This year marks the 30th Anniversary since Disney’s The Lion King was released in cinemas. The animated film was partly inspired by Shakespeare’s Hamlet and forms part of the golden era of Disney animated films. The Lion King follows the story of lion cub Simba, who leaves Pride Rock after the death of his father. It’s become a cult classic thanks to its strong characters, dramatic story and of course, its catchy songs. To coincide with the 30th Anniversary of the film, the LEGO Group has recreated Simba in two different scales. The larger of the two sets is directed towards adult LEGO® fans and offers a detailed take on the young lion cub, Simba. As the film returns to cinemas this week, here is a closer look at Young Simba the Lion King.
Product Details
Set Name: Young Simba the Lion King | Set Number: 43247 | Pieces: 1445 | Theme: Disney
Number of Bags: Bags x 15 | Instructions: Paper booklet + Builder App | Stickers: N/A | Characters: N/A| Insiders QR: Yes
RRP: £114.99/$129.99/129.99€/199.99AUD/169.99CAD
Availability: LEGO Stores & LEGO Online
Simba is built in six different sections beginning with the body. This pear-shaped mass becomes the basis of Simba and the point for the five separately built sections to be added. The body is quite light but it doesn’t have to support the weight of the limbs. Those just perfectly counter the other sections of the build, which include two hind legs and two front legs, a tail and Simba’s head. Similar to the body, Simba’s limbs are quite simple builds but use elements in clever ways to achieve the required appearances. They also feature points which allow them to be slotted into Simba’s body. Once connected they perfectly blend together. I’ve heard others describe the set has being almost puppet-like and I get that description as the separate sections are similar to have puppets are crafted. Although they lack any sort of movement.
The most complex part of the build is Simba’s head. This employs some unique build techniques to capture Simba’s cartoon-creature features. I particularly like the ways the ears and eyes have been done and how they are nestled into the overall structure of the head. Various yellow elements are combined and layered to nearly hide the inner core of the head as well as replicating Simba’s fur.
Creating animals or other natural elements with LEGO bricks has always been tricky. But thanks to new elements and build techniques, recent efforts have been more successful and this set nicely showcases that in terms of replicating an animal. Its construction is interesting, and the way each section combines nicely captures Simba’s younger self. Although it doesn’t offer much in terms of articulation, the chosen pose for Simba results in a great display piece.
Young Simba the Lion King is available now from LEGO stores, LEGO.com and selected LEGO retailers. There is also a smaller, cheaper version of Simba is also available now.
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The LEGO Group provided this set, upon request, for this review. The thoughts within this review are those of BricksFanz.com and do not reflect those of the LEGO Group or Disney. Providing a set for free does not guarantee a favourable opinion of the set.
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