After so many years of designing promotional Christmas sets, Lego’s impressively original set for 2021 provides cause for celebration. This review of 40484 Santa’s Front Yard, designed by Dan Squirrell, accompanies a paired review of its successor, 40564 Winter Elves Scene of 2022.

Festive vignettes have been produced before, but nearly all have featured a wall as their background, leading to shallow, foreground-oriented scenes. 40484 was originally intended as one of pair of 2021 Christmas sets, together with 40489 Mr. and Mrs. Claus’ Living Room, which replicated the indoor vignette design but was cancelled at the last minute. Fortunately, in 40484 we got the more interesting of the two sets, although in the absence of 40489 its name makes little sense.

40484 innovates in its outdoor setting and forced perspective. The medium of Lego may limit perspectival possibilities, but the sense of distance in 40484 is at least plausible, and it effectively evokes the atmosphere of a forest of conifers under a starry sky. The two different conifer designs contribute to the effect, shifting from three- to two-dimensionality. The dark green trees loom in the background, which together with the moon and stars creates a sense of looking upward. Compared to the dark green trees of 40564, these are less sophisticated.

For all its complexity, the reindeer could look nearly the same with just a few simple bricks. I prefer molded animals, but the reindeer does fit in with the bricky aesthetic. Especially delightful is the expressive of apprehension and fear on the elf’s face, because it creates a story in which he’s been unwillingly sent to feed the reindeer. The beast’s friendly eyes assure us that the encounter will turn out well, of course.

40484 Santa’s Front Yard impresses with its original, evocative, and playful design, and its imaginative idea of what it’s like to be an elf. Four stars.