Harry Potter Advent Calendar - Day 20
Posted by CapnRex101,
Only five days remain in the Harry Potter Advent Calendar and I am expecting its almost exclusive focus upon the Great Hall to continue during day twenty.
Let's open the door and see...
Today our focus is moving to the neighbouring Entrance Hall where an attractive plinth is positioned. This model appears slightly odd in isolation but includes two exposed studs on top, clearly indicating that something else will be located on top. Nevertheless, I like how layered light and dark bluish grey elements have been combined, creating realistic stonework.
Of course, the highlight of this model is undoubtedly the printed tiles that adorn each side. These are decorated with the crests for each Hogwarts house and look magnificent, matching the stickers found with 71043 Hogwarts Castle during 2018. The same pieces have already appeared in the Harry Potter Build Your Own Adventure book but I expect they were actually created for this Advent Calendar.
Overall - 4.0 - This model seems rather bland on an individual basis but includes some fantastic parts and I think its score will improve when the structure is complete!
44 likes
13 comments on this article
I was hoping that this would turn out to be a thing by itself, which I just wasn't getting.
It's nice, but for now I've just put Flitwick on the top.
Can you put all those flags on the corners? Or is the downwards-facing dish going to make that impossible?
@The_Teenage_Brickster said:
"So let me get this straight, in a D2C, $600, flagship, award winning, set we get stickers for the house tiles, but in a $40 advent calendar they are printed."
I was absolutely amazed when I bought the "Build your own adventure" book, and found that those four tiles were printed. They even looked like stickers in all the photos in the book! But they were printed pieces and my jaw just *dropped*.
I was going to suggest putting the grandfather clock from yesterday on top of the plinth, then remembered that was from the City calendar. Ah well, nothing actually stopping you from doing that anyway
Four banging printed pieces, can't complain.
@Robot99 - Those banners are prevented from connecting to the studs at each corner by the overhanging section above the printed tiles.
@The_Teenage_Brickster - I expect LEGO saw no reason to include printed elements in 71043-1 Hogwarts Castle because they were already going to include stickers. Presumably they subsequently decided that these elements could be used on multiple occasions, hence choosing to print them.
I would rather LEGO decided to print more pieces but can understand their thought process for 71043-1 Hogwarts Castle, despite disagreeing with it.
Hello, neat build but The Guardian has been reporting in the recent LEGO ToS chamge at BrickLink, if you are worried about Lego sponsorship and are looking for a way to make a good article time is running out.
Since this is an incomplete build, it would be hard to imagine how this will play out in the Battle of Licensed Calendars. I sense we will possibly split the difference with Star Wars between today and tomorrow with the HP point taking into consideration the completed model. Although we could still squeak out a win today with those four desirable printed tiles if the SW build is weak.
@The_Teenage_Brickster
Volume of sales is the factor you're missing.
@Lordmoral said:
"Hello, neat build but The Guardian has been reporting in the recent LEGO ToS chamge at BrickLink, if you are worried about Lego sponsorship and are looking for a way to make a good article time is running out."
That's not quite right, the Guardian's article doesn't mention the TOS change once. If you're going to be a one-trick pony, at least get your trick right.
Battle of the Licensed Advent Calendars continues. Day 19 saw HP’s good offering stymied by SW’s better one, bringing the score to 10-9 in HP’s favor. With only a few days remaining, each theme must bring it’s A-game as time is running out on this advent calendar competition. Let’s find out which calendar takes the point on a crucial Day 20.
Behind HP’s door is a buildable plinth displaying the Hogwarts house crests/colors. At first glance, it appears that this structure is only a part of a greater model, as evidence by the studs on top of the foundation. That said, the stonework itself is well designed but the real star here are four, 2x2 printed tiles (yes, printed) depicting the 4 houses of Hogwarts. The inclusion of printed tiles in any set, let alone an advent calendar, is an increasing rarity these days. These tiles are only found in one other set (ie. a book) and the fact that they are presented here is not only shocking but a real treasure for HP collectors/MOCers. The printing is detailed on each, with the name of each house printed below the image of the house crest. An added bonus is the fact that each tile has its own color rather than the four tiles being printed on standard medium stone grey, which might have been the easier way out for TLG. While the model cannot achieve a perfect score on the basis that it is incomplete, the presence of the four colored printed tiles, makes this one of the most unique offerings in the advent calendar to date.
On the flip side, SW fans received a buildable rendition of Hoth’s Echo Base (north entrance) on Day 20. Hoth style mini builds have appeared in many SW Advent Calendars in the past, and as the reviewer correctly notes, the closest comparison is likely the 2015 edition of the SW advent calendar. The build is straightforward and represents a scene from the film but does not offer much in terms of unique pieces. The trans-light blue lightsaber is a welcome upgrade from 2015’s green one, although both elements are fairly common (a dedicated SW fan will determine whether light blue lasers are screen-accurate vs green). That said, the score of 4.0 for today’s entry certainly raised this reviewer’s eyebrows as compared to other entries in both calendars, today’s model does not boldly shout 3.5/5.
In conclusion, I for one was surprised to see that both entries received the same score today by the article’s reviewer. Based on comparables across both calendars, I expected HP’s model to be closer to a 4.5 while SW’s entry closer to a 3.0. HP’s offering contains 4 printed tiles, previously only found in a book (not even an official LEGO set). The rarity of printed pieces in an advent calendar cannot be understated or undersold, and even the $500+ Hogwarts Castle set produced stickers over printed tiles. The fact that each tile has its own color is just icing on the Hoth-cake.
All things considered, both models received the same score. It we then turn to novelty of the build and rarity of elements, then it becomes clear that HP takes today’s point, albeit in a closer match-up then originally surmised. With this result, HP takes back its two point lead and SW is now entering dangerous territory with only 4 days remaining. The score is now:
HP- 11
SW- 9
To be continued…
I love it, I hope something cool is included on a later day to place on top!
Although it pains me to say this, I won’t be able to complete the Battle of the Licensed Advent Calendars, based on some unfortunate events that occurred here earlier today. I now leave it in the hands of the people! Thank you for indulging me and following along to this point. Whether you’re a HP fan or a SW fan, I wish you and yours a happy holiday season. Be kind to one another and may the best calendar win!