Return Home News Reference Discussion Forums
Welcome,
BZPower Guest
.

Login | Register | Retrieve Password



Site Links
    - Forums Reference
    - Become a Member
    - Premier Membership
    - Timeline
    - Set Database
    - Parent's Guide
    - Collectibles
    - Good Guys
    - Bad Guys
    - Mythology
    - Story Sources
    - Official Greg Discussion
    - Product Reviews
    - Tool Kit
    - Wild Kraata Colors
    - BZPowercast
    - Mata Nui Translater
    - History of Bionicle
    - Accessories
    - Games
  • About BZPower
  •     - Staff
        - Site History
        - Contact Us

    Discuss This Story ReviewWednesday, July 1st, 2015 at 9:16pm by Andrew, BZPower News Manager
    [Source: Zatth]

    Don't worry, we'll have more reviews of the summer Bionicle sets soon, but for now we're taking a break and looking at 21023 Flatiron Building from the LEGO Architecture theme. BZPower Forum Assistant Zatth has picked up this miniature model of the iconic building and will be sharing his thoughts on it with us all. Does the set stand tall and proud, or will it crumble under a closer inspection? You'll have to read on to find out!

    Presentation
    From the design of the box to the instruction manual, these are the first things you see before building the set.

    21023 Flatiron Building Review 01

    As with all other Architecture sets, the box is gorgeous: the black box is ominous yet tempting, and the picture of the set makes you wonder how to build that which you are seeing. (If you know the Flatiron building, it looks like a giant triangle. Kind of.) Needless to say, this'll grip your attention.

    21023 Flatiron Building Review 02 21023 Flatiron Building Review 03 21023 Flatiron Building Review 04 21023 Flatiron Building Review 05

    The back of the box is also lovely, with a sentence or two in three languages about the building, a photo of the actual structure, and a top-down and profile image of the set. The sides of the box show the set deconstructed.

    21023 Flatiron Building Review 06 21023 Flatiron Building Review 07 21023 Flatiron Building Review 08 21023 Flatiron Building Review 09 21023 Flatiron Building Review 10 21023 Flatiron Building Review 11 21023 Flatiron Building Review 12 21023 Flatiron Building Review 13 21023 Flatiron Building Review 14

    The instruction booklet, like the other Architecture sets, are bound up pretty nicely. They include info on the building, its origin, Flatiron Building today, some stats, and info on the Architecture line. One of the sides of the box also has a sort of quasi-deconstructed-peek-inside picture of the model, so you also get an idea of how the building process will be. Nifty little detail for sure.

    Building
    Half the fun is had building the set. How fun is it to build and how easy or challenging is it?

    21023 Flatiron Building Review 15 21023 Flatiron Building Review 16 21023 Flatiron Building Review 17 21023 Flatiron Building Review 18 21023 Flatiron Building Review 19 21023 Flatiron Building Review 20 21023 Flatiron Building Review 21 21023 Flatiron Building Review 22 21023 Flatiron Building Review 23 21023 Flatiron Building Review 24 21023 Flatiron Building Review 25 21023 Flatiron Building Review 26 21023 Flatiron Building Review 27 21023 Flatiron Building Review 28 21023 Flatiron Building Review 29

    The baseplate made the build get interesting; the asymmetry made sure that, from the beginning, some sides would be different, and that was fun. Making the skeleton wasn't a repetitive part of the build, though if you find stacking bricks and plates on top of each other boring then this bit might not interest you.

    The outside shells, however, did get repetitive in some areas. They are intricate to build, don't get me wrong. But the two large sides are exactly alike, and the back of the building uses just two shells that are almost identical. Still, it's a fun build just for the level of detail.

    Set Design
    Now that the set is complete, we can critique how it looks from every angle. New or interesting pieces can also be examined here.

    21023 Flatiron Building Review 30

    The set doesn't really have any super new pieces. The only things I could find to highlight were three slope-y pieces (not sure what the official nomenclature is for them) in tan and dark tan, as well as the tile with the name of the building on it.

    21023 Flatiron Building Review 31 21023 Flatiron Building Review 32 21023 Flatiron Building Review 33 21023 Flatiron Building Review 34 21023 Flatiron Building Review 35 21023 Flatiron Building Review 36

    Aside from those 'new or interesting' pieces, you get a good batch of tiles, bricks, and plates, in tan, dark tan, a bit of dark trans, and some light and dark bley. So if you wanna get bricks, tiles, and plates in those colors, this'd be a decent set to get for that purpose.

    21023 Flatiron Building Review 37 21023 Flatiron Building Review 38 21023 Flatiron Building Review 39 21023 Flatiron Building Review 40 21023 Flatiron Building Review 41 21023 Flatiron Building Review 42 21023 Flatiron Building Review 43 21023 Flatiron Building Review 44 21023 Flatiron Building Review 45

    The set itself is lovely. It certainly looks like the original, and any fears about the SNOT-side wall having glaring holes can be assuaged; the way the set is built, you'd never suspect that it uses those hinge-like pieces to achieve that angle. You'd honestly believe that LEGO can naturally build like that. It's also small enough that it can be displayed, but large enough that you, and anyone else, can appreciate the intricacy and detail on the model. So kudos for a lovely set design.

    Playability
    The other half of the fun is in playing with the set. How well does the set function and is it enjoyable to play with?

    21023 Flatiron Building Review 46

    This set really isn't built to play with. BUT DON'T LET THAT STOP YOU. GO AHEAD AND MAKE YOUR OWN SCENE FROM A MOVIE WHERE TWO LARGE CREATURES FIGHT AGAINST THE BACKDROP OF THE FLATIRON BUILDING. NOW ALL OF YOUR GODZILLA/KING KONG/PACIFIC RIM DREAMS CAN COME TRUE.

    Final Thoughts
    Once it's all said and done, how does the set stack up? Should I get it?

    Pros
    What's to like?

    • Lovely set design
    • Interesting SNOT-based skeleton
    • Tan, dark tan

    Cons
    What's not to like?

    • Outside plating gets a bit repetitive

    Sure, the Architecture sets are price-y. But if you're a fan of architecture, the LEGO line, and want to treat yoself to a fancy shmancy LEGO set, this is a pretty good one; the build is fun yet easy enough, and you leave with an aesthetically wonderful set to display and parade wherever you go!

    21023 Flatiron Building Review 47

    Thanks of course to Pablo for putting together this in-depth review. Please join me in the Talkback to thank him yourselves as well as to ask any questions you might have. And now we'll be returning to our Bionicle set reviews, so keep your eyes peeled right here on BZPower!

    Discuss This Story

    « Return to News

    LEGO® and BIONICLE are trademarks of the LEGO Group. BZPower is not authorized or endorsed by TLG. All non-LEGO images & contents are copyright BZPower.com and are not authorized or approved by the LEGO Group. BZPower.com logo & graphic design are copyrights of the owners of this site. ©2001-2024