(Written by William)
What’s this? What’s this? There are bricks everywhere! What’s this? What’s this? It’s some building we can share! This is the #21351 LEGO Ideas Disney Tim Burton’s The Nightmare Before Christmas set… that I completely forgot about. Let’s just say, LEGO has been having a pretty epic couple of years. They’ve put out so many remarkable sets that it is hard to keep track of them all. So, when they offered this set for theBrickBlogger to review, it was like a brand-new surprise in the best way possible.
When this model was selected as a LEGO Ideas project to be made, I was both thrilled and saddened. Thrilled because I felt that The Nightmare Before Christmas would make a spectacular model (especially with all its Tim Burtonesque style), but sad because the submitted project was fairly sizable and I knew it was going to be tough to fit it in the budget.
Thankfully, LEGO designers did scale a few things down to fit the retail price of $199.99 USD. This is right at the cusp of being a little too expensive, but still possible if someone really wants it. The question is, did the designers leave enough in for it to retain its value? Let’s take a trip to Halloween Town and see what lurks inside.
LEGO NIGHTMARE BEFORE CHRISTMAS: CHARACTERS
The set is primarily focused on the first part of the movie so there are a limited number of characters. We don’t get Oogie Boogie, the Jazz trio, Dr. Finkelstein (Sally’s creator), or any of the random monsters that live in Halloween Town. Instead, the set focuses on primary characters that help move along the early section of the story. Well, that’s not entirely true. There is a random skeleton under the town hall and a mess of spiders, which serve more as ambiance for the scenes. With that said let’s look at the more important characters.
Let’s start with the mayor of Halloween Town. This is a brick-built figure, and it’s a decent recreation of his appearance in the film. The printing on the cone elements captures his creepy spider tie and his dual-sided face. Despite it looking correct, I can’t imagine fans wanted the mayor like this. They would probably prefer a maxi-figure instead. Good or bad, the mayor comes with his bullhorn and plans for next year’s Halloween.
Moving on we get the trick-or-treaters Lock, Shock, and Barrel. They like to ride around in their clawfoot bathtub and are ready to nab Sandy Claws. Sadly, there seems to be minimal effort put into these minifigures. Lock and Shock don’t even have printed torsos. Additionally, they don’t have the masks they wear in the film. Overall, they come across as being extremely plain.
Next, we get Jack and Sally. Jack comes with cloth coattails, long legs and arms, and his bat bowtie. Both Jack and Sally are fully printed, so they feel like proper characters. However, if you have the Disney Collectible Minifigure Series 2 figures, these might feel more like reissues of Jack and Sally from that series.
Finally, we end with Sandy Claws and Zero. These are probably the most unique characters in the set. Zero is made out of a rubbery material, which is why the dog is molded with so much character. Harder plastic might be in danger of breaking.
Meanwhile, Sandy has a dress slope to give the impression of a long robe and the candy printed on his torso represents the candy he got stuck with while in the trick-or-treaters’ bag.
In general, the character selection makes sense, but given the wide array of characters they could have featured, these choices seem a bit bland. Hopefully, the three scenes do a better job at impressing builders.
LEGO NIGHTMARE BEFORE CHRISTMAS: TOWN HALL
First off, the coloring and asymmetry in every scene is spot on. Even though it may not be a one-for-one recreation, the models duplicate the style that Tim Burton is known for in his work. With that said, the building of the Town Hall is surprisingly straightforward and easy to build while still looking dynamic.
The build uses a lot of optical illusions to make it seem much more complicated than it really is. The building has a front wall and a back wall that are pretty solid and connected with struts at the top. Meanwhile, the angled walls are straight panels on tilt hinge bricks that are turned up and clipped into place. The front and back walls get a new layer to act as an attic that sort of repeats the main level.
Just as before, there is a front wall and a back wall. However, since this is the roof, these walls are angled like pyramids to end in a point at the top. As for the roof, you make two panels and they just lay in place. This makes playing with the model extremely easy, but something to be careful with when transporting it around.
Since we never see the inside of the town hall in the film, everything inside is imagined embellishments. Under the main floor is a sub-basement area with a skeleton that looks like they died eating poison. There is also a Christmas wreath down there, so maybe the skeleton isn’t all dead. The main floor features a large angled chair along with some torches with curly whips at their bases, and some stickered tiles featuring gargoyle-like faces. And the attic is strewn with all the efforts of the town making presents and decorations for Christmas.
Though, it is the outside of the building that is the real star. Here we get six pillars set at their own jaunty angles. From these, it appears that a cloth banner hangs, in actuality the banner is pinned to the wall and held in place by the clips holding the large bone. Below the banner is a very angular doorway with a brick-built door. Above the banner, we get two stickered tiles. One is the countdown to Christmas, while the other is the clock on the town hall.
Decorating the space in front of the building is the fountain with green liquid. To my surprise, the sides of the fountain are much more delicate than the serpent head that feeds the fountain. Plus, the instructions want you to pour loose round plates on top of the fountain, which is a mess waiting to happen. I spent the time fitting these plates between studs instead to have a more stable build that was less messy.
Finally, we also get various stones, pumpkins, and foliage. Speaking of which, the tree is the perfect choice of curved elements that capture the Burton style of design. However, the tree holds a secret. At its base, it doesn’t use a tilt-hinge brick. Instead, it uses a new element we’ll see later. It is a 2×2 plate that is modified with a bar underneath. This bar is then clipped into place giving the tree a remarkably sturdy foundation.
It is also worth noting that the left side of the foundation has an obvious clip to help tie the different scenes together. You even get a little bit of a stone fence with the clip to help obscure its presence. Plus, this is along the end edge that is angled, so that, when everything is connected there is just one more bit of offsetting to trick the viewer’s eye. This is just smart when you’re trying to go for an asymmetric build.
LEGO NIGHTMARE BEFORE CHRISTMAS: JACK’S HOUSE
Jack’s house is probably the highlight of the building experience. Having a two-story house, plus attic space, on a raised foundation, makes it an obvious draw with its height alone. Throw in a curved gate with its own sloping height and there is a lot to mess with your perspective. And extra details like more foliage (including a slightly different version of the tree), the weird cat alarm on the front gate, and the ramshackle-looking structure on Jack’s roof, and you won’t be sure what you should be focusing on. Plus, even his front steps zig and zag, which adds to the whimsy. Nevertheless, the build is straightforward here as well.
The foundation is a mess of arches, bricks, and slopes, but they do resolve in a flattish surface with a few special 2×4 jumper-plates. It almost seems modular for play, but this is done to make the building experience easier. There are just enough studs to make the connection firm, but not too many so taking the model apart would be a chore.
As for the floors of Jack’s house, they are more or less a repeat of the town hall’s design. Even the roof is a two-panel affair that is only held in place with gravity. Though there are some details that the town hall lacks.
First off, we do get the inside of Jack’s house in the film. So the spindly Christmas tree, Jack’s picture where he’s dressed up as Sandy Claws (this is a stickered element), the chalkboard where he’s trying to figure out Christmas (also stickered), Sally’s care package with fish and wine, and a few borrowed tools from Dr. Finkelstein decorate his house.
Also just like the town hall, the attic is crammed with gifts and decorations that Jack studies. All in all, it is the more meaningful of the two buildings.
In addition, the top of Jack’s house has a more ambitious roof. Not only is there a precarious structure on one side of the roof, but each roof section is multi-leveled. I almost stopped and took apart the attic when I initially built this part of the model. That’s because the front section of the peaked wall was lower in front than it was in the back. I was afraid I missed putting in some bricks. But to my delight the roof panels themselves made up the difference, adding in an extra bit of dimension to make the whole place that much more dynamic.
LEGO NIGHTMARE BEFORE CHRISTMAS: CURLY HILL & GRAVEYARD
For starters, I do want to point out that the large moon is a cardboard piece that is pinned in place to the back of the hill. This is why it looks so perfect and not brick-built. It is not even plastic. This kind of bummed me out a little. In general, this scene is the least interesting to build, but it does have a ton of character.
The hill is mostly an outline that is two studs thick. LEGO designers squeezed in some decorations on the back side of the hill, but mostly it is there to create the wave-like curl. The curl at its thinnest part is a bit delicate, so be careful.
After building this curled wall, you’ll create a separate side panel to fill out the rest of the hill’s shape and slap it on the side. Like the buildings, the construction looks much more challenging than the reality of the building. Personally, I was hoping for more, but it does look good so is hard to complain.
Anything written on the tombstones are stickers, but the tombstones themselves have interesting shapes. Plus, we get Zero’s doghouse mausoleum, which features a snot brick I’ve never seen before. This brick is five plates high and is 1×2 in length and depth. On one side, it has four studs like we’ve seen before (especially popular in LEGO BrickHeadz characters), but unlike that piece, it also has four studs on the reverse side. This will be an extremely useful piece for those who want to build sideways due to its thin profile and a larger-than-average surface area of extra studs.
Finishing off this part of the model is of course more foliage and decorations including the return of the Jack-O-Lantern helmet. Beyond some extra plants and pumpkins, this section relies on some sand blue elements to add just enough color variation to make the scene appear to have a bit more dimension. Honestly, I recommend starting with this third section first since it was a little boring to build.
FINAL THOUGHTS
At $199.99 USD for its MSRP, you may think this set is primarily for more experienced LEGO builders and collectors. However, the building experience is not as challenging as I’d have expected, and the minifigures aren’t the type that makes you think this is a must-have set for collectors. Additionally, the set is divided into three distinct sections with three instruction books. Add this all up and it seems to me that this set is more like for families who like to build together and love The Nightmare Before Christmas. In the video below, I talk about the set in more detail, then wrap up with my final thoughts on the set.
I think LEGO realized that when it comes to beloved intellectual properties – especially those owned by Disney – they inherited a fan base that is already used to paying a premium for the things they love. But, these same fans aren’t necessarily advanced LEGO builders. So for them, a set like this is perfect; a premium-priced set that is both accessible in its complexity and shareable with a couple of others, so that everyone can build at the same time.
Now that’s not to say that advanced builders won’t get anything out of this set. The model has a great color palette and showcases a fun building aesthetic anyone can try. But you’ll need to be a fan of the Nightmare Before Christmas first and foremost. That is what brings the added level of value to the model to make it feel worth it. If you don’t care for the brand or you are only so-so about it, this set will feel and be over-priced for you. It will still be a decent purchase for collectors because of the association with Disney, but given all the currently available popular sets, it may not be on the top of their list. If you want to check it out, it will be available at the beginning of September at the LEGO Ideas section of the Online LEGO Shop.
What do you think? How do you like the LEGO Nightmare Before Christmas set? Are you planning to get it? Feel free to share your thoughts and discuss in the comment section below!
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