Lego Minifigures The LEGO Harry Potter CMF Series 2 71028 Review

Today we will be taking a closer look at the LEGO Harry Potter CMF Series 2 set number 71028. This set came out in 2020, has 16 minifigures, and was designed for people 5 and up.

After the relaunch of the Harry Potter theme and the first Harry Potter CMF Series in 2018, LEGO started consistently releasing new sets every year. In 2020, LEGO gave us a second Harry Potter Collectible Minifigure series. For this round of characters, LEGO got rid of the larger Wizarding World and focused on the original Harry Potter story line. It would include many new characters that had not been seen in standard building sets.

Harry Potter 71028-1

For the second series of LEGO Harry Potter CMF characters, we only got one Harry Potter Minifiugre. Of course the title character has to be the first minifigure in this collection. This particular minifigure is based on the 6th story in the series, Harry Potter and The Half-Blood Prince. After the second film, Hogwarts students moved from constantly wearing traditional wizard robes to a more modern fashion. Harry’s clothes might not give away when this character appears, but his potions book with detailed notes inside does. It’s clearly the used copy that helped him excel in potions class, thanks to the notes from its former owner the Half-Blood Prince. We later discovered that the Half-Blood Prince was none other than the previous potions class professor Severus Snape.

It might not look like it, but the leg is an original piece. Harry is wearing dark blue pants with a lot of intricate details printed on it. The black belt is going through the loops of his pants and the silver buckle includes the prong. Pockets on a minifigure’s legs are usually just a curved line. This leg piece also included dashes to show the sewing pattern. These dashed lines can also be found on the side of the leg piece to create the seam. The shoes are the typical black line at the feet.

The Torso piece is also an original piece thanks to all those small little details in the printing that are not typically put onto minifigures found in a standard set. The dark bluish gray torso was made to look like Harry is wearing a hoodie jacket, with a red shirt underneath. Those extra details can be seen with the shadowing on the red shirt and detail put into the pull and slider of the jacket zipper. Once again we get those stitch lines down the zipper and shoulders. The hood and pockets of the jacket are clearly outlined on the front and back. Thicker lines were randomly put around the torso to show this baggy clothing loosely fitting on his body. The seam at the bottom has appeared on lots of standard minifigures but still looks amazing.

Even the dual printed head piece is exclusive to this minifigure. One side gives us a surprised look. The opened mouth with top teeth exposed and the eyebrow positioning shows us he is shocked. It appears his sudden surprise is from some magical danger he has encountered and not from opening a present. His second facial expression has him smiling. I have found that most happy expressions from our Hogwarts students are large and full of joy but, this time Harry’s grin looks mischievous. The small crooked grin and slightly raised right eyebrow are great! He has clearly concocted a plan to stop Voldemort and break a few rules along the way. Harry is a good guy, but wasn’t always a model student. Of course, the lightning bolt scar is placed on his forehead.

The black, short, tousled hair with a side part is NOT an original piece. It has been used for lots of Harry Potter Minifigures and many more outside the theme. With so many Harry Potter minifigures available over the years, it’s no surprise that LEGO would use a piece already available for this CMF set.

For his accessories, Harry comes with his standard dark brown wand and his borrowed potions textbook. The potions book is my favorite part of this minifigure. Every part used to create the book was unique to this set. The book binding with 2 studs and book cover pieces have been around since 2016, but this is the first time they came in a sand blue color. The printing on the front cover was amazingly well detailed. The title Advanced Potion Making and the author’s name Libatius Borage were left off, but everything else was perfectly captured from the film. The smoke from the black cauldron contains magical symbols. The geometric white lines and circles at the bottom of the book replicate the book seen in the movie perfectly. It is the 1X2 printed tile piece inside the book that lets us know this is the Half-Blood Prince’s book. Snape had made notes in his book while he was a student at Hogwarts. Even then he had a gift and was able to alter the recipes found in the book for a better effect and invented a few spells that he wrote in the margins. LEGO used red printing to show us the book’s test and black for Snape’s notes. If there was any doubt these are Snape’s notes, the top of the page as Sectumsempra scribbled on the top. The spell Snape invented and Harry used, without knowing its effects, on Malfoy in the bathroom.

Headmaster Albus Dumbledore 71028-2

As the Headmaster of Hogwarts and the only person Voldemort feared, Dumbledore was an integral character in the Harry Potter Storyline. The nice thing about getting Dumbledore in the collectable minifigure series is that the higher quality printing can do a wonderful job capturing his very ornate clothing style. For Headmaster Dumbledore, we get his outfit from the Chamber of Secrets storyline. Specifically, LEGO decided to use the scene where Dumbledore is talking to Harry Potter in his office, after the Basilisk has been killed and Fawkes has been fully reborn from its ashes.

The dark red lower body skirt does a wonderful job creating Dumbledore’s ornate robes. Dark brown filigree patterns are put on the front and back to replicate the designs embroidered into the fabric. Thick black lines in the back give the illusion of the long fabric trailing behind him. The black robe lining on the front uses uneven edges and curves to make it look like a furry material. The robe opens to reveal a copper and gold undergarment with buttons fastening it together. We see the care Dumbledore takes with every layer of clothing he wears.

I won’t go into too much detail with the dark red torso piece since it just continues the amazing design from the legs onto the rest of his body. The back of the torso does deserve some attention. Here, we can see the hood of his robe hanging down below the fur collar. I love that LEGO gave this hood a copper and gold tassel on the tip. It fits the elegant clothing Dumbledore likes to wear. The one thing that really bothers me about this minifigure is the small gap in printing on the top of the dress and bottom of the torso. It leaves a large line across the center of the robe. The solid black lining with the completely colored copper and gold center make this line very noticeable and distracting.

The minifigure beard with a rounded end has been around since 2012. It was first worn by Galdalf in a light bluish grey. The beard piece is a popular style for many wizards in the LEGO world. This Dumbledore minifigure would be the first one to have it made from a white plastic, However, white would soon become the most common color used for this piece.

The dual sided head was an original piece when this set came out, but has since been used on Dumbledore minifigures found in large boxed sets, polybags, and an advent calendar. I usually feel the reuse of collectable minifigure pieces is disappointing but Dumbledore's large bead, long hair and ornate hats cover so much of the face printing that it’s not that big of a loss to the uniqueness of the minifigure. The two facial designs are very similar. The white beard with light bluish highlights are exactly the same. The half-moon gold spectacles are worn in the same position over the eyes. Even the wrinkle lines on his forehead, eyes, cheeks, and chin do not move. Botox Maybe? It's the smile and big bushy white eyebrows that show us his different emotions. One side has a small grin with neutral resting eye brows. He is amused by something, but it’s not worth getting excited about. The other side has an open lip smile that shows us his white teeth and his eyebrows are now raised up. We are seeing that youthful joy that someone as old as Dumbledore has still managed to hold onto.

I loved Dumbledore’s costuming in the film because they managed to make him wear stereotypical wizard clothing without going full wizard. This original headgear piece managed to capture that image. The dark red pointed hat gives us the shape of a wizards hat without wondering how he will fit through doorways. The black band around the hat has gold stars printed onto it, but makes it look fashionable instead of something out of Mickey’s Sorcerers Apprentice. As always LEGO does an amazing job with the texture of the long white hair flowing down from underneath his hat. I love how LEGO manages to make a single piece of plastic look like strands of hair that have to obey the laws of gravity.

Dumbledore comes with a dark tan wand and his pet Fawkes. When this set came out the red phoenix creature piece with bright light orange on its face and chest was an original piece. However, this small, magical LEGO animal would come with the larger Fawkes, Dumbledore’s Phoenix building set that came out the following year. It makes another appearance in 2025 and I would not be surprised if we keep seeing this piece pop up in future sets. The black printing used for the beak, eyes and head feathers do a wonderful job with flushing out the look of the bird, but it's the mold itself that I love. It is a huge upgrade from the 2002 version that came out with the Chamber of Secrets set. The long back tail feathers that go well below its claws and large wings do a wonderful job capturing the shape of this magnificent creature. The way LEGO molded the long neck to hold its beautifully sculpted head shows the bird's regal demeanor.

Hermione Granger 71028-3

The series might be called Harry Potter, but his best friends Hermione and Ron were just as important to the story as the child who lived. Of course the brilliant and clever muggle born witch, Hermioine Granger, has to be part of the CMF collection. This particular minifigure is based on a scene in Harry Potter and the Half-blood Prince. While on a trip to Hogsmeade, the three friends follow Professor Slughorn into the Three Broomsticks. They order some Butterbeer and wait. Slughorn soon approaches and reveals he has a supper party for select students. He then invites Harry and Hermione to his party. This works perfectly for Harry, who was asked by Dumbledore to get close to Slughorn.

During this particular visit to Hogsmeade, it was cold and snowing. LEGO made sure to create Hermione’s dark blue pants and thick winter boots. Her jeans have those nice details like pockets, a button and side seams that help give texture to the clothing being worn. It’s the boots that I love. Rather than just using dark bluish grey for the shoes, we also get the light bluish grey fur lining at the top. A squiggly black line shows us the material of the boots being pressed together as she walks in the snow.

The torso piece did a wonderful job recreating Hermione’s warm clothes. The tan sweater with 3 dark brown stripes going across the front and back looks amazing. Black lines around the neck make sure this sweater is thicker around the collar. It’s the way they make the loose clothing scrunch together that really impresses me. A thick black line in the center creates a large fold in the fabric and then thinner tan lines along the waist shows us the clothing slightly bunching together. LEGO, making sure to capture every detail of her costume, even added pink along the bottom for her shirt peeking out from under the sweater.

The dual sided head is unique to this set. I appreciate when the CMF series gives characters who appear in lots of LEGO sets an original head piece. It’s nice to get different expressions you can use in MOC work and respect the collectable part of this series. One side has the friendly closed lip smile that shows off her peach lips. As always the reddish brown eyebrows and feminine eyelashes look great. I am NOT a fan of the freckles on this headpiece. To me freckles are better on younger children and by this part of the storyline, Hermione is well into her teenage years. Also,While Emma Watson has freckles, Hermione does not. They are not mentioned in the book and Emma Watson’s were covered up by makeup. Hey, as a reviewer, I need to be this picky. The other side has what Bricklink described as a “scared pattern”. I like this partly opened mouth with teeth showing design. The eyebrows are slightly raised near the nose and small lines have formed at the corners of the eyes. This is not the terrified look of someone being attacked by Deatheaters but the startled expression of someone with a butterbeer mustache in front of the boy she has a crush on.

Not surprisingly, the reddish brown, mid-length, wavy hair piece is the only non original piece used to create the minifigure. With Hermione being described as having bushy brown hair, this piece works great. The way it flows over the shoulders, down the back and then splits off in all directions at the ends looks fantastic. It’s not surprising that LEGO has used this piece on several Hermione Granger minifigures.

For her accessories, Hermione comes with her dark tan minifigure wand and cup of butterbeer. The translucent clear stein with translucent orange drink pattern inside was first introduced in this cmf series. LEGO did an amazing job with sculpting the mug to look like the glass in the film and be utilized as a LEGO piece. The wider base works great for attaching itself to a stud, the thin neck and then wider body match the shape and the handle allows for minifigures to easily hold their drink. It’s the translucent orange drink that makes this piece amazing. It looks like it has been filled with butterbeer instead of being empty like most other LEGO cups.

Ron Weasley 71028-4

As the three main characters of the story, Harry, Ron and Hermione appear in lots of LEGO sets. For this CMF series, the Ron Weasly and Hermione Granger minifigures were based on a scene in Harry Potter and the Half-blood Prince. When Harry spots Slughorn going to The Three Broomsticks, he leads his friends to follow him inside. This Hogsmeade trip wasn't the best experience for Ron. While drinking butterbeer at the pub, he had to watch his sister Ginny snogging with Dean Thomas. He also missed several blatant clues that Hermione was romantically interested in him. Then when Slughorn invited Harry and Hermione to his supper party for select students, Slughorn didn’t invite Ron. To add insult to injury, he even called Ron Wallenby.

The light bluish grey leg piece uses many of the printing techniques used by LEGO over the years to create pants, but still adds a few extra details to make the piece original. The belt loops on the waist, button closing the pants at the top and the flap where they come together is standard. A solid line is used to form the pockets and dashed lines under the pockets and along the side create the stitching. The bunching of the fabric at the knees is a nice printing detail we don’t see a lot of. LEGO gave him dark bluish grey shoes.

LEGO did an amazing job with all the colors and small details in Ron’s sweater. The reddish brown torso had light bluish grey, orange, and medium azure stripes running all the way down the front, side and back of the piece. I am always impressed with LEGO zipper printing. Having the sweater slightly zipped down copies the way Ron wears it in the film and also lets us see his orange shirt underneath. Since this is his thick winter clothes, we can see the fur collar as it flaps open at the top. I have always enjoyed Ron’s hand me down not quite fashionable muggle clothing in the film. I’m glad LEGO managed to recreate it perfectly for this minifigure.

The original dual sided headpiece gives Ron some great expressions. One side has a small lopsided smirk. This is the perfect representation of the insecure smile Ron often gives. With 5 older brothers, two of them talented pranksters, you know why Ron might not always be willing to give a full toothy smile. Of course the Weasley hair requires dark orange eyebrows. The other side shows us the confused look often given when he is around the much smarter Hermione. I love how his left eyebrow is drawn down to his slightly squinting eye. The open mouth showing us his teeth easily lets us imagine him trying to figure out what’s going on. I love this look. Especially with him being paired with the Hermione Granger minifigure from this series.

The tousled hair with a side part is an extremely common hairstyle for minifigures. While this piece mostly comes in black, dark orange is easily the second most popular color. I am sure this has a lot to do with Ron Weasley, who has at least 10 minifigures by himself with this same headgear piece. I am sure it will be used on many more of his minifigures in the future. It works perfectly for his long unkempt hair.

For his accessories, Ron was given a reddish brown minifigure wand and glass of butterbeer. The translucent clear stein with translucent orange drink pattern inside was first introduced in this cmf series. I love that this translucent clear piece not only matches the mug used in the film, but is filled with butterbeer as opposed to being empty like most LEGO minifigure cups. In 2020, Ron and Hermione were the only sets to have this piece. The next year it would come in the larger Hogsmeade Village Visit set #76388. Which makes sense since the cups were designed after the ones used for The Three Broomsticks in Hogsmeade. By 2022, this piece was making appearances in sets across several LEGO themes. It might have been unique at the time but is now becoming more common.

Luna Lovegood 71028-5

Luna Lovegood was sorted into the Ravenclaw house at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry. She didn’t let things like class houses limit her choice in friends. She would become very close with Harry and his fellow Gryffindors. Whenever the Gryffindor Quidditch team played against Slytherin’s, Luna would give her full and whimsical support. Never one to worry about what others think, she wore a large Gryffindor lion's head to the game and around the school campus. What’s the fun in learning magic, if you can’t have a little fun with it? Luna enchanted her lion hat to let out a realistic roar, when she tapped it with her wand. This would often cause other people nearby to jump in surprise.

The original leg piece looks great and captures Luna’s colorful personality. Dark pink plastic was used for her pants. Curved black lines on the front create pockets. The black lines and a circle show us the waistband to this article of clothing. Dark red was used on the feet to create her boots. I LOVE how LEGO gave us dark turquoise, blue and black stripes to create her kooky socks. To give a more realistic appearance, these colored lines were wavy as they went across the leg. This works for fabric that bunches together and does not stay straight up as a person walks around in a world filled with gravity.

The torso is amazing. It’s not only an original piece but also captures Luna’s eccentric fashion. Dark blue is used to create her berry printed sweater vest. Dark turquoise arrows pointing up were used to create the stem of the berries and the fruit are dark pink circles. The pattern was continued onto the back. Looking closely at her vest reveals that LEGO put the stitched seams around her neck and arms. We can see that Luna is wearing layers of clothing to keep her warm during the cold winter months. Dark bluish grey was used for the arms to show us this was a separate piece of clothing from her sweater vest. Lines were drawn at the neck to show the texture of a thicker material as opposed to a thin undershirt. I love that the lines on the long sleeved sweater are slightly off at the collar. It’s that slight difference that helps give the illusion of this being where the fabric is sewn together and made a little thicker.

Luna’s dual printed head is also original to this set. One side shows us the happy expression of a Quidditch fan seeing her team in the lead. The thin tan eyebrows do a wonderful job capturing the shape of Evanna Lynch’s from the movies. The subtle use of bright pink lipstick around her toothy smile also captured her onscreen appearance. The tight lipped expression on the other side shows us a sporting spectator witnessing a tense moment in the game. The slight curve at the top makes sure this look is not a simple neutral or angry expression. I appreciate LEGO changing the shape of the eyebrows to help illustrate how people use their whole face to express emotion and not just their mouths.

The bright yellow hair with a long ponytail and side bangs brings us to our first non original piece. This particular piece has been used on lots of different characters, including Phoebe Buffay and Supergirl. It can also be found on several Luna minifigures. While the piece is a nice choice from the existing LEGO parts catalog, I don’t think it does a great job matching Luna’s more curly and a bit untamed hair. This hair piece is actually listed under the accessory list and not part of the minifigure.

According to Bricklink, the costume lion head was considered part of the minifigure’s build and not an accessory. With good reason, the headgear piece is why everybody wanted this minifigure. Luna’s Gryffindor Lion hat was extremely memorable but so specific that collectors will probably never see this piece again. The coloring and shape of the molded plastic looks amazing. The bright light orange plastic had reddish brown and gold stripes put all over the lion’s mane. This really helped the hair come to life. I love that the black used for the ears, eyes and nose isn’t smooth, but looks like stitching on a piece of fabric. LEGO did an amazing job crafting this piece and made the Gryffindor lion’s hat just as memorable as its movie inspiration.

Since the Lion’s hat is considered part of the minifigure and we’ve already talked about the hair, the only accessory to come in this set was Luna’s reddish brown minifigure wand. In the Wizarding World every single wand is unique and it’s appearance will depend on the particular tree and magical creature from which it derives its materials. For this reason, I love that LEGO makes a variety of different colored wands and a character will use the same colored wand across sets.

Griphook 71028-6

Griphook was the Goblin who took Hagrid and Harry to vault 687 to withdraw money from Harry’s account and retrieve the Philosopher’s Stone from Vault 713, when they went to Gringotts Wizarding Bank for the first time. Griphook would go on the run when the Ministry of Magic fell during the Second Wizarding War. Harry and his friends would enlist Griphooks’s aid in breaking into Gringotts to steal Helga Hufflepuff’s Cup, which they believed was one of Voldemort’s horocruxes. Griphook agreed only if they gave him the Sword of Gryffindor. Unfortunately Griphook’s mistrust in wizards caused him to betray them. This would ultimately lead to his own death at the hands of Voldemort.

At 3’6” tall, Griphook is significantly shorter than an 11 year old human child. For this reason, LEGO used a solid black short leg piece. Found on 100s of minifigures, there is nothing special about this piece.

The original black torso printed to look like a pinstriped suit is fantastic. The dark bluish grey stripes running down the black vest and white dress shirt let us know exactly what style of suit our goblin is wearing. I appreciate that LEGO also included these lines on the white arms, since this detail is often missed with long sleeve shirts. The half belt on the back and pockets on the front add that extra detail making the vest an upscale clothing item. The detail that I love is the slightly disheveled look of his shirt. The top button is unfastened causing his collar to be crooked. The uneven line of buttons running down the front add to this unkept appearance. We are seeing a Griphook on the run and not a goblin currently working at the bank.

The single sided head piece is also unique to this set. I should start out by saying I have never been a fan of the LEGO Harry Potter goblin headpieces. With large noses being such a prominent part of their facial feature, the lack of a minifigure nose has taken away from their recreation. And the original monocolor heads that did have noses just looked weird. That being said, the printing is well done. I particularly like the open mouth with four sharp teeth along the top. The large arched eyebrows made with both black and dark bluish grey colors do a fantastic job matching Griphook’s appearance in the film. The darker colored crows feet wrinkles help with the illusion of the deep set eyes of a goblin. Nougat lines all over the face show us his inhuman nature. Overall, I get the monster but not goblin from this head piece.

When this set came out in 2020, the swept back, short, dark bluish grey hair with large goblin ears on the side was an original piece. It would quickly be used again for the Griphook minifigure found in the 2021 LEGO Harry Potter advent calendar. By 2023 it would become the standard head gear piece for Gringott goblin bankers and get more hair colors. This piece is so well sculpted that you can see why LEGO was quick to add it to their other sets. The texture in the hair is not only amazing but I love the way LEGO created the receding hair line. The larger light nougat ears molded into the plastic look fantastic and are clearly different from the elf ears we typically see. Bricklink describes these ears as an elf, goblin or orc ear pattern. With so many mythical creatures listed for this ear, I can’t help wondering if this piece will be making it onto other monster minifigures in the future.

Griphook was given two accessories. The key piece has been around since 2001, appears in almost 100 sets and many of those are in the same dark bluish grey color. The bow of the key might not be as elaborate as a Gringott Bank key, but the large cuts and bidding at the end of the blade is perfect. This was a nice accessory to connect Griphook to his banking profession. The flat silver, ornate sword with translucent red jewels in the crossguard and pommel used for the Sword of Gryffindor was unique to this set when it first came out. It was my favorite piece and the reason I wanted this minifigure. The Gryffindor Sword has played a key part in many of the Harry Potter storylines, so it is no surprise that it immediately started popping up in sets every year after this minifigure came out. While this would have been a great exclusive piece, it looks too good not to use again. The jewels on the ends make it easily identifiable as the Sword of Gryffindor. The etching along the crossguard helps with creating the ornate design found on the sword's entire hilt. LEGO even included the metal Chappe along the bottom of the blade. No wonder Griphook wanted this sword as payment for his help…that and the fact he thought it rightfully belonged to the goblins after Griffindor’s death.

Lily Potter 71028-7

Lily Evans attended Hogwarts in the 1970’s. It was there that she met and fell in love with her fellow Gryffindor student James Potter. After graduating from wizarding school, Lily and James married. They joined the Order of the Phoenix during the First Wizarding War. They fought bravely against Voldemort and his followers. When a prophecy was made concerning their newborn son Harry and Voldemor, they went into hiding. Betrayed by their friend Peter Pettigrew, Lily died defending her son from Voldemort and shielding him in the power of her love. Harry never knew his parents while living, but did meet them through the Resurrection Stone near the end of the story. LEGO gave this Lily minifigure the same outfit she was wearing when Harry encountered her through the Resurrection Stone.

A solid black line across the front and side of the feet creates her simple shoes. A thick black line on the legs separates the dark blue dress from her dark blue leggings. LEGO did not include the floral pattern on the lower part of her dress, but did use different length vertical lines across the front and sides of the legs to create the folds in the dress as it hangs down.

Once again the floral pattern on the dark blue dress is missing from the torso piece. The dark green design, on the dark blue dress, that was seen while she was a spectre, at night is a detail that would probably go unnoticed unless you were closely studying the costume for a review. That is my long way of saying the lack of green printing does not take away from the quality of the minifigure. LEGO did include the bright light blue roses and hem on her blue vest. These flowers printed all over the front and back look amazing. The light nougat at the top is not part of the dress but her exposed skin.

I like that both the original faces on this dual sided head piece are happy expressions. This figure is based on Harry’s happy memories of his family and not them fighting death eaters or falling victim to Voldemort. The dark orange eyebrows match her hairpiece. The crows feet near her feminine eyes show us an older Lily who is bringing up a son during troubling times for the wizarding world. The big toothy smile also puts lines along the mouth to show us a woman smiling with her entire face as she basks in the love of those around her. The tight lipped grin better reveals her peach lips. This smile might not be as big, but it still shows us the loving smile of a mother looking proiudly at her precious angel.

The dark orange, mid-length female hair with a part over the right shoulder brings us to our first non-original piece. This piece was first introduced back in 2009 and dark orange is the second most common color used. It’s right behind reddish brown. Seeing the hair fall down the back of the head and the way it curves onto the shoulder is amazing. Even the wave of hair slightly covering the forehead is fantastic. It is no wonder why LEGO uses this piece so much.

Just like her son Harry, Lily has a dark brown wand for her accessory. She also comes with what is probably my favorite accessory from this series, a baby harry potter. The infant with stud holder on back was first used in 2016 with the Tribal Woman minifigure from CMF series 15. I loved this piece when I got it back then, I loved it more when I got a baby voldemort with The Rise of Voldemort set in 2019 and I love it even more now. Having a baby Harry Potter swaddled in a sand blue blanket is fantastic. Since Lily is still alive, that means Harry has not received the lightning bolt scar. To make sure we know this is Harry Potter, a large golden “H” is printed front and center.

James Potter 71028-8

James Potter attended Hogwarts from 1971 to 1978. While at school, he met his best friends Remus Lupin, Sirius Black and Peter Pettigrew. As a Gryffindor he also made an enemy of a Slytherin student named Severus Snape. All these relationships would have grand effects for the future of the Wizarding World, but maybe none more than meeting the love of his life, Lily Evans. They would marry after graduating and have a child named Harry. When a prophecy was made about their child and Voldemort, they went into hiding. Unfortunately, his friend Peter Pettigrew betrayed them to Voldemore. He and Lily would die defending their son from Voldemore on Halloween in 1981.

James Potter dresses sensibly. The leg piece shows us his black dress shoes and bluish grey slacks. Since LEGO own’s Bricklink, I like to use them as my main source of information on piece facts. For the leg piece, Bricklink describes the black section on top with dark bluish gray lines to create the folds as a “Robe End”. However, on the torso piece this article of clothing is described as a “Coat”. Looking at the full minifigure and not having a hood on the back of the torso piece makes me believe that this is the bottom of a long trench coat.

As we move to the torso piece you can see the rest of his long black COAT. The lapel opens up to reveal his dark bluish great vest. Under the vest he has his white shirt and black tie. I am always impressed with the amount of detail LEGO puts into these articles of clothing that are barely visible under larger jackets. The fact that they take the time to put buttons on the vest, and folds in the tie where it comes through the knot shows the care they take in creating their products and the respect they have for their customers.

The long scarf molded to look like it wraps around the minifigures neck is made from a rubbery plastic. This piece was first used for the Jay Walker minifigure back in 2017. It has since branched out from the Ninjago Movie and been used in themes across the LEGO universe. While the piece itself has become common, as of the writing of this review, it remains the only time it has come in a dark red color. If this is the same scarf from the picture, it should have been black or a very dark grey, but I like the color contrast. Plus, dark red works for Gryffindor colors.

James Potter’s original dual sided head piece gives us two happy expressions. The big open smile shows us a man who enjoys hanging out with his friends and loved ones. Large strips of reddish brown on the sides create his mutton chop sideburns. Despite his reddish brown hair, he was given black eyebrows. I love the lines to create the nasolabial fold on the sides. Those are the creases that extend from the nose to the corners of the mouth. Yes, I had to look that term up. But they are so pronounced on the actor who played James, I am glad LEGO included them. I appreciate that the chin line moves up and down between the open and closed smile, in order to stay the same distance from the lips. I am assuming that Harry has his mother’s eyes, but his father’s eyesight. We can see James Potter wearing gold framed glasses. Between these glasses and Harry’s inheritance, we can safely assume that Harry’s parents were filthy rich.

The reddish brown, short tousled hair parted to the side brings us to our first non-original piece. Over 330 minifigures have this hairstyle and the piece appears in over 350 sets. His son, Harry Potter, can be found wearing this same headgear piece in black. This brings up the question: If James has reddish brown hair and Lilly has dark orange hair, why does Harry have black hair?

For his accessories, James was given a reddish brown wand and a picture of him and Lily. With no memory of his parents, pictures were important to Harry. Which makes this portrait of James and Lily standing together one of his greatest treasures. This particular picture is the one Harry keeps in a frame next to his bed. In this unique 2X3 medium nougat tile, we can see Lily and James holding each other as they stand in front of a fountain. LEGO captured the characters by making sure Lily is wearing her beret and James has his scarf. This particular image appeared in the 4 Private drive set back in 2020, but that was on a sticker and didn’t have any detail in the background. The background on this piece is amazing. Not only do we see ripples in the water and the fountain shooting up behind them, but we can see the different sections of stone surrounding the water. Bushes were added along the side. The leaves blowing in the background let us imagine this photo being taken on a cold, windy, Autumn day.

Ginny Weasley 71028-9

Ginny Weasley was the only girl of the 7 Weasley children born to Arthur and Molly. Just like all her other siblings, she was sorted into the Gryffindor House. As the youngest, she would enter Hogwarts the year after her Brother Ron. Her first year at Hogwarts got off to a rough start when she was possessed by Tom Riddle’s Diary and opened the Chamber of Secrets. Of course, those weren’t the safest times at Hogwarts anyway. Ginny would prove to be a power witch and hold her own against Death Eaters and stood out amongst her fellow Hogwarts students. She even caught the interest of Professor Slughorn who looks for witches and wizards with a bright future to bring into his sphere of influence. This minifigure is based on the private Christmas party Slughorn had for those students.

Since Slughorn’s party comes in the 6th book, most of the characters have grown up quite a bit. Ginny was given the standard minifigure leg piece, instead of the medium or short size used for the younger students. We can see the lower portion of Ginny’s dark green dress. Black lines were put along the front and back to help give texture to the fabric and show it flowing around her legs. I love that LEGO did not put a straight line across the bottom, but made it wavy so it hangs down like a real dress. A simple black stripe across the feet shows us Ginny’s elegant shoes.

The torso piece did a great job capturing the intricate design of Ginny’s dress in the film. The lower half continues the lines of the hanging fabric, but the top half has the beads that decorate the clothing. The thin straps can be seen going over her shoulders and to the back. The back of the toros is just as ornate as the front. It’s nice when LEGO puts a lot of detail on the back printing, even though it will be covered up by the characters long hair. The dress is covered in a dark blue pattern. The fine details of this dark blue printing on top of a dark green make it difficult to see. Bricklink describes it as a Filigree Pattern. While the full effect was lost because of the dark color choices, it does add a texture that lets us know this is more than a simple dark green dress. Ginny is wearing a beautiful silver pendant to complete her fancy ensemble.

The dual printed head piece is an original piece. Typically these Wizarding World minifigures have a happy expression and then another to show they are either in mortal danger or fighting a villain. This head piece was designed for a character enjoying a party. One side has the closed smile of someone having a good time and relaxed as she mingles among friends. The other side shows us a big lopsided smile with a raised eyebrow. To me, this confident smile looks like the one given to Harry Potter when Ginny catches him giving her more attention than he would care to admit too. Of course, those eyebrows have to be dark orange. She is a Weasly. I’m glad LEGO gave her the peach lips to show us that she put on makeup for this party.

The long wavy dark orange hair is also an original piece. That makes every piece used to create this minifigure unique to this set. That is what I want from a CMF character. This hair piece looks amazing. The way it hangs over her shoulders and back is so life-like. I love that the waves in the hair are symmetrical. You know Ginny took time getting ready for this party and her effort shows. The small gold clip on her right side is that detail that LEGO includes to show us just how meticulous their design team is in both studying and creating these characters in minifigure form.

For her accessories, Ginny has her standard dark brown minifigure wand and a large serving of chocolate ice cream. The translucent clear sundae dish and reddish brown ice cream scoops is perfect. These pieces could not have been a better fit for the large servings of chocolate ice cream Slughorn serves at his parties. I was surprised that only 7 sets have the ice cream scoops in this reddish brown color, when 22 have it in dark purple. I guess minifigures just don’t like chocolate ice cream. The translucent clear sundae dish or cocktail glass depending on its use was only found with this set. The other 5 times this mold has been used, it came in a translucent orange color.

Fred Weasley 71028-10

Fred is the older of the Weasley Twins. With an April Fools birthday, it’s no wonder they grew up to be pranksters. Rowling says that Fred was the ringleader, crueler and funnier of the twins. Despite all their troublemaking, they still had hearts of gold. They always knew where to draw the line and managed to stay out of any serious trouble. They didn’t back down when it came time to defend their friends. As members of The Order of the Phoenix they battled Voldemort and his followers. Unfortunately, Fred was killed in an explosion during the Battle of Hogwarts, This left his twin distraught for years.

The leg piece shows us the bottom of Fred Weasley’s long dark tan robe and his dark blush grey boots. The legs give us an idea of the amazing detail LEGO will be putting into his robe. Reddish brown lines are used to create the creases and folds in the fabric. The black lines form the shape of the cloak and its pockets. The line on the side of the legs could have been left out, but LEGO made sure not to take any shortcuts in their design of this character. The reddish brown toggle buttons closing the robe let us know this is Fred and not his brother George.

The torso has his robe closed with the reddish brown toggle buttons all the way to the top. I love that these buttons are not straight but crooked, to show loose fitting clothes. We can see the collar of the thick red shirt hanging over the front and partially revealed in the back. Thanks to his brother George, who has his cloak open, we know Fred also has a dark red shirt with tan stripes underneath. I love that the open and closed cloaks allowed for two completely unique printing to make sure we don’t mix up the twins. Those reddish brown lines appear on the front and back to make sure his robe looks three dimensional with folds and creases. Even the hood lays unevenly down his back. The light nougat hands are perfect for our bookie who can’t wear gloves as he’s taking bets and handing out markers for the latest sporting event. We will get to that later, when discussing Fred’s accessories.

Fred’s dual printed head is an original piece and offers two separate expressions than those given to his brother George. I love that first expression of the lopsided grin. It fits Rowling's description of Fred being the ringleader. You can see the plot hatching in his head. His slightly raised left eyebrow lets us know that he is liking this idea. The other side has the open mouth smile of someone having a good laugh. He’s laughing so loud that we can see his tongue and upper teeth. The smile is moving slightly to his left. To highlight this movement, lego put a single line on the higher side of his smile.

The hat is our first non-original piece. Which is pretty impressive when you're creating twins known for dressing the same. The orange Weasley hair can be seen hanging down the bottom of the tan stocking cap. The mold for the hat with hair is fantastic. The bottom section that folds over itself is thicker than the body and the yarn ball on top has all the little balls as they are clumped together. The light bluish grey printing is a simplified version of its on screen inspiration. The larger grey diamond like shape with the two ovals inside was included, but the dark grey line with smaller ovals were not. Rather than a wavy or zigzag line going all around the hat, individual triangles were spaced apart. It might not be 100% movie accurate, but it's still instantly recognizable.

The accessories for Fred were amazing. Of course he has his dark brown wand, so he doesn’t get it confused with his brother's reddish brown one. However, it’s his suitcase and it’s contents that make this set fantastic. The suitcase with gold clasp pattern was introduced with the first Wizarding World CMF series back in 2018, but we have not seen it since Newt and Jacob were carrying them in that series. However; Fred’s top book cover piece has “The Old Firm” written in red, blue squares and the Tri-Wizard scoreboard written in white. All this writing was put on a black background, to replicate the chalk board used for the Twin’s gambling booth they set up in the suitcase. This is almost an exact match to what we saw in the film. This piece would have been fantastic all by itself, but LEGO then gave us two 1X1 printed tiles to represent the cards being passed out for people’s bets. The lime tile has the number 6 printed over a dark turquoise and white stripe pattern. The orange tile had a 3 printed over red and white stripes.

George Weasley 71028-11

George is the younger of the Weasely Twins. They were born on April 1st, so they were destined to be pranksters. According to Rowling, George “was the quieter of the two”. Even though they have the reputation of being troublemakers, they had good hearts and knew where to draw the line. They constantly stood up for what was right. They joined Dumbledore’s Army and the Order of the Phoenix. George even lost an ear during the Battle of the Seven Potters. Thanks to Harry Potter giving them his Tri-Wizard Tournament winnings, they were able to open up a joke shop. George would continue to successfully run Weasleys’ Wizard Wheezes after his twin died during the Battle of Hogwarts.

The leg piece shows us that George Weasley has his long winter robe opened up. Underneath the thick robe we can see he is wearing dark bluish gray pants. Even though this is only the bottom section of his dark tan robe, LEGO put a lot of detail into the printing. Reddish brown lines were used to create creases in the fabric. Black lines show us the pleats, pockets and outline of the clothes. I appreciate that LEGO put seams on the side of the legs. This could have easily been left a solid dark tan color. They even put a reddish brown toggle button at the waist.

Since George’s robe is open, we can see his dark red shirt with tan stripes. I love how LEGO was able to make the collar flapping open look like thicker material. It’s amazing what shadowing and lines can do. The pocket printing starting at the legs is completed at the bottom of the torso. The twins were not neat and proper, so I appreciate that the reddish brown lines to create wrinkles in the clothes were put all over the front and back of the torso piece. Even Though it’s common to see the hoods on the back of the robes, I love the way it folds unevenly down and reveals the dark red shirt at the back of his neck. Once again the toggle buttons are put along the open seam of his robe. The light nougat hands let us know that George is not wearing gloves, despite the weather outside.

George’s dual printed head piece can only be found on this minifigure. He might have been the quieter of the two twins, but he still loved to laugh and have a good time. Both of his expressions show that happy care free attitude. The slightly crooked smile is open wide enough to show us his teeth. The lines formed on the side and at the chin let us know he smiles with his whole face. The dark orange eyebrows not only show us his Weasley hair color but also add to his emotions. Their position over the eyes makes me think of someone waiting to see how their joke was received by his audience. The other side has him laughing out loud. Clearly his joke landed. This time the lopsided smile curves up on the opposite side. He has opened his mouth wide enough to show his red tongue. Rather than getting laugh lines around his mouth, they are now under the eyes as he closes them shut from laughing so hard.

The hat piece has George’s long orange hair attached to it. The clothes are inspired by the outfits in The Goblet of Fire, but the hat can be seen in a couple of the movies. LEGO did a great job recreating this tan stocking cap. The mold has all those important details like the thicker folded section at the bottom wrapping around the head and the ball of knitted yarn at the top. The light bluish grey patterns are not exact, but close enough to let people recognize these hats from the film. I love that the hats appeared in several films as a subtle way to show the Weasley’s don’t have a lot of money for new clothes. This also means that it is the first non-original piece, since this exact hat also comes with his brother Fred.

For his accessories, George Weasley has his wand and the Marauder’s Map. To make sure he never mixes his wand up with Fred, he has a reddish brown wand. Even twins get unique wands in the Wizarding World. The Marauder’ Map was printed on a tan 2X2 tile piece. The map is currently folded and ready to be used by anyone who solemnly swears they are up to no good. Right now “mischief managed”. Since the tile is squared and not a rectangle like the folded map in the film or the 2X3 tile used in the Hogwarts Magical Trunk set, we only get the castle and a few of the trails. The castle is an amazing replication of the map. It even has Hogwarts written on the flag in faded ink. While Harry uses this map the most, it was the Weasley Twins who gave it to him in the Prisoner of Azkaban.

Bellatrix Lestrange 71028-12

Bellatrix Lestrange was among the most sadistic and dangerous Death Eaters. As a member of the House of Black, one of the oldest pure-blood families, she was the cousin of Sirius Black. She was caught and sent to Azkaban prison after she and several others had tortured and made the Longbottoms go insane with the Cruciatus Curse. She would remain in prison until the mass break-out in 1996. During the Second Wizarding War she would be responsible for many more deaths and was the last Death Eater standing during the Final Battle. She was eventually killed by Molly Weasley who stepped into the duel to protect her daughter Ginny. Bellatirix was fanatically loyal to Voldemort. It was later revealed she had given birth to his illegitimate daughter, Delphini. This particular minifigure is based on her imprisonment in Azkaban.

Bellatrix was one of the three characters from this series to come with the lower body skirt pieces. This light bluish grey piece has 5 dark bluish grey stripes to create her prison uniform. Azkaban is not a white-collar jail. This is a maximum security prison built on an island back in the 15th century. Bellatrix’s prison uniform is dirty and worn. We see the thick mud staining the bottom of her dress and splattered all over the fabric. Ripped ends, stitched lines and wrinkles show us just how tough life is in Azkaban. A black line on the bottom is used for shadowing. I am SUPER excited that this detailed printing was put on the back. These dress pieces rarely get back printing.

The striped prison clothing is continued onto the torso piece. While the top half is not as dirty, it’s even more tattered. Patches of fabric have been messily sewn onto her shoulder. You can even see this ugly fix continued on the back. The stitching along the center seam is just as sloppy. The collar is a ragged line all the way around her neck. We can expect thick lines drawn around LEGO clothing to show us how a garment fits on a character, but LEGO also included nougat lines for her collarbone. A great feature for a character who has been wasting away in prison for years. To create the worn look on the arms, the dark bluish grey lines were not straight but have slight curves and little triangles put along the edges.

Bellatrix was crazy and LEGO captured this mad woman’s expressions perfectly in this dual printed head piece. The dark tan used around the eyes does a great job showing us the hollowed look of someone who has not seen daylight in 15 years. The long arched eyebrows show us that her thoughts are of being up to no good. The medium nougat lips give us the feminine look without having her wear lipstick. The long lines on the side create her sunken cheeks. The other side has very similar printing, except she now has a small wicked grin. This smile shows us a woman who takes pleasure in causing others pain and killing.

The hair brings us to our first unoriginal piece. This black hair piece was first used on Bellatrix in The Burrow set from 2010 and it has been a standard piece for her minifigure ever since. It would be hard to make a better mold for the insane hairstyle worn by Helen Bonham Carter in her portrayal of Bellatrix Lestrange in the Harry Potter film franchise. Bricklink simply describes it as long female hair with part over face, but this piece is so much more intricately designed than that. The long curly hair going all the way down her back looks as crazy as her. The huge part in front covers most of the right side of her face. While it looks too styled to be considered unkept, it definitely captures her ferrell appearance.

Beelatirx comes with several accessories. A character as morbid and dark as Bellatrix needs a black colored wand. She also comes with a pair of minifigure handcuffs. With over 200 sets including handcuffs, this is not an original piece. However, as of now, this is the only time these handcuffs have come in a dark bluish grey color. I appreciate LEGO finding another way to include a unique piece for collectors. The best accessory in this set is the printed 1X2 tile. Not only is this an original piece, but the printing is amazing in both its detail and movie accuracy. You can see Azkaban Prison printed across the top in the same font as the sign being held by Bellatrix. LEGO copied the runic symbols and her prison number 93 exactly. The grey shadowing used around the piece adds both a well worn and three dimensional appearance.

Kingsley Shacklebolt 71028-13

Kingsley Shacklebolt was an Auror for the Ministry of Magic, when Voldemort was returning to power. He would join The Order of the Phoenix and work as a spy within the ministry. He was later assigned to protect the muggle Prime Minister against Voldemort and his followers. Kingsley would become the Minister of Magic after the Battle of Hogwarts and remain in his post until Hermione Granger took over. While head of the Ministry he helped clear out the corruption plaguing their government and the pure-blood bias within the organization.

A brand new leg piece was printed for this figure. The legs and hips are a dark purple color. His shoes are a dark blue. At the top of the leg piece you can see the ends of his coat hanging down. Since his coat is the same dark purple as his pants, simple lines were drawn to give the layered look.

The toro piece is also an original printed piece. While Kingsley is British, his clothing suggests he is a descendant of Nigeria. LEGO made sure to capture his distinct clothes for this minifigure. The medium lavender and blue stripes are nicely printed along the chest, back and wrists. I’m glad that LEGO took the time to add the gold lines along the wrist as well. It’s these small details that bring extra life to a character and show the care LEGO takes in their design. They even managed to capture the texture of his thick undershirt.

This would be the first Kingsley Shacklebolt minifigure. Two years later, LEGO would release release him again in the 12 Grimmauld Place set #76408. However, that figure would have his cape printed onto the figure itself. The dark blue and blue sides cape is an original piece found only with this minifigure. The same split in front long cape is also worn by Lord Garmadon in the LEGO Ninjago Movie sets, but that one was only a solid dark blue color.

As a bald character, Kingsley only has one facial expression. The lopsided grin does a nice job showing us the kind nature of the character but the serious circumstance in which we meet him. While my pictures didn’t capture the age lines around his eyes, they are a great trait to show not only the character's advanced years but the stressful conditions he finds himself in. While the face may appear simple, this is an original piece.

The hat piece is another original piece. The short , rounded, brimless cap is called a kufi. This blue hat with medium lavender and gold diamonds printed all around it is a great match to his costume in the film. Fun trivia, the character was not originally given a hat for his costume. But the actor, George Harris, asked for a hat because having a bald head on set was too cold.

For his accessory, Kingsley was given a black wand and a dark brown broom. At the time of its release only 2 other sets had a broom in the dark brown color. While this felt like an uninspired accessory, it does match Kingsley being part of the Advanced Guard. In the scene, Shacklebolt and many other fly brooms with Harry to escort him safely from 4 Privet Drive to the Order of the Phoenix headquarters at 12 Grimmauld Place.

Moaning Myrtle 71028-14

Myrtle Elizabeth Warren was a Ravenclaw at Hogwarts from 1940 to 1943. Sadly, Tom Riddle murdered this muggle-born student with the Serpent of Slytherin. After being killed by the basilisk in the girls’ second-floor bathroom, she became a ghost. She would forever haunt this bathroom and others around the school with her constant crying. She would be nicknamed Moaning Myrtle by the living students of Hogwarts.

The sand blue leg piece looks great. I think this blue coloring does a better job matching the translucent ghost we see in the films, than the gray color used for other ghost minifigures. I really like the torn and tattered printing used for the bottom part of her school robes. It’s unfortunate that no printing was put on the side of the legs. The lack of printing on the back is to be expected.

The torso piece continues the great work in having Myrtle wear her distressed school uniform. The scuff marks all over the robe, the worn edges and tattered draw strings all add to the look of this very worn outfit. The subtle detail LEGO added that I loved was the slightly uneven tie. It’s these kinds of small details that make our brain believe the overall effect but are easily overlooked consciously when making an outside observation. Once again the side of the figure is completely devoid of detail. The back is nice, but feels a little rushed compared to the front. I do like the cloak's hood folded down in the back. To give her a more ghostly appearance, a light aqua color was used for the hands.

The head piece used the same aqua blue color as the hands. Myrtle was given two facial expressions. Of course, Moaning Myrtle was given a crying face. With only one tear running down the face, LEGO had to put a lot of emotion into her face. The open mouth frown with teeth lets us imagine hearing her weeping sounds. The crinkles on the side of her eyes and sloped eyebrows show us the sorrow in her heart. The bright light blue used to highlight her eyes and mouth illustrate her lifeless existence. The other side of her face shows us an angry Myrtle. This is an important trait. While Myrtle is often crying we can see her rage at the people she thinks are making fun of her. That scowl on her face would scare any living person to death. LEGO made sure to include her wired framed glasses on both faces.

The hair piece was made from a soft, rubbery, dark blue plastic. The front bangs and pigtails are a perfect match to the actress Shirley Henderson’s hairstyle in the films. This piece was completely original in both its color and shape. Not only do we get the hair waving down the pigtail, but we can see the hair on her head being pulled toward these bands. Even the bangs were given individual attention, as opposed to just being the outline of the hair with no texture.

Myrtle came with a lot of accessories. Since she is a ghost that flies through the air, LEGO included the new dynamic stand piece that was previously used with the DC Super Hero CMF series. For those of you who missed this series, 1X2 jumper plate and a translucent clear 1L bar with angled hollow stud are put onto the minifigure base plate to give the illusion of flying. She was also given Tom Riddle's diary. This was a great accessory. It’s a nice follow up to Dobby’s accessory from the first series. He was given Riddle’s Diary, but with a sock insert. Moaning Myrtle has a printed tile piece with the words “My name is Harry Potter. Hello…” written on it. I love that they also made sure that this old book has stains and discoloration on the paper. The cover itself has some slight improvements from Dobby’s book. We still get the gold clasps on the side, but this book has Tom Marvolo Riddle’s initials on it. The accessory fits Myrtle, because of her being hit by Riddle’s Diary when Ginny Weasly attempted to get rid of it and the curse it brought upon her.

Professor Pomona Sprout 71028-15

Professor Pomona Sprout was the Head of Hufflepuff House and the Herbology department while Harry Potter attended Hogwarts. Audiences were introduced to Professor Sprout during the Chamber of Secrets story. We saw her teaching students about the Mandrake and their use in restorative potions for individuals who have been transfigured or cursed. Luckily, this was at the same time students were being petrified by a basilisk, so they had a cure starting to grow. She was a brave witch dedicated to the students and school. She opposed Dolores Umbridge, voted to keep the school open after Dumbledore’s death and stayed to defend the school during the Battle of Hogwarts.

The medium nougat lower body skirt piece is unique to this set. This is not only because of the printing but the piece itself being used for her lower half. The original Professor Sprout minifigure from 2011 came with a dress piece, but that used the older 65 2X2X2 slope piece. All the other professor Sprout Minifigure after this CMF have been given standard minifigure legs. The printing on this newer dress piece is amazing. The large pockets in front are a nice touch for a robe worn during the manual labor of gardening. Black lines give shape to the robe’s outline and reddish brown lines create the folds. I love the dark tan mud printed thick along the bottom and small spots over the rest of the dress piece. The printing lets us know that herbology class is going to have a lot of hands-on learning.

The medium nougat torso piece doesn’t have any dirt on her robe, but does add all those layers of clothing Sprout likes to wear. At the bottom of the torso we can see the rest of those big pockets needed to hold her gardening supplies. The reddish brown lines running down the front and back of the torso are still used to show us the fabric bunching together, but this time they are also used in the filigree pattern on the collar of her robe. This does a great job representing the flower like design she typically wears. Over the decorative collar, she has on her shawl that looks like it has been woven together from plants and leather. The shawl does have lots of dirt stains from her work in the garden. I love the bushy front and frayed back given to this piece of fabric. This is a piece of clothing she has had for a long time. To top off this amazing outfit, she is wearing a green holly with three berries for her brooch. I love this part of her design. It might be brighter than what she wears in the film but looks amazing on a plastic toy.

The original dual sided head piece does a wonderful job capturing the unique emotions that fit Professor Sprout’s personality. You can see the kindness associated with the Hufflepuffs thanks to that winning smile. The curves at the ends of the lips add that warmth and joy she is feeling as she works with students in the garden. The dark bluish grey eyebrows show us the interest she is taking in her students learning about plants. The peach lips and small eye lashes make sure we know this is a female minifigure head. The other side shows the concerned look as one of her students passes out from the Mandrake’s scream, but not too worried since Hogwarts isn’t overly cautious with child safety. The partly open mouth with slightly lowered eye brows along with changing the position of the medium nougat lines under the eye perfectly capture this expression.

The dark tan pointed hat with ear muffs and the dark bluish grey hair coming out the bottom was original when this set came out but would be used again for every Professor Sprout minifigure released after this CMF series and for the shop owner minifigure in the Quality Quidditch Supplies and Ice Cream Parlor set released in 2025. This piece is perfect for Sprout. By this time we are familiar with the pointed hat design in the Harry Potter theme and the ear muffs are a must for any minifigure dealing with Mandrakes or the cold weather of England. I love the messy hair spilling out from underneath the hat and over the earmuffs. It does a wonderful job capturing that wild hair we saw on Professor Sprout.

Professor Sprout was given a lot of accessories. She comes with her dark tan wand, a mandrake and a pot. Over the years, LEGO has made mandrakes using a few different pieces. This time around we get a 3 leaf plant stem with a bar attached to the top of a 1X1 round brick. The bright green plant stem has been around since 2018, when it was used for Neville’s Mandrake in the first Harry Potter CMF series. This would be the first time a medium nougat 1X1 round brick would be printed to look like a mandrake. The reddish brown lines do a great job creating the root like texture of the mandrakes body. Although future sets would use this round brick to build mandrakes, the face was changed to make sure this particular mandrake remains original. Future pieces would have the mouth open as if it is screaming. This mandrake is not fully awake. One eye is closed and the other is only half open. The large black line used for the mouth lets us know it is there but not opened big enough to let loose its terrifying scream. What I love most about this mandrake build is that it uses common LEGO pieces that already existed instead of creating a new piece to fit what they needed. The small pot with handle holds has been around since 2012 and is often used for cauldrons. The piece itself might not be unique, but as of now this is the only time we have seen it in a dark brown color. The color works great for a plant pot and the 1X1 round brick used for the mandrake fits perfectly inside. It looks like our herbology teacher actually repotted the mandrake in a fresh batch of soil.

Neville Longbottom 71028-16

Neville Longbottom is a pure-blood wizard who was a member of the Gryffindor House with Harry Potter. He might have started his years at Hogwarts as a shy and clumsy child, but he ended as a courageous and confident man. He would be the one to kill Nagini, the final Horocrux, allowing Voldemort to finally be defeated. He had an amazing story arc, but always held onto his part as the comedic relief in the films. This particular minifigure is based on Neville being attacked by the Monster Book on Monsters on his way to attending Hagrid’s first class as the Care of Magical Creatures teacher.

The black medium bendable legs are an original piece. Here we can see the inside dark red hem of his robes as they flop open at the legs. Light bluish grey lines show us where the robe is folding over.

The black torso has the rest of his robe and school uniform. Since the robe is clasped closed at the neck and not buttoned, we can see his Gryffindor sweater underneath. As the robe folds open we can see the dark red lining as it runs up his torso and around the collar of his cloak. On the back we see the hood folded down and giving us a better look at that dark red lining. Even though we can see his Gryffindor colored tie, LEGO still made sure to put the house crest on the left side of his robe. According to bricklink this is an original piece, but the printing looks very similar to many of the Gryffinor robe torso pieces we have seen on other minifigures.

The original dual sided head piece looks great. I like that neither of these expressions is the default happy or angry. One side has a neutral expression. Thanks to those buck teeth we know this is Neville. I’m glad LEGO puts a gap between the teeth and has them slightly bend away from each other. It makes them look like human teeth instead of bucked animal teeth. The other side shows us the shocked expression of Neville as he realized that the book is about to attack him. This isn’t fear but bewilderment. By only partially opening the mouth, slightly raising the dark brown eyebrows and adding nougat lines to the outside of the eyes we can see the actor's face making this expression in real life.

The short, sideways combed hair that parts right has been around since 2014. It has come in many colors and this dark brown plastic has been used on 10 minifigures so far. With almost half of those being Neville, it is not surprising they would use it on his CMF character. However, I don’t think this neatly combed hair works for the scene this minifigure is based on. It should be more tousled after being attacked by a book and having to hike to Hagrid’s class in the hot sun.

Nevile comes with two accessories. As to be expected, we get his dark brown wand. We also get the Monster Book of Monsters that would attack its users unless you stroke its spine. Since these book builds were first introduced in 2016 they have been used in over a hundred sets and the number keeps growing. This is the only time the back book binding with 2 studs has ever come in a medium nougat plastic. The medium nougat cover is an original color but also a new shape. For this textbook, the cover has fangs all around the 3 edges to create the teeth of the book. Even with this amazing shape, LEGO still added a dark bluish grey patch of fur and 4 yellow eyes. This makes the book look like a horrifying monster. This top piece would be used again for the Chomping Monster Book of Monsters set in 2025, but that used a reddish brown plastic and different colors for the printing. The newer reddish brown piece is a better match to the movie, but I love the brighter colors used for this one. It stands out a lot more and works for the plastic toy world. The last unique piece to build the book is a printed 30 1X2X2/3 slope used for the pages. On the side of the slope, lines were printed to show that these are pages in a book and not a single solid piece. Pink gums and sharp white teeth were printed in the center for the book's mouth. If you manage to get this book open, a dark red bookmark will keep your place. The Monster Book of Monsters was my favorite thing about this minifigure.

Final Thoughts

Time has not treated the second series of Harry Potter CMF characters well. The quality of the minifigures does hold up to the standard expected of the Collectable Minifigure Series, but the characters and pieces did not. At the time, the theme had only been a couple years into its relaunch. However, they were already repeating characters collectors probably had multiple versions of. Then the characters that were new would soon be released in standard sets. For me, many of the best unique pieces like the Sword of Gryffindor and Phoenix creature piece would start being used in regular sets. I think LEGO made this with profit in mind and not LEGO fans.