No: 10246
Release Year: 2015
Cost: AUD$229.99
Pieces: 2262 (with 6 minifigures)
I mentioned last week that this review will be split over 2 weeks. Due to the sheer size and amount of awesome included in this set, I’ll be talking about the minifigures, parts and build floor by floor. This week will be the ground floor and left half of the 1st floor (the actual detective’s office), with next week completing the building, a quick review of 40140: Flower Cart, and giving a rating. I’ll try to keep some things a mystery, but there will be plenty of photos, as modulars are always very photogenic sets! I’ve taken around 70 photos of this build alone, so I’ve uploaded all the images to this Flickr album. Anyway, on with the set.
The story is a great addition to the set, and just increases the playability of the set as a whole.
Ground Floor – Pool Hall and Barber Shop
Parts & Minifigs
Back over at the pool hall, it’s kind of cramped. I can’t imagine the pool player would get a decent shot off! The pool hall is the biggest room in the building. There’s the dart board, pool table, cue rack, coffee table, trophy shelf and ceiling fan in this room. The pool table was an interesting build, as the cups are completely separate to the table itself. It looks great though, with the 1×1 plates as pool balls. With a little reconfiguration, you can set up the table to be as different as you like. The fan overhead looks great – it kinds of reminds me of an oriental fan. It can obviously spin, and can be swung left and right to get easy access to the room. I really like this room – it’s one of my favourites. There’s heaps of windows and doors, so it’s a very well lit room. The secret panel under the trophy cabinet is constructed really well. I never thought to do things like that! I won’t spoil it for you – you can find out yourself. There are also plenty of studs in the floor around the room, so there are loads of places to set up the characters. The touch with the stained glass above the door looks great, and with the domes above the windows, it looks like a few pubs I’ve seen in the UK before! There’s also a detachable section of sloped roof at the back of the room.
Parts & Minifigs
There are some pretty great printed pieces in this section, specifically in the office half. Firstly, you get plenty of 1×2 and 1×4 profile bricks in medium nougat. These are great in any build, and there are loads! 64 1×2 and 21 1×4. Of course, there’s the “Ace Brickman Private Detective” printed window, which looks great. The printed parts are the best in this room though, and there are plenty! Letters, newspapers, a wanted poster, painting, map and money are all in the one room. Even the door for the detective’s office is really nice to look at.
I really like the look of the detective’s desk. It’s cluttered, sure, but it looks classy. The desk lamp is way out of proportion, though. The hat stand is great, and I love the hidden letter behind the picture. I did encounter a little issue, however. Right outside the detective’s office door is the little planter bowl I mentioned before. The problem is that it’s too close to the door, so the door doesn’t open. Of course, it’s an easy fix, just move it. Needless to say though, it’s in the wrong spot. All in all, there’s much more space in this room, so it works much better.