Review: LEGO 40522 Valentine Lovebirds

LEGO have unveiled their Seasonal Valentine’s Day 2022 set – an adorable pair of brick-built lovebirds with 40522 Valentine’s Lovebirds, and I am happy to share an early review!

40522 Valentine’s Lovebirds is available now from LEGO.com and LEGO stores, and is a really fun couples set that you can look forward to building with your partner, or crush this Valentine’s Day.

Read on to see more of the LEGO Valentine Lovebirds!

Special thanks to The LEGO Group for sending this set for early reviews.

40522 Valentine Lovebirds Set Details

Name: Valentine Lovebirds
Set Number: 40522
Pieces: 298
Price: $12.99 [US] | £ 11.99 GBP [UK] | AU$ 19.99 [AUS]
Exclusive to: LEGO.com / LEGO Stores
Theme: Seasonal
Release Date: 1 January 2022
Designer: TBD
Buy from LEGO.com [USA] [AUS] [UK]

If you’re looking for fun LEGO-based activities that you can indulge in with your partner, crush or family member – Valentine Lovebirds is the perfect solution.

It’s fairly inexpensive, at only US$12.99 / AU$19.99 and at 298 pieces, you’re getting a pretty decent build, and it won’t take hours on end to get to the finish product.

LEGO have couples in mind with the set, and as you can see, you get 2 instruction booklets so you can build together, which I think is a brilliant date idea for Valentine’s Day, especially if you’re looking to get your significant other into LEGO, or if you’re thinking of a cute little gift.

Here’s a look at the finished set – two incredible colourful and attractive Lovebirds! Love is definitely in the air, as there’s a large brick-built heart in the background, as well as a branch covered with foliage and hearts to up the displayability of the set.

As you can se, both birds are identical, with variances in the colour. I’m not an expert on birds, so I’m not sure if the colours are supposed to denote their sex.

They’re super cute either way, and building them was quite a fun activity that I did with my wife after dinner. The build is fairly easy, so it’s great for beginners, and the end result is a very accurate looking bird, which again, demonstrates the possibilities when it comes to LEGO.

And a fun little observation – just like Brickheadz, it seems that LEGO snuck in some pink brains in each Lovebird too!

Here’s a look at the branch and base that the Lovebirds stand on. As you can see, each Lovebird is placed on a swivel….

Which allows you turn them towards each other and make their beaks touch, just like they’re kissing!

Note that I changed the orientation of the lower bird to make their beaks touch, which I think looks much better.

And here’s a look at their backs.

It’s been great for LEGO Bird fans, and as you can see, LEGO Bird Design has come a long way since the LEGO Ideas 21301 Birds from 2015. Pictured alongside the Lovebirds are the Robin from the LEGO Ideas Birds set, the Cockatiel and Budgie from the Brickheadz Pets theme.

Oh and last but not least, you also get a teaser of the next LEGO Seasonal set – 40523 Easter Rabbits on the box and in the instruction manual!

What I liked:

A fun little collaborative build experience
Great colours and organic design
Accessible pricing

What I didn’t like:

Some variations to the Lovebirds would’ve been nice

FINAL THOUGHTS:

For a small set, 40522 Valentine Lovebirds delivers a fun, and engaging build experience, that’s better if you’re building it with a partner.

The end result is really pleasing, with the LEGO Designer deftly capturing the proportions, and look of real Lovebirds, with slight exaggerations to get them to look like LEGO.

These would make great gifts come Valentine’s Day, or even yet, building together with your date or partner, which again, is a great way to introduce them to LEGO!

As a standalone set, they make a great display piece, and if you’re a fan of birds, you’ll definitely enjoy building or displaying them. I can see these being really popular sets, like 40524 Sunflowers or roses come Valentine’s Day!

Rating and score: 3/5 ★★★✰✰

Build [4] – Fun and engaging, and better if you’re building with someone else
Real Value [4] – For 298 pieces, this is great value
Innovation [3] – Not too much groundbreaking but I really like the moulding of the birds
Coolness [3] – It’s a great date activity LEGO set, and LEGO animals are always fun
Keepability [3] – Without minifigures, I don’t think this will be super collectable, but

40522 Valentine’s Lovebirds is available now from LEGO.com and LEGO stores, and is a really fun couples set that you can look forward to building with your partner, or crush this Valentine’s Day.

Thanks for reading! Look out for more 2022 LEGO reviews in the coming days, and if you missed it, be sure to check out my review of the Modular Boutique Hotel or 2022 Chinese New Year sets!

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