For the past week, I have been on a Monkie Kid review blitz. The LEGO® Group graciously sent me the March 2021 sets ahead of their release. Today, we have reached the final set. Arguably, this is also the most anticipated set of the series. Already, many of you have written to me indicating how much you are looking forward to it. Truthfully, it was my top pick from the new collection as well. Does the Legendary Flower Fruit Mountain (80024) live up to the hype? Read on to find out.
NOTE: The LEGO® Group provided this set for review. However, the provision of products does not guarantee a favorable review. I will use my usual rating system (click here to learn more) and provide my honest opinion.
FLOWER FRUIT MOUNTAIN SUMMARY
- NAME: The Legendary Flower Fruit Mountain
- SET #: 80024
- THEME: Monkie Kid
- COST: $249.99 CAD
- BRICK COUNT: 1949
- MINIFIGURES: 8
- RELEASE DATE: March 1, 2021
FLOWER FRUIT MOUNTAIN QUICK REVIEW
- VALUE: 85% (This set is a good value in terms of build time and cost-per-brick.)
- BUILD: 95% (Amazing build, it loses marks for small, customizable details.)
- MINIFIGURES: 83% (Beautiful Minifigures, but not enough of them.)
- ENTERTAINMENT: 95% (Great display piece that is amazing for all sorts of play.)
- OVERALL SCORE: 90%
FLOWER FRUIT MOUNTAIN REVIEW
VALUE: 85%
Flower Fruit Mountain costs $249.99 in Canada. It is one of the largest Monkie Kid sets produced to date. Incidentally, it falls 10 bricks short of Monkie Kid’s Team Secret HQ. The total brick count for Flower Fruit Mountain is 1949. Consequently, the cost-per-brick is $0.128. By comparison, my average cost-per-brick across all themes is $0.14. Therefore, even at full price, the set is a good value and earns 84%. In terms of the Monkie Kid theme alone, my average cost-per-brick is $0.137. The value is even better in that light, earning 88% in the theme comparison. Averaging the two scores gives an overall value-per-brick of 86%.
Flower Fruit Mountain took me five hours and 46 minutes to build. Therefore, at full price, the cost-per-minute of build time is $0.72. Comparatively, my average cost-per-minute across all themes is $0.83. As such, this set offers a good amount of build time for the price. I rate that at 86%. In my earlier Monkie Kid reviews this week, I refrained form making theme specific comparisons in this category. However, now that I have reviewed several kits, I can somewhat reliably say that my average cost-per-minute for the theme is $0.75. By that comparison, Flower Fruit Mountain earns 82%. Consequently, the overall build-time value score is 84%. Averaging this with the cost-per-brick score gives an overall value grade of 85%.
BUILD: 95%
Flower Fruit Mountain was almost perfect. I remember the moments during the build when I thought “Oh no.” Interestingly, for a set this large, there are very few mechanized play features. In total, Flower Fruit Mountain has three. Two of them were my “oh no” moments. The biggest is the waterfall. In front of it is a push tab. Pressing on the tab causes a section of the waterfall to split open and reveal a cave. The function works well in one direction (opening, it does not close on its own). However, it is ugly, and basic in design. My second point of contention is the rock “baby” Monkey King wakes up in. It also has a push tab that causes the rock to split apart. The concept is interesting, but the rock never closes completely. There is always a gap between the two halves. Bummer.
The third play function works well and fits seamlessly into the build. You assemble two rotating turrets on gears. The gears hide in the base of Flower Fruit Mountain. One of them juts out just enough to turn it, resulting in the turrets above rotating. Placing Minifigures on the turrets causes them to spin in turn. Consequently, they look like they are fighting. It is a great play feature.
The battle play feature in the Legendary Flower Fruit Mountain set is fun.
Otherwise, I love Flower Fruit Mountain. I sat and marveled at it for a long time once I finished building. The set looks amazing. I do not have much display space on my shelves, but I am recycling something else I love to make room. There is too much detail in this build to discuss in one review. Some of the highlights for me included the clever build techniques used to shape the cliffs. The mountains also feature lots of foliage for aesthetic appeal. Additionally, the mountainous range is full of cracks, crevasses, and caves. The waterfalls look wonderful too, and I love the little rope bridge.
One questionable issue did arise during the build. I say “questionable” because it is not a build issue, but it is a poor design choice. Monkey King has a tiger skin throne. The build looks fine. It sits nicely atop a cliff. However, tiger skin? I am an avid wildlife fan, and tigers are my favorite animal. I do know how much this tiger throne features in Journey to the West or Monkie Kid. However, I think it is in poor taste. China has a horrible history and reputation when it comes to using tiger body parts in traditional medicines and elitist décor. Flower Fruit Mountain pulls inspiration from some of the beautiful aspects of Chinese culture. A tiger skin throne tarnished that image for me.
Tiger skin thrones aside, Flower Fruit Mountain is amazing. My main issues with the set arise from small details in the build. You can easily customize those. This is the Monkie Kid set I have been waiting for in terms of build techniques and overall look. To the LEGO® Group: more like this please. I rate the build at 95%.
MINIFIGURES: 83%
Flower Fruit Mountain comes with eight Minifigures. Two of them are stumpy-legged children. I normally harp on child minifigs to no end. I hate the unbending legs. Additionally, I do not like that the stumpy legs come with regular sized torsos. It makes the arms look disproportionately long. Consequently, I have termed these characters ape children. However, in this case, while they are not apes, they are monkeys. You got me there, LEGO® Group. Kudos. The design works in this case. Ultimately, I still wish these monkey-kids came with the short, moveable legs like Pigsy has in other Monkie Kid sets.
Otherwise, the other characters have all the standard Minifigure parts. Additionally, every character has front and back torso printing, as well as double-sided faces. Only the monkey kids do not have leg printing. In fact, four of the minifigs have two-toned legs, which I like. In terms of accessories, this set comes with two of Monkey King’s hair ribbons, a hood piece, three cloth cape bits, seven monkey tails, one shoulder armor piece, two oars, two apples, a frog, and an axe. These are nice Minifigures. I rate the design at 114/120 (95%).
The Legendary Flower Fruit Mountain needs more Minifigures.
Sadly, where Flower Fruit Mountain falls a little short is the number of Minifigures included. Eight minifigs in a set this big is not a lot. The brick-to-fig ratio is 244:1. Comparatively, my average across all themes is 144:1. Compared to other LEGO® sets, Flower Fruit Mountain earns a barely passable ratio score of 60%. However, Monkie Kid is shaping up to be a theme that skimps on Minifigures. My average ratio for the theme is 189:1. Viewed in that light, Flower Fruit Mountain fares a little better, earning 71%. Considering those two scores together gives an average ratio score of 66%. Combined with the design score, Flower Fruit Mountain earns a final Minifigure score of 83%.
ENTERTAINMENT: 95%
Have I mentioned that I love Flower Fruit Mountain? I enjoy builds that bring scenery or buildings into the mix. There are far too many vehicles sets out there, especially in the Monkie Kid theme. The only vehicle in this set is a little raft that compliments the set well. Flower Fruit Mountain is a great display piece, even for the non-Monkie Kid fans out there. Additionally, the mountain design inspired a future direction for my Ninjago district builds. Is it my favorite set ever? No, I have built others that I leave on display as designers intended them. I will display Flower Fruit Mountain until I have time to modify it for a custom build. However, that custom build will pull a lot of inspiration from this design and stay true to the essence of it. I rate the AFOL score at 90%.
Kids will love Flower Fruit Mountain too. It looks great as a display piece. However, turn it around to reveal loads of play space inside the mountain scene. You do not need to know anything about Monkie Kid to like this set. The scenery is beautiful and fun to play in with any Minifigures. Though, the monkeys that come with the set are a lot of fun themselves. I think this scene works with Ninjago as well as the Friends animal rescue sets. You can also use it with the City wildlife research animals and minfigs from a few years back. There is a lot of play potential here. I rate the KFOL score at 100%. Overall, that brings the entertainment rating to 95%.
OVERALL SCORE: 90%
The Legendary Flower Mountain set is the most expensive one in the third wave of Monkie Kid kits. However, if you break down that price tag, the value is good. You get a decent number of bricks and build time for the price. And what a build it is. The final set looks amazing and I found very few issues with it. I wish LEGO® designers had not included a tiger skin chair though. That was really in poor taste, especially considering the set is based on Chinese folklore. Ultimately, the main issue pulling down the score is the Minifigure count. A set of this size needs more characters. With that said, the ones you get are amazingly detailed. Legendary Flower Fruit Mountain is worth the purchase. What do you think? Feel free to comment below or reach out on social media.
Until next time,
-Tom
Want to support True North Bricks?
If you like the content at True North Bricks, please follow on Instagram, Facebook, Pinterest, or Twitter for regular updates. Additionally, you can support True North Bricks by making your LEGO® (and other) purchases using the links in the menu to the right. These affiliate links earn me a little commission at no extra cost to you, thus helping to manage the cost of running this blog. Thanks for your support!