This set definitely could be better, but for the purposes of design and play it does great. Firstly, the number of shops are generous and appropriate with well-thought-out design scheme for the whole mall (love the graphic design!!) The mall strays away from realism instead going for a fun and colourful design with pastel colours sure to catch your eye.

The escalator is a main draw towards this set, working smoothly as intended, holding Minidolls in place quite well. However, when the minidoll reaches either landing, it kinda leans forward a bit which is awkward, and I don't quite like that, but I don't see how it could have been improved. This set also includes the new escalator chain pieces which are rare and otherwise only comes in Ninjago City Gardens.

One flaw with this set is the interior of the stores, they are super tight and cramped with detail mostly from stickers with little space for figures to move. The play is also focused on the outside rather than the back because the back of the set is quite unappealing (which is why the whole back was not shown in the box [sneaky lego])

I quite like the food court, although more food would have been nice. The small side builds are great and help add to the mall scene and I really like the usefulness and playability of the stage and the whole set in general. There are so many fun scenes for kids or anyone to enjoy and have fun and I am sure this set is a big hit as I see that many kids enjoy playing with this set and the aesthetics of this set is much better than the old mall which resembled a more realistic mall which some might like.

Take note that this set is not modular and therefore access to some parts are limited, but you can disconnect the mall in three sections and rearrange it in an enclosed format which I absolutely love and adore!!

The figures are excellent with the inclusion of Emma's entire family and Olivia and I love the June figure (love the printing!!!) I like that access to shops and levels are given and that you don't have to use your imagination and the nice touches of foliage and greenery throughout the mall. The symmetry of this set also impresses me and is super pleasing. The size of this set impressed me and is much bigger than I anticipated!

Overall, this set is good value and great fun for fans of Friends and the set is very well designed and thought out and I love the inclusion of the escalator which is a very novel play feature sure to impress kids with fun building techniques. One thing I want to mention is that if the escalator chain breaks, the process of fixing it is long and tedious as the build is very secure and tight. Hope you liked this review!