10333: Barad-Dûr Minifigures Review

Despite only being on sale for a couple of years, the original LEGO® The Lord of the Rings sets have amassed a feverish fan base. The love for the long-retired theme is so strong, that it returned last year under the LEGO Icons banner with the magnificent Rivendell set. This year things have become a little darker as the latest LEGO Icons The Lord of the Rings set returns to Mordor and Sauron’s looming dark tower of Barad-Dûr. One of the Lord of the Rings films’ Two Towers, Barad-Dûr is best known as the tower upon which Sauron’s all-seeing eye, searches for the One Ring. Before taking a look at the set, here’s a closer look at the minifigures of Barad-Dûr.

Product Details

Set Name: The Lord of the Rings: Barad-Dûr | Set Number: 10333 | Pieces: 5471 | Theme: Icons

Number of Bags: Bags x 40 | Instructions: Paper booklet + Builder App | Stickers: sheet x 1 | Insiders QR: Yes

RRP: £399.99/$459.99/459.99€/699.99AUD/599.99CAD

Availability: LEGO Stores & LEGO Online from June 1sth (Insiders) June 4th (General)

The Rivendell set featured an impressive line-up of minifigures, with over 20 included in the set. This set doesn’t quite go that far but it still offers a decent group of figures including, for the first time, Sauron himself.

Although not directly linked to the physical location of Barad-Dûr, Frodo and Sam’s journey is. So those two brave Hobbits are featured in the set. They are the same versions of the characters which can be found in the Rivendell set but are lacking their cloaks. You can also swap out their hair for two new helmets. These match those they wear to enter Mordor. They are joined by Gollum, who has been given a redesign for this set. It may look similar to the previous version but it is a new mould. Not only has the physical shape of the character been changed, but it also sports new print details. The larger eyes have been changed to be more minifigure-like. I can’t decide which I prefer, the new version feels a little more ‘LEGO-like’ but less like Gollum, if that makes sense.

You can’t have a set connected to the dark lord Sauron without including some of his gruesome minions. The set features four Orc and Gothmog, the Orc general. Gothmog hasn’t appeared as a physical minifigure and although it’s difficult to capture his unique appearance in minifigure-form fully you can tell who it’s meant to represent. The various Orcs are all different, normally when a set features multiples of the unnamed characters, they are all the same. But each of the Orc has different torsos, legs, helmets and weapons. The highlight is the ‘chef’ orc, especially when placed near the menu board featured in the Barad-Dûr’s on-site catering kitchen. Yes, it looks like meat is on the menu.

Finally, the set’s two most elaborate minifigures are inspired by Sauron and his evil assistant/spokesperson, commonly known as the Mouth of Sauron. As Sauron’s most loyal servant, the Mouth of Sauron greets the Fellowship at the Black Gates of Mordor. The character has appeared in past sets but has been slightly redesigned. The differences are minimal but the unique helmet is new plus the torso and legs are a little more detailed. Despite Sauron’s looming presence over the entire Lord of the Rings trilogy, he hasn’t appeared in any of the previous LEGO Lord of the Rings sets. So this is a completely new and unique minifigure. Sauron oozes pure evil and this is certainly shown in his appearance. He looms over the armies of Man and Elves during the opening of the Fellowship of the Ring, that’s a little tricky to replicate with a standard minifigure so the new helmet element gives him a little extra height. As well as the helmet, this new element also includes extra armour which sits over the shoulders of the minifigure. Beneath the helmet is Sauron’s previously unseen face.

The minifigures featured in the set are less important to the location than those in the Rivendell set. But they still offer an impressive addition to an equally impressive set. I’ll be taking a closer look at the tower of Barad-Dûr very soon.

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These were provided to BricksFanz by the LEGO Group for purposes of review. The thoughts within this review are those of BricksFanz and do not reflect those of the LEGO Group. Providing a set for free does not guarantee a favourable opinion of the set.

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