As September came to an end, LEGO gave us a glimpse of this month, on their official LEGO Store Calendar. The promotions we expected for October 2021 looked like a well-varied ensemble. Original themes like Creator Expert Winter Village and LEGO Friends were side-by-side with licensed IPs. These included “Super Mario” and “Harry Potter,” the latter of which was celebrating 20 years. No less than two LEGO HP gifts-with-purchase awaited buyers on LEGO Stores according to the October calendar. Well in the middle of this month things underwent an abrupt change. The Brick Fan has alerted us to this development.
Take a look at the new October 2021 LEGO Store Calendar, as presented on LEGO’s servers. Take a peek at the original edition here for comparison. Yes, the LEGO Harry Potter GWPs are just gone. Hermione’s Study Desk (30392) and Hogwarts Gryffindor Dorms (40452) both just disapparated from the calendar promos. The new, bigger LEGO Friends GWP spot comes across as very jarring without Gryffindor Dorms beside it. The removal was quite surgical too. Both LEGO HP GWPs were to become available starting October 25, the last day of the month. And LEGO doesn’t look like it’s willing to explain.
Honestly, it’s a shame that 30392 and 40452 have been shafted, at least for the rest of October. Gryffindor Dorms, being a revamp of an early-days LEGO HP set, would have been a sought-after special offer. Collectors perhaps might be able to pin the blame on supply chain disruptions caused by the pandemic. They messed up the arrival of Hogwarts Icons (76391) in North America; they could do the same for these GWPs. Hopefully they’ll finally be available next month.