But this post is about, what are, without a doubt, my top two favorite things. Through, what I presume is an expansion of an already existing licensing agreement they are creating, for the second time this year, something I find very exciting. Let me explain.
Cinderella's Castle in Walt Disney World's Magic Kingdom Park is one of the most photographed places in America.
The emotion you feel when seeing it in the distance from the far end of Main Street USA as you start your day at Disney World's most popular park in the quintessential experience for any Disney fan.
To put it simply, other than Mickey Mouse, Cinderella's Castle is the ultimate Disney icon.
Millions of dollars in merchandise with some type of representation of the castle on it is sold every year.
Later this summer (Sept 1) what could very well be the ultimate take-home representation of Cinderella's Castle will be released to the public. But you won't find it in a Disney Park. You'll find it at your local Lego Store.
This is the Lego Disney's Cinderella's Castle Set #71040. It has 4080 pieces and is 29 inches high, 17 inches wide, and 12 inches deep. It is amazing in it's detail. Here is a picture of it in front of the real thing.
As you can see it is awesome. You can read all the details about this set by searching for it on Lego.com.
To be honest, when I first saw this set announced in my news feed online, I thought it was a fan built model. But when I found out it would be available to the public, I lost my mind.
There is only one thing about this set that has me second guessing my "I want it yesterday" reaction. That's the price.
If you want to have this amazing Disney World icon in your collection you will have to part with $350.
As a Lego fan and collector that price has me back on my heels a bit. My initial reaction to it was "no thanks, too much for me".
In the past couple of years I have passed on Lego sets based on the TV show, The Simpsons, because they were priced at $200.
But then I did some research. I discovered that Lego has a tendency to price exclusive sets at a higher price. In addition to the Simpsons sets, I have seen sets in the Star Wars, Super Heroes, Lego Movie, Technic, Architecture and Creator brands priced between $200 & $400.
To the right fan these sets might very well be worth the price. Not for me though. I'm either not a fan or they're too high priced.
While this Castle set seems to be at the upper end of the price range for Lego, it looks like a great set and promises to be very popular.
In addition, I have found out that when this set becomes available, Lego will reissue their Series 1 Disney Mini-Figures first marketed earlier this year. So not only will you get the 5 mini-figs with the Castle set (the Tinkerbell is an exclusive) but you can get 16 others as well.
While Lego has produced sets with castles based on a licensed Disney IP before; they were all in their Disney Princesses line.
With the creation of Cinderella's Castle, Lego veers off the path of making sets based on Disney characters and stories and ventures into the world of Disney Parks.
I can't help but wonder if this is a one time thing or are there going to be other Lego kits based on other Disney Park attractions?
Think of the possibilities. What truly dedicated Disney Park fan wouldn't want a Lego model of the Haunted Mansion, Big Thunder Mountain or even a Fantasmic set with a replica of the Hollywood Hills Amphitheater?
You have my permission to dream up your own set idea but don't get too excited about it. I haven't heard or read about plans for any Park based sets other than this one. That's just me wishing upon a star.
Now back to the price point for the Cinderella's Castle set. I had to do a little research to possibly justify the purchase for me. I looked on the Shop Disney app for Castle models or figurines available in Disney World or Disney Stores for comparison. I found this figurine.
It is about half the size of the Lego set but is also $395. So there you have a comparison.
Because of all the comments and reactions I've seen on social media, I know that this set is going to sell fast. I have an advantage in regard to this.
As I mentioned earlier, the kit will become available to the public on September 1. But as a Lego VIP rewards club member I can buy it at the Lego Store on August 17. That's a big advantage as far as I'm concerned.
So after much debate and consideration I believe I am going to invest in this special Lego Disney set. I know it's expensive but I think it will be worth the price.
More than likely, I will be in front of the Lego store in Nashville at 10AM on August 17 to be one of the first to buy the Castle set.
I am excited about this decision for a couple of reasons. I look forward to having it on display in my home to remind me of the Magic Kingdom all the time. But most of all I look forward to building the castle with my wife. We like to assemble kits together. Putting one that represents a place where we've made so many memories by ourselves and with our families will be a special experience.
So what do you think? Are you excited about this Lego kit? Are you going to buy one? Let me know.
