Review: LEGO ǀ Disney and Pixar Toy Story Slinky Dog Bookends

LEGO Disney Pixar Toy Story Slinky Dog Bookends 43301 New Release Review Brick Banter COVER

A really good dog or a bit of a stretch?

LEGO’s relationship with Toy Story, at least to me, has been a very strange one. It is either being all in on new moulds and character specific shapes, or being as by-the-book LEGO minifigures as possible. LEGO Toy Story 3 vs Toy Story 4 is a great example of this. But with Toy Story 5 now on our horizons, how do these new sets hold up? With Slinky the Dog being undeniably one of the hardest characters to convert into LEGO form, how did LEGO do? Read on!

Slinky Front Half

LEGO Slinky’s from half of the model is intended to always be on the left hand side of wherever you place him. The design doesn’t allow the same display value if you attempt to swap his direction around.

His body is made up of a technic structure that makes the spring coils of his body – this being the main thing that connects him to the book. We also get a small brick built body, but still giving us enough articulation to move his head and front legs. I’m not entirely sure how much posing you could get out of the legs here, but the head gives us essentially a full 360.

I really do like how they did Slinky’s eyebrows, and managing to give him a bit of character with his eyebrows. It works really well with the opening mouth for a shocked look.
I was really surprised to see the felt ears on this model however. This was probably the best option overall, but not a path I expected to see.

The book is also a hidden gem of the model The spine says ‘Knick Knack’, a reference to one of Pixar’s early animations in the late 1980’s. Although the inside does not have a snowman with a jackhammer, we do get a functional pop-out of Woody hidden within the book. There is also a subtle reference to Mr and Mrs Potato Head here, with their alien children, in the form of 1×1 studs.

Slinky Rear Half

Slinky’s rear half follows a similar design to the front, with technic elements used to make the spring rings. His legs are built to be static, but the feet rotate at the ankle for a little more dynamic posing.

The book here is Tin Toy, which is another of Pixar’s early animations from the late 1980’s. It seems fitting that the metal toy fits within this book space, albeit with more parts to get him to slide out.

Minifigures

Our two LEGO ‘Minifigures’ in this set are Woody and Slinky, the latter exclusive. This Woody figure is the exact same from the sets from 2019-2023, whereas Slinky is entirely new. Slinky is made up of multiple moulds and a rubber spring-like element in the middle. It is an incredibly complex figure, and I’m really impressed with the way LEGO went about designing him.

As far as LEGO Minifigures go, he is clearly the star here.

Verdict

Overall, this is a set that I can see some fans enjoying having on their bookshelves. I didn’t find the halves of the model significant enough in weight that it could hold any of my Dungeons and Dragons books, but lighter novels or kids books work just fine.

As an adult collector, of both LEGO and books, this isn’t something I see putting on my shelf. It certainly takes up a bit more space, and my personal connection to the character is thin at best. What this set is good for, however, is my daughters’ reading space. It’s quirky, it’s fun and it’s filled with bright colour that matches their aesthetic. This isn’t a set for adults, but for kids.

So there is no way I can justify that price tag for this set. Jesus.