Last week, LEGO Ideas put out a teaser for the reveal of a new upcoming set, Disney’s Steamboat Willie (21317). This Monday, March 18, the wait ended and LEGO Ideas’ Steamboat Willie set was unveiled. It’s everything that original creator Máté Szabó/szabomate90 envisioned, with LEGO adding some nifty extras too.
LEGO Ideas Disney Mickey Mouse – Steamboat Willie (21317) is a beautiful rendition of the cartoon river vessel that catapulted Mickey Mouse to legendary stardom. It also demonstrates some nifty non-Technic mechanics. There are hidden wheels under the hull to facilitate the steamboat “steaming” along any surface. As the wheel turns, the paddles turn and the twin smokestacks alternately rise and fall, like in the animation.
Anyway, just as with the 1928 cartoon short directed by Walt Disney and Ub Iwerks the whole set’s in black, white and grayscale, with the only colors in the packaging. The new Mickey and Minnie Mouse minifigures included are truly special with touches of silver added to their color schemes.
Other features of the famous steamboat include an adjustable crane; articulated rudder wheel and brick-built bell in the bridge; “1928” tile; props like a pennant, potato bin, parrot figure, and Minnie’s guitar and musical score.
In addition, there’s also a commemorative brick plaque with the Mickey symbol and another “1928” year tile. This can serve as a standup display or a floor plate for the Mickey and Minnie Mouse minifigs. The instruction booklet will also include a section detailing the history of the “Steamboat Willie” cartoon short, plus info on both the Ideas creator and the LEGO design team that made the product idea official.
One last detail: LEGO news source and online set guide Brickset, to whom we owe these official set images, also noticed a printing error on the Steamboat Willie (21317) box. It identifies this product as the 24th Ideas set when it’s actually number 25 in sequence. The real 24th was the previous Ideas set, Flintstones (21316), which came out on the first day of this month and is still freshly available.
Fans of LEGO and totally classic Disney can expect the Ideas Steamboat Willie (21317) to arrive this April 1; and that’s no April Fools’.