Super Mario

Lakitu Sky World Expansion Set

A cloud-riding rival that turns Super Mario into an actual two-player showdown.

Brick Rated Score

3.7/5

Set 71389 · 2021

Pieces484

Minifigs3

Year2021

Set number71389

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The verdict

This one won me over the moment I realized what the spinning cloud disc actually does.

You and a second player each get a sliding platform, and you're physically trying to knock Lakitu off his perch while he swings back at you. That's rare in this theme. Most Super Mario expansions are solo obstacle courses, but this is a proper head-to-head duel, and it works. I'll be honest that without a second person in the room, or without the Starter Course figure to make it interactive, it loses a lot of its spark. Get it for two kids racing each other, not for a shelf display.

Best for: two kids (or a kid and a patient adult) who want a head-to-head Mario duel, not a solo diorama

The full review

What it is

The Lakitu Sky World Expansion Set is built around one good idea executed well. Lakitu, the cloud-riding Koopa who's been chucking spiny shells at Mario since the first game, finally gets his own LEGO figure, perched on a fluffy cloud platform mounted on a spinning disc. Two sliding cloud platforms sit below, one on each side, and pulling them shifts Lakitu's balance until you knock him clean off his cloud. The first time I worked through the mechanism I laughed, because it's such a simple gear-and-lever trick, but it turns a static display piece into an actual contest between two players.

The catch

Here's the honest caveat: this set does nothing on its own. It's an expansion, which means you need a LEGO Mario or Luigi figure from the 71360 or 71387 Starter Course to scan the Action Bricks, collect coins, or trigger the Time Block. If you're buying this as someone's very first Super Mario set, you'll open the box, build a nice-looking cloud tower, and then wonder why nothing happens. It's also worth knowing going in that two of the three included figures, Bullet Bill and Fuzzy, have shown up in earlier sets, so the novelty here rests entirely on Lakitu.

Who it's for

I'd point this at families who already have a Starter Course and want to add real competitive play rather than another solo run-through-the-level set. Two siblings taking turns trying to topple Lakitu off his cloud is genuinely fun in a way a lot of these expansions aren't. If you're building solo or just want it for the minifigs and display value, I'd look at a different expansion first, this one is built for a second player.

The parts story

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

At 484 pieces this isn't a long build, an hour or so gets you the full cloud tower with its spinning platform and the two pull-out slider mechanisms underneath. The construction is mostly functional rather than decorative, you're building a mechanism first and dressing it up with cloud pieces second, which makes it a satisfying quick project rather than a slow detailed one.

The clear standout is Lakitu himself, since this set marked his first appearance as a LEGO figure, complete with his signature cloud perch. The seven Action Bricks scattered through the build are the other bit of part value here, each one carries a scannable printed sticker that a Mario or Luigi figure can read to trigger coins, extra time, or power effects, so even a modest piece count buys you a lot of gameplay variety if you've got the Starter Course to activate it.

Fun facts

01Lakitu makes his first-ever LEGO minifigure appearance in this set, despite the character dating back to the original 1985 Super Mario Bros.
02Both Fuzzy and Bullet Bill had already appeared in earlier LEGO Super Mario sets before this one, so Lakitu is the only truly new character here.
03The set includes seven Action Bricks with scannable printed stickers that interact with the electronic LEGO Mario or Luigi figures.
04Released August 1, 2021 at a retail price of $39.99, the set is now retired and trades for around $42 sealed on the secondary market.