If you’re after the very best of what the LEGO Group has to offer right now from a building perspective, look no further than 72037 Mario & Standard Kart.
Blue shells, banana skins and mushrooms at the ready for the biggest and unequivocally best LEGO Mario Kart set not only of 2025, but possibly of all time, because it’s tough to see how the LEGO Super Mario team could ever one-up
72037 Mario & Standard Kart
Release: May 1, 2025
Retiring: Dec 31, 2027
Price: £149.99 / $169.99 / €169.99
Pieces: 1,972
Minifigures: 0
Plenty of licensed themes are getting in on the character-building game at the moment, from Star Wars and Fortnite to Harry Potter and Marvel. But few execute that concept with such unwavering consistency as Super Mario, which has followed up 2022’s still-excellent 71411 The Mighty Bowser with another nearly perfect rendition of one of gaming’s most recognisable icons.
Like Bowser before them, Mario and his kart are so convincing that at first glance you could reasonably be persuaded that they aren’t LEGO. There are relatively few studs on show – instead it’s all curves and smooth surfaces – but none of that would matter if the shaping wasn’t as skilfully achieved as it is here. And that’s all thanks to one of the most engaging, interesting and rewarding build experiences in recent memory.
From beginning to end this is a varied and captivating build that will have you second-guessing what’s next in a way few LEGO sets truly manage. Some builds are lucky to sprinkle a few ‘aha’ moments in and among more straightforward assemblies, but
The axles that allow the front wheels to turn independently are an almost impenetrable mix of Technic pieces, for example, offering a moment of genuine complexity that nevertheless doesn’t overstay its welcome in what is obviously not billed as a Technic set. The side pods, meanwhile, include a sub-assembly that’s dropped in place upside-down before being anchored in by slopes on top.
And even within that ingenuity lies what at first glance feels like an overengineered assortment of tiny pieces that clip in place to create an almost too-precise angle (see the 1x2 slopes that sit opposite one another), but which – when all’s said and done – is pretty much perfect. And you’ll never stop wondering how the designers actually figured it out. Consider that those techniques are really just a drop in the ocean of what this set has to offer and the value of the building experience really begins to come to the fore.
There are a couple of places where you might say the design team has ‘cheated’, primarily in Mario’s nose and moustache, which both use brand new and proprietary elements. But these solutions are very effective and, better still, have that LEGO DNA (even the ‘tache!), so they don’t feel wildly out of place. And they are unfortunately crucial to getting Mario’s features right: these buildable characters often live and die by their faces (see Chewbacca, Wicket the Ewok et al), so it’s easy to excuse the use of unique pieces in this instance.
I used the word ‘value’ a moment ago to describe the building experience, but it’s a word that applies to the set all round, because
Better yet, there are no stickers in the box: everything is printed. And that’s as it should be for a set like this, where a slight misalignment of the eyes (for example) could ruin the entire effect of the face, and all the complex geometry and expensive new moulds that have gone into achieving it. You might feel like I’m doing it here, but it’s honestly tough to overstate the level of design and engineering that’s gone into
If there’s one small point of criticism, it’s that – aside from minor articulation in Mario’s arms, wrists and neck, and in the way the kart can rotate almost gyroscopically on its stand (another moment of genius) – this set is pretty much designed to be displayed in one way and one way only. That means Mario himself cannot step out of the kart and stand next to it without some modification on your part.
It’s a shame when he looks so good next to 71411 The Mighty Bowser, but on the other hand the intended display here is so spot on that you probably wouldn’t want to deviate too much from it anyway.
LEGO Mario Kart and blue shell comparison
They’re pretty much a perfect pairing too, so if you did miss out this is one worth hunting down on the aftermarket (although the prices can attest to its quality). It scales nicely with Mario and his kart, is designed in a very clever way and looks the part. So, again… no complaints.
Our honest opinion: One of the best building experiences in recent memory results in one of the best-looking sets of the year. Let’s-a go!
This set was provided for review by the LEGO Group.
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How long does it take to build 72037 Mario & Standard Kart?
You’ll spend around two and a half to three hours putting together 72037 Mario & Standard Kart, and you’ll enjoy pretty much every step of that process. One to savour rather than race through.
How do I get the blue shell for 72037 Mario & Standard Kart?
40787 Spiny Shell was only available in the LEGO Insiders Rewards Centre for a limited time when 72037 Mario & Standard Kart first launched in May 2025. You’ll need to turn to the secondary market to buy it now.
How many pieces are in 72037 Mario & Standard Kart?
72037 Mario & Standard Kart is comprised of 1,972 pieces, two of which are brand new and (at the time of launch) exclusive to this set: Mario’s nose and moustache.
How much does 72037 Mario & Standard Kart cost?
72037 Mario & Standard Kart retails for a very fair £149.99 / $169.99 / €169.99, and can already be found for slightly less through select third-party retailers.
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