I thoroughly enjoyed Encanto and it has become one of my favorites from Disney. Because of that, it made me really want to get the Lego set. The set itself is super unique and stands out from the rest of the Disney catalogue with its eye-catching colours and overall appearance, which is certainly one of its best attributes.

The Build

Casita (exterior): This is perhaps my favorite part of the build. Not only does it look gorgeous, but it masterfully incorporates many colors without looking messy or incoherent. The tiling on the roofs, the spire at the very top, the pretty foliage and the colorful tree and palm tree that’s in front of the entrance all look stellar.

First level: So now as we enter the house, there’s a record player which has clever part usage, an umbrella holder holding a pink umbrella, and stickers for portraits of Pepa and Félix, as well as Julieta and Agustin. To the left, is the dining area with 3 chairs and a table full of food. All that can be removed easily as they rest on jumpers, which allows for easier access, and with all that removed, we could see a nice sticker of the Madrigal family tree. To the right is the kitchen, which features more of the great yellow and orange floor pattern shared with the dining area. Details and accessories include a plant and a bottle resting on the windowsill, a sticker of a shelf with cooking ingredients, a cooking pot, a pink teapot, a sink, and a drawer with 2 forks inside. Overall, I’m surprised on how decently spacious this level is. The detailing provided here is fantastic as well, I love the stickers and different accessories included here.

Second level: 2 rooms occupy the second level, the first of which is the nursery (or Mirabel’s room). There’s a small lamp, a sewing machine brilliantly using the overwatch gun piece, and a bed with a sticker for the bedsheet. There are 3 play features in this section as well, including flipping open the shutter next to the bed by pushing a lever, tilting the bed to wake Mirabel up by pushing a lever, and the weathervane directly above the room, which could spin to show a cloud or a rainbow, it’s a really cute feature. Going past the door (which has beautiful stickers on them), we move over to Isabella’s room. There’s a sofa, a hanging plant, some flowers and a new watering can piece in green. Overall, these 2 rooms were executed well, the detail and color scheme remains consistently appealing.

Third level: For the final level, there’s just the tiniest representation possible for Bruno’s tower, which has a sticker of what looks like Bruno stone golems, and a trans-green crystal, it would’ve cool if the vision was included here, but I suppose that’s kind of a spoiler. The only thing left of this level is Alma’s bed, and the candle that holds the miracle resting next to it, which could be seen from the outside of the house, great detail. Overall, it’s a super cramped and unsubstantial space and easily the weakest because of that, but it’s understandable and I can’t really fault it too much.

The Minifigs

Abuela Alma: Our first figure is Alma, and let’s be clear, she runs this show. Butterflies are a recurring motif in the house and the movie in general, and as such, it continues here on Alma’s magenta dress. The face has a smile with a slight eyebrow raise and the hair is straight with a bun on the back, I don’t really like this hair piece though, the bun looks like a ball of yarn honestly. Finally, her accessory is 1x1 printed circular tile of a watch. Overall, Abuela’s my least favorite figure in the set, I think she would’ve translated better in minifigure form, but she’s still decent, and it’s always nice to see older people represented in Lego.

Mirabel: I don’t collect the Disney “princess” theme, so I may be biased when I say Mirabel might be the best minidoll to come from the theme. The ornate teal skirt looks absolutely beautiful, featuring so many details, like the family name, the candle, a capybara, flowers and more. The torso has a white blouse featuring a colorful flower and butterflies pattern. The face has a smiling expression and the accurate dark green glasses, and the new hair component is awesome, it replicates the curly look perfectly, and I greatly appreciate the fact that it’s hard plastic instead of rubber as it could be reused for a minifigure version of the character in the future, hopefully. Finally, Mirabel comes with an accordion as her accessory, the design of which uses 2 printed tiles. Overall, as much as I wish this set had regular minifigures, I can’t deny that Mirabel is a stunning minidoll through and through, fantastic job, designers.

Antonio: Microdolls have always looked weird to me, but for some reason Antonio came out really well in my opinion. In case you’re unfamiliar with microdolls, the legs and torso are one piece, the legs are dark orange and there’s a bright orange shirt for the torso print. The face print is an open smile and the new bushy hair piece looks awesome, once again, I appreciate the fact that it’s hard plastic and not rubber. Finally, 2 accessories accompany Antonio, including a gift box with a treat inside, and a poor excuse for a capybara, which is just a reprinted hamster piece, it’s quite disappointing, a new piece should’ve made for it. Overall, I think Antonio came out really well in microdoll form, I like it. The Capybara needs improvement though.

Value For Money

R850 for this actually isn’t too bad, it definitely feels better priced than most other Disney sets. There was actually a decrease in prices for Lego in South Africa to better match the price in euro, so the first price for this set was R1000 before it was adjusted. Of course, as with most Lego sets, I think it could still be lower, but I gotta give points for the price adjustment this year.

Overall Opinion

Overall, the only major issue I have is the absence of more family members, since 3 feels way too little. The omission of an Isabella figure is particularly baffling since her room was included. And while I really like the set and consider it great as is, I can’t help but imagine how awesome a fully fledged, complex 18+ set with minifigures rather than minidolls would’ve been. But otherwise, La casa Madrigal is a beautiful and charming set with great minidolls, and it’s nice to have architecture inspired by different cultures in Lego. So in conclusion, if you’re a fan of the source material, I would definitely recommend picking this up. And Lego, I’m waiting on the 18+ Casita miracle!