Reviewed by Chris McGee
(SAFOLs Member, jhbLUG Member)
I know what you are thinking… Why is he not doing a review on the bigger brother to this set, Creator Expert 10258?
Well the answer is quite simple really:
a) Set 40220 was released first,
b) I don’t own its bigger brother (yet).
This miniaturized London Bus set was initially released in 2016 as a “free-with-purchase” gift from the LEGO® Shop, as an appetizer for its bigger brother which would be later released in 2017. From a South African stand point, we received the Creator Expert set recently in store in January 2018.
The build is simple with mostly standard bricks and plates stacked together (piece count sits at 118), but it is a well-structured and good looking design. The finished build is just over 12 studs in length and 4 studs wide, and is covered to show as few studs as possible (the only studs left open are those on the headlights and brake lights). This helps hide the slightly blocky design on the sides of the bus towards the front and back. The roof is nicely done with the rounding on the front and rear, although I wish LEGO® had a rounded slope to replace the “cheese” slope 2×1 piece as this would just finish the model off better. But in the absence of such a piece on this scale, I appreciate and acknowledge just how good this looks compared to the authentic design, still allowing for the top level front and back window.
Overall the look and style of the finished product is incredibly eye-catching. As a model of the old school London Bus (there are newer models going around London now but there are still the older ones as well), the set really does sell itself. From a distance, the cheese slope becomes one with the roof and side sloping pieces and gives a great display piece. And with the size, the display piece can be put almost anywhere to be admired.
Play-ability is also a key factor, given that this is made as a toy, and although it’s only feature is the rotating wheels for play, they work well and my 7 year old son has already adopted it alongside other smaller Creator set cars and his cast-iron cars.
In a number of sets I have problems with stickers and sadly those are not prints being seen on the build. In saying this, I placed the stickers on last to see the build without the added detail and I was shocked at how bland it looked in comparison to the model on the box. Naturally, the application of the stickers followed quickly thereafter.
From a price perspective, it is a bit pricey and appears to only be available at Hamleys stores in South Africa. This makes it difficult to get to a recommended retail price. However given that it was previously a LEGO Store exclusive, retired and now available in a country with no official LEGO Store, we are actually quite lucky to be able to get it on shelves at all, even if it is over a year later.
So would I recommend this set? Definitely. The display factor alone makes it worth it, and with the added collect-ability of the set, it may be a must have to some. The only problem is that, like me, you may start contemplating getting its bigger brother as a complementing display.
