Review: LEGO 75550 Minions Kung Fu Battle

Without transition, we continue today with the LEGO set 75550 Minions Kung Fu Battle, a box of 310 pieces which in principle was to accompany in 2020 the theatrical release of the animated film Minions: The Rise of Gru, release postponed to July 2021 at first and then postponed again, this time to summer 2022.

Last year, LEGO had nevertheless marketed two of the five boxes planned around the film, the sets 75549 Unstoppable Bike Chase (19.99 €) and 75551 Brick-Built Minions and Their Lair (49.99 €) and had chosen to postpone the launch of the other three references announced. These three sets will be available from May 24, so it's still missing to be in sync with the release of the film.

That being said, if you like Minions and Asian atmospheres, this little box sold for € 39.99 should probably please you: it allows you to obtain the figurines of Kevin, Stuart and Otto, all staged in a Chinese temple with its training dummy, her traditional dragon, a few lanterns, lots of bananas, and a built-in feature that allows you to eject a minifigure. Of them Stud Shooters are placed on the edges of the roof, they allow to launch "fireworks". Why not.

The "Chinese temple" is a relatively basic construction but still offers the luxury of pretty details. The designer must be a big fan of LEGO bananas, he has put them everywhere and in several colors. As you can imagine, the assembly of the whole is quickly dispatched and we are close to the 4+ classification.

As for the figurines, the collection of Minions in Kung-Fu outfit launched with Bob in the set 75551 Brick-Built Minions and Their Lair Two new characters are added here: Stuart and Kevin who are dressed in the same orange-colored outfit and who have pad-printed arms with a black band. The reference to Uma Thurman's outfit in the Kill Bill saga is obvious, it's always taken.

Otto makes his first appearance in this box and he serves here as a foil: LEGO explains on the box that the character can be ejected into the air via the catapult integrated in the temple. The functionality is not incredibly creative but it has the merit of existing and we will have to wait to see the film to check if the scene is compliant.

We will also have a little fun with the training dummy that it is possible to face by manually operating one of the two notched wheels placed to the right of the temple. Finally, LEGO provides a dragon that allows you to celebrate the Chinese New Year as it should. The four stickers of the scale-based set take place on the sides of the creature.

In short, we are here facing a product derived from content that we will not see for a long time and by the time the film is released in theaters, we will probably all have forgotten the existence of this box. There are three remaining collectible figures for fans of the franchise, a few colorful bananas, and a few items that can eventually help flesh out an Asia-themed diorama. Is that enough for € 39.99? It's up to you to judge, it will be without me.

Note: The set presented here, provided by LEGO, is as usual involved. Deadline fixed at 8th May 2021 next at 23pm. 

Update : The winner was drawn and was notified by email, his nickname is indicated below. Without a response from him to my request for contact details within 5 days, a new winner will be drawn.