Review: 40452 Hogwarts Gryffindor Dorms
Posted by CapnRex101,
40452 Hogwarts Gryffindor Dorms expands the modular Hogwarts Castle introduced earlier this year, matching previous sections. The Gryffindor dormitory includes attractive furniture onscreen and appears splendid here, featuring numerous recognisable details.
Furthermore, the model cleverly accommodates sixteen chocolate frog cards which are available throughout the twentieth anniversary range. Four such decorated cards are included here, alongside returning Harry and Ron minifigures.
Minifigures
Harry Potter has appeared twice previously sporting this attire, originating from The Chamber of Secrets. This minifigure features his traditional tousled hair component, which looks perfect, while the double-sided head displays cheerful and frightened expressions. Moreover, the dark red and dark blue chequered jacket appears superb and matches the onscreen character.
Exactly the same sets have contained this Ron Weasley minifigure too. The dark tan jumper seems fairly simple, but includes splendid frayed details so compares favourably with the film. Ron's head expresses happiness on one side and fear on the other. The pupils look unusually large beside other minifigures, which has been noticeable since this element was introduced.
Naturally, both minifigures include appropriate wands and spares are provided, as usual. Ron carries a reddish brown chocolate frog too, accompanying the decorated cards. These appear throughout the recent wave of Harry Potter sets, hidden in various strange places!
The Completed Model
LEGO launched an interesting modular Hogwarts Castle system during the summer, including locations from throughout the castle. Most are designed within 8x8 or 8x16 modules which are easily connected and rearranged, including this Gryffindor dormitory. Such consistency is great when changing the layout, hence the model includes Technic pins and exposed studs to attach additional structures.
However, such uniformity also restricts the shape of these rooms. For example, the Gryffindor boys' dormitory occupies a semicircular space inside Gryffindor tower onscreen, whereas this model is rectangular. Even so, the designer has cleverly evoked the correct shape by angling both beds inwards, which appears surprisingly successful.
These four-poster beds are constructed using golden 1x2 plates with bars and lightsaber hilts. While this construction method is simple, the result looks brilliant. Furthermore, I love the dark red and orange rug situated on the floor, alongside an opening trunk. These authentic features are inevitably punctuated by the chocolate frog card display, with space for sixteen 2x2 tiles.
Fortunately, the trunk may be removed to show the sixteen cards, since it otherwise obstructs the bottom row. Their purple colour certainly stands out among the surrounding earthy shades, which draws attention to them. Alternatively, you can easily remove the display plate, revealing several windows across the external wall.
Different options for display are always welcome and these windows look nice, matching other Hogwarts Castle sections in style, without also becoming repetitive. Unfortunately, the tan and medium nougat colours are interrupted by two black bands, resulting from 1x8 plates with rails which secure the chocolate frog cards inside. These elements are not currently available in tan, dark tan or medium nougat, frustratingly.
Overall
While the updated Hogwarts Castle modular system has certainly provoked some controversy, 40452 Hogwarts Gryffindor Dorms looks superb. This location is immediately recognisable and contains some memorable features from the films, including the four-poster beds. The requisite orange and dark red colours look marvellous too, clearly identifying Gryffindor.
Additionally, the chocolate frog card display is integrated neatly. The purple elements and their considerable size inevitably dominates the space, but not at the exclusion of any furniture. The display can also be removed if you prefer, creating quite an accurate room. This is therefore an impressive addition to Hogwarts Castle and I think the purchase threshold of £100 in the UK or $100 in the US feels justified.
This set was provided for review by The LEGO Group, but the review represents an expression of my own opinions.
107 likes
30 comments on this article
After the previous comment I had to reread the article -- $100 "purchase threshold" for a free gift seems fine, but I had a double-take that the price itself was $100!
That black rail hardly seems worth the result of both covering the windows (from interior view) or ruining the exterior view. But, kids do stupid things to their own rooms don't they?
As far as free gifts go, this one is very nice!
I don’t mind the spending threshold, but I do wonder if it would be profitable for them to open up the restrictions to ANY $100 purchase? Might attract new fans to a different theme with the GWP, OR allow dedicated fans who already bought all of the new wave to get this by having to buy from different themes.
But the 4510 in tan is in the camper van set, and medium brown is in Sesame Street. Strange they went with black instead.
This is a really cool build! Love that it has a chocolate frog card display but I still prefer last year’s monster book of monsters
Too bad they didn't make it in the retail set.
These collectible random wizard cards are a disgrace. The inherent greed is disgusting as we are still talking about toys for children here.
@brickadillo
Sadly they didn't use 4510 here. They used 30586, which is has a rail that is a whole brick thick. It's outside rail protrudes upward a bit, allowing it to hold the cards in a way that 4510 couldn't, since 4510's rail is flat at the same height as its main surface where the studs are.
It's a shame they didn't recolor it here though. Maybe promo sets like this are like MOCs where no recolors can be made?
Quite nice for a a GWP actually. True, some details like the black rails would have benefitted from a recolour, but other than that it looks really good.
@IgelCampus said:
"These collectible random wizard cards are a disgrace. The inherent greed is disgusting as we are still talking about toys for children here."
You could just...not collect them.
@IgelCampus said:
"These collectible random wizard cards are a disgrace. The inherent greed is disgusting as we are still talking about toys for children here."
That’s an awfully strong reaction to something that is rather trivial. People that are buying these sets likely are doing it primarily for the sets themselves. I suspect if you removed the collectible card aspect you would see no impact on sales or interest.
I’d have bought this if it was a real set
I'm definitely modifying my last-gen Hogwarts with some beds like these. That rug too.
I ordered last night so I could get this freebie, since I was waiting on sets anyway. But I think if I had missed out, I wouldn't be devastated. I like the design of the beds, but I think I'd rather have them in 4 wide, so I'll have to come up with a different framing mechanism.
I like being able to get 4 more frog cards. I'm not necessarily collecting them, (nor am I collecting the golden figures), but if I happen to have a complete collection, I'll allow it.
I like that it is compatible with the new line, even if it can be a bit boxy.
I'm working on a Dollhouse style Hogwarts, that will unfortunately be boxy based on builds, but it should look pretty solid when finished. I may have to incorporate bits from this.
Looks like a great microbuild, too bad a fine IP is ruined by the creator's odious views and comparable fantasy settings like Strixhaven are owned by rival toy companies
@Train_of_Thought_Creations said:
" @brickadillo
Sadly they didn't use 4510 here. "
:-( too bad. But thanks for the heads up!
Hey CapnRex101, does this actually fit nicely anywhere in the completed Hogwarts collection? I understand its compatible, but is there anywhere for it to go without putting it or another room randomly off to the side?
@IgelCampus said:
"These collectible random wizard cards are a disgrace. The inherent greed is disgusting as we are still talking about toys for children here."
Or if you want the cards, just buy them on Bricklink. Got a full set for £5, what IS a disgrace is the fact that there are only 15 different cards, then a duplicated Dumbledore in a different colour! :)
@ecleme11 said:
" @IgelCampus said:
"These collectible random wizard cards are a disgrace. The inherent greed is disgusting as we are still talking about toys for children here."
Or if you want the cards, just buy them on Bricklink. Got a full set for £5, what IS a disgrace is the fact that there are only 15 different cards, then a duplicated Dumbledore in a different colour! :)"
I believe the Silver-Framed Dumbledore represents the first two films and the Golden-Framed Dumbledore represents the later films. The beards and hats are styled differently.
I'm positively surprised you had no duplicate chocolate frog tiles. Guess they were all in 1 or 2 bags, right? This is the first set that shows the tiles on the box art (and even 4 specific, different ones), all the other sets had question marks. One could argue it's false advertising if you miss the fine print. Wonder how many I will get in the set because so far still missing 8/16 after buying all the sets.
What bothers me is the over-use of Griffindor sets and characters and the lack of consistency on the house colours. First Red+yellow, sometimes red+gold and now red+bright orange. What's next, dark red+bright light yellow?
It is a shame that thirteen of the Harry Potter sets are already out of stock in the UK :(
@R0Sch
I agree! I was about to say, why orange in this instance, but other variations other times?
I could understand a golden yellow, but flame yellowish orange or orange doesn't convey the golden aspect of it all.
I like the rug design, but I'd have to change colors.
@R0Sch:
Two possibilities come to mind. Part availability is the easy one. Gold colored parts are probably hard to work into a set without burning a new element slot on them yourself. The other is there may be some disagreement over what the best color schemes are, and anytime someone designs a new set it’s going to fit their ideal.
I heard someone say this reminds them of a trophy room in a Lego game and that made me want to get the full card set for this.
@ecleme11 said:
" @IgelCampus said:
"These collectible random wizard cards are a disgrace. The inherent greed is disgusting as we are still talking about toys for children here."
Or if you want the cards, just buy them on Bricklink. Got a full set for £5, what IS a disgrace is the fact that there are only 15 different cards, then a duplicated Dumbledore in a different colour! :)"
I think the chocolate cards are a really good idea and hope to see different ones next year!
The kids can swap the duplicates with each other as the designers suggested , we can do the same at Lego conventions etc or just buy them of BL so no problem there ..
@Roebuck: while I agree that the collectible tiles are a good idea per se, the execution leaves a bit to be desired from my experience. My kids were quite disappointed, because in all the sets we bought, all tiles were the same in each one. And as no one they know collects them as well, they have no one for swapping. I wonder why we got such a strange distribution.
@AustinPowers said:
" @Roebuck: while I agree that the collectible tiles are a good idea per se, the execution leaves a bit to be desired from my experience. My kids were quite disappointed, because in all the sets we bought, all tiles were the same in each one. And as no one they know collects them as well, they have no one for swapping. I wonder why we got such a strange distribution. "
Must have been really unlucky then, there are probably a few that are so lucky that they only get different ones however the most common is probably to get a mix since they are random. I plan to buy most of the HP sets, but to be safe I have bought most of the cards of BL already. For kids that is probably no option, but maybe they can hang up a poster etc at school to get in contact with other collectors there :)
@DavidBrick said:
" @ecleme11 said:
" @IgelCampus said:
"These collectible random wizard cards are a disgrace. The inherent greed is disgusting as we are still talking about toys for children here."
Or if you want the cards, just buy them on Bricklink. Got a full set for £5, what IS a disgrace is the fact that there are only 15 different cards, then a duplicated Dumbledore in a different colour! :)"
And 4 out of the 6 in the Hogwarts set were him. "
Ouch!
@DavidBrick:
So, story-appropriate then? Ron has loads of Dumbledore cards...
Swapping the cards was painful for me, due to my region C19 lockdown I wasn't able to travel far and had to rely on post, swapped 2 duplicates, couldn't swap the others so bought off BrickLink.
Have tried to sell the others with limited success, mostly people agreeing to buy then once PayPal info provided never actually paying.
Will probably gift them to a friends kid once I find one into Lego and HP.
Being a big Lego Harry Potter fan myself, this set is pretty nice for scenes in the Gryffindor dorms; The builds for the beds are really nice, the wizard card collection wall is a nice addition (removable, of course) and the build is superb and represents the dorms really well! (I'm not very keen on that 130$CAD price for it; but hey, I'm not complaining! The wizard cards that I got in this set were: Jocunda Sykes, Severus Snape, Rowena Ravenclaw and Godric Gryffindor.