Escape the Dursleys with Ron!
Written: Jan 11 '06 (Updated Jan 11 '06)
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Pros: First ever Vernon Dursley, good pieces and includes interesting features.
Cons: Only one Dursley is included, (Uncle Vernon), car is oversized, and is expensive.
The Bottom Line: I would say that this set would be a fairly fun set to play with, but here definetly might be better ones.
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| curdled's Full Review: LEGO Harry Potter Escape from Privet Drive 4728 |
Welcome to the Dursley's House, a house filled with the snobbish, dull and perfect family from the books themselves! Why, the only thing BIG going on around here is the male Dursley's potbellies!
WRONG!
In this LEGO version of this house, everything is exciting as you embark on yet another building adventure in the heart of Privet drive! 278 consist of this set, with three minifigures: Harry, with a new, red plaid shirt, Ron in a blue simple sweater, and Uncle Vernon: in pajamas with a bedrobe. These figures represent the ones in the movie, LEGO did quite an interesting job creating their features.
The flying car consists of light blue pieces, which are not only rare, but have been chosen well to suit how the car looks. The car features opening and closing doors, a trunk with coiled rope inside, and the fact that minifigures really will fit inside. With small wheels that turn, this set can both fly and drive. Also, the seats are flat and stud-less, allowing minifigures to slide around when it flies, (no thanks to Ron's driving which nearly got Harry killed,) like in the movie.
The con of the car is fairly big: it is oversized. Obviously, LEGO did this so that Harry and Ron would both fit inside, but as a trade-off, this made the car HUGE. The wheels appeared to be rather puny in this trade, so it sort of ruins the appearance. I know that I may be a little too sensitive towards this, but hey, I need to give people the bare facts!
Now, to the house. The house has many abilities, some very hidden. For an example, when you turn to chimney in the top of Harry's room, letters pour in out of a hidden compartment. Also, the window can be attached to the rope and, when pulled, is easily out. The house has hinges attached to the back, allowing the builder to coordinate different angles of the house which suits their needs. Also, there is a hidden compartment below the stars containing Harry's wand.
The house contains many pieces, sort of a brownish-orange for the sides with stone added into it using dark and light grey pieces. Flowerbeds line the windows, which may only contain ferns, but, anything more would have crammed it. There is a small kitchen, tiny living room, cupboard and Dudley's second bedroom, given to Harry after his first year at Hogwarts. It has a bed and a book-holding stand by the bed, and obviously a chimney to top it off.
I find that the LEGO DESIGNERS did a good job coordinate different kinds of brick, from the brownish-orange to the rocky grey. They did a good job in making it look quite like a real house this way!
You might be also disappointed: there is only one Dursley. It would have been an easy change to just add new figures to make Dudley or Aunt Petunia, but they did not. I suppose that a set that size would probably not allow them to have the missing FOUR figures.
The house is open in the back, allowing builders to play inside of the house. It does not close in the back, however, this lets people control things with easy access to the things inside. It is easy to use, giving it an extra bonus.
The last con is most likely that it is rather expensive. I got this for 49.99 CAN. In fact, I think that it is 30% overpriced for the value of the set.
Sets that would probably go with this would most likely be Dobby's Escape, (also found on epinions.com), because it not only come with Dobby when he encounters Harry, but this set also has a scene of its own. I have my own review for that set as well.
Indeed, I really do agree that this is a great set, but it does have some major cons. Based mainly on the movie and its special features, this set could use a bit of fixing up. However, this set makes a great gift I find, and I suggest it to Harry Potter fans mainly. Even thought there are better gifts out there, this one is a fairly good idea.
Recommended:
Yes
Amount Paid (US$): 49.99 CAN
Type of Toy: Blocks
Age Range of Child: 9 Years or Older
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Epinions.com ID:
curdled
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Reviews written: 13
Trusted by: 0 members
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