It’s the Return of the Jedi today, as Steve is back with the daily SW review!

After the weekend’s offerings, HP has opened up a two-point lead over SW heading into the week. Can SW rebound today? Let’s find out.

Harry Potter- Day 7

Matt: I’ve really enjoyed the latest two entries in the HPAC as it snatched both weekend points. Behind Door #7 is the enormous gramophone seen in the 4th film, when Prof McGonagall instructs Hogwarts students in dance lessons in preparation for the Yule Ball. The build itself is actually fairly impressive- it’s faithful to the onscreen variant, and features a turntable and adjustable needle. The color scheme is solid too. I think they could have sprung for a printed 2×2 round tile for the vinyl and the needle isn’t able to make contact with the record (somewhat fixed if you remove the 1×1 pearl gold round plate, but takes away from the design). And while functionality is secondary in microbuilds, if we wanted that record to spin, we literally have a piece called the 2×2 turntable (See here). Apart from this, the build on its own is solid.

My gripes with today’s offering are more subjective in nature- that is to say, I don’t believe this object in particular stands out in the book/film. I also think today’s entry is the first of this season that does not immediately scream Harry Potter. Steve reminds me that the license for LEGO HP is based off the film, not the book, making today’s entry more reasonable. Again, we’re back on track with the Yule Ball theme as well, giving some consistency to the calendar. Overall, a really solid build but I feel like there are a plethora of better scenes/objects/items to depict for a GOF based calendar. Guest reviewer Patrick Barnes points out that one disadvantage of sticking to a common Yule Ball scene is that is may limit the possible offerings on any given day. Great point, Patrick.

Star Wars- Day 7

Steve: Star Wars needs a “W” today to keep it interesting in the early rounds. For Day 7 we get a Sith Trooper minifigure. It’s a nice figure with good leg and belt printing, and the bright red is very festive! The only accessory is the standard Star Wars blaster rifle. This isn’t a new or exclusive fig, however, and it’s appearance in a Battlepack means it’s not particularly rare either. All the figures so far have made at least a brief appearance in the LEGO Star Wars Holiday Special – but given how that show ping-pongs through the timeline I don’t know if we can call it a consistent “theme” for the calendar or not.

Verdict

Based on our minifig scoring metric, Star Wars returns the favor from Day 5 and steals the win with a figure over an interesting HP build. With the win, SW keeps it close and the score is now:

HP- 4

SW- 3

To be continued…