Originally released in 2016, the Disney LEGO Castle is bound to have caught your eye already. At least, I did. And yet I managed to resist the temptation by limiting myself to its mini version, released to mark the 50th anniversary of Walt Disney World. But I’d got my foot on the brick and now there was just one more opportunity for me to give in.
Once upon a time…
With Disney’s 100th birthday celebrations in full swing, LEGO has just unveiled an improved revision of its iconic piece. Goodbye grey and white, hello blue and pink, just like its real-world counterpart in Florida.
In figures, the new Château Disney beats its predecessor in every respect.
It is :
- taller: 80cm compared with 74cm,
- more detailed: 4837 bricks compared to 4080 bricks,
- more magical: 4 princely couples versus 4 fabs and 1 fairy,
- more expensive: €399.99 compared with €349.99.
But the heart has its reasons that reason ignores and the colossal box now sits proudly on my dining room table, converted for the occasion into an assembly room. Now all I have to do is get started…
The test
With over 30 bags filled with a variety of bricks, the tone was set immediately. My patience and dexterity are clearly going to be put to the test.
As for the instructions, they really hit the nail on the head: 3 booklets for a total of just over 700 pages. No fewer than 1018 steps are required before the final result can be enjoyed.
Fortunately, the assembly process is not daunting: everything is highly detailed and each step consists of a few simple assemblies, even if a certain amount of meticulousness is required. This explains why the film is recommended for those aged 18 and over.
The characters grow in number as you tackle each major new stage.
The Disney Lego castle, a multitude of winks
As you pass quickly over the foundations, the ballroom comes into view, providing an opportunity to place Cinderella and her Prince on a rotating platform for some waltzing fun.
Then it’s the turn of the main door, marked by the arrival of Snow White and her Prince. A few more hours in the company of Tiana and Naveen to discover the whole of the first level, which was revealed before my astonished eyes, so full were the references to the Great Classics.
This is the great strength of this new Disney Château. It’s teeming with nods to various films. Here Excalibur in its anvil, there Ariel’s zirgouflex in a candlestick, on the other side leaves swirling around a fir tree under the Air du Vent. The list would be too long to enumerate everything, but you can’t miss the secret room that hides a time capsule paying tribute to 100 years of Disney.
We then move on to higher levels. A carpet from Agrabah, a rose under a bell, a Polynesian painting. What a beautiful dining room! By the time a frying pan has been placed to decorate the kitchen, Rapunzel has made her entrance. Flynn, or Eugène to his friends, arrived shortly afterwards to set up a room dedicated to painting.
The cast was complete, and the hours continued to tick by. The great tower climbs little by little, reaching for the sky. Finally came the finishing touch, the 2 fireworks displays that completed the monument.
And they lived happily ever after
I’ve finally reached the end. It took me “only” 14 hours from the laying of the first brick to the official opening (if only the Walt Disney Studios Park extension and the Disney Village redesign could go as quickly).
Far from being the ordeal I feared it would be, the assembly of this superb Disney LEGO Castle was pure entertainment, and the final result is even more beautiful in real life than in photos, as every aspect is extremely detailed, from the architectural elements on the façade to the decoration of the various rooms.
The time capsule concept really comes into its own, as I intend to keep it intact for many years to come.
There’s only one problem left to solve. Where am I going to display it?