31053 Treehouse Adventures

31053_box

My childhood was full of dreams of forts and treehouses. Just from the box, I’m feeling those memories again. Such a great looking trio of models, I can’t wait to dig in and handle all those yummy elements and explore the building techniques.

31053_contents

The bags aren’t numbered, but that is typical of Creator sets. The bags are jammed with useful elements though. It’s a nice touch that the manuals are bagged, something that I’ve been seeing more often.

31053_minifigs

The kid minifigs are great, if a bit common. The girl’s head is new this year.

31053_minifigs_back

Both torsos have simple back printing, but no alternate faces.

31053_interesting

The 4×4 quarter circle plate is new in bright blue. Those double cheeses in bright green are new this year, with 4 of them showing up in 41174 Starlight Inn. That fiddly little technic element is new this year too, seeing use in three other decidedly non-technic sets.

31053_quick_build

The first of the three models, the ‘quick’ build is this handsome little creek side treehouse. Lots of fun building here. I particularly like the use of mixel ball-joints to make the leafy greens posable.

31053_quick_build_back

Around the other side we can see the ladder and an open side for plat access. Since this was the simplest of the three builds, there are a lot of extra elements.

31053_quick_build_detail

The ladder swings up to become a railing.

31053_medium_build

The ‘medium’ build is less a tree house than a fort. There is a nice little crow’s nest up in the tree with a spyglass. Nice landscaping on all of these models, which I really appreciated.

31053_medium_build_back

This build is a bit harder to get into, but the top lifts off to give access. Less leftovers with this build (the brick separator wasn’t included, it’s one of mine).

31053_advanced_buildThe last build, listed as ‘advanced,’ was a lot of fun. This one had the most accessories, with a great little brick-built squirt gun, telescope, and wheelbarrow. The treehouse itself spans two trees and has a bridge to connect them. So many great play features in here.

I want to say that the brick-built birds in this set are really cool and I’ll use those myself in some future build.

31053_advanced_build_alt

This model is hinged, allowing it to be folded into a single, larger treehouse. Thanks to some clever technic function, the bridge drops down to become a ladder. I played with this for quite a while!

A great set, living up to the high standards of the Creator line. A great play set, and tons of fun little techniques for AFOLs. I’m looking forward to drafting this set and getting my hands on more of the great elements in it!

Keep building and enjoy!