Very Review : LEGO 75551 Brick-Built Minions and Their Lair

We change the register a bit and today we are quickly interested in the LEGO set 75551 Brick-Built Minions and Their Lair (876 pieces - 49.99 €), a product derived from a film that will not be released in theaters on the scheduled date (July 2020) that LEGO has chosen to market despite everything.

Only two of the five boxes initially announced to accompany the release of the animated film The Rise of Gru are currently available, this one and the reference 75549 Unstoppable Bike Chase. The other three planned sets will probably have to wait for the film's release to be postponed to July 2021.

Even though the license Minions is not your cup of tea, I think that this box deserves all the same that one is interested in its contents: It is not in my opinion a banal derivative product without great interest and one finds there a great example of what it is possible to do with LEGO bricks by not just lazily relying on the relevant license.

Here, there is really something to build and we put together two big figures who are little more than angular reproductions of the little yellow creatures that we love or hate. The real plus of this product: each of these two maxi-figures, which can also be exhibited as is, opens to reveal a furnished and playable space. By discovering the different interior arrangements, we are tempted to forgive the few aesthetic approximations in the external appearance of the characters.

Each of the interior spaces, accessible by opening the body of the Minion from the back of the figure, is full of details, references and accessories that fans will surely appreciate. It is detailed, well organized and the youngest will undoubtedly find something to have a little fun there. LEGO didn't forget to provide buildable mini-figures of the three characters to make the interior spaces a little more interactive.

There is a large batch of stickers in this box, but the outer parts of the maxi-figures like the mouth and eyes are pad printed. Since the stickers are relegated inside the body of the figures, they should age a little better than when constantly exposed to light, heat and dust.

There are indeed not two, but three characters to assemble in this box. The process is as old as the world and it is used here: you will have to dismantle one of the first two characters to assemble the third. By default, the instruction booklet suggests assembling Stuart (the one with one eye) and Kevin (the big one). It is with some of the parts used for the maxi-figurine of Kevin, completed by a set of additional parts, that it is possible to assemble Bob, the Minion with the dark eyes.

The basic structure of these maxi-figurines is almost identical from one model to another, the variations being at the level of the interior fittings and the mechanism which is used to turn the eyes. For Stuart, the wheel rotates the character's only eye. With Kevin and Bob, two offset gears ensure the synchronized rotation of the two eyes.

Too bad it is only possible to turn the eyes of the different characters when the figurines are open, the mechanism is in fact only accessible from the inside and that was probably the price to pay in order not to disfigure the figure. back of these maxi-figures.

We could discuss the solution used by the designers for the hands of the two maxi-figurines. The three-fingered hands might be a bit coarse, but these black piece assemblies offer real mobility to the characters. The arms can also be oriented as you see fit and this is a nice detail that will allow for relatively dynamic poses if you just want to display these maxi-figures on the corner of a desk or on a shelf.

As I said above, it is therefore not possible to build the three characters at the same time with the inventory of the set, except to invest in two boxes and to agree to end up with a very large handful of parts on the arms.

Those who want to maximize the use of the inventory provided will choose to keep Kevin (the big one). Bob fans will have to resolve to put the pile of coins visible in the photo above in the box. Even though LEGO encourages us to completely disassemble Kevin to build Bob, it is possible to keep many sub-elements of the first to assemble the second, as long as you are careful during the dismantling.

The outfits of the three figures provided in this box match the theme of each interior design: Bob is ready for his ninja training, Stuart is in his pajamas in his room and Kevin is dressed in his iconic overalls. The pad prints are very correct and compensate a little for the look "Kinder Surprise"of these figurines.

Some will see it as an interpretation of the characters that deviates a little too much from the usual minifig format while others will find it difficult to do otherwise to obtain believable versions of the Minions. It's up to everyone to see where they place the cursor. For my part, I find that these three Minions are the result of a good compromise between the LEGO DNA, its pieces to assemble and its studs and the need to adapt to offer credible versions of the characters.

In short, I think that if you only have to buy one product among the five planned for the release of the film The Rise of Gru, It's This one. This variation of the Minions license really takes advantage of the possibilities offered by the LEGO concept where the rest of the range is content to offer a few minimalist playsets that I find uninspired and also promises us two future BrickHeadz references which should not do much better in external appearance matter ...

These two maxi-figurines can be exhibited, they offer a minimum of interactivity and, if we forget the need to disassemble one of the two characters to build the third, we obtain here a product that seems to me sufficiently accomplished to really please both a LEGO fan and a Minions license enthusiast.

Note: The product shown here, supplied by LEGO, is as usual in play. Deadline fixed at 20th May 2020 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.