(Written by William)
Last year, when LEGO announced that we were going to get buildable Minions I just assumed we were getting LEGO Minions in the style of LEGO BrickHeadz. When that didn’t happen, and instead we got the #75551 LEGO Brick-Built Minions and Their Lair with much larger brick-built characters, I was rather sad. It was also a bit irritating that you needed to buy two copies of the set just so you could build all three of the models. I understand it was in order to keep the price down, but it only raised the price for those of us who wanted more.
Fast forward to this year, and I have some good news and some bad news. With the new #40420 LEGO BrickHeadz Minions Stuart, Gru & Otto set and the #40421 LEGO BrickHeadz Minions Bob, Belle Bottom & Kevin set we still have to buy two sets to get the three main Minions. That’s the bad news. The good news is that each set comes with three characters in LEGO BrickHeadz style. This means, that we are getting three extra characters besides the most iconic ones.
Keep in mind that the Minions: The Rise of Gru (also known as Minions 2) movie these sets are based on won’t be released until next year. And there is one character featured here we don’t know anything about. Funnily, the character happens to be my favorite. So, let’s take a closer look at both sets.
BRICKHEADZ MINIONS STUART, GRU & OTTO
This set comes with two numbered bags. You first build Gru from the instructions. He is what we would call a full-sized normal LEGO BrickHeadz character. The second bag contains the parts for two smaller Minions. You also get two instruction booklets, each corresponding with the numbered bags. So if you want to divide the building process, it is rather easy to split the Minions from the main character.
Gru has finally made his appearance in LEGO BrickHeadz form! Setting him apart from most other BrickHeadz is his pointed nose. Being a distinct characteristic of Gru, it would have been criminal to leave it off. He also has a nice printed 1×4 tile to show off the bottom of his shirt. The brick-built scarf is especially clever using plates with rails and a bit of off-centering to cover up a little more space around the neck and have a three dimensional appearance.
Next up in build order is Otto. This is a little odd considering his numbering on the box places him after Stuart. He holds a printed round tile which might relate to something significant in the upcoming movie. Another interesting fact about Otto is that he’s built different than most small BrickHeadz characters I’ve assembled.
Normal LEGO BrickHeadz are 4×4 studs, while the smaller ones are usually 3×3 studs. Otto is a bit bigger than the average Minion. So even though he has the characteristic short height, his body is 4 studs wide and 4 studs long. The pocket outline on his torso is a printed tile. I also really love the printing on his eyes.
All the LEGO BrickHeadz Minions have printed 2×2 round tiles for their eyes, which gives them a highly expressive appearance. An interesting feature is that the printing is a combination of standard BrickHeadz eyes (with square highlights), combined with the oversized goggle look of Minions’ eyes. These printed tiles are placed on standard 2×2 round plates to give the goggles depth as well.
Finally, we move on to Stuart. He is the most standard looking Minion, except maybe for his single eye. But in terms of height and shape for a small BrickHeadz character, he is rather average. Just like Otto, he has a pocket printed on the front, and the big 2×2 round eye tile, and unlike Otto, he has a printed hair tile. The printing only features a few lines, but it is one of the only BrickHeadz I can think of that has printed hair. Most just have brick-built hair.
BRICKHEADZ MINIONS BELLE BOTTOM, KEVIN & BOB
Just like in the other set, this one is also divided into two bags with two sets of instructions. The first bag and book features the new character, Belle Bottom. Honestly, this was one of my all time favorite BrickHeadz to build. All we know is that she is the main antagonist of the upcoming movie. The other bag and instructions features Kevin and Bob.
Belle Bottom is just amazing. From her fantastic fur coat to her exquisitely crafted afro, this character was a blast to build. The hair alone is such a densely packed construction that it gives the model real weight and heft. It is also something worth studying for those who enjoy making more spherical shapes with LEGO bricks. As BrickHeadz characters are so studded and blocky, it’s hard to include refined details, but this one drips with attitude.
She has a printed chain pattern on a 1×2 brick on front, which I think is going to prove useful in other builds as well. But that is merely an accent to the bright magenta and flared collar. I sort of get that intangible quality and personality that came from people like the late musician Prince. Wearing a style most wouldn’t dare to try and making it their own. Needless to say, this character already intrigues me.
Next we move on to the two Minions. Kevin is first, and he is taller than the other Minions in the two sets. He comes with his crazy tuft of hair that sticks up. His printed pieces include striped sleeves, eyes, and orange tile at the front. Kevin also carries a pair of nunchuks.
Lastly we get Bob! He’s my personal favorite Minion, and is the most simple to build. His main feature is his short height. His printing is similar to Kevin’s, but he doesn’t carry any accessories.
LEGO BRICKHEADZ MINIONS – FINAL THOUGHTS
Overall, these two sets are what I was hoping for last year. I’m a big LEGO BrickHeadz fan and I definitely needed some Minions in my collection. However, since Minions are smaller, it makes sense to have them come in multiple packs. In the video below, I will talk a bit more about both sets.
Comparing the two sets, the first one with Gru does feel a bit more subdued to the one with Belle Bottom. However, Gru is a much more recognized and established character so it sort of evens out. As mentioned before, Belle Bottom is a completely new character, but she is easily the most interesting to build in my opinion. In fact, it seemed as though she had a higher piece-count than most LEGO BrickHeadz characters we get.
As for the Minions themselves, I can imagine some people finding them a little too blocky. Especially since a major characteristic of the Minions is that they are round and curvy. However, those who are into BrickHeadz know that the blocky nature is part of the aesthetic. I personally was expecting to be bothered by it but found I wasn’t. I think the oversized round eyes give me that bulbous expectation so I don’t need the rest of the body to be round or cylindrical.
Beyond the printed elements, there’s nothing really unique in these sets. Though given the popularity of Minions, I could see the first run of these sets to sell out, even though the corresponding movie isn’t available yet. Minions have become a staple in our culture and we can find them on everything from T-Shirts to birthday decorations all year long. If you want to check out the new sets (along with the older releases), visit the LEGO Minions section of the Online LEGO Shop.
What do you think? Do you collect LEGO BrickHeadz? And how do you like the LEGO BrickHeadz Minions characters? Are you planning to get them? Feel free to share your thoughts and discuss in the comment section below!
And you might also like to check out the following related posts:
