This year, we celebrate the 20th Anniversary of the LEGO Advent Calendar, and the Rambling Brick is taking a trip back and forth through the history of Holiday themed sets, before looking at today’s offering from the LEGO Friends Advent Calendar.
In recent years, LEGO City, Friends and LEGO Star Wars have become evergreen Advent Calendar themes. Over the next few days, I would like to take a look at some of the advent calendars that did not have the same level of long term appeal. Today, I will start with the 6299 Pirates Advent Calendar. This was released in 2009 – relatively recently in the scheme of things.
Enjoy 24 days of fun surprises with the 2009 LEGO Pirates Advent Calendar — no looting or pillaging required! With a new buildable character or setting every day, and lots of colorful minifigures, creatures and special elements, you can create your own LEGO Pirates world and play out swashbuckling adventures on the box-lid play mat. Each day open a new window in the specially designed Advent Calendar box! Includes 24 pirate-themed surprises in all, plus a play mat printed on the box lid! Includes 8 minifigures!
Text Source: LEGO.com via Brickset.com
The set came with eight minifigures and a number of creatures, including a crocodile, saw toothed shark, rat, parrot, crab and monkey. In between, there were a number of minibuilds including a small cannon, some scenery, a treasure chest and raft. Contemporary reviews are quite favourable, but do comment that there is not really any seasonal content included. Captain Brickbeard was opened up on day one, and I suspect if this calendar were to be produced today, he would have had a brightly wrapped present or sack, and a Santa hat! A full list of the minibuilds can be found on Bricklink, as this is from the days before shop.lego.com providing complete spoilers for the advent calendars.
This is the only Pirates Advent Calendar that we have seen to this day. Perhaps it would be nice to see another, if Pirates make a return to the mainstream in the future.
Follow on after the break, to see today’s build from the 2018 Friends Advent Calendar.
A pile of red: bricks and arches, as well as a couple of tiles and another piece of foliage. We seem to be getting a few of these elements this year, which I quite like: they add another tool for tree and vine builders everywhere. I’m sure the ivy look is purely coincidental. We also see more of the 5 petalled flowers. Referring back to the instructions on the back of the door, we find this:
Its a Christmas stocking, ready and waiting to be hung up on Christmas Eve, to be filled with presents… Will this bear any resemblance to tomorrow’s surprise? Time will tell.
Until Next Time,
Play Well.