Upcoming LEGO City sets downplay the return of Johnny Thunder

The long-awaited return of Johnny Thunder as a minifigure in next month’s upcoming LEGO City sets appears to be more subdued than expected.

Next month brings with it a huge number of new LEGO sets, guaranteed to stretch the wallets of even the most dedicated of collectors. Included in the line-up of models due for launch on June 1, 2024, are 11 LEGO City builds (with 60440 LEGO Delivery Truck currently MIA), two of which feature the return of a highly-anticipated minifigure.

The upcoming LEGO City releases include a jungle sub-theme, with two of the builds featuring a new Johnny Thunder minifigure. 60424 Jungle Explorer ATV Red Panda Mission and 60426 Jungle Explorer Off-Road Truck both come with the same version of the fan-favourite character, complete with new torso prints, but only plain brown legs.

However, despite the visual match to Johnny Thunder, both LEGO City sets only refer to the character as an ‘explorer’ and ‘adventurer’ minifigure. While that description might seem a little odd at first, it certainly fits in line with two other LEGO Adventurers minifigures that have recently been released.

Dr. Kilroy was included in 10326 Natural History Museum in 2023, although he was merely described as being the ‘curator’ of the brick-built modular building. The same goes for Pippin Reed’s appearance in 21344 The Orient Express Train last year, with the familiar redhead only referred to as a ‘writer.’

Johnny Thunder last popped up 70815 Super Secret Police Dropship in 2014 and 71025 Series 19 in 2019, where he was described in the CMF as a ‘Jungle Explorer.’ Despite the lack of any formal recognition for the reunited trio of LEGO Adventurers, fans can at least look forward to having a complete set of the characters when next month’s LEGO City sets drop.

Every LEGO City set available for pre-order

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