Review: 41692 Vet Clinic Rescue Helicopter

Swoop in to rescue Cinnamon from that not-so-friendly crab! Let's get Mia's baby bunny back to the Lakeside jetty.

First we build this lovely heart-shaped island with Lotus flowers and lapping waves from the waters of Heartlake.

I like the way the azure slopes and aqua tiles are used for that effect.

Then we build the Lakeside jetty with a small pier for picnics on a bench, a view finder, life-preserver rack, and a tree with a map sign (sticker). The tree is a fun build with nougat curvy parts. Attaching a flowering branch under a green slope brick is a good way to keep it secure.
The back even has steps by the reclining bench. We get an "I love HLC" mug, a round printed waffle and strawberry in a basket.


Twister, Mia, and Cinnamon come in this Lake adventure set.
She wears this raglan sleeveless Nordic print top in 41363, 41372, and again in 41444, yet this is the first time she put on purple sneakers with her olive green cargo shorts. The back of her top is solid dark purple.


This is everything we build with Bag 1 parts -- plus a nice amount of spares, including the round waffle. Friends had square waffles with strawberries printed first, yet I think this is the first time to get the round one found in other themes.
Under the Lakeside jetty pier is an 8x8 plate with half circle in dark azure, which is in only 1 other set.


Bag 2 gives us a re-color of the 4x4 plate with angle in medium azure, which is only in this set. Also only in this set -- and New-for-2021 part is the 4x4 sphere with knobs (id 65138) in Vibrant Coral. I like them and want them in more colors!


Not new, yet rare in Vibrant Coral are both the 1x10 brick with bow, and 1X2 plate with Horizontal Hole Ø4.85 reversed; both also in only 1 other set.


We begin building the helicopter's landing gear of pontoon floats, then start tiling the interior cargo hold. The cockpit floor/seat begins, as we add a red plate to represent an engine. I've always like that concept.


The cargo hold's walls go up and we get to attach the new coral spheres -- here you can see how it looks with the round 2x2 tile, before stickers are added. The back hatch gets a medical device, baby bottle, and syringe clipped before attaching.


The side jet engines are built with these parts.


With the jet engines installed, the white tail plate, coral plates and tiles are added. Since they will be covered by the next parts, I wanted to show them. The tail fin gets a sticker, and we don't get any synchronized elevators.


Now the helicopter is complete and air-worthy. Both rotor blade assemblies rotate freely.
The Technic 8m Rotorblade piece in white is only in this set and 41432; otherwise, even in dark stone grey it's somewhat rare.

The last item built is the yellow rescue stretcher that can fit into the back. We get a nice amount and selection of spare parts.

Now we just need a pilot!


Stephanie is ready with a new Vet Clinic Rescue Logo -- unique to this set so far -- on her shirt and the back of her vest jacket. She usually wears magenta sneakers with blue skirt, yet here it's swapped colors. Although I'm not really sure a skirt is the best option while piloting a helicopter ...


Here she is in the cockpit, which is a snug fit and has no flight controls -- yet I really like the seat design.


The trans-blue oval canopy closes fine over the foot bracket. She's ready for lift off!  As I mentioned before -- the rotors spin very freely -- so this helicopter is swooshable certified!
The new sphere pieces make this solid helicopter easy to pick up and hold. They are secure on the sides via 4 studs on the face of 1x2 tan bricks.


The box front shows her swooping in to the rescue as the rotor-wash ripples the water. The smaller boxes like this one still have the curvy flanges, although instead of purple and graphics as past years -- the set image wraps around. Box sides are CG images of mini-dolls and parts.

Inside we get 2 parts bags, a 2x16 white plate, instructions and sticker packed very tightly in the box. This is a result of a push for less cardboard waste -- and contents don't seems to move around as much when shaking the box. The complete parts list can be found on the last pages of instructions.


The box back has the 2 mini-dolls' CGI versions, instead of past animation of all 5 main Friends. The helicopter's hatch demo, and how nice a picnic by Heartlake can be -- adding to the fun of also getting a helicopter!


This is the 4th Friends helicopter: First was in 2014's Jungle Bridge Rescue (41036), then 2017's Heartlake Hospital (41318) had one land on the roof, and for a volcano rescue in 2020's Alpaca Mountain Jungle Rescue (41432).


The sticker sheet was mildly curved. I really like the map with Heartlake and the clinic or rescue call highlighted -- it would be useful printed. I also like the Logo of upside-down heart as part of a paw print with heart-beat indicator.


Cinnamon has decided to stay in the cargo hold a wee bit longer -- after that crabby encounter.

Summary:

For a small set, this packs in great parts, a very nice helicopter design, and a playable setting to build. The helicopter's tail section length makes it realistic. It just needs right-of-way lights on the sides, instead of trans-yellow. Red goes on the left side, and green on the right -- so approaching aircraft know they can fly straight on, or yield.

Although I like Vibrant Coral, I was a bit concerned about it for a helicopter color.  In person though, it works -- and could also be used with 2020's Heartlake Hospital.

I enjoyed building it and would recommend it to other AFOLs. It's more challenging than some other sets, due to the Technic parts. When I first saw the set images, I thought that LEGO fans of other themes would probably like it. Considering there's and ad for CITY sets at the end of the 66 pages of instructions, it appears I'm not the only one who thinks this is the case. In the USA, it sold out in a day or two on Shop-at-Home.

The box states age 6+ and the instructions are clear and concise. Some buyers have suggested it should probably be 8+ ages, due to complexity. I might tend to agree. It is a solid, playable helicopter once built -- yet the builder needs to stay focused on the process.

The techniques are great for learning to build other aircraft or vehicles, so I'm happy with this addition to the Friends lineup!


Disclaimer:
This set was provided by The LEGO Group for the purpose of sharing set details with fans.
Opinions provided here solely reflect those of our reviewer.
Photographs are property of Friends Bricks and are not directed by TLG in any fashion.

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