LEGO Botanicals Four Gentlemen collection is proof that the LEGO Group can make an affordable, well-built range – so let's see more of it.
The LEGO Group tests out sub-themes and new collections within themes all the time. Just recently, LEGO Marvel has started testing out the Epic Battle collection, starting with 76343 Epic Battle: Hulkbuster vs. The Hulk and 76334 Epic Battle: Spider-Man vs. Sandman, while LEGO Star Wars has had various mini ranges, like the Helmet Collection and now the ever-growing list of midi-scale ships.
Some more long-running collections also include the Modular Building Collection within the Icons theme. These are just a few examples, with some sub-themes proving more successful than others.
If there's a place to look for a blueprint of what works well for a modern LEGO collection, we think we've found it. The LEGO Botanicals Four Gentlemen is a smaller range of sets, made up of just four flower-themed models, but that's part of its charm.
Unlike some of the endlessly growing ranges like modular buildings or even the LEGO Star Wars midi-scale ships, the Four Gentlemen is a bite-sized bundle that makes for easy collecting. It's made up of 10343 Mini Orchid, 10344 Lucky Bamboo, 10368 Chrysanthemum, and 10369 Plum Blossom.
Those four sets are not just bonded due to the nature of being gathered together by the LEGO Group. The Four Gentlemen is a term coined in Chinese culture to refer to these four plants, each one representing the four seasons, as well as ideal scholarly conduct in art and design. When gathered together, they reflect the qualities assigned to a proper Chinese gentlemen – hence the name.
Released across two waves, with two sets released in August 2024 and the next two in January 2025, the sets are unified via their size and the brick-built pots they come in. Each one has the signature gold stripe around the pot that visually connects them, and they all stand roughly the same height as well.
Beyond that, they're all visually quite different. They use different building techniques and styles to best reflect the individual plants, while also keeping some aesthetic variety that pays off perfectly when put on display.
What makes this collection truly impressive in the modern era of LEGO, however, is just how affordable it is. Each set is £24.99, meaning you can collect all four for under £100. It's the ideal sweet spot where there's enough budget to deliver a detailed and rewarding build without eating up your budget.
Speaking of a rewarding build, the LEGO Botanicals theme as a whole continues to impress with its creative parts usage and genius building techniques, and the Four Gentlemen are no different. It only takes a glance at the different coloured bananas making up the flower in 10368 Chrysanthemum, or a look at the spiralling branches on 10369 Plum Blossom, to be able to appreciate the design that goes into these small but mighty sets.
Put simply, the LEGO Botanicals Four Gentlemen is everything you could want in a ready-to-display collection. We wouldn't be surprised if this is many people's first entry point into LEGO building, being low investment, an easy but engaging build, and looking incredible when complete.
While the Four Gentlemen are a self-contained quartet, the core idea is strong enough that it can translate out into more plants as well. 11509 Flowering Cactus comes in at the same size and price point, suggesting that this style of LEGO Botanicals set will endure beyond the Four Gentlemen. However, the pot is missing that gold stripe, keeping one visual cue reserved just for the original four.
Looking ahead to 2026 beyond the LEGO Botanicals theme, however, the hope would be that other LEGO themes can take the characteristics of the Four Gentlemen collection and run with it. Instead of ever-expanding ranges of LEGO Star Wars helmets or Marvel battle dioramas, the focused approach to picking a subject matter and delivering an affordable, well-designed group of sets has clearly paid off.
For a brick-built galaxy far, far away, this could translate to a trio of specific dioramas for every Star Wars movie, finishing at nine sets that track the three trilogies. It could be busts of the original trilogy's three heroes of Luke, Leia, and Han, perhaps set opposite busts of the Emperor, Vader, and Tarkin.
The focused scope would help make sure every set fits in well together, as well as keep the prices and sizes unified. The end result with the Four Gentlemen is a group of builds that is genuinely achievable to collect in full – rather than expanding infinitely until fans inevitably grow bored.
The Four Gentlemen (and arguably LEGO Botanicals as a whole) is proof that the LEGO Group can deliver quality at an affordable price point. Here's hoping there's more of this in the Botanicals theme and beyond in 2026.
Thanks for supporting the work that Brick Fanatics does by buying your LEGO sets using our affiliate links!
Comments
Be the first to comment!