LEGO Disney 43240 Maleficent’s Dragon Form – Is this Sleeping Beauty set a snooze-fest? [Review]
Whispers about a LEGO version of Maleficent as a dragon have been floating around for several months now. There was a lot of hype about what LEGO Disney 43240 Maleficent’s Dragon Form might look like. But despite The Sleeping Beauty being a Disney Princess film, it was still somewhat surprising to get this model in the form of a minidoll set. Is it a sleeper or is there more to it? Join us as we find out! This kit, which contains 583 pieces, will be available tomorrow, June 1st, and retail for US $69.99 | CAN $89.99 | UK £59.99.
The LEGO Group sent The Brothers Brick a copy of this set for review. Providing TBB with products for review guarantees neither coverage nor positive reviews.
Unboxing the parts, instructions, and sticker sheet
The thumb-punch box is on the smaller side, featuring Maleficent attacking Princess Aurora and Prince Phillip on the front. On the back, apparently, they’ve decided to be friends and Phillip is riding Maleficent. As great as this is as a play feature for kids, it sure doesn’t line up with the real storyline.
Inside the box are polybags numbered 1-6 and a pair of black and lavender wings.
The set includes two instruction manuals: one for the castle and one for Maleficent. There is a small sticker sheet for the dragon’s scales. Unfortunately, the dark purple scale pattern against the black background of the neck stickers is extremely difficult to see.
The build
We kick things off with the bottom portion of the castle, which is complete with a bed, a spinning wheel, a cupcake, and a carrot in a barrel.
This spinning wheel also doubles as a means to make the sharp vines from the dramatic transformation scene move.
The upper portion of the castle has some nice molded roof elements. Weirdly, one of the peaks looks like it’s missing its spire, but it was simply left off for some reason. Inside the walls, there is a lovely armor bust and a box filled with gems.
On a tree protruding from the side of the castle are three printed round tiles representing the fairy godmothers. They’re beautiful little satin-trans elements, and we’re lucky enough to get an extra spare of each one.
Moving to the second instruction booklet, Maleficent’s body starts with a dense base. It consists of several sandwiched brackets, bricks, and plates, as well as some menacing sharp spines. Ball sockets protrude from the sides, ready to accept the legs.
The core is covered in a series of various slopes to give it a more organic shape. It also features several satin trans-purple 1×1 quarter-round tiles to accentuate the scaly look.
From there we add the legs, which are simply mirror images of each other. The feet are blocky, but make good use of the newer claw element. Unfortunately, Mixel joints don’t come in various colors, because so many sets would benefit from not having light and dark grey breaking up the look.
Finally, we add the tail, wings, neck, and head. The specially molded head is a win here. Interestingly, they chose to make the horns brick-built (NEW black broom bristles with barbs) instead of part of the mold. As a custom piece not likely to be used again, you’d think the horns would be included with the head mold, but with that said, it’s sort of nice to build the horns yourself. And I have to say, the broom bristles are kind of perfect for pulling off the look.
The completed model
Once finished, it’s a cute kit, with plenty of playability for the younger audience. It’s nice how posable the dragon is, and that there is a moving component in the castle with the spinning wheel and vines. Apart from that, there’s not much to say. See the conclusion for my final thoughts.
The minidolls
This kit includes mini-doll versions of Princess Aurora, Prince Phillip, and a horse. There’s not a whole lot to say about the characters, but the provided shield accessory is a nice print, and it’s cool that they have included both a dress and pants for Aurora. Instead of forcing her to be a damsel in distress, they have allowed her to be her own hero, with a sword and everything.
Conclusions and recommendations
I have to say, when I heard that LEGO was going to produce Maleficent’s dragon, I was ecstatic. I had visions of an 18+ collector piece. Just imagine how incredible that would be! Needless to say, I was pretty disappointed when I discovered this was the set they came up with. It’s hard to be a totally fair judge of the model. If I take a step back and look at it from the perspective of a young child, I suppose I would think the kit is pretty dang cool. For the adult collector, however, it’s nothing to get too excited over.
LEGO Disney 43240 Maleficent’s Dragon Form will be available tomorrow, June 1st, retailing for US $69.99 | CAN $89.99 | UK £59.99. You may also be able to find it from other sources, such as Amazon and eBay.
The LEGO Group sent The Brothers Brick a copy of this set for review. Providing TBB with products for review guarantees neither coverage nor positive reviews.
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