Review: Jungle Falls Rescue

Will Olivia get to the tiger cub before he is swept away into the rapids, or will Olivia be too engrossed in her lunch to notice the cub’s plight? Will the life preserver do the job? And what is hiding behind the falls? Let’s take a closer look at the Jungle Falls Rescue!

The FriendsBricks community wishes to thank TLG’s CEE Team for generous support of this set to review and share with fans.

The front of the box shows Olivia in action, having found her way onto the rocks in the water to rescue the tiger cub.



The jungle theme of this wave of Friends sets is reflected in the box art, with the bamboo trim on the flanges, top banner and the mini doll image. 

The back of the box shows us what we can expect to find in the box, highlighting the playing features and accessories. The Trans-Neon Green rock crystal features in quite a few of the shots here, but it is actually hidden in the build.  I’m still pondering the purpose of the rock crystal in this set!



Inside the box are two parts bags, one instruction booklet, a 16x16 plate in Medium Azure, two Lime vine pieces and a slightly curled sticker sheet.



I was surprised to find two of the new flexible vine pieces in the box, as the outside of the box shows only one in the set. I think this is possibly the best “extra” part I have ever seen!
Let’s take a closer look at the instruction booklet:



The front cover has the same image as the set box, with the exception that the closeup of Olivia is absent.



The instructions are simple to follow, with parts lists for each step. Towards the back there is a map of the jungle, showing all the sets, as well as a page showing how to combine four of the jungle set to create a large jungle rescue scene. The back of the instruction booklet has an exceptionally cute looking Emma letting us know how we could win a free set.

Let’s have a look at the parts in the first bag:



The only piece that appears to be unique to this set is the 1x8 tile in Medium Azure, of we unfortunately only get one.

There is nothing new about the BURP (big ugly rock piece) that I’ve singled out in the image above. I was just intrigued by it because this is the first time I have come across one like this. I guess it’s not a piece that I would automatically associate with a Friends set.

The other parts that caught my eye were the tiger cub (more on him / her later) and Dark Orange 1x1 round bricks, which were last seen in a set in 2005! There is also a nice selection of parts in Trans-Light Blue.

Here’s what the first bag of parts builds:





Not much to say about the first build, other than that I am intrigued about the purpose of the crystal, which looks like it would be more at home in a Rock Monsters set! 

The contents of the second parts bag:



I was pleased to see a couple more Dark Orange 1x1 round bricks, as well as the upside down 2x2 tiles in Tan and couple of Lime palm leaves. There’s also a cute chameleon that I’ll take a closer look at shortly.

This completes the build:



I’ve taken the above shot with the falls opened (by sliding the yellow handle towards the falls), providing access to the cave and the treasure hiding within it. I was confused for most of the time I spent writing this review about the crystal and what it’s purpose was. I understand now that it’s part of the play feature - access the cave behind the waterfall and retrieve the crystal. Nevertheless, it feels out of place with the general theme of the jungle sets, which is to rescue the adorable animals. 

Let’s take a closer look at Olivia:



How cute is Olivia in that outfit? The outfit is new, but not unique to this set as Mia wears the same outfit in the Jungle Tree Sanctuary (#41059). The scarf she wears is Magenta, but I’m not sure what colour to call her sleeveless shirt. It is darker than the Lavender from Emma’s Sports Car (#41013), but lighter than Medium Lavender. Her skirt is Sand Green and is also the same as the one that Mia wears in Jungle Bridge Rescue (#41036).

Here’s the little tiger cub:



He’s the same one as that from Tiger’s Beautiful Temple (#41042), which was released earlier this year. But I thought it warranted a few closeups, especially of that irresistibly cute face !

This set also includes a chameleon:



The chameleon in this colour combination is also found in the Jungle Rescue Base (#41038). I wasn’t planning of doing a closeup of it until I saw the marks on its back, which are barely visible to the naked eye. Another thing I noticed is that the Lavender covers more of the chameleon’s feet and back compared to the one that came in the Jungle Rescue Base (#41038).

The spare parts:



The inclusion of an extra vine piece makes this the best spare parts selection I have come across to date. Thank you, TLG!

Let’s have another look at the set as a whole:



Overall, this set looks great and has a neat selection of parts. I think it also represents good value for money given the number of parts and the fact that you get a spare vine piece. (Note to self: must stop going on about the vine piece!)

There are some things I don’t get about this set, like the neon rock crystal, the sideways sliding waterfall and the impossibly steep path from the bottom to the top. Further, the outdoor seating area is precariously close to the edge of the cliff, with absolute no barriers. I suspect there will be as many mini-dolls rescues as there are tiger cub rescues! However, the target audience probably won’t notice or care at all. If they are anything like my daughter, the waterfall will go backwards and forwards a thousand times just because it can, the girls will simply bounce up the cliff one step at a time and the cave will become a favourite hiding place for all crystals!

Thanks for reading!

Note: All exclusive parts mentioned in the colours noted were applicable at the time this review was posted. Parts may be available in other colours and sets after the post of this review. Brickset and BrickLink were use to verify this information.
                                                          

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