76407 The Shrieking Shack & Whomping Willow

The set in a Nutshell:

Name: 76407 The Shrieking Shack & Whomping Willow

Pieces: 777

Minifigures: 6 minifigures

Original Price: $89.99 USD

Recommended Age: 9+

I had been waiting for 76395 Hogwarts: First Flying Lesson to be restocked on the LEGO website and when I finally received the message that it was back in stock in May, I immediately was ready to checkout. The only conundrum was that 76395 Hogwarts: First Flying Lesson did not qualify for free shipping at $29.99 USD. (Typically, I try to qualify for free shipping whenever possible and reasonable to do so). So, I wondered what else I should add to my order to get to $35 USD to qualify for the free shipping.

There were many cheaper options available to get to the $35 USD minimum, however, I ultimately decided to pre-order 76407 The Shrieking Shack & Whomping Willow. This set and 76406 Hungarian Horntail Dragon were the only 2022 wave sets available for pre-order and as I was not that interested in the Horntail LEGO set, I figured it might be best to pre-order 76407 The Shrieking Shack & Whomping Willow - I would get the free shipping and secretly I was hoping that I would get the set delivered early. I was also worried that the set may sell out very quickly (much like 76395 Hogwarts: First Flying Lesson) and it would become a task to purchase it later.

Trust me, I think it is very much insane to purchase a $89.99 USD set to qualify for free shipping in this scenario (I only needed to spend an extra $5.01 USD with the 76395 Hogwarts: First Flying Lesson), however, I would have purchased 76407 The Shrieking Shack & Whomping Willow at one point this summer and I wanted to see how the pre-order process worked.

The pre-order process was very simple and pretty transparent. I was able to track the order and I was kept up-to-date regarding the order status.

In any case, I placed my pre-order in May and waited. While I had hoped that I would somehow get this set delivered early (a day or two early), it arrived about two days after the official release date. Locally none of the 2022 wave sets are available (somehow the Walmart in town doesn't stock them), so I would have had to order the Shrieking Shack anyways, so I still received it as early as I could have.

“Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban” is one of my favorite movies in the franchise. I love the “Double Trouble” song by the Hogwarts Choir and out of all the movies, this one gives me the most Halloween vibes - one of my favorite holidays! While I was building this set, I did rewatch the movie and this is the first time that it hit me how problematic the time turner is to the overall story of Harry Potter. Previously, I took notice of it, but this time it really hit me what doors may be opened by the time turner. Sometimes you need to watch a movie 100 times to pick up on these things!

With “Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban” playing the background I started my journey of completing 76407 The Shrieking Shack & Whomping Willow. Six bags in total and many stickers! I won’t lie the stickers aren’t very well placed on my set– I just can’t get them to line up correctly. But that doesn’t take away from the beauty of the set.

Bags one and two are dedicated to the fencing and Whomping Willow. I got very excited and really rushed through those, as I couldn’t wait to get started on the Shrieking Shack itself. When it comes to the Shrieking Shack, I did encounter a couple problems – the problems were caused by me, of course! The Shrieking Shack does have a lot of small pieces and while building the outer walls, I think I was pushing down too hard, and my walls would fall over from my applied pressure. This happened a couple times, so much so that I did have to verify the recommended age on the box. The more you build onto the Shrieking Shack the sturdier it becomes, but that first wall on the bottom was just a real struggle.

Overall, the set can be broken into three parts: the fence area, Whomping Willow and the Shrieking Shack. There isn’t much to the fence area - it reminds me somewhat of the fire/flame piece from 75980 Attack on the Burrow, but this fits better with the overall set and doesn’t feel so random. Then there is the Whomping Willow and a stone area, which can be turned around to reveal a full moon and werewolf. I like the Whomping Willow from 75953 Hogwarts Whomping Willow, but this one is built at an angle, so it feels a bit more ferocious and takes you right back to the movie moment where poor Harry and Hermione try to bypass it. The Whomping Willow does have a knob on the side, so you can move top part of the willow around and the branches move very easily by hand and can be arranged so they hold Hermione captive. The full moon is a glow in the dark piece, which I thought was a great detail. I love that werewolf Professor Lupin can reveal himself in such a dramatic way in this set!

The Whomping Willow piece can be connected to the Shrieking Shack, but they can also be kept separate. As for the Shrieking Shack, the build is awesome! The windows are all boarded up, so there isn’t much natural light, but the inside still offers a lot. The downstairs is made up of a room that includes a chest (holds a goblet and a chocolate frog), a table with a lantern, a chair and a painting of a cityscape or maybe a village-scape in case it is of Hogsmeade (I may be completely wrong here). The downstairs also has a hidden escape in the side of the wall. I am thinking this is to represent the entry through the tunnel. Upstairs has a fireplace, a bed, a piano and chair, scone lights on the wall and two paintings. One looks to be of a scarecrow and the other looks like a map. Again, I could be completely wrong with my interpretation of the paintings.

The top part of the Shrieking Shack is not centered giving the “Shack” some great dimension, even the chimney on the side looks awesome. It looks spooky enough that the most haunted house in Britain is now in my living room! What is great about this set is that it is the same scale as Honeydukes and The Three Broomsticks from 76388 Hogmeade Village Visit and also includes the snow covering, so I am going to try to build a Winter Village from these sets this year!

The set is advertised as coming with four minifigures: Harry Potter, Hermione Granger, Ron Weasley, Professor Lupin, Sirius Black and Peter Pettigrew. However, I feel like there is much more than just those four. Scabbers the rat, Padfoot the dog, and a whole werewolf minifigure are also included! It’s very versatile and those extra three figures make up for the fact that Harry, Hermione, and Ron look pretty similar to the minifigures in 76398 Hogwarts Hospital Wing (it makes sense since that takes place later in the evening). Professor Lupin’s alternative face is scary looking to say the least, it is him mid-transformation!

I should note that I do not own the original 4756 Shrieking Shack, so I am unable to compare the two sets and can’t say much there. Reviewing this as a unique set, I am very glad I pre-ordered it and that this was the first set I built from the 2022 wave. I think it has a lot to offer and I can see how you can play different scenarios with it. From a display standpoint – it looks awesome! While it does look haunted, it also has a cozy vibe on the inside, which I love because the sets in the Harry Potter franchise almost always have a cozy feeling to them.

At times I had some difficulty putting the set together, but I really, really like the final product and just think there is so much to it. The Shrieking Shack and the Whomping Willow are not only such an integral part of “Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban,” but also of Hogsmeade and the Harry Potter universe that I am very excited to display it beside Honeydukes and The Three Broomsticks.

VERDICT: Building pressure aside, it was a fun set to build, and it has so much to offer. It perfectly combines playability with display-ability.

Pictures have been digitally altered and the colors in the pictures may look different in real life. I typically bring out the white to enhance the background.

The Minifigures

Ron Weasley, Hermione Granger and Harry Potter! Love the detail of the dirt on their clothes.

I would be mad too if I had to fight with a Whomping Willow.

The real "stars" of the set: Professor Lupin, Professor Lupin as a werewolf, Peter Pettigrew, Scabbers, Sirius Black and Padfoot.

The Professor Lupin werewolf does not have an alternative face. I think the one is scary enough!

The Whomping Willow

The little knob on the side of the Whomping Willow can be turned by hand, which will move the upper part of the Whomping Willow.

Here is a better picture - the round top part where the branches grow from the tree trunk is the part that turns. The branches can be moved and adjusted by hand.