I love color and originality. The moment the Monkie Kid theme leaked on the net, I knew that I wanted these sets. When the official announcement came, I was well and truly hooked. On the day of release, I lurked lego.com, waiting for those buy buttons to appear. I ordered three of the largest sets and I couldn’t wait to dig in.

This is a massive set in a massive box. Over 1600 elements for a very reasonable $149.99 (a hair over 9¢/piece). You might say be thinking that it doesn’t sound like that good of a deal, but here I have to mention that there are over a hundred metallic gold elements, many of which are recolors!

12 bags of parts. The first three build a little mech and a building, but most of them are chock-full of red elements for the main attraction. Even now we can see some of those glittery golden elements calling out to us.

In addition to the twelve numbered bags, there are couple of larger elements (thats a 32l axle!), a large fabric element and a bag containing the instruction booklets (2), sticker sheet and plastic film elements.

This flexible foil sheet provides the colorful pennants and skirting that will eventually be part of the mech. These are really pretty, but I struggle to see them getting a lot of use outside the set.

Though I didn’t use the sticker sheet for my build, there are a lot of cool looking graphics here. I can easily see some of that signage being useful for city builds. Some of the more mechanical details and control surfaces would be cool on other models too!

Bag one has the first minifig. This is the basic bad guy for this theme. It’s a decent enough minifig, but I’m a bit underwhelmed be the design. Get used to seeing that torso print a lot, because all of the henchmen are identical.

There’s a back print, but I find it just as uninspiring as the front.

An cool new mold with that baton. It looks to serve a pretty much the same purpose as the lightsaber hilt, but longer and simpler. Hopefully we’ll see them in a lot of colors in the future, but there are a lot of them in this set in dark stone grey and metallic gold. The other elements are recolors, but cool nonetheless.

This little bad guy mech is a lot of fun. He’s way too small to fight the main attraction, but he’s got a stud launcher and a lot of play value.

The Monkey King himself makes an appearance in bag 2. This is a redesign from the CMF version, but he still uses the same wig mold and cloak. The graphics are all new though, as is the armor and some of the colors.

I like both of these figures a lot, but the new version definitely feels more light hearted.

He has a fiercer face on the back and a nice back print as well.

This lovely clear dish came in bag 2. I’ve only seen these in a couple sets and it is very nice.

This bag built the Monkey King’s flying cloud and the first floor of this tiny take-out restaurant. The cloud is a sweet build and really fits the part. The restaurant is packed with cute details, like the condiment bottles on the counter. If I was using the stickers, there would be a cool menu board and other details.

This restaurant patron comes in the third bag. She might be a character in the larger story, but mostly she just looks like an average city-dweller.

Nice fear face on the other side and a simple back print to complete the look.

There are some great recolors in the third bag. I particularly like the bright red pumpkin element. There are a five of them in this set, being used as lanterns and they look great.

This adorable little tile is in bag 3 as well. I’m not sure if it is a menu or the lid to a take-out box, but I love it either way.

Bag three builds the last of the restaurant building. There is a little bedroom on the second floor and a container garden under the billboard on the roof. I love all the details in this little building. models like this make me want to build more minifig-scale structures.

The titular Monkie Kid makes his appearance in bag 4. He has a beautifully detailed print. That’s a new wig and I’m fairly certain that those headphones are a new mold as well. I like the modern street fashion look for this fig. A lot to love here.

The back print on his jacket is fire, but then so is the alternate face, which gives us a more mischievous expression and a dash of color that seems to indicate his monkey nature.

Some more cool parts, but the real gem in bag four are the printed peach tile. These are definitely channelling some peach emoji energy and somehow the printed tile says more than specialized element (like the apple).

The fourth bag builds this little peach tree scene and the core of the Monkey King mech. The tree is a nice little touch and functions more as a story element than a complement to any of the other models in this set. The mech core is a seriously solid piece of construction, with heavy duty joints where the hips and shoulders will be attached. Everything is locked down in multiple directions to keep the whole structure solid and there is an interesting technique in the shoulder that provides a stiffly rotating joint that should hold a lot of weight.

Bag five gives us the first of many metallic gold elements. These all look fantastic and shields have got to be one of the most complicated elements that I’ve seen with this coating.

Bag 5 builds out the shoulders, which rotate on the previously mentioned joints. The red and gold color scheme is gorgeous and if I were applying the stickers, they add some angled transitions and pops of mechanical detail.

The Ironclad General arrives in bag 6. I like him more than the henchman, but he’s nearly the same fig. The torso and helmet are the same. The arms and horns are different colors, and the addition of the shoulder armor and the cape are good touches for an otherwise boring fig.

Those accessories are definitely my favorite part of this fig.

Not a lot of flashy parts in bag 6, but I like that we’re getting more of those batons.

Bag 6 builds out the hips and thighs. The thighs are solidly built, with nice color blocking. The hips are clunky and mechanical, but those will get covered up later.

A bunch more metallic gold elements here. Those nose wedges are really fantastic, with the curved surfaces really showing off how light plays on the metallic.

The lower legs are in bag 7 and they turn out great. The knees are actually of combination of ball and socket joints that hold the leg at a slight angle. If you wanted to experiment with posing, it wouldn’t be hare to pop one socket and bend the leg on the other. These joints wouldn’t be strong enough to hold the models weight, but might work for specific poses.

So much gold in bag 8! I love those macaroni tiles as well as all the curved slopes.

With the eight bag, it stands! The feet are solid and nicely proportioned. There is a tire hidden underneath that provides a bit of traction. The ankles wobble side to side freely, but their forward/back tilt has enough strength to hold the rest of the mech’s weight.

The other bystander in this set makes his appearance in bag 9. I like his tropical print, though he is an otherwise common fig.

A matching print on the back!

So much metallic gold in this set!

Bag 9 builds the mech’s upper arms. They don’t have the greatest articulation, but they look fantastic. The designers doubled up all the joints for strength, but that lead less range of motion.

Another selection of metallic gold elements. I particularly like how the hear-shaped tiles are used to create curvy accents.

Bag 10 brings the mech’s forearms and hands. These look fantastic, but again, they seem to lack in articulation.

A wealth of great parts in bag 11! The printed tiles for the eyes are really great and I can’t wait to use them on my own models. Those metallic gold bananas are a treat, expanding the already wide array of colors that they come in!

My cat joined me for the finishing touches. The mech’s head is really fun and has a lot of great detailing. The long plumes add a nice touch of drama to an already great model.

The last batch of metallic gold elements are nicely complemented by these two warm gold candles. I’d love to see these in a broader range of colors! I’m sure those bling rims will come in handy some day too!

The last bag brings the final touches to this huge mech. Easily the largest mech that I’ve ever built. He’s a bit wobbly, solid enough for display. The foil elements manage to accentuate the build and hide those overly mechanical hip joints.

The staff is a beast! It has a simple but strong construction with that 32L axle running down the middle. There is also a modularity to it that allows it to be shortened and clipped into the hands in a variety of poses.

I love the range of builds in this set! There is an attention to detail at every level that makes each of the models a joy to build. for me, the weakest link is the bad guys and their little mech.

Overall this is an amazing set and certainly worth every penny. I’m already excited to dig into another Monkie Kid set!