Ninjago

Thunderfang Dragon of Chaos

A dragon that hunches, glares, and refuses to look like any Ninjago beast before it.

Brick Rated Score

3.9/5

Set 71832 · 2025

Pieces670

Minifigs6

Year2025

Set number71832

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The verdict

Thunderfang is the rare Ninjago dragon that stands on two legs like something out of a nightmare, and that hunched, villainous posture is what got me.

The red-and-purple color mix is genuinely new for the theme, and it earns every bit of shelf space. My honest reservation is the price: at $69.99 for 670 pieces, you are paying a lot for a fairly small dragon, and it can be a touch front-heavy when you pose it. If you love Ninjago dragons and want one that actually looks evil, this one delivers.

Best for: Ninjago fans who want a genuinely menacing display dragon that breaks the four-legged mold

The full review

What it is

Ninjago has given us so many dragons over the years that a new one has to work hard to surprise me, and Thunderfang managed it in about thirty seconds. Instead of the usual four-legged serpent, this one rears up on two legs in a hunched, almost humanoid crouch, head low and jaw forward like it is deciding which ninja to eat first. It comes from the Dragons Rising line, and the whole point of a beast like this is that it belongs to the bad guys, so the designers leaned all the way into looking sinister. The color choice seals it: bright red bleeding into dark purple and magenta, swirled through the wings in a way that genuinely has not appeared in Ninjago before. It is loud and a little unhinged, and for a Dragon of Chaos that is exactly right.

The catch

I will be straight with you about the money, because it matters here. At $69.99 (or 64.99 pounds, or 74.99 euros) for 670 pieces, this is not a cheap dragon, and reviewers across the board have flagged the price per part as steep for a set with no film or franchise license behind it. You are paying for the sculpt and the six figures more than for a mountain of bricks. The other thing worth knowing before you buy is balance. Because the model stands upright and carries a lot of weight in the chest and wings, it is a bit front-heavy, so you will fuss with the legs and tail a little to get it to stand on its own. It is sturdy enough for play once it is up, but display posing takes patience.

Who it's for

So who should get this one. If you collect Ninjago dragons, or you just want a creature on the shelf that actually looks like a threat instead of a friendly noodle, Thunderfang is an easy yes and one of the better evil dragons the theme has produced. If you are chasing raw part-count value, or you want something that plants itself rock-solid without fiddling, you may feel the pinch. For me the personality wins. This is a dragon with an attitude, and I do not regret a single click of it.

The parts story

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

The build itself moves quickly and keeps your hands busy with the good stuff: ball joints through the legs, neck, and tail that let you dial in that hunched, coiled pose once everything is together. It is not a technically demanding build, so it suits the 8-plus age rating well, but there is enough articulation that you will spend a happy while afterward just posing it. The wings are the moment everyone remembers. They are printed on soft translucent sheeting, with the red swirl running across dark purple and magenta membranes, and light passing through them is what really sells the chaos theme.

For parts hunters there is real interest here. Those printed dragon wing sheets (Wing Left and Wing Right with the red swirl and magenta membrane print) are distinctive and hard to fake with stickers, and the whole red-into-purple palette throws off recolors of curved slopes and horn elements that MOC builders will want to raid. New Elementary singled the set out for exactly this reason. On the minifigure side, Nya and villain Nokt wear outfits that appear in only a small handful of other sets, so a couple of the figures carry collector value on their own. It is not a parts-monster set by volume, but what is unusual in the box is genuinely unusual.

Fun facts

01Thunderfang stands on two legs in a hunched, humanoid crouch, a stance that sets it apart from the usual four-legged Ninjago dragons and gives it a wider range of dramatic display poses.
02The set released on March 1, 2025 as part of the Dragons Rising line, with a recommended price of $69.99 / 64.99 pounds / 74.99 euros.
03The red, dark purple, and magenta color scheme swirled through the wings had never been used on a Ninjago dragon before, chosen specifically to make this one read as chaotic and villainous.
04The set packs in six minifigures, including ninja Lloyd, Nya, Arin, and Sora, plus the villains Nokt and Tyr, leader of the Dragonians.