had no idea who this was. I fail as a parent.
I never got the CMF Flitwick (I think he and scene-specific Neville were the only two we never bothered to find), so this is fine.
Adore the alternative face. Also, as Neo pointed out, this head resembles based Teddy Roosevelt.
Flitwick is always funny to me in the films because he gets younger looking. His first appearance in Sorcerer's/Philosopher's Stone and Chamber of Secrets makes him look older than his later appearances. Same actor though Warrwick Davis... he also has a lot of Star Wars characters in Lego form too.
This is an excellent addition to the calendar. I like the prints and the bow tie (spares too!) and must concur that he will stand in very well for Teddy Roosevelt.
Would have preferred a teacher we haven't had yet, but hopefully we'll get them in upcoming sets
I almost said this yesterday but decided against it as it was a potential spoiler. My brother noticed by the second banner that each of them were followed by a minifigure. Days 5-6 were the Gryffindor banner and McGonagall, days 9-10 were the Slytherin banner and Ron, days 13-14 were the Ravenclaw banner and Hermione and now on days 17-18 we have the Hufflepuff banner and Flitwick. Hopefully there’s one more minifigure that won’t have been spoiled by this pattern.
Battle of the Licensed Advent Calendars continues. With Day 17’s loss, HP and SW are neck and neck once again heading into a critical Day 18. Trailing by a single point, will SW be able to tie the competition up or will HP restore its two point lead? Let’s take a look and find out.
Behind HP’s door 18 stood a rendition of Professor Filius Flitwick. As the reviewer points out, this character has only appeared twice before- 9 years ago in a premium retail set, and more recently in the Wizarding World Collectable Minifigure Series 1 set. That said, this figure is exclusive to this calendar, offering new printing on the torso. A double-sided head adds depth to the figure and the bowtie element pays homage to the source material. Short legs are generally more rare than normal legs and it’s nice to get another pair here as it is figure-appropriate. While the reviewer points out that there are many other characters to be represented in the Wizarding World, I think Prof Flitwick is as worthy an inclusion as any other named character for this calendar. Overall, this is a fantastic figure, and like McGonagall earlier in the calendar, isn’t easily obtained.
On the flip side, SW fans were treated to a Rebel Fleet Trooper on Day 18. This minifig is as rare as Flitwick, having only appeared twice before, and one of these times in a premium retail set (Tantive IV). The double-sided face is great, especially the chinstrap. Color tones and printing are on point. The reviewer notes that the inclusion of the weapon with figure is due to the designer, and this is welcome in place of the dreaded weapon rack (which is probably SW’s version of a house flag). In all this figure will be a welcome addition for SW fans, especially those who are looking to bolster their armies.
In conclusion, today’s matchup represents the first head-to-head minifigure battle between the calendars this season! I for one was curious if we’d see this occur at all and Day 18 has finally delivered the goods. Comparing minifigs is a tough exercise and today will be the first day that one of the two minifigs loses its matchup. It is also the first day that the reviewer gave both offerings the same score! But alas, there can only be one champion. Let’s make an evidenced-based case to determine the winner.
Design- Considering design metrics, both figures are fantastic and no edge goes to either one. It would be purely subjective to select one design over the other in this matchup.
Rarity- Rarity metrics are a little more nuanced. At face value, both figures would score the same having each appeared only twice before. However, this exact variant of Flitwick is exclusive to this calendar whereas to my knowledge, the trooper variant can be found in previous sets, albeit, only two with one being an expensive retail set. Furthermore, one could argue that the only guaranteed way to obtain Flitwick previous to now would be through the purchase of the 2010 Hogwarts Castle set. The other method, via blind bag from the Wizarding World Collectable Wizarding Series, requires luck, and would not guarantee the purchaser a Flitwick. Whereas on the flip side, to obtain this variant of the Rebel Fleet Trooper, one could purchase the smaller 75237 Tie Fighter Attack set in place of the Tantive IV.
Character Role- This metric might be the deciding factor. HP fans get a named character in “Professor Flitwick” while SW fans get an unnamed, generic character in “Rebel Fleet Trooper.” Each character’s importance in their respective stories could be debated, but an edge certainly has to go to a named character vs a generic one.
In conclusion, based on the above metrics, today’s point goes to HP in what has evidently been the closest battle of the holiday season. It is fitting that in a race so tight, a pivotal Day 18 saw a head to head minifig battle, each with the same score. No competition is without controversy but one hopes that this rationalized reasoning will provide the basis for today’s result. Both calendars and fanbases should be thrilled with their respective entries today. But
Are his moustache and eyebrows a lighter shade of brown on this figure to the collectable minifigure? They look it, when the review pictures are compared to the images in the database for the CMF one... but I'm unsure if that's just the lighting, or if they actually are different.
... as it stands, HP has regained its 2-point advantage, and the score is now:
HP- 10
SW- 8
To be continued…
Love the expression, and that torso will be useful :)
When it was first rumoured that Flitwick would appear in this calendar, I was hoping we'd get the version from the first two films, as this set is based on the Christmas scenes from the Great Hall in «Philosopher's Stone», where Flitwick is hanging the star on the tree, but this design is nice to have too.
I think Flitwick's presence here is perfectly appropriate. We see him using his charmwork to decorate the hall. Plus it's not like he's the same figure. He is exclusive. The alternate face is a nice touch.
missed opportunity of getting Flitwick's original design
@xboxtravis7992:
I've read that there's some controversy surrounding Flitwick, as in one form he's never specifically addressed as such. In the books I guess he's supposed to be a half-breed (goblin?) like Hagrid, hence the really weird makeup job in Chris Columbus' two movies, but later directors went with a more human-looking appearance. So, some fans consider them to be two distinct characters.
@Matt_Z_:
_Some_ buyers require blind luck (or Bricklink) to purchase a specific CMF. Or they could pony up for a sealed case.
@PurpleDave - Interestingly enough, according to the behind-the-scenes book Harry Potter: The Character Vault, they were originally intended to be two separate characters; this design was created as the choirmaster simply to give Warwick Davis a role in Prisoner of Azkaban, where Flitwick wasn't scripted to appear. It was Goblet of Fire director Mike Newell who ret-conned the two into the same character; although, if I recall, he isn't then addressed by name onscreen until Half-Blood Prince.