Review: Bricktober 2019 Spring
Posted by Huw,
The unveiling of this year's Toys R Us Bricktober sets reminded me that I hadn't yet purchased last year's set of four that were available exclusively in Asian branches of the toy store which depict typical local scenes through the seasons.
So, I headed to BrickLink, where you can find numerous sellers with stock, including BrickPoly in Thailand, from whom I purchased a set.
The models themselves are delightful, but the packaging is a sight to behold...
Packaging
The boxes are unlike any other LEGO box. They are square and manufactured from very thick card stock which has a printed layer of paper over it.
The 'small print' is confined to the bottom, which on mine has been covered with a sticker with a translation into Thai.
After carefully slitting the seals, the top of the box lifts off to reveal... not much!
The instructions and stickers are inside a black envelope on the top of the box, which sits on top of another layer of black card lining the box.
Instructions are provided on two single-sheet pages which have been folded to fit in the box. The base is common to all four sets, so steps to make it are on a separate sheet.
Two LEGO-logo stickers are provided, only one of which is used.
The parts are packed snugly in their bags which have been condensed somewhat to fit in the box.
Construction
It doesn't take long to put the base together, and not much longer to build the scene, although there are a lot of fiddly 1x1 pieces involved.
Here's what the base looks like without the trees: a typical Japanese formal garden scene with torii gate and arched bridge across a water feature.
I think there are my first lime green ice creams!
The completed model
Two cherry/sakura trees in full bloom adorn the garden, while a white nanofig partakes in a spot of hanami (enjoying their transient beauty).
I had rather hoped that the base would fit in the box to enable it to be stored in it but, alas, it doesn't! It's about 2mm too large, which is a great shame, and a missed opportunity. I wonder whether it was intended to fit, but the designers didn't take into account the black inner lining...
Verdict
It's an attractive depiction of a classic Asian scene which I suspect will look even better once lined up with the other three.
If you choose to pay after-market prices and shipping costs for it, you're paying for a collectors' item in sumptuous packaging, and from that point of view it is worth every penny.
If you're not fussed about the box and want to build it yourself from your own parts, or 'Bricklink-it', you'll find instruction scans at PromoBricks. It appears to use only relatively common parts, but without a published inventory anywhere I can't say for sure.
I look forward to building the others...
This set, and the other three, are available from a number of sellers in Asia for around £20 / $25.
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21 comments on this article
I know there will be complaints about “regional exclusives” but I understand this was a store exclusive. However, Toys R Us is alive and well in Canada (or at least alive) and I don’t recall theses being available here, which is sad because I lived in Japan for many years and these scenes really appeal to me. What’s more is I haven’t seen any signs of the new amusement park scenes being offered this year in TRU’s Bricktober promotions here either.
That extra Lego logo sticker could be used for some great pranks: put it on some random thing, and say, "Look! Lego is now making (fill in the blank)!" Then enjoy the uproar! :)
That isn't a pagoda, it's a Torii gate.
^ Thank you
I somehow missed any news of these four, didn’t know they existed. This one in particular is very simple and beautiful.
"I had rather hoped that the base would fit in the box to enable it to be stored in it but, alas, it doesn't!"
I think the designers WANTED for it to sit on top. It looks quite attractive to me; I'll display it that way.
@Huw Could you do a another quick review of the other three and a picture of all four together?
Yes, when I've built them!
any hope of instructions scans?
Link in the article...
This is a very nice little set. It's the sort of thing that makes an ideal GWP
@Brickking6077:
I disagree about the intent. The bases are designed to be linked together via Technic pins. That much is patently obvious, and fairly standard across many themes these days. The outer shell of the box is significantly larger than the base, which prevents you from linking these together cleanly, and makes the bases superfluous. However, they might be designed to display _IN_ the box, as pictured. The base is almost completely hidden from view if you set it inside the top of the inner shell of the box. It also appears to just barely fit inside the upper portion, and rest neatly on the lip that holds the envelope up (by that I mean the lip should always support all four edges, regardless of how you shift the base around, or based on a second look maybe just support the back edge and the logo tile on the front). The inner shell keeps the decorative, seasonally-themed pattern and color scheme, but ditches the redundant picture of the set itself.
It’s cute! I love it!
@PurpleDave said:
" @Brickking6077:
I disagree about the intent. "
Actually, it might have been intended to be displayed on the boxes for those who were going to keep them, and connected with pins for those who wish to do so. It wouldn't be unheard of to see something with dual purposes...
Otherwise, lovely sets, I really wish they had been made available in Canada as well, it was quite disappointing. I'm also thinking of getting them, but import from Asia is so expensive, plus the markup because they had a limited release...
Reflect on… Lego
@CarolinaOnMyMind said:
"I know there will be complaints about “regional exclusives” but I understand this was a store exclusive. However, Toys R Us is alive and well in Canada (or at least alive) and I don’t recall theses being available here, which is sad because I lived in Japan for many years and these scenes really appeal to me. What’s more is I haven’t seen any signs of the new amusement park scenes being offered this year in TRU’s Bricktober promotions here either. "
The Bricktober promotions in Canada seem to be 15% off on selected themes every week and a free Super Mario polybag on purchases over certain amount. The 15% off doesn't apply to recent releases. In the past TRU used to have 20% off promotions almost every week throughout the year...2020 has been a lousy year for those of us looking to get our lego fix at discounted prices, I just hope the situation improves over the holidays.
I bricklinked and built all 4 for display and they look beautiful.
In Australia these are available as Gift With Purchase for AUD100 spent at Mr Toys Toyworld stores and (I think) Lego brand stores
@bricks4everyone:
In the past, Canadian TRU discounts were probably driven by US TRU discounts. And TRU in the US was the victim of a hostile takeover, then leveraged to the hilt, and sold off with all the resulting debt while the previous owner pocketed all the money. They were desperate to boost sales, and were constantly running promos to draw people in. I think I just figured out why they put a restriction on new sets, though. I don't remember if it's a US law, or a state law, but where I live there are laws restricting sale markdowns. The default cap for the "original" price is MSRP. If you've actually priced it higher than that _before_ the sale started, you can legally list that as the "original" price. If you've got a sale running, though, and you get brand new stock that the sale applies to, you can get in big trouble if you simultaneously mark the price up, and then discount it for the final "sale" price, before stocking it to shelves for the first time. So, by banning new product from the sale, they cheated their way out of that issue.
The ironic thing is, TRU wasn't very good with enforcing things. I regularly found that if you bought brand new sets from them right after they first stocked them, they didn't always have the standard markup applied, and they didn't always have them flagged to be excluded from any sales price. So, they might get a $50 set that they intended to sell for $55 or $60, but you might have a very narrow window where you could pick it up for $40 before they caught it.
I also think the set is supposed to be displayed with the box providing the "base", the lego sitting on the inner black lining.
The four boxes on a shelf would draw the eye to the mini lego scenes.
A shame we never got the chance to buy these direct from TLG or TRU Asia?
Most in Asia don't even have access to Shop @Home. We can't even buy from TLG website.
Not sure about the UK, but the Americans have access to SDCC exclusives, so there should be other exclusives available in specific countries.