Review: 10297 Boutique Hotel
Posted by Huw,
2022 marks the 15th anniversary of the launch of what is now known as the modular buildings collection.
10297 Boutique Hotel is the 17th in the series and like 10182 Cafe Corner, the first to be released during 2007, it's both a hotel and a corner unit.
However, that's as far as the similarities go because this is by far the most interesting and distinct building in the series thanks to its unique geometry and eye-catching colour scheme.
The completed model
The main part of the building is a three-storey hotel featuring different building styles on each level. Of particular note is the first floor which is constructed almost entirely of light nougat pieces, a colour which until this year had been confined to use for minifig parts.
The corner of the building is semicircular on the upper levels and topped with a sand green dome.
Things start to get interesting on the other side because the left-hand wall of the hotel building is set at ~53 degrees (using the geometry of a 3:4:5 triangle as you'll see below) which leaves space for a small art gallery and an open-air bar with a tropical vibe on its roof.
The side of the art gallery and a strategically placed wheelie bin provide connection points to other buildings in the series.
As is usually the case, the face of the building that butts up to adjoining ones is not particularly attractive, but then it doesn't need to be.
As with all modular buildings its three storeys are designed to be easily separable to allow the interior details to be observed and, if you feel so inclined, to be played with.
The unique and ingenious geometry of the building can be clearly seen when the ground floor is viewed from the top.
As you'd expect, the hotel's reception occupies this space and from this angle the attractive tiling on the floor can be fully appreciated.
The gallery is full of artwork which will be more clearly seen in subsequent photos.
The reception area houses a desk with a key rack behind it and the first of many references to older modular buildings that are scatted throughout this one. The visitor book shows the names of residents of those living or working in other ones, including Albert the chef in 10243 Parisian Restaurant, and the phone is the same as that in 10278 Police Station. The instruction manual states that 'the receptionist enjoys calling her friend the lieutenant in the police station' on it!
It looks as if the abstract artwork on the wall came from the gallery next door.
The reception area is very spacious, with just a comfy-looking leather settee and a jardinière occupying the public area.
The small art gallery is run by a hip-looking minifigure and its contents are best observed in the construction photos below because it's a bit cramped in there.
All the decorated elements in the set are printed, including the notice board on the wall which is covered with references to previous modulars and their occupants: Ace Brickman, (Detective's Office), boxing (Downtown Diner), apple (Green Grocer), to name just a few.
Note the water fountain with attractive tiling under the stairs, and they way they have been constructed: the first few steps are studs-out, those at the top studs-up.
The back of the ground floor is plain and, frankly, a bit boring. There's a mouldy croissant in the wheelie bin, a reference to 10243 Parisian Restaurant.
The stairs in the reception lead to the first floor where there are two guest rooms. The shoebox-sized one on the front right might be the smallest and cheapest room in the hotel, but it does have a balcony. It's fairly well-appointed, too, with a single bed, wardrobe, dressing table, chair and bedside table all crammed into the space. There is nowhere to toilet, though, and no public facilities in the hotel, either!
The larger room on this floor also has a single bed, wardrobe and bedside table as well as a desk with a lamp and typewriter making it more suitable for travelling businessmen, although they too will have to do without bathing facilities.
The typewriter on the desk is the same as that in the police station.
The roof of the art gallery is at the same level as the first floor of the hotel, and it's occupied by a small bar, which might be the first alcoholic beverage serving facility in a LEGO set. I guess it could be a juice bar, but that doesn't usually come in green bottles!
I've removed the palm tree from the photo below for a better view.
The tree, however, looks excellent. The crown piece first found in LEGO Movie 2 sets on top of Queen Watevra's head is used to give the trunk a realistic texture, and it's very effective.
The second floor contains one guest room featuring what I believe is a first in a LEGO set: a bath(tub).
There's a bath, sink, toilet and bath mat in the bathroom. The occupant of this room is the only guest to have such facilities. I wonder whether the other guests have to ask to use it? :-)
The room has a double bed, wardrobe with drawers, a black leather chair, bedside tables with lamps using cupcakes as shades...
... a television, a standard lamp and a small table with a bottle on top. All in all it's very well-appointed, and there's even a bar of chocolate on the bed.
The exterior of this level is my favourite part of the building.The use of two wheel arches above the windows is particularly clever and attractive. The lower part of the sand green section makes use of the new 1x3 curves that first made an appearance in the police station.
Both this floor and the first use white candle sticks for pillars.
The flat roof, which incorporates a curved skylight, is bordered with decorative ironwork formed using Ninjago snakes
When it's all assembled and brought to life with minifigs it looks spectacular!
Parts
Parts are packaged in numbered bags, with bags 1-6 (not 1-7 as suggested in the front of the instruction manual, hence this photo) containing those for the ground floor.
There are no new moulds in the set but dozens of recolours and printed pieces. Of particular note are the 253 light nougat elements, which includes 1x1, 1x2, 1x4, 2x2 and 1x4 bricks.
Minifigs
Seven minifigures are provided, including two hotel workers resplendent in a new sand green torso printed with a jacket typical of that worn by porters at posh hotels. The luggage trolley is a neat build and for once is just about minifig-scale.
The art gallery owner looks suitably trendy. Her bespectacled head first appeared in a couple of City sets earlier this year.
Three hotel guests, one for each room, typify the clientele: a businessman, a tourist with a sun umbrella, and a young backpacking female.
Finally, we have a coffee vendor, complete with a cart, which the instructions state is the mobile extension of 10182 Café Corner, that also has a yellow and white awning.
You wait ages for a place to buy a coffee, then two come along at once....
Construction
I'm not going to dwell on the construction part of the review, as it's long enough already, but I will point out a few things that are not evident in the photos above.
Ground floor
It is here that you can best appreciate the 3:4:5 (between stud centres) geometry of the hotel wall.
The angled row of grey plates is affixed to the black and white 1x1 round plates placed along the diagonal of the triangle that are visible above.
The tiling on the floor is excellent, making good use of both 2x2 triangular tiles and 2x2 corner tiles with the comer cut off.
The contents of the art gallery is best appreciated while its under construction.
Hanging on one wall, behind the key rack in the hotel's reception is this Picassoesque portrait of a woman.
There's another portrait that also looks to be the work of the Spanish painter in the gallery. It's a printed tile, and one that probably won't appear in many other sets!
An abstract piece by Piet Mondrian hangs on the wall by the desk.
Finally, the most impressive piece of all, a sculpture: the old Creator Expert logo formed from six transparent headlight bricks!
The brick walls of the hotel are fairly plain but punctuated with 1x2 plates with rounded ends to provide some visual interest.
First floor
The unusual shape of the floor has been achieved using 3x6 wedge plates which, when joined along their long side form exactly the same angle as that of a 3:4:5 triangle. Hinges are used underneath to connect them.
The semicircular window utilises the new 3x3 curved frames that were introduced earlier this year.
Second floor
The main point of interest inside the second floor is the bath, which is big enough for a minifig to soak in. As I said earlier, I think this is the first time one has appeared in a set: even Friends have not had one, they've had to make use of showers or hot tubs instead.
Some clever techniques have been leveraged to form the small balcony and its surrounds, but I'll leave them for you to discover when you build it.
Verdict
The set was designed by Anderson Ward Grubb and I think this is his first contribution to the modular building collection. He has delivered a unique, interesting and detailed model.
It features two separate buildings with different architectural styles, snugly fitted into the standard footprint in a way that has not been done before, thanks to the unique angled nature of the main structure.
The interior of the hotel is surprisingly spacious and everything you'd expect to find in hotel rooms is present, apart from bathrooms in two of them!
No modular building would be complete without some NPU (nice parts usage) and it doesn't disappoint here either, with snakes on the roof, wheel arches above the windows and crowns in the tree trunk.
The icing on the cake is the use of light nougat, which is unique and attractive, and hopefully a sign that we'll be seeing a lot more of it in sets from now on.
The design of the building makes it ripe for extending, both sideways and up. Extend it outwards on the plain flat side -- perhaps incorporating a restaurant on the ground floor -- and upwards by adding more first floor sections. Four sets should do it!
Finally, in terms of where this one ranks in the 'top 10 modular buildings' chart, it's definitely very near the top. They get better and better each year and whoever designs the next has their work cut out to top this one.
In a follow-up article this evening I will post photos of it lined up with other recent modular buildings, so stay tuned for that.
Thanks to LEGO for providing the set for review. All opinions expressed are my own.
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159 comments on this article
There was a bath(tub) in 10267 Gingerbread house.
Wow - they went in a different direction with this one. There's a lot to like (interesting triangle shape, dome), but there seems to be a decent amount I'd like to change - I'm not crazy about the use of the light nougat color.
The LEGO Sesame Street set includes a bathtub for Ernie.
I find the ground floor of the hotel empty, but the rest is magnificent
I am so excited for this modular release - it's got that certain charm that the earlier sets like the Restaurant and Cinema had. Absolute Day 1 purchase for me.
Also, having just spent the weekend doing my Christmas Lego, the Gingerbread House from a couple of years ago also had a bath(tub) and mat so it's not quite the first one here (although this Boutique hotel at least has a couple of free bottles of bubble bath to 'borrow' for the guests!)
There was a bathtub in 70323 Jestro's Volcano Lair.
This is an amazing set, one I might have to pick up someday. A few minor notes, however: a bathtub is present in the Sesame Street set, and if you count Mos Eisley Cantina (and the appearance of those green bottles in sets like Pirates of Barracuda Bay), alcohol serving stations have appeared in Lego sets before. Nevertheless, great review, and an incredible set!
Remember, that’s not flesh coloured for Lego minifigs…
Nice review.
Gingerbread house 10267 had a bathtub....
The shaping is quite satisfying, and those concierge uniforms look fantastic. I’m just scared to purchase a modular, because it will make me want more to accompany it.
Small error: the Dutch artist is called Mondriaan
Going by the biological realism in 31129 and the modern alcohol bottles in this building, I wonder if Lego have revised their standards on what can and cannot be included. Lego has traditionally avoided exposing certain body parts or having alcohol in non-historic sets, but it seems like they may have tweaked these rules at least for sets with older audiences.
Wow. Wow, wow, wow. It’s beautiful.
If you’ll forgive a nitpick, this isn’t even close to the first LEGO bathtub, at least timeline-wise. Off the top of my head, I’m not sure if 261 was the first, but it was around in 1979, so there have definitely been bathtubs in official sets for upwards of forty years, at least.
50% of comments: This is a nice set!
The other 50%: ACTUALLY there's already a bathtub in-
(I'm gonna be in the former and say that this does indeed look nice, like all MBs)
Lovely review of a fantastic looking set! It's not the first to serve alcohol, though, the Captain's Daughter in 4193 definitely did as well, and the Three Broomsticks sells firewhiskey, which is presumably what's in the green bottle in 76388. And not to forget the drunken elf in 79004!
I really, really like this a lot. Largely because the building is a new architecture style - it feels very at Mediterranean and could pass for a building in many “New World” cities as well as European ones. It reminds me of the old city area of Tampa, FL, where I grew up, so I’ve got some nostalgia there.
Love the new color usage for the bricks, love the art gallery, the gallery dealer with the French tuck shirt, the hotel lobby - it’s all so appealing!
Very different from what I was expecting?
Do I have room? No. Do I really have the extra cash lying around? No. But do I have to have it?
Of course
*wallet sighs*
Nice review! There have been multiple bathtubs in lego before: https://theprefabrick.com/category/Bathtubs&page=1
I love it, and I will be saving my pennies for it. Its first impression gives me the same excitement as the Parisian Restaurant did when it was revealed.
Seems like I’m in the minority here, but really disliking this one. Doesn’t jive with the rest of the modulars. Reminds me how I felt when the diner was released. It’s just doesn’t fit well in the city. I suppose this would look best next to Parisian restaurant or something. I do love the art gallery interior though.
Excellent review of a beautiful set!
But Mondarin should of course be Mondria(a)n (I live in his old hometown) ;)
Hotels and houses always feel the most ‘abbreviated’ with the modulars, and this is no exception. Three rooms makes it feel more land a bed and breakfast — albeit one where there’s nowhere to make the breakfast and only the person in the penthouse gets to have a wee. (Perhaps the balcony has a double use.)
From a purely design standpoint, it looks interesting. It’s great to see that the designer has done something different, although I do wonder how well it’d work connected to other modulars, especially if you have the gallery side facing forwards.
Perfect for MOC! See the interior... First floor - the lobby is empty. Gallery is awful :( rooms are good, but nothing more. Big disappointment, we want Hospital, not another hotel. Cafe corner is way better!
@merman said:
"Small error: the Dutch artist is called Mondriaan"
Actually it's Mondrian. He dropped the second A from his name to seem less Dutch. :)
I love the art included in this! Nice touches.
Looks quite impressive, but modulars aren't really my thing.
The B-model for 31109 Pirate Ship is an inn which looks very much to serve alcohol.
That floor building technique for the first & second floors is very similar to that used in 10293 Santa's Visit. Nice to see an official set making good use of a Pythagorean triple.
The gingerbread house set includes a bathtub filled with chocolate!
Definitely not the first one in this set!!!
The painting is a reference to Galidor, what a neat touch!! This is one of my new favorite modulars!
The first ever bathtubs in a LEGO set were in 261 and 265, both aptly named "Bathroom" (not sure which was first, I *think* it was 1971 for 261 and 1974 for 265). Most recently there was one in 10267 Gingerbread House, I'm sure there must have been a few in the intervening 50 years too ;)
As far as the color scheme is concerned, I find it interesting how different your photo is than the official Lego image in the post just below it. Seeing them side-by-side (er, top-and-bottom?) shows how much difference the photography makes. Lego's official photo makes the colors seem more muted and earthier. I wonder how it will look in situ?
Am I crazy, or does that coffee vendor look a lot like Jamie Berard?...
@ToaMatoro said:
"Am I crazy, or does that coffee vendor look a lot like Jamie Berard?..."
I had the same reaction :D
I wonder if the Music Hall on the notice board is reference to next year.
Phenomenal modular! The shaping is outstanding, and I hugely appreciate all the new parts in Light Nougat, a majorly underutilized color for accomplishing buildings from various warm climates around the world! I suspect the use of this color will be pretty divided in the community though.
As others have pointed out, it is pretty tough to pull off a hotel in this scale, as you would really have to double this modular to truly accomplish a hotel. But I think they achieved the effect quite nicely!
Really nice building and NPU. Im sure it looks better in the flesh where the sand green will look better when seen built. I like how the designer has positioned/included the museum so that the rhs of the Police station can be seen and in particular the Soap n' studs advertisement.
This looks like a fabulous set. I can't wait to get it.
FYI, the gingerbread house had a bathtub.
The furnishings of all three levels are very nice. I think this is the most well furnished Modular since the Downtown Diner.
@HandPositions said:
"scared to purchase a modular, because it will make me want more to accompany it."
This is me 100%
I've an annoying 'completionist' element to my Lego purchases which I battle with to avoid spending too (too) much money.
Reading this review I found myself thinking 'this could be the perfect set to start me on Modulars'... dangerous ground right there!
I am somewhat disappointed. Why did they bother to add tiling to the ground floor when they are not adding this all other floors as well. Feels cheap or careless to me.
@IgelCampus said:
"I am somewhat disappointed. Why did they bother to add tiling to the ground floor when they are not adding this all other floors as well. Feels cheap or careless to me."
This is basically every Modular.
Definitely gonna be built for our memories to Málaga, Spain especially with the El Cubo gallery a perfect nod to it also being the hometown of Pablo Picasso.
Didn't the Parisian Restaurant serve drinks in green bottles?
Unfortunately, I don't like this Modular very much. Even comparing it to few previous Modulars, this building is simply one big chaos when it comes to color combinations. Some Modulars were true masterpieces and were just perfect. As for this, I cannot find out, especially considering this absurd color combinations.
My Modular Buildings ranking:
https://brickset.com/sets/list-38433
@HandPositions said:
"The shaping is quite satisfying, and those concierge uniforms look fantastic. I’m just scared to purchase a modular, because it will make me want more to accompany it."
I have the same thing with the Brickheadz. Friend of mine got me the Mandalorian and the Child Brickheadz for my birthday last week and now I want more. I sort of always avoided buying any specifically because of that. Ah well.
@IgelCampus said:
"I am somewhat disappointed. Why did they bother to add tiling to the ground floor when they are not adding this all other floors as well. Feels cheap or careless to me."
This person has not bought a modular before.....
I like the shape of this and the details. But I'm not convinced on the light nougat/light flesh color for the middle floor. Perhaps I need to see it in real life.
Also, it's €20 more expensive than the Police Station, which looking at them both comes as a bit of a suprise to me.
I love the design but the more I see of it the more I don't like the three main wall colors.
Amazing set. Not been this excited for a modular since Assembly Square. Great review too, thank-you Huw! Looking forward to seeing this lined up with some other modulars later on this evening. It'd be interesting to see this next to Parisian Restaurant, I wonder how the 2 roof terraces from each would look side by side?!
@DavidBrick said:
"I really don't like the left side. I wish they just made it a hotel and left out the art gallery. I think it will have issues connecting to other modulars without looking stupid."
I second this. The art gallery feels weak. In my opinion the hotel would have looked better without it. I will buy it anyway but it’s not a good year for modulars. At least there are the Bricklink models :)
@Aramor said:
" @HandPositions said:
"The shaping is quite satisfying, and those concierge uniforms look fantastic. I’m just scared to purchase a modular, because it will make me want more to accompany it."
I have the same thing with the Brickheadz. Friend of mine got me the Mandalorian and the Child Brickheadz for my birthday last week and now I want more. I sort of always avoided buying any specifically because of that. Ah well."
...and THAT's how they get you :D
The green bottle could be a bottle of water (Perrier comes in a green glass bottle). Or it could be any of a number of other drinks that come in green bottles (including Sprite, 7 Up, Mountain Dew and V Energy).
Plenty of things it could be that aren't booze :)
I reallu don't like it :(
First, Modulars really do anything for me. I've wanted to like them, so one year, i got the detective office. I liked the build experience, but I had it on a shelf for a month and it did not bring me joy or anything. I sold it soon thereafer.
I also really don't like sand green at all (I always wished the "tower" in Ninjago city were another colour). And those light nougat bricks do not look appealing to me at all.
Anyway, we don't have to like every set, I guess.
@HandPositions said:
"The shaping is quite satisfying, and those concierge uniforms look fantastic. I’m just scared to purchase a modular, because it will make me want more to accompany it."
They do get… quite moreish. That said, I never felt a need to be completionist myself, since I started with the fire station and getting older ones costs a fortune. I skipped town hall (wasn’t keen on it at all) and the corner garage (put off by the weird building routing, odd scale and the single-seater car, which didn’t feel very modular street).
@Romans122 said:
"Going by the biological realism in 31129 and the modern alcohol bottles in this building, I wonder if Lego have revised their standards on what can and cannot be included. Lego has traditionally avoided exposing certain body parts or having alcohol in non-historic sets, but it seems like they may have tweaked these rules at least for sets with older audiences."
There have been bottles (that one in particular) placed as alcohol in sets, for years.....
I like it a lot. Better than the average modular. I have them all, and will be adding this one in multiples. Thank you TLC.
I love it. The color scheme has an updated Paradisa look.
Opps... i woulndn't say it is amazing, not even beautiful, the color scheme is bit childish but if you stare it long you will may like it. It is amateur for an offical TLG set but this is what it is for a year. We must be happy due we got a new modular at least.
The photos in this review seem off. The LEGO.COM photos show a "normal" sand green for the top floor, which looks a lot better.
Weird four room keys and yet only three rooms?
I assume the lobby is tiled for cleanup purposes, and the studded more accurately represents carpeting.
The real mystery of the hotel is just WHO is responsible for the wheelie garbage bin?
Pretty sure the sand green is supposed to represent copper patina. You can dislike that, if you want, but it's realistic.
Belated thanks for informing me of all the baths that have appeared! I've not built the sets you all mentioned.
(Been to see Encanto this afternoon...)
The designer is American and has spent a lot of time in San Diego, judging by his LinkedIn. This set has a very SoCal feel to it, which I love. It's always interesting to see comments from Europeans saying that these color schemes are "unrealistic." Nah, they're just American. Come visit California! The weather's great and you can experience all these unrealistic building colors in real life! (Just please get vaccinated first.)
I hope we won’t be seeing more light nougat. Not a fan of the colour scheme in this at all. Sadly I’m a little underwhelmed by the set on first impression, but will reserve full judgment until I see it for myself.
@EVaquero said:
"Didn't the Parisian Restaurant serve drinks in green bottles?"
Green and trans-clear bottles – and given its setting, there's no way they aren't wine.
Heck, in one of the official images, the waiter is even sabering a bottle of champagne (or rather swording, given the piece used):
https://images.brickset.com/sets/AdditionalImages/10243-1/10243_back_11.jpg
This is the first modular since the Downtown Diner that has been up to the high standard of the modular series, especially with respect to the interior detail. This is a day 1 purchase for me, which hasn't been the case for me since Assembly Square!
I don’t think it’s the first set to have a bath(tub). There was a bathtub in one of my son’s Nexo Knights sets -?
@illennium said:
"The designer is American and has spent a lot of time in San Diego, judging by his LinkedIn. This set has a very SoCal feel to it, which I love. It's always interesting to see comments from Europeans saying that these color schemes are "unrealistic." Nah, they're just American. Come visit California! The weather's great and you can experience all these unrealistic building colors in real life! (Just please get vaccinated first.)"
Great comment, as a former NorCal guy, the building colors in California are well....different. Check out the buildings in San Fran sometime.
The first couple of seconds I looked at it I didn't like it. But the longer I look the more I like it. Very nice set. Only thing missing maybe is a door to the dumpster in the back. Gonna order it at midnight new years eve/ new years day.
This thing is definitely going between the Parisian Restaurant and the Venetian Houses whenever that will--- Holy! Are those black harpoons built in the front lamps?!
From the lobby and medium-sized room, I get serious New Zork Hotel vibes. An interesting adventure person at the typewriter desk can get drinks straight from the bar.
One cool easter egg that our friends on Twitter have pointed out is that the Spanish-style portrait in the art gallery is actually a very cleverly hidden Galidor reference - Specifically the fittingly bizarre 4040 Nick figure that appeared in the McDonalds tie-in figures!
It _seems possible_ to add a toilet in both the smallest hotel rooms. If not, I'm definitely going to add a porta potty from 60073 and place it in the lobby for everyone to use :)
@LegoHamlet said:
" @illennium said:
"The designer is American and has spent a lot of time in San Diego, judging by his LinkedIn. This set has a very SoCal feel to it, which I love. It's always interesting to see comments from Europeans saying that these color schemes are "unrealistic." Nah, they're just American. Come visit California! The weather's great and you can experience all these unrealistic building colors in real life! (Just please get vaccinated first.)"
Great comment, as a former NorCal guy, the building colors in California are well....different. Check out the buildings in San Fran sometime."
Yep, the designer is a Stanford grad so I’m sure his time in the Bay Area had influenced the color scheme as well.
According to the notes in the instructions the design is 'inspired by turn-of-the century European architecture' not California, although buildings there will of course have been inspired by the same source.
@STL_Brick_Co said:
" @IgelCampus said:
"I am somewhat disappointed. Why did they bother to add tiling to the ground floor when they are not adding this all other floors as well. Feels cheap or careless to me."
This person has not bought a modular before....."
Well I have almost all of them in my basement waiting to be built.
I think it would be nice to see an enhancement in the modular line in these details that competitors have since quite a while. I would also complain if there is no interior at all like for the first modulars. No one would accept that today and the tiling is just another area where modulars are still weaker than necessary.
Thanks for the many photos of this beautiful set! I would buy it for the colors alone but it also looks fantastic and fun to build.
I knew it was a mistake to buy the 10278 Police Station! I couldn't help it though, not with the deal I got at $156. Now I'm going to have to get this and the 10270 Bookshop.
The angled geometry of the building and steps takes this design to another level. It really represents the architecture well. What a lovely set.
@IgelCampus said:
" @STL_Brick_Co said:
" @IgelCampus said:
"I am somewhat disappointed. Why did they bother to add tiling to the ground floor when they are not adding this all other floors as well. Feels cheap or careless to me."
This person has not bought a modular before....."
Well I have almost all of them in my basement waiting to be built.
I think it would be nice to see an enhancement in the modular line in these details that competitors have since quite a while. I would also complain if there is no interior at all like for the first modulars. No one would accept that today and the tiling is just another area where modulars are still weaker than necessary."
Tiling reduces playability, and wouldn’t be seen all that much on the inside. It doesn’t make much sense to include it in all of the interiors, in addition to it driving up the cost. It’s definitely warranted for the outside, like it is here, but no as much on the inside. I don’t know what competitors you’re talking about (it’s always someone from Germany that brings them up), but I promise their overall quality and construction is nowhere near that of Lego.
I really like the colour scheme of this set and I love the architectural style. The gallery is a bit of a let down, but then I felt that way about the green building attached to the police station and the build next to the bank. This is another I would feel tempted to get two of in order to modify, though I still haven't got round to doing that with the police station.
I think its the contrast of style and colour scheme with the gallery that lets it down, it looks quite boring on the outside, lending itself to more of an office building. It should be distinctive, like the hotel.
I agree that the lobby is too empty and washrooms could be added to the other rooms, and the palm tree makes the alfresco area crowded. You could move it into the lobby and make a feature of it. The bin could also be transformed.
That being said, I can't wait to get this set. This one of the few from this year that has really jumped out and grabbed me. Although there's few similarities within the modular theme, this is a set which stands apart. Its a thing of beauty.
Hmm, I dunno. I have all modulars, but this one is losing me for some reason. I like the art gallery, but this just feels like a second-rate Ideas that doesn't get voted in, but is kinda close.
On second thought, let's have a cool art gallery, not just a floor.
@Jackthenipper said:
"Remember, that’s not flesh coloured for Lego minifigs…"
It IS flesh color if you have licensed figs in your city as well, as I would imagine a lot of us do!
To me, light flesh was a horrible color choice for a building. But that can certainly be fixed, it is LEGO after all!
Ground floor should have door to back of the building, to the trash bin, and sofa should have five stud space so it can have 2 minifigs on
@Drewsko said:
"One cool easter egg that our friends on Twitter have pointed out is that the Spanish-style portrait in the art gallery is actually a very cleverly hidden Galidor reference - Specifically the fittingly bizarre 4040 Nick figure that appeared in the McDonalds tie-in figures!"
WOAH! Nice catch!
Nice set! Thank god they didn't use the new children's road plate system.
@illennium said:
" @merman said:
"Small error: the Dutch artist is called Mondriaan"
Actually it's Mondrian. He dropped the second A from his name to seem less Dutch. :)"
He is only known as Mondrian outside of The Netherlands and Belgium.
On the model: don't understand why we would need a hotel. Also why are there 4 keys and only 3 rooms?
I wish they would make some thing a city would actually need: pharmacie, doctor, post office, bicycle repair shop, etc...
Also that price? Yikes,...
“ The design of the building makes it ripe for extending, both sideways and up. Extend it outwards on the plain flat side -- perhaps incorporating a restaurant on the ground floor -- and upwards by adding more first floor sections. Four sets should do it!”
Absolutely agree, @Huw, not sure about 4 of them, but at least 2.
(Still need to buy the parts to increase the height of my 10182 Cafe Corner to have two first floors…)
@Huw, Great review and pictures! Even though I’m not into the modulars, it was fun reading about this latest addition to the line. If contemporary buildings were my thing and I were not already considering this set, your review would make me want it.
Towards the beginning of the piece, ‘three-story’ should be ‘three-storey’ unless it’s a play on words.
The printed tile artwork that @Jlove31 points out was inspired by Galidor and you claim is an allusion to Picasso might be a reference to Klimt… or both - it’s hard to tell ;~)
@gsom7 said:
"Ground floor should have door to back of the building, to the trash bin, and sofa should have five stud space so it can have 2 minifigs on"
Seems like you could add a door on your own pretty easily. Almost seems like they specifically left the space for you to do just that.
@Rob42 said:
" @EVaquero said:
"Didn't the Parisian Restaurant serve drinks in green bottles?"
Green and trans-clear bottles – and given its setting, there's no way they aren't wine.
Heck, in one of the official images, the waiter is even sabering a bottle of champagne (or rather swording, given the piece used):
https://images.brickset.com/sets/AdditionalImages/10243-1/10243_back_11.jpg "
...and who could forget the debut of the trans-green bottle in set 10233 in 2013! (The uniformed conductor of the train is apparently drinking from it on the front of the box, for Pete's sake!)
@BCanilho said:
"“ The design of the building makes it ripe for extending, both sideways and up. Extend it outwards on the plain flat side -- perhaps incorporating a restaurant on the ground floor -- and upwards by adding more first floor sections. Four sets should do it!”
Absolutely agree, @Huw, not sure about 4 of them, but at least 2.
(Still need to buy the parts to increase the height of my 10182 Cafe Corner to have two first floors…)"
You might want to look at those Café Corner part-prices... might set you back a bit for just one floor, heaven forbid parting out two!
Since there are so many lego sets has been released, I think it's not safe to say something like "it's the first of xxx". I don't think there is anyone in the world who have build every single lego set that has ever released, and even if such a person exist, how could that person remember every item in every set.
Not sure why they didn't extend the Art shop's footprint back by 6 studs and move the dumpster back so as not to rely on the dumpster being the structure to join to...
@monkyby87 said:
" @IgelCampus said:
" @STL_Brick_Co said:
" @IgelCampus said:
"I am somewhat disappointed. Why did they bother to add tiling to the ground floor when they are not adding this all other floors as well. Feels cheap or careless to me."
This person has not bought a modular before....."
Well I have almost all of them in my basement waiting to be built.
I think it would be nice to see an enhancement in the modular line in these details that competitors have since quite a while. I would also complain if there is no interior at all like for the first modulars. No one would accept that today and the tiling is just another area where modulars are still weaker than necessary."
Tiling reduces playability, and wouldn’t be seen all that much on the inside. It doesn’t make much sense to include it in all of the interiors, in addition to it driving up the cost. It’s definitely warranted for the outside, like it is here, but no as much on the inside. I don’t know what competitors you’re talking about (it’s always someone from Germany that brings them up), but I promise their overall quality and construction is nowhere near that of Lego. "
I am not sure why tiles would reduce playbility as their are plate modified that one can put in from time to time to be able to place a minifig.
For the tiling: Look at bluebrixx 103487 which has almost twice as many pieces and costs less and has a quality level which is comparable to Lego.
@Zander said:
"Towards the beginning of the piece, ‘three-story’ should be ‘three-storey’ unless it’s a play on words."
Now fixed, I see :~>
"They get better and better each year" - well, that's really subjective. The last year Police station - way better than this one, Diner, Parisian restaurant, The Bank - they all have an overall better look than this one. Like, they made a triangle building instead of a square one, and everybody go nuts!
I like the style and particularly the unique structure, the light nougat pieces will have to grow on me.
@crazywitchdoctor said:
""They get better and better each year" - well, that's really subjective."
Reviews are subjective by definition. It's one person's opinion. That's the point of a review.
@IgelCampus said:
" @monkyby87 said:
" @IgelCampus said:
" @STL_Brick_Co said:
" @IgelCampus said:
"I am somewhat disappointed. Why did they bother to add tiling to the ground floor when they are not adding this all other floors as well. Feels cheap or careless to me."
This person has not bought a modular before....."
Well I have almost all of them in my basement waiting to be built.
I think it would be nice to see an enhancement in the modular line in these details that competitors have since quite a while. I would also complain if there is no interior at all like for the first modulars. No one would accept that today and the tiling is just another area where modulars are still weaker than necessary."
Tiling reduces playability, and wouldn’t be seen all that much on the inside. It doesn’t make much sense to include it in all of the interiors, in addition to it driving up the cost. It’s definitely warranted for the outside, like it is here, but no as much on the inside. I don’t know what competitors you’re talking about (it’s always someone from Germany that brings them up), but I promise their overall quality and construction is nowhere near that of Lego. "
I am not sure why tiles would reduce playbility as their are plate modified that one can put in from time to time to be able to place a minifig.
For the tiling: Look at bluebrixx 103487 which has almost twice as many pieces and costs less and has a quality level which is comparable to Lego."
Why is that company almost always mentioned by German members, and a select few at that? This is a LEGO-based article... if we wanted to talk about a competitor or it's products, do it on an article about them, not on something that has literally -zero- in common with this one, besides using construction bricks made from ABS plastic! (anybody else feel this way?)
Also, between this and the McCallister house? Definitely the second one!
@Boettner_Builds said:
" @Jackthenipper said:
"Remember, that’s not flesh coloured for Lego minifigs…"
It IS flesh color if you have licensed figs in your city as well, as I would imagine a lot of us do!
To me, light flesh was a horrible color choice for a building. But that can certainly be fixed, it is LEGO after all!
"
For some reason I never see people complaining about "flesh-colored" buildings when a building is a color like Reddish Brown or Medium Nougat, even though those are of course common skin tones for licensed minifigures! It's not unrealistic to have a building painted in a color that overlaps with the wide range of human skintones—you can easily recognize that it is not skin because it is building shaped.
I like it a lot, enough to want to get it eventually and modify it. I don't think the palm tree will fit my imaginary town, and I would like to add an extension to the side so the first floor rooms have shared bathroom facilities and a breakfast room on the ground floor.
The typewriter is not exactly the same as the police station one- the sand green plates are a cute nod to 21327.
I'm sorry, but I don't like it. In general the hotel should've been wider (like assembly Sq) or higher, also there are several missed oportunities to incorporate new parts, especially the new 6-wide door frame with glass doors. Contrary to the packaging this can never be a 5-star hotel - most prominently for having no elevator or restaurant, its is understaffed and the building even has no alternative exit.
Hey yall, is this here the bathtub re-port form?!
Double irony: If I didn’t spend money on Lego, I could afford real hotels.
But I can’t afford the Lego hotel because I must save for a short holiday... which may finally involve just 1 night in a hotel.
I find it funny referencing the walls as flesh (I know the color is named that but still) , gives another creepy twist to yellow walls in buildings like 70831 or 375-2
A hospital or medical center (urgent care, operating room, psychiatrist) would have been a much better idea.
To Admin: I wrote a nice mid-length feedback but it got eaten when I clicked "Post comment". Perhaps it's awaiting moderation or please check your error or traffic logs or whatever you have at your disposal. I would appreciate it.
@ayayop said:
"Nice review! There have been multiple bathtubs in lego before: https://theprefabrick.com/category/Bathtubs&page=1"
You forget the 1 piece from belville 5895 - Belville Family Home
At first glance I loved it! Having travelled to various island countries in the Caribbean, this instantly reminded me of European architecture in the region - including the colours! This design also fits a Mediterranean or southern California vibe to me, perhaps even the architecture found in South American cities?
My only critique at first sight: the middle and top stories both need to be 1 brick higher. The police station is 8, 8, 8, (not counting plates), and this one is 9, 7, 6, but I think would look better at 9, 8, 7 for its floor heights. (Installing another middle floor could look impressive!)
Otherwise it is beautiful to me - brings me travel memories :-).
At last a modular on which the floor plates aren't visible as off colour stripes around the building! (Except the wall which connects to other modulars.) Now there still are stripes of tiles and plates, but the colours of those are chosen to blend in with the rest and I think they do pretty well. Well except for the light and dark grey plates of the dome which should of course have been sand green, but maybe that would have required even more re-colours?
Very nice colour scheme, the nougat feels really fresh and sand green as copper patina is just perfect. Lots of great details inside and out, if there's anything else I'd try to change it's the gap in the angled wall at the top floor, maybe it's possible to cover that up in some way.
Easily the best modular since the Diner, the last three have all been lacking in various ways.
So, to summarize: we have:
261 Bathroom
265 Bathroom
10267 Gingerbread House
41095 Emma's House
41313 Heartlake Summer Pool
70323 Jestro's Volcano Lair
21324 Sesame Street
And perhaps @mr_skinny was remembering Jestro's Volcano Lair (
Lava-heated tub anyone?)
All things considered, I hope those who like the set can get it and those who don't can enjoy this recap of Lego bathtubs instead. For those interested in neither, there are a few other items of interest for you... Galidor anyone?
There's snakes on the roof!
I like that design feature, though.
@Lyichir said:
" @Boettner_Builds said:
" @Jackthenipper said:
"Remember, that’s not flesh coloured for Lego minifigs…"
It IS flesh color if you have licensed figs in your city as well, as I would imagine a lot of us do!
To me, light flesh was a horrible color choice for a building. But that can certainly be fixed, it is LEGO after all!
"
For some reason I never see people complaining about "flesh-colored" buildings when a building is a color like Reddish Brown or Medium Nougat, even though those are of course common skin tones for licensed minifigures! It's not unrealistic to have a building painted in a color that overlaps with the wide range of human skintones—you can easily recognize that it is not skin because it is building shaped."
I totally see where you’re coming from, but I think my real problem is that it’s too close to pink.
Light nougat as a color for stuff other than Minifigure parts was long overdue— maybe we’ll start getting Brickheadz in that hue? I wouldn’t count on it given how few licensed ones there have been in recent years but it’s possible.
I can already picture two of this mirrored side by side
@Zander said:
" @Huw, Great review and pictures! Even though I’m not into the modulars, it was fun reading about this latest addition to the line. If contemporary buildings were my thing and I were not already considering this set, your review would make me want it.
Towards the beginning of the piece, ‘three-story’ should be ‘three-storey’ unless it’s a play on words.
The printed tile artwork that @Jlove31 points out was inspired by Galidor and you claim is an allusion to Picasso might be a reference to Klimt… or both - it’s hard to tell ;~)"
Maybe it's spelled three-storey in Britain, but in America it's three-story.
@Zordboy said:
"There's snakes on the roof!"
I have had it with these motherbricking snakes on this motherbricking roof!
@iwybs, Indeed, but Brickset uses UK spelling such as ‘colour’, not the US spelling which is ‘color’. So a floor of a building should be ‘storey’, not ‘story’. Rule Bricktannia! :~P
@iwybs said: "Maybe it's spelled three-storey in Britain, but in America it's three-story."
In Australia, it's the same. We use "storey".
Love this one! Yes, it's a weird angle... but to me, it just gives it more charm and more realism. Great parts usage and, luckily, more color variety. Day one purchase for me.
@ChazTheMinifig said:
"50% of comments: This is a nice set!
The other 50%: ACTUALLY there's already a bathtub in-
(I'm gonna be in the former and say that this does indeed look nice, like all MBs)"
Update:
20% This is a nice set!
20% ACTUALLY there's already a bathtub in-
20% ACTUALLY there's already alcohol in-
20% ACTUALLY Mondriaan spelled it M-O-N-D-R-I-A-N
20% I think it's based on ____ (time in history) ____ (European region) architecture
Except for minor issues with the lack of bathrooms, this is to me a magnificent set. The first floor seems majestic and I love the details for the third floor. Really looking forward to its release!
I imagine the first thing most people will do is convert the two bedroom floor into a more spacious single room with a bathroom.
@joshhaslego said:
"So, to summarize: we have:
261 Bathroom
265 Bathroom
10267 Gingerbread House
41095 Emma's House
41313 Heartlake Summer Pool
70323 Jestro's Volcano Lair
21324 Sesame Street
And perhaps @mr_skinny was remembering Jestro's Volcano Lair (
Lava-heated tub anyone?)
All things considered, I hope those who like the set can get it and those who don't can enjoy this recap of Lego bathtubs instead. For those interested in neither, there are a few other items of interest for you... Galidor anyone?"
Also a bathtub in 70840: Welcome to Apocalypseburg!
@Reg Bathtub or hot tub?
@Murdoch17 said:
"Why is that company almost always mentioned by German members, and a select few at that? This is a LEGO-based article... if we wanted to talk about a competitor or it's products, do it on an article about them, not on something that has literally -zero- in common with this one, besides using construction bricks made from ABS plastic! (anybody else feel this way?)"
In former times I would have defended my fellow German commenters on this subject, because I know what they're getting at.
Otoh I have come to learn that most commenters on Brickset have a preconception that every brick brand that is not LEGO has to a) be of bad quality and b) must not be mentioned on a site dedicated to LEGO.
Kind of the Voldemorts of bricks to them.
I have also learned that it is impossible to change these commenters' minds, hence I am not trying to any longer.
Some may have noticed that I have stopped commenting almost entirely and on the few occasions that I have, I only did so when I had something positive to say about the products mentioned in the articles I commented on.
I mainly wrote this very comment to explain to @Murdoch17 why it is almost exclusively Germans who mention competing brands, the reason being that these are gathering a lot of momentum over here, probably more so than in most other first world economies.
I am one of many people here who have tried out competing brands' products. Some offer great designs but parts quality that is not top notch yet, some offer ok designs but parts quality that is even better than LEGO's (you may not believe it but it is true), and some offer both great designs as well as top notch parts quality.
I am not going to mention any specific brands as those people who know the competitors also know who I am talking about. And everyone else doesn't care or want to know anyway.
As for the new Modular, like I said in the reveal article, I really like it. I love the colour scheme and interesting geometry, and even though it looks a bit small in the image that shows it next to the Police Station and Book Store, I think it will look great next to the Parisian Restaurant, which to me seems to be the best match in terms of style.
@joshhaslego said:
" @Reg Bathtub or hot tub?"
As there’s a bar of soap right next to it, I reckon it’s a bathtub.
@Romans122 said:
"Going by the biological realism in 31129 and the modern alcohol bottles in this building, I wonder if Lego have revised their standards on what can and cannot be included. Lego has traditionally avoided exposing certain body parts or having alcohol in non-historic sets, but it seems like they may have tweaked these rules at least for sets with older audiences."
I don't get it, is there animal genitalia in 31129 ?
@AustinPowers said:
" @Murdoch17 said:
"Why is that company almost always mentioned by German members, and a select few at that? This is a LEGO-based article... if we wanted to talk about a competitor or it's products, do it on an article about them, not on something that has literally -zero- in common with this one, besides using construction bricks made from ABS plastic! (anybody else feel this way?)"
In former times I would have defended my fellow German commenters on this subject, because I know what they're getting at.
Otoh I have come to learn that most commenters on Brickset have a preconception that every brick brand that is not LEGO has to a) be of bad quality and b) must not be mentioned on a site dedicated to LEGO.
Kind of the Voldemorts of bricks to them.
I have also learned that it is impossible to change these commenters' minds, hence I am not trying to any longer.
Some may have noticed that I have stopped commenting almost entirely and on the few occasions that I have, I only did so when I had something positive to say about the products mentioned in the articles I commented on.
I mainly wrote this very comment to explain to @Murdoch17 why it is almost exclusively Germans who mention competing brands, the reason being that these are gathering a lot of momentum over here, probably more so than in most other first world economies.
I am one of many people here who have tried out competing brands' products. Some offer great designs but parts quality that is not top notch yet, some offer ok designs but parts quality that is even better than LEGO's (you may not believe it but it is true), and some offer both great designs as well as top notch parts quality.
I am not going to mention any specific brands as those people who know the competitors also know who I am talking about. And everyone else doesn't care or want to know anyway.
As for the new Modular, like I said in the reveal article, I really like it. I love the colour scheme and interesting geometry, and even though it looks a bit small in the image that shows it next to the Police Station and Book Store, I think it will look great next to the Parisian Restaurant, which to me seems to be the best match in terms of style. "
I'm sorry to hear you don't feel like commenting as much - I don't always agree with what you say (where would the fun be if we all got along :p ) but always enjoy reading your comments.
On the subject of "the others", I can't say I take much interest in them. That's no comment on their quality because I don't know anything them - I find it hard enough to keep up with Lego. To be honest, I think I'm still living with the childhood disappointment of Santa giving me a Megablocks castle instead of the Lego one.
@AustinPowers
I've been looking at some military vehicles and realistic trains from brands like BlueBrixx and Cobi but I'm too scared to pull the trigger. How would you rate the quality of their parts?
@Reg said:
" @joshhaslego said:
"So, to summarize: we have:
261 Bathroom
265 Bathroom
10267 Gingerbread House
41095 Emma's House
41313 Heartlake Summer Pool
70323 Jestro's Volcano Lair
21324 Sesame Street
And perhaps @mr_skinny was remembering Jestro's Volcano Lair (
Lava-heated tub anyone?)
All things considered, I hope those who like the set can get it and those who don't can enjoy this recap of Lego bathtubs instead. For those interested in neither, there are a few other items of interest for you... Galidor anyone?"
Also a bathtub in 70840: Welcome to Apocalypseburg!
"
I believe it's time for Huw to add bathtubs as a categorisation term when searching for sets.
I think they've kind of ruined the pointy corner aspect of it by making it only usable on a 90 degree corner - the little art gallery rules out the possibility of a diagonal side street running behind it, kind of defeating the purpose of the building's angular-ness and taking away from its realism. You don't see buildings that shape unless the streets around them dictate it.
There’s also lots of tubs in the Elves theme…
I know that a triangle with straight sides of 3 and 4 units respectively yields a hypotenuse of 5 units. But when I look at the first two pictures in the "construction" section and count the studs, it looks like a 4:5:6 triangle (which doesn't exist). What am I doing wrong?...
I have worked out where this is going already but it needs a bit added to the side and possibly another floor; slightly worried about the Bricklink prices those 'flesh' bricks will be though...
@BeaR_the_Builder said:
"I know that a triangle with straight sides of 3 and 4 units respectively yields a hypotenuse of 5 units. But when I look at the first two pictures in the "construction" section and count the studs, it looks like a 4:5:6 triangle (which doesn't exist). What am I doing wrong?..."
The 3-4-5 rule applies to the vertices of the triangle, which would be the center of the studs. A 3-4-5 mathematical triangle translates to a 4-5-6 Lego triangle. They've used the same technique to angle parts before, see the instructions for 4021 for an example.
@WesterBricks said:
[A 3-4-5 mathematical triangle translates to a 4-5-6 Lego triangle.]
I see this is true but I don't understand...
@BeaR_the_Builder said:
" @WesterBricks said:
[A 3-4-5 mathematical triangle translates to a 4-5-6 Lego triangle.]
I see this is true but I don't understand..."
The measurement of the angle has to be from the center of each stud when the studs themselves are the hinge point. So a pair of studs that have four studs between them actually has a distance of five studs from center to center, and so on and so forth.
The outside is stunning for my liking. Can't say anything about the interiors because I skipped that section of the review: I prefer to keep the surprise right until I assemble it.
@Lyichir said:
" @BeaR_the_Builder said:
" @WesterBricks said:
[A 3-4-5 mathematical triangle translates to a 4-5-6 Lego triangle.]
I see this is true but I don't understand..."
The measurement of the angle has to be from the center of each stud when the studs themselves are the hinge point. So a pair of studs that have four studs between them actually has a distance of five studs from center to center, and so on and so forth."
Yep, got it, thanks!
@captn said:
" @AustinPowers
I've been looking at some military vehicles and realistic trains from brands like BlueBrixx and Cobi but I'm too scared to pull the trigger. How would you rate the quality of their parts?"
That depends.
Cobi is well known for excellent quality. Plus, all their current sets' decorations are prints, no stickers at all in those. And their print quality is better than LEGO's - by miles.
That German brand you mention that I am not allowed to name has everything - their older sets have ok designs and parts quality, their newer sets have evolved both in terms of design as well as parts quality. They are still not 100% on par with LEGO for every piece in their inventory, but value for money is definitely there. Plus they offer loads of sets that LEGO would never produce, like all their realistic trains and accessory buildings, or realistic road vehicles like all kinds of lorries/trucks, fire engines, etc., or all their historical buildings. Churches are another subject LEGO will not do.
Anyway, this is not the place to promote other brands. I only answered to your question. Nobody else try to get riled about it please!
Hello, this set could really use Widow from the Overwatch series going up against Black Widow on the roof, thanks for the idea brain.
I think the new modular looks great and I’ll happily build it, but I wish lego would stop designing corner buildings and give us a larger proportion of straight street modulars.
@Orange_Jooze: No genitalia, but it does have an anus and the insides are pink and red, suggesting meat.
I absolutely love the design and colour usage on this one. A must have for me.
@AustinPowers
Your answer is much appreciated. I feel more confident to at least try them out. It's not like Lego will release a Panzer any time soon or ever.
I have a quick question. All of you who collect Modular Buildings are you going to consider the Venetian Houses 910023 a modular building to add to your collection? Or even a little more far feached the Retro Bowling Alley 910013? For me I think the Venetian House looks as good if not better than some of the Modulars but I have not collect all the Modular buildings so I was wondering for the hard core guys or gals what you guys thought.
@kenjr24 said:
"I have a quick question. All of you who collect Modular Buildings are you going to consider the Venetian Houses 910023 a modular building to add to your collection? Or even a little more far feached the Retro Bowling Alley 910013? For me I think the Venetian House looks as good if not better than some of the Modulars but I have not collect all the Modular buildings so I was wondering for the hard core guys or gals what you guys thought. "
I guess the Modular LEGO Store 910009 is another one I would be asking about.
@kenjr24: I have several Modulars, but no complete collection. I have also ordered the Venetian Houses, but not because of the Modulars I have but simply because I like the look of the set. If I had a LEGO city layout I would also buy the Retro Bowling Alley and put it next to the Downtown Diner.
@krnjr24
Only the Creator Expert modulars, released yearly since are considered official modulars by Lego. The only exception was Market Street, as it was released alongside Cafe Corner as a Factory set, probably so the Cafe had something to connect to to illustrate the horizontal street modularity as well as vertical removable floors. Like the new Bricklink designer program sets it was fan designed, but unlike them wasn't limited release. Other than that, it's just been the one per year.
While the designer program sets, which could be argued if they are even sets to begin with, not having traditional set numbers, as well as Spring Lantern Festival, and even Ninjago City (yes, it technically can connect with pins in the same places) can connect, they are not officially "Modular Buildings."
@kenjr24 : I consider myself a Modular collector and bought both Venetian Houses and the Bowling Alley because both of them seemed excellent additions to the collection--I did not buy the Lego Store because of a lack of infinite money as well as not liking it as much. I also hope to include several of the garden-like sets from the Chinese Festivals series. Ninjago City, IMO, is too much unlike the others to put in the same layout; they'll be in a separate area when I finally curate my Lego display.
@MainBricker said:
"Disappointing that the black box art continues in 2022."
I agree (like on the Police Station modular I think it looks awful), but for this model it looks rather good imho.
Having not read the many comments, I expect this has been covered already, however the Gingerbread House has a bath and the Mos Eisley Cantina sets have a bar.
Does this set come with connecting pins, since the police staion was the first modular not to. Personally I do not connect my buildings with the pins however it occured to me if it doesn't and somebody to own just thr this set and the police staion they could be misled by image of joining the two with pins. Also if lego are droping pins why not drop the holes they go into from the buildings?
Also I find it odd the ironwork around the roof is missing from one side, i know you could say that side should buts up against another building but what if that building was shorter?
Honestly, the more I look at it, the uglier it gets. I'll probably get it, but hopefully it comes at a deep discount. It just looks, well, trashy.
Perhaps I like it better once I've built it, but so far I'm underwhelmed.
I don't like the colours and I'm not too fond of the palm tree. The facade looks rather simplistic (maybe it's just the use of the old flags). It doesn't look good next to the modulars in the other article. Anyhow, I only have one spot left for a corner building in my city layout and this simply won't do.
How much does it weigh? There's a lot of negative space and I get the feeling we get less and less for our money.
The light nougat color doesn’t work well here. It gives a childish Friends style aura to the building. And the Ninjago worms on top of the roof look like… worms. Otherwise it’s an interesting building shape that brings some variation to the modular city.
I do believe this is not the first alcoholic bar in LEGO. As shown in our series on the Pirates of Buccaneer Bay, we built a rather large in the mid ships section of the ship in the lower level. Full with every type of liquor bottle and large barrels of ale.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fzm09KADkEc