Review: 10391 Over the Moon LEGO® Pharrell Williams set

The LEGO® Pharrell Williams collaborative set 10391 Over the Moon was revealed earlier this month in advance of the October release of the film Piece by Piece, an animated biopic directed by Academy Award® winner Morgan Neville.

A gold-adorned space shuttle and a pile of minifigure heads certainly caught our attention when the set was announced, so read on to find out more.

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• 10391 Over the Moon
• Price: US$109.99/ £94.99/ 109.99€/ AU$199.99
• Pieces: 966
• Dimensions: 19.5 in. (49 cm) high, 7.5 in. (20 cm) long and 7 in. (19 cm) wide
• Release date: 20 September 2024

Order the LEGO Piece by Piece set now

Heads up

We seldom begin of a review with minifigure heads, but when a set contains 51 minifigure heads it commands attention. 29 of the heads are new and 22 have appeared before; interestingly the marketing stated "over 30...were especially created for this set". Perhaps another set released earlier utilised a minifigure head designed for this one.  

Two new head prints belong to the minifigures representing Helen and Pharrell Williams and are pictured further on in the minifigures section.

The new prints come in a range of skin tones. From left to right we have reddish brown, medium brown, dark orange, medium nougat, nougat, warm tan and light nougat.  Most noticeable is dark orange.  Historically this colour has mainly been used for specific characters such as the Ugha Warriors from Indiana Jones, a few Star Wars heads and more recently the Monkie King collectible minifigure. It's fair to say this it has not been a general use skin tone colour so it's great to see a range of facial prints here. 

In total, 5 out of 29 new printed heads are single-sided.  Within the new heads there's a great variety of facial expressions; some with lipstick, others with glasses, winking, laughing, eyes closed and so on. In terms of inclusivity, a medium nougat head has vitiligo, a new face with a port-wine stain in light nougat and a couple of smiles showing midline diastema (aka a gap in between front teeth).

One new head caught my attention as it seems to show a minifigure with a lip scar in the typical position of a cleft lip repair; Head with cleft lip in nougat (6461499).  LEGO have certainly made efforts to have a range of prints to be more inclusive with birthmarks, vitiligo, cochlear implants and glasses for example. As cleft lip is one of the most common facial birth defects, I'm sure this new print will be appreciated by many.

These 22 heads are not new, but are still rare as most have only appeared once or twice before.  You may recognise a few from set such as  40634 Icons of Play,  21337 Table Football, 10291 Queer Eye: The Fab 5 Loft or 21339 BTS Dynamite, plus a few more in Disney sets.

New Prints

There are three new printed elements in the set.  The 2x2 round tile is a particularly nice print capturing the overall look of the set in a small stylised image:

• Tile Round 2 x 2 with Rocket Outline print in White (6461525)
• Brick 1 x 4 with 'ATLANTIS APPTS' print in Black (6461527)
• Tile 1 x 8 with 'MY PHRIENDS' print in Black (6461526)
  

Recolours

There are four recolours in the set; of course one in particular stands out.

The metallic gold windscreen arrives in its own plastic bag to protect it from scratches, it's always nice to have a pristine surface on this type of element!

“The most notable recolor is the windscreen canopy, made in drum-lacquered gold color for the first time ever. It’s one of the largest elements we have ever applied this lacquering process to, and it certainly stands out as a focal point to the whole model.”

George Gilliatt, LEGO designer.

• Windscreen 10 x 4 x 2 with Handle in Metallic Gold (6461280 | 98878)
• Helmet with Black Neck Pattern in Pearl Titanium (6460835)
• Slope Curved 2 x 1 with Stud Notch Right in Bright Green (6460837 | 29119).  Sadly its partner,  Slope Curved 2 x 1 with Stud Notch Left (29120) is still awaited in Bright Green.
• Slope 45° 2 x 1 with 2/3 Cutout [New Version] in Medium Azure (6188112 | 15672)

Minifigures

There are two minifigures in the set and both have the same new torso and leg prints.

• Legs with new print in Pearl Titanium (6461496)
• Torso with new print in Pearl Titanium (6462355)

The two minifigures represent Pharrell Williams and his wife Helen Lasichanh. Helen has new hair in reddish brown with lighter streaks (6461493) and a new head with smile in medium nougat (6461514). Pharrell also has a new dark orange head (6461497). Both of these new heads are single-sided.

Rare or returning elements

There are two returning elements that have not been seen in sets for a while.

• Wedge Plate 10 x 10 Cut Corner [No Centre Studs] in Black (6468015 | 92584) last seen in 2019.
• Helmet visor  in Metallic Gold (6461303 | 2447) last seen in 2016.

In terms of rarer elements, there are four that have previously been found in two or less sets.

• 1 x42862 Wedge Sloped 45° 3 x 3 Left in Black (6390731 | 42862) and its partner 1 x 48165 Wedge Sloped 45° 3 x 3 Right in Black (6390747 | 48165) both in 2 previous sets.
• 26 x 6636 Tile 1 x 6  in Bright Green (6460838 | 6636) in 2 previous sets.
• 3 x 69729 Tile 2 x 6 in Bright Green (6450903 | 69729) in 2 previous sets.
• 2 x 29120 Slope Curved 2 x 1 with Stud Notch Left in Light Purple/ Bright Pink (6460839 | 29120) has only appeared in 43247 The Lion King.  Although its partner  Curved Slope  2 x 1  Right in bright green (6460837 | 29119) is not in this set, it does appear in 43247 thankfully.

The Build

There are three parts to the build; the abacus, the space shuttle and the colourful jet stream base. 

Abacus

“The abacus was a really beautiful opportunity ... to help open the doors for humans, and not just one kind.”

The abacus is a display of 'Phriends' so you can find a match and be part of the adventure. The frame is built first and then a column of heads are added in bags 1-7 to give the 49 heads in total.  Each column has one of each skin tone; reddish brown, medium brown, dark orange, nougat, medium nougat, warm tan and light nougat. Helen and Pharrell Williams stand on top but of course you can swap heads to make your own likeness. Shame they are wearing 'gloves' as this would have been a great way to get all the different skin tone hands!

Shuttle

The shuttle is a shapely yet sturdy build.  The printed 'Atlantis Appts' bricks are used here as part of the fuselage.  As a child, Pharrell lived at the Atlantis Apartments complex in Virginia Beach, a sprawling, subsidised housing complex.  

“When I was a child, my perception of reality was based on a 20-mile radius. And at the center of it was Atlantis Apartments. We lived in the crash zone of the Air Force Base, where the Blue Angels would fly all the time. So, my reference for looking up was always jets. And when you think beyond – what typically flies the highest, if you will, is space shuttles.”

The best part of the shuttle is the drum-lacquered windscreen. It doesn't quite have the cool look of 60430 Interstellar Spaceship but it is more realistic in shape, albeit in black and gold. Two minifigures fit inside the cockpit of course.

Jet stream

The jet stream is arguably the most eye-catching part of the set (unless your focus is solely on expanding your collection of  skin tone minifigure heads).

It starts off with the internal frame mainly constructed with sixteen 4x3 windows before the outer covering of colour plates and tiles is applied.

The little protuberance on the end is where the shuttle will eventually click into place, held via clips.

The clouds of steam at the base hide the mechanism to angle the jetstream.  A bit of Technic and maths results in a jaunty angle for launch.

The jet stream's angle matches the 75 degree slopes to give a nice, neat platform.

A variety of curved elements add to the base with three main  'puff' designs attached via clips.

The final build is certainly robust and well balanced on the shelf.  The colourful jetstream is aesthetically pleasing and I understand the need to contrast with the black and gold shuttle but I'm not sure the overall look is for me. 

Final Thoughts 

It's a little tricky reviewing a set that is tied to a movie before the movie is released.  I have seen the trailer and I plan to see Piece by Piece once it is released. Based on the marketing around the set, the symbolic aspects of the set will become clearer upon seeing the movie itself but have been summarised:

The set is made up of three parts, each with its own meaningful character: the glistening black-and-gold shuttle symbolizes your limitless potential, taking off and taking you along anywhere you can imagine. The colors of the jet-stream, bright and vibrant, symbolize the imagination, creativity and the power of play to fuel your way. 

Personally, I really like the colourful jet stream and the blast of steam at the base.  Perhaps the shuttle will grow on me but I'm always happy to see more drum-lacquered elements in general.

Overall, the shuttle is somewhat underwhelming but the jet stream and the pile of minifigure heads make up for that.  There's a lot of plates and tiles in the set but that is only useful if you want those particular colours - medium azure, bright green, bright light orange and bright pink. 

The stand out aspect of the set for me are the 51 heads in seven different skin tones, especially with their range of human expressions and differences, but buying the set is a bit of a costly way to get the heads. We need a pack of hands to go with them too.

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