LEGO Wednesday's upcoming releases embody a meticulous blend of play and display, and other LEGO themes should take note.
Due for release on October 1, both upcoming LEGO Wednesday sets manage to straddle play and display in ingenious ways. Both include fairly simple hinge techniques that allow you to fold out sections of the set for easy access, lending them perfectly to play.
Fold them away, however, and both are also polished display pieces that you could easily slot onto a shelf, and you'd never know there was a playset hidden inside. While that's a space-saving feature that any parent will be glad to see at the end of playtime, it also means that there's no need to choose between the interior details and a polished facade.
That's a compromise that some fans are being forced to make in other themes. The example at the forefront of the community is 75419 Death Star, with many complaining there's not enough of the spherical exterior to make it instantly recognisable as the iconic space station, but it's apparent in other sets and themes too.
75413 Republic Juggernaut might look good at first, but its stability issues make it seemingly unsuitable for any level of play. Over at LEGO Marvel, 76317 Peter Parker’s Apartment and 76324 Spider-Man vs. Oscorp are both virtually only facades, with enough minifigures to play with but not much space to pose them or interact with the main build itself.
If you want a truly polished display, you need to go for the far more expensive sets like 76294 X-Men: The X-Mansion or 75417 AT-AT Walker – and sometimes even these miss the mark, as with 75419 Death Star.
LEGO Wednesday is proof that there's no need to sacrifice display-ready polish for play features, and vice versa. In the case of 76785 Thing's Apartment, the folded-up chest could just as easily be a LEGO Castle or medieval build. Open it up to expose the interior levels, and it would be the perfect stand for minifigures from those themes.
While the set doesn't come cheap, the price tag of £75 for just over 800 pieces feels a lot more worth it when you truly can enjoy it just as much as a play set as you can like how it looks on display. The wealth of detail and accessories hidden inside the chest is excellent value for money, making opening it up each time just as rich an experience as the very first build.
Over in 76786 Morticia's Cottage, the gothic facade is one of the best to enter the LEGO system – and just in time for Halloween. The skinny footprint of the house, at just 12cm deep, would have made it virtually just a facade, similar to 76324 Spider-Man vs. Oscorp, if it weren't for the clever use of hinges.
All at once, the inclusion of six hinged elements means you can suddenly access all the interior rooms in a way that you often can't in detailed building models. It's a frustration that even sometimes pops up with the Modular Building collection (looking at you, 10312 Jazz Club's toilet). Instantly, the LEGO Wednesday set is able to cater to those wanting to interact with the set after the build, without compromisng on any of the exterior design choices.
With growing frustration about prices and perceived lack of value among LEGO fans, like LEGO Star Wars in the summer months, sets like this that make every piece work to its full potential are few and far between – but here's hoping they become the norm.
LEGO Wednesday 76785 Thing's Apartment and 76786 Morticia's Cottage will retail for £74.99 / $89.99 / €79.99 and £89.99 / $109.99 / €99.99 respectively from October 1.
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