LEGO The Lord of the Rings: Balrog Book Nook does not pass in some fans’ eyes
LEGO The Lord of the Rings: Balrog Book Nook has been revealed, but some fans are more impressed than others with the execution and price.
LEGO Icons 10367 The Lord of the Rings: Balrog Book Nook is the most affordable flagship The Lord of the Rings set in the theme so far, costing £109.99 / $129.99 / €119.99 for 1,201 pieces. Despite the set’s first fully-fledged Balrog figure, comparisons with the other two book nooks launching next month have caused some mixed reactions.
“The Balrog himself looks decent. However, the sparse background, simply being flames, isn’t quite doing it for me,” states Poetictherapy2020 on Reddit.
“Honestly, I disagree,” responds juliuspepperwoodchi. “I love the fact that the scene inside becomes visually a part of the cover when it is closed. They could’ve closed in the sides, and it would look far less impressive.”
When the book nook is opened up into a diorama-style display, the Balrog’s wings also unfold, since they’re attached to the sides of the build. This creates a more impressive display, but those panels in the build are open no matter what to accommodate the wings. For some, this is a deal-breaker for the new LEGO The Lord of the Rings set.
“It’s weird how empty it is compared to Sherlock Holmes or Harry Potter’s book nooks,” notes ConfidentInsecurity. “I think the Balrog could use more orange on him and a better whip. It’s very nice that there are no stickers, though.”
Since the wings are borrowed from 40693 The Lord of the Rings: Fell Beast, only the minifigure, the quote tile and the Balrog’s face are printed in 10367 The Lord of the Rings: Balrog Book Nook. Thankfully, ConfidentInsecurity is correct in that this set has no stickers.
While some can’t escape the fact that the side panels of the new Middle-earth build are intentionally open, others have noted that this is more accurate to the mines of Moria, where the scene takes place.
“How are people calling this empty when it captures Moria perfectly?” shared aronnen. “It makes perfect sense for it to just have the pillars. It would look weirder if the walls were filled in. Also, the Balrog looks amazing, I can’t believe people are hating on the build for it.”
While the community on Reddit and other social media platforms determine whether or not the open concept of the book nook is a good idea, and whether or not the price is fair, others, such as MichalRytter on X, have become obsessed with a single image from the official listing for the set.
While it seems unlikely to be intentional, the Balrog whip certainly resembles something else in the image, thanks to where it’s being held by the figure. Both sides of the LEGO community are certainly still infatuated with toilet humour.
Early reactions to this LEGO Icons set are more mixed than previous LEGO The Lord of the Rings models, but we’ll have to see whether opinions change when people see the set in person after its launch. 10367 The Lord of the Rings: Balrog Book Nook will be released on June 1 for £109.99 / $129.99 / €119.99 and pre-orders are open now.
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This is actually my favorite Lord of the Rings set. I definitely don’t understand the “empty” criticism. The scene takes place in a giant, wide-open cave. There isn’t supposed to be anything around the Balrog. This will look excellent opened 180 degrees against the back of my black display case.