LEGO Harry Potter 75947 Hagrid’s Hut: Buckbeak’s Rescue review

75947 Hagrid’s Hut: Buckbeak’s Rescue represents everything that the LEGO Harry Potter design team are getting right at the moment

Price: £49.99 / $59.99 / €59.99 Pieces: 496 Available: Now

Believe it or not, this is actually the fourth rendition of Hagrid’s Hut that the LEGO Group has produced. The 2019 version is the biggest and most expensive Hagrid’s Hut yet, has the highest piece count, the most minifigures and is the first to take on the two-room version featured from Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban onwards. As facts, these are quite interesting, but, as you take in the splendour of 75947 Hagrid’s Hut: Buckbeak’s Rescue, it’s very quickly apparent that nine years of advancement in LEGO design techniques and parts variety makes for really no comparison at all between what came before, and what is in front of us now.

The only relevant comparative note is that, as mentioned, this version of Hagrid’s Hut is based on the one that appears in the films from Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban onwards. From that point in the series, the gameskeeper’s house comprised of two rooms, rather than one, and the LEGO Group’s decision to finally visit this version of the setting immediately helps to distinguish the model from its predecessors. So too does the half exterior/half interior build, freeing up the larger piece count to allow the designers to really have fun in expanding the floor plan, and recreate the general aesthetic and shaping that make this one of the most unique locations in the Harry Potter books and films.

lego

Important details such as Hagrid’s chair, the white teapot and the fireplace complete with unhatched dragon’s egg are also included to help fill what is a sizeable interior, and still leave plenty of space for the many minifigures included. The fireplace’s use of a light brick, ingeniously built into and activated through the chimney, adds an extra level of charm and coziness to the hut – in fact, this is the highlight to a charming build.

The attention to detail has been applied just as equally to the exterior of the hut as to the interior, with a decent balance between build techniques and stickers adding character and feature to the walls, and a simple but smart design for the roof giving it its unique shape. Combined with the pumpkin patch and Buckbeak sitting outside, this version of Hagrid’s Hut works equally as well for exterior display as interior play.

The minifigures are spot on in design, and, barring Dumbledore’s absence, there’s little to complain about. Remarkably, this is Minister for Magic Cornelius Fudge’s debut as a minifigure and, less remarkably but still just as welcome, there’s also a first minifigure for Death Eater and would-be executioner Walden Macnair. Harry Potter of two other sets is joined by exclusives Ron Weasley and Hermione Granger for excellent versions of the trio in their most important outfits for the prolonged climax of Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban. Indeed, for how that story plays out, there’s a very decent reason – other than wanting to build a complete Hagrid’s Hut, as we will show you how in Issue 11 of Brick Fanatics Magazine (available to order from mid-October) – for picking up two copies of 75947 Hagrid’s Hut: Buckbeak’s Rescue.

Hippogriff Buckbeak, meanwhile, is also a strong update from his 2004 version, with his particular personality captured ever more faithfully in a moulded, printed head piece. He stands in the pumpkin patch complete with chains, awaiting an execution that won’t be happening. There is something about these LEGO Harry Potter sets and how wonderfully they capture each respective scene they are based on.

Much like many of the other sets that have arrived since 2018’s return of LEGO Harry Potter, 75947 Hagrid’s Hut: Buckbeak’s Rescue captures story, charm and character, offering fans a true recreation of a key moment from one of the books and films, with a perfect balance of minifigures and a highly detailed and fun model.

There’s little to fault 75947 Hagrid’s Hut: Buckbeak’s Rescue and, as mentioned, more reason than ever to pick up more than one copy.

This product was provided for review by the LEGO Group.

75947 Hagrid’s Hut: Buckbeak’s Rescue is available now at LEGO.com. You can help support Brick Fanatics’ work by using our affiliate links.

Author Profile

Rob Paton
As one half of Tiro Media Ltd, I mix a passion for print and digital media production with a deep love of LEGO and can often be found on these pages eulogising about LEGO Batman, digging deeper into the LEGO Group’s inner workings, or just complaining about the price of the latest LEGO Star Wars set. Make a great impression when you meet me in person by praising EXO-FORCE as the greatest LEGO theme of all time. Follow me on Twitter @RobPaton or drop me an email at [email protected].

Rob Paton

As one half of Tiro Media Ltd, I mix a passion for print and digital media production with a deep love of LEGO and can often be found on these pages eulogising about LEGO Batman, digging deeper into the LEGO Group’s inner workings, or just complaining about the price of the latest LEGO Star Wars set. Make a great impression when you meet me in person by praising EXO-FORCE as the greatest LEGO theme of all time. Follow me on Twitter @RobPaton or drop me an email at [email protected].

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *