Culture on My Mind
The 2021 LEGO Marvel Advent Calendar
January 13, 2023

Apparently, the latter days of 2021 and early days of 2022 were chaotic. So chaotic, in fact, that I completely forgot to post my summaries of the 2021 LEGO Star Wars and Marvel advent calendars. So, January 2023 will bring you some late (and even later) gifts as I take a look back at four separate calendars.

Last week, I looked back at the 2021 LEGO Star Wars Advent Calendar. In the coming weeks, I’ll cover the 2022 sets for Star Wars and The Guardians of the Galaxy Holiday Special. This week is about the 2021 LEGO Marvel Advent Calendar.

My family has been doing these LEGO advent calendars since 2015 and I chronicle the daily builds on Instagram. Each of the annual box sets has been spotlighted on this site. These boxes contain twenty-four unique small builds, many of which are abstract, along with exclusive mini-figures and whimsical winter-themed spins on franchise staples. The Marvel characters made their debut with this holiday line in 2021, and there was no better way to kick it off than to highlight the Avengers from the Marvel Cinematic Universe.

At this point, the MCU was settling into what would become Phase Four. The Infinity Saga (Phases One, Two, and Three) ended in 2019 and, of course, 2020 put everything on hold due to the global COVID-19 pandemic. By the end of 2021, we had four new films and five new television series to crack open the multiverse concepts that would define the next three phases, but the pandemic had definitely thrown a wrench into plans at Marvel Studios.

Thus, celebrating the Avengers was a strong choice.

The 2021 Marvel-themed box focused on themes and characters from The Infinity Saga, including minifigures for Tony Stark/Iron Man, Black Widow, Spider-Man, Thanos, Captain Marvel, Nick Fury, and Thor. Those minifigures were also outfitted differently to make them exclusive to this set, which presents a challenge to “gotta-have-em-all” collectors.

The Marvel set differed from the traditions set by the Star Wars sets by building a world for these characters (and kids of all ages) to play in. The scene was set for an Avengers-style holiday party, including presents and decor to compliment the typical abstract micro-builds. It’s a neat concept, but it also comes across as filler in some cases, such as the barbeque grill and present wrapping station.

I did really like the idea of presents, however, particularly how they were linked to each character’s style and cinematic gags. Spidey gets a churro and an arachnid-themed box while Tony gets the arc reactor under glass as proof that he has a heart. I also really enjoyed the helicarrier, Stark robot, and Avengers Tower builds, and the finale with an Infinity Gauntlet was an elaborate one. It came with enough extra Infinity Stones to reenact the paperweight scene from Loki.

It’s a good debut for the Marvel brand, and while I expected something closer to the Star Wars boxes, the world/scene-building aspect isn’t a terrible choice. For every barbeque grill and Christmas wreath, I have to remind myself that children are building these sets with their parents. The fun they have and memories they build together is worth it.

Now, on to the countdown:

Day 1

Day 2

Day 3

Day 4

Day 5

Day 6

Day 7

Day 8

Day 9

Day 10

Day 11

Day 12

Day 13

Day 14

Day 15

Day 16

Day 17

Day 18

Day 19

Day 20

Day 21

Day 22

Day 23

Day 24