When it comes to creating sets inspired by Disney’s animated classic retelling of The Little Mermaid, the underwater palace features heavily. In fact, almost all of The Little Mermaid LEGO® sets have chosen to recreate Ariel’s royal home. The latest is a miniature take on the palace found down where it’s wetter and so much better. Here’s a brief look at the LEGO Disney Little Mermaid set, Ariel’s Magical Mini Palace.
Product Details
Set Name: Ariel’s Magical Mini Palace | Set Number: 43285 | Pieces: 179 | Theme: Disney Princess
Number of Bags: Bags x 3 | Instructions: Paper booklet + Builder App | Sticker: n/a | Mini-dolls: Ariel, Flounder & Sebastian
RRP: £17.99/19.99€/$19.99/29.99AUD/24.99CAD
Availability: LEGO Stores, LEGO Online & LEGO retailers
The latest version of Ariel’s royal palace is created from two halves which are linked together. Once the two parts are pushed together, they are locked in place by a small Technic bracket. This can be turned by one of the key-shaped brick separators. Although this creates a lockable container, it doesn’t appear to be designed for kids to keep things within it. One side of the set features a small version of the underwater castle. Its exterior is fairly simple, but it definitely resembles the animated version briefly shown in the 1989 film. (I can never believe it was an 80s film; it always felt more like a 90s release). The interior side of the castle features a music-themed space.
The opposite side of the set is meant to represent the water. It uses transparent blue pieces and includes a rocky door. Again, the exterior is quite basic, but the upper area includes a small shipwreck. Inside is enough space for the Technic lock bracket to sit, along with a new box element. This 2×2 box includes a hinged lid similar to the postbox doors. The same piece is featured in some of the Minecraft sets.
The set includes three main characters from the original animated film. As this is a mini set, Ariel is a micro-doll. This smaller take on a mini-doll isn’t unique, as an Ariel micro-doll was included in the 2024 Disney Advent Calendar. She’s joined by her undersea companions, Flounder the fish and Sebastian the Crab. Both of these animal figures have appeared in several other sets. Although not a character, the set also includes a mini dolphin, which is pulling the set’s mini chariot.
It’s a fun little set, although the lockable aspect of the set seems an odd addition. There is a chamber within the set once the two halves are brought together, but it’s not there as somewhere to store anything other than the things found in the set. Despite that and the small size of the set, it features a surprising amount of detail. Ariel’s Magical Mini Palace set is available now. But that’s not the only LEGO set inspired by The Little Mermaid being released this year.
30720: Ariel & Flounder’s Birthday Music Fun
Set No: 30720 | Pieces: 39
One of the many polybags/recruitment bags being released this year is set 30720. This features a small organ along with an Ariel mini-doll and a Flounder figure. As with all of these mini LEGO sets, they offer a small teaser of various LEGO themes and are often cheaper ways to collect characters. The set’s availability is currently unclear, but expect it to be available from LEGOLAND stores, supermarkets and online retailers in the next few weeks.
