LEGO® Ideas continues to deliver the most diverse array of LEGO builds of any other theme. The latest to join the ever-growing line-up of fan-designed sets is the Italian Riviera. The 3251-piece set is inspired by a quaint, sun-kissed Italian village, nestled among rocks and lapped by the blue waters of the Mediterranean Sea. Thanks to being based on an original idea, the set is free to go all in on detail, and it’s packed with fun features and hidden Easter Eggs. But will the Italian Riviera set leave you longing for la dolce vita or booking a one-way ticket home? Here’s what the 67th LEGO Ideas set has to offer.
Product Details
Set Name: Italian Riviera | Set Number: 21359 | Pieces: 3251 | Theme: Ideas
Number of Bags: Bags x 25 + loose elements | Instructions: Paper booklet + Builder App | Stickers: x 1 | Characters: Minifigures x 10
RRP: £249.99/279.99€/$299.99/449.99AUD/349.99CAD
Availability: LEGO Stores & LEGO Online from August 7th (Insiders), August 10th (General)
Around this time last year, it was announced that two fan-created projects from the third 2023 project had been chosen to become future LEGO Ideas sets. One of those sets was The Italian Riviera by Galaxy 333. The original project featured a trio of seaside buildings similar to what would be found in a quaint Italian Mediterranean village. The original build from Galaxy 333 can be found below.
The set is built upon two separate sections which clip together to form a slice of an Italian fishing village. Similar to the original fan design, it’s nestled near the sea, but instead of featuring a small section of beach, the street directly opens onto the blue water if the sea. This is built into the base of the set, with a mix of bright blue and dark azure plates, topped with transparent elements to create a splash of colour around the base of the village.
Once the two sections of the base are joined together, you start to craft the three buildings. These are also built in sections which can be split apart to access the interior of each level. The taller building on the right side of the set is split across three levels. The base is a fish market, which is packed with fresh seafood. Various sea creature elements are neatly displayed in fun ways. Above the fish market is a kitchen where the Italian’s love of food is shown through fresh pasta meals, pasta dough and olive oil, which are all featured. Above the kitchen is a smaller apartment which includes a bed and shower. Although these are small rooms, they each include fun details and clever build techniques.
Over on the left side of the village are two other buildings. These are only two-storey but thanks to the sloping nature of the base, they sit a different angles. The building to the front of the village features a scuba diving shop. This is filled with objects you’d expect in a shop focused on diving. But the highlight here is a light blue air tank. For those who are building their own army of colourful Classic Space astronauts. Next door is a gelato shop. I love the details packed into the small room, especially the freezer counter filled with different icy treats. I quite like that the set hasn’t gone down the route of featuring a pizzeria. The gelato shop feels more in keeping with its surroundings.
Above the Scuba Diving and Gelato Shops is another, much larger apartment. The smaller room features a living room, but the second room, which sits atop the Gelato Shop, includes a lot of little details. The use of parts to create the smallest of details is one of the set’s strongest points. This even expands to the roofs of the buildings. They are a little fiddly to craft, but once complete, they look amazing nestled on each of the buildings and are definitely in keeping with the trio of colourful buildings.
What truly makes a good LEGO set is not its scale or number of minifigures it contains, but the smaller details. This set is a great example of that. Buildings are adorned with window boxes growing plants, the roofs have retro antennas, and best of all are the rocky cliffs that clad the sides of the buildings. These are built in sections to give them a nice textured appearance.
To bring even more character to the location, the set includes a small fishing boat. This is a light blue coloured vessel and is kitted out with oars, fishing tackle and an excellent little motor. There’s also a scooter, which is a key sight on the streets of Italy thanks to them being able to nip around the small streets. Its rider can don a purple coloured helmet, which is another interesting piece for Classic Space fans.
The focus of the set is very much the buildings, but any bustling village needs some residents to bring it to life. The set includes 1o minifigures, which are a pretty standard affair. Of the 10 characters featured in the set, all but two have torsos which have appeared in numerous other LEGO sets. The unique torsos include a dapper-looking gentleman with a green scarf wrapped around his neck. The other is a nonna, wearing a floral-themed apron. These are generic enough to appear in future sets but are nice in the setting of this particular set.
It’s another expensive LEGO Ideas set with a large piece count, but to be honest, the piece count is partly inflated by a lot of smaller elements. However, it was still an interesting build experience, and I quite like how compact it is. Plus, it’s jam-packed with plenty of little details both around the entire exterior of the village, along with its shops and homes. I would have liked a few more unique characters to inhabit the set, especially as it’s such a wonderful location. But those included help to bring it to life. The configuration of the set and the colours used for its buildings and roof, plus the intricate details dotted around it, are perfect. Above all, it just feels like a happy-looking place and somewhere you’d want to visit. Just looking at it evokes the ideas of a sunshine-filled adventure on the Italian Riviera. Set 21359: Italian Riviera will be available for Insiders from August 7th. Insiders will also be able to get an exclusive Italian Market Van GWP set when purchasing the set between August 7th – 13th. The set will be available for all from August 10th.
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The LEGO Group provided this set to BricksFanz for this review. However, the thoughts expressed in this review are those of BricksFanz and do not reflect those of the LEGO Group. Providing a set for free does not guarantee a favourable opinion of the set.
