Review: 10332 Medieval Town Square
Posted by CapnRex101,
10193 Medieval Market Village was launched in 2009, becoming the largest Castle set produced at the time and with a higher recommended age than normal for the classic theme. Fifteen years later, sets designed for teenage and adult LEGO fans have become commonplace.
10332 Medieval Town Square reflects how these sets have changed, taking loose inspiration from 10193 Medieval Market Village and including far greater detail, more than doubling its predecessor's piece count! Furthermore, the model should complement 10305 Lion Knights' Castle perfectly.
Summary
10332 Medieval Town Square, 3,304 pieces.
£199.99 / $229.99 / €229.99 | 6.1p/7.0c/7.0c per piece.
Buy at LEGO.com »
Despite its odd building arrangements, in places, this set is absolutely charming
- Almost faultlessly detailed
- Varied architectural styles
- Some satisfying functions
- At last, the Wolfpack returns!
- An ideal companion for 10305 Lion Knights' Castle
- Strange building configurations
- Relatively few minifigures
- A little overpriced
The set was provided for review by LEGO. All opinions expressed are those of the author.
Box and Contents
Since this set was developed as a companion for 10305 Lion Knights' Castle, I was expecting nostalgic packaging of some kind, inspired by the original 10193 Medieval Market Village. The standard black backdrop is used instead, however. I understand the desire for consistency with the Icons theme, but this was definitely an occasion for something more creative and colourful.
Minifigures
Eight minifigures populate this set, which is just about enough, although I would have liked to see some more. The first three figures run businesses in the town, beginning with a carpenter, whose hair element returns from 21343 Viking Village in this colour. Her torso, meanwhile, has been created for this set and looks excellent, expanding the variety of medieval attire.
The second minifigure, by contrast, features a torso returning from 10305 Lion Knights' Castle. While the sand green design looks good, complete with a pouch fixed to the belt, I would have preferred to avoid such repetition between characters in the two sets, which are relatively likely to be displayed together.
Fortunately, the weaver rounding out this trio does incorporate a unique torso. The sand blue design is generic enough for many historical settings and pairs perfectly with a reddish brown satchel. Both female figures include double-sided heads and all three are equipped with fitting accessories, the most notable being the painter's brush and palette.
Official images suggest that the fourth character is the tavern keeper, although like the others, her attire is generic enough to fulfil any role. The dark red dress looks nice and includes some stains and scuffing on the front, alongside a simple pouch. Additionally, I like the wimple, which was a common garment in the medieval period, represented by a white hood element.
A child is also included and makes use of a new hat element, produced for 43242 Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs' Cottage. The sand green colour seems realistic and the combination of tan and dark orange on the torso is equally appropriate, paired with dark brown legs. Again, this torso is unique and features some scuffing, with a patch on the back.
This young minifigure includes a double-sided head, presenting cheerful and surprised facial expressions, but the tavern keeper features only her usual smile. A goblet is provided though, while the child comes with a spoon. Many other accessories are present throughout the actual set, of course.
The three remaining minifigures are visitors to the town, beginning with a tax collector, whose purple attire certainly gives an impression of wealth. The decoration across the torso and legs looks superb and features some metallic gold highlights, notably including ornate buttons and a golden trim around the collar. A matching black cape completes the minifigure.
10305 Lion Knights' Castle contains several of the new Lion Knights and another appears here, sporting a huge moustache! The red and blue colour scheme is attractive and I like the modern Lion Knights' coat of arms, but the red printing on the legs is noticeably darker than the torso. A jovial double-sided head is hidden under the moustache, shared by a knight from the castle.
Recent sets have already resurrected the Lion Knights, Black Falcons and Dragon Knights and now the Wolfpack returns as well! This outlaw faction's classic wolf symbol looks splendid and I like the modernised reddish brown attire, complete with a hood and dark brown cloak. The three figures are properly equipped and the tax collector's stickered ledger is especially notable. I like the design, but wish the 2x2 tile was printed.
The Completed Model
Similar to 10193 Medieval Market Village, this set comprises two large buildings, a tree and a range of smaller items, including a market stall and a cart. I appreciate the continuity between the two sets and the whole assembly works nicely together, although I actually find the original set a little more cohesive because its main buildings are proportionally closer than these two.
However, the tree represents a clear improvement on the version from 2009, which was very fragile. LEGO trees have become much more detailed over the last few years and this model looks interesting, even though others include far better texture, such as the recent example in 71819 Dragon Stone Shrine. Even so, I like the gnarled shape of this tree.
The branches make clever use of horn elements, originating from NINJAGO and making their debut in reddish brown. The gap between the lower branches and the canopy above is slightly odd, but perhaps the tree was once coppiced, which would explain its chunky base. Regardless, I think it looks good and the mushrooms and frog at the foot of the tree are welcome details.
Posters are attached to each side of the trunk, warning of a rampaging dragon from the Fright Knights range, seeking the whereabouts of an outlaw and advertising a goat for sale. Notably, the price of this goat has recently been slashed, in reference to the value of the element from 7189 Mill Village Raid. These three posters are among eighteen stickers included.
Like the tree, the market stall and cart are far more detailed than their equivalents from 10193 Medieval Market Village. The striped awning over the stall looks marvellous and the variety of cheeses is striking, alongside a pretzel and a croissant. The former was available in medieval Europe, but the latter is more modern. The wooden cart is relatively basic, but its angled sides are distinctive, with a barrel of trans-yellow 1x1 round tiles inside.
Woodworking and shield painting spaces can be found in the buildings, with various pieces of furniture inside. There is nowhere obvious to place these items though, so the rudimentary log stand and easel for painting shields will have to be placed outside. These are great additions to the wider scene though, particularly the ornate shield, which will perhaps belong to the queen.
The bigger building consists of three sections, which is not necessarily unusual for a medieval structure, as they would commonly be expanded over time. However, I find the combination of completely different styles odd, especially because the white-walled structure does not seem to stand cohesively against the stone building in the middle.
Personally, I think focusing on the carpentry shop and the attached cheesemaker's shop would be more effective. On the other hand, the extra building provides more colour and architectural variety, as well as extending the model's width to almost 29cm. Additionally, the structure looks stunning from every side, maintaining a consistent level of detail.
The contrast between the stone carpentry shop and its neighbour is attractive, especially given the smaller building's realistic wattle and daub construction, consisting of bricks and plates laid sideways. The building technique has appeared many times before, but it works well, while the layer of light bluish grey masonry bricks around the base of the building is also realistic.
I like the green tiles and curved slopes forming terrain beside these masonry bricks, as well as the colourful flowers on the window sills. Furthermore, the stickered sign hanging outside looks splendid, but the roof is underwhelming, as its texture is remarkably simple, even compared with the other buildings in this set.
Fortunately, the fenced area around the cheesemaker's shop is absolutely beautiful. The fence itself is quite detailed and integrated well with the exposed rocks, while the reddish brown gate at the back of the shop looks excellent too. A few more brown-topped mushrooms are included as well, similar to those surrounding the aforementioned tree.
There is plenty of room for animals inside the enclosed area, so the presence of only one goat and a squirrel is slightly disappointing. After all, 10193 Medieval Market Village also contained cows, a horse and brick-built ducks and chickens. However, the return of the goat is obviously exciting and its dark bluish grey colour is unique. A white version is available with the Goatherd Collectable Minifigure.
A pair of hinge plates link the adjoining buildings and provide access to their interiors, although the archways on the carpenter's shop are quite small. Moreover, there is no mechanism to lock the structures together, but the hinges are anchored using Technic axles, so they are unlikely to come apart.
In addition, the roofs and the upper floor of the two-storey shop are removable. There is plenty of detail inside, particularly in the cheesemaker's shop, where slopes and tiles represent varied kinds of cheese. I am pleased to see a couple of yellow 1x1 slopes among them because I think 10193 Medieval Market Village was the first set to use this slope as a wedge of cheese.
An oven and stove are also included, alongside a kitten, doubtless tempted by the unattended pail of milk! The tiled floor is relatively simple, but features some uneven corners and studs, as though worn over time. The wooden chair by the door looks perfect as well, comprising medium nougat and dark brown elements, which stand out against the stone floor.
The taller carpenter's workshop is appealing from the outside, featuring a stickered sign above the door and torches on either side. The shop seems rather squeezed between its neighbours, but the building's proportions are quite realistic and I love the large archway on the upper floor, from where stored materials or completed work can be lowered on the crane.
I mentioned that the wall on the side of the cheesemaker's shop includes only a small archway, which restricts access. Thankfully, the other side is more open, although there is not very much room inside, partly because of the many pieces of furniture. While the proportions of the building are reasonable, this workshop really needs additional floor space.
The furnishings are easily removable though and include some interesting items, between a rotating lathe, a tool rack and a desk. I like the printed log under the desk, depicting either an unfinished leg or a stool. The stickered plans for a chair are placed on top, while the chair itself is also provided and looks superb, considering its relative simplicity.
While the ground floor is cramped, there is another level, accessed with a folding ladder. This ladder is mounted on a trapdoor in the ceiling and released by turning a switch on the exterior, although the ladder still needs to be unfolded manually. Nevertheless, this is a clever means of connecting floors when space is extremely limited.
The roof is removable for access, revealing a few planks of wood and the axle for a new cart stored inside, as well as its wheels. However, most of the space is inevitably occupied by the winch for the crane, which can be locked in position with the Technic lever immediately above the ladder.
Two clips and a Technic gear are situated outside, controlling the winch and the latch for the trapdoor. I like that these controls are subtly integrated, but their location means opening the weaver's cottage, which was surely avoidable. Again, I think the second smaller building could have been omitted, arguably improving the model's appearance and definitely allowing easy access to these controls.
Even so, this building looks beautiful. The colour combination of black and white is lovely and this roof is far more detailed than its neighbours, using a building technique very similar to the thatched section of 10305 Lion Knights' Castle. Occasional dark tan curved wedge slopes help to break up the texture, while the curved eyebrow window is integrated seamlessly.
Various vegetables grow in the garden outside, including a pumpkin, which has been noted as originating from the Americas and not arriving in Europe until after the medieval period. On the other hand, I do like the splash of colour and the beehive serves a similar purpose. The printed bumblebee tile on top is a delightful touch and another appears on a flower behind the cottage.
Much of the space inside the weaver's cottage is occupied by a loom, displaying a magnificent tapestry. The floor is nicely finished with dark orange and reddish brown tiles and there is room for a wooden rack storing spools of thread in the corner. Furthermore, a pair of weaving needles are clipped to the opposite wall, represented by chopsticks!
The tapestry pays tribute to some iconic Castle sets from the theme's beginning, as 375 Castle towers above 383 Knight's Joust. The bright colours mirror those early sets and many medieval artworks and I love the blocky horses, translated accurately from sets of the late 1970s. The red sky looming behind the castle is an unexpectedly sinister feature, however.
Without the loom inside, the cottage is rather bland. The oven looks reasonable and lines up with the chimney outside, although I find the internal layout of these connected buildings odd. After all, the businesses are not separated by proper walls, nor does it make much sense for a cheesemaker's shop to adjoin a carpenter's workshop, without any internal doors.
The second building seems more cohesive, at least from the outside. I like the combination of civilian structures with a fortified tower, while the proportions of the building are generally quite realistic, in my opinion. I like the overhang on the upper floors in particular, which is certainly an important feature associated with late medieval buildings, maximising the internal floor area.
While the view from the front is impressive, the back of the structure is completely different in style and the transition is extremely abrupt. Taken individually, I like the tavern's earthy colour scheme and the more vibrant red and black walls of the adjoining residence, but the mixture is awkward when the pair are arranged like this and viewed from the side.
Fortunately, you can open the building and display the halves side by side, which seems more natural to me. 10193 Medieval Market Village was designed similarly, although those buildings appear realistic whether opened or closed, as does 10305 Lion Knights' Castle. By comparison, the structures in this set are not nearly as versatile for display.
Nevertheless, the level of detail is commendable. I like the recessed windows on the ground floor and the stone foundation under the wood, mirroring the cheesemaker's shop. Moreover, the cobbled steps look great and the ornate torches are effective, making the tavern feel very welcoming. The decorative helmet and axes displayed above the entrance are attractive too.
Olive green and dark tan pieces evidently do not contrast as strongly as the black and white or reddish brown and tan walls of the other building. I find the combination fairly appealing though, with occasional masonry bricks and wooden supports beneath the window sills introducing more detail. Also, the pie cooling on the window sill is a fun inclusion, as are the stickered shutters.
The red sign hanging outside the Broken Axe Inn looks good, thanks especially to the intricate wrought iron structure above. A similar blue sign advertises the painter's workshop, but it is not clear where a minifigure would need to go to reach the workshop. This is a flaw to be discussed when examining the interior.
I have no doubt the red and black colours of the residence connected to the guard tower were chosen in homage to 6067 Guarded Inn. This composition is outstanding and I love the foliage sprouting from underneath the tower, including a tree with a bird nesting among its branches. In addition, the design of this guard tower is identical to those around 10305 Lion Knights' Castle, appropriately.
These interiors are easy to access, further mirroring the style of the original Medieval Market Village. However, like the exteriors, those buildings' interiors were cohesive, whether open or closed, while these seem more chaotic. The inn, for example, is directly opposite the painter's workshop and a visitor can presumably only reach the workshop through the tavern door.
While the internal layout clearly leaves a lot to be desired, the individual rooms are furnished brilliantly. The dark red and dark orange flooring looks marvellous and I like the chess set, as well as the lute alongside. However, space is at a premium, so there is only one seat included and no bar counter, with a keg in the corner instead.
The level above contains a kitchen, featuring another oven beside a pile of logs. However, this oven is made of blackened metal rather than stone, so differs from those in the cheesemaker's shop and the weaver's cottage. All three line up precisely with their respective chimneys though, so the attention to detail throughout remains satisfying.
I like the wooden counter for preparing food, laden with a baguette, a crab and some herbs. A whole turkey hangs from a hook and some accessories are placed here, including a white fork, which has only appeared once before in this colour. I like this kitchen area, but wonder whether the rooms could have been rearranged to combine this space with the cheesemaker's shop.
A single bedroom is located on the upper floor, completing the three levels of the Broken Axe Inn. Although compact, this room includes the details I would expect, with a colourful bed and the requisite candle-lit writing desk. Official images suggest this bedroom is used when the tax collector visits, hence the empty inkwell here, as the tax collector is carrying his quill.
The sword mounted on the wall appears to confirm the tax collector's presence, hiding a drawer that contains a couple of printed coins! This is an exceptional feature, making use of the empty space within the adjoining roof. I think more details like this, giving opportunities for storytelling, would have improved the whole set.
Even though the location of the shield painter's workshop is odd, the interior looks splendid. A couple of undecorated shields are provided and I like the various splashes of paint around the room, as well as the portrait on the wall. An anvil is included as well, presumably so the painter can make minor adjustments to shields when necessary.
Following the stone staircase from the ground floor leads to a bedroom above the workshop. Yellow and blue is certainly a bold colour scheme for the bed, but its shape looks reasonable and the desk is welcome too, arranged similarly to the other bedroom. The stickered envelope on top features a wax seal, showing the Black Falcon's emblem.
The brick-built door is narrow, but functional, just like the bedroom door in 10305 Lion Knights' Castle. A sword is kept by the door, which is appropriate, as I imagine this room is assigned to whomever is stationed at the guard tower. Alternatively, this could be another bedroom serving the inn, or belong to the painter.
10305 Lion Knights' Castle includes a network of staircases and ladders, so minifigures could easily navigate almost every area of the castle. This set is not quite as complete in this regard, although the tower is accessible via a ladder outside the residence. Such features are evidently simple, but I am always pleased to see them, ensuring models appear more realistic.
As with the castle, the very top of the tower is not actually accessible, but this structure looks excellent. Dark bluish grey 1x1 rounded tiles form authentic corbels and the curved slopes on top of the battlements look fantastic, again corresponding with 10305 Lion Knights' Castle. The windows and striped flag are borrowed from the castle too, so the sets are ideal companions.
Overall
10305 Lion Knights' Castle is one of my favourite modern sets, while 10193 Medieval Market Village is among my favourite sets from my childhood, so I really should love 10332 Medieval Town Square. Somehow, though, I find it a little underwhelming. The level of detail is generally impressive and the variety of architectural styles is fun, but there are a number of issues.
Perhaps most importantly, I think both buildings are quite difficult to display, as neither is truly cohesive, inside or out. Perhaps the cheesemaker's shop could have been swapped with the painter's workshop, bringing the physical crafts into one building. Also, there was certainly an opportunity for some different roof styles, which has been missed.
On the other hand, the models are richly detailed and the minifigures are delightful too, even though only eight are included, due partly to the long-awaited Wolfpack outlaw. The price of £199.99, $229.99 or €229.99 seems slightly too expensive, but I would still consider this an enjoyable set, as a whole.
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50 comments on this article
In the reveal,some people said it was worse than the original. Makes you wonder just how biased some people can get...
I love the use of paws for the thatched-roof effect!
Nice set but feels like a ghost town. Where are the chickens, cows, and a horse? One goat is not enough to supply an entire cheese shop! Only eight residents make it feel extra abandoned. The drab colors and box art isn't helping either.
This feels like a set built up in my mind to be legendary, but just fails to deliver due to the lack of animals, figs, and side builds. It's unfortunate that the main builds aren't enough here, despite how nice they are.
Just like with 10332 - one of my favourite sets of all time - I think it does a lot of things right. Especially the seemingly random combination of different architectural types - as this, more than anything else, shows the organic growth of the town, with the oldest building being expanded over time, but with the style that's currently the norm.
Now what I'm most interested in is how it would look besides 21325, as I can imagine both sets would make great companions.
Quite underwhelming. Specially for the price.
Does the castle wall section line up with the Lion Knights Castle at all? I’m assuming no, but it would be nice to know
Will buy it at some point but still waiting for a decent GWP/discount.
That poor goat is abused seeing the amount of cheese they produce.
Stickers and unprinted mushrooms is a disappointment.
Love the figs yeah wolfpack but the not returning dragon master still confuses me.
Funny part the reward prizes (10-40) refer to the old coins that were mainly used in pirates and were only used in a few of the newer castle sets
Please LEGO, all I ask is that you put the Wolfpack torso on Pick-A-Brick! Please please please please PPPLLLEEEAAASSSEEE?!?!?
@AverageChimaEnjoyer said:
"Please LEGO, all I ask is that you put the Wolfpack torso on Pick-A-Brick! Please please please please PPPLLLEEEAAASSSEEE?!?!?"
You have a while to wait. December stuff from the museum just went up this month.
I imagine the splash of red is a reference to sets like 6067, or the random yellow in 6074. Maybe one of those times where going for the homage could have been left out
Sometimes I think the attention to detail has caught up with Lego where they are adding too much detail now.
10193 is the set to compare this to. I honestly don't know how that one was priced at $100 and this is priced at $230. Is it that significantly better than 10193? It does have more detail, but is it worth it to this extent? Even with inflation, considering both the price and the value, this set doesn't add up to me.
It does go well with that Lion's Knight Castle though. But on its own, it's not worth the purchase.
Good review! I just built this set this week after getting it as a much-anticipated birthday present from my folks!
I'm not bothered by the arrangement of buildings myself. On the contrary, I like how the two-story, stone-walled carpenter's shop contrasts with the shorter half-timbered buildings on either side, creating a more interesting silhouette and a greater variety of textures/motifs than if the farmhouse and weaver's workshop were placed side by side. To me, the varied "skyline" and floor plan here looks much more interesting (and feels more convincingly rustic/old-fashioned) than the more standardized size, shape, and layout of the buildings in 10193.
I definitely understand your complaints about the interior layouts not making that much sense, though. For my part I'm not too bothered by it, but it does get me wondering how it might've been done differently while still preserving the same variety of businesses and a similar exterior layout. I suppose if you removed some of the rocks and moved or removed the painting from the stone back wall of the shieldsmith's workshop, it would allow enough room to add another door for entry. But by comparison, I feel the lack of interior dividing walls is a more necessary compromise to ensure all the interiors are visible and playable when folded open.
I'm surprised you find the interior of the weaver's workshop bland — certainly, any of the building interiors would look rather bare with all their furnishings removed, but in this case I feel like the room still looks really beautiful thanks to the curved rafters, high-contrast walls, elegant wooden board pattern on the floors, and the light from the eyebrow window!
Compared to the more subdued color schemes elsewhere in the build, the back room of the inn feels like a deliberate callback to the Guarded Inn with its red and black half-timbered walls and neighboring watchtower. Even so, these contrasting color schemes end up looking really beautiful together! The colorful bed also complements the bedroom's "retro" look very nicely. The front rooms of the inn are also really nicely arranged and furnished. The lack of stair/ladder access to the top bedroom is a bit of an unfortunate compromise, but one I can easily live with, much like the lack of ladders to the roof of 10305's campanile, rear watchtower, and gatehouse.
While the roofs of the farmhouse and carpenter's workshop are less elaborately textured than their neighbors, I again appreciate the variety they add (especially after comparing them to the preliminary image leaked in last year's survey, which used the exact same thatched roof technique on EVERY building). I'm also pretty impressed how seamless they look, how securely they fit, and how easily they can be removed thanks to the 90-degree SNOT assemblies holding them together. It's a very different roofing approach than I'm used to seeing in other historic sets or MOCs. Perhaps they would be less contentious if the textural details were changed to represent a different type of roof like wooden boards or shingles instead of just a different style of thatching.
Overall, while it has more shortcomings than 10305, I can't say I'm at all disappointed with the end result — a certain number of compromises are to be expected with smaller and less majestic medieval buildings, and I think the designers did a good job balancing those shortcomings out with lots of varied, eye-catching interior and exterior details. I also love the emphasis on medieval trades that haven't gotten a lot of attention in previous sets. I'm definitely glad to have it in my collection — It's a beautiful set in its own right, a fantastic complement for the castle, and a promisng source of MOC inspiration!
I could only ever see this as a accompanying piece to the Lions Castle, otherwise, it doesn't really hold up on it's own.
I’m not sure I understand the criticism about the price. In terms of PPP, this set is better than 10305, and is less than a cent per piece more than 10193. This is double the number of pieces of 10193 for a little over double the price. I get that it’s about perception as well, but for the actual plastic that you get it seems pretty reasonable to me.
Too pricey for me. I feel it should be about 199.99 USD which, IMO, is still a lot, but it feels like LEGO's pricing meetings go something like this:
"What should this cost?"
"199.99"
"Okay, add 30 to it"
"Why?"
"Gotta keep the Ferrari fund filled"
Then there are the stickers.. ugh, for me.. if I'm paying this kind of money for a set like this, I want all printed parts.
Id comment on the lack of figures, which I feel there are for this price, but 10193 only had 8 (but then again it also had two cows).
...and people need to stop trumpeting the PPP, its arbitrary IMO (considering how small many of the pieces are given their use to make it 'more realistic'), and I think its typically used as a justification for LEGO to gouge their customers.
To me, if LEGO really cared, they spare a little of the details to make it more affordable, and yes I get its not for everyone, and for its cost its more meant for adults, but even adults have budgets..
@Abu_Dun said:
"Now what I'm most interested in is how it would look besides 21325 , as I can imagine both sets would make great companions."
They're not quite to scale to each other, but you can create some forced perspective by placing this set's buildings in the background. The castle looks tiny besides 21325, and I already feel these houses look quite substantial compared to Lion Knight's Castle. It would be nice if LEGO would stick to one scale for castle sets going forward.
@gatorbug6 said:
"Nice set but feels like a ghost town. Where are the chickens, cows, and a horse? One goat is not enough to supply an entire cheese shop! Only eight residents make it feel extra abandoned. The drab colors and box art isn't helping either. "
Maybe the village has just been raided by Black Falcons. Or there's been another outbreak of the plague. Or they're all on crusade. It's not as bad as with the 3-in-1 Creator castle, where there's only three minifigs and a handful of brick-built animals.
@madforLEGO said:
"Then there are the stickers.. ugh, for me.. if I'm paying this kind of money for a set like this, I want all printed parts. "
Yes, the stickers annoy me too, especially given I also feel it's (ever so) slightly overpriced. I'll get it regardless of those flaws, because it looks lovely, but LEGO should really stay away from stickers for its adult-orientated sets. Save it for Friends and Technic, thank you.
There are high points throughout but it’s not cohesive, and ultimately nothing about this feels as premium as the price would suggest. Higher quantity and variety of animals would be the most obvious and simple way to get it closer, especially noting how much a highlight of the original version this aspect was. It’s a weird omission.
I like the build, and don't mind the arrangement.
But the minifigs are a bit of a let down. Especially the Wolfpack. I'd much prefer a fairly plain design, without all the fur and belt obscuring the design. It makes it much harder to use for multiple figures. Same with the pouches that they put in the designs of the others. And why can't they dual mould the legs of figures like the tax inspector...?
A price by weight comparison for recent Castle and Fantasy style releases (to be completed).
10193 Medieval Market Village 2009
£37.20 per kilo
Sets available now:
31120 Creator Medieval Castle £39.61 per kilo
76419 Hogwarts Castle and Grounds £48.70 per kilo
71423 Dry Bowser Castle Battle
£63.92 per kilo
10305 Lion Knights' Castle £56.91 per kilo
10316 Rivendell £62.26 per kilo
21343 Viking Village £52.83 per kilo
910029 (Bricklink) Mountain Fortress £ Unknown ?? OK hardly available either!
10332 Medieval Town Square £56.88 per kilo
43242 Snow White’s Cottage £74.27 per kilo
21348 Dungeons & Dragons £Unknown ??
Bingo! Only really needed one or two of the comments.
I found it to be a bit underwhelming to build and to look at. Thankfully I have a few extra chickens, goats, cows and horses to liven it up a bit.
Doesn't do it for me. And I'm a castle fan more than anything else. It is obviously more sophisticated than 10193, but somehow less exciting.
@GenericLegoFan said:
"In the reveal,some people said it was worse than the original. Makes you wonder just how biased some people can get..."
I think it mainly comes down to a matter of coherence. For me almost everything in 10193 works to build a sense of a bustling town square - even though the buildings are styled differently they complement each other well in both open and closed configurations. The colours are bright yet balanced, and the variety of minifigs and animals make the scene feel alive, with plenty of storytelling opportunities.
On the other hand, very little in 10332 feels of a piece. Maybe that's by design, given how medieval houses had a tendency to grow off each other. But the overall design seems like a jumble of different, clashing ideas, the interiors make little logical sense, and I find the colour scheme actively unpleasant to look at, especially the garish mix of olive, nougat and red. In addition, overly fussy details like the cracked floor tiles add to a bloated piece count while being mostly concealed. The relative lack of animals is also surprising, given how much character they added to the original set.
Maybe it's just how Lego sets have shifted in the last decade, but medieval market village still stands out as a triumph of form and design, which is sadly not something I can say about this reimagining.
@CamberbrickGreen said:
[[A price by weight comparison for recent Castle and Fantasy style releases (to be completed).
10193 Medieval Market Village 2009
£37.20 per kilo
Sets available now:
31120 Creator Medieval Castle £39.61 per kilo
76419 Hogwarts Castle and Grounds £48.70 per kilo
71423 Dry Bowser Castle Battle
£63.92 per kilo
10305 Lion Knights' Castle £56.91 per kilo
10316 Rivendell £62.26 per kilo
21343 Viking Village £52.83 per kilo
910029 (Bricklink) Mountain Fortress £ Unknown ?? OK hardly available either!
10332 Medieval Town Square £56.88 per kilo
43242 Snow White’s Cottage £74.27 per kilo
21348 Dungeons & Dragons £Unknown ??]]
0332 Medieval Town Square £56.88 per kilo
43242 Snow White’s Cottage £74.27 per kilo
21348 Dungeons & Dragons £Unknown ??]]
Yes. I always get tired of people saying 'But what about the piece count?' 1x1 tiles, feathers, flames, a Jedi craves not this things. A big fat 1x16 brick counts as a bit more than a 1x1 tile imo.
These sets are always too expensive. They have a high piece count but 90% of the pieces are very small. When you actually build the set it is a very underwhelming size.
@riversarl said:
" @GenericLegoFan said:
"In the reveal,some people said it was worse than the original. Makes you wonder just how biased some people can get..."
I think it mainly comes down to a matter of coherence. For me almost everything in 10193 works to build a sense of a bustling town square - even though the buildings are styled differently they complement each other well in both open and closed configurations. The colours are bright yet balanced, and the variety of minifigs and animals make the scene feel alive, with plenty of storytelling opportunities.
On the other hand, very little in 10332 feels of a piece. Maybe that's by design, given how medieval houses had a tendency to grow off each other. But the overall design seems like a jumble of different, clashing ideas, the interiors make little logical sense, and I find the colour scheme actively unpleasant to look at, especially the garish mix of olive, nougat and red. In addition, overly fussy details like the cracked floor tiles add to a bloated piece count while being mostly concealed. The relative lack of animals is also surprising, given how much character they added to the original set.
Maybe it's just how Lego sets have shifted in the last decade, but medieval market village still stands out as a triumph of form and design, which is sadly not something I can say about this reimagining."
I was just about the try and explain the same thing but you have done a great job of summing up how I feel about the set.
I like the detail, and appreciate the architectural diversion from the predecessor's Tudor style. Also, I enjoy the four-sided construction whilst allowing for easy play and access. The minifigs and animals are excellent. I'm glad this set exists to go along with all the other fun castle, medieval, and D&D themed sets.
However, I feel that this is way too skimpy for a non-IP set. This should have included many more figs and animals, and the price should be reduced by almost 30%.
I look forward to when it reaches a point of sale/GWP incentive that induces my acquisition.
@CamberbrickGreen said:
"A price by weight comparison for recent Castle and Fantasy style releases (to be completed).
10193 Medieval Market Village 2009
£37.20 per kilo
Sets available now:
31120 Creator Medieval Castle £39.61 per kilo
76419 Hogwarts Castle and Grounds £48.70 per kilo
71423 Dry Bowser Castle Battle
£63.92 per kilo
10305 Lion Knights' Castle £56.91 per kilo
10316 Rivendell £62.26 per kilo
21343 Viking Village £52.83 per kilo
910029 (Bricklink) Mountain Fortress £ Unknown ?? OK hardly available either!
10332 Medieval Town Square £56.88 per kilo
43242 Snow White’s Cottage £74.27 per kilo
21348 Dungeons & Dragons £Unknown ??"
As a note for direct comparison, the £37.20 for 10193 in 2009 works out to £56.83 in Feb 2024. This puts it almost exactly on equal footing with 10305 Lion Knights Castle, by pound per kilo.
"Recent sets have already resurrected the Lion Knights, Black Falcons and Dragon Knights and now the Wolfpack returns as well!" Are you forgetting the Forestmen, or were they doing too good of a job blending into the forest? Also, I was already suspicious of that tax collector, and then I see his been hiding money away! Some might say that he's protecting the tax money before it gets to the royal coffers, but I think he's been collecting more money than he was supposed to, and pocketing the difference. Clothes that fine don't pay for themselves...
@bobaphat107 said:
"Yes. I always get tired of people saying 'But what about the piece count?' 1x1 tiles, feathers, flames, a Jedi craves not this things. A big fat 1x16 brick counts as a bit more than a 1x1 tile imo."
It's true that price per part is not a great measure, as value really depends on what the parts are. But then, price per weight isn't great either, as sets with relatively large manuals and boxes appear better value.
According to BL, LKC is 6062g but the manual is 872g and the box is 704g. That's 26%.
Creator castle is 2272g, but 784g manual and 304g box. That's 48%.
3 in 1 sets, where manuals are essentially three times larger than single build sets, are going to appear better value by weight but much of that weight is paper. If the paper is not accounted for, price per weight is just as bad as price per part.
Love the designs but really don't know if buying a copy is worth it compared to buying just some of the figure parts and building this from an additional parts order and my collection of generic bricks.
I am thinking the price would be fair at 200 bucks though it's still conspiciously missing the cow and calf that Lego advertised in the preliminary survey and they as well as about 4 of the figures and many of the smaller side builds apparently got replaced by only the "big" tree which is rather tiny for what has all been taken out.
Though getting cows in plain browns again instead of black/white spotted variants would not have been too special anyway. At least the chinese have finally made a good black/white copy.
I would also want to rebuild all the houses so each of the 5 sections becomes a standalone house, doubling their sizes from the set, and that is going to be some intense work.
If this was part of a full castle theme I think I would be more forgiving, as there would be other sets to compliment it adding animals and 'life' with this being seen more as a larger backdrop. However without a theme to back it up, if feels lacking in a number of places, as if for whatever business or design reason, they stripped a bunch of stuff out to get it to the current RRP.
This is disappointing when you compare it to some of the Ninjago City sets (at a similar price and piece count), that have a bunch more figures and interesting building techniques. Or compared to the recent D&D set that just seems a lot more fun in its shaping and character design.
Ultimately for me it feels stuck between being a adult-aimed ICON set, but lacking the techniques and flair, and a kid-aimed flagship castle set, but lacking the fun (figs, animals etc) and play features.
I like it, and see potential for MOCing... but as a castle fan I wish I loved it more.
@CCC said:
" @bobaphat107 said:
"Yes. I always get tired of people saying 'But what about the piece count?' 1x1 tiles, feathers, flames, a Jedi craves not this things. A big fat 1x16 brick counts as a bit more than a 1x1 tile imo."
It's true that price per part is not a great measure, as value really depends on what the parts are. But then, price per weight isn't great either, as sets with relatively large manuals and boxes appear better value.
According to BL, LKC is 6062g but the manual is 872g and the box is 704g. That's 26%.
Creator castle is 2272g, but 784g manual and 304g box. That's 48%.
3 in 1 sets, where manuals are essentially three times larger than single build sets, are going to appear better value by weight but much of that weight is paper. If the paper is not accounted for, price per weight is just as bad as price per part.
"
That’s very relevant (especially those adult set manuals) and few people can weigh just the model. I appreciate weight is just one aspect of value mostly for parts harvesting.
@CamberbrickGreen said:
" @CCC said:
" @bobaphat107 said:
"Yes. I always get tired of people saying 'But what about the piece count?' 1x1 tiles, feathers, flames, a Jedi craves not this things. A big fat 1x16 brick counts as a bit more than a 1x1 tile imo."
It's true that price per part is not a great measure, as value really depends on what the parts are. But then, price per weight isn't great either, as sets with relatively large manuals and boxes appear better value.
According to BL, LKC is 6062g but the manual is 872g and the box is 704g. That's 26%.
Creator castle is 2272g, but 784g manual and 304g box. That's 48%.
3 in 1 sets, where manuals are essentially three times larger than single build sets, are going to appear better value by weight but much of that weight is paper. If the paper is not accounted for, price per weight is just as bad as price per part.
"
That’s very relevant (especially those adult set manuals) and few people can weigh just the model. I appreciate weight is just one aspect of value mostly for parts harvesting."
It is not too hard to get reasonably accurate weights for sets using BL. You can take the set weight, and subtract the box and manual weights. Of course, it is not entirely accurate since there is other stuff in the box, but not too far off.
@classicstylecastle said:
"If this was part of a full castle theme I think I would be more forgiving, as there would be other sets to compliment it adding animals and 'life' with this being seen more as a larger backdrop. "
I agree. Not being able to add soldiers or civilians or animals, or even little side builds is possibly a negative factor for a set like this. I know some of us know it is possible to buy minifigure parts and animals from PAB, but many casual buyers won't know that.
@GenericLegoFan said:
"In the reveal,some people said it was worse than the original. Makes you wonder just how biased some people can get..."
because it is...
I still think this is very underwhelming, with strange connections, bland colors, wierd lay-out and balance,...
@bobaphat107 said:
[[ @CamberbrickGreen said:
[[A price by weight comparison for recent Castle and Fantasy style releases (to be completed).
10193 Medieval Market Village 2009
£37.20 per kilo
Sets available now:
31120 Creator Medieval Castle £39.61 per kilo
76419 Hogwarts Castle and Grounds £48.70 per kilo
71423 Dry Bowser Castle Battle
£63.92 per kilo
10305 Lion Knights' Castle £56.91 per kilo
10316 Rivendell £62.26 per kilo
21343 Viking Village £52.83 per kilo
910029 (Bricklink) Mountain Fortress £ Unknown ?? OK hardly available either!
10332 Medieval Town Square £56.88 per kilo
43242 Snow White’s Cottage £74.27 per kilo
21348 Dungeons & Dragons £Unknown ??]]
0332 Medieval Town Square £56.88 per kilo
43242 Snow White’s Cottage £74.27 per kilo
21348 Dungeons & Dragons £Unknown ??]]
Yes. I always get tired of people saying 'But what about the piece count?' 1x1 tiles, feathers, flames, a Jedi craves not this things. A big fat 1x16 brick counts as a bit more than a 1x1 tile imo.]]
This isn't very usefull: lego tends to use much more smaller parts in sets these days, and those smaller parts drive up the weight AND piece-count without necessarily giving more stuff...
For example: a 1 x 1 plate is 0.2 grams, but 4 1 x 1 plates are 0.8 grams and not 0.71grams like a 1 x 4 plate...
The best way to do it, in my humble opinion, is price per avarge pieceweight.
I'll admit the set isn't perfect, but overall I really still like it. I own the Medieval Market Village, and while I think it is awesome, the buildings don't come close to this sets level of detail and building techniques. Again this set isn't perfect but overall I think it is a big improvement over its predecessor. However as many have said before me its major detractions are the number of minifigures and lack of animals. If they put in two more minifigures and maybe 2-3 more animals I would have had no complaints at all. Oh and less stickers would be optimum, but I understand they can only print so much detail.
I like the general look of the set, but that's about it.
The missing animals are a major letdown imho.
One goat? That's it? For that amount of money there should have been at least two goats, plus a cow and calf, some chicken, one or two pigs and maybe even a horse or two.
There's this myth that animals are so much more expensive to produce, when in reality they are just as mass-produced as any other LEGO piece of similar size and form.
For example you can get a set of five non-LEGO goats in various colours and prints for less than 2 Euro delivered from China. And those sellers will certainly not be selling them at a loss. Similar with all kinds of other LEGO-compatible animals. This shows the true "value" of such pieces.
Anyone believing LEGO's hypothesis that animals should basically be worth their weight in gold must be out of their minds.
Great review! I haven't gotten the set yet myself, but I will.
Keep an eye out on BDP Series 5, I have something coming that may be a nice addition ;)
I feel like sets like this are impossible to get right for LEGO. Either they make them near perfect, with lots of details and figs and prints and so on… and the price is even more expensive, or they give us a “reasonably” priced set and people complain that it isn’t absolutely perfect… and that’s before you start to factor nostalgia, historical accuracy, etc,
@AFOLchamp said:
"I feel like sets like this are impossible to get right for LEGO. Either they make them near perfect, with lots of details and figs and prints and so on… and the price is even more expensive, or they give us a “reasonably” priced set and people complain that it isn’t absolutely perfect… and that’s before you start to factor nostalgia, historical accuracy, etc, "
To paraphrase Abraham Lincoln, "You can please some of the fandom all of the time, and all of the fandom some of the time, but you cannot please all of the fandom all of the time."
@CapnRex101
Thank you for an excellent review as always.
I especially appreciate the mentions of historical facts/inaccuracies such as the croissant and pumpkin. I also learnt that pretzels have been around for centuries which I did not know, and the proper name for the 'chopsticks' which I had an idea what they represented but wasn't sure what to call them.
It is great to acknowledge historical aspects of an historical based set instead of going on a negative rant against anyone who considers these things important as sadly an increasing number of reviewers are doing.
I really enjoyed reading your review, it is very fair, balanced, detailed and professional.
I'm sure fellow Bricksetters will agree that you have explained our concerns succinctly but thoroughly, such as the lack of minifigures/animals (which stands out in the farmyard which can clearly have more animals as mentioned) and odd design choices and colours.
I was really happy to see I'm not the only one who found the cohesiveness of particularly the cheeseshop-craftshops build lacking, especially how they have these weird holes in the walls between.
I for one would have liked to have seen the cheeseshop be it's own building because it looks great, and maybe complete the tapestry building a bit more too.
I also agree that the tavern colours on their own are okay within the setting, and understand the bright red is supposed to be a reference to Classic Castle sets, the big issue is that the two are put right next to one another and it just looks terrible as you say.
Furthermore this is one of few reviews that have rightly mentioned how the buildings don't display well in all configurations. LK Castle is good open or closed, as is MMV, but this is just weird at times and I have been struggling to think how I will display this. For example I saw a good layout online, except that will leave whole open walls exposed if seen from certain angles.
Keep up the good work Brickset :)
Medieval female carpenter. How quant...
@Zink said:
"Really boring to look at with all those tans. The Middle Ages were so much more colorful than we think of it today. Sad to see such historical inaccuracy…"
I have to disagree. As I said in the comments section of my Brickset article about 31120:
‘The colour of buildings in Medieval/Early Rennaissance Europe is one of those topics that has swung wildly online from one point of view to another (various questions about arms and armour have too). The truth is somewhere in between. Castles were often exposed stone or brick, and sometimes whitewashed - with or without plaster. At some points in time and place they were covered in render ranging from puce to salmon pink. Very occasionally, they were brightly coloured. We know from archaeological research that there was a castle in Italy covered in colourful frescoes for example. Roofs were made of stone, brick or (coated) wood, or covered in slate (shown as blue in Medieval art) or clay-based ceramic shingles (shown as brownish-orange). The infill of half-timbering varied in colour depending on time, place, availability, tastes and cost. It could be bare brick, plaster or daub. Colours were sometimes bright (pink for example), but manuscripts of the period clearly show that dull colours were common (we know the colours of those texts haven't dulled or - when they have - exactly how and to what extent). There has been a tendency in the intervening centuries to imagine the Medieval/Early Renaissance period as visually muted due to the aging, weathering, damage, dirt and pollution affecting extant buildings. But that is not to say that towns and cities at that time were a kaleidoscope of rich, saturated colours. For the most part, that wasn't the case.’
@CapnRex101, Great review and pictures. The tree isn’t coppiced though; it’s may have been pollarded. Coppicing is something you do to an area. Individual trees/shrubs are pollarded.
Nice enough model paying homage to the previous village and with some very nice touches. I guess that's King Leo on the horse in the picture.
Bits pricey IMO. Few more goats needed. Wondering how well it will integrate with recent models.
Coppicing - following a cutting/pruning regime usually 5-10 years, cutting at ground level. Hazel is the obvious example. Actually might link up to the weaver.
Pollarding - same regime but done at height. Quite often around 2 metres. Beeches, oaks and willows react well to pollarding.
Lego tree here looks somehow like both!
@Zink said:
"Really boring to look at with all those tans. The Middle Ages were so much more colorful than we think of it today. Sad to see such historical inaccuracy (side-eyeing the women's uncovered hair)."
Not to be sexist or anything but a female carpenter? Really? At least they could've swapped the genders for the weaver and the carpenter.
@Zander said:
" @Zink said:
"Really boring to look at with all those tans. The Middle Ages were so much more colorful than we think of it today. Sad to see such historical inaccuracy…"
I have to disagree. As I said in the comments section of my Brickset article about 31120:
‘The colour of buildings in Medieval/Early Rennaissance Europe is one of those topics that has swung wildly online from one point of view to another (various questions about arms and armour have too). The truth is somewhere in between. Castles were often exposed stone or brick, and sometimes whitewashed - with or without plaster. At some points in time and place they were covered in render ranging from puce to salmon pink. Very occasionally, they were brightly coloured. We know from archaeological research that there was a castle in Italy covered in colourful frescoes for example. Roofs were made of stone, brick or (coated) wood, or covered in slate (shown as blue in Medieval art) or clay-based ceramic shingles (shown as brownish-orange). The infill of half-timbering varied in colour depending on time, place, availability, tastes and cost. It could be bare brick, plaster or daub. Colours were sometimes bright (pink for example), but manuscripts of the period clearly show that dull colours were common (we know the colours of those texts haven't dulled or - when they have - exactly how and to what extent). There has been a tendency in the intervening centuries to imagine the Medieval/Early Renaissance period as visually muted due to the aging, weathering, damage, dirt and pollution affecting extant buildings. But that is not to say that towns and cities at that time were a kaleidoscope of rich, saturated colours. For the most part, that wasn't the case.’
@CapnRex101, Great review and pictures. The tree isn’t coppiced though; it’s may have been pollarded. Coppicing is something you do to an area. Individual trees/shrubs are pollarded."
Coppicing and pollarding are not exactly the same process, as @beatnik has mentioned, so I think either can be done to a single tree. I get the impression this tree is supposed to have been coppiced, perhaps only partially, some time ago and has since regrown significantly, hence the large gap between the lower new growth and the canopy above.
I agree about medieval use of colour though. I think the colours in this set are pretty plausible, as the combined workshop building is more utilitarian, whereas the tavern is probably the kind of building that would have been painted to stand out.
I’m all for country crafts- some hedgelaying and stonewalling would be great in such sets.
Here I feel they’ve played all the right colours, just not necessarily in the right order.
Wood beam with beige cob or wattle and daub works very well in the cheesemakers shop.
The stone would have looked better with some black beams struck through some dark grey variation.
The green is not ideal but works better with a darker beam, and the red and black is much more suitable for a roofed tavern possibly seperate with the cheesemaker adjoined?
The stickers are cheap especially when you remember wood hatch pieces actually exist!!
My main beef is the roofs could be steeper and/or thicker with thatch shapes rather than those tufty plates.
But it’s actually generally very decent so there’s that dangerous attraction in a purchase just so you can rearrange the whole thing for HOURS!
I was surprised how much better this one looks in person, compared to reviews like this one. The colors come together much better and it looks cute and cohesive. If you have a LEGO store around, I recommend you check it out on display. Just a personal opinion, but side by side with the D&D set, I thought this one looked more realistic and interesting -- other than the minifigs of course.