So here's the thing. I didn't like The LEGO Movie 2-The Second Part. But as soon as I saw this set, I fell in love with it.

We don't get classic LEGO houses that often anymore. I mean, if LEGO put out a classic house every year( or maybe every two years), I would buy it! Anyway, the first build of this set is straight up a classic LEGO house. The interior is post-apocalyptic, but you can still see it as somewhat of a normal house interior(to a certain level). The Dream House looks great in my LEGO town (and I'm sure it does in any). The junkyard is the most creative way to store extra pieces I've ever seen. And it also looks good!

Speaking of creativity, the Rescue Rocket is really cool. It doesn't change the overall look of the house that much. The engines really look like they have been built in and the interior, alongside the attic, is a great addition. I may have not enjoyed the movie, but I certainly love this set!

Honestly, the set speaks for itself. Sure, it might look simple, but the backside and the interior really shine in this one. The sidebuilds are nothing too special, but that's okay, they don't take much space. The minifigures are a solid selection. The other build - The Rescue Rocket is great as well, with interesting building techniques.

As of the time of this review, I've had this set for quite a few months, but I can still say quite conclusively that it is my favorite set of the LEGO Movie 2 range. Sure, set 70840 Welcome to Apocalypseburg looks imposing and stunning, but I am personally far happier spending £55 on a super sweet looking house that can turn into a rocket and, more importantly, fit on my shelf. So, why do I like this set?

Build 1: The Dream House

The house build advertised on the front of the box is the lesser of the two builds in my opinion, which came as a surprise to me considering that I bought the set mainly for the house as a fan of structures and buildings. It is by no means bad, and far exceeds many residential buildings you would find in the LEGO creator theme, but it felt a lot like a secondary build as I was first constructing it.

You see, around 200 pieces are dedicated to debris left behind in the apocalyptic setting, and although it looks fine, it doesn't interest me personally. Also, it was the first thing you are told to construct when building the set, and being a 2 in 1, it had no numbered bags, so I spent what felt like more than half an hour sorting through a sprawl of parts to get these first few builds together. However, from here, it was a lot more pleasant as I had gotten rid of most of the monotonous gray bricks, and could dive into the yellows and blues that make both builds so appealing. Don't necessarily take my comments too seriously, as I had limited space for building during the construction of this set, and with a more spread out setup I'm sure it would be far more relaxing.

Once complete, the house is small but cozy, and looks great from all angles (although naturally more focus is put on making the front look presentable). The flower bed and picket fence make it seem cartoonish and charming, and the front door is in an unusual orange color which has only appeared in 4 other sets, including a smaller rendition of this same house in set 70832 Emmet's Builder Box.

The house is also on hinges, so the 2 halves each on an 8 x 16 template can be swung open to reveal an interior with 2 floors. This includes loads of furniture and details. On one half, there are pictures on the walls (which are unfortunately stickers, but this may not be a problem if you want to use the plain 2x3 tiles in medium blue), an aquamarine sofa with coins underneath, showing brilliant attention to detail, and a small table and lamp which uses a textured 2x2 round brick and looks great. On the other half, there is a TV with color bars (Apocalypseburg must not have great signal), a small kitchen with a stove, a dining table and 2 chairs, one with no back so that perhaps Planty (Emmet's potted plant) can sit down, and a view out of the magnificent large bay window. The attic level includes some random details, such as piping, but this was probably to use up parts more than anything else.

This rendition of the build also comes with accessories including barrels, an accordion and some sort of music player. Again, these are mostly to use up parts, but all look fine.

Build 2: The Rescue Rocket

Now we're talking! This rendition is my preferred one, and is the configuration I have chosen to display the set in. Upon taking the house apart, I chose to sort the pieces into small, medium, large and extra large. This build uses all the pieces, and progress felt much quicker. I particularly enjoyed features such as the door being used as a sort of sideways cabinet to store Emmet's picture frames, or the curved window arches now encircling an engine on the back.

Key features remain present in both models, such as the large bay window coming back and the same chimney design appearing on the roof, but the two models feel unique because of their different sizes, styles and builds. Talking of size, this model is where all those debris elements from earlier come in handy, and it feels like a much more natural use of parts.

In terms of playability, there's obviously the element of swooshability because the model is designed to fly, and you can hold it quite comfortably from the base to pick it up. There are spring loaded shooters, which are activated by levers that you push in the back of the ship, and there is also a full interior. Two roof panels can be removed on either side, to reveal more pipes in the attic, as well as a stash of coins and a frog. The roof can also be removed entirely, to reveal the earlier mentioned cabinet as well as a control panel stuffed full of widgets, a bench type of seat in the same aquamarine color as the house and a far simpler stove, this time only containing a single stud to hold a frying pan in place. However, it still looks believable enough, and has ample room for minifigures.

Minifigures

Talking of minifigures, you get three of them in this set, as well as a brick built character.

Emmet comes in his standard construction uniform, and his facial expression can be a simple closed mouth smile or a determined expression where he is gritting his teeth. These two expressions are perfect for one build each, where Emmet can be smiling and proud of his Dream House creation or determined to fly away and save the day in his rocket.

Lucy comes in her standard Apocalypseburg outfit as well, including dual molded legs which will make many fans happy. She also comes with a neck accessory to represent her hood which has been taken down, a quiver with arrows on her back ad goggles on her hair with have been lifted up to reveal her face. Her two expressions are also happy and serious, which can be used interchangeably in the two models.

Rex Dangervest here is in his exclusive space outfit, again with dual molded legs. This outfit is in his signature dark blue, regular blue and lime green, and looks great. He comes with both his regular hair and a helmet with an opaque lime green visor, which you can switch out. His two facial expressions are (you guessed it) happy or serious. He also comes with a jetpack, including a printed Rex Dangervest slope piece with an 'R' on it.

Unikitty is in her angry kitty form here, and comes with all the pieces required to allow her to sit / lie down or stand up. It also comes with two face bricks, both printed, which are happy and sleepy or awake and angry. She also comes with a neck bracket to hold a spear on her body when standing up, a spiky Apocalypseburg tail to protect herself from Duplo aliens and a whole load of printed decorations, such as a flame on her chest.

Parts

In terms of interesting parts, there are 10 aquamarine elements used in the sofa, 2 sand green 1x2s with a Technic axle hole, 22 2x6 roof pieces in blue, 2 3x6 wing plates in orange, 28 metallic grey elements, including macaroni tubes and 1x2 plates with slides, and finally a blue brick separator, which is common now for 2019 sets but still feels unique if you don't already own one.

Overall

To sum up, buy this set! With the two different builds, you're bound to find something you like, and the purchase doesn't come with too great of a risk either. At full price, this set is only £55 for over 700 pieces and two possible builds, and you can occasionally find it even cheaper (when I got this set, it was only £36). It looks great on display, which means I can have it directly above my bed and look at it every morning and night, and it is an extremely recognisably build from the movie. It suits all age ranges, with kids being able to play with the rocket or house and the minifigures and older fans being able to enjoy building a colourful, fun creation. If you buy one LEGO Movie 2 set, I personally say make it this one, especially since you get what I would call the main characters and a great build. I hope that somewhere in all my rambling I've told you something helpful, and that if nothing else you've at least enjoyed reading my personal experience of this great set :)