Lego 21303 WALL·E Review

Model #: 21303
Release date: September the 1st 2015
Pieces: 677
Price on Lego.com: £39.99 / $59.99 / 49.99€
Product Availability: Available Now
Size: 7” (18cm) high, 6” (16cm) long and 6” (16cm) wide

I've been a fan of WALL·E since I first saw the movie in 2008 and in fact I tried to build him out of Lego several times since but was never satisfied with the result. However when I first saw Angus McLane's project on Lego Ideas I supported it straightaway hoping that there would actually be an official Lego set. Finally on September the 1st 2015, 7 years after the film's premiere, the set got into the stores. Luckily enough I was on holiday in London and so I was able to be the first one to pick up 21303 WALL·E in the Lego Store.

As always with Lego Ideas sets the box is high-quality and definitely an eye-catcher. The front shows WALL·E with his plant and the usual set stats like set number, piece-count etc. The backside again shows WALL·E looking at the plant but with opened junk compressor this time. On the box' sides scenes from the actual movie can be seen. Inside there're the 677 parts in several bags as well as a nice booklet with the instructions and informations about the creator.

Putting the (only) 677 pieces together took about 45 minutes. The build includes some nice techniques like the arm-sliding-mechanism and the details on the side. However what I like the most about the build is the way the eyes are done. It uses some fantastic techniques which I haven't seen before.
The finished model includes WALL·E, his cockroach friend and the small plant. The functions are posable arms (they can even slide forward using the mechanism described above) with very nice agile hands, very moveable neck (see below), posable eyes, tracks that roll quite well on a carpet and an openable junk compressor.

Due to the construction of the topmost joint WALL·E's neck tended to spin quite easily which made posing the head looking upwards impossible. Because of several customer complaints Lego actually discontinued the set for a short time to find a better solution for the neck. As well as that there were some problems with the other neck joints in America. For customers who bought the "flawed" version (including me) Lego offered a free WALL·E repair-kit which included the necessary parts for the improvement as well as instructions on how to build the new version. I got mine a few days later and the new solution for the neck is much better. You can even tilt the head sideways now which hadn't been possible before.

All in all I can really recommend this set to both fans of the movie and Lego in general now that the neck issues are sorted out. However I'd have liked to see a more detailed plant and cockroach in the set. Fans of the movie will know that WALL·E keeps the plant in an old shoe for the most part of the movie. It also would have been nice to have his classic lunchbox as well as his solar panels included. With £39.99 / $59.99 / 49.99€ the prize also seems a bit too high for a 677-piece model but that's pretty normal for a licensed set I suppose. Other than that it's a great set and definitely worthwhile buying.