LEGO River Steamboat: A Stunning Nod to Classic Americana

The new LEGO River Steamboat set is a stunning addition to the LEGO Ideas line, offering both a beautiful final product and an engaging building experience. The quality of a LEGO set is often measured by its build process as well as its end result, and the River Steamboat exemplifies this perfectly. The construction flows seamlessly from one step to the next, with a logical and organic progression that keeps builders engaged. The ship's layered design, where each floor is easily removable, allows for full access and visibility of the intricate inner details, making it a joy to explore and display.

LEGO has long catered to its adult audience with its modular buildings, and the River Steamboat extends this concept to a modular boat. The attention to detail, both in the unique and mundane aspects, creates a cohesive and impressive whole. This set, inspired by the historic paddle boats of the 1800s Mississippi River, captures the essence of these vessels that transitioned from industrial transport to pleasure boats, complete with amenities and entertainment. My wife and I experienced this firsthand on our honeymoon in New Orleans, enjoying a riverboat cruise filled with dining, dancing, and jazz music.

LEGO Ideas River Steamboat

Priced at $329.99 and available exclusively at the LEGO Store, the River Steamboat is part of the LEGO Ideas line. This line allows LEGO fans to submit original ideas and proof-of-concepts, which are then voted on by the community. Successful ideas, like the River Steamboat, become official sets, with the original designer receiving a share of the profits. Other successful LEGO Ideas sets include The Nightmare Before Christmas, Jaws, and Dungeons & Dragons: Red Dragon's Tale.

We Build LEGO Ideas River Steamboat

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The LEGO River Steamboat set, with its 4,090 pieces, is a tribute to the historic paddle boats. It features a jazz lounge and dining room, as well as practical areas like a boiler engine room connected to the paddle wheel. Pushing the boat activates the wheel, adding a dynamic element to the set. The pilothouse includes a steering wheel that, when turned, moves the rudder at the bottom of the boat. Additional features include a kitchen, sleeping area for the crew, and an anchor on a chain that rolls up on a spool. Another spool of riggings raises and lowers the boarding stages on the ship's bow.

The build is divided into 32 separate bags, starting with the base of the ship, which includes the boiler room and a miniature nautical museum. This section showcases a piston engine, an aeolipile (steam turbine), and a Watt steam engine, alongside a small kitchen with a refrigerator, stove, and basin sink. The minimalism and clever repurposing of LEGO pieces, such as using a hot dog bun from a Fairgrounds build as an engine reinforcement, are particularly impressive.

The main deck houses the dining room and jazz lounge. The lounge, positioned above the stern, is equipped with tiny LEGO accessories for drums, saxophone, microphone, and an upright bass. The dining room is elegantly designed with tablecloth elements and attractive chairs, complemented by light fixtures and posters advertising on-board entertainment, including a stylized depiction of the A-Frame Cabin, another LEGO Ideas set.

The dining room is built separately and then 'dropped' into the larger build, creating a deck space where minifigures can enjoy the view. However, the set does not include minifigures, which might have added more life and playfulness. This choice suggests that LEGO intended the set more for display than for play.

The crew deck, one floor up, includes beds and a bathroom with a toilet, sink, and shower stall. Above this is the pilothouse, featuring a steering wheel that turns the rudder through a rod threaded through all four levels of the steamboat. This engineering feat showcases the meticulous planning and effort that went into the set's design.

The set is filled with delightful details, such as white billowy flags repurposed from croissant accessories, neat white railings, and patterned tiles in the lounge areas that mimic rugs. Despite its size, the set feels like it contains 3,500 pieces rather than 4,090, but the intricate details and well-appointed rooms justify the extra pieces.

As William Strunk notes in The Elements of Style, "Vigorous writing is concise. A sentence should contain no unnecessary words, a paragraph no unnecessary sentences, for the same reason that a drawing should have no unnecessary lines and a machine no unnecessary parts." The River Steamboat embodies this principle; every brick serves a purpose, every decorative element is pleasing and functional, and each room contributes to the overall aesthetic and functionality of the ship. This set is a must-see for LEGO enthusiasts.

The LEGO River Steamboat, Set #21356, retails for $329.99 and is composed of 4,090 pieces. It is available exclusively at the LEGO Store.

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