Review: Manchester United Go Brick Me #40541

Set Name: Manchester United Go Brick Me
Set Number: 40541
Pieces: 530
MSRP: $19.99/CA$24.99/AU$29.99/£17.99

Why I Bought this Set

I am a massive Manchester United fan, so getting this set was inevitable; it was added to my LEGO shopping cart as soon as I saw it. The Brick Headz product line isn’t something I want to collect, but I couldn’t have omitted this from my collection. The set will be an addition to my desk collection.

The Build

I didn’t know I would blog about LEGO when I built this set. Therefore, I don’t have pictures detailing the build. Instead, I can show you a couple of pictures from the extensive 56-page booklet that helps explain why this set has so many pieces for such a small figure.

The set comprises of four bags. The first is 90% of the Brick Head, and you select the skin tone for the head from bag one. The purpose of these sets is to make the LEGO character look like you, so I chose the pale skin tone to match my pasty-white Scottish complexion.

Bags two and three consist of the pieces needed for your desired hairstyle. Finally, bag four has the parts needed to build a mini goal and a stand for your customized Brick Head.

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The build, as you would expect, is straightforward. The most challenging element is finding the correct pieces! The end product is highly effective, and I am delighted to have a mini LEGO me in a Manchester United kit. The set has a large sticker sheet, so you can have any number you want on your jersey. I selected my favorite number, 7.

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Set Review

This set equally balances the good and the bad. First, as a Manchester United fan, I’m delighted with the end product (Brick Head only). It’s an excellent supplemental set to the soon-to-be retiring Old Trafford. However, the goal is a reasonably pointless addition. It’s too small for the Brick Head to stand in, and there’s no method, without modification, to put the Brick Head on the goal piece to combine the elements into a single display piece.

A further gripe I have is all the extra pieces (see picture). Granted, I will eventually incorporate these into my LEGO city. However, any casual builder that is more of a Manchester United fan than a LEGO builder will be left with more unused pieces than are in the actual build. That makes the set poor value for money and incredibly wasteful.

For the price point, you’re basically paying a premium for the printed kit piece.

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Ratings

Build: 3/5
This isn’t a very exciting set to build. There is enough delight in seeing Manchester United in LEGO form to make fans of the club excited. There is nothing technical in this set and no features that made me go… ooo.

Display: 4/5
I took a point off because the goalpost is awkward. It sits behind the Brick Head, where it is lost, and it takes up more space than the head itself. The Brick Head, though, is a delight to see. Having Manchester United and LEGO combined makes me giddy.

Price: 2/5
The price isn’t bad if you are a LEGO builder and can use all the excess parts. They are of decent colors that are useful for buildings and landscaping. However, if you buy this set to have a Manchester United decoration alone, there is a lot of money left in the bag.

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Final Thoughts

If you are a Manchester United fan, having this set is a no-brainer. A customized player is something no fan could resist. LEGO, of course, knows this and created this set accordingly. If you are not a Manchester United fan, not worth it. If you can live without a printed jersey, you could buy the required pieces for far less using the pick-a-brick shop.