Harry Potter Lego: Sirirus Black's Escape 4753
Written: Apr 19 '04 (Updated Apr 28 '04)
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Pros: minifigs, small details, price
Cons: none
The Bottom Line: I am very excited about the new series of Harry Potter Legos. Sirius Black's Escape is the first set I built and it is quite nice.
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| GravityGirl's Full Review: Harry Potter Lego: Sirius Black's Escape 4753 |
Before I begin, I would like to point out that the subject of this review contains spoilers, so please proceed with extreme caution if you have not read the third book (or seen the movie).
Information
Set Name: Sirius Black's Escape, L'evasion de Sirius Black, La huida de Sirius Black
Set Number: 4753
Number of Pieces: 189
Ages: 7-12
How does this set fit into the Harry Potter series?
Sirius Black, the prisoner of Azkaban, actually makes two escapes during the course of the third book. First, he escapes from the wizard prison Azkaban. Unfortunately, as much as I was really hoping for an Azkaban Lego set, the theme of this set is not Black's escape from Azkaban; rather, the focus is on his second escape at the end of the book when he escapes the Ministry of Magic employees who have arrested him and are preparing to execute him.
Minifigs
This set comes with a surprising number of minifigs for a $20 set. Quite a number of the Harry Potter Lego sets come with a Harry Potter minifig and this set is no exception. However, it should be noted that the minifigs' faces and arms are not their traditional yellow color; they are now peach colored. Harry is dressed in his school uniform, which features gray trousers, a gray v-neck sweater, white button down shirt and maroon and gold striped tie. He also has a black felt cape and his trademark glasses and scar.
Since this is Sirius Black’s first foray into the Lego world, I was quite excited to have a Sirius minifig. He comes with gray trousers and a gray striped prison-style shirt that is tattered and ripped. He has a moustache and five o’clock shadow and a mullet haircut.
Technically, the third minifig is not really a minifig, but since he is a character in the story, he is certainly worth mentioning. Buckbeak the hippogryph stands on four legs and his head moves up and down. He has scalloping on his neck and wings and there is also a spot on his back where a minifig can be placed and taken for a ride.
So, I’ve saved the best for last. The final minifig is a dementor! I’m really actually very excited with how the dementor came out. The dementor is similar to skeleton minifigs that I have seen with a couple of modifications. To begin with, the dementor’s body is rusty green. Instead of having two legs, the dementor has one leg in the middle of its body. I suppose this is because dementors are not supposed to have any legs but it would be impossible to be able to place the dementor in a set if he couldn’t stand. The dementor has the same ball and socket arms as a Lego skeleton and he also has a ragged gray cloak that feels different than the regular Lego cape. He has a gray headpiece that goes over his evil-looking head. The dementor’s face is very scary to look at. He has no eyes and no nose- just a gaping mouth. There are also lines on his face that give the appearance of decaying. Macabre? Yes, but also very cool.
Set Details
By following the enclosed directions, you will build a small circular tower complete with gargoyles. The lower floor consists of an area with secret compartment. The upper floor consists of a rather Spartan cell with two windows and a small balcony. It is not a very large set, so it does not take up much room but it still establishes itself as a formidable set. There are some very nice little accessories like torches, a goblet.
Putting it Together
Your child may or may not need help putting the set together, depending on their age and/or experience with building sets. The manual is composed of a series of pictures and the builder must look at the pictures to see where to place which new pieces for each step. It sometimes takes a discerning eye to see what needs to go where; I know that when I was in that age range, I had some difficulty following Lego directions. An adult builder should not have any trouble with this set.
Final Thoughts
Legos are really a wonderful opportunity for kids in so many ways. By following the directions in the manual, children build mathematical and critical thinking skills as well as fine motor skills. Building their own designs also strengthens creativity and acting out scenes from the book (or original scenes) improves language and literacy skills.
As for this particular set, it might not be very large, but it is very formidable. It’s a cute little set with lots of small details and the four minifigs make it very worth your while. It is also one of the only two sets in this series that include a Sirius Black minifig, unless you count the Knight Bus set which features Sirius in Grim (dog) form.
I highly recommend Sirius Black’s Escape.
Recommended:
Yes
Amount Paid (US$): 19.99
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