It’s been nearly a year since LEGO announced its partnership with Epic Games, and their dive into the world of Fortnite — Epic’s most popular video game. While we’ve had access to the LEGO version of the game for a while, fans are just now getting physical sets for the theme. We’ve recently covered reviews of both Fortnite 77072 Peely Bones and the epic Fortnite 77073 Battle Bus. At the same time these are being released, we’re getting a brand new gift with purchase based on a staple character skin from the game. LEGO BrickHeadz Fortnite 40728 Brite Bomber is a 151-piece set exclusively released as a giveaway. The freebie will be available for Insider Early Access October 1st-3rd and everyone else October 4th-7th with the LEGO Store or LEGO Shop Online purchase of US $90 | CAN $TBD | UK £TBD or more. Join us as we take a closer look!
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
This kit comes in the typical BrickHeadz packaging, but with a new Fortnite motif. The purple terrain map pattern works nicely, in addition to the cartoon-y yellow hashes. The skin tone of the Brite Bomber is notably darker on the box than the actual model, but there’s more there to talk about in a bit. Unfortunately, sometimes LEGO slaps the “NOT FOR SALE” stickers on the front or back of the box instead of a less intrusive surface, however this one isn’t covering anything special.
Inside the box are 3 small, unnumbered polybags, an 8×8 black plate, and the instructions. There’s nothing particularly special about any of these, other than we can already see a nice printed piece and there are no stickers.
The build
That aforementioned printed element is a 1×4 pink brick with a flying unicorn llama on it. It’s a lovely and fun little print that matches the torso of the in-game character. Keep reading until the end to see a comparison.
After the torso comes the side-studded canvas for the face and hair. The head includes the typical BrickHeadz pink 2×2 brick for the brain. Actually, apart from a unique color palette and print, up to this point the build is pretty much identical to any other BrickHeadz model.
Of course, once the defining features go on, she comes to life as a unique character. Interestingly, and somewhat unfortunately, the tiles that comprise the face are two shades of medium nougat. The forehead and chin are slightly darker than the cheeks and space between the eyes.
There really isn’t much here by way of cool or interesting techniques, however the pearl grey handlebar element flanked by shields with medium lavender 2×2 tiles is a great touch for the goggles.
The completed model
With the addition of the baseplate and the customary pickaxe, our Brite Bomber is complete. Even though she’s chunky and brickified, I think most Fortnite fans would be able to recognize who it is, or at least know it’s a Fortnite character. One of my favorite parts is actually the simple, clean ponytail.
Conclusions and recommendations
It’s fair to say that this is a decent enough BrickHeadz kit. The print is nice, and despite its tiny size, it does right by the source material. My spouse happens to collect the BrickHeadz, and we’re a bit completionist, so I know that if I didn’t get it as a review set, we’d likely be trying to get our hands on it the usual way. I’m also a Fortnite fan, so buying other Fortnite sets to get the GWP isn’t out of the question. However, if those things don’t apply to you, it’s kind of… meh… If it was available for sale at the usual BrickHeadz price, I’d say go for it. If you’re on the fence about hitting the spend limit just to get this, maybe it’s not worth it.
But I really want to expand on the conversation for a moment…
Fortnite’s massive library of exciting character skins, creatures, and gear lends itself perfectly to LEGO’s version of the game. It’s especially great for minifigures. While the Collectible Minifigure Series has been going strong for a while now, it’s really been in the past couple years that LEGO has gone wild with exceptional figs – both in sets and the CMFs. They’ve branched further into themes that allow this creativity, like the D&D minifigure series. Of course, we’re here to talk about a BrickHeadz figure, not a minifigure, but the storyline is similar. LEGO is covering a lot of territory with the BrickHeadz, and the proverbial well is essentially endless. The title of this article asks the question: Is this a hint of things to come? Could this Fortnite BrickHeadz GWP mean that they’re planning to tap into that juicy Fortnite well? What Fortnite character might we see next in BrickHeadz form? Will they do it with a CMF series? Even if you’re not a Fortnite fan, go look at the library and you’ll have to admit there are some pretty epic minifigure and BrickHeadz opportunities. Let us know in the comments if you’re hoping to see more, and if you have any bets to wager!
LEGO BrickHeadz Fortnite 40728 Brite Bomber will be available for Insider Early Access from October 1st-3rd and everyone else from October 4th-7th with a LEGO store purchase of US $90 | CAN $TBD | UK £TBD. You may also be able to get it from third parties on Amazon and eBay after release.
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.
Thanks for the review, Bre. Curious to see f there’ll be more Fortnite Brickheadz. I’ve designed quite some myself (you can find them on Rebrickable) and it’s always a fun challenge to find ways to boil down the intricately detailed characters and outfits to pretty much a square block, and keep it cute or cool instead of boring. LEGO did a nice job on this one.
If I preordered the Battle Bus beforehand, will I get this freebie retro actively?