Steve is back to start the week.

Kicking off the week with only 4 days left to go, it’s HP with a two-point buffer over SW. But anything can happen in the battle. Today could determine whether HP secures a tie overall, or if the competition remains up in the air. Let’s check it out:

Harry Potter- Day 21

Matt: You’ve got to hand it to HP. They’ve gotten this far despite some really mediocre offerings. Can they capitalize on their momentum to secure an overall tie in the battle? Behind Door #21 is a microphone and music stand. I’m not sure this is what HP fans were expecting today, especially at this juncture in the advent season. This is presumably for the Yule Ball scene and to pair with the piano we received earlier. I think it’s a pretty weak offering today, although I do appreciate the 2×2 printed music tile. That part is fairly rare, having only appeared in a few other sets prior to now (thanks Bricklink). Like many builds this season, the link to HP is weak at best, and the focus on the Yule Ball scene has resulted in some thin HP-based offerings. I’ll touch on this at the end of the calendar battle on the 24th so stay tuned. For now, we get a really nice printed tile, but that’s about it. A bit of a letdown in my opinion, and I think SW will grab the point today if they put up anything festive/on theme at all.

Star Wars- Day 21

Steve: It’s Christmas Week and Star Wars is down by 2 – can they come back? Today’s build is a “Snow-Gonk Droid”, continuing a tradition of a festive-themed droid in Star Wars calendars. This figure is seen briefly on screen in the 2020 LEGO Star Wars Holiday special, and the model here is very accurately that appearance. While I’m sure it’s not going to win over any Star Wars purists, it’s a fun little build and goes great with the other Holiday-themed figures we’ve seen so far. This figure is a winner in my books.

Verdict

With a festive and on-theme build, SW grabs today’s point over HP, who submits a fairly weak offering for such a late date in the calendar season. With the win, SW keeps HP within its grasp, preventing HP from clinching at least a tie. Tomorrow’s matchup will be critical, but for now, the score is:

HP- 11

SW- 10

To be continued…