Review: 41686 Magical Acrobatics

Posted by MeganL, 05 Nov 2021 15:00

The magical funfair subtheme for Friends looked interesting, especially with 41687 Magical Funfair Stalls that I reviewed earlier this year, so I decided to get a couple of the other sets to see what magic could be found within.

I have a soft spot for Olivia, the science oriented Friend, and noticed that she was featured in the smallest funfair set, 41686 Magical Acrobatics. Does the magic continue in a small set?

Inside the box there are two numbered bags, an instruction book, and a sticker sheet. The sheet only has four stickers, which is quite manageable. I wonder if LEGO includes stickers in sets to be part of the appeal to the key demographic!

Minidolls

I'm pleased to see that there are two minidolls included in a small set, Olivia and Stella. One of the things I love about this subtheme is the facepainting that we see on the Friends faces. Olivia has a terrific fan themed design on her face in blue and white - it looks great! She's appropriately dressed for the fair in fuschia pants with matching suspenders, along with a bright blue sleeveless shirt with starburst design. I particularly love her boots, and the club design on the front.

The other minidoll is Stella, one of the fair's employees. Stella is wearing a striking asymmetrical patterned fuchsia, white and black top over top of a white miniskirt and some fabulous black and white asymmetrically patterned leggings. She's wearing one white shoe and one black shoe. What great printing, and wonderful colours for a minidoll. Similarly, her hair is fantastic in a pale blue with ornate braiding down the back.

Usually I just take one picture of the back of minidolls to show the printing, but I had to include one just to show Stella's hair.

Completed model

For a small set, the model includes three activities. The first is a pair of stilts for a Friend to perch on.

The next is trapeze bar with rings. There's a knob on one side of the bar to allow the Friends to be flipped as needed.

The final activity is an acrobatic ring on a float. The float is pulled by a striking black horse, which is new to this set. The horse has a very long flowing white mane and has grey dapples. Being that it's a show horse, it's also given a hat and a bow to wear for the fair.

The horse pulls a small float.

The acrobatic ring is a separate apparatus, which has plenty of room for a Friend…..

Or, perhaps other creatures who are feeling acrobatic.

Clearly, they feel they match the colour scheme. Note: sloths are not included in this set.

The acrobatic ring rests on the float, but does not snap into place……

Because as the float moves, the ring will rotate.

Overall thoughts

There's a lot of activity here for a smaller set (223 pieces, $19.99, 19.99€, £17.99). I was a little disappointed that there wasn't an actual magic trick included, but it is a small set, and I was spoiled with the Funfair stalls. I really enjoy the minidolls, though. There are a number of new and or recolours of parts included in this set (most notably the cool yellow circle beams), so for those who aren't interested in the Friends line, they may be interested in this set as a parts pack. A set inventory can be found here.

For the demographic that loves horses (which must be significant, as horses are a major Friends theme), and those who like the colourful face paints, this is a nice little set.

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10 comments on this article

By allthenamesaretaken in Canada, 05 Nov 2021 15:42

They really need to include those colorful sloths. Or bring back Elves for some magical animals. (The colorful pets in the friends cubes just don't fit in as well in a magical forest)

By Slobrojoe in United Kingdom, 05 Nov 2021 15:44

Wow… Stella’s hair is…well…stellar

By guachi in United States, 05 Nov 2021 16:31

Love the design, the play features, and the horse. But this is probably the first Friends set I can think of where the Friends color scheme doesn't work even in the context of being a Friends set.

By Padmewan in United States, 05 Nov 2021 17:12

Thanks for this review! I got my younger child the big roller coaster set for their 9th birthday, and that set has a version of the acrobatic ring -- unlike this set, it's a double-ring, free-standing, and apparently works by pushing it hard -- which is unstable and ends up flopping. I love that this one spins by being pulled -- what a clever solution! (The other problem with the ring is that the Friends' hair, accessories, and especially capes get caught as they spin around. They should take a lesson from the Incredibles' Edna on capes!)

I bet that the sloths wouldn't be as unstable as a Friend. I mean that in a physics not psychological way!

By Padmewan in United States, 05 Nov 2021 17:14

@allthenamesaretaken said:
"They really need to include those colorful sloths. Or bring back Elves for some magical animals. (The colorful pets in the friends cubes just don't fit in as well in a magical forest)"

Elves missed an opportunity to introduce Magical Sloths to the world.

Now I'm tempted to try a MOC paintjob...

By kwickbrick in United States, 05 Nov 2021 17:19

I really like the black & white for this magic theme, mixed with my favorite Friends colors. The cool yellow here isn't my favorite but it does fit in with the other magic sets. I love Stella, from her unique aqua hair piece to the fantastic legging print to her shoes, I appreciate her Elves flair. As for the horse, the white mane & tail just add so much to this glam to this black beauty.
Yes, this set is going on my list.