With the second film based on J.K. Rowling’s Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them coming later this year, LEGO is diving back into the Wizarding World, including circling back to Harry Potter. We recently looked at one of the minifigure-scale sets, 75956 Quidditch Match, but the new sets aren’t relegated to minifigs. Today we’re looking at the first of three announced Harry Potter-themed BrickHeadz sets, 41615 Harry Potter & Hedwig. With 180 pieces, the set will retail for $14.99, and it will be available July 1. They’re numbered 49 and 50 in the BrickHeadz series.

The build & parts

Inside the small box are three bags and the instructions. Like other BrickHeadz, the set’s bags are unnumbered. There’s a surprisingly nice mix of colors in display here, thanks in part to the bright interiors of the models.

Despite the set’s small size, there’s a nice serving of printed elements on offer. Hedwig’s eyes feature the standard BrickHeadz eye print, except they’re on yellow 1×1 round tiles instead of black, giving them an animalistic yellow ring, opening up a wide range of possibilities for BrickHeadz customizers. An extra is included for both characters’ eyes. Harry Potter’s Gryffindor crest is printed on a 1×1 black brick. Given its placement on his chest beside a black 1×2 brick, it would have been easy for LEGO to print it on a 1×3 brick rather than the 1×1, so it’s nice to see LEGO choosing the option that makes the part more useful for other creations. Harry Potter’s scar and scarf and Hedwig’s wings round out the printed elements.

The other interesting part to note here is the 1×1 “up” bracket, which debuted in the Ninjago City Docks. But since that set won’t reach North American markets until August, this BrickHeadz set is likely the first place that most builders in the western hemisphere will be able to acquire this part. These are part of Harry Potter’s sleeves, and they serve a decorative, not functional, purpose, adding a little extra volume to the sleeves.

Harry Potter follows the standard BrickHeadz template, with a bit of fancy decorations for the Gryffindor scarf around his neck, which is dark red and flame yellowish orange. The central core between all the SNOT bricks is made of sand green 2×2 bricks and teal 2×2 plates. The teal is a nice surprise, as it’s great to get more of this still-rare color, especially in useful parts like plates.

Hedwig is built on a 3×3 base instead of the standard 4×4 dimensions of most BrickHeadz. This allows Hedwig to be scaled a little more appropriately to Harry Potter, though she still ends up being large. Then again, if you’re looking for scale accuracy, BrickHeadz probably isn’t the theme for you. The center stud of the owl’s body uses a pair of spring yellowish green 1×1 bricks, and there’s a pink 1×1 for Hedwig’s tiny cute brain, mirroring the pink 2×2 “brain” bricks used in the center of the head on regular BrickHeadz. It’s a lovely little touch that the designers have kept this easter egg even for the smaller character.

The finished models

Since Harry is wearing his Hogwarts robes, there’s not a lot of detail aside from the scarf from the neck down. Harry looks great with the new round glasses introduced in the Go Brick Me kit, and combined with the printed scar tile ensures there’s no mistaking who this BrickHeadz is. Harry’s hair is solid black, with a variety of curved slopes and quite a few 1×1 quarter-circle tiles, and the final result looks good, though perhaps a bit too tidy.

LEGO told us they’ve discovered that kids prefer the interaction of multiple characters, and so they’re focusing their efforts significantly more on creating two-packs of BrickHeadz, with fewer solo characters. This strategic move is obvious with the recently announced sets for The Incredibles, Jurassic World: Fallen Kingdom, Back to the Future, Frozen, Ghostbusters, The Little Mermaid, The Nightmare Before Christmas, and Star Wars, all of which include two-packs. Part of this effort is the introduction of a new type of BrickHeadz, which LEGO is referring to as BrickHeadz Buddies. Built on a smaller 3×3 architecture, they’re perfect for sidekicks like Hedwig and Olaf, or smaller characters like Yoda. Hedwig is the first of these to reach market, and she’s perfectly adorable.

As with all previous BrickHeadz, both characters come with 6×6 black bases. Hedwig’s is slightly modified to accommodate her feet, which span only three studs. It’s a shame that LEGO has left off including printed tiles showing each character’s BrickHeadz series number, so we’ll have to be content with plain bases.

Conclusion and recommendation

Whether you’re excitedly collecting each new BrickHeadz character or beginning to feel BrickHeadz fatigue, if you’re a fan of Harry Potter, you’ll probably want to pick up this duo. They’re great little desk companions, and Hedwig’s cute face is sure to invoke an instant “aww” from fans and non-fans alike. I’m excited to see where the BrickHeadz Buddies design goes, as the smaller size requires more imaginative crafting to ensure recognizable characters. And for only $14.99, the set’s 180 pieces makes this a great buy right from the start.

41615 Harry Potter & Hedwig will be available for $14.99 beginning July 1 from the LEGO Shop Online and other retailers.

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