Lego Review: 10245 Santa's Workshop

So here we are, at the end of our Lego Christmas Journey with the set that finally brings us the reason why we're all here. No, there aren't any sets that give us a baby Jesus minifigure, although that might be rad (and I stress might). I'm talking about the big man himself, Santa Claus (cue pyrotechnics and the Rocky theme).

The 10245 Santa's Workshop is the latest release in the Lego Winter Village line of holiday themed sets. It was released in September of this year, and seemingly sold out from Lego around the beginning of December, which I suppose is to be expected from a Santa Claus themed set released around the holidays. Thankfully, I had the foresight to buy this set early so I didn't have to pay the ridiculous prices I've seen on Amazon and eBay. And the good news is that even though this set is out of stock from Lego, it hasn't been retired yet. The bad news is that it isn't projected as being available until February of 2015. You think Lego would anticipate demand, with the popularity of Lego exploding over the last year, but they couldn't keep things like the Exo Suit or the Research Institute in stock and both those sets had a huge buzz around them.

Opening up the box, you get 883 pieces, allowing you to build Santa's workshop, his sleigh, five reindeer, a toy assembly line, a few wrapped and unwrapped presents, a Christmas tree, and six minifigures (Santa, Mrs. Claus, and four elves), so there's definitely a lot of value to this set. And if you combine this with the Toy Workshop, or any other holiday set you've managed to pick up, you'll certainly have a nice holiday scene to display.

Moving on to the actual build, as with most modern Lego sets, the pieces came bundled in various numbered bags, seven of them if I'm not mistaken. Now there's always some sorting that's involved when you're dealing with large Lego builds, and thankfully each numbered bag corresponded with a different part of the build: 1 being the reindeer and sleigh, 2 the larger half of the workshop, and 3 the smaller half and the toy assembly line. So once you start sorting pieces, you'll end up with something that looks similar to this.

Now the fun part begins.

The Build

After separating the pieces from the first bags, I was able to put together this little guy, who happens to be one of the best Santa Claus minifigures I've seen available. Unlike the Santa from the Santa's Sleigh polybag, he comes with a a nice red coat and gloves, instead of what looks like red pyjamas, and setting him apart from the Lego Advent Calendar's version are white eyebrows and a red gift sack. Which proves to me this is the one true Santa Claus.

Before I get to the actual build, I want to point out these two pieces, which are exclusive (as of this posting) to this set. They're both printed pieces, and while adding the eye and fur detail to the reindeer is ultimately unnecessary, it does add just enough to give the build an extra "pop."

And it helps in separating the adult reindeer from the baby reindeer. This little guy is a cute addition to the set, and I feel it really helps to set the playful mood surrounding this build. I love the stubby little antlers and legs, and the lack of fur further drives home the fact that he's not yet an adult reindeer.

Next we have the North Pole sign, just in case you didn't know where we were, and a tiny Christmas tree. Both are well designed, the tree especially so, but I kinda wish it was a bit bigger, but that's just splitting hairs, because it does look great.

Moving on to the four adult reindeer included in this set. These are really solid builds. The full-sized antlers are well done, and the harnesses to attach them to the sleigh is great. Come to think of it, I never really considered how they were supposed to connect until I started build the set, but I think Lego did the best they could. I say this because there is one slight problem, and that's that the reindeer's antlers actually get in the way of one another, meaning they can't stand uniform next to each other. It's a minor gripe, but it is one that stands out. Lego also included a few extra pieces that replace the harness attachment if you want to let your reindeer roam free during the off season.

And finally, we have the sleigh itself. This piece is really well done, and is a pretty good size, allowing for all the presents to fit snugly behind Santa. I like the use of upside down arch pieces for the side of the sleigh and the lanterns on the back are also a nice touch. 

Now it's time to take a look at the Workshop itself. Unlike Santa's sleigh, the contents of Bags 2 and 3 are supposed to go together, so I'll be reviewing the rest of this set as a whole. Although I suppose you could keep both halves of the workshop separate to expand to size of your play area. 

First things first, we have Mrs. Claus baking her way into our hearts, complete with a red cloak, a precious apron design, and a tray of freshly baked cookies for Santa and his elves to enjoy. Wait a minute, did I say elves?

I most certainly did. Just look at those little guys, all cheery and ready to make all those toys for the boys and girls across the world. Speaking of making toys...

Gone are the days of simply making things by hand, as this set gives the elves their own toy assembly line, complete with a replica of the 1980-something blue spaceship that Benny is so fond of.

Now, the assembly line is actually the last thing to be built in this set, at least if you're going by the instructions, and while we already went over the beginning with Santa's sleigh, maybe it's time to get to the real meat of this set: Santa's Workshop.

This portion of the build is actually split into two parts: the two-story portion, which houses Santa's office, and the single-story portion, which houses the elves' workshop. The front of the build also has a lot of neat details, like the candy canes outside the front door, the clock above it, and the string of lights going across the roof. And of course there's the snow-covered roof that sells the North Pole setting.

Taking a look inside, we see Santa's office, complete with a fancy desk chair and a stack of letters to Santa. The ladder is a nice touch, allowing access to the second floor, and while it looks good, I personally could do without it as it takes up a good amount of interior space. But it is easy to remove, so it's a minor complaint. Moving on to the workbench, we have a few tools, cans of paint, and a candle/torch thing. I'm assuming it's a candle since fire isn't generally needed for toy production... I think. I really don't know how to make toys, I only play with them.

There's also a fireplace in the workshop, and right above it is one of my favorite parts of the set: Santa and Mrs. Claus' vacation picture.

I just love that they're hanging out on the beach drinking what better be pina coladas..

The last part of the set I want to feature is the string of lights across the roof. It's a really simple design, but I honestly feel like I would never have thought of it.

And for those of you interested, here's the gifs of everything being built.

The Verdict

This is a great set, and there's a lot of value here. Maybe not for the individual pieces, but the minifigures are great, and the set as a whole is really well done. Santa's sleigh is the best I've seen in Lego form, the reindeer design is fantastic, and the workshop looks great, especially if it's on display next to other holiday sets. But even if this is your first holiday set, it's a great one to start things off. I've really enjoyed this set, and I'm sure you will too,

Lego Review: 40106 Creator Toy Workshop

Today I'll be reviewing the 40106 Creator Toy Workshop,

Which was actually the first of two holiday themed giveaways from Lego, the second being the Winter Skating Scene released during the Black Friday "Brick Friday" event.

Just like many Lego giveaways, this set was designed to compliment the Santa's Workshop (which is sadly currently out of stock from Lego) released earlier this year. It fits right in with the workshop, and adds a few more toys to deliver and a couple more elves to Santa's home team.

Let's look at the toys and presents first, because I really enjoyed them.

The presents are pretty standard by Lego standards, and I really like the train and the bulldozer, but the standout is the toy soldier. It was cool to see how it came together, and works perfectly as a minimalist design. What I loved was that even my four year old niece was able to point out what it was, even though she called it a doll instead of the obvious action collectible that it truly is.

We also get a couple new minifigures in this set: the elves that will be working on the new toys for all the boys and girls. They actually have a lot of accessories, in the form of a couple paint brushes and at least six tools to play around with. These guys look great, and I'm really loving the metallic printing on the male elf to make his belt buckle and tools pop off his torso.

With most sets of this size, we get something that's fairly simple. It won't take long to assemble this set, but you might be surprised at the detail that's packed into. I love the paint cans along the workbench and the clamp on the end of it.

I'm happy I got my hands on this, even though I can't remember what I purchased to actually get it. As always, if you can get this at a good price, don't be afraid to pull the trigger. You will not be disappointed with this set.

Lego Review: 40059 Santa's Sleigh

It's Monday, so that means another review of a smaller holiday set is going up. This time I'll be talking about the 40059 Santa's Sleigh.

This was a polybag that was available from November to December of 2013, at least here in the States. Now since I really didn't get into Lego until earlier this year, I didn't buy this when it was released. But thanks to different online communities, I was able to pick this up relatively cheap. 

Opening the poly reveals nothing out of the ordinary, just a variety of pieces waiting to be piled up and sorted through. And, of course, the instructions are there. 

In the rubble we find these two guys: Santa Claus and his helper. Santa is based on older minifigures, so it looks like he's wearing pajamas as opposed to his Santa outfit, but he's still recognizable as jolly ol' St. Nick.  I don't know why I initially thought that was Mrs. Claus, maybe it was the gray hair and glasses. I'm also assuming it's an elf, based on his shorter legs. 

Being that the set is only 77 pieces, it doesn't take that long to build, and it's certainly not difficult to put together. Since I built it fairly close to the Santa's Workshop set, which I'll be reviewing soon, it was neat to see how the design of the reindeer had changed in the past year. I guess they had to do something a little different to justify the $70 price tag on the new set. 

All in all, this is a nice polybag, but since it's no longer available at MSRP, I wouldn't go out of my way to pick it up, especially if you already have the Santa's Workshop set. That being said, if you can get this on the cheap, it'll be a nice addition to your holiday Legos. 

Days 6-12 of Lego Advent

So I'm changing things up a bit with the 24 Days of Lego Christmas that I'm featuring on Instagram. I'll simply be focusing on the individual gifts instead of them as a whole, at least until the end.

On Day 6, we got a Fresh Fruit Stand

Because when I think about Christmas, I definitely say to myself, "man, I'd love a banana or a carrot right now."

Day 7 brings us a nice Window Scene

With a couple jewels just chillin' on the window sill, as jewels tend to do.

On Day 8, we welcome Alexa to the fray, 

Complete with a pair of precious Lego ice skates.

I lost track of time on Day 9, and kinda forgot to take the picture, so I combined it with Day 10, because they go so well together.

A Bread Cart and a Catapult. Y'know, because Christmas.

Day 11 bring the Police into the mix.

Complete with a bullhorn and and sheet music so he can spread his holiday cheer across Lego Land.

And finally, on Day 12, we have what I think is a Remote Control Duck.

Because Lego obviously knows what kids like.

So there we have it, Days 6-12 have flown by on the Lego Advent Calendar, Let's see what's in store for us next week.

Lego Review: 10235 Winter Village Market

So here we have it, the Winter Village Market, the first of my large holiday themed sets for this month, and my first major purchase in the Lego line of holiday releases.

This set was originally released in October of 2013, and as of this blog post, is officially sold out at the Lego Store, although it still looks like it's available from Toys R Us. It's almost funny, I used to hate Toys R Us because of their insane mark up, but they do manage to keep things in stock longer than Lego does, and since they started price matching, I find it much more enjoyable to shop there. You can also check Amazon, but be wary as I've seen it listed for less than MSRP and much more in the last week or so.

With all this said, if you can find the Winter Village Market, it's a great deal for it's $99.99 price tag, coming with over 1200 pieces and nine Minifigures. Although I must admit, once I opened the set and started combing through the pieces, I was a little disappointed to see that the majority of the pieces were 1x1 round studs. Not that it matters, everything in this set still comes together wonderfully.

As with most sets, the "difficulty" tends to come from the time it takes to put the pieces together, as it's pretty simple to follow the instructions. But recently, as I've been getting into the Creator line, it almost seems like Lego is trolling us by either not numbering the bags, like they did with the T1 Camper Van, or labeling three bags Number 1 and six bags Number 2, as they did in this set.

Which, again, isn't a big deal, it just means that time has to be devoted to separating pieces as well as putting everything together. And Lego was kind enough to somewhat to separate the builds, as the bags labeled "1" contained pieces for the market stands, and the bags labeled "2" contained pieces for the carousel.

So while I got away with simply dumping the contents for the stands, since the builds were much smaller, and going from there,

There was no way I would've been able to do the same for the carousel, so I separated the pieces like so, 

Which was time consuming, but made things a whole lot easier.

Now that I've got that out of the way, let's talk about the Minifigures before we move on to the actual build.

As I said earlier, this set comes with nine Minifigures; five adults and four kids, with a few accessories scattered between them,

For past reviews, I taken individual pictures of the minis, but since these aren't licensed characters, I figured that was unnecessary. According to the instructions, going from left to right, we have the lady that runs the candy stand, a grill master, the guy that operates the carousel, a market patron, and the person who runs the baked goods stand. I love the way these minis look, and definitely think the grill master looking like Chef Paul Prudhomme was done on purpose rather than on accident. And I really like the purse on the patron. I'm seriously thinking of grabbing the camera from my J. Jonah Jameson minifigure and giving it to her, since it really looks like it fits her personality.

Along with the adults, we also get four kids and a little kitty to enjoy the Market festivities.

There isn't anything too exciting here, and their accessories are really just parts of the set, like a cup or extra cupcakes, but it still works here. And since there are four kids, and four spots on the carousel, the adults can just dump them off while they enjoy a nice sausage or croissant.

Moving on to the actual builds of this set, we get three stands; a park bench, a few barrels/tables, and of course, the carousel.

The barrels are pretty simple and aren't tied to any particular stand, so you can move them around as you see fit.

The park bench is also a fairly simple build, as is the street lamp that comes with it.

Here we have the baked goods stand. I like the way this build incorporated hinge joints and plates, tilting the counter top to better show off the baked goods. As you can see, this stand comes with a couple croissants, a pie, and cupcakes that are ingeniously put together by using a brown upper bracelet part and a pink 1x1 round stud.

Next up is the barbecue stand, which has a couple studs available on the counter top to accommodate a few mugs, and has a grill in the back to allow the grill master to set down his sausage and chicken leg so he can enjoy the festivities.

And finally we have the candy stand, which comes with a couple lollipops and other candies to be enjoyed.

You've probably noticed that there isn't much to these builds, as they're pretty small. That's because the real meat of this set is the carousel.

It's simply stunning to look at, and the way it actually functions via the crank on top of the stand next to it is brilliant.  Now, I'm not going to say this build wasn't tedious, because there are a lot of small pieces to put together, and since the build is fairly symmetrical, there are plenty of instances where you have to construct something x4, but in the end it's all worth it, since this piece is fantastic.

I've included a gif of the carousel being built so you can see how it comes together. I actually find doing this rather fun, so expected to see more gifs in the future. I may even upgrade to doing full on videos, but we'll see, as it's easier to snap pictures when you can instead of recording video for hours at a time.

The Verdict

When all's said and done, I'm really happy with this set. I wish it wasn't the first addition from the Winter Village line to my collection, but I'm happy I was able to get it before it sold out from Lego. not that I mind buying from Amazon, but VIP points are a hell of an incentive to pay full price for something.

Now that this is built, I have to find space in my house to put it on display throughout the holidays. And I'm super thankful that I'll only have one kid coming through my house this Christmas, upping my chances on keeping this baby intact.