LEGO Creator 31132 Viking Ship and the Midgard Serpent – An ode to a beloved classic [Review]

Even though the LEGO Vikings line was short-lived, it garnered a fairly decent fanbase. With only eight sets (including chess), the theme was packed with enough exciting elements that they still stand out today. Whether you’re a fan of the line or not, you may have instantly noticed that LEGO Creator 3-in-1 31132 Viking Ship and the Midgard Serpent looks familiar. And you’d be right! There are so many similarities with LEGO Vikings 7018 Viking Ship Challenges the Midgard Serpent, that it can only be a tribute to that iconic 2005 set. Come with us as we take a deep dive into this 1192-piece 3-in-1, which will be available August 1st, retailing for US $119.99 | CAN $149.99 | UK £104.99.

The LEGO Group provided The Brothers Brick with an early copy of this set for review. Providing TBB with products for review guarantees neither coverage nor positive reviews.

Unboxing the parts and instructions

Like the original kit, the front of the box has the ship and serpent posed in almost exactly the same way. The only difference is that this set is a 3-in-1, displaying alternate builds alongside the main model. As usual, the back of the box shows closeups of all three models. The serpent isn’t the only Vikings creature getting the 2022 treatment. The Fenris wolf shows up as one of the alternates.

Inside the box are seven numbered and one unnumbered bag, in addition to the three instruction booklets.


The primary build

After building the minifigures and cow (which we’ll come back to in a bit), bag one begins with a plate-dense base for the longboat. Dichotomous colors help differentiate the bow and stern. And the sides are built with a large number of 1×4 and 2x2x2/3 SNOT (Studs Not On Top) elements. The former, in black, is the second most ever in a set, while the latter, in reddish brown, is the most ever in a set by far.

Bag two sees us through half the stern and foundation for the bow of the ship. It’s already taking on that classic longboat look. Additional SNOT elements on the sternpost provide plenty of connection points for the keel to attach. The keel also utilizes several black 5×5 macaroni plates, previously only seen in the Creator Expert 10299 Real Madrid – Santiago Bernabéu Stadium. The sternpost uses a couple of new element color variations as well, with a pair of 1×2 inverted arches and a 2×2 centered bracket, both in bright light orange.

In bag three, we complete both the rest of the stern and the bow, which includes the “gold” dragon figurehead. The original model had a custom mold for this element, in dark red. While that definitely looked cool, this brick-built version may be better. It’s certainly more stout and sturdy.

Next up is the mast and rigging. Six 22L flexible hoses in medium nougat form the rigging. (Plus we get an extra!) By the time they are attached to the tall mast via a variety of bar elements and a steering wheel, it’s sturdy! This thing isn’t going anywhere unless you break something. Well, maybe a ball joint will come loose first, but you get the point – no flimsy structure here!

In addition to the rigging, it’s at this point in the build where we begin to fill out the sides of the ship. A layer of yellow (which is more visible on the inside) plays peekaboo just below dark blue slopes and curved panels. The latter are new in this color.

Bag five delivers some décor for the longboat, including a sheltered table, torches, hanging fish, and a ballista shooter. These elements were also in the original set, although the shelter is much larger and the ballista is far simpler.

The ballista itself is pretty basic – in a good way. No need for an overcomplicated structure. The shooting ability is accomplished with a rubber band and is fair. It’s hard to capture in the GIF below, but the first shot hits a wall three feet away and rolls back to me while the second shot is a dud, going almost sideways. Admittedly, operator error is likely partially at play.

Among the final additions are a set of 8 shields in various color combinations, much like the original kit. (Although the original shields were printed single-molds.) Also constructed at this time is a giant brick-built sail. After all, what would a longboat be without one? Lastly, a pair of ravens are added, perhaps as an homage to Norse folklore and the god Odin’s two ravens, Huginn and Muninn. But we’ll take a look at them in a moment.

The heaviness of the brick-built sail is a good reason to have such a sturdy mast. A set of four modified plates with bars inserted into four companion pin holes on the yard (cross beam) carry the weight.

Finally, we wrap up the build with the Midgard serpent itself. It’s composed of 11 segments in azure and teal (AKA dark turquoise), with black and purple accents. The original dark and sand green serpent was also segmented, but the upper portion of its head was a single mold. I’m a fan of that mold and actually plan to use the element in an upcoming build, but with that said, I think this version is better. The minifigure flippers as gill fins look great! And of course, the whole thing is highly posable. If I could add something, it might be spines in the 2×2 jumper plates, which seem bare. The other version includes small flippers, but again, this one might be just as good or better without them.


The completed model

When all is said and done, this is a fun display piece as a whole. Although, I can imagine plenty of hours of imaginative play as well. As far as sizing goes, it’s large, but not exceedingly so. Sometimes you build a model like this one and it feels way larger than what’s on the box, but this one seems as-expected. Which is not to say that it’s small, of course!

One thing obviously missing from this longboat are the oars, making a getaway from the serpent far less likely to happen. Another thing missing is all the printed elements, but if you didn’t know, you wouldn’t miss them.


The alternate models

After building the longboat, you may be hard pressed to take it apart and build the other models. But for the sake of a complete review, I went ahead and took one for the team. A word of wisdom: as the instructions suggest, it’s best to take the entire model apart and organize the pieces rather than break it into chunks as you build. The added time will ultimately save you time and frustration in the long run.

Now, let’s start with the wolf, which actually begins with building the tree sub-model… It’s pretty straight-forward and unexciting. But how much can you really demand of a tree? The base upon which it stands has a weird hiding spot for gems, topped with teal elements that I’m assuming represent ice/snow.

The Fenris wolf itself is sure to be interesting to kiddos, though possibly not very exciting for adults. Its click-hinge joints are also quite loose, unable to resist the weight of the limbs. When looking at the available parts from the first model, it seems like the best the designers could do, but it feels quite skeletal. Funnily enough, the original wolf was even more so.

Even though it feels loose, it’s not too hard to pose. Additionally, the legendary wolf is massive in the mythos, and this version fits the bill.

To be blunt, after building the longboat, the wolf felt like a bit of a letdown. But I was glad to find that the final alternate is more interesting. It begins with a patterned base.

Elements used to make the keel of the ship are affixed to the wall of the house via the same SNOT elements. The product is a nice Norse design.

The roof support looks funky, but it is solid! It too is covered with SNOT bricks (the weirdest phrase ever, I know). There are so many that it’s almost overkill, but if you got ’em, use ’em, I guess!

An odd little sub-build juts out to the side. It appears to be a bush and stream adjacent to a porch with anvil. It’s actually a nice addition, and shares the same sturdiness as the rest.

One of the best features of the house is the ability to easily open up and/or remove the roof – great for lots of playability. It’s best for small hands though. Overall the structure is quite stout and a little hefty, in a good way.

The scene is made complete with a burning hay pile, cow pulling a plough, and a small dragon. In the next section we’ll take a closer look at those.


The animals

Aside from the Midgard serpent, there are four previously-mentioned brick-built animals in the set: a cow, two ravens, and a small dragon. The cow is built two different ways between the longboat and the house, one of which is to accommodate a medieval plough. In terms of brick-built cows at this scale, this one is very nicely done, as is the plough.

Next up are the ravens, which use blaster pistols for bodies and flippers for wings and tails. Positioning the flippers at different angles gives them character, which is especially cool for something made with just a few parts.

While the cow and ravens are awesome, the dragon is less-so. Compared to the others, it feels blocky and cumbersome, yet oddly small. Most of the Viking sets did come with a dragon, so it feels only right to include one in this kit, but it just falls a little flat. Somewhat surprising, considered how colorful it is.


The minifigures

Finally, let’s take a look at those minifigures! Unlike the original theme, which was almost exclusively comprised of distinctly male characters, this set has some diversity! There are four figs, two men and two women. Let’s meet them, from left to right.

The first minifig has dark orange legs, an olive tunic with armor over the top, a horned helm, and a giant battle axe. A dark orange beard hides a stubble-faced scowl. Both the torso and helmet are new. Well, the latter is a remake of the original helmets, but unfortunately, it’s quite loose and falls off easily. To be honest, I can’t recall if this was the case in the past, but you’d think they’d fix that if so.

Up next is a fig with olive green legs, a new dark torso with grey armor, a high-browed smirk, and a spear. Her new hairpiece is a blonde braid topped with an epic winged crown. This is definitely the best minifigure element overall (at least in my opinion).

Her presumptive counterpart has dark blue legs, a new sand blue torso with armor, a fur collar, sword, and horned helm. His head features grey mutton chops and a stoic expression.

The final minifigure has dark red legs, the same torso as the first fig, an axe, and dark brown, wavy hair. Her smirk is almost identical to the second character, with slightly lower brows. All these factors combined possibly make her the the least exciting of the bunch. Still, the torso is nice. It’s also nice to have different legs on all four.


Conclusions and recommendations

Like most larger Creator 3-in-1’s, it’s the main model that draws you in. For many, there is no desire to complete the other models. You could probably stop at the longboat and be very happy. That said, it’s always nice to have more options and the ability to gain experience from building the alternates. Certainly, from a kiddo’s perspective, there are hours of play to be had from any 3-in-1, especially a larger one like this.

For the grown-ups who don’t care to display the set, unless there is something you’re really looking for, this probably isn’t the best set to part out. Don’t get me wrong, it has nice pieces! But the price-per-piece is quite average, and there’s nothing, aside from the new minifigure elements, that is exceptionally noteworthy. You may enjoy the technique used for creating the shape of the keel, but there isn’t anything exotic about the parts usage. At the end of the day, it’s really a matter of whether you’re a fan of the Vikings theme. And if the answer is yes, you’ll likely love this great throwback model.

It’s that time of year where new releases are continuously being announced! While you’re here, stick around and check out our other new LEGO reviews! If you’re a fan of nostalgia, take a look at our review of 31120 Medieval Castle.


LEGO Creator 3-in-1 31132 Viking Ship and the Midgard Serpent is 1192 pieces and will be available August 1st, retailing for US $119.99 | CAN $149.99 | UK £104.99. It may also be available via third-party sellers on Amazon and eBay.

The LEGO Group provided The Brothers Brick with an early copy of this set for review. Providing TBB with products for review guarantees neither coverage nor positive reviews.


3 comments on “LEGO Creator 31132 Viking Ship and the Midgard Serpent – An ode to a beloved classic [Review]

  1. MaffyD

    dichotomous
    dī-kŏt′ə-məs
    adjective
    Divided or dividing into two parts or classifications.
    Characterized by dichotomy.
    Regularly dividing by pairs from bottom to top.

  2. sedmison

    Great review, Bre! As a big fan of the original Viking sets, I was intrigued by this one, but didn’t have a sense as to whether it really brought anything new to the table. Well, in having read your review, I see that it does in fact bring some new techniques and some parts in new colors, so it just went onto my shopping list.

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