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Metkayina Reef Home

A gorgeous little reef village with four of the best-printed figures LEGO made for Avatar.

Brick Rated Score

3.5/5

Set 75578 · 2023

Pieces529

Minifigs4

Year2023

Set number75578

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The verdict

This is the set that made me fall for the Metkayina reef people, all woven pods on stilts, a coral shelf, and a proper canoe you can push a paddler through the water in.

The four figures are the real draw, and once it is together it photographs beautifully. My honest hesitation is the price, because for what launched at 79.99 there is not a lot of build or play here beyond the ladder and the boat. If you love The Way of Water and want those figures, it is lovely. If you want hours at the table, look elsewhere in the wave.

Best for: Avatar fans who want the Metkayina figures and a display-ready reef scene

The full review

What it is

The first thing that got me was the silhouette. Little woven pods perched on stilts over a coral shelf, a rope ladder climbing up between them, and a canoe sitting ready in the water below. It captures the Metkayina reef village from The Way of Water in a way that feels lived in rather than posed, and out of the whole first Avatar wave this is the one with the biggest footprint, so it genuinely reads as a place rather than a single prop. When it is finished and you set the four figures around it, it photographs like something from the film.

The catch

I will be straight with you about the money, though, because that is where the conversation always lands with this set. It arrived at 79.99, and for that you get roughly 529 pieces, a good chunk of which go into the rock and the base. Reviewers were fairly united that it looks lovely but does not earn the price, and I agree. The build itself is gentle and over in an hour or two, which is fine if you want a relaxed evening, less fine if you were hoping the biggest Avatar set would also be the meatiest. Play value is thin once the novelty of the canoe and the ladder wears off.

Who it's for

So here is how I would sort it. If you loved the film, if the reef people were your favorite part, and you mostly want those four figures plus a scene worth displaying, this delivers and it will look wonderful on a shelf. It has also retired now and crept above its old retail on the aftermarket, so the bargain window has closed. If you are chasing the best build or the most drama per dollar in this theme, the winged and creature sets give you more to sink your teeth into. Buy this one for love, not for value.

The parts story

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

Building it is a calm, unfussy hour. You lay down a coral-toned base, raise the stilts, and cap them with the rounded woven pods, and the techniques stay approachable throughout, which makes it a nice one to do with a younger fan alongside you. The canoe comes together as a satisfying little sub-build, and there is a genuinely charming trick where a jumper plate on the rock lets you clip a figure in mid-swim so it looks like they are diving through the reef.

The figures are where the parts budget clearly went, and they are worth it. Tonowari carries full tattoo printing and a double-headed spear, Ronal has a patterned torso and a shell sitting over her forehead, and Neytiri gets an updated look with Kiri rounding out the group. All four have crisp face and leg printing that holds up close. The rest of the box leans on earthy sand, tan and coral elements plus reef plant pieces, so while there is no headline new mold here, the printed figures alone make the parts feel special.

Fun facts

01It has the largest footprint of any set in LEGO's first Avatar: The Way of Water wave, with the main hut measuring about 41cm wide.
02Kiri, one of the four figures, is the adopted daughter of Jake and Neytiri and is played on screen by Sigourney Weaver.
03The set retired after launching at 79.99, and clean sealed copies now trade above their original price on the aftermarket.