Review – Yoda’s Hut [75208]

Yoda’s Hut was not a planned purchase for me, Star Wars sets rarely are. But, this year, I have actually purchased two sets from this theme to help me out with some of my LEGO-fied projects. I previously bought and reviewed Duel on Naboo (click here to read the review) because I needed Darth Maul, Qui Gon Jinn, and padawan Obi-Wan for my LEGO-fied Episode I poster (click here to see it). Then, more recently, I acquired Yoda’s Hut because I needed a Yoda Minifigure (click here to see why). It has taken me a little while to get to actually reviewing this set, but here goes!

SET SUMMARY

NAME: Yoda’s Hut
SET #: 75208
THEME: Star Wars
COST: $35.99 CAD
BRICK COUNT: 229
MINIFIGURES: 2
OF INTEREST: R2-D2 Droid
RELEASE DATE: April 14, 2018

SUMMARY REVIEW: 82%

VALUE: 70% ($0.16 per brick is a little high, though not awful.)
BUILD: 80% (Quaint design, but has features needing more attention.)
MINIFIGURES: 92% (Well designed Minifigs with an excellent brick:fig.)
ENTERTAINMENT: 85% (Good build-time, generally a fun set.)

REVIEW

VALUE: 70%
With 229 bricks, and a price tag of $35.99 in Canada, the average cost of a brick in the Yoda’s Hut kit is $0.16. If we look back to the January 2018 LEGO Catalog (which is the last one I have received at the time of this writing), the average cost of a brick was $0.12 overall, and $0.14 for the Star Wars theme. The overall average cost of a brick for all of 2017 (again, based on the catalogs I received in the mail) was $0.13. So, this set is a bit on the expensive side, even for the Star Wars theme. But, it is still not the worst value that I have ever seen. It gets a satisfactory 3.5/5 (70%) for value.

BUILD: 80%
Yoda’s Hut has a certain charm to it. I like the overall, exterior look. The inside also has a nice little fire pit with a kettle hanging over it. I really like that touch. Yoda gets a small bed, and there is a storage area for a carrot. The set is designed with a swing-open feature in the back, but it comes off as a little pointless. You are really only swinging two grass patches to either side of the hut. The building was not designed with a back wall. I would have much rather paid a little more for this set, and gotten a complete hut with swing-open back walls. That would have also created a more faithful, alcoved look to the interior, as seen in the movie.

There are two play features built into the hut. The first is a rope attached to a tree. There is a spot for a Minifigure to stand on the tree, and a little switch you can press to send the Minifigure flying. It works pretty well. The other play feature is another Minifigure launcher. This one is attached to a removable platform that can be attached on either side of Yoda’s Hut. This feature doesn’t work as well. Looking at the design of this set, I will take away a mark for the open concept rear and pointless hinged base, as well as for the lack-luster second launcher. Overall, I give it 8/10 (80%).

MINIFIGURES: 92%
Yoda’s Hut comes with two Minifigures (Luke Skywalker and Yoda), and an R2-D2 droid. Yoda was the reason that I bought this set. Normally, I would deduct marks for the gimpy, unbending legs. I hate when LEGO includes them on Minifigures meant to be children. However, Yoda is an alien. He is also meant to be short. Additionally, when you watch the old movies, there is a stiffness to his movements because he was a puppet. So, the stumpy legs don’t bother me here because they make the character authentic. The head mold is also very nice on Yoda, and he has a front and back printed torso. Yoda gets 10/15 for design alone (on a slightly modified scale from what I’d usually use).

Luke comes with a double sided face, and mop-ish hair. He also has a front and back printed torso, and some front printing on his legs. He gets 12/15 using my usual scale. We also get R2-D2 in this set. While not a traditional Minifigure, I will count him as such for this review. This R2 looks like most other variants, except that he is splattered with mud. I would give him 9/15 as a “Minifigure”. So out of 45 possible points these three characters can earn, they have 31. Of course, there are also accessories to consider. You get a red snake, a kettle, a pan, a bottle, a walking stick, a carrot, and a light saber. Those bring the score up to 38/45, or 84%.

With three Minifigures and 229 bricks, you have a brick-to-Minifigure ratio of 76:1. That is excellent, earning Yoda’s Hut a ratio score of 5/5 (100%). Averaging this with the design score gives the set an overall Minifigure rating of 92%.

ENTERTAINMENT: 85%
Yoda’s Hut took me 54 minutes to build. With a price tag of $35.99, each minute of build time cost me $0.67. That is a good, but not great, amount of build time for the cost. In that respect, I give Yoda’s Hut 4/5 (80%). In terms of how much I like this set, if I was planning to keep this set built, I would modify it a bit to suit my liking. For example, I would build up the back wall. But, I could see this set being a lot of fun to play with for a Star Wars fan. I will get a lot of enjoyment out of photographing it for sure. So, I will give it 4.5/5 (90%) for enjoyment. Averaging the the enjoyment and build-time scores gives Yoda’s Hut an overall entertainment score of 85%.

OVERALL: 82%

In terms of overall cost, the price per brick for Yoda’s Hut is a bit high, but not terribly so. You also get a good build-time value, so there’s not too much to complain about in terms of price. The set is fun for both play and photography, and you get some good characters in it. The only thing I really didn’t like about Yoda’s Hut was the pointless swing-open sides. I really would have like a completely enclosed hut. I will give this set an overall score of 82%, and say that it is worth the buy for a Star Wars fan. As always, I welcome your thoughts on Yoda’s Hut in the comments below.

Until next time,

-Tom