No: 21301
Release Year: 2015
Cost: AUD$69.99
Pieces: 580
The creator of this brilliant set is Tom Poulsom (detomaso on Flickr). I recommend checking out his other builds on Flickr, including more of his birds! There’s actually a massive range. The box itself is quite stunning, with a nice woodgrain print on the majority of the box. Out of the box you’ll get 5 bags, 3 instruction booklets (one for each bird – robin, blue jay and hummingbird), and a 6×16 plate in dark green.
There isn’t that much as far as new parts are concerned in this set. Let’s take it one bird at a time though. First off, the robin. Nothing new here, except for the new style of jumper plates with the changed underside, allowing a central stud to be placed underneath. This is the first released set with this style jumper plate. There’s also the 1×2 plate with bar handle on the end. These are by no means new, but the colour is, and it’s only been seen in the Minecraft sets so far. I’m not sure why LEGO didn’t choose to use the t-piece in black instead of light bley. It’s around, and seen in the Minecraft sets. Maybe it’s an exclusive Minecraft thing.
Finally, there’s the hummingbird, or the Green Violetear as it’s called on the box. And the flower of course. The flower stem is actually a two part tail piece. The hummingbird has a large number of new pieces, namely the 45 degree 3×3 corner plates, which are brand new in dark green. There’s 12 of them, so plenty to play with. Along with a couple of other pieces and the 6×16 plate, it’s a smorgasbord of new gear.
Spares
Build
Buildwise, the birds are extremely clever, using some great SNOT techniques (Studs Not On Top). The robin comes together around a pretty solid core. Once the core is done with the legs, the wings, chest, tail and head are attached. It’s a very unique 3D build, and the robin is able to stand by itself on some very good looking feet! In my opinion, the feet in this version are much nicer than the one that is featured in the original. The robin was the first model I built, and I was gobsmacked by how incredible it looked. I kept walking around the house with it on my hand, and even showed it to my cat. She didn’t appear fazed by it. Thanks to the studs, it almost appears fluffed up. Each bird has a perch, and the scientific name printed on a 2×4 tile at the base. They look really great. The perch for the robin is a little wobbly, but it still looks good when left alone, which is most likely the intent of the set. These aren’t playable.
Next review: 60074: Bulldozer. Back into the construction subtheme!