Review: 43202 The Madrigal House
Posted by MeganL,
It's a busy time of year with all the anticipation of the 2022 sets. There are a few sets that are released on December 1, and they tend to get overlooked with everything going on. However, 43202 The Madrigal House, from the Disney film Encanto, caught my eye with its bright colours.
While building, I realised that it's also chock-full of new coloured parts - a benefit of being released later in the year. Read on to see why I think this set should have been included in Brickset's annual gift guide (had it been available then).
Note: I haven't seen Encanto, so this review will have no spoilers for the film.
Inside the box there are five numbered bags, an instruction book and a moderately sized sticker sheet. I expect that the stickers add some details that pertain to plot points in the story.
Minidolls and animals
There are two minidolls in this set, Mirabel and Abuela. Both are new to this set, and both have some fantastic printing. Mirabel wears a white blouse with scalloped asymmetric collar. The printing on it is terrific and features butterfly and flower designs. Her teal skirt is just as ornate, and includes the family name in the design as well as exotic birds and flowers. Abuela is another great minidoll, and one of the few showing an older generation. Her conservatively styled dress does not seem conservative with the bright fuchsia colour; butterflies are included in the styling of her dress with an ornament at her waist and in the folds of her skirt. Kudos to the graphic designer for the theming here.
The microdoll in this set is Antonio, Mirabel's cousin. This is the first I recall seeing a microdoll in this skintone, and it looks to be a precursor of this skintone being available in minidolls in the new year (based on the recently released Friends set images). Antonio is colourfully dressed with a bright yellow shirt with orange vest and bow. His hairpiece is great and looks to be almost as big as he is. The cute animal in this set is Chispi, the capybara - this is a hamster mould but with new printing.
Both Mirabel and Abuela come with accessories - Mirabel has an accordion - those 1x2 tiles are new printed pieces - and Abuela carries a watch, also new to the set. Chispi has a treat waiting for him in that teal box.
The main model
The Madrigal House has three levels. The first level boasts a front door with a bright orange entry arch framed by a colourful tree with a butterfly and a palm tree. I love the tiling on the roof sections - it reminds me of 41379 Heartlake City Restaurant.
Inside, there's an entry that has a record player on the floor - featuring some really nice parts usage - and an umbrella stand.
One side of the level is a kitchen. I really enjoy the yellow and orange 2x2 jumper plates that are used for the floor tiles (yellow jumpers new to this set). There's a bottle and a plant on the window sill. The kitchen isn't large but has all the necessities.
A teapot and some further details provided by a sticker are on the side.
The other side of the floor is the eating area, with a large table laden with food, and three chairs.
Because of the tiling, the table and chairs are easily removed to allow for greater play.
Note: sloths are not included in this set. They do match the colour scheme, though.
When the table is removed, it features a lovely sticker on the wall of the dining area. I think the graphic designer has done a terrific job with this set.
Moving up a level, there's another brightly coloured floor with green and purple masonry, another butterfly, and more colourful foliage. The weather vane is also on this level, and can be rotated to show the weather with a rainbow for a sunny day and a cloud for more inclement weather.
One side of this floor is a lounge area, with a bright fuchsia sofa, plants on the window sill, a new bright green watering can, and a hanging plant.
The door in this area leads to Maribel's room. The detail provided on the sticker is beautiful.
Inside Maribel's bedroom there's a desk with a sewing machine (more nice parts usage). There's also two moving functions in this room. Levers on the outside of the build allow you to tilt Maribel's bed to wake her up, and the shutters by her bed can be flipped open and closed by using another lever.
The highest level of the house has more colourful masonry (vibrant coral and bright green). It has a bright golden spire with a detailed sticker underneath that I'm guessing is featured in the film. There's a bright green crystal that adds a mystical air.
With all the different colours, you'd think that this set would be a bit of mess to look at it. It's not. There's a lot of bright, vibrant colours, and I think the designer (and Disney) have done a great job in highlighting all the colours without looking chaotic.
Overall thoughts
I think this is a fantastic set. I'm sure I will like it more even after I've seen the film. The colours attracted me, but quite frankly, so did the price (587 pieces, $49.99, 49.99€, £44.99). I'm used to a significant markup for Disney sets, and this one was priced much more realistically. Price has deterred me many times from buying a Disney set, so I'm pleased to see this price point.
If this had been released a month earlier, it's likely I would have recommended it for Brickset's annual gift guide. I think this set would appeal to kids whether they have watched the film or not. The colour palette is great, and I do have to call out the graphic designer one more time - those stickers are terrific. There's plenty of opportunity for play. I enjoy December releases, as you do get a bit of a preview of new parts colours. That's definitely the case with this set - a set inventory can be found here.
Considering there are many sets out of stock right now, this is a worthy choice that might be around a bit longer, at least for a few days.
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25 comments on this article
It's a lovely set (I got it on impulse the other day) but I wish there were a couple more characters included, given the source material.
The printing on the minidolls are exquisite - saw photos on Instagram and thought they were custom hand-painted. Wonderful to see more diversity of age with Abuela. Indeed, who knew it would be Disney who would push Lego on diversity?
Nonetheless, minidolls are desperately in need for more torsos and legs or, better, a universal adapter to attach torsos to regular studs (the "nipple" works but feels jank). Looking forward to your opinion of the new dresses (or containers?) in the Disney line
I'll never comprehend how they managed to fit almost all of my favorite LEGO colors into one set so cohesively. Just a shame I can't afford to bulk buy it as a parts pack.
Is that 3x3 arched tile new?
Also, in the movie the house is enchanted and its floors and tilings move. Too bad there isn’t any moving gimmick in this set…
@merman said:
"Is that 3x3 arched tile new?"
It most certainly is!
I can’t wait to pick this one up. So happy it isn’t over priced like the recent Raya wave was..
@merman said:
"Is that 3x3 arched tile new?
Also, in the movie the house is enchanted and its floors and tilings move. Too bad there isn’t any moving gimmick in this set…"
In the review, it's mentioned that there are a couple levers outside of Maribel's room that allow you to tilt the bed and also open and close the shutters. Based on the size and space available, I think that's a sufficient approximation.
Great review, what a beautiful assortment of pieces and color. Can you expand upon what you mean by “a benefit of being released later in the year” with regards to new colors?
Now I need a physical flying capybara unicorn to match that sticker.
So if you surround it with multiples of 8800 , would it be the Siege of Madrigal?
anyone?
The green tower belongs to a family member named Bruno, a seer. But we don’t talk about him.
Looks nice and bright and accurate to the source material.
Can we talk about that hamster representing a capybara though? That is a bit of a miss.
The capybara is a disappointment. It should be medium dog size. Also a disappointment they are not on bricks and pieces to buy.
Correct me if I'm wrong, but I don't think those light yellow 2x2 jumpers are new to this set--weren't they first seen in 41387 Olivia's Summer Heart Box?
Was thinking those spring yellow parts were the new 2022 neon yellow for a sec, but it's just a combination of screen, photos, and my brain being hyped for that new color (especially for city 2022 emergency services).
Photos and review are still very good nonetheless.
This is a fantastic set! The best one disney princess has ever put out! I love this that much! Minidolls are fantastic with great printing, new skin tone, beautiful exterior and interior and great price! No disgusting Disney tax
That set is beautiful!
Not to mention, it's a house with actual structure, walls and ceilings. I love it.
Nice review, thanks.
Quick thing, I think you have the brick backwards on the accordion. Accordions don’t work that way. I haven’t seen the instructions but if they don’t tell you to use the other side of the brick they really should lol.
I was waiting to get into the Lego store at Mall of America when I saw this review. I had forgotten this set was a December 1st release! I bought it.
These minifigs are not Lego...
Got mine yesterday
Great review, as always! Thanks! I haven't purchased anything from this series before, but this one sure is tempting...!
@Altair1970 said:
"These minifigs are not Lego..."
They are mini-dolls, and yes, they are Lego.
@jaredhinton said:
"Nice review, thanks.
Quick thing, I think you have the brick backwards on the accordion. Accordions don’t work that way. I haven’t seen the instructions but if they don’t tell you to use the other side of the brick they really should lol. "
I noticed. this as well (as someone who owns an accordion). Great review, love the sloths!
I like the colors. It might make for an interesting starting point for a Modular Mexican Restaurant.