Hogsmeade Village Visit (76388) Review

Of all the summer 2021 Harry Potter sets, Hogsmeade Village Visit (76388) intrigued me most. I love LEGO® buildings. I was particularly fond of Diagon Alley and the customization potential it brings to medieval displays. Consequently, I was thrilled to see more buildings (other than Hogwarts) in this wave of sets. While not from Diagon Alley, these buildings go well with that set all the same. Let’s see how they compare upon deeper inspection.

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 for more information) and provide my honest opinion.

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HOGSMEADE VILLAGE VISIT SUMMARY

• NAME: Hogsmeade Village Visit
• SET #: 76388
• THEME: Harry Potter
• COST: $109.99 CAD
• BRICK COUNT: 851
• MINIFIGURES: 7
• RELEASE DATE: June 1, 2021

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HOGSMEADE VILLAGE VISIT QUICK REVIEW

• VALUE: 89% (Average cost/brick, excellent cost/minute of build time.)
• BUILD: 85% (Simple but nice design.)
• MINIFIGURES: 93% (Very good number of amazingly designed characters.)
• ENTERTAINMENT: 90% (Nice play/display pieces, but open backs make display hard.)
• OVERALL SCORE: 89%

HOGSMEADE VILLAGE VISIT REVIEW

VALUE: 89%

Hogsmeade Village Visit weighs in at 851 bricks and $109.99 CAD. Incidentally, that makes it the second most pricey set in the summer 2021 Harry Potter wave. However, the cost-per-brick is $0.129, which is fairly average. Comparatively, the Harry Potter theme hovers around $0.130/brick in my experience. Meanwhile, LEGO® sets in general cost about $0.137/brick. The set also provides a decent amount of build time. I assembled this kit in three hours and 15 minutes. The resulting cost-per-minute of build time is $0.564. That is well below both the Harry Potter theme average ($0.818) and my general LEGO® average ($0.832). An average cost-per-brick and amazing cost-per-minute land Hogsmeade Village Visit a value score of 89%.

BUILD: 85%

This set includes two buildings, Honeydukes and the Three Broomsticks. The former is a sweetshop while the latter is an inn and pub from the fictional world of Harry Potter. Both buildings are smaller proportionally than their film counterparts. Such is the cost of packing two buildings into one set. However, that is not a complaint, just an observation. Each of these builds looks great and features enough details to make fans happy. Are they as detailed as the builds from Diagon Alley? No. In Diagon Alley, you build most details from bricks. A good contrast in Hogsmeade is shelving. All shelves are stickers in this set.

Otherwise, the building designs fit nicely with Diagon Alley, even though they are from a different town. The Three Broomsticks is comparable in height to Flourish & Blotts or Scribbulus. However, Honeydukes comes off a little short next to other buildings. Additionally, I would have liked stairs in both these buildings to connect floors. Finally, while there is a room above the pub in the Three Broomsticks, it is not a proper bedroom for an inn.

Ultimately, I like these buildings. My complaints about them are relatively small, especially compared to how I felt about Fluffy Encounter. There is not anything overly complicated about the build, and I did not learn any new techniques. However, the product looks good, so the simplicity of the structure does not bother me. I rate Hogsmeade Village Visit at 85%.

MINIFIGURES: 93%

Hogsmeade Village Visit comes with seven Minifigures. One of them is the 20^th Anniversary commemorative golden Ron character. I am happy to say that he is the only minifig in this set with stumpy, unmoving legs. The kit also includes Harry and Dean Thomas, however they come with the short, movable legs that I really like. I suppose Ron has non-moving legs to match with Harry and Hermione from Polyjuice Potion Mistake and Fluffy Encounter. Additionally, making small, moving golden legs requires re-coloring more parts which may not be cost effective.

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All of the Minifigures come with front and back torso printing. Additionally, all except golden Ron have double-sided faces. McGonagall and Mrs. Flume also feature leg printing. I like the diversity of characters in this set as well as the new coloration of Madame Rosmerta’s hairpiece. In terms of accessories, the set includes four printed wizard card tiles, a hammer, four sets of wands, two chalices, a croissant, two butterbeer mugs, one bottle, two transparent minifig heads printed as jars, two printed popcorn container bricks, two bowls, a bucket, a pot, a box, and several printed 1×1 round candy tiles. I rate the character design and accessories at 97%.

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Seven Minifigures in a kit containing 851 bricks is particularly good. Essentially, you get 122 bricks per Minifigure. Comparatively, my average for the Harry Potter theme is 167 bricks/fig. For LEGO® sets in general, the average is 169 bricks/fig. Either way you look at it, you get a solid number of Minifigures for a set of this size. I rate the ratio score at 88%. Averaging this with the design score gives an overall Minifigure rating of 93%.

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ENTERTAINMENT: 90%

I have yet to build and review the Chamber of Secrets set from the summer 2021 wave of Harry Potter sets. However, of all the sets I have seen so far, Hogsmeade Village Visit is my favorite. The buildings are great for display in a Harry Potter themed set-up. However, they also lend well to medieval custom villages. I like when sets have display potential beyond their intended theme. However, as an AFOL, my complaint in terms of display is the open-backed design. This is great for play, but it makes inclusion is a custom town more challenging. These buildings need customization into modulars for that. Regardless, I think AFOL Potter-heads, kids, and AFOL medieval enthusiasts will enjoy Hogsmeade Village Visit. I rate the entertainment score at 90%.

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OVERALL SCORE: 89%

Hogsmeade Village Visit comes at a solid value with a good build and amazing Minifigures. Kids will have fun with this set, and it goes well with buildings from Diagon Alley. However, most AFOLs will probably need to customize these designs in order to incorporate them into town displays. Additionally, the buildings lack some minor realistic touches. However, for a set aimed mostly at play, I am pleasantly surprised. So far, this is my favorite of the summer 2021 Harry Potter sets. What are your thoughts? Feel free to comment below or reach out on social media.

Until next time,

-Tom

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