REVIEW: 40553 Woody and Bo Peep

[Oky]

Aside from Buzz Lightyear, we are also getting Brickheadz of his friends Woody and Bo Peep in this wave. If you’ve read my review of the Buzz Lightyear Brickhead, you’ll know that I had some strong opinions about that one, so will this set fare any better? Well, grab your cowboy hat and shepherd staff and let’s find out. Ride like the wind, Bullseye!

Set Number: 40553
Name: Woody and Bo Peep
Theme: Brickheadz
Subtheme: Disney
Year of Release: 2022
Ages: 10+
Pieces: 296
Price: £17.99 / $19.99 / 19.99€
Online Shop description:

Quote

Hang out with two beloved movie characters by making these LEGO® BrickHeadz™ style buildable Disney and Pixar’s Toy Story and Toy Story 4 figures, Woody and Bo Peep (40553). It’s a clever gift idea for kids aged 10 and up, who will love authentic details such as Woody’s iconic cowboy outfit and Bo Peep’s cute hair bow and shepherd’s crook. With baseplates for display, these awesome construction toys will make a unique addition to any Toy Story fan’s collection.

The Box

Like the Buzz Brickhead, the box has the same light blue background as the Toy Story 4 sets which is fitting in this case since Bo Peep is based on her appearance in that movie. It also features the LEGO Brickheadz and Toy Story logos and the name and number of both Brickheadz at the bottom. It’s wild to think that there has been over 160 Brickheadz! Interestingly, Lego seems to have sent me North American box version of the set rather than the European version like they did with Buzz as it has the extra info like the set name, number of parts, and the redundant “building toy” text that these boxes have.

The back of the box has a picture of Woody and Bo with swapped positions, another that shows them detaching from their bases, and some cross promotion for the Buzz Lightyear set.

On one side of the box, it has a picture of Woody and Bo from Toy Story 4 along with another set of logos, and on the other side it has the set name in different languages and some choking hazard warnings.

The top of the box uses Woody’s torso tile to show the “actual size” and lists the Brickheadz’s names and numbers again. Buzz’s box didn’t have the name and number, so I wonder if this is because it’s an American box or just because it’s a bigger box with more space to display them.

On the bottom of the box there is just some legal and recycling info.

Contents

Inside the box there are two sets of two bags and two instructions booklet. The bags numbered one are for Woody and the ones numbered two are for Bo.

Instructions

Like all instructions this year, the ones in this set have a progress bar running along the bottom and show an explosion of stars once you reach the end of the build. Usually the progress indicator is a minifig/doll from the set, but since Brickheadz don’t have minifigs, it’s just a generic blue dot here which is a shame. The instructions are easy to read for the most part, although the reddish brown and dark in Woody’s instructions are a bit hard distinguish.

Notable Parts

This set has a few more interesting parts than the Buzz set. There is a printed 2x4 tile for each character’s torso. Like Buzz’s, these are a bit simplified with the word “Sheriff” missing from Woody’s badge, but they still look fairly detailed with the fine lines and stitches. I’m not sure how versatile these are outside of this set though. We also get two new recolors in this set: a lasso in dark orange and a 8x8 round tile in reddish brown! These should be very useful for builders. There are also some parts like brackets in rare colors like purple and light blue, but they aren’t exclusive to this set.

The Build

As you could tell by the bag numbers, Woody is the first Brickhead you build. His build is a bit different from other Brickheadz in that the front part of his torso is built mostly with the studs not on top and the upper half of his head is empty to allow his hat to tilt backward on a hinge. Not only that, but Woody’s got guts - literally! Like his buddy Buzz, his torso is hollow and contains an easter egg in the form of a couple of ice cream scoops which represent the cotton that he is filled with. I feel like the toy repairman from Toy Story 2 as I put the fluff into Woody and put him together.

Bo is also a fairly unconventional build since she has a torso tile as well and has a somewhat complex build for her hair and cape. Her build also incorporates more parts, so it takes a bit longer than Woody’s. Sadly, unlike the other two Toy Story Brickheadz, she does not have any fun references hidden in her torso, but that makes sense since she is just made of porcelain. She does, however, have the pink 2x2 brick in her (brick)head that usually represents the brain of a Brickhead. Although that makes you wonder if the toys even have brains?

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I like how Bo’s bow (“Bo-bo-bow-bo-bow!”) is attached at an angle by simply placing it across two studs on the side of her hair. What I don’t like, however, is that the 2x2 corner tile on this side of her hair is a lighter shade of yellow than the other yellow pieces. Thankfully it is mostly covered by the bow in the end, but it’s disappointing to see Lego’s quality control slip like this.

Spare Parts

There are lots of little bits left over after the build including another dark orange lasso. Yee-haw!

The Complete Set

Here we have the completed couple in their blocky glory! Woody brandishes the lasso while Bo is holding her iconic shepherd’s crook. They both look good and accurate to their on-screen counterparts. While I don’t mind the torso tiles, I feel like Woody is relying on the printing a bit too much and think that some of those details could have been accomplished with brick-built solutions instead.

To show you what I mean, here is a picture of the Woody Brickhead that I built 5 years ago. As you can see, I achieved most of the same torso details without any prints.

https://cdn.rebrickable.com/media/thumbs/mocs/moc-29600.jpg/1000x800.jpg?1633580431.5550563

I like how Woody’s hat is positioned at an angle, giving the impression that he is actually wearing it. I also like how Bo’s cape flows over here shoulders. One thing that doesn’t quite work is how her headband comes down in a wavey line, although I can’t think of a better way they could have accomplished this with current parts.

Woody has some clever details on his back such as tooth plates as the knot of his bandana, a life preserver used as the ring for his pull string, and pearl-gold clip plates representing his spurs. I also like how they executed the three little curls of hair that stick out at the back of Bo’s head. Her cape on the other hand could have been done a bit better though I think. The two 1x1 plates stick out and ruin the otherwise smooth look of the cape, and half of the white fringe on the bottom edge seems to be missing. Also, if you look at the cape a certain way, it looks like a goofy purple monster face and once you see it, you can’t unsee it. You’re welcome.

On his right leg, Woody carries a brown wedge which nicely represents his empty holster. Bo’s bow looks good too, even if it’s a bit blocky, but I guess it fits with the Brickheadz style.

One thing that bugs me about Woody is how his hat is perfectly circular rather than more triangular like in the source material. It makes it look more like a fedora than a cowboy hat. Oh well, at least we got a new part out of it, and this will make it easy to modify his Brickhead into Indiana Jones if you want to.

Here they are next to the Buzz Brickhead. The space ranger doesn’t look too bad next to his best friend and his old moving buddy, but he is definitely the least impressive one out of the group.

Ratings

Design:
Very unique and accurate looking Brickheadz with the exception of only a few nitpicks like the over-reliance on printing for the torsos or the shape of Woody’s hat. The cotton is a nice touch.

Build:
An interesting build that is a bit different from other Brickheadz and gets more challenging towards the end with Bo’s complex hair.

Playability:
Ironically, these toys are not meant to be played with and are mostly just for display.

Parts:
A few new recolors, some printed parts, and a few parts in rare colors. Not too shabby.

Price:
At nearly 300 pieces for only 20 bawk-bawk-bucks, this is a great deal!

Overall:
You’ve got a friend in these Brickheadz! After the disappointment that was Buzz Lightyear, it was good to see some more effort put into these. Both have a good level of detail and look great on display together. Even if you are not a Toy Story or Brickheadz fan, it’s still worth getting for the parts.

You can get this set starting February 1 at the Lego Shop and all Al’s Toy Barn locations.

Thank you for reading and thanks to LEGO for sending me this set for review. What do you think about this set? Let me know in the comments and in the poll above.

If you haven’t read my review of the Buzz Lightyear Brickhead, you can check it out here.

So long, partner.

[MKJoshA]

It's the round hat! That's what makes Woody look off to me. I couldn't put my finger on it till you mentioned it. That criticism aside, I think Woody is the best of all the Brickheadz in this wave. I love that they have "stuffing" inside him. And that holster is the perfect touch. Bo Peep is nice and rounds out this set really well.