DOTS

Cute Banana Pen Holder

A grinning yellow banana that actually earns a spot on the desk.

Brick Rated Score

3.7/5

Set 41948 · 2022

Pieces440

Minifigsn/a

Year2022

Set number41948

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The verdict

I went in expecting a throwaway craft kit and came out won over by how much personality this little banana has.

You build a chunky, ribbed banana body, then decide whether it gets a big happy grin or a grumpy, spotted, overripe scowl, and that flip-the-mood trick is genuinely charming for a desk organizer. It won't challenge anyone as a build, and once the initial tile-placing is done there isn't much reason to touch it again, but for a kid's desk or a fun little gift it earns its keep. I'd get this for the person who wants a smile on their desk, not the person hunting for a satisfying build.

Best for: kids and DOTS fans who want a cheerful, customizable desk accessory rather than a challenging build

The full review

What it is

This is a banana with a job to do. You snap together a rounded, ribbed yellow body, stand it upright, and it becomes an actual working pen holder, over 4.5 inches tall and about 5.5 inches wide, with enough of a footprint that it doesn't tip over the second you drop a marker in it. Then comes the fun part: a full sheet of face tiles lets you give it a wide, happy grin, or flip it around into a grumpy, spotted, clearly-past-its-prime old banana. That little bit of mood-swapping is what sold me on it. It's a small joke, but it's a good one, and it's the kind of detail that makes a kid actually want to keep it on their desk instead of shoving it in a drawer.

The catch

I'll be honest about what this isn't. At 438 to 440 pieces it sounds substantial, but a huge share of that count is loose 1x1 and 1x2 decorative tiles, so the actual construction time is short and not remotely tricky. This is a craft set first and a LEGO building challenge a distant second. A couple of reviewers online also wished the holder itself held more than a few pens, since the banana shape narrows quickly toward the top. And because LEGO wound down the whole DOTS line back in 2023, this one is already retired, so pricing on the secondary market has started creeping past its original $19.99 to $22.99 range.

Who it's for

Get this for a kid who likes decorating things with their hands and wants a genuinely useful, funny object to show for it afterward, it hits that craft-project sweet spot nicely. Skip it if you or your builder are after a satisfying construction challenge or a display piece with real detail, because once the tiles are placed there isn't a second act here.

The parts story

What the build is actually like, and the pieces worth knowing about.

Building it is closer to decorating a cake than building a LEGO model. The banana body goes together fast, curved plates locking into a rounded shape that actually reads as a banana rather than a blocky approximation, and that was the first pleasant surprise. After that the whole rest of the box is decoration: dozens of loose round tiles in yellow, brown, and white, plus a printed face sheet, that you press into the studded surface however you like. There's no wrong way to do it, which is exactly the point for the age range this is aimed at.

The real value here is in the sheer pile of extra tiles. LEGO includes far more decorative pieces than you need for either face design, so kids can keep swapping patterns, adding spots, or building their own expressions well after the instructions are done. There's no rare or printed exclusive part driving the interest, this is a fun-shape-plus-craft-tiles set rather than a parts-hunter's set, and the standout is really the banana mold itself doing double duty as both toy and functional holder.

Fun facts

01The set was designed by Marvin Voelger and released on 1 January 2022 with an RRP of $19.99 / £17.99 / 19.99 euros.
02Flipping the included face tiles turns the banana from a smiling, fresh look into a grumpy, spotted, overripe one, giving the same build two distinct personalities.
03The finished pen holder stands over 4.5 inches (about 12 cm) tall and roughly 5.5 inches (14 cm) wide and deep.
04LEGO DOTS as a whole theme was discontinued in 2023, so this set is now retired and only available through resellers and the secondary market.