This is a review of the LEGO® Friends Sea Rescue Boat (41734). I purchased this set myself, and this review is not sponsored in any way. I strive to always provide my honest opinion on LEGO® products. If you are curious about how I generate scores in this review, I invite you to read about the True North Bricks rating system.
INTRODUCTION
The LEGO® Friends Sea Rescue Boat (41734) was not even on my radar as a set I might want to buy. It came out in 2023, and like most other Friends sets, I barely gave it a second glance. Then I year later, while doing my groceries, I saw the set on a liquidation rack for 50% off. A quick calculation told me the set came out to $0.07/brick, which is excellent. While writing my review of the Deep Sea Explorer Submarine last summer, I learned the 2x10x2 shell elements in this set are on the rarer side. Especially the orange ones. So, I figured why not pick up the Sea Rescue Boat as a parts pack? When I got home, the design of the pontoons seen on the box intrigued me enough to build the kit. Am I ever glad I did!
SEA RESCUE BOAT SPECIFICS
- NAME: Sea Rescue Boat
- SET #: 41734
- THEME: Friends
- COST: $99.99 CAD
- BRICK COUNT: 717
- COST/BRICK: $0.14 CAD
- MINI-DOLLS: 4
- BRICKS/FIG: 179
- RELEASE DATE: June 1, 2023
- BUILD TIME: 2 hours 33 minutes
- COST/MIN: $0.65 CAD
- DIMENSIONS: cm (high) x cm (wide) x cm (deep)
QUICK REVIEW OF THE SEA RESCUE BOAT
OVERALL SCORE: 87%
WHAT I LIKED: On liquidation, this set is a great parts pack that even inspires custom projects with its interesting build techniques.
WHAT I LIKED LESS: This is completely a kids play set with an odd colour palette and a silly slide. You’ll also never sell me on mini-dolls… but that is a personal thing.
VALUE: 85%
Average cost/brick, but a surprisingly good build time at full price.
BUILD: 90%
I like this design way more than I thought I would. It inspires and provides great parts.
MINI-DOLLS: 94%
Unique characters, new parts, and several fun accessories make this selection a win.
ENTERTAINMENT: 80%
The set inspires a future custom project, but it is not for me as it is. Kids might like it though.
SEA RESCUE BOAT (41734) REVIEW
VALUE: 85%
SUMMARY: Even at full price, you get a fairly average cost/brick that won’t break the bank. However, the build time was more than I anticipated (that being a good thing). Of course, you should not pay full price for this set because it is frequently on my weekly sales list, and I recently found it 50% off at the grocery store.
Value Score Breakdown:
The Sea Rescue Boat costs $99.99 in Canada at full price. Looking at the set from that perspective, the cost/brick is $0.14. That is average compared to LEGO® sets in general, and just a touch below average for my limited experience with the Friends theme. Presently, I only have data on seven sets from this theme. With that said, I rate the cost/brick at 80%. On the other hand, the build time was quite good. Just over two and a half hours for $100 CAD equates to $0.65 per minute of build time. My current average for Friends is $0.75/minute, while LEGO® sets in general sit at $0.88/minute. That places the Sea Rescue Boat at a solid 89% in this category. Averaging that with the cost/brick gives this set an overall value score of 85%.
Of course, I did not pay full price for this set (nor should you). The Sea Rescue Boat is frequently on the weekly sales list I maintain. Additionally, I found it half price on a recent trip to the grocery store. Since I paid $50 for this set, the cost/brick improved considerably to $0.07, and the cost/minute went to $0.33. Reviews at True North Bricks typically only consider the suggested retail price used on LEGO.com. But if you are curious, 50% off boosts the value score to over 99%. For argument’s sake, we’ll say a half off sale gives this set a perfect value score.
BUILD: 90%
SUMMARY: I liked the design for this set more than anticipated. The pontoons are a nice refresher in SNOT building, you get some nice parts, and I felt inspired by the general concept. I did not like this combination of colours together though, and certain elements of the set lack realism.
Build Score Breakdown:
The Sea Rescue Boat is an interesting parts pack. The set includes some shell elements used to make the pontoons that are relatively rare. In white, they come in only a handful of sets. In orange, the only other set to include them presently is the Deep Sea Explorer Submarine. Other examples of exclusive elements include the fluorescent yellow slide pieces and orange hoses. Overall, I really like the brick selection in this box. It includes some neat stuff.
Originally, I intended this set as just a parts pack. $0.07/brick is hard to beat these days, especially with all the neat and rarer elements you get. However, the box art prompted me to assemble this set once I got home and started sorting the kit. It shows to anti-stud surfaces touching on each pontoon. I wanted to see how they did that. In the end, the design was no where near as complicated as I imagined it would be. It was a nice reminder not to over think or over complicate designs. Also, while the pontoon design is straightforward, it is still a good technique to keep in mind when building on your own.
The pontoons use a fairly common SNOT technique that anyone who has ever built a BrickHeadz character will know. The downside of the technique is the length of the pontoons. They stick quite far out from the actual attachment surface. Consequently, the ends of the pontoons where the anti-stud surfaces meet wobble a little when you touch them. With that said, they are still sturdy enough that they don’t fall off easily.
Another interesting technique used in the Sea Rescue Boat appears on the front end just under the windshield elements. The white front section of wall is actually a panel held in place using modified 1×2 elements. I am not sure how I feel about this technique though. It was interesting in that I did not expect it and I learned something. However, I don’t like the way it looks inside the boat. Of course, you don’t really see it clearly inside the boat because it is partially obscured by other aspects of the build. It would look better if the LEGO® Group had used 2×2 inverted tiles instead of the 2×2 round slide show element on the interior surface.
The Sea Rescue boat (41734) does not actually float. Some of my images in this article show the boat in water, but they were modified using Photoshop. The boat was actually sitting on concrete in front of the water. I edited the concrete out and replaced it with water. My original intent had been to actually place the boat on a stand in the lake, but the water was pretty gross looking following the spring thaw. Instead of being able to float, the Sea Rescue Boat has wheels on the base so it can roll along a play mat or imaginary water surface. I think that’s fine. While LEGO® City boats that float are kind of neat, I question actually using them in the water. Little parts are likely to fall off and get lost forever.
The final element of note that I will bring up is the submarine. The design is cute and well thought out. I actually like it more than some of the small City theme subs we’ve seen in larger ship sets. There are no blaring gaps in the design of this Friends sub, meaning you don’t have to imagine its water tightness quite so badly. I like the lights in front and the controls inside as well. The robotic arms could have been a bit longer though.
In the end, I was pleasantly surprised with the Sea Rescue Boat. The techniques were not overly complicated, but still informative. The design gave me some inspiration for a future MOC project as well. This set is also an interesting parts pack with useful and rare elements. I don’t really like the colour combination though, and I could have done without the slide. It’s not realistic for a sea cleanup crew to have a slide. Can you imagine? “Let’s slide into this patch of floating debris for fun!” I rate the build for the Sea Rescue Boat at 90%.
MINIFIG…err… dolls: 94%
SUMMARY: I don’t like mini-dolls, but I tried to review these objectively. The characters are fairly unique and include some neat accessories. On top of that, there’s a good number of them considering the Sea Rescue Boat’s brick count. Am I converted to being a mini-doll fan? No. But mini-dolls fans might appreciate these.
Minifigure Score Breakdown:
As many longtime readers know, I dislike mini-dolls quite a bit. They are plain creepy in my books. However, I know a lot of others like them. I’m also aware of the amount of market research that went into developing them. Finally, I am not the target demographic for mini-dolls. As such, I will try to remain somewhat objective about these characters. In fairness, the soft reboot of Friends back in 2022 did make mini-dolls marginally less creepy. But I’m pretty staunchly about Minifigures at the end of the day.
Mini-dolls also don’t lend themselves well to my usual rating system which was designed for Minifigures. With that said, I’ll adapt… These mini-dolls feature all the usual parts. None are those ultra-creepy mini-doll babies. Another thing these characters have going for them is uniqueness. As far as I can tell, all the torso elements are pretty rare presently. None feature in more than five sets. And one thing I do appreciate about mini-dolls is their hairpieces and accessories. Some are not available in Minifigure-focused themes, but all are Minifigure compatible. For mini-doll collectors, the Sea Rescue Boat offers a good selection of unique characters and accessories. If these were Minifigures, I’d probably happily give them 100% for design… so let’s go with that.
In terms of accessories, there are a few of note. In the build section, I mentioned unique bricks. Well, a number of those fall in this category. Firstly, you get a new dolphin colour variant and a baby dolphin only available in one other set. Prior to this, I did not have any baby dolphins. You also acquire a printed sunscreen 1×1 brick. This piece comes in five sets so far, but this is the first time I’ve gotten one. The other stuff is more run-of-the-mill, but welcome. The Sea Rescue Boat also comes with two bottles, two printed can tops, two crates, a two-way radio, a couple of syringes, a pan, a mug, a printed single-celled organism tile, a bunch of life vests, and a bunch of tiles printed as control panels.
As for the number of mini-dolls included, I’d say it is good. Again, I don’t have a lot of experience with LEGO® Friends. But based on my limited experience, this set provides an above average number of characters for a set of this size. At the very least, it is much better than the Botanical Garden set I reviewed a few months ago. Could the set use some more characters? Sure. But compared to other Friends sets I’ve built, it still earns a solid 87%. I won’t compare it to Minifigure based sets directly since these are not Minifigures and there is probably a different LEGO® Group calculation for how many to include in a set. Averaging this score with the design score gives an overall mini-dolls grade of 94%.
ENTERTAINMENT: 80%
SUMMARY: I was more entertained than I thought I would be. I don’t love this set, but I appreciate the parts, build techniques, and inspiration it provides. Of course, the set was designed for kids, so they might get more of a kick out of it.
Entertainment Score Breakdown:
I will not keep this set built as such. The Sea Rescue Boat is a kids’ play set, not really an adult collectible. Additionally, I don’t really like the colour combination or the slide. However, the set provided inspiration for future builds. The pontoon style boat reminded me a little of the visitor ferry in Jurassic World. With a few tweaks, I could use this basic idea to build something along those lines. That would be a fun project. The kit also provided a number of interesting parts that I’ll use in other builds. I enjoyed this build for a moment, but I will recycle the parts as I originally intended when I bought it. I rate the entertainment at 80%.
CONCLUSION: 87%
Do I love the Sea Rescue Boat? No, but I do like it. I will not keep this set built because it is a bit juvenile in terms of design and colours. That’s not a complaint, the target audience is kids after all. And kids will probably like it too. But for adults, this is a parts pack that provides some nice build techniques. Even at full price, it’s not a bad purchase for those purposes. However, it’s a great buy if you can find it on liquidation like I did.
Want to support True North Bricks?
If you like the content at True North Bricks, please follow on Instagram, Facebook, LinkedIn, YouTube, or TikTok for regular content. Additionally, you can support True North Bricks by making your LEGO® (and other) purchases using the links in the margin to your right. As an affiliate of those retailers, we earn from qualifying purchases. These earnings come at no extra cost to you but help to keep the content at True North Bricks free.