Tag Archives: Harry Potter

2023 LEGO Advent Calendars, Day 5 [Feature]

Do you hear that, readers? That’s the sound of Christmas getting ever closer! And what better way to count down to the big day than with day 5 of TBB’s LEGO advent calendar roundup? That’s just what we’re doing, so why not join us as we open up the City, Friends, Star Wars, Harry Potter and Marvel calendars on offer this year?

As ever, our intrepid TBB team is on hand with witty comments, insightful observations, and bad jokes for each day’s builds. And of course, you can add your own thoughts in the comments section each day! So without further ado, let’s crack open the build for day 5…

Click here to see today’s builds!

2023 LEGO Advent Calendars, Day 4 [Feature]

Do you hear that, readers? That’s the sound of Christmas getting ever closer! And what better way to count down to the big day than with day 4 of TBB’s LEGO advent calendar roundup? That’s just what we’re doing, so why not join us as we open up the City, Friends, Star Wars, Harry Potter and Marvel calendars on offer this year?

As ever, our intrepid TBB team is on hand with witty comments, insightful observations, and bad jokes for each day’s builds. And of course, you can add your own thoughts in the comments section each day! So without further ado, let’s crack open the build for day 4…

Click here to see today’s builds!

2023 LEGO Advent Calendars, Day 3 [Feature]

Do you hear that, readers? That’s the sound of Christmas getting ever closer! And what better way to count down to the big day than with day 3 of TBB’s LEGO advent calendar roundup? That’s just what we’re doing, so why not join us as we open up the City, Friends, Star Wars, Harry Potter and Marvel calendars on offer this year?

As ever, our intrepid TBB team is on hand with witty comments, insightful observations, and bad jokes for each day’s builds. And of course, you can add your own thoughts in the comments section each day! So without further ado, let’s crack open the build for day 3…

Click here to see today’s builds!

2023 LEGO Advent Calendars, Day 2 [Feature]

Do you hear that, readers? That’s the sound of Christmas getting ever closer! And what better way to count down toward Christmas than with day 2 of TBB’s LEGO advent calendar roundup? Why not join us as we open up the City, Friends, Star Wars, Harry Potter and Marvel calendars on offer this year?

As ever, our intrepid TBB team is on hand with witty comments, insightful observations, and bad jokes for each day’s builds. And of course, you can add your own thoughts in the comments section each day! So without further ado, let’s crack open the build for day 2…

Click here to see today’s builds!

2023 LEGO Advent Calendars, Day 1 [Feature]

Do you hear that, readers? That’s the sound of Christmas getting ever closer! And what better way to count down toward Christmas than with day 1 of TBB’s LEGO advent calendar roundup? Why not join us as we open up the City, Friends, Star Wars, Harry Potter and Marvel calendars on offer this year?

As ever, our intrepid TBB team is on hand with witty comments, insightful observations, and bad jokes for each day’s builds. And of course, you can add your own thoughts in the comments section each day! So without further ado, let’s crack open the build for day 1…

Click here to see today’s builds!

Perfect LEGO patronus is a potent Potter protector

Builder Chi Hsin Wei has been on an absolute roll lately, churning out some truly brilliant LEGO creations over the last few months. But this latest ode to Harry Potter may be my favorite work of the bunch! Improving significantly over the recent 76414 Expecto Patronum set, this glorious stag of light blue brick utilizes an array of curved slopes and clip hinges to bring the translucent beast to life. And the spell’s caster is no slouch either with their flowing black robes. It’s quite the difficult task to replicate loose clothing in the LEGO medium, but Wei handles it like a pro!

Elegant Patronus

LEGO reveals 76417 Gringotts™ Wizarding Bank – Collectors’ Edition, available this fall [News]

Earlier today, LEGO announced the next set in the Harry Potter theme: 76417 Gringotts™ Wizarding Bank – Collectors’ Edition. Consisting of 4,803 pieces, this mammoth construction features both the above-ground wizarding bank and the catacomb of vaults below. All told, the set is an impressive 29.5″ (75 cm) tall, 12.5″ (32 cm) wide, and 10″ (25 cm) deep, and comes with 13 minifigures including Harry, Ron, Hermione, Hagrid, Bellatrix, and Griphook. The set also includes the iconic Ukrainian Ironbelly that the Golden Trio ride out of the top of Gringotts in Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows. Designed to be compatible with 75978 Harry Potter Diagon Alley, 76417 Gringotts™ Wizarding Bank – Collectors’ Edition will be available for purchase through LEGO stores and their website on September 4 (September 1 for VIPs), and will retail for US $429.99 | CAN $559.99 | UK £369.99.

Take a stroll through the bank below

LEGO Harry Potter 76421 Dobby the House-Elf: Bad Dobby or good Dobby? [Review]

The June 2023 Harry Potter wave includes one sculpture-style set, 76421 Dobby the House-Elf. Dobby does not have wings, or other animation, but does seem in the same vein as other larger-than-minifigure-scale creations. Here’s our review of this very, very light-nougaty set, which contains 403 pieces, and is available now for US $34.99 | CAN $44.99 | UK £24.99.

This set is based on a license The LEGO Group has with the Warner Brothers films, not J.K. Rowling directly. The transphobic views expressed by Rowling do not reflect the values of The Brothers Brick or, indeed, those of The LEGO Group. The magical world Rowling created, in which many who felt a bit different could see themselves, meant a great deal to so many people, including those that Rowling now demeans. TBB affirms each individual LEGO fan’s choice to claim a piece of the world for themselves, or to reject it entirely.

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.

Read the full review

LEGO Harry Potter 76422 Diagon Alley: Weasleys’ Wizard Wheezes [Review]

The June 2023 Harry Potter wave included a standalone version of a shop that LEGO has produced once before: 76422 Diagon Alley: Weasleys’ Wizard Wheezes. We reviewed the full 75978 Diagon Alley set before – though it’s price has increased by $50 since then – so of course we’ll look at how this compares to the version in that set. Not everyone can afford or wants the whole Diagon Alley set, either, so is this a good value on its own? Here’s our review of the set, which contains 834 pieces and 7 minifigures, and is available from LEGO.com for US $89.99 | CAN $119.99 | UK £84.99.

This set is based on a license The LEGO Group has with the Warner Brothers films, not J.K. Rowling directly. The transphobic views expressed by Rowling do not reflect the values of The Brothers Brick or, indeed, those of The LEGO Group. The magical world Rowling created, in which many who felt a bit different could see themselves, meant a great deal to so many people, including those that Rowling now demeans. TBB affirms each individual LEGO fan’s choice to claim a piece of the world for themselves, or to reject it entirely.

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.

Read the full review

LEGO Harry Potter 76414 Expecto Patronum [Review]

LEGO has given us large-format winged creatures from the Harry Potter series, each with an integrated flapping mechanism, and with 76414 Expecto Patronum, the series continues at least somewhat in spirit. There is no movement mechanism, but the “Expecto Patronum” is similar to the name plates on the winged creatures. And in a bit of a surprise, it’s a 2-in-1 set, offering the option of building either Harry’s stag patronus or Remus Lupin’s wolf. Here’s our review of the set, which contains 754 pieces and 2 minifigures, and is available now for US $69.99 | CAN $89.99 | UK £62.99.

This set is based on a license The LEGO Group has with the Warner Brothers films, not J.K. Rowling directly. The transphobic views expressed by Rowling do not reflect the values of The Brothers Brick or, indeed, those of The LEGO Group. The magical world Rowling created, in which many who felt a bit different could see themselves, meant a great deal to so many people, including those that Rowling now demeans. TBB affirms each individual LEGO fan’s choice to claim a piece of the world for themselves, or to reject it entirely.

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.

Read the full review

LEGO Harry Potter 76423 Hogwarts Express & Hogsmeade Station [Review]

The June 2023 Harry Potter wave includes a handful of unique treatments of the subject matter, and we’ll start our coverage with 76423 Hogwarts Express & Hogsmeade Station. This isn’t quite unique, but it does include the first Hogsmeade Station since 2004! And compared to the most recent Collector’s Edition Hogwarts Express, it is compatible with LEGO track, a welcome change. It also intriguingly features the return of metal train axles after a 5-year break. Does the rest stack up, or is it off track? Here’s our review of the set, which contains 1074 pieces and 8 minifigures, and will be available starting June 1st for US $129.99 | CAN $169.99 | UK £114.99.

This set is based on a license The LEGO Group has with the Warner Brothers films, not J.K. Rowling directly. The transphobic views expressed by Rowling do not reflect the values of The Brothers Brick or, indeed, those of The LEGO Group. The magical world Rowling created, in which many who felt a bit different could see themselves, meant a great deal to so many people, including those that Rowling now demeans. TBB affirms each individual LEGO fan’s choice to claim a piece of the world for themselves, or to reject it entirely.

Continue reading →

A “little dueling club” with a lot of action

Return to the second book of the Harry Potter series in this outstanding LEGO Dueling Club by Alex Lam. The tan background is outstanding, employing a variety of structural techniques to recreate the Hogwarts hall. I particularly like the design of the lion’s head braziers, with school banners hung beneath. But amongst the throng of minifigures is the real highlight of the build: the dueling platform. This diorama of moon phases in purple and pearl gold is excellent, a perfect recreation from the movies. There’s quite a bit of skill in the use of those gold plates and tiles in the designs going from waxing to waning crescent, as the part availability is limited in that color.

dueling_club 1

I know the first image is a bit stationary, and my title did promise some action, so how about about a second shot with a bit more punch? Nothing beats watching the overly-pompous Lockhart get his butt kicked. Check out even more shots of the build on Alex’s Flickr page.

dueling_club 6