The LEGO Animal Crossing range has several significant buildings and island landmarks from Animal Crossing: New Horizons, including Nook's Cranny and the Town Hall/Plaza. However, the Dodo Airlines airport terminal, which was first introduced in the Switch series entry, is a set we've been particularly eager to get our hands on.
Launched as part of the second wave of Animal Crossing offerings alongside K.K.'s Concert at the Plaza, this is smaller in scale and price, and the adorable Wilbur minifig is a significant draw.
So, let's buckle up and Fly With Dodo Airlines and see what the in-flight entertainment is like, shall we?
LEGO Animal Crossing - Fly With Dodo Airlines (77051)
Price: $37.99 / £31.99 / €37.99
Pieces: 292
Ages: 7+
Minifig(s) included: Wilbur, Tangy
What's in the box?
The set contains three bags and a single instruction booklet. The DAL airport is an ages 7+ build and 292 pieces doesn't meet the threshold for a Brick Separator, although you do get a crowbar. More on that later.
Wilbur and the DAL Seaplane build
The first bag kicks things off with pilot Wilbur, and he's one of our favourite minifigs in the series so far.
As one half of the Dodo Airlines duo, Wilbur debuted in New Horizons and his little head, donned with a moulded-in headset and printed aviators, has loads of personality. His torso has a great print, too, and even if the rest of the set was DOA, we'd probably recommend picking it up for parts just to get Wilbur.
However, he is just one half of the DAL team and the absence of his 'port-based counterpart, Orville, is notable - especially as the airline's check-in office and departure gates form part of this set. This odd omission can only be a cost-cutting measure, but given the expense of this range compared to non-licensed Lego sets of similar sizes, we don't believe there's an Animal Crossing fan on the planet who wouldn't have preferred to have Orville included for a fiver more. It seems unlikely he'll appear in a future set considering his ties to the terminal, so it's a real shame that the Dodo Airlines set doesn't include the full Dodo Airlines crew.
Moving into the construction proper, Wilbur's seaplane is a small and straightforward build but the result is a cute, resilient craft that helps add some variety to the range. As with K.K.'s camper, it adds dynamism to the static, modular islands, and opens up play opportunities with other kits. Nothing revolutionary, certainly, but it's got some nice details.
Next up, who's this?
Tangy and the Dodo Airlines Airport Terminal
We've said it before when we went to Julian's birthday party, but with so many villagers in the game, there are always going to be ones you're less keen on or have never met at all; the feline maniacally staring at us through the second bag's plastic was, for us, the latter. Who the heck is Tangy?
Of course, Tangy will be beloved by many, so it's a classic mileage-may-vary scenario. Our headcanon says Rosie (who's part of the Nook's Cranny set, remember) went to a fancy dress party as an orange. Until we see them in the same room, that's what we're sticking with.
Speaking more practically, it's evident that Lego made savings here by reusing the Rosie minifig mould. Again, Tangy fans rejoice; we would have preferred Angus or Aurora.
The DAL terminal and surrounding landscape is absolutely in line with the other sets - simple and effective with a few nice details and play taking priority. Rocks and a red crab adorn the shoreline, and the platform juts out to sea suspended on short stilts. We especially liked the railings and the life rings, which add to the nautical, seafront flavour.
The terminal building itself jams in quite a few elements from the game, with printed tiles providing visual detail, including a computer screen and keyboard, a ticket, and Dodo signage. A standard yellow mug stands in for Orville's DAL-branded receptacle.
A pair of orange gates prevents non-ticket holders from accessing the plane and a flag outside comes with two pre-made possibilities to clip to the pole, plus the option to customise however you see fit, as in the K.K. Plaza set. Likewise, a thematically ill-fitting crowbar element is included here, too, to aid the removal of tiny 1x1 tiles from the flag. Of course, this played into our casting of Tangy as Rosie's violently unhinged alter ego beautifully.
The rear of the building is a little bare, although that's no surprise if you've built any of the previous sets. It offers easy access but there are plenty of missing details compared to the in-game terminal: no waiting area with blue plastic chairs; no card stand or calendar; oh, and no Orville.
It's very much a 'budget' take on the airport, then, and while it's nice to see a set with multiple attractive elements which won't completely deplete your Bell balance, that comes with compromises.
Fly with Dodo Airlines cost
The Fly with Dodo Airlines set costs $37.99 / £31.99 / €37.99, for which you get 292 pieces. That's about 13 cents per piece, which isn't a fantastic cost-to-piece ratio, but isn't as stingy as some of the other AC sets.
However, for two exclusive minifigs, a bunch of printed elements, and a dynamic little diorama including a prominent New Horizons building and a vehicle, it's still an attractive offering.
Conclusion
This DAL Airport is an overall strong addition to the Lego Animal Crossing lineup which won't totally break the bank. It's easy to see where Lego economised to bring this set in at a reasonable price point, and fans may be disappointed at the details that didn't make the cut. But this is still a dynamic, play-focused set that'll be a hit with younger AC fans thanks to the inclusion of Wilbur the pilot and his seaplane. His colleague Orville's absence is very keenly felt and is a serious knock against the set, but if you can get over that startling omission, this is a great little 'port.
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Comments 20
In before the Tangy backlash.
tangy is my favorite villager
Looks awesome! I like Tangy, she is probably my second favorite cat villager. Hopefully we get a set with Blathers and the Museum, and it comes with a Walt minifig!
...and, yeah... that was the day I stopped believing in Gavin. 😆
how dare you tangy is literally the best i love them theyre so cute 🙁
also controversial opinion orville is 👎👎👎
I built this yesterday and it’s really cute. I do agree that Orville was a painful omission but otherwise this set is great. I’ve built all of the Animal Crossing Lego sets, as well as hundreds of other sets over the years and I want to point out that this 10 cent per brick rule people abide by doesn’t really apply with most sets anymore, and that’s due to the fact that tiny details like flowers and other single studs can be sold for pennies but these printed tiles that are found in the Animal Crossing sets, as well as other larger than usual tiles included can sell for a few dollars each on the Lego website (in pick a brick). So with that said, again I will emphasize these sets have only printed tiles and no stickers, they are pretty affordably or appropriately priced for what they are. I’m not disappointed with any of them, personally.
Sad to see Orville missing (and I hope he'll somehow be part of a later set even though I'd also say it's unlikely unfortunately), but happy the rest of the set is overall good - yes, Tangy my beloved absolutely included - and it has a relatively nice starting price so if I ever start getting these it could be among the first ones I'll get!
they decided to save on 1 minifigure almost identical to the one they already made, just why
@Kiyata I get you with the 10-cent rule, although I feel it's still broadly applicable/useful as a rough value gauge. So many sets these days have SO MANY tiny 1x1 detail pieces that they tend to balance out the cost of printed pieces imo.
I'd definitely take a higher (within reason!) RRP for printed pieces only, though. Can't stand stickers!
@dartmonkey yes I so agree with you. Stickers devalue a set too in my opinion.
Looks like yellow cat is about to impale blue pilot with that hook. Yup, I don't know the names of Animal Crossing characters.
Tangy is making me want this set but I shall resist. Orville might have pushed it over the edge.
Dreading when they finally make some of the frog villagers. I don’t know if I’ll be able to resist then!
I love Tangy. I'm still hoping that there will be an AC Minifigure series. That would be a great way to add Orville down the line. As many characters as there are, they could make multiple minifig series! I'm willing to bet more people would spring for the minifigs than they have for the sets.
I will find it hilarious if for the next set they add Olivia or Mitzy or some other cat villager. At that point it will be solid evidence that they are being cheap and are just reusing the cat mould over and over again and only diversifying the special characters.
"Everyone loves cats, right? Who wants Raymond next
says someone over at the LEGO Company.
I think I might prefer to just pay £20 for Tangy, Wilbur and the plane, but as I don't have a choice, there'll be some serious soul searching going on inside the mind of gcunit to decide whether the lure of those two sat in the plane is going to be enough to start sucking me into the dangerous World of Nintendo X LEGO.
Fwiw, Tangy is my current favourite platonic relationship islander.
I am fairly certain they will do an Animal Crossing CMF series in the future. He will probably be in there.
Wilbur, blink twice if you need help.
@thehoppypoppy Yes! Omitting Orville really has me think they will go for an AC minifigure set at a later time. That's a great way to add missing favorites from the game, it seems like an easy way to profits for LEGO.
The more Animal Crossing LEGO sets I see, the less interested I become. Just give us the bags with the minifigs, I don't care for the sets at all.
Leaving Orville out of this set is a grave sin!
As someone who at one point had every Villager (along with their BDay, Personality, and Hobby) memorized, I can't believe you don't know Tangy! (No I am not exaggerating. I was addicted.)
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