Thanks for this great review. The set is really something special and I can't wait to get my copy. The building is very interesting, and the parts make this set also a great parts pack. I'm impressed.

Outstanding review, thanks for your effort!

I just begun building this set. Though I'm impressed by the sheer size and the multitude of details that's also my main problem with the set: Whereas GG, FB and GE were models directed at adults, since at least DO playability and colorfulness seem to be more important to TLG. A development which makes this line less special than it was. As my children are having fun playing with GG, FB and GE as they are, I'd rather have "modulars for adults". 

This is a lot to take in at once, but seems to do the job quite well. It seems typical of many building clusters in cities all over the world. Unrelated businesses share buildings often separated only by a stairwell or door. Folks run into each other while making their stops at the bakery, florist, music store, dentist, etc. This ties everyone into a sense of community as they see the shop owners interact with other customers and try to meet their needs. These shopowners and their employees link folks together and sometimes are the only ones speaking to those who live alone. This set seems to bring folks closer together, which is a good thing in today's rough world. It makes a minifig/person feel right at home. My personal favorites are the reminders of previous modulars and the lovely tile photos providing a sense of modular history. The modulars have always been right up there on my list of favorite sets; this one upholds that tradition with class and warmth. 

Thanks for a lovely review with so much detail shown in the excellent photos. It looks like you had a great time building the set. 

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That grey haired minifig looks just like Carol from the Walking Dead... & she runs the florist! I seriously hope this is a designers in joke/reference.

For anyone that watches the Walking Dead remember the line "Look at the flowers?"

Great review and so much pictures you show!

It's a great and detailled set, I believe it must be fantastic to see the depth made by the square.

Just one thing that keeps bothering me is that the minifigures must pass by the bakery and the dentist to get to the higher floors.

It's a pitty the parrot is asymmetrically colored, unlike on the first official published images.

 

On 4-1-2017 at 7:39 AM, Kepheus said:

Whereas GG, FB and GE were models directed at adults, since at least DO playability and colorfulness seem to be more important to TLG. A development which makes this line less special than it was. As my children are having fun playing with GG, FB and GE as they are, I'd rather have "modulars for adults". 

I agree the play features are completely unnecessary in the modular line. The modulars alone offer more than enough scenery for stories, if you only let your fantasy work.

For me the modulars don't even have to have interiors, especially not on the higher floors. I had so much fun completing the interior of my empty modified Cafe Corner.

 

I feel like the Flower Shop needs more, but that can be easily fixed by adding more plants/flowers.

Thanks for a great review!

I cannot wait to build it myself.

On January 1, 2017 at 0:35 AM, Dragonator said:

Box Contents

Despite the size of the box it is packed pretty full.  There is one very thick instruction manual, a white internal box which has the numbered bags for sections 1 through 3, and then the numbered bags for sections 4 through 6 are loose in the main box.  The box also contains two green baseplates (32x32 and 32x16) and a single 8x16 light grey plate.  There are a lot of bags in this set for each section:

• Section 1:  3 numbered bags, a 32x32 green baseplate and a 16x32 green baseplate
• Section 2:  7 numbered bags
• Section 3:  5 numbered bags
• Section 4:  4 numbered bags
• Section 5:  7 numbered bags
• Section 6:  7 numbered bags and a 16x8 light grey plate

Excellent review. This might just be a packaging discrepancy but my section 4: has 5 numbered bags. 5 bags with the number 4 on them. (and the contents are different no duplicate bags). Everything else the same though.

I still can't believe they actually went with one huge instruction manual, especially on such a large set...
I'd happily pay a few Euros more for multiple smaller manuals, as the older modulars had.

The set's still absolutely brilliant, though.

The "Prevent Yellowing" sign on the dentist's office is one of my favorite Lego graphics. These little in jokes are some of my favorite parts about larger sets.

Thank you for this brilliant review! Very well structured, excellent photos and information!  You really make me want to buy it now! 

This is cool! I like the dentists office the best. Nice review!

I have a question: Why do I feel that the box is relatively light to its size?

On 1/8/2017 at 2:22 PM, escortmad79 said:

That grey haired minifig looks just like Carol from the Walking Dead... & she runs the florist! I seriously hope this is a designers in joke/reference.

For anyone that watches the Walking Dead remember the line "Look at the flowers?"

You mean this?

Great review, now this is one of my must buy item

On 1/4/2017 at 6:39 AM, Kepheus said:

Outstanding review, thanks for your effort!

I just begun building this set. Though I'm impressed by the sheer size and the multitude of details that's also my main problem with the set: Whereas GG, FB and GE were models directed at adults, since at least DO playability and colorfulness seem to be more important to TLG. A development which makes this line less special than it was. As my children are having fun playing with GG, FB and GE as they are, I'd rather have "modulars for adults". 

I disagree. I think it fits perfectly between the AFOL MOC modular building and MOC minifigure vignette markets. Colors are all realistic and not clowny like other creator sets were until very recently. The slight reduction in building size can be easily augmented by buying another set and using the middle layer to build a 4 story building, something that has been intended by Lego itself since CC. Lego understands their market and they have produced sets that look great, are still sizable but now have immense play value that an empty CC lacked and the Pet Shop intended for you to supply yourself.

Parisian Restaurant remains the best combination of the two. The only miss-step I can think of is that both Brick Bank and Detectives Office are a little too small - particularly with the largely useless indentation/alleyway on DO.

1 hour ago, monkles said:

I disagree. I think it fits perfectly between the AFOL MOC modular building and MOC minifigure vignette markets. Colors are all realistic and not clowny like other creator sets were until very recently. The slight reduction in building size can be easily augmented by buying another set and using the middle layer to build a 4 story building, something that has been intended by Lego itself since CC. Lego understands their market and they have produced sets that look great, are still sizable but now have immense play value that an empty CC lacked and the Pet Shop intended for you to supply yourself.

Parisian Restaurant remains the best combination of the two. The only miss-step I can think of is that both Brick Bank and Detectives Office are a little too small - particularly with the largely useless indentation/alleyway on DO.

Actually I tend to agree with Kepheus,

there are a lot of nice details, great building techniques, a great set in a few words, but it looks more "Disney style" than the first 4-5 modulars, it is less adult and less realistic, the upper floors facade of the bakery are quite simple, the flower sign is absolutely cartoonish, you'd never find that in real life, only the café with an Italian style IMO is up to older modular standard..

One of my least favorite, Town Hall still seems much more realistic. This set is right in between BB, DO and CC, GG

1 hour ago, SwissBrick said:

Actually I tend to agree with Kepheus,

there are a lot of nice details, great building techniques, a great set in a few words, but it looks more "Disney style" than the first 4-5 modulars, it is less adult and less realistic, the upper floors facade of the bakery are quite simple, the flower sign is absolutely cartoonish, you'd never find that in real life, only the café with an Italian style IMO is up to older modular standard..

One of my least favorite, Town Hall still seems much more realistic. This set is right in between BB, DO and CC, GG

I understand what you mean. The sets started becoming more focused on interior detailing after PR, and DO was particularly cartoon-like. CC was obviously a display model with no interior to speak of. Lego has obviously realized that anyone who wanted significantly larger buildings was going to buy another set anyway, as was intended from the start.

I think the two finest modulars are the GG and PR and Lego really should find a happy medium between those two styles. Personally I think the tower building in AS could have done with being larger and more ornate and the florist building removed all together. I agree that the Town Hall probably had the best use of space of any modular, as the others tend to all be too cramped front-to-back; the florist is perhaps the most egregious example from the modular line so far.

However you must remember Town Hall was retired early for reasons speculated to be poor sales, so obviously Lego felt they needed to adjust the market away from that style. I await to see if there is a baulking at the price for AS (which is similarly more expensive than other modulars) and Lego returns to the earlier style of larger modular

great set and Review! Mine is on the way!

^^ That's funny you say that because I'd like to see the Florist fleshed out a bit more as its own building. Granted I just MOC'd a florist last summer and I'd take mine over this official version, but I still like how theirs turned out. I actually don't particularly care for the turret building. I love medium nougat, but I don't love the tiled look here.

On 20. 1. 2017 at 8:24 PM, SwissBrick said:

Actually I tend to agree with Kepheus,

there are a lot of nice details, great building techniques, a great set in a few words, but it looks more "Disney style" than the first 4-5 modulars, it is less adult and less realistic, the upper floors facade of the bakery are quite simple, the flower sign is absolutely cartoonish, you'd never find that in real life, only the café with an Italian style IMO is up to older modular standard..

One of my least favorite, Town Hall still seems much more realistic. This set is right in between BB, DO and CC, GG

That is not true about that "cartoonish flover sign" ...

Edited February 8, 20178 yr by Blazej_Holen

Great review.  It aligns with my experience building this amazing set.  

Has anyone come across a review that shows all of the bags, preferably not in a pile?

21 hours ago, Classicsmiley said:

Has anyone come across a review that shows all of the bags, preferably not in a pile?

Well, I don't know if it fits your needs, but Kristel has pictures of the bags (one picture per number).
Hope the bags separated enough for you to be able to figure out whatever it is you want to figure out.

https://modularsbykristel.com/review-10255-assembly-square/

Scroll down to see all pics.

That's excellent, thanks!  I'd briefly looked at her review, but hadn't scrolled down far enough to see those pictures.