Review: 31121 Crocodile
Posted by Huw,
Large-scale animals are one of the highlights of the Creator 3-in-1 theme and this year we've been graced with two of them: 31112 Wild Lion, and 31121 Crocodile which is released next month.
In addition to the croc, the set builds a frog and a snake, and in this review I'll take a look at all three of them.
Will you need to buy three sets to display them all the animals at once, or will one be sufficient?
Parts are packed in numbered bags and should you wish to build the alternate models first, as I did, you'll need to empty all three bags out before you begin. However, with only around 450 parts, many of them small, it's not too daunting.
Frog
The frog is quite chunky and while the head and body look OK, the legs and feet look a bit clumsy. Their appearance is not helped by the prominent grey of the Mixel joints.
The amphibian has a retractable tongue which is moved by pushing and pulling on its 'tail'. A small 2-piece fly is provided for it to catch.
It's a decent enough and fun model that kids will enjoy building, but nothing special.
Snake
The snake is made up of ten sections and when laid out straight measures about 45cm. Most of the connections between them use two pairs of the ball and socket connectors, one above the other, which keeps it from flopping down when you pick it up.
The head and the section behind it are connected in a way that facilitates vertical rather than horizontal movement so that the head can be raised, although not by much. Nevertheless, it's possible to pose it realistically.
A small 8-piece rodent is provided for the snake to consume.
I particularly like the serpent's eyes, which are created using a yellow 3l bar with round 1x1 'polo' plates on the ends.
Crocodile
The alternate models are nothing special but the semiaquatic reptilian predator is spectacular! Everything about it looks very realistic. The colour-scheme is spot-on: dark- and olive-green on its upper body, tan underneath, and a splash of pink in its mouth
The cheese slopes on its back work well as the peaks and troughs of its scaly armour and of course it has a fearsome looking set of teeth and claws.
What I found interesting, something I've not noticed in other Creator 3-in-1 sets that I've built, is that several pieces that are required for the frog and snake but not this one are buried inside the croc's body: the frog's eyes and the two pieces for the fly, for example.
Its body and tail are built in eight sections which are connected using ball-and-socket joints. The gaps between the sections of its body are small, so they are not unsightly. There's not much of a range of movement, but it's just enough to form a realistic and graceful twist.
Two pairs or ball joints connect the body sections, but the tail parts use just one pair, thus allowing it to whip around in all directions.
It's about 38cm nose-to-tail.
Two ancillary builds accompany the carnivore: a fish skeleton and a small bird. I suspect crocodiles eat fish whole and don't spit out the bones, but it's a fun little model nevertheless.
Google provides plenty of pictures of birds perched on crocodile backs and heads, and one brave species, the Plover bird, has a surprising symbiotic relationship with the predator, which allows it to enter its open mouth to feed on rotting flesh between its teeth, cleaning them as it does so.
It's not quite as colourful as this little fellow, though.
Verdict
The main model is excellent and in my opinion the best Creator animal to date. It's very realistic and looks for all the world like a baby crocodile when viewed from a distance. The alternate models are fun to build once, but not something you'd want to keep on display, so unlike some Creator 3-in-1 sets you'll most likely just need to buy one copy of this one.
When it's released on 1st June in Europe and 1st August in the USA it will cost £24.99 / $29.99 which, for 454 pieces, represents good value, as is the case for all Creator sets.
Thanks to LEGO for providing this set for review. All expressed opinions are my own.
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33 comments on this article
Looking forward to picking this one up!
The kids will love this!
Thanks for a great review and set of pictures @Huw .
These builds highlight the need for the ball-and-socket joint in other colours. I’m aware they would be expensive to produce.
This looks great but I'm not sure it beats 31088 for me, especially on price. And even then, that set was on sale so often we ended up with two copies. This one is going on the 'maybe' list, but there's a lot of good sets this year competing for the family Lego budget!
That snake would work great as a basilisk from Harry Potter.
this looks awesome!
This does look nice, but I do agree with burni that 31088 Deep Sea Creatures is the better set. I also have two of this, one of which I have modified into JK Brickworks' moving version: https://jkbrickworks.com/swimming-shark-redux1902
I can highly recommend this small project, as the results are fantastic!
I might pick this up. It could look good beside my 31058 collection.
@Huw on the mouse "I particularly like its eyes" - surely those are his ears?
I'm not too impressed with 31112 which seems to let the side down somewhat. This, however, looks another great addition to 3-in-1, looking forward to getting it.
Funnily enough, that plover is just like the one I built last night for 31093 Riverside Houseboat.
Parts-wise this set is coming too little too late for me, I've had to BrickLink several dark green parts offered in this set in order to finish my MOC for this month.
Build-wise, I love how all three models look! But after my MOC I think I'm done with laying 1x1 cheese slopes for a while.
This is definitely on the "to buy list", 31088 Deep Sea Creatures is better, but it's also super hard to beat at it's price point.
@DoonsterBuildsLego said:
" @Huw on the mouse "I particularly like its eyes" - surely those are his ears?
I'm not too impressed with 31112 which seems to let the side down somewhat. This, however, looks another great addition to 3-in-1, looking forward to getting it.
Funnily enough, that plover is just like the one I built last night for 31093 Riverside Houseboat."
I think he meant he particularly liked the eyes of the snake...
31088 is indeed a great set, particularly so because all the alternate models are strong, but I think the croc just has the edge if just the main animal is taken into account.
Great set, especially the croc, but also generic parts its a lot of slopes in a uniform color scheme.
1 small note, at the end of article, set is $29.99 in US not $25.
I actually liked 31112 , lion is very posable, of course it's very stylized and bright colors, but it's also less then half the price compared to this (In Euro croc cost €30-35)
This review is a CROC!!!
:D
'which allows it to enter its open mouth to feed on rotting flesh between its teeth, cleaning them as it does so.'
Plovar?
I like the idea of the crocodile, and most of the build looks fantastic, but something about the eyes (and the way they're positioned on the top of the head? It's almost like they're too far back) throws me.
The frog is ... not great, but the snake is a real delight.
I already don't like the masses of inverted slope brackets, but otherwise I think this set is awesome. Defo going to get one or two of it at least.
@Huw: Is this really the first time you've noticed pieces "hidden" in the A model that are meant for the B and C models, or other parts use in the A model that is suboptimal for the A model alone? It's pretty obvious in a lot of other Creator 3-in-1 sets.
Cant wait to get it and put Mixel eyes on it!
@iwybs said:
" @Huw: Is this really the first time you've noticed pieces "hidden" in the A model that are meant for the B and C models, or other parts use in the A model that is suboptimal for the A model alone? It's pretty obvious in a lot of other Creator 3-in-1 sets."
Agree, I found it interesting when the 2020 Pirate Ship actually used Red and Green parts internally for Starboard/Port sides, later used in alt builds for those colors (green plants and red accents on the building).
I can't escape the feeling that the croc looks most convincing from underneath.
I think overall it's too round. It would be more convincing if it was flatter, particularly the head. They probably didn't have many options at this size though.
As for the frog, the tongue mechanism is clever but the jaw clearly uses click-hinges. If it opened and closed with the tongue movement it would be much more impressive. As it is, the head is tiny, the body fat and slumped forward, and the back legs too small.
At least the snake looks good.
Looking again, I can't help thinking that design has the front and rear feet of the frog switched. It seems odd to have the large feet in front. Otherwise, these are actually quite strong alternative models.
As many others have said this isn't as good as 31088 . But that set is one of the best sets in years. It's an A+ set and other 3-in-1 sets (particularly animal 3-in-1 sets) have stiff competition.
That being said, this is a great set that focuses on the heart of Lego - the brick itself.
The set is easily a B grade and possibly higher if you like the subject matter as the alternate builds are strong or the part selection.
31058 is still available and that set was from 4.5 years ago , I wonder how long this one will last.
@Garyslaw said:
"That snake would work great as a basilisk from Harry Potter."
Or as Nagini
The things you learn reading this blog site! How crocs get there teeth cleaned!
The set is excellent will likely pick up a copy especially after reading the review.
I'm inclined to agree that switching its front and back feet would improve the frog model. The other models (especially that minimalist mouse!) all look very good indeed.
It feels like the Creator range is where the most clever and creative designs can be found in the entire Lego range.
https://brickset.com/sets/5868-1/Ferocious-Creatures was a great build of an earlier crocodile. I wonder if this one compares?
I built mouse out of spares to go with the Lion Set but as an avid frog & crocodile lego fan I am passing on it...
I'm def getting this. My first set was 5868 and i loved it. This looks awesome.
@Garyslaw said:
"That snake would work great as a basilisk from Harry Potter."
There will be a new one anyway.