The Sonic universe has added many weird and wonderful characters to its roster since the Blue Blur debuted in the ’90s. But one has oddly gained cult status since first appearing in Sonic Adventure 2 on the SEGA Dreamcast. Shadow the Hedgehog was generically engineered to be the Ultimate Life Form. The character would go on to star in his own game, which is best described as ‘Sonic with a gun’. This year has been dubbed the Year of Shadow and will conclude with Shadow’s live-action debut in the third Sonic the Hedgehog movie from Paramount. Part of the celebrations will also see Shadow become the focus of the set I’ll be taking a look at in this review. Here’s a closer look at the Shadow the Hedgehog set, the first 18+ Sonic set.
Product Details
Set Name: Shadow the Hedgehog | Set Number: 77000 | Pieces: 720 | Theme: Sonic the Hedgehog
Number of Bags: Bags x 7 + loose elements (paper) | Instructions: Paper booklet + Builder App | Stickers: Sheet x 1 | Insiders QR: Yes
RRP: £59.99/$69.99/69.99€/99.99AUD/89.99CAD
Availability: LEGO Stores & LEGO Online from October 1st
Displayable sets have become more prominent in recent years. They include everything from buildable plants to large-scale scenes. They have also introduced smaller builds including several ‘heads’ such as the Star Wars helmets and super hero cowls/helmets. Now that line-up can count the head of the Ultimate Life Form, Shadow the Hedgehog. Like those sets mentioned above, the builds feature a display plinth, which is where the build begins. Unlike those other ‘heads’, the stand is quite simple and merely acts as a perch to connect Shadow’s head, without the need to anchor it to any Technic beams. This has allowed the first of several Easter Eggs to be hidden within the display plinth’s column.
Next up is the core of Shadow’s head. This is quite complex and it needs to be so it can capture Shadow’s unique appearance. It also needs to have connection points for its long quills. As you build the core of the set, you notice a couple more intriguing Easter Eggs. Despite not needing to be there in terms of the structure of the set, they are fun inclusions.
The set has several interesting elements and plenty of recoloured pieces. These include printed eye tiles, the display plaque on the stand and the large curved panel used for Shadow’s forehead. There is on downside with one of the printed pieces. A black slope plate is used for the tip of Shadow’s central quill. The front part of the quill is a red slope but the second section features red printing on the black elements. This results in the red colouring being mismatched to the red piece. It’s far more noticeable than it appears in the images here. Despite that, I’m glad it’s a printed piece and not a sticker. Shadow’s eyes and mouth are also printed elements.
Sonic fandom is certainly unique, celebrating memes and other oddities. Something which has been embraced by SEGA. Gamers’ love of Shadow caused the character to appear in several other Sonic titles, despite being killed off at the end of Sonic Adventure 2. There’s no getting away from the fact that Shadow is a cool-looking character, best described as a black version of Sonic. But it’s an odd choice for a character bust over the Blue Blur. Sonic would be an equally odd-looking build but is a far more popular character than Shadow. Regardless of which character would be used as the source for the style of set, a disembodied head will always seem odd. Yet it was an enjoyable build, the core of the head features several Easter Eggs, which fans of the characters will enjoy. Plus it’s looks much better ‘in-person’ than it does in pictures.
The LEGO Sonic the Hedgehog – Shadow the Hedgehog set will launch on October 1st and can be pre-ordered today. Sonic the Hedgehog 3 arrives in cinemas just before Christmas.
Pre-order: UKIrelandUSCanadaMexicoGermanyFranceDenmarkAustraliaNew Zealand
LEGO Group provided this set to BricksFanz for review. The thoughts within this review are those of BricksFanz and do not reflect those of the LEGO Group or SEGA Sammy. Providing a set for free does not guarantee a favourable opinion of the set.
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