The Land of Oz has captivated movie audiences since the late ’30s. Based on the children’s book by L. Frank Baum, the Wizard of Oz tells the tale of a young girl from Kansas who is whisked away to a faraway land, called Oz. The enduring spirit of the wonderful Wizard of Oz original story has inspired numerous spin-offs including a hit musical called Wicked. That itself was also inspired by a series of books published in the mid-90s and based on Baum’s fantastical world. Now the musical which was inspired by the books, which were inspired by the film, based on the books will soon be heading to cinemas. Universal’s upcoming two-part film, has inspired a brand new LEGO® theme. The upcoming sets are based on the character and moment from the first Wicked film, set to be released in November. One such set is a pair of buildable figures based on the two main characters from Wicked. Here’s a closer look at the Elphaba and Glinda Figures.
Product Details
Set Name: Elphaba & Glinda Figures | Set Number: 75682 | Pieces: 558 | Theme: Wicked
Number of Bags: Bags x 5 (paper) | Instructions: Paper booklet + Builder App | Stickers: Sheet x 1
RRP: £49.99/$54.99/54.99€/99.99AUD/69.99CAD
Availability: LEGO Stores, LEGO Online & LEGO Retailers
Moviegoers were first introduced to Elphaba and Glinda, in The Wizard of Oz, where they were more commonly known as the Wicked Witch of the West and Glinda the Good Witch. Wicked acts as a prequel and fleshes out the back story of both characters. It’s those two characters who are the focus of this particular LEGO Wicked set. Buildable characters aren’t new but this is the first time they have taken direct inspiration from a Mini-doll.
The set comprises of a themed display stand and two buildable figures. The stand is split into two distinct sections. One tied to Glinda and decked out with flowers and pink colours. The other is decidedly more evil to reflect Elphaba’s future evil ways. The stand is a platform to display both of the buildable figures but it’s also a place to store their accessories. Glinda has a handbag and magic wand with Elphaba’s side featuring a broom, a classic witches hat and a potion bottle.
But it’s the central section of the stand which is impressive the most. This uses a circular beam as a portal window. A silver foil disc, showing Elemeld City is printed onto it. This is then fixed to the back of the disc. It offers a unique focal point. The themed decoration of the two characters borders this disc section. On Glinda’s side, a pink-coloured classic leaf piece is climbing around the edge of the disc window and on the opposite side is a selection of transparent green leaves, recoloured versions of the new elements first featured in the Donkey Kong sets. The central part of the stand is also home to a brown book-like build, which hides a QR code. Although at the time of this review, it’s not active, the product description suggests it plays the song ‘Defying Gravity’ from the film and unlocks additional ‘Wicked’ content when scanned with a smart device.
The buildable figures are based on the two main characters from the film. They are styled after the mini-doll versions of the Elphaba and Glinda, found in other ‘Wicked’ sets. A similar style of figure is used in an upcoming set inspired by the Wednesday Netflix series. I must say, I quite like them. Although both are very different-looking characters their base build is similar.
They also use a couple of new elements to help create the necessary details of the characters. These include a new element used for the face section. It’s similar to the pieces often used for the roofs of vehicles. Instead of being a plate element, it’s the same thickness as a brick. These are both printed pieces. The second new element is an upscaled hand. This is similar to those found in the Mario sets, so they look bigger than a stand Minifigure hand but can still grip accessories. Of the two characters, I prefer Glinda, she’s slightly more detailed and the way her dress is achieved is simple but effective.
Once the figures are built you can add their accessories. These are mostly fine although, Glinda’s witches hat looks a little awkward when added to her head. They can both be posed thanks to their various jointed connected points. Unfortunately, some of these use the grey ball joints which continue to blight otherwise good builds.
I’m certainly not the target audience for this set or the Wicked theme as a whole, but I quite like this style of set. The mini-doll-like figures offer an interesting and stylish way to portray buildable characters. As mentioned, the same style is already set to be used for an upcoming Wednesday set but I could see it being used for other characters and it’s perfectly suited for a range of similar sets featuring Disney Princesses. If nothing else, the set features a selection and interesting parts. It’s not a set I planned on purchasing, but I’m glad I got to build it by getting it to review. The Elphaba and Glinda Figures can be pre-ordered now and will be available from October 1st.
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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 Universal Pictures. Providing a set for free does not guarantee a favourable opinion of the set.
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