LEGO Ideas design team reveals 21359 Italian Riviera Easter eggs

A selection of subtle Easter eggs have been tucked away inside the upcoming 21359 Italian Riviera, as revealed by the LEGO Ideas design team.

The LEGO Ideas theme officially pulled back the curtain this week to reveal 21359 Italian Riviera, a 3,251-piece slice of Mediterranean life. The model is based on Alex Sahli’s original 10K design and will be launching next month alongside a companion GWP for LEGO Insiders members.

21359 Italian Riviera combines the fan designer’s professed love for the region and an attention to detail that includes a number of sneaky Easter eggs hidden within, as revealed by the LEGO Ideas design team.

In a recent roundtable interview with Brick Fanatics, LEGO Ideas Creative Lead Jordan Scott talked about what builders can expect to discover when they start assembling the upcoming model.

“I really like the crab on the back, just because he's stolen an ice cream,” Jordan explained. “It's just a really charming little whimsical story that we can bring and tell in LEGO bricks. But I think when Mary [Wilson, LEGO Ideas Senior Model Designer] came up with the suggestion of adding the cat, I was like, ‘Oh, that's cool.’ But then there's also a little kitten on the back that's stolen this huge fish. I have cats, so that was a nice little Easter egg that I really appreciated.”

Alex Sahli himself also noted a selection of secrets that can be found in 21359 Italian Riviera that directly reference the fan designer, as is often the case with LEGO Ideas submissions that eventually become physical releases.

“I have a bunch of Easter eggs in this set,” said Alex, “There's an Alex minifigure, which is pretty cool. There's a painting of it on the third floor of the red and orange house. It's one of my previous LEGO Ideas submissions that didn't make it. It reached 10,000 supporters, but it's also Italian-themed. So I thought that was really cool just to see it in painting format.”

In addition to those Easter eggs, other notable inclusions in 21359 Italian Riviera include a minifigure wearing a Paradisa tank top, a nod to the 1992-1997 LEGO subtheme, what look to be new printed plates of trofie pasta with Genoese pesto and the previously-revealed light blue Classic Space airtanks.

21359 Italian Riviera will be available for Insiders members to explore from August 7, complete with a free 5009422 Italian Market Van GWP from August 7 to 13 (while stocks last), plus an A5 notebook reward from August 7 for 1,500 points. Everyone else will be able to pick up the LEGO Ideas set from August 10, with the set priced at £249.99 / $299.99 / €279.99.

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