LEGO Lion Knights' Castle 10305

When I was a kid, I wanted LEGO castle stuff so badly it almost hurt. I coveted the line. It sent my imagination spiraling. And I never had any. I got back into LEGO as an adult mere days after this set was released. I dipped a toe, then a foot, into the modern LEGO waters, and then swan-dove headfirst right into the deep end. And Lion Knight's Castle was my first "major" set. In some ways, this is almost a shame. I said in my review of Assembly Square that making that set my first modular had the unfortunate consequence of setting an impossibly-high bar for all the modulars that came after. The same is true for Lion Knight's: I'm honestly not sure any set can or will ever live up to this one for me. Is that opinion influenced by the ghosts of that childhood longing? Maybe - but I don't think anybody who has built this set would deny that it is anything short of magnificent. As a build experience, it's just flawless. And I really mean that. I was never even close to bored, not even doing the slightly-repetitious gray exterior walls. The way this build unfurls is pure magic. You're always putting in fun little details, creating and then hiding Easter eggs and play features, going "oooo that's COOL" over some build technique (the balcony-to-catwalk trick is particularly cool). It's dynamic, engaging, and a true joy from start to finish. As a display model, I mean, look at the thing. It's majestic. It's got that special, magical LEGO whimsy through and through, and yet is also built to a scale and scope that makes it impressive to behold. My only complaint is that LEGO didn't figure out a way to violate the laws of physics and keep the front AND back of the set displayed simultaneously, because I want to look at all of it at once. I'm almost - ALMOST - crazy enough to buy a second one so that I can have both sides on display. But then I'd need a third so I could have one closed up, too. And honestly? If money was no object? The thought of building this whole set two more times? I'd do it in a heartbeat. This is the best one. What a masterpiece.