In defence of LEGO mini-dolls: LEGO storytelling needs room to evolve

While building LEGO Disney 43262 Maleficent's and Cruella De Vil's Dresses for review, we came to a (possibly) surprising conclusion.

There's been a marked rise in mini-dolls appearing in sets outside of LEGO Friends and Disney sets geared towards younger builders of late, with LEGO Wicked and Wednesday being chief among them. For some people, the lack of minifigures in sets that undoubtedly have appeal for older builders as well as young is a deal breaker.

"I was very excited for a Wicked set only to find out that it wasn’t the normal LEGO figures and the weirdly-shaped ones," wrote one LEGO.com reviewer of LEGO Wicked 76964 Welcome to Emerald City. "I don’t understand why there [aren't minifigures] like almost every other LEGO set."

For those unfamiliar with mini-dolls, it might well come as a shock to see long-legged figures appearing in LEGO sets. However, once you get past the differences, there's a lot to appreciate about them, as we found with Cruella in 43262 Maleficent's and Cruella De Vil's Dresses.

"Born brilliant, born bad, and a little bit mad"

While the LEGO Disney Cruella minifigure, which appears in LEGO Collectible Minifigure Series 71038 Disney 100th Anniversary, undoubtedly captures the spirit of Cruella in the typical LEGO look, the mini-doll's larger eyes and more authentic proportions stay closer to the on-screen version. The face is more expressive, with different eyebrow shapes and printing around the cheeks depicting her mood, rather than trying to convey her face shape as in the minifigure.

Her taller height allows for a more accurate cape as well, rather than the much-shorter yellow ruff that the minifigure comes with. To give a sense of the cloak and dress on the minifigure, she's got continuous black and yellow printing on the torso and legs, but it comes off closer to a shorts-and-vest combo, rather than the classy gown and fur coat that Cruella is known for.

The mini-doll's proportional features pair well with printing all the way down to her toes, with defined red heels on her feet, rather than the blobby shapes the minifigure has. The LEGO minifigure is, of course, an iconic design – but it's hard to capture the finer details when you're so restricted in shape.

It's all about the story

Put simply, all of the details mentioned above break down into something simple: mini-dolls can present the finer details far more clearly than minifigures can. For characters that should be recognisable from their on-screen inspirations, that's a valuable tool to be used in LEGO storytelling.

The separate legs and longer bodies have more room for LEGO designers to play with, offering the chance to print minute details like Wednesday's neckline in her party outfit in 76781 Wednesday & Enid's Dorm Room and Madame Morrible's dress patterns in 75684 Welcome to Emerald City that would otherwise have likely been less detailed in a minifigure version.

You can see the sacrifices made in Cruella's design, despite the fact that the minfigure and mini-doll only came out less than two years apart. Her clothing is less defined, her shoes undistinguished – and for a woman as focused on fashion as Cruella de Vil, that's a real issue.

As the LEGO community grows, there's room for different wants and needs. For those who want a LEGO-fied version of a character, minifigures are probably still the best bet. For those who want a figure that's as close to the on-screen version as possible while still being compatible with LEGO bricks, mini-dolls strike that balance perfectly.

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