LEGO® Minecraft™ review: 21257 The Devourer Showdown

One of the more intriguing new sets released under the LEGO® Minecraft™ theme in January 2024 was 21257 The Devourer Showdown, based on this year's Minecraft™ Legends video game.

The 420 piece set features new moulds, new prints and some new recolours that currently remain exclusive to this set. It's definitely worth taking a closer look, even if Minecraft, the disgusting Devourer or mucus projectiles are not your thing.

Products in this article were not gifted by The LEGO Group in this case; the author's opinions are their own. This article contains affiliate links to LEGO.com; we may get a small commission if you purchase.

21257 The Devourer Showdown
US$44.99/ £39.99/44.99€/ AU$59.99
420 parts
Released 1st January 2024

Set 21257 on LEGO.com

New moulds

 

We are treated to four new moulds that are all exclusive to this set so far:

• 1 x Minecraft Cape in Earth Blue/ Dark Blue (6464593 | 5022)
• 1 x Musical Instrument, Lute, Blocky in Warm Gold/ Pearl Gold (6464580 | 5019)
• 1 x Minifig Head Special, Cube with Raised Light Nougat Face, Red Hair Print in Earth Blue/ Dark Blue (6468451 | 106280)
• 1 x Minifig Head Special, Cube Pig with Pixelated Nose, Eyes print in Lavender (6468495)

Minecraft Cape, part 5022

 

We took a closer look at the Minecraft Cape on our social media accounts last month but it's worth sharing here for those dedicated blog readers.

 

The neck bracket matches a 1x1 Plate in size. The wider cape section sits at right angles. The cape hangs at 4 studs in length when in position.

 

It has a similar look to the Minifig Vest (3840) shown above in Orange and the Minifig Plastic Cape (4524) shown in Black. It’s marginally thicker and longer than the vest.

 

 

When comparing the new Cape’s thickness to the two versions of the Minifig Neckwear Bracket, the cape does not match either! White is Design ID 28974 and 4 LDU thick. Light Bluish Grey is Design ID 42446 and 3 LDU thick. (LDU explanation).

 

We couldn't find any parts that fit the cape's width - it doesn't hold in an antenna base or grille tile.

Minecraft Lute, part 5019

 

While we've had a minifigure lute before, this is the first Minecraft Lute. The Minecraft Lute in Warm Gold/ Pearl Gold (6464580 | 5019) has a 3.18mm bar attachment at the rear and the neck of the instrument is also a 3.19mm bar. While it has the usual blocky appearance of a Minecraft accessory, I can see this being used decoratively in a variety of ways for architectural builds.

Ranger Head, part 106280

 

The Ranger head mould may appear to have the usual square head shape at first glance, but it is dual moulded with the face and hair at the front with a little protrusion at the back. I'm assuming this is a little 'peak' in the back of his hood, but I'm sure someone can correct me if I'm wrong.

Recolours

There are four recolours to be found:

• 1 x Plate Special 2x2x2/3 with Two Studs On Side and Two Raised - Updated Version in Light Purple/ Bright Pink (6470181 | 4304)
• 2 x Minifig Head Special, Cube in Transparent Bright Green/ Trans-Bright Green (6507905 | 34824)
• 1 x Plate Special 2 x 4 with Groove and Two Center Studs (Jumper) in Medium Stone Grey/ Light Bluish Gray (6472550 | 65509)
• 2 x Tile Special, Splat with Rounded Sides in Transparent Bright Green/ Trans-Bright Green (6472551 | 80677)

New prints

There are five new prints to be found as I've included the Skeleton head here. On the subject of printed elements, I should point out that there is no sticker sheet in the set.

• 1 x Minifig Head Special, Cube with Nose and Skeleton Face Print in White (6468481). This element has appeared in White before with two different but somewhat similar prints.
• 2* x Tile 1x1 with Bright Light Blue/Lime/Black Pixelated Eye in Flame Yellowish Orange/ Bright Light Orange (6468493) *plus one spare
• 2* x Tile 1x1 with White Square print in Bright Reddish Violet/ Magenta (6468491)
• 1* x Tile 1x1 with Pixilated Pig Nose print in Medium Lavender (6468492)
• 2* x Plate 1x1 with Black Square Print in Medium Stone Grey/ Light Bluish Gray (6471716 ). This same print has appeared before on a White 1x1 Plate and is very useful for microscale building - yay for a new colour!

Rare elements

Both of these elements have only appeared once before:

• 2x Technic Brick 1 x 2 with Axle Hole in Bright Reddish Violet/ Magenta (6443845 | 31493) 
• 1 x Plate Special 2 x 2 with Only 2 studs in Bright Yellowish Green/ Lime (6472552 | 33909) 

Minifigures

There are three minifigures in the set: Ranger Hero, Blaze Runt and Friendly Skeleton. All three minifigures feature new printing and the new elements for each figure are shown below.

• 1 x Minifig Head Special, Cube with Raised Light Nougat Face, Red Hair Print in Earth Blue/ Dark Blue (6468451)
• Torso, Pixelated Reddish Brown Straps, Silver Buckles print, Dark Red Arms, Light Nougat Hands in Dark Brown (6472347)
•  Minecraft Cape in Earth Blue/ Dark Blue (6464593 |5022) 

• Minifig Head Special, Cube Pig with Pixelated Nose, Eyes print in Lavender (6468495)
• Torso, Pixelated Chest, Magenta Belt, Dark Red Pants print, Lavender Arms, Dark Purple Hands in Lavender (6473649)

The Minifig Head Special, Cube Pig with Pixelated Nose, Eyes print in Lavender (6468495) is very similar to a previous mould. The Piglin characters from 21185 The Nether Bastion had a similar head but the nose was not square in their case.

• Minifig Head Special, Cube with Nose and Skeleton Face Print in White (6468481).

The build

Big Beak & Cobblestone Golum

The first characters to be built are Big Beak and the Cobblestone Golum. These are fun little builds that are posable and full of character. 

Why is something so simple, so cute?

Big Beak uses a nice array of colours, with the rare Plate Special 2 x 2 with Only 2 studs in Lime on its back. Two of the new printed elements can be spotted as the eyes in both of these characters. I think they could have so many adventures together!

The Devourer 

 

The Devourer is a chunky, robust dude with plenty of colourful elements included within the structure.  The two remaining new prints are used for his eyes and nose and most of the recoloured elements fit inside him in one way or another.  His floaty Dark Turquoise and Dark red skirt is cleverly designed and has a bit of movement at the front on the hinged plates. NB. Yes I turned the two panels at the edge of the Devourer's mouth around as soon as I noticed I'd built it wrong!

 

He has moveable arms and legs with a single ball joint at the shoulder and hip respectively and within his ominously open mouth is a Brick 1 x 4 Disk Shooter ready to launch.

 

 

The Devourer is not as umm...attractive from the rear view, but it does show the mechanism action points for his two charming play functions. Pushing down on the Lime Technic Arm fires a mucus rocket from his shoulder pack and pushing the Technic axle fires a vomit splat from his mouth - how revolting, children will love it!

Conclusion

From a Minecraft point of view, this is a fun playset that reflects the game nicely to showcase one of the game’s big bosses, The Devourer. There's a lot of new prints in this set and fans of the game will love getting the Ranger Hero and Blaze Runt figures. The price might seem a little high for the size, but the elements included are good and the new moulds and prints will help to ease the pain.

 

From an elements point of view there's a lot to love in a relatively small set with 420 elements:

• 4 completely new moulds
• 5 new prints 
• 3 new minifigures
• 4 recolours
• 2 rare colours in only one other set

In addition, there are a lot of nice coloured elements that while not super rare, are in maybe 2 to 4 other sets.  The new printed elements have potential beyond their use in this set, especially those microscale builders who will like the 1x1 Tiles and 1x1 Plate decorations to add detail in small spaces. For a small set, it packs a colourful punch beyond a revolting baddie boss, especially for those of us who simply love new elements.

READ MORE:  LEGO® Icons build review: 10327 Dune Atreides Royal Ornithopter

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