All Aboard, It's Time to Go Back to School...
Just in time for the new school year, lego has released the new D2C (direct to customer) Hogwarts Express, and it's a cracker. It's one of the last sets Marcos Bessa has designed for the theme (the other being the Harry Potter 2022 Advent Calendar), and the most expensive the line has ever seen. Technically it's also the widest / longest set in the theme, but as that's almost definitely a design choice driven in part by marketing, I'm somewhat cynically going to (mostly) overlook it. In a bit of a departure, it's only "sort of" minifig scale, which is to say the minifigs fit in there quite nicely, but with a good deal more room than we're (they're?) accustomed to. Aside from width, it's also a fair bit larger than the Hogwarts Expresses we're used to (boy is it ever!) and doesn't fit on the standard track pieces. In fact, that's enough of a design issue that the tracks for this massive display set are brick built.
Brickset has put the 2018 and 2022 sets side by side for comparison. Wow.
The engine, tender and one carriage stand in front of a section of Platform 9 and 3/4, with four scenes from different years / books / movies re-created throughout the model. There are four quotes to accompany those scenes, three light bricks to illuminate them (in a lego first) and a massive ticket for the Express.
The 500 EUR / DOLLAR set has 5129 pieces and measures 118 cm (47") in length, 26 cm (11") high, 20 cm (8") deep. 71043 the nanoscale castle has 6020 pieces and 75978 Diagon Alley has 5544 pieces, making both of them larger sets (at least as far as piece count goes), but neither can match the sheer size of the new D2C Express, which also has 20 minifigs to offer, and in a series first, it includes characters from the Epilogue.
I won't be getting it because I have neither the space nor budget for it, but I have to say there's a lot to like about this set. First off, it's gorgeous. This is a thing of beauty, full stop. It'll look marvelous in any display. Secondly, it was clearly made with an eye to the further development of the theme. (That's a little more complicated to explain, but I'm going to take a stab at it.)
Consistently one of lego's top five bestsellers, all indications are the Harry Potter theme has gone "evergreen", the addition of future sets to the catalogue no longer depends on a film being released in the franchise and we can expect new sets every year for the foreseeable future (which is awesome). Given that and considering the perennial fan favourites, it's very likely we'll never be very far off from a Hogwarts Castle, a Hogwarts Express, a Knight Bus or a Hagrid's Hut set, recently retired or soon to be released. That means, if our luck holds, we'll be seeing a whole lot more of these trains. There's always some improvement or another when a set is updated, completionists definitely have difficulty saying "no" to a set, and it generally seems to leave all but the wealthiest or the newest fans a little unsatisfied, as they feel they "have to" purchase the newer set or they're missing out, while there's simultaneously reluctance or the inability to do so. How many Hogwarts Expresses do you really need to own just to get that extra minifig? Or how much will you have to shell out on the aftermarket to pick it up?
In that light, I feel this set balances things beautifully.
It's there if you have the budget for it, but neatly replaced by the much smaller and more affordable set from 2018 if you don't. The detailed model may appeal to train fans who aren't fans of the source material itself, or adult collectors disappointed by the 2021+ modular style looking for more challenging builds, possibly even bringing in new interest for the theme, all while (largely) not re-treading recently covered ground, just in case you "need" to collect them all. In short: perfect! For some perspective, if you're paying retail, there were 1244 EUR worth of HP lego sets released in 2022 alone, plus a gift with purchase, and I'm really not sure what percentage of the market could even afford to get all of them, but that should never have been the point. The point should be: how likely are you as a fan to find something that appeals to you? I can't tell you what a relief it is to see them diversify, to design for a variety customers. That's the sort of thing likely to keep a line more vital. It's also the sort of thing that makes it more likely they'll eventually release that set I probably don't even know I'm eager to see. This year alone, their scattershot approach has netted me the Library, an unlikely set by any metric, an improved Infirmary, and the first ever Madam Pince and Madam Pomfrey minifigs. How lovely! And how improbable. In that light, it's churlish to complain about another Dumbledore's Office, particularly as it contains more details than the last.
Speaking of details, one where the Collector's Express set really shines for me is its selection of minifigures. Lego knows its market well, I've heard Marcos in the past say the aftermarket value of the minifigures alone would go a long way to paying for a set. It's the sort of consideration (or, fair dinkum, perhaps cynicism) that acknowledges its customers' (and their wallets') limitations. They've taken some fire for not including Hermione and Ron in the Epilogue scene (with which I tend to agree, although the cut off point is tricky) instead of the two nameless "diversity figs", or for not just sticking strictly with the Epilogue. (I'm less on board with that count... The five Potters, four Granger-Weasleys, three Malfoys; I believe they'd considered five more figs in this constellation. Possibly retaining the two Express staff and two random students?) Instead, four different scenes are covered here: when the trio first meet in PS, when Harry first encounters a Dementor in PoA, when Draco stomps Harry in HBP, and the Epilogue. We've had enough variants of the characters that it shouldn't be an issue to re-create most of those scenes - even with the same outfits - from our own collections, so fans needn't feel terribly left out (even though suited Draco is very nicely done (*sniffle*) and Ron has some nice jumpers), and yet there are enough unique minifigs that will help boost the set's resale value in a few year's time. As a customer, I always appreciate when they're mindful of our bottom lines, too, but the care given as well to not leave less monied fans standing in the rain with the fig selection is especially kind and shows an attention to the original material that I welcome.
The fourth Half Blood Prince scene with Luna, Draco and Harry appears to only be visible in the box art:
"Wrackspurts! Your head is full of them."
The selection of this motif for the D2C also drew some flak, most fans would have preferred to see Gringotts. While I'm definitely more likely to purchase the infamous Bank when it inevitably comes than I am this edition of the Express, this approach helps spread the budget further. Additionally a 500 EUR Gringotts would have priced a much desired locale beyond what many fans could afford and on its own wouldn't fit the scale of the 75978 Diagon Alley set. I'd much prefer to see them release a more affordable (and accessible) Gringotts, and if the line keeps preforming well for them, I'm sure we'll eventually see more shops from Diagon Alley in the style of 2020's set. (The Leaky, Eyelops Owl Emporium, Magical Menagerie, Potage's Cauldrons, Rosa Lee Teabag's, Wizeacre's Wizarding Equipment and Madam Malkin's pop immediately to mind, and that's not even getting to the Knockturn Alley stores I'm hoping to see. Please, lego, please!)
Bottom line: this is a beautiful set, if not for everyone, but that's alright; the price tag alone would have seen to that. It's not a bad thing to design for a more diverse set of customers, it can only strengthen the theme. If it's not the set you were hoping for, no worries, experiments like this only go to show they're very likely to get to it eventually. Anything is possible, just have some faith. Luckily for us, this is shaping up to be a marathon and not a sprint. All in all from this fan's perspective, a very welcome addition to the lego Harry Potter theme's product line. Well done! Keep up the good work.
Brickset has put the 2018 and 2022 sets side by side for comparison. Wow.
The engine, tender and one carriage stand in front of a section of Platform 9 and 3/4, with four scenes from different years / books / movies re-created throughout the model. There are four quotes to accompany those scenes, three light bricks to illuminate them (in a lego first) and a massive ticket for the Express.
The 500 EUR / DOLLAR set has 5129 pieces and measures 118 cm (47") in length, 26 cm (11") high, 20 cm (8") deep. 71043 the nanoscale castle has 6020 pieces and 75978 Diagon Alley has 5544 pieces, making both of them larger sets (at least as far as piece count goes), but neither can match the sheer size of the new D2C Express, which also has 20 minifigs to offer, and in a series first, it includes characters from the Epilogue.
I won't be getting it because I have neither the space nor budget for it, but I have to say there's a lot to like about this set. First off, it's gorgeous. This is a thing of beauty, full stop. It'll look marvelous in any display. Secondly, it was clearly made with an eye to the further development of the theme. (That's a little more complicated to explain, but I'm going to take a stab at it.)
Consistently one of lego's top five bestsellers, all indications are the Harry Potter theme has gone "evergreen", the addition of future sets to the catalogue no longer depends on a film being released in the franchise and we can expect new sets every year for the foreseeable future (which is awesome). Given that and considering the perennial fan favourites, it's very likely we'll never be very far off from a Hogwarts Castle, a Hogwarts Express, a Knight Bus or a Hagrid's Hut set, recently retired or soon to be released. That means, if our luck holds, we'll be seeing a whole lot more of these trains. There's always some improvement or another when a set is updated, completionists definitely have difficulty saying "no" to a set, and it generally seems to leave all but the wealthiest or the newest fans a little unsatisfied, as they feel they "have to" purchase the newer set or they're missing out, while there's simultaneously reluctance or the inability to do so. How many Hogwarts Expresses do you really need to own just to get that extra minifig? Or how much will you have to shell out on the aftermarket to pick it up?
In that light, I feel this set balances things beautifully.
It's there if you have the budget for it, but neatly replaced by the much smaller and more affordable set from 2018 if you don't. The detailed model may appeal to train fans who aren't fans of the source material itself, or adult collectors disappointed by the 2021+ modular style looking for more challenging builds, possibly even bringing in new interest for the theme, all while (largely) not re-treading recently covered ground, just in case you "need" to collect them all. In short: perfect! For some perspective, if you're paying retail, there were 1244 EUR worth of HP lego sets released in 2022 alone, plus a gift with purchase, and I'm really not sure what percentage of the market could even afford to get all of them, but that should never have been the point. The point should be: how likely are you as a fan to find something that appeals to you? I can't tell you what a relief it is to see them diversify, to design for a variety customers. That's the sort of thing likely to keep a line more vital. It's also the sort of thing that makes it more likely they'll eventually release that set I probably don't even know I'm eager to see. This year alone, their scattershot approach has netted me the Library, an unlikely set by any metric, an improved Infirmary, and the first ever Madam Pince and Madam Pomfrey minifigs. How lovely! And how improbable. In that light, it's churlish to complain about another Dumbledore's Office, particularly as it contains more details than the last.
Speaking of details, one where the Collector's Express set really shines for me is its selection of minifigures. Lego knows its market well, I've heard Marcos in the past say the aftermarket value of the minifigures alone would go a long way to paying for a set. It's the sort of consideration (or, fair dinkum, perhaps cynicism) that acknowledges its customers' (and their wallets') limitations. They've taken some fire for not including Hermione and Ron in the Epilogue scene (with which I tend to agree, although the cut off point is tricky) instead of the two nameless "diversity figs", or for not just sticking strictly with the Epilogue. (I'm less on board with that count... The five Potters, four Granger-Weasleys, three Malfoys; I believe they'd considered five more figs in this constellation. Possibly retaining the two Express staff and two random students?) Instead, four different scenes are covered here: when the trio first meet in PS, when Harry first encounters a Dementor in PoA, when Draco stomps Harry in HBP, and the Epilogue. We've had enough variants of the characters that it shouldn't be an issue to re-create most of those scenes - even with the same outfits - from our own collections, so fans needn't feel terribly left out (even though suited Draco is very nicely done (*sniffle*) and Ron has some nice jumpers), and yet there are enough unique minifigs that will help boost the set's resale value in a few year's time. As a customer, I always appreciate when they're mindful of our bottom lines, too, but the care given as well to not leave less monied fans standing in the rain with the fig selection is especially kind and shows an attention to the original material that I welcome.
The fourth Half Blood Prince scene with Luna, Draco and Harry appears to only be visible in the box art:
"Wrackspurts! Your head is full of them."
The selection of this motif for the D2C also drew some flak, most fans would have preferred to see Gringotts. While I'm definitely more likely to purchase the infamous Bank when it inevitably comes than I am this edition of the Express, this approach helps spread the budget further. Additionally a 500 EUR Gringotts would have priced a much desired locale beyond what many fans could afford and on its own wouldn't fit the scale of the 75978 Diagon Alley set. I'd much prefer to see them release a more affordable (and accessible) Gringotts, and if the line keeps preforming well for them, I'm sure we'll eventually see more shops from Diagon Alley in the style of 2020's set. (The Leaky, Eyelops Owl Emporium, Magical Menagerie, Potage's Cauldrons, Rosa Lee Teabag's, Wizeacre's Wizarding Equipment and Madam Malkin's pop immediately to mind, and that's not even getting to the Knockturn Alley stores I'm hoping to see. Please, lego, please!)
Bottom line: this is a beautiful set, if not for everyone, but that's alright; the price tag alone would have seen to that. It's not a bad thing to design for a more diverse set of customers, it can only strengthen the theme. If it's not the set you were hoping for, no worries, experiments like this only go to show they're very likely to get to it eventually. Anything is possible, just have some faith. Luckily for us, this is shaping up to be a marathon and not a sprint. All in all from this fan's perspective, a very welcome addition to the lego Harry Potter theme's product line. Well done! Keep up the good work.