This little set is an excellent way to grab Bilbo, Gollum, and The One Ring, along with a few, nice set pieces to backdrop what's probably the most famous scene in the whole Hobbit trilogy.

The primary attraction of this set is clearly the minifigs, but Gollum's little boat and the stone formation help to complete the vignette. There's an odd "playability" feature that swings the ring forward on a slab of stone--I'm not sure what's going on there, but it doesn't do any harm to the set. The tendency for Lego to include spares for the smaller parts also comes in extremely handy for this set--you get plenty of extra bones to decorate Gollum's boat, and a spare Sting. You also get a spare Ring, leading to the rather awkward situation of having two One Rings to Rule Them All...

Pros

• An excellent way to grab some main characters and a Ring
• Duplicate parts work to advantage
• The One Ring is done in proper chrome gold and looks very nice

Cons

• Frodo is not going to be happy about that second Ring...

Price-per-part is not bad, especially considering this is a licensed theme. As with #9469, I'm pleased that, as a casual fan, there was an easy way to grab some main characters without having to spend a lot for a more expensive set. That said, if you're more serious about LotR/Hobbit, #79003 (Bag End) is supposed to be a fantastic set.

This set was, for me, a surprisingly good set. When I first saw it, I was not too impressed with just a chunk of rock and a couple of minifigs. But the longer I have it, the more I like it. It's quite nice.

Box/Instructions

The box is small, not much room for the pieces to move around in. On the back are pictures showing all of the functions of it. The instructions are in a very pleasing format, especially with the background. They were easy to follow and there were no mistakes that I saw. At the end are pictures of the set and what it can do.

Parts

There are 105 pieces. With two of them being minifigs it's decent price at $10. It comes with two rings, instead of three like the previous lotr sets. It has four dark brown pieces for Gollum's boat. Mainly, this set is chuck full of gray slopes. Mostly 1x2x3 dark gray slopes with several gray cheese slopes. Also a scattering of tan pieces and two black hinges, and a few Technic pieces for the function. There are 8 extra pieces.

Minifigures

The minifigures are superb. Bilbo has double sided printing on both his torso and his head, the two expressions being scared and a kind of worried look. His torso is new, and he has a sword. Gollum is the same as in other sets but with a more sinister expression. He has been given a fish to hold. Both are unique to this set.

The build

The build was fairly straightforward. Gollum's boat is just a quick click together and the rock is just some slope stacking. It only took me about 10 minutes. The only interesting part is the Technic function it has, which allows the ring to be hidden and revealed, and the hinges, which make it so the rocks hiding the ring can be moved aside and positioned differently.

The completed model

While Gollum's boat is a bit of a disappointment, the rock itself makes up for it. It is very nicely textured and the hinges and the ring function are a nice addition which give it a amount of playability. It looks very good on display, especially as a desk ornament.

Summary

This set is better than it looks on the box. It depicts the riddle scene of The Hobbit well with the natural looking rock and the bones on Gollum's boat. With two minifigs $10 is a good price. However, it is quite small and there is not a lot of piece diversity. If you have $10 on hand, buy it, but there are better sets to save up for.

Set #79000 Riddles for the Ring: The Hobbit An Unexpected Journey has been in theatres for a few weeks now and it seems that there are many who have enjoyed the picture. Have they enjoyed it enough to also enjoy the LEGO Hobbit sets? And is this set one worth picking up? Read on to find out...

Riddles for the Ring costs 12.99$, it features two Mini-Figures and two main Elements/Models at a low price, this is an iconic scene in the film, a return of a favorite character for some and the first moment where Tolkien knew he was going to take us on a truly epic adventure and journey. Because it introduces us for the first time to 'The Ring'. What does this set do to recapture this moment?

Well first of all you get the pieces to build a large rocky set piece, the same set piece seen in the film. Where Bilbo and Gollum dance around one nervously, the other eagerly in hopes of winning the game of riddles. This model uses most of the pieces and, quite honestly doesn't do much besides representing a set piece. Two of the sections are built on small hinges, so they can close or open at an angle for display. Another piece of the model includes, as a play feature, a moveable holding spot for the ring. The design is meant to allow you, while playing with the set, to twist a knob and 'reveal' the Ring to Bilbo for when he finds it. Not very accurate to what happened on screen, but it is meant to add play to an otherwise dull little rock model.

Gollum's little boat is much more interesting looking as far as models go, even if it doesn't use too many pieces and doesn't offer much in the way of play, it's still a nice little model. Because it does have a few unique pieces, for one thing you get two of the Skulkin arms from LEGO Ninjago and a bone piece, the small kind given to LEGO City dogs, in the set you also get an extra bone and Skulkin arm, pieces that might prove useful for MOCing and such.

The Mini-Figures are greatly detailed, Bilbo Baggins isn't unique to this set, he's seen in other Hobbit sets. This is the more common Mini-Figure, with a double-sided torso print in rich red tones for his jacket. On the Mini-Figure the jacket is wide open, revealing a green undershirt and nekerchief, as we all know however in the actual film this version of Bilbo should have had his buttons done up. He's a shorty, with the shorter Mini-Fig legs in light tan color, he also has a double-sided head, with a frightened expression and a more neutral one. The hairpiece, is probably not entirely new, as other Hobbits may have used it before, this color is a light reddish tone. Almost Ron Weasely orange really, from the original yellow skinned Ron Mini-Figure in the older Harry Potter sets. Bilbo also has the One Ring and Sting, which are both great pieces and this is the cheapest set so far out of all the LotR/Hobbit Themed sets to include both accessories, in fact you get two of each. (I gave my doubles to Frodo from the Frodo with Cooking Corner Polybag.)

Gollum is slightly different from this set as he appeared in the Shelob Attacks set from LotR, mostly with the fine details printed on his face and head, the scraggily bits of hair, he only has seven teeth though we do know he's meant to have only nine left. Gollum is a unique Mini-Figure in that he is a singular sculpted piece, with only the arms that move, honestly this is an interesting looking Mini-Figure design even if the piece can only be used as Gollum/Smeagol and nobody else. You can also use the stud on his back to attach things to him, and, despite not having one in the scene, he's carrying a fish. (So juicy sweet.)

Overall, this isn't a bad little set, the parts are pretty much good for MOCing if you'd like, the Mini-Figures unfortuantely aren't that unique, while Gollum in this set looks a bit nicer I can't really compare him as I have yet to pick up Shelob Attacks. The fact that you get two Stings and two Rings in this set is a nice bonus, that being said I think it's safe to skip this one unless you really want this version of Gollum or, like me, want to complete to 100% the entire LotR/Hobbit theme of LEGO.