After the first three days, it’s perhaps fitting that each calendar has secured a victory. Who will be the first to obtain their second? Read on!

Day 4- MCU

Steve: On the fourth day of Christmas the Guardians gave to meeee…. I gift I didn’t want to seeee…

I said yesterday that “presents are the weapon rack” for the MCU, meaning a lacklustre build with not much going for it.

Well, for 2022 the MCU gives us a tool rack for day 4. Not much to discuss  here, there’s not many parts (7 total) and a very simple build. The only thing it has going for it is a relatively rare (to me) dynamite piece.

I’m not liking the trajectory this calendar is taking. 

Day 4- SW

Pat: I could’ve sworn after yesterday’s Droid Tri-fighter, today we would get the dreaded standard Battle Droid today (not a bad figure to have lots of, but admittedly feels like a letdown of a calendar gift). However I was surprised to see a Republic Assault Ship behind day number 4, marking our 3rd time getting this in small-scale from Lego. Less popular than its Venator or Arquitens – Class counterparts, the Acclamator-Class Republic Assault Ship was seen sparingly in Star Wars Episode 2 and 3, as well as the Clone Wars.

We’ve seen this ship twice before; once in the 2013 calendar, and once in the Coruscant Planet Series where it was a little bit larger of a build. Though all have been solid, including this one, it’s hard to get excited over a design that hasn’t been made into an official, proper set, and is barely seen in the movies. The new 2 x 3 ⅔ wing plates are nice to get more of, and it’s always nice to expand the Republic fleet, but overall it’s only a ‘pretty good’ build on a day filled with mediocre gifts across all calendars.

Day 4- HP

Matt: HP is finally on the board in a proper way courtesy The Chosen One himself on Day 3. With seemingly random entries to date, I’m curious to see what’s behind Door #4.

Today, we get a microscale Whomping Willow with Arthur Weasley’s Ford Anglia. This is of course a reference to the opening few chapters (or movie scenes) of The Chamber of Secrets where Ron and Harry miss the train (I see u Dobby) and “borrow” Mr. Weasley’s flying car to get to school on time- only to crash it into Hogwarts’ infamous tree and wind up in more hot cauldron water than they might have been before. 

Funny enough, this ISN’T the first time we’ve seen a microscale Whomping Willow and Ford Anglia depicted in LEGO. It was included on this scale in the massive set 71043 Hogwarts Castle from 2018- another insanely expensive, but fantastic display set.

There are however some notable differences- here, the Whomping Willow is not near as detailed/robust as it is in 71043, notably lacking the “swinging limbs” functionality of its predecessor. The absence of that aspect of the build can be forgiven in the calendar version in my opinion, and I think the tree is at least reminiscent of both the movie and its microscale counterpart in 71043.

What CAN’T be forgiven however is the design of this particular Ford Anglia. Although it is ALMOST identical to the one in 71043, it’s missing one crucial element- the 1×1 transparent plate, representing the windshield/windows of the car. Without this piece, I feel the car is missing a critical component that makes it recognizable. Would it really have been too much to ask to include it again here? It’s deja vu all over again, and I’m getting that LEGO “cutbacks” vibe once more…

All said, it’s another microbuild which typically ranks lower on our battle scorecard. I wouldn’t have minded this build if it was a part of the chronological retelling of The Chamber of Secrets story, as this calendar’s main theme. But with the presence of Ollivanders and a random quidditch pitch, that doesn’t appear to be the case. This build may prove novel for those who understandably didn’t spring for the $500+ set, but ultimately it is destined for my bulk pile at the end of the season- and perhaps yours, too.

Verdict

A pitiful day across all calendars resulted in tough choices for us reviewers. In the end, by virtue of its somewhat faithful recreation of a movie scene, HP squeaks out a seemingly improbable two points. In second place, SW grabs a point with its Republic Assault Ship. Bringing up the rear in what’s becoming a troubling trend, MCU with a poor entry.

As such, HP moves into a tie with SW, and the score is now:

SW- 5

HP- 5

MCU- 2

To be continued…

MCU has a win. SW has a win. Can HP butter hes boots? Lets find out.

Battle of the Licensed Advent Calendars 2022- Day 3

Day 3- MCU

Steve: On the third day of Christmas the Guardians gave to meeee…. A question about what could it be…?

It’s never a great feeling when you open the build and you don’t know what you’re looking at. I had to check the listing on Bricklink to determine this was supposed to be a “Prison Drone.”  That’s an odd choice, as the Guardians haven’t been in prison since the first movie, so it has no Christmas tie-in at all.  It’s an OK build, but no parts or special pieces make this a “meh” entry at best. 

Day 3- SW

Pat: Day number 3 for Star Wars thankfully keeps with the Clone Wars theme, but no longer Republic unfortunately. We get a sweet little Droid Tri-Fighter seen in Star Wars Episode 3 and the Clone Wars, and it’s an effective enough microbuild of a tricky ship to replicate. This is the first time we’ve ever gotten a micro scale of the Droid Tri-fighter, though the technique is pretty basic. The ski pole makes a great little turret, and this is my first time seeing the little 1×1 clip in dark blue (though its pretty common), but something about the build feels pretty weak. Might be because it’s a bit spindly, or might be because its lacking the proper tri-fighter interior “dome”, but this one feels like it may end up in the bulk parts before too long.

Day 3- HP

Matt: After two mediocre builds, Harry Potter has limped into the 2022 battle. Both MCU and SW have secured victories already, so HP is looking to right the Durmstrang ship and get its first win of the season.

Enter The Boy Who Lived. Who else? The titular character arrives on Day 3, which is a couple days late to the party by my count. But no time like the present. We figure Harry will always grace us with his presence and rightfully so. Since Harry is THE most common figure of the theme, we’re always looking for whether this is an exclusive variant or hard-to-find, meaning it hasn’t been in many sets. 

Fortunately, that is indeed the case here. This particular variant of Harry (ie. Gryffindor Robe Open, Sweater, Shirt and Tie) has only appeared in one other set before- 76389 Chamber of Secrets. That retail set is a large and expensive set too, so getting this variant here in the calendar represents great value and something we’ve seen in the past.

I don’t want this to become a sideshow, but I must note the presence of the 2×4 tan plate, who’s exclusion on Day 1 & 2 in favour of 2×2 tan plates was a gripe of mine. While I had chalked it up to LEGO “cutbacks”, now I’m truly lost. If you can include it here, why not on Day 1 & 2? Am I missing something? In any event, it appears we are now adding a “player piece” to the board game, though I haven’t read the rules yet. I’ll make a point to check out the box more as we progress through each day.

Verdict

With its first minifigure of the season, HP also takes its first daily win. In second place, SW with its Droid Tri-Fighter. In third, MCU, with another visually-disheartening entry. After three days, the score is now:

SW- 4

HP- 3

MCU- 2

To be continued…

After MCU got off to a hot start to kick off this year’s battle. Lets see what happens here on Day 2.

Day 2- MCU

Steve: On the second Day of Christmas, The guardians gave to me – the fall from place one to place threee.

If Star Wars has it’s weapon rack as their downfall, the MCU offerings have had the days of wrapped gifts. After a strong opening, the present of headphones with… cookie? Disc? I’m not sure?  is a big fall.  We also get a minifig-scale build that is supposed to be Peter Quill’s Sony Walkman, but it’s not a great build, and even a new print can’t save this.

Day 2- SW

Pat: Star Wars keeps the prequel train going with an awesome Minifigure inclusion to go with yesterday’s Gunship, a Clone Trooper Commander! This is a hard-to-find minifigure that was originally exclusive to the 75309 UCS Gunship, before reappearing in the 40558 Command Centre Blister Pack and this advent calendar. Due to the difficulty of finding those sets, however, this will be most peoples’ first opportunity to get this fig! He is based off the Episode 2 “Commander Ponds” Clone Trooper design, seen talking with Yoda in the Battle of Geonosis, and features fantastic helmet, torso, and leg print. It is also a relief to see him with a blaster, meaning we may not have weapons racks in this years’ calendar. 

With bright light orange markings on the torso and helmet, and the new standard Clone Trooper face print, this fig is sure to be a worthwhile addition to anyone’s Clone Army!

Day 2- HP

Matt: After possibly one of the most underwhelming starts to a calendar to date, HP is looking to take a mulligan and try again on Day 2.

Did they succeed? Not really.

Behind Day 2 is another microbuild, this time of a quidditch pitch. The pearl-silver piece used for the rings is a relatively (?) new LEGO piece, appearing more frequently in the last few years, so getting three copies here is great. Aside from that, we have Gryffindor and Slytherin colors adorning the base of the platform. I wouldn’t say this pitch is attempting to replicate anything canonically accurate from the novels or  films- we know quidditch rings would be much higher up in the air, even at this scale. That likely not realistic for an advent calendar all the same. 

Overall, not much more to say here. It’s a unique new build that hasn’t been replicated in past HP advent calendars but apart from that, there’s not much to see here.

Verdict

With it’s hard-to-find minifigure, SW clearly takes the full two points and has secured their first daily win of the season. In second place, a (pearl) silver lining for HP to get on the board with a singular point. A meager effort from MCU results in no points scored on this day.

As such, the points are now:

SW- 3

MCU- 2

HP- 1

To be continued…

Welcome back to another year of the Battle of the Licensed Advent Calendars! What’s become a sort of tradition for us is now in its 3rd year on newfoundlug.ca. The battle pits the Marvel Cinematic Universe (MCU), Star Wars (SW), and Harry Potter (HP) advent calendars against each other in a just-for-fun comparison to determine the winner for the holiday season. Each day, the consensus best build gets 2 points, the second best build gets 1 point, and the remaining build scores 0 points. After Day 24, the calendar with the most points is crowned champion. Follow along with us as we embark on our 24 day journey. May the best calendar win!

Day 1- MCU

Steve: On the First Day of Christmas the MCU gave to meeeee – A unique Star Lord Miniiii!

Stephen Churchill returns as the MCU Advent calendar enters its sophomore year with “Guardians of The Galaxy” theme to tie into their new Christmas special. Disney got to get that market synergy! As only their second year, we still don’t have a lot of history to judge the MCU entries by – lets open door #1.

They start things a bang again – opening up with Peter Quill as Star Lord in a unique minifig.  The figure has a solid torso print, and includes gold parts for the jet boots.  The lack of arm or leg printing is a letdown, and the alternate face is a frown instead of the armoured “faceplate” some other Star Lord figures have used.  It’s true to his appearance in the Disney+ Special though, and is overall a solid fig.

Day 1- SW

Pat: Seasoned and salty Star Wars advent reviewer vet Pat here back with another year of the battle of the licensed advent calendars. This is Star Wars’ 12th year of LEGO advent calendars, and with it my 12th year of purchasing them. Though the quality of contents and calendar have fluctuated over the years, they have always been great additions to Star Wars collections (in my opinion), and are synonymous with the Holiday season.

As mentioned, the Star Wars advents have historically been good, even great, but suffered from a weak year in 2017 and only pretty good calendars since, more or less. This is indicated by its standings in the battle of the advent calendars, where it is yet to win 1st against the ever-festive Harry Potter and the fresh ideas of the new Marvel advents. Despite a strong finish in last years’ “The Mandalorian”-themed calendar, the Star Wars advent calendars are frequently held back by their inclusion of weak microbuilds, non-festive elements and generic minifigures. Hopefully this year Star Wars will finally bring home the gold!

The calendar is off to a good start with nicely stylized boxart featuring the three minifigures I believe to be the exclusives of the calendar (though more on them at later dates) and an AT-AT walker in a Santa hat and beard. Looks like they could be celebrating Life Day on Endor! Traditionally, the Star Wars boxarts have been a bit cartoony and attempted to fit in a variety of builds of the advent, but I found this A) ruined the surprise sometimes, and B) ruined the festive artwork of the calendar. So this is a welcomed progression for the box!

Now, to check behind door/day (I use these synonymously) number 1!

We kick off the calendar with a microbuild – it would have been uncharacteristic of the Star Wars advents not to! Here we have a pretty sweet build for a Republic Gunship seen in Episodes 2, 3, and The Clone Wars. This is a model we’ve gotten a few times before from advent calendars in 2011 and 2013, but both of those used an identical, basic build, which this 24-piece behemoth puts to shame. The build utilizes some nice Studs-Not-On-Top building (SNOT) to create the hull of the ship, and a window to achieve the open-concept cabin design. The bucket handle used for the cannons is effective enough, and the 1×1 trans clear tiles on the wings used to reflect the Clone bubble-turret laser cannons are a nice touch. I don’t really think the technique for the engine intakes is effective; White bars are a bit too thin and “hover-y” off the build for my liking, but its still a very effective micro. Special shoutout to this little modified 1×1 I’ve never seen before and would have been such an asset in building custom droids in the past.

Overall, solid start for Star Wars! Hope it keeps it up!

Day 1- HP

Matt: This is the 4th year of the Battle and also Harry Potter’s 4th Advent Calendar. HP is no longer the new kid on the block (that goes to MCU) and with that comes the risk of repeating certain builds. HP has historically put off strong calendars, though I would argue that the quality has been slipping since its inaugural 2019 calendar.

Last year, HP started a new concept by making the calendar into a game board with their calendar mini-builds. This was a novel idea that no other calendar has pursued to date. While I think this does add another level of play and intrigue and certainly brings value to the product, it likely doesn’t factor in much for the basis of this Battle. 

More than anything, I’ll be looking to see if a common theme or trend develops. In 2019, the calendar focused on Year 1 of HP. In 2020, the focus was the Yule Ball in Year 4. Last year’s 2021 calendar sort of “reset” with a Year 1 “Journey to Hogwarts” emerging as the main theme. So overall, we can’t say there’s been a trend to date- in fact, I’d call it sporadic at best.

That said, let’s see how HP kicks off the 2022 season.

Behind door 1 is an espresso maker. Nope, wait, let’s check that again. It’s 12 Grimmauld Place, the ancestral Black family home. Wait, scratch that, this is the Hall of Prophecy in the Ministry of Magic. Yes, surely that’s what it is. No? Then what is it?!

Answer: Ollivander’s wand shop on Diagon Alley.

Wow. Never before have I been so bewildered by an HP microbuild to the point where I didn’t actually know what it was attempting to represent. I’ll be frank, I had to search the internet to get other opinions on what this build is. The consensus is that it is the famous Ollivander’s, represented here in microscale.

A couple things to point out here. If you didn’t own the massively expensive Diagon Alley set, you’d have a hard time comparing the similarities between this rendition and the “to scale” version found in that set. I do own Diagon Alley, and even I couldn’t make the connection. Apparently the “drainpipe” and the 1×2 transparent cylinders “gave it away.” I beg to differ. 

Ironically, this was one of the more complex micro builds I’ve had to make to date in an HP calendar. Yet the phrase “much ado about nothing” springs to mind. Another minor gripe for the hardcore enthusiast- why use two 2×2 tan plates together, when a single 2×4 tan plate would have sufficed, and given the build more structural integrity? Minor gripe, but maybe it says a bit more about LEGO “cutbacks” than anything.

Overall, I’d consider this one of the weaker entries to start a calendar in recent memory. Microbuilds always rank lower on our homemade hierarchy of rankings (minifigures first, everything else behind them) because they usually end up in the bulk pile. A small build can be great when it’s to scale, or usable for a minifigure (e.g. a piano, a table, etc.) but in this instance, that isn’t the case.

Verdict

A clear order emerges today, with MCU taking the first full 2 points of the season with a Peter Quill minifig, followed by a faithful SW micro build. Pulling up the rear in a distant third place is HP’s micro build offering.

With that, the score starts off as:

MCU- 2

SW- 1

HP- 0

To be continued…

by: Chris Mitchell

What is a LEGO room? This is a question I get asked quite frequently.

Over the past several months I have displayed at numerous shows throughout the province. One of the most common groups of questions I get asked is:

You have a Lego room?
Is it a room built out of Lego?

Well the answer is yes and no. Let me explain.

First off NO I don’t have a room built out of Lego. Do you even know what the cost of that would be?

Oh, this is a great time to toss in an interesting fact.

Lego is made from ABS plastic. It is one of the best insulators around. So it probably would be an efficient way to keep your place heated. However, trust me I get really hot in my room and because of that I have a fan on all the time I am in there winter or summer.

Back on topic.

As AFOLs most of us have a room that we call our “ Lego Room” or “ Build Room “. For some this could be an entire basement , a rec room, a small spare bedroom or even just the kitchen table. Unless your partner is in the building game, they never seem to be too happy with the “ Kitchen Table “ as a set up. However, it isn’t about the size of the space you have but more about how much enjoyment you get out of the space you got.

For some AFOLS they have a separate display area apart from their Lego Room. This is done to show off their creations. For me I would rather have them on shelves surrounding my Lego room so that I can enjoy them as this is where I spend most of my time. Unless I want to watch something on the big TV. Otherwise, I am happy with my 19” screen that I have grown accustomed to watching while I build.

I have had people in the past tell me “Oh, Lego is for kids” and “ Why don’t you get a real Man Cave”. Well it is like this. A “Man Cave ” or “ She Shed” is simply this. It is a space that you fill with the things you enjoy.

Sure, I have the Hockey paraphernalia, the band flags, Star Wars items and other things around my room that interest me. I also have a small bar section and other things that you may find in a typical adult’s room. However, the main focus is on Lego.

I say all this to make this point.

If it is something that you enjoy then surround yourself with it. It doesn’t have to be a lavish set up or even a set up that makes sense to others. It simply has to be pleasing to yourself.

Happy Building,

Chris