LEGO Ideas 21342 The Insect Collection review

LEGO Ideas 21342 The Insect Collection makes creepy-crawlies cool again in a vibrantly-coloured build that will steal the limelight on any shelf.

You know the LEGO Ideas designers have done their job right when building insect legs or adding a pair of buggy eyes sends a shiver down your spine. When all three bugs from 21342 The Insect Collection are fully built, however, there’s no denying that they are strangely cute, especially when paired with each of their aesthetic and true-to-life habitats.

Packing in a trio of eerily realistic buggy builds based on a concept by fan designer José María, 21342 The Insect Collection scales back the initial assortment of five large insects to just three (with compromises made for the others) – but it’s still enough to make your skin crawl in all the right ways…

— LEGO Ideas 21342 The Insect Collection set details —

Theme: LEGO Ideas Set name: 21342 The Insect Collection Release: September 4 (Insiders), September 7 (wide), 2023

Price: £69.99 / $79.99 / €79.99 Pieces: 1,111 Minifigures: 0

LEGO: Order now

— Where to buy LEGO Ideas 21342 The Insect Collection —

LEGO Ideas 21342 The Insect Collection will be available to buy from LEGO.com and LEGO stores from September 4 for LEGO Insiders (formerly VIPs), and from September 7 for everyone else, for £69.99 / $79.99 / €79.99. It will likely also be available via third-party retailers down the line.

— LEGO Ideas 21342 The Insect Collection build —

Each insect gets its own booklet, making 21342 The Insect Collection feel like three distinct builds in one. Each one starts with the base and habitat, before working its way up to the delicate construction of the insects themselves. Seeing as many of them are so thin and small, the building can be quite a picky process, but it’s well worth it for the final result.

Taking each larger insect one at a time for now, let’s start with the Chinese Mantis. The front legs are much more posable then they look, thanks to a joint-based build process. Indeed, you need them to be as flexible as they are in order for the mantis to look realistic in its perch, with legs bending to rest on leaves or the branch itself.

The various shades of green combined with sand and brown add depth to what might otherwise be a relatively boring creature to replicate in LEGO elements. It’s specially-printed eyes give it personality and, bizarrely, make it somewhat adorable when it’s staring up at you from its perch. The white and yellow flowers that cover its habitat create a calm overall colour scheme that doesn’t take away from the mantis’ own vibrancy.

Much like the Botanical Collection, the designers for 21342 The Insect Collection rely on some unusual repurposed parts in order to recreate features from nature – and none more so than in the case of the mantis. With serrated blades for hands and revolvers for feet, she’s truly lethal, but you only need to look at her wide-eyed gaze to know she wouldn’t hurt a fly (well, maybe a ladybug).

Next up is the Blue Morpho Butterfly, with several shades of blue plates used to convey the delicacy of a butterfly’s wings in a surprisingly sturdy build. The perfect natural symmetry of the Blue Morpho is well captured, along with printed curved plates to outline the distinctive edges of the wings.

The habitat of the Blue Morpho is easily the most detailed of all three of the insects, with what appear to be colourful tropical plants that are as much of an engaging build as creating the butterfly itself. Indeed, it’s so attractive that two insects are calling this stand home: the buildable bee also makes an appearance here. The creative use of a former minifigure’s wings creates a cute replica of a buzzing bee, sharing space under the wide shadow of the Blue Morpho.

Finally, we come to the Hercules Beetle, which sadly has the most drab habitat, made up largely of plain beige elements, with only two small mushrooms to break up the landscape. However, the beetle itself makes up for the lack of colour on the ground with some truly stunning wings. The orange translucent wings for flying are particularly impressive – but are also the source of an annoying feature.

In order for the translucent wings to be seen, you need to have the yellow shell folded out. That means, if you want the Hercules Beetle to be posed at rest, you actually need to take off the orange wings entirely, requiring a small amount of rebuilding to switch the brick-built beetle from one position to the next. It would have been a more colourful sight if the orange wings could have stayed on and been visible even when the outer wings were resting.

Still, if you (like us) prefer the orange wings that almost sparkle in the light, you can have the Hercules Beetle permanently posed as if it’s about to take off. After all, with such a plain habitat, it’d be forgiven for trying to find someone more vibrant to live, especially when compared to its two neighbours.

Of course, we can’t forget the two smaller types of insects that are easily included in 21342 The Insect Collection. Both the bee and the ladybug are downsized for the final version of the LEGO Ideas design, with the ladybug scaled down to a single stud (and waiting to be eaten by the Chinese Mantis) and the bee adding some extra life to the habitat of the butterfly.

While it’s undoubtedly a shame that all five original creatures couldn’t make it into the final product at the same scale, it’s well worth the loss for the amount of detail you get on the remaining three. The colours of the beetle, the eerie authenticity of the mantis and the symmetry of the butterfly are all elevated in the final design, so we’re fine to see the far less interesting ladybug and honeybee downgraded to props rather than main characters in 21342 The Insect Collection.

— LEGO Ideas 21342 The Insect Collection price —

At £69.99 / $79.99 / €79.99, that breaks down to around £23.33 per insect. For such extraordinarily detailed creatures that are well worth being miniature LEGO sets in their own right, this isn’t a bad price.

Looking at the wider landscape of LEGO Ideas, it’s also heartening to see a set from the theme that’s less than £100, with many of the recent fan design-inspired builds being enormous and high-priced models that don’t fit everyone’s budget – or indeed everyone’s shelf space.

— LEGO Ideas 21342 The Insect Collection pictures —

— LEGO Ideas 21342 The Insect Collection pros and cons —

LEGO Ideas 21342 The Insect Collection impressively captures the essence of each of its main figures, with a meticulous attention to detail that’s worth the compromises on both the ladybug and the bee. The vibrant colours used in the set not only breathe life into the creations but also make them standout display pieces for anyone, LEGO fan or not.

21342 The Insect Collection pros	21342 The Insect Collection cons
Incredible true to life	Some lacklustre stand elements
Vibrant colours that make for great display pieces	Fiddly build process
Focus on three insects includes more than enough detail

— Alternatives to LEGO Ideas 21342 The Insect Collection —

With the LEGO Group’s recent push to create more adult-focused sets that make for aesthetic home decor pieces, there are plenty of other options for nature-themed builds of a similar price – but how do they compare?

Some of the most obvious comparisons for 21342 The Insect Collection are builds from the LEGO Group’s Botanical Collection, such as 10289 Bird of Paradise and 10313 Wildflower Bouquet. Indeed, the build processes between the three are similar, using unusually repurposed parts in creative ways. 21342 The Insect Collection would probably make for a more unusual display model, plus it can stand on its own (or at least on its own stands), unlike 10313 Wildflower Bouquet.

The recently-released 10315 Tranquil Garden is another similarly-priced and equally aesthetically pleasing LEGO build, also leaning into natural features and colours. Plus, 10315 has its own mindful ethos, with the different brick-built sections slotting together in different ways in keeping with the Japanese Zen mindset.

One feature that 21342 The Insect Collection has over all three of those sets, however, is that you essentially get three builds in one. Whether you choose to display them as a trio or as separate models, you have more flexibility with them as three distinct builds included in one set.

— LEGO Ideas 21342 The Insect Collection FAQs —