Review: LEGO 11021 Classic 90 Years of Play

August 10, 2022 | 5

It’s the 10th of August, which is a very special date if you’re a Danish multinational toy brand. LEGO is celebrating their birthday today, and it’s an extra special one as The LEGO Group is turning 90 years old!

11021 90 Years of Play is a commemorative LEGO Classic set that celebrates 90 Years of Play, released earlier this year in May. As a LEGO Classic set, it strips things back and keeps it all about the brick.

Free play and creativity is the name of the game when it comes to the LEGO Classic theme, but instructions are included to build 15 mini models of some of LEGO’s most iconic sets from a myriad of themes.

Let’s check out what you can build, and all the references contained within!

Oh, and because it’s the 90th anniversary, we have a special 90th Birthday episode on the Extra Pieces Podcast! Find us on Spotify, Apple Podcasts or anywhere else you get your podcasts from!

Special thanks to LEGO for sending this set for this review!

11021 90 Years of Play Set Details

Name: 90 Years of Play
Set Number: 11021
Pieces: 1100
Price: AU$79.99 | US$49.99 | £44.99 – Buy from LEGO.com [AUS] [USA] [UK]
Exclusive to: Big W (Australia) / Walmart (USA) / LEGO Stores
Theme: Classic
LEGO Designers: George Gillatt (@georgegilliatt)
Release Date: 1 May 2022

The back of the box features a snapshot of the mini builds that you can build with the 90 Years of Play set. Of course, you don’t HAVE to build them, but they’re really fun, almost Advent Calendar-esque builds charting some extremely pivotal LEGO sets and themes.

Here’s a look at the instructions booklets – I’m glad they’re both colourful and weren’t inflicted with the sterile white designs that we see in newer sets.

Now let’s jump into the mini-builds! As LEGO Classic sets are simple, and suitable for younger kids, I employed my 5-year old daughter to help put the builds together, as well as build a few MOCs with the leftover parts.

The Wooden Duck

We start with one of the most iconic LEGO creations, one that’s made out of wood, not plastic with the Wooden Duck! This is a nod to LEGO’s early history, when Danish carpenter Ole Kirk Christiansen began making wooden toys in his Billund workshop.

The mini LEGO duck is adorable, with a massive bill, and makes great use of the printed eye tiles. It also has wheels!

The original Wooden Duck is a priceless heirloom these days, but if you ever find yourself in The LEGO House in Billund, you can pick up one of these LEGO House exclusives, 40501 The Wooden Duck for a full-sized LEGO version!

Town Plan

The next model looks rather basic and is a nod to the Town Plan from the 1950s! There is a small white house with a red roof (and chimney!) as well as a blue and yellow truck. Very quaint, and I like how they’ve captured the simplicity of the Town Plan-era builds.

113 Motorised Train Set

Up next is a nod to 113 Motorised Train Set from 1966! This was the year that LEGO introduced Trains into the portfolio, and it’s remarkable to see how far trains have come since then.

The red train wheels contrast nicely with the blue engine and carriage, and the colour scheme also mimics the original.

375 Castle

Up next we have one of the most iconic and historical LEGO sets, 375 Castle, aka the Yellow Castle! Many elements such as the three towers, red drawbridge, yellow archway and even red windows on the middle tower are captured here.

I happen to have a 375 built and on display (check out how it compares against the newly release 10305 Lion Knights’ Castle), so here’s a shot of them side by side.

A little detail I like is the use of the yellow square crates to simulate the Yellow Castle’s embattlements.

928 Galaxy Explorer

Next up, we have another icon that needs to further introduction – a mini version of 928 Galaxy Explorer. The silhouette of the Galaxy Explorer is captured remarkably well, and comes complete with the twin trans-yellow cockpits, as well as massive thrusters on the wing and back.

928/497 Galaxy Explorer was recently re-released for the 90th Anniversary, with a very slick update to make it an incredible homage to one of LEGO’s most important spaceships.

Here it is side by side with the original.

3601 Elton Elephant

Next we have an ode to LEGO Fabuland with 3601 Elton Elephant. This rendition of Elton is nothing short of lovely and quaint, and LEGO have nailed the Fabulander’s expression, with red arms and yellow pants. The inclusion of the umbrella, table and yellow mug are perfect touches.

6285 Black Seas Barracuda

Pirates has a very special place in my heart, as the theme was introduced in my birth-year, so I naturally have a close affinity to the theme, and we have the first proper pirate ship, 6285 Black Seas Barracuda, rendered in a very blocky format.

The red and white sails, brown hull, cannon gunports, and yellow and black are immediately recognisable, plus I like the use of the skeleton head to represent the Jolly Roge flag at the back.

Just needs a tiny monkey for it to be perfect.

5978 Sphinx Secret Surprise

It’s time for Adventurers, and the rise of Johnny Thunder! The Sphinx from 5978 Sphinx Secret Surprise is captured brilliantly, with all the right pops of colour and interestingly, LEGO have also chucked in a printed hieroglyph pillar!

I don’t typically expect to find cool printed elements in Classic sets, so this was an especially pleasant surprise. This is my favourite model of the lot.

5827 Royal Coach

Belville was one of LEGO’s big forays into cracking the girls toy market, and came with doll-like figures, and colour palettes that would make Barbie blush.

5827 Royal Coach is immortalised in this set, with one small tweak, instead of a prince, we have a frog sitting in the carriage!

8534 Tahu

Bionicle fans are sorely disappointed that LEGO went with Castle and Classic Space, instead of their beloved CCBS system, but they do win a consolation prize, which is stupidly adorable version of Tahu, the Toa Mata of fire.

He carries a big flaming sword, has an adorable 😮 expression, and some cute hands as well.

7237 Police Station

Where would LEGO be without LEGO City, and most of all, Police Stations? This Police Station features 7237 Police Station from the year 2000, which has a helicopter and a particularly tall police station.

The inclusion of the printed POLICE tile and the yellow/black hazard lines tile is also a welcome bonus.

8043 Motorized Excavator

I’m not a massive Technic person, so I’m unsure of the significance of 8043 Motorised Excavator, but it’s expected that Technic would have a presence here. The Excavator design is pretty good, and I love that you can play around with the scoop, and it’s not just purely a rigid model.

The build is very blocky is just okay in my books, it loses points for aesthetics, but gains them for playability.

70503 The Golden Dragon

Ninjago has been one of LEGO’s major successes in the 2000s, blending engaging episodic storylines, with a vibrant cast of Ninjas and a rich, well-crafted world of Ninjago. It’s no secret that it’s been one of LEGO’s longest running uninterrupted core themes, so it makes perfect sense for the 70503 The Golden Dragon to make the cut.

The dragon looks very funny, with slightly mischievous eyes, a very toothy grin, a very blocky body and katanas for its wings, which I appreciate.

It looks exactly like what a child would build if you asked them to build a dragon out of random bricks.

41340 Friendship House

Speaking of modern LEGO successes, we obviously have to have LEGO Friends in that conversation. With the introduction of Heartlake City, the pastel aesthetics and a vibrant, utopian metropolis, LEGO Friends and the new Minidolls they introduced was the exact thing LEGO needed to break in and establish a market-leading position in the girls toy market.

Friendship House is a relatively recent set, but the mini rendition is done fantastically.

41906 Pineapple Pencil Holder

And last but not least, we have LEGO’s newest pride and joy, LEGO Dots, an arts & crafty design-first theme that launched in 2020.

The Pineapple Pencil Holder was from the very first wave, and I just love how happy this mini version looks. The use of the prickly bush for its leaves is also an inspired choice.

Here it is next to the original Pineapple Pencil Holder. It’s like a little baby pineapple!

So here’s the completed lineup of 15 sets that celebrate LEGO’s homegrown themes. No licensed themes are present here, which makes sense, but it would’ve been nice to see some Star Wars, Super Heroes or even Disney given how important they are to LEGO’s current portfolio.

Monkie Kid would’ve also been a fun addition.

Of course, it being a 1,100 piece LEGO Classic set, there are a ton of bricks leftover even after you build the 15 models, and these creations were made by my daughter.

I really like her lighthouse, and snowblower that she created all by herself. In an age where MOST of LEGO sets come with instructions, and are meant to create a very specific model, it cannot be overstated just how important it is to develop the creativity of younger children by just handing them a massive selection of bricks.

My daughter is a way better creative MOCer than me, and really enjoys free-styling, so it wasn’t long before we cannibalised some of the builds (I kept my favourites) for her to add to her random parts container.

What I liked:

• Mini Models are the perfect blend of nostalgia and simple builds
• A great colour palette and plenty of parts to encourage free building
• Great packaging design that makes it quite collectable

What I didn’t like: 

• Limited retail distribution
• Doesn’t come with a commemorative 90th anniversary printed tile
• One minifigure would be nice, although Classic sets usually don’t come with one

FINAL THOUGHTS:

90th Anniversary nostalgia aside, I really enjoyed sharing this experience with my daughter, and this was a really nice reminder that I should pick up or Classic sets once in a while to encourage her to be as creative as possible, unencumbered by instruction manuals.

This is a big box of bricks as its core, and pretty good value to boot.

11021 90 Years of Play caters to parents who just want 1000+ LEGO pieces, but because of the 90th Anniversary branding, is especially targeted at AFOLs who want to introduce and bond with their kids through LEGO.

It was nice explaining what some of these sets were, and to show the older versions to my daughter (who regards LEGO Friends as peak LEGO) and share some of my childhood with her.

Or it could also appeal to AFOLs who want a stylish, simple way to commemorate and celebrate LEGO’s 90th anniversary without breaking the bank.

I do wish we got a commemorate 90th Anniversary or 90 Years of Play printed tile included, as it would’ve improved the total package.

That said, I really enjoyed this set, and all the nostalgia oozing from a 1000+ piece set of basic elements, and will absolutely pick up another to keep as a memento of LEGO’s 90th Anniversary.

Happy Birthday, LEGO!

Rating and score: 3/5 ★★★✰✰

Build [4] – Free building is so much fun, but so is building mini versions of iconic sets
Real Value [4] – Feels like good value, especially when you compare it with closely priced Classic sets
Innovation [2] – Not much to innovate here, but I like the message and tie-in with the 90th anniversary
Coolness [3] – This is extra cool to me because of the nostalgia factor
Keepability [3] – Not a set you’d display forever, as it’s meant to be played with, but should be a fun keepsake for LEGO’s 90th anniversary

Thanks so much for reading this review!

11021 90 Years of Play is available from LEGO.com or your local LEGO Store. In Australia, it’s a Big W exclusive and in America, I believe it’s a Walmart exclusive set

What do you think of commemorative sets like 11021 90 Years of Play? Would you like to see more like this?

For other 90th Anniversary LEGO set reviews, and the latest headlines, be sure to check out these posts below:

• Review: LEGO 10497 Galaxy Explorer (2022)
• Review: LEGO 10305 Lion Knights’ Castle
• Comparing 10305 Lion Knights’ Castle to other historic LEGO Castles
• LEGO 76405 Hogwarts Express Collectors’ Edition officially revealed!
• Here’s all the 2022 LEGO Advent Calendars, which have gotten a lot more expensive

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