Review: 41187 Rosalyn's Healing Hideout
Posted by MeganL,
Rosalyn's Healing Hideout is the mid sized set in the second half Elves wave this year. The Elves theme has had another strong year with the introduction of the Goblins and Emily's younger sister, Sophie. How does the Healing Hideout stack up? Read on to find out……
The front of the box shows the set from the front, with Rosalyn on the top level of the hideout with her dragon, Sapphire swooping in and Naida in front of the building. The back of the box shows a series of insets showing features of the set, including the moving functions.
Inside the box there are four numbered bags, two instruction books (one small and one larger), a dragon head and a small sheet of stickers. There were also three dragon wings, the first time I've seen an extra dragon wing in a set since the water dragon.
The minidolls
Rosalyn Nightshade is new to this set, and as such comes in a new smart outfit. Her top is aqua with a dark blue detailing on the sides. The metallic printing on the aqua portion is quite subtle and she has a significant collar in striking colours, and wears an amulet around her neck that looks like a healing potion. Unfortunately the printing on the torso does not extend to the back but is printed in a different colour, silver. The lack of back printing is moot as Rosalyn wears a short cloak that would cover any printing that would be there. The cloak is shorter than what we've seen in the past - it looks like the same size as what's been used as a cowl for minifigs and mindolls in the past. I'm not sure of the reason for the shorter cloak but I don't think it looks as nice as the longer one. The cloak is navy blue on the outside and is lined with fuschsia. Rosalyn has a double layered jagged hem skirt in aqua and blue that's atop dark blue boots with Elven printing on the front. She has printing on their forehead that looks quite striking and her hair is a very pleasing blue - it matches her boots (or maybe her boots match her hair?) that is pulled up into a messy bun. Her accessory include a healing potion and a water power talisman.
Naida has the same outfit as other third year Elves sets. The printing on her forehead and upper cheek looks quite attractive and she has the same aqua hair as other sets from this wave. She's wearing blue tank top with some aqua detailing as well as silver necklace and a medallion hung around her neck. She pairs that with a double sarong in a medium and dark blue and for shoes has what appears to be simple sandals with blue soles and ornate silver detailing on top. The goblin in this set in Rimlin, who is a bright yellow with purple clothing and hair. Rimlin also has a belt with the evil eye belt buckle we've seen in other goblins, and he also has what looks to be some tools and a spare potion tucked in his belt. His expression looks more mischievous than menacing.
Finally we have Lula, the baby dragon. As with all of the other baby dragon, Lula is beyond adorable with her aqua colouring with magenta accents.
The completed build
There are a couple auxiliary builds with the set - the first two being trolleys that Rimlin and Naida use to bring ingredients to the hideaway, however it appears their recipes will yield quite different results.
The other build was one that I was quite pleased to see - another carnivore plant! I think these are brilliant and I was delighted to see another one in this set. The mechanism that allows the plant to snap closed is elegant and simple with the use of some sloped bricks. There's even a chocolate chip cookie there as bait for an unsuspecting creature.
We get another dragon in this set with Sapphire. It's not clear what force Sapphire represents but I wouldn’t be surprised if it's water, considering her blue colour and that Rosalyn uses the water magic features. Her colour is quite striking with the use of aqua for her undercarriage with some magenta accents for her horns and tail. Her wings are a very attractive blend of the dark earth blue fading to a pale magenta. Similar to Merina the water dragon, her wings are attached so that they can flip forward as well as be raised up and down. Sapphire also has some extra smaller wings in aqua, which is unique among the smaller dragons. She also has the ability to carry two passengers and perhaps a goblin or some cargo on the back.
The final part of the build is the titular hideaway. It's laid out in two floors, and is set in what looks to be a large tree trunk with the walls being provided in a new piece in earth blue. Two dragon tail pieces frame the doorway.
Inside the doorway there's a welcome mat, a fireplace with hearth and some bottles on top of it, and the cute bear Lil Blue. A snack of some cherries is found next to Lil Blu. The recipe for the healing potion and a picture of Rosalyn with Sapphire are found on the wall. Just outside the hideaway there's a large cauldron boiling away with the ingredients of a new batch of healing potion, with a bottle ready nearby.
A nearby moss covered "rock" is revealed to be more than just that - it's also a hiding place, in this case for a tiara. Interesting that the treasure is stored outside instead of inside the dwelling.
On the second floor there's a lookout area complete with a bed, a table with some bottles and a spyglass to watch for anyone advancing on the hideaway.
Also found on this level are two large branches of purple and pink foliage. To start, the foliage is evenly split to either side of the hideaway.
However, pull on the level provided between the two floors, and the foliage comes together to obscure the top floor from view.
The foliage hiding concept reminded me of 41075 The Elves' Treetop Hideaway, but I think 41075 did a better job of concealing the building behind it. If this is truly a hideaway I think the foliage should be fuller and do a better job of shrouding the top floor of the hideout.
New and rare parts
I was surprised that there weren't more new parts in this set. I believe all of these are existing elements but in new colours.
- Smaller dragon wings in aqua
- Racers guard 2.5x4 in aqua
- Brick with Bow 1x4 in aqua
- 2x2 tiles in aqua
- Plate with half bow inverted 1x2x2/3 in red
- Bright reddish violet tooth (dragon's horns)
- Bright reddish violet limb
- 1x2 flat tile in dark azur
- Plate 1x2 with horizontal snap in dark azur
- 1/2 circle plate 2x6 in dark green
- Wall 2x2x5 quarter circle with cutout in earth blue
- 4x4 tile with bow in earth blue
- Handlebar in warm gold
- 1x1 round tile for healing potion stopper
You can view all the parts in the set's nventory and if you click on the 'Element in parts' column heading it'll sort the table to show the rare ones at the top.
Overall thoughts
The set is well designed and has lots of detail that we have come to expect from the Elves line. Even though the set includes a dragon, it still feels somewhat unsubstantial to me for the price (460 pieces, $49.99, €49.99, £39.99). The dragon is very similar to previous dragon builds, but comes in a great new colour. Having fewer stickers in this set is a plus, and one could argue that stickers aren't really needed for this set except for the need to maintain consistency in decorating Sapphire's feet.
I would like to see more foliage on the branches that rotate around the front of the building to justify the "hideout" description. As it is, I don't think the foliage conceals much at all. The carnivorous plants are a soft spot of mine. I love seeing one included here and think it's a great example how the Elves team can provide moving functions using very simple designs. Still, something about this set made me feel like I wanted something more.
Your comments about white balance in the pictures have been duly noted so I've tried to rectify that in these pictures. Many thanks to Huw for excellent help and guidance!
Now that the Snow Resort sets have been released in the US, look for reviews of some of these in the next few weeks, as well as a review of the new Friends accessory pack. Let me know what else you'd like to see in the comments.
41 likes
11 comments on this article
I am not a minidoll fan but these type of sets are highly detailed, I can picture this building in a medieval fantasy MOC further more, it seems Lego is giving more attention to detail to these sets rather than their main City "buildings" line.
My daughter fell in love with this set when I showed it her in June, on the Internet, I also love it but I think it should be a tenner cheaper than what it is,
I've actually seen it on display at the lego land descovery centre in Manchester, it's quite small, but stunning in detail,
Thanks for the review - I think I like this set more now, although it's just lacking in that WOW factor for me. Will probably pick it up at some point if I can find a good sale.
Whoever took the pictures for this review - they are all out of focus, and the lighting is too dim.
MORE DRAGONS!
Some daddy made a promise to get all sets with dragons in them. Glad this one doesn't have anything notably bad about it.
It's a gorgeous set, and I love there's another dragon (that cute little baby dragon is adorable), I just wish the building interiors were a little better. I find they can be quite hit and miss. A lot of these sets don't have a ceiling, they just have the front of a ceiling, a panel or two. Like, okay, if this is a hospice, then shouldn't the bed on the second floor be indoors? Where someone could recover from injury someplace warm where they won't get rained on? That's like my one gripe, to be fair.
I really like the color scheme of this set.
Nice review! I love the dark blue used here. The dragons head looks weirdly big...maybe it's not fully grown?
@lentil - the photos do have a narrow depth of field so there are elements that are a little blurry and perhaps they could be a tad brighter, but the details are clear enough to me and they give a good sense of how the set ends up, so they're perfectly good as far as I'm concerned.
Entertaining review, thank you! I don't collect the Elves sets but there is something about them that always grabs my attention so I appreciate getting to know these sets more in the reviews. I think it's just the overall aesthetic. The color choice is so bold and cool, always seeing pieces in new colors. Sets always look very attractive.
+1 for more Elves reviews (enjoyed reading this as a teaser for building the set sometime later in the fall)
Since The Dragon Sanctuary (41178) is basically impossible to get now, I'm planning on getting this instead and telling my daughter that Sapphire is the wind dragon.