Review: 76388 Hogsmeade Village Visit
Posted by CapnRex101,
Hogsmeade appears frequently throughout the Harry Potter story, although this famed location remains notably underrepresented in LEGO sets. 76388 Hogsmeade Village Visit therefore seems appealing, particularly because these structures capture appropriate charm.
Furthermore, several impressive minifigures are available here, including various exclusive characters to populate Honeydukes and The Three Broomsticks. Nevertheless, I think the buildings appear most remarkable, loosely resembling 75978 Diagon Alley in style. Considerable detail continues inside, ensuring excellent accuracy.
Minifigures
Students wear casual clothes when visiting Hogsmeade, hence Harry Potter features his dark blue jacket from The Prisoner of Azkaban. The component has appeared in three previous sets and features excellent detail. The medium legs are also appropriate, although I think the double-sided head could definitely be improved. Harry discovers that Sirius Black is his godfather while visiting Hogsmeade and a distressed expression would have been welcome.
Dean Thomas does incorporate an exclusive double-sided head, including two different smiles. The torso is also unique which is superb, albeit surprising because this design does not appear onscreen. I presume the element has been produced for another character, which has yet to be revealed. Nevertheless, it works nicely here and the medium legs are perfect.
I appreciate the addition of a lesser-known Hogwarts student here, along with Harry. These two characters both include dark brown wands, matching their previous appearances. Various other accessories are scattered throughout the Hogsmeade buildings.
Professor McGonagall unknowingly informs Harry of his relationship with Sirius Black during discussion with Madam Rosmerta. Both characters are therefore provided here and Professor McGonagall wears an exclusive dark green robe, departing from her earlier appearances. The metallic silver decoration looks marvellous and matches perfectly between the torso and dress components.
The thistle on the reverse seems particularly appropriate, given its association with Scotland. Madam Rosmerta also features a unique torso and her medium nougat hair looks wonderful, accurately reflecting the original character. However, this head appears quite regularly and an alternative design would have been preferable, avoiding this unnecessary angry expression.
Honeydukes is among the most famous locations in Hogsmeade, serving various fascinating confections to Hogwarts students. This business is owned by Ambrosius Flume, whose new head looks absolutely superb. His friendly and weary expressions capture fantastic personality and I like the understated attire too, including an accurate striped scarf.
Ambrosius' wife, known only as Mrs Flume, features brighter clothing. The lavender and pink colours are appealing, complemented by Mr Flume's hat. Additionally, I love the sweet pattern across her shawl. However, another head would have been appreciated because the example here is shared with Helga Hufflepuff and Molly Weasley, from past Harry Potter sets. This dark orange hair piece looks excellent though.
76388 Hogsmeade Village Visit includes Anniversary Ron Weasley, continuing the collection of golden minifigures that celebrate the twentieth anniversary of LEGO Harry Potter. This pearl gold design looks outstanding, particularly with metallic gold sparkles and highlights around the Hogwarts crest. Anniversary branding decorates the reverse.
These celebratory minifigures lack alternative expressions, except for Professor Quirrell from 76395 Hogwarts: First Flying Lesson. Ron Weasley's smiling face therefore looks appropriate and features smaller pupils than his standard counterpart. The character includes a pearl gold wand and matching display base, which is consistent with other golden minifigures.
The Completed Model
Hogsmeade appears snowbound during The Prisoner of Azkaban, hence these smaller items include white bases and drifting snow. The curved shapes look marvellous here, making good use of 1x1 bows. Moreover, the Sirius Black poster appears accurate when compared with the movie, matching the example from 75955 Hogwarts Express and decorating either side of this noticeboard.
Numerous delightful buildings populate Hogsmeade, including the famed Honeydukes sweet shop. This structure appears relatively small and measures 17cm in height, excluding the two chimneys. Nevertheless, I think the scale seems appropriate and the shape certainly achieves wonderful realism, with dramatic roofs which are designed to lessen the accumulation of snow.
Sweet shops traditionally include vibrant colours and Honeydukes undoubtedly satisfies that convention. The green door and window panes seem brighter than those onscreen, although such vivid colours appear reasonably effective. The lavender signage does look appropriately muted though, since these opaque stickers feature clear backing which darken their colour.
Stickers also decorate the curved windows. Printed elements would have been preferable, but the designs are attractive. Unfortunately, the bars which should appear beneath these rounded windows are missing, contrasting with Ollivanders from 75978 Diagon Alley. This masonry brick texture looks nice though, complemented by stickers and pronounced light bluish grey 1x1 tiles.
Various white wedge plates and tiles adorn the roof, representing gathered snow. The design works nicely, surrounding a dormer window. The consistent angles between roof slopes seem authentic, while the narrow chimneys appear perfect for Hogsmeade. Textured roof tiles would have enhanced the building further, although these exposed studs are fairly successful.
The interior appears even more detailed, incorporating black and white chequered tiles. They compare favourably with the original location and the furnishings look fantastic too, combining green and sand green pieces. Numerous vibrant sweets are displayed inside, including printed lollipops, jars containing Acid Pops and trans-opalescent violet candy floss!
Stickers are applied on each wall, forming additional jars. I think such stickers are reasonable here, given the restricted available room. The designer has also made clever use of the space by combining the two central display cases, with a sinister figure on one side and a skeleton on the other. Ideally, this would resemble a LEGO skeleton, but the present design is accurate.
The upper floor remains unexplored during the movies, unlike the basement which is linked to Hogwarts through a hidden passageway. I believe the designer has therefore taken inspiration from the basement when filling the chamber, which houses several accessories. These include a yellow Honeydukes box, resembling those shown during The Prisoner of Azkaban.
Certain architectural features appear consistent between Honeydukes and the neighbouring tavern, known as The Three Broomsticks. This distinctive building integrates the same steep roof slopes as Honeydukes, reaching 22cm in height. However, the colour scheme is notably drab which reflects the source material, comprising dark tan and dark bluish grey pieces.
The Three Broomsticks includes an attractive porch around the entrance, displaying the famed 'Three Broomsticks' symbol with golden horns above the door. Moreover, the circular sign fixed outside includes lovely detail, accurately recreating the unique design which appears during the film. No lanterns are positioned beneath the porch, but there is one mounted outside.
Contrasting with The Prisoner of Azkaban, where every roof is completely covered with snow, this model features comparatively few white accents. I think this arrangement looks appealing though, permitting easy removal of snow for different seasons. Additionally, these mismatched windows throughout the upper levels recreate an important feature from the original building.
Once again, space inside is extremely limited. Nevertheless, that arguably benefits The Three Broomsticks, which is known for its dark and cosy environment. This model definitely captures that atmosphere, consisting almost exclusively of earthy tones. There is only enough space for one table and matching benches, alongside the bar where Butterbeer is served.
Dual-moulded Butterbeer goblets are accordingly supplied, returning from 71028 Harry Potter Collectable Minifigures Series 2 and now integrating white 1x1 round plates to represent foam. The shrunken heads that deny entrance to underage visitors are portrayed on a sticker behind the door, while the adjoining portrait resembles a young Aberforth Dumbledore. That would be logical, since Aberforth resides in Hogsmeade.
Professor McGonagall divulges how Sirius Black is understood to have betrayed the Potter family in a small chamber upstairs. This comfortable room is accordingly included and looks excellent, featuring simple furniture around a beautiful fireplace. The sideboard and armchair both appear suitable for this environment, continuing the subdued colour scheme.
Those colours are interrupted only by the floral decoration above the fireplace and two flame yellowish orange pictures, featuring the Hogsmeade skyline opposite another symbol for The Three Broomsticks. While these images look reasonable, I think some Quidditch memorabilia, Butterbeer advertisements or additional references would have been preferred.
Overall
Among the numerous potential sources for LEGO Harry Potter products, Hogsmeade remains relatively unexplored. 76388 Hogsmeade Village Visit therefore provides outstanding potential and has proven enjoyable, given its price of £69.99 or $79.99. I think this represents fair value, although the location warrants larger and more detailed models, in my opinion.
Nevertheless, these models of Honeydukes and The Three Broomsticks capture the essential features of their onscreen counterparts. The interiors appear particularly remarkable, including copious significant details and exploiting every available space. Seven minifigures complete an impressive set, albeit one which undoubtedly leaves potential for improvement.
This set was provided for review by The LEGO Group but the review represents an expression of my own opinions.
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38 comments on this article
The snow on the Honeydukes roof looks fantastic, but I wish the windows were printed, given that they're identically decorated curved panels.
Incredibly thorough review. Can’t wait to build this one, it’s extremely high on my want list. Even higher now. I really like the wintry look to the rooftops and plan to revise a ton of my winter sets this year.
I don't have any interest in Harry Potter, but bought these as an excellent addition to the Winter Village. I just hope Harry gets on OK with Father Christmas!
I really hope I get this for Christmas! Definitely the stand out of the 2021 Potter sets. I hope they follow up with the Shrieking Shack and possibly The Hog's Head.
Not gonna lie, the Lego HP stuff is looking like yesterday's dinner compared to the new Mould King HP-knockoff modulars like 16039 Quick Pitch Supplies, and they have the additional benefit of not indirectly passing funds to Rowling through various licensing schemes. The creator's views are sufficiently odious to where not being officially licensed has become a selling point.
At least the minifigs are great.
Very good minifigs and the buildings have enough going on to be interesting and they work double for use with Winter Village as noted above.
The set is just worthwhile at $80 and I give the set a 'B'. At they typical 20% off for HP sets the value improves to a B+ and a definite recommend, especially if you can find used outside HP for this set and its minifigs.
Curved surfaces with stickers. I think I’m getting worse at stickers, whether it’s hand steadiness or lack of patience. So I’m not a fan of those. But overall this set looks great and I’ll be getting it if at all possible.
Wish they could have included the Honeydukes basement
I wasn't too thrilled with this year's Harry Potter sets. But I knew when I saw this set that I had to get one and add a Hogsmeade section to my LEGO Winter Village. They fit perfectly in size and style. I have also been adding to them with instructions from other builders (Thanks BenBuildsLego for the Zonko's and Dervish & Banges instructions) and some of my own creations: Wiseacre's Wizarding Equipment, Scrivenshaft's Quill Shop, Ceridwen's Cauldrons, and the Owl Post. And I still have a few more buildings I want to design.
@CopperTablet said:
"Not gonna lie, the Lego HP stuff is looking like yesterday's dinner compared to the new Mould King HP-knockoff modulars like 16039 Quick Pitch Supplies, and they have the additional benefit of not indirectly passing funds to Rowling through various licensing schemes. The creator's views are sufficiently odious to where not being officially licensed has become a selling point.
At least the minifigs are great."
The Mould King set has some good things going for it. But like many non-Lego sets, it look like they need to do a few more passes for refinement. Not quite as focused, design-wise. Maybe there's some good reviews out there, I don't know. I'm sticking with the known quantity that is Lego at this point.
A Winter Village set has just one building with a random collection of smaller builds (I'm usually only interested in the main building), but this set has two buildings, costs less, and look like they will fit perfectly with the Winter Village. Very tempted to get this, especially if I am not impressed with this years Winter Village set.
@B_Space_Man said:
"I'm sticking with the known quantity that is Lego at this point. "
Nice typo, but fitting, as currently TLG is definitely more about quantity than quality.
Mould King sets, while far from perfect, tend to have better parts quality than LEGO nowadays - which is really sad, as alternative manufacturers traditionally didn't hold a candle to LEGO. But years of cheaping out on the side of TLG has taken its toll on quality, as is evident in almost every review.
Even Jang, who used to be highly enthusiastic about almost every set he reviewed years ago by now is much more critical, and for good reason.
There is still much that is positive about LEGO's lineup of course, and it is hard to argue about how diverse the themes are (for better or worse), but like I said initially, quantity doesn't automatically mean quality.
As others have said, this village would integrate very well with the winter village sets. I don't have enough $$ to collect HP in addition to my other interests, but I'm very tempted by this one...
@AustinPowers said:
" @B_Space_Man said:
"I'm sticking with the known quantity that is Lego at this point. "
Nice typo, but fitting, as currently TLG is definitely more about quantity than quality.
Mould King sets, while far from perfect, tend to have better parts quality than LEGO nowadays - which is really sad, as alternative manufacturers traditionally didn't hold a candle to LEGO. But years of cheaping out on the side of TLG has taken its toll on quality, as is evident in almost every review.
Even Jang, who used to be highly enthusiastic about almost every set he reviewed years ago by now is much more critical, and for good reason.
There is still much that is positive about LEGO's lineup of course, and it is hard to argue about how diverse the themes are (for better or worse), but like I said initially, quantity doesn't automatically mean quality. "
Not a typo, but you make some good points.
Glad I’m not the only one whose first thought was “ohhhh that’ll go well in the Winter Village”! Pretty much zero interest in the HP range but separately tempted by this.
It's a great set, I bought 3 boxes! Now I plan to expand Hogsmeade with Zonko's Joke Shop and another house in the same style. Have a look at these great alternate builds by benbuildslego:
https://bit.ly/2VlgHfO
https://bit.ly/3f6pKIf
Very cool for a winter village!
Depending on what this year's Winter Village set is revealed to be, I may pick one of these up instead. It would fit right into my annual winter diorama.
@AustinPowers said:
" @B_Space_Man said:
"I'm sticking with the known quantity that is Lego at this point. "
Nice typo, but fitting, as currently TLG is definitely more about quantity than quality....
There is still much that is positive about LEGO's lineup of course, and it is hard to argue about how diverse the themes are (for better or worse), but like I said initially, quantity doesn't automatically mean quality. "
"Known quantity" is a common idiom in the english language, used as it was here. I find all of this discussion about alternative bricks informative, as I have never had an interest or felt the need to venture outside of LEGO. There are too many official sets to obtain as it is!
Very nice set, probably the best of this wave (though I really do admire the design of the huge minifigures) but the window stickers on the front of Hogsmeade are just terrible. Especially when LEGO just introduced quarter-circle window frame pieces a few months ago
Any tips on the best way to apply those window stickers?
Great review, but I feel as if this set was a bit too small for the price. It’s a hogs Meade set, I wish it had more than just 2 buildings.
@CapnRex101,
Any news on the bone demon review Cap’n?
Fun fact, it's actually always snowy in Hogsmeade in the films. The movie version is located high in the mountains!
I don't see an issue with the pictures in he Three Broomsticks' upper room. Presumably these are private quarters for Rosmerta. Why would she have a butterbeer ad? Does the film feature one?
Also, I think it's unreasonable to expect an entirely new face print for a character as minor as Mrs Flume. Rosmerta I agree should have a cheerier expression.
@Goujon , I have the bone demon and with bad weather forecast over the weekend I will hopefully get a chance to build it at last!
@Albus said:
"Fun fact, it's actually always snowy in Hogsmeade in the films. The movie version is located high in the mountains!
I don't see an issue with the pictures in he Three Broomsticks' upper room. Presumably these are private quarters for Rosmerta. Why would she have a butterbeer ad? Does the film feature one?
Also, I think it's unreasonable to expect an entirely new face print for a character as minor as Mrs Flume. Rosmerta I agree should have a cheerier expression."
Even the highest Scottish mountains do not sustain snow throughout the year, although Hogsmeade is snowbound during its movie appearances, as you said.
With regard to Mrs Flume, I agree that she does not necessarily warrant a unique design. However, an exclusive head was created for Mr Flume and a wider range of female heads would certainly be useful.
Mound King and it’s like is not an alternative to companies like LEGO. An alternative to LEGO is Mega Construx, Kre-O, Cobi, Sluban, etc. Companies like Mould King or Lepin, despite any quality declarations, are still criminal enterprises. Nothing will ever change that as long as they engage in the production of licensed product without obtaining the license and using other companies or creators designs without permission or compensation.
Sorry…just had to get that off my chest. :D
When this hit 30-50% off after being discontinued I'll definitely pick up one or a few for parts.
This is perfect set for ANY lego fan... Maybe beside space, haha
No Harry Potter fan but I'm hoping to eventually pick up a discounted copy of this set for my winter village - skipped the last two WV sets due to their fantasy nature. Happy for JK to take her share of the profits too.
As others have said, this would be a great addition to the Winter Village. I'd probably want to swap the roof panels to white to better match the snow accumulation of the WV sets. Otherwise, will fit in perfectly.
Thank you blogzilly couldn't agree more. Companies that rip off licensed properties such as Mould King are criminals & should NOT be applauded or supported for doing so. I am disappointed to see posts that condone such activity on here. They also distract focus from the reviewer's article. In my opinion those comments should be stricken as they are using this site as a platform to encourage supporting thieves, not commenting about the review itself.
Now about the reviewed set, I really like the look of these buildings as others have commented, they would fit into Winter Village sets nicely. I also like the new characters they've added in this set. I don't recall seeing Hogsmeade in the earlier HP sets, so I will definitely be adding this to my collection. Also it's from my favorite book, but least favorite movie (so disappointing).
I am currently building the big figs & they are delightful. They can be posed just like a minifig, so cool!
@kwickbrick said:
"Thank you blogzilly couldn't agree more. Companies that rip off licensed properties such as Mould King are criminals & should NOT be applauded or supported for doing so. I am disappointed to see posts that condone such activity on here. They also distract focus from the reviewer's article. In my opinion those comments should be stricken as they are using this site as a platform to encourage supporting thieves, not commenting about the review itself."
That's not at all what this was. I for example was in no way trying to encourage people to buy Mould King sets.
But it is a fact that their parts quality is on par and in some aspects even better by now than LEGO's own.
And that is something that has to be said and can't be said often enough. TLG might have the moral high ground, but for the top dollar they ask for their sets nowadays they should offer the best quality too (which is even their edict - that they don't follow anymore unfortunately).
As for the term "known quantity" I must admit I have never heard of it before. What does it mean?
@B_Space_Man said:
" @CopperTablet said:
"Not gonna lie, the Lego HP stuff is looking like yesterday's dinner compared to the new Mould King HP-knockoff modulars like 16039 Quick Pitch Supplies, and they have the additional benefit of not indirectly passing funds to Rowling through various licensing schemes. The creator's views are sufficiently odious to where not being officially licensed has become a selling point.
At least the minifigs are great."
The Mould King set has some good things going for it. But like many non-Lego sets, it look like they need to do a few more passes for refinement. Not quite as focused, design-wise. Maybe there's some good reviews out there, I don't know. I'm sticking with the known quantity that is Lego at this point.
"
MK has a tech startup ethos of "move fast and break things" and it's kind of refreshing, in a way. You can find reviews on Yourwobb for a lot of their stuff but this came out this week so most of the stuff is being shipped.
@CapnRex101 said:
" @Albus said:
"Fun fact, it's actually always snowy in Hogsmeade in the films. The movie version is located high in the mountains!
Even the highest Scottish mountains do not sustain snow throughout the year, although Hogsmeade is snowbound during its movie appearances, as you said."
While that may be true in reality, the filmmakers have stated that Hogsmeade is above the snow line so it is always snowy there. Obviously this is a fantasy piece and results in a silly argument among fans. But for the source material (since this is based on movies, not books) it is technically always snowy and therefore should probably have more snow on the rooftops to get closer to the source material. *shrug*"
Don't worry about it, I'm a native English speaker and have never heard the idiom "known quantity." I had to look it up also. It just means you are well known from your previous works. So LEGO has a long history of being well known. That's all. Mould King isn't as well known, so hard to compare I guess.
Although that set did look impressive compared to LEGO's Diagon Alley. But the price alone was troublesome, so I don't think I'll be going that route, but maybe look at the design for inspiration.
@Sethro3 said:
"Don't worry about it, I'm a native English speaker and have never heard the idiom "known quantity." I had to look it up also. It just means you are well known from your previous works. So LEGO has a long history of being well known. That's all. Mould King isn't as well known, so hard to compare I guess."
@AustinPowers - to add to the above, I always take the phrase to roughly mean that, as a customer, "you know what you are going to get." For many people, McDonald's food is a "known quantity," for example, because it is consistently bad across all of their restaurants. :) In LEGO's case, the claim of a "known quantity" is actually contravened by the issues you've highlighted, particularly the color matching problem.
I wanted this set to complement my Winter Village, and I paid almost nothing for it (Amazon.de deal, Amazon gift voucher for 25 euro for a few times ordered items were cancelled, plus I sold four of the figures). BUT: I have to talk about the stickers. I have always liked stickers, they're part of LEGO in my opinion, but TRANSPARENT ones on ROUND TRANSPARENT objects? Mine turned out far from OK (a few air bubbles and one is not levelled), and it really bothers me everytime I look at the set. Come on LEGO, print them or build them, not like this....
I don't collect any Harry potter sets but this set does fit well with my Winter Village collection. Will be adding this for sure.
Thanks for the review.
It really is an interesting set. Useful for Harry Potter, Winter Village - and probably a few more themes.
If you are into Harry Potter and would like to build a Hogsmeade layout, some Winter Village sets might be useful: 10222 Winter Village Post Office and 10275 Elf Club House, as they both have these steep roofs.