I’m still making my way through the 2022 Harry Potter sets. This one is #76403-1: The Ministry of Magic. It was released in the US on 20 June 2022 and contains 990 pieces. It retails for $99.99 in the US which works out to $0.101 per piece. I have yet to see this one go on sale, but I picked this one up before Christmas and got some of the deals being offered then (GWPs and double VIP points). We’ll have to see if this one goes on sale later in its shelf life as it is right on the 10 cents per piece mark and it would be great if it were lower. To be fair, you do get ten minifigures in this set which is a bonus.
The box looks pretty standard for a Harry Potter set. Full build on the front with standard logos. The back shows some play details and details of the build.
The set contains seven numbered parts bags, an instruction booklet, and some stickers.
My instructions came pre-folded so that was nice of them to pack them that way (or not). I do appreciate the lighter background on the instructions though. The sticker sheet isn’t too big and I managed to get them all on without wrecking any of them. I’m still not a fan of stickers, but I won’t complain much here.
The box shows that you build two “towers” or whatever they are called from the ministry. Bag one starts one of the towers with one floor. It builds the bottom floor which is part of the flue network. These are the fireplace looking areas where the wizards can transport in and out. The build has a mechanism so that you can rotate it to make it look like one of the minifigures transported into the ministry. I like the color of this build with the dark green, black, and gold. You get some good pieces here.
Bag one comes with two minifigures. Each one can be transformed into another if you rotate the head and put the other hair piece on. One is Mafalda Hopkirk who can become Hermione Granger and the other is Reg Cattermole who can become Ron Weasley. Hopefully you’ve seen the movie or read the book by now and you understand why the mnifigures were done this way.
The last part of this build is a phone booth. Another reference to the movie where Harry and Mr. Weasley use the phone booth as an elevator to enter into the ministry. It’s a pretty simple build and I like the printed window for the door.
Bag two builds the second layer of one of the towers and it nicely stacks on top of the first one. The outside is some windows separated by… I’m not sure what the pieces are called. They look like the playing pieces from the game “Battleship.” Anyways you stack them up and then place then between the windows to cover the gaps. On the inside of this section is a desk with some papers (tiles). This is a movie reference as well. The round plate with modified attachment is a bell I believe.
This build comes with Professor Dolores Umbridge who is holding the horcruxe and then Mary Cattermole who is on trial at the ministry. There is also a trans clear blue cat to represent Professor Umbridge’s patronous.
Bag three completes this tower with another level that looks similar to the previous level. The inside of this level is Professor Umbridge’s office which is pink like her outfit and full of cat decorations.
The minifigure is Albert Rumcon who turns into Harry Potter when you rotate the head and put the different hair piece on.
Bag four starts the second tower. The build is similar only this side has stacks of newspapers (printed tiles with textured bricks underneath). It also has a pipe that connects in the layer above. I’m not exactly sure what this is for.
This bag comes with a gold minifigure who is listed as the Ministry of Magic Statue. I don’t recall this from the movie, but it’s a little statue sitting in what I surmise is a pool of water.
The minifigure in this bag is Corban Yaxley. I recall the character from the movie, but I can’t tell you more about what he does or who he is. The minifigure looks pretty accurate compared to the movie character so no complaints there.
Bag five builds the second layer of this side of the tower. At this point, the build got repetitive and I hoped for something different. I understand why it was built this way as they want to reflect the scene in the movie, but having different tiles on the windows was about all that was different here. The inside is a bunch of… I’m not sure if this is the hall of memories that can be tipped over or what. The shelf rotates so they tip over like in the movie.
This bag comes with a Dementor minifigure.
Bag six tops off the second tower with a repeat of all the other sections. This one has an office. The minifigure in this bag is Arthur Weasley so maybe it’s his office? I’m not quite sure, but we do know he’s fascinated by muggles so the various muggle items in the office might mean it’s his space.
The last bag is number seven. It builds a connector between the two towers, tops off each tower, and adds some ministry logos. There’s also a small desk on top of this area which I don’t recall being there, but okay. There’s some trans clear green coming out of the top of each tower which is maybe from the flue network.
You build some interdepartmental mail which in the movie is letters that fly around. In brick version it’s LEGO triangles attached to clear antenna pieces held stationary by clear small radar dishes.
The minifigure in this bag is Pius Thicknesse. I failed my Harry Potter trivia quiz as I don’t know who he is or what he does in the movie.
10 minifigures in this set. I didn’t add the statue to the minifigure picture. If you’re a Harry Potter fan and collect the minifigures, you get some new ones in this set that haven’t been made before.
Here’s the final build and the insides of each side of the towers. Overall the build gets a bit repetitive, but you get some great pieces in good colors (especially if you like the dark green. There are a decent amount of gold pieces too. This set has a lot of random sections of the movie, but does not go into depth into one room or another. It would be a good set to start you on a MOC if you wanted to build out the ministry.
In terms of price, this one is on the border on being pricy. I definitely recommend waiting for a deal or maybe a sale near the end of it’s shelf life.
Overall, if you’re a Potter fan, you need to get this one to build up your minifigure collection and you’ll be pleased to build something outside of Hogwarts for once. If you’re not a Potter fan, this build might not thrill you with its repetitive sections. However you do get some good pieces for MOCs so no complaints there. What are your thoughts?
Happy building!
