The new year brings us a brand new group of Heartlake friends and according to the press release they'll meet each other at school. So naturally a school comes in the new wave of LEGO® Friends. We've seen 2 previous school sets (5 if you count the Art, Theater and Performance sets), and I’ll be schooling you today on the third: Friends 41731 Heartlake International School. With 985 pieces it's the second biggest set in the January 2023 wave, so sit up, grab your pencil or laptop and pay attention!
Products in this article were provided by LEGO®; the author's opinions are their own.
LEGO® Friends 41731 Heartlake International School
US$99.99/ £89.99/ 99.99€/ AU$159.99
985parts
1 January 2023
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New Elements
New molds come in the form of Cupboard 2 x 3 x 5, found here in Orange (6409779 | 2656). It can best be viewed as the taller sibling of Cupboard 2 x 3 x 2 (92410). The lower 2 openings can both fit the Cupboard Drawer 2 x3 (4536 and new 78124). The cupboard comes with a new door: Door 1 x 3 x 5 in Orange (6427395 | 2657). Note that the door does not connect if any drawers are placed in the cupboard. The parts are used in this set as lockers.
On top of the cupboard we see Bunsen, the school’s hamster. Bunsen features a new print, and is also the first of this mold to appear in Black (6430306). The other new print seems to be the new craze in Heartlake City: Guble Bubble, printed on a Dark Pink tile 1 x 2 (6416635).
The school is built using some interesting recolors, including 2x Plate 8x16, which are always welcome.
- Plate 8 x 16 in Orange (6117636 | 92438)
- Plate 8 x 16 in Dark Turquoise (6424332 | 92438)
- Door Frame 1 x 6 x 6 in Yellow (6424331 | 42205)
- Window 1 x 2 x 2 Flat Front in Yellow (6424329 | 60592)
- Wedge Plate 8 x 8 Cut Corner in Lime (6424330 | 30504)
- Flag 7 x 3 with Rod in Dark Pink (6424328 | 30292)
- Door 3 x 6 in Trans-Clear (6424464 | 80683)
- Brick Curved 1 x 1 x 2/3 Double Curved Top, No Studs in Coral (6422223 | 49307)
- Bicycle Frame, Reinforced Headlight in Dark Azure (6424327 | 65574)
Minidolls
From left to right; Ms. Hale:
- New printed Minidoll Head in Nougat (6416504)
- New printed Minidoll Torso Woman in Nougat (6430049)
- Minidoll Hips and Skirt with Ankles in Magenta (6430046)
Aliya:
- New mold Hair Big Curly, Braids in Dark Brown (6409768 | 2644)
- New printed Minidoll Head in Medium Brown (6416663)
- New printed Minidoll Torso Girl with in Medium Brown (6440473)
- New printed Minidoll Hips and Short Skirt Yellow (6440426)
Autumn:
Autumn has a congenital limb reduction and a new torso was developed for her. This arm is a bit thicker than the standard minidoll, making it the same size as a standard bar.
- New mold Hair Curly with Thin Braid in Dark Orange (6409765 | 2640)
- New printed Minidoll Head in Light Nougat (6416668)
- New mold Minidoll Torso with Left Limb Reduction in Light Nougat (6428612)
- New printed Minidoll Hips and Shorts Sand Green (6442221)
Niko:
- New printed Minidoll Head in Warm Tan (6416616)
- New printed Minidoll Torso Boy in Warm Tan (6441569)
- Minidoll Hips and Cargo Pants in Dark Green (6429300)
Olly:
- New mold Hair in Bright Light Yellow (6409759 | 2631)
- New printed Minidoll Head in Warm Tan (6416639)
- New printed Minidoll Torso n Warm Tan (6429220)
- New printed Minidoll Hips and Trousers in Light Bluish Gray (6429229)
Rare elements
- Door Frame 1 x 6 x 6 in Bright Bluish Green/ Dark Turquoise (6382968 | 42205) was introduced in 2022, and only appeared in 2 other sets
- Plate 8 x 16 in Bright Yellow/ Yellow (6377014 | 92438) has only been see in 41704-1 Main Street Building
- Glass for Frame 1 x 6 x 6 in Transparent/ Trans-Clear (6386637 | 42509) has been in 1 set prior
- Plate 8 x 8 in Bright Green (6396549 | 41539) and Plate 8 x 8 with Half Circle in Bright Green (6378799 | 41948) were introduced last year in CITY sets
- Door 1 x 4 x 5 Train Left - Thick Support Bottom in Sand Blue (6411633 | 43967) is imported from Pandora from an Avatar set
And more rare elements:
- Window 1 x 2 x 2 Flat Front in Bright Bluish Green/ Dark Turquoise (6328106 | 60592) has appeared in 2 sets in 2021
- Wedge 2 x 2 Facet in Medium Azure (6356108 | 87620) has appeared in 2 other sets
- Hinge Plate 2 x 2 Locking with 1 Finger on Top in Bright Yellow/ Yellow (6410523 | 53968) was also introduced in an Avatar set
- Plate Special 1 x 2 with Door Rail in Earth Blue/ Dark Blue (6363600 | 32028) has appeared in 3 sets prior
- Bracket 1 x 1 - 1 x 1 Inverted in Light Royal Blue/ Bright Light Blue (6383095 | 36840) has only been seen in 10298 Vespa 125
- Cupboard 2 x 3 x 2 with Hollow Studs in Bright Bluish Green/ Dark Turquoise (6405560 | 92410) has been in 1 other set
- Helmet, Sports, with Vent Holes [Plain] in Vibrant Coral/ Coral (6397831 | 46303) has been in 1 Stuntz set
- Equipment Paint Palette with Yellow, Azure, Blue, Dark Blue Paint Spots Print in Medium Nougat (6384433 | 98873) has only been used by Vincent van Gogh before
- And he used Equipment Paint Brush with Blue Tip Pattern in Reddish Brown (6396678 | 65695) as well
- Tile 1 x 4 with Groove in Vibrant Coral/ Coral (6258570 | 2431) has appeared in 3 sets
- Brick Curved 1 x 1 x 2/3 Double Curved Top, No Studs in Bright Purple/ Dark Pink (6334833 | 49307) has been seen in 3 sets prior
- 65578 Bar, Angled with Stud on End in Earth Blue/ Dark Blue (6391515 | 65578) has appeared in 3 sets before
- Tile Round 1 x 2 in Brick Yellow/ Tan (6397819 | 1126), Tile Round 1 x 2 in Medium Nougat (6399909 | 1126) and Tile Round 1 x 2 Half Circle in White (6400114 | 1748) was introduced last year
- Tile Round 1 x 1 in Vibrant Yellow (6376825 | 98138) has only been seen in 2 DOTS sets
- Tile Round 1 x 1 with Sushi print in Black (6361438 | 80058) has appeared in 2 other sets
- Brick Curved 1 x 1 x 2/3 Double Curved Top, No Studs in Flame Yellowish Orange/ Bright Light Orange (6341470 | 49307) has been seen in 3 other sets
The build
The school is made up out of loose modules that are connected by LEGO Technic pins. The entire build is split up into 3 sections, each with their own instruction manual, so you can build together with others.
The first section is the cafeteria. On the ground floor is a kitchen with an order window and when your order is ready you can choose to eat it at the ground floor or go upstairs for lunch with a view.
As we're used to seeing with LEGO Friends sets, the kitchen contains some great details and I love the colorful stairs to the dining hall on the first floor. Upstairs we find another insect hotel, also present above the Flower Store in set 41732, a great way to create a better biodiversity and keep nature healthy.
Behind the cafeteria is a bathroom, again with nice details using the hollow Brick Round Half 1 x 2 as sinks. There's a sticker of a cleaning schedule on the door to the toilet, bringing a 'real life' feeling to the set.
The 2nd section is the main entrance and chemistry lab.
In the main entrance we find a computer with a PA microphone for announcements. The new 2 x 3 x 5 Cupboards are used as lockers.
In my former life, before LEGO became all-consuming, I used to work in a laboratory, so this is my favorite classroom, but I just can’t condone the situation we find here! Chemicals are to be cleaned up immediately, a simple sign won’t suffice. Hopefully the liquid is not dangerous. The microscope is a nice mini-build using a hairpiece for a knob and we also find the hamster Bunsen here. And in the background a skeleton of a minifigure? Are the mindolls aware that minifigures exist? We’ve seen the skeleton before in the 2017 41318 Heartlake Hospital and 2019 41375 Heartlake City Amusement Pier, so it looks like there are no plans for a minidoll skeleton.
Section 3 adds the last 2 classrooms. On the ground floor is the media class, and upstairs is the art class. I like that they’ve put these 2 together as there is a lot of overlap between these classes.
The media class features some nice mini-builds with school desks, a beamer and a camera. In the classroom we find a computer with 2 monitors and what I think is the first LEGO mouse? I can’t remember seeing that before in a LEGO set. The graphic designer did a great job on the paintings we find here.
Outside the classroom is a basketball hoop.
Conclusion
To start with the negative, the building feels a bit bland, especially compared to other buildings in this wave of sets. It’s not bad, but there aren't many architectural features that really stand out. I guess I’ll have to watch the new series to see if the design factors in to the show. But some more detailing or at least some SNOT or interesting build techniques would be welcome.
But where the building itself falls a bit flat, the decorations inside are very well done. The set is littered with all kinds of small builds. This set seems to be mostly focused on play, and that it does well. So I think it’s a matter of what you’re looking for to determine if this is a set for you.
As a MOC feeder, we get the new cupboards, along with some nice recolors. And without much SNOT, the set comes with a lot of ‘standard’ bricks, providing the skeleton for your own buildings.
Editor: Chris Baginski
READ MORE: LEGO® Monkie Kid review: 80044 Monkie Kid's Team Hideout
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Regarding the LEGO computer mouse, there was one in the Seinfeld set
ReplyDeleteI think the Hidden Side school bus set was the first set I saw that piece used for a computer mouse in. The City Gaming Tournament Truck this year uses it, too.
DeleteI'm a fan of so many little things about this set, like the faucets in the bathroom and the swinging mini-desks in the media lab. And of course the new locker/fridge/cabinet pieces are used to excellent effect here as well (I wish it had more of them!).
The first computer mouse I can recall was in 75932: Jurassic Park Velociraptor Chase from 2018.
DeleteI like Liann's "paint me like one of your French racoons" artwork!
ReplyDeleteI can't unsee that now.
DeleteIt might just have been the look she was going fur.
Delete