LEGO Advent Calendars 2020: Day by day festive coverage

City — Airplane

Day 17 of the LEGO City Advent Calendar is delivering yet another miniature vehicle, this time assembling an airplane. The 10-piece build utilizes some clever techniques all around, but ends up being one of the smaller gifts from the holiday countdown so far.

The design is pretty solid, but there isn’t too much to get excited about here in my book. The propeller out front is a nice touch, but otherwise it’s a pretty basic miniature model. Fingers crossed we start seeing some more festive builds as the big day inches closer. 

Day 16

Star Wars — Anakin’s Podracer 

For the third day in a row, the latest build from the LEGO Star Wars Advent Calendar is assembling a miniature creation from the Prequel Trilogy. This time around, we’re back to The Phantom Menace with a 12-piece version of Anakin’s Podracer. 

This is ultimately one of the smaller builds from this year’s holiday countdown, despite it being a faithful recreation of the in-universe inspiration. Its blue and yellow accenting really elevates the model, too. So while this one might not end up being one of the best builds this year, it’s solid in its own right.

City — Daisy Kaboom

Day 16 is back with another character from the LEGO City Adventures series, and this time it’s Daisy Kaboom. Aside from the in-universe character, this minifigue here is pretty noteworthy in its own right with a unique hair piece and torso print. Her face also has a reversible head with a robber-style mask to conceal her identity, which is a nice touch. 

Sure it’s yet another creation that’s anything but festive, but it’s a pretty solid minifigure all said. The torso printing makes this a great figure to have in your collection, and if you’re going to reenact some cops and robber scenarios, this will surely fit the bill.

Day 15 

Star Wars — Trade Federation Battleship

We’re now into the second week of LEGO’s Star Wars Advent Calendar, with today’s build giving us another creation from the Prequel Trilogy. Following up yesterday’s Battle Droid, day 15 assembles a 14-piece version of the Trade Federation Battleship. 

While we haven’t seen much of this ship in the brick-built Star Wars universe, this miniature version does the on-screen inspiration justice with a slick Clone Wars-style paint job. The overall design is spot on and the techniques used here are pretty notable considering the scale. So it might not be a festive build, but this one is still as notable as they come in the Advent Calendars. 

City — Ambulance 

Kicking off day 15 of the LEGO City Advent Calendar, we have yet a miniature vehicle to assemble. This time around, it’s an ambulance which fits right in with the micro-scale town that LEGO is going for this year. It’s not quite as impressive as yesterday’s Monster Truck, but I am still a big fan all around. 

The 19-piece construction has a fitting white and blue color scheme that makes it instantly recognizable as an ambulance. Notable details like the tail lights and windshield up front are nice touches, too.

Day 14

Star Wars — Battle Droid

Following up yesterday’s entry into the Prequel Trilogy side of things, day 14 of the LEGO Star Wars Advent Calendar is delivering a character right out of the Clone Wars. Every year seems to give us a new Battle Droid to assemble, and 2020 is no different with another one of the iconic foes.

We’ve been seeing the exact same model for two decades at this point, with the Battle Droid being one of the more classic characters from the LEGO Star Wars theme. There’s the same 5-piece construction and bundled blaster builders have come to expect. It’s not the best addition to the holiday countdown we’ve seen this year, but all in all, not too bad. 

City — Monster Truck 

Today’s addition to the City Advent Calendar is assembling one of the largest builds yet. The 22-piece model dwarfs all of the miniature creations we’ve seen up until now in the holiday countdown, delivering a monster truck model that really lives up to its name. 

Everything from the size and design to the techniques used here are notable here. The red and black colorway pair nicely with the over-sized wheels and the headlights up top. Even though this isn’t a festive build by any means, it’s the easily one of the best builds so far in the City Advent Calendar. 

Day 13

Star Wars — Republic Cruiser

Diving into day 13 of the LEGO Star Wars holiday countdown takes us back to the Prequel Trilogy to assemble a fan-favorite starship. The Republic Cruiser may not be the most well-known vehicle from a galaxy far, far away, but its unique design stands out with a red and white coat of paint. And this miniature version certainly does as well.

Stacking up to 17 pieces, making it on the smaller side of the builds we’ve seen so far in terms of part count. But it makes up for that with an instantly recognizable design that nails the look of the actual ship. There’s some neat details here too, like the radar dish up top and its signature triple engine array around back.

City — Bank

For day 13 of the LEGO City Advent Calendar, we’re getting another miniature building to add to the bustling brick-built town. This time around, it’s a small bank that stacks up to 16 pieces. All things considered here, it fits right in with the other small City builds we’ve seen and thanks to the use of a printed dollar sign brick, is actually distinguishable as a bank.

The small tree on the righthand side is also a pretty nice touch, giving it a more unique overall design than the other builds so far. As far as the miniature buildings included in the Advent Calendar go, this one is certainly my favorite so far.

Day 12

Star Wars — Porg

While not quite a full minifigure, today we’re getting another character from a galaxy far, far away for day 12 of the LEGO Star Wars holiday countdown. Since being introduced into the brick-built side of things with the UCS Millennium Falcon back in 2017, Porgs have been showing up pretty frequently in Star War sets, Advent Calendars included.

This time around, it’s just a pretty typical Porg with the same design we’ve seen in past years. There’s still the printed head piece and the 7-piece construction that fans will have come to know. But it’s a pretty stellar design for the creature overall, so no need to improve on what’s already working for LEGO.

And sure it’s not the Santa hat-clad one we saw last year, but having another one of these in my collection is always a plus. Porgs are certainly something you can never have too many of, as least as far as LEGO is concerned.

City — Christmas Train

Over on the City side of things for day 12, we’re unwrapping an exciting new festive creation. This time around, there’s a miniature red and green Christmas-themed toy train. Comprised of an engine, coal hopper, and passenger car, this build stacks up to 18 bricks and is the perfect size to put underneath the Advent Calendar’s Christmas tree we assembled earlier in the week.

It makes pretty great use out of all the included pieces, utilizing roller skate elements on the bottom and some interesting techniques to pull off the engine’s smoke stack. All in all, this is about as good as it gets for a miniature build in the Advent Calendar, as it’s both festive and an interesting model.

Day 11

Star Wars — Millennium Falcon 

Just like how each year of LEGO’s Advent Calendars seems to give us a new X-Wing, the fastest ship in the galaxy is also appearing for yet another consecutive set. This time around for day 11, the Millennium Falcon stacks up to 26 pieces, marking not only the largest build of the 2020 countdown, but also of the recent miniature versions of the iconic starfighter. 

Overall, the build is pretty detailed, managing to pack in the signature radar dish, its hyperdrive engine on the back, and even a little greeble for the cannon in the center. Compared to previous versions of the ship we’ve seen at this scale, I’d say this is a bit more accurate, which is always a plus. So even though there’s nothing too festive about this build, it’s yet another great addition to this year’s Advent Calendar.

• 

• 

City — Fire Truck

Day 11 of the City LEGO Advent Calendar is delivering a micro-scale build today too, but something more fitting for your brick-built town. As a solid follow up to yesterday’s fire chief minifig, we’re assembling a miniature fire truck today.

This 22-piece model fits right in with the rest of the mini builds included in the Advent Calendar this year and manages to pack quite a lot of detail. It gives off old-school fire truck vibes and even features a white ladder on the top alongside an eye-catching red colorway. Count this as yet another great addition to the countdown this year.

Day 10

Star Wars — Santa Hat D-O

We’re back today to check out what day 10 of the LEGO Star Wars Advent Calendar has in store. Today’s new build gives us yet another minifigure, and this time follows up yesterday’s inclusion of Rey with another character from the Sequel Trilogy, D-O. It’s also yet another festive creation, so twice as exciting here. 

D-O here sports the same design and printing we’ve seen through all of the other The Rise of Skywalker kits, but LEGO is now bringing is a Santa hat here to add some holiday flair into the mix. We typically see these kinds of builds in every year’s Advent Calendar, and it’s hard to complain about. Even though there’s nothing exclusive here, I’m still a big fan. 

• 

• 

City — Freya McCloud

Day 10 of the LEGO City Advent Calendar is also giving us a new minifigure today, and it’s yet another character from the City Adventures series. This time around, you’ll get the fire chief Freya McCloud. Even without taking the source material into consideration, the figure here is superb. The printing on her jacket is top notch and the hair piece is pretty unique, as well 

Just like some of the other City Adventures minifigs we’ve seen, this one here isn’t an exclusive to the Advent Calendar. But even so, it’s a great inclusion that’ll let you expand an existing City layout with some fire department representation. 

Day 9 

Star Wars — Rey 

The ninth day of the LEGO Star Wars Advent Calendar is delivering yet another minifigure, and this time it’s another character from the Sequel Trilogy. Bringing Rey out of The Rise of Skywalker, we’ve seen this design several times from past creations. But if you never picked up any of last year’s kits, this is a great way to add the Jedi to your collection.

The printing is pretty great throughout with a white robe design that spans both the torso and legs. She of course comes with a blue Lightsaber to complete the Jedi motif as well as a reversible head with two different expressions. Sure this might not be an exclusive minifigure, but it’s still a nice addition nonetheless. 

City — Wrapped Gifts

Following up yesterday’s Christmas tree, the LEGO City Advent Calendar is back with another festive-themed build. Fitting right in, today you’ll also two wrapped presents for putting under the tree. Both of the gifts share the same build but come in red and green colors with a bow on top. 

Each of the miniature builds are comprised of eight bricks and enter at minifigure-scale. So after getting plenty of micro models, it’s nice to have some accessories for the included characters to enjoy, at least if you’re using the Advent Calendar to deck out your LEGO city, that is. Even though there’s nothing too groundbreaking here, today’s addition to the set is certainly one of the more notable ones if only because of the festive theming. 

Day 8

Star Wars — X-Wing 

It feels like each year’s LEGO Advent Calendar wouldn’t be complete without an X-Wing model, and the 2021 edition is delivering with the latest version of the starfighter. Going back to the Original Trilogy here, we’re getting a classic design that varies from past year’s with a white and grey colorway. 

The 26-piece build is by far the largest of the lot this year, and does just about as good of a job recreating the iconic starfighter as you could hope for the scale. It’s S-foils can open and close for a little playability, which is always a nice touch. Plus, it pairs perfectly with the A-Wing we saw back on day 1. So all in all, I’m a big fan here. 

City — Christmas Tree

As for the latest City creation, today’s Advent Calendar addition is assembling the first festive mini creation of the 2021 set. Fittingly, the 25-piece model brings a Christmas tree into the countdown celebration complete with some lights and a star at the top. 

Even though we see a Christmas tree just about every year from the City Advent Calendar, it’s also nice to see another one included for adding a little bit more festive charm to your brick-built town. Its design is nothing crazy, but gets the job done. So count this as another notable build. 

Day 7 

Star Wars — Sith Trooper

We’re now seven days into the Star Wars Advent Calendar and LEGO is giving us yet another minifigure, this time from the Sequel Trilogy. While not as festive as the holiday sweater-clad Poe we saw earlier in the week, today’s gift unpacks a Sith Trooper minifigure.

Even though we’ve seen these minifigures appear frequently in the LEGO Star Wars theme, it’s still a great addition for those who haven’t added the character to their collection. And if you already have one or more, this is a nice way to build out your army of existing First Order troopers. So all around, another solid day and a great way to wrap things up as we head into the second week of holiday countdown action.

City — Helicopter

To close out the first week of Advent Calendar builds, LEGO has assembled a miniature helicopter model to go around with the expanding micro-scale city. The build makes good usage of its 13 included pieces, utilizing a pretty novel techniques to accomplish its spinning rotor. 

Otherwise, there’s a transparent brick up front for the cockpit and some pieces on the bottom to pull off its landing gear. Even though we haven’t received much in terms of festive builds, there’s still a lot to like so far and the miniature helicopter is just the latest to enjoy. 

Day 6:

Star Wars — Tie Dagger 

Today’s new addition to the LEGO Star Wars Advent Calendar is delivering a build right out of the Sequel Trilogy, assembling the First Order Tie Dagger. This vehicle isn’t as well-known as many of the other Tie starfighters in the Star Wars universe, but stands out with two triangular wings flanking the iconic bubble-style cockpit. This miniature version manages to pull that off surprisingly well for the small size, utilizing only 13 pieces. 

While it’s a strong build all around, there’s just been so many creations that have come before for it to be one of the best in this year’s Advent Calendar. Though it’s great to see a ship that hasn’t received much attention from the LEGO Star Wars theme in the past getting a miniature version, especially one as neat as this. 

City — Miniature Gas Station 

Day 6 of the City holiday countdown is assembling yet another micro-scale building, this time a gas station to go along with Harl Hubbs from yesterday. The 14-piece construction isn’t as large as the police station we saw a few days back, but fits in well with the scale and overall design. The red and green accenting pairs well with the white to give off some vague 7-Eleven type vibes, or whatever the equivalent would be in the LEGO City universe. 

All in all, it’s a good build for what it is, but not the most creative when it comes to parts usage. There’s no printed elements to really tie the whole build together, but it fits in well with the growing city landscape that’s beginning to take shape, so that’s a plus at least. 

Day 5: 

Star Wars — Razor Crest 

After spending some time on Tatooine, LEGO is diving into The Mandalorian for its latest addition to the 2020 Advent Calendars. Assembling the smallest version of the Razor Crest to date, this 22-piece creation builds a micro-scale version of the bounty hunter’s iconic starship.

The build itself is pretty solid all around and makes great use of the included bricks to recreate the ship. There’s a surprising amount of detail for such a small model, with a clearly-defined cockpit, its two giant thrusters on each side, and cannons on the front.

Even though we’ve already had some pretty notable creations and minifigures from the Star Wars Advent Calendar, this may be one of the best yet. It’s certainly the most topical build with The Mandalorian popularity, and an easy contender for the best model from the 24 included here.

City — Harl Hubbs

As for the City side of things, Day 5 of the LEGO Advent Calendars is giving us another minifigure from the City Adventures series. This time around, its Harl Hubbs, a handy man decked out in paint-splattered overalls and a work belt. Plus, a stick of dynamite is included here, as well.

Even if you’re not too invested in this being a named character from an existing series, this is still a pretty great minifigure to add to your LEGO City. The printing is solid throughout, and the added details from the paint and other wear and tear are a fantastic touch. Count this as yet another great addition to the Advent Calendar.

Day 4: 

Star Wars — Luke Skywalker 

The fourth build from the LEGO Star Wars Advent Calendar has arrived, and today we’re getting the second minifigure from the set. While it’s not quite as notable as the festive Poe Dameron from earlier in the week, today does give us a certified classic character. Following perfectly from the Lars Homestead build yesterday, today unwraps a Luke Skywalker minifig.

Donning his classic white attire from Tatooine, this is the same minifigure version of Luke we’ve seen quite a few times in the past. But for those who didn’t pick up the Landspeeder set at the beginning of the year, or any of the other builds this one came in, this is still a great addition to any Star Wars fans’ collection. Alongside Luke himself, there’s a pair of binoculars like the ones he uses in A New Hope. All in all, not a bad addition to the Advent Calendar and a nice tie-in with the previous day’s miniature build.

City — Dump Truck

As for the latest creation on the City side of the 2020 Advent Calendars, LEGO is assembling a miniature dump truck today. This 19-piece creation sports a bright yellow colorway that fits right in with the construction vibes and manages to make great use out of the small assembly of bricks. There are some nice details built in here like tail lights on the back, making this a solid built all around. 

It fits in perfectly with the miniature city vibes that LEGO seems to be aiming for this time around, so it’s hard to complain with it tying into the overall theme. The dump truck here isn’t the most eye-catching build, but is surely one of the best of the lost so far.

Day 3: 

Star Wars — Lars Homestead 

After hopping into the Sequel Trilogy yesterday, we’re returning to the classics with a build straight out of A New Hope. One of the more iconic locations from Tatooine, the Lars Homestead, this miniature build manages to do the source material complete justice even though it only stacks up to 13 pieces. 

It’s comprised of just tan and dark tan bricks, making excellent usage out of everything included to really come together and assemble the iconic building. Aside from just nailing the look, LEGO has also managed to include a miniature moister vaporator here, which has to be my favorite part. So count that as three straight days of impressive Advent Calendar builds so far from LEGO.

• 

• 

City — Police Station 

As a fitting followup to yesterday’s Duke Detain minifigure, today we’re getting a miniature creation that carries on with the cop theming. The 20-piece build assembles into a micro-scale police station that stands about as tall as a minifig. There isn’t too much here that’s noteworthy, as the build is pretty straightforward and doesn’t utilize many interesting techniques. 

One highlight would have to be a printed police badge tile, which does a lot of work to bring the small set together. Odds are we’ll be seeing more of these in the coming days to build out a miniature skyline of sorts, so hopefully they get a bit more creative with the parts usage. 

Day 2: 

Star Wars — Holiday Sweater Poe Dameron

Day two of the Advent Calendar action is giving us our first minifigure from a galaxy far, far away with an exclusive character to this year’s set. As the latest version of the Sequel Trilogy’s ace pilot Poe Dameron, this figure gives the character a holiday sweater to really set the festive mood. 

The all-new print gives Dameron a green sweater complete with a snowflake pattern and a fitting BB-8 decal on the front. I’m a huge fan of how this one came out, as the print is a perfect mix of Christmas and Star Wars vibes. And the exclusivity doesn’t hurt either! Poe comes with a blaster and a mug, as well. All around, another great addition to the calendar and one of the strongest starts in years from LEGO.

City — Holiday Sweater Duke Detain

The minifigure focus continues into the City side of the Advent Calendars for the second day with a character out of the City Adventures series, Duke Detain. Those unfamiliar with that side of the theme will today’s gift to just be a sweater-clad police officer complete with some slick sunglasses. The figure itself is pretty solid and features an all-new torso that’s perfectly-themed for the holidays.

The dark blue sweater pairs with a snowflake pattern on all sides, with a teddy bear on the front. The minifigure is paired with a wrench as an accessory, which doesn’t really fit in with holiday or police vibes, but it’s not a bad inclusion. Maybe we’ll be getting a vehicle for him to fix in the coming days! All in all, it’s another strong day to start out the LEGO City Advent Calendar for 2020.

Day 1: 

Star Wars — A-Wing

Kicking things off this year, the first day of the LEGO action from the Star Wars side of things is focused around the iconic A-Wing starfighter. This miniature construction brings one of the year’s largest kits, the UCS A-Wing we saw back in May, to an even more compact build that’s comprised of only 19 pieces. 

But even though it’s the complete opposite end of the version that preceded it, LEGO did a really great job here nailing the design and bringing this Star Wars vehicle into its smallest size yet. The part usage here is pretty notable all around, so we may very well be looking at one of the best micro builds from the entire 2020 Advent Calendar already, and it’s only the first day. 

• 

• 

City — Ocean Exploration Barge

Then on the City side of things, the first day of the 2020 LEGO Advent Calendars is assembling a miniature Ocean Exploration Barge. Just like the Star Wars build for today, this one also draws inspiration from a previously-released set, bringing one of the largest City kits of the year into a 19-piece model. 

The Ocean Exploration Barge may be way smaller this time around, but it still packs that signature dark blue coloring and even a working crane in the middle. I’d say that this is a pretty solid start for the City Advent Calendar and gives us a good look at what to expect from LEGO as we close out 2020. 

LEGO’s upcoming 2021 lineup

More on the LEGO Advent Calendars for 2020

Kids can wake up to a gift every day in the run-up to Christmas with the 2020 LEGO Star Wars Advent Calendar (75279) holiday building set. Behind each of the 24 doors is a Star Wars LEGO minifigure, LEGO figure, buildable starship, vehicle or location. Also, look out for a code to unlock Star Wars: The Skywalker Saga game content. Quick builds, unlimited creative fun There are 6 LEGO minifigures and 6 LEGO figures to discover.

FTC: We use income earning auto affiliate links. More.

---

Subscribe to the 9to5Toys YouTube Channel for all of the latest videos, reviews, and more!