Review: LEGO 10391 Over the Moon with Pharrell Williams

September 19, 2024 | 12

10391 Over the Moon with Pharrell Williams is a curious set from LEGO, a collaboration with creative multi-hyphenate Pharrell Williams.

Pharrell has his hands in all things, pop music, fashion, design and now LEGO movies with Piece by Piece, an upcoming biopic of Pharrell Williams’ life, told in LEGO form.

This set is a tie-in to that movie, and features an eye-catching sleek black space shuttle blasting off leaving a rainbow jetstream behind that makes for a gorgeous display piece that’s unlike any LEGO set we’ve ever seen in 2024.

But is it for everyone? Is it worth the US$110 / AU$200 that LEGO are asking for this 966-piece set? Ahead of its release on 20 September 2024, here’s an in-depth review of 10391 Over the Moon with Pharrell Williams.

Special thanks to LEGO for sending this set over for review

10391 Over the Moon with Pharrell Williams Set Details

Here’s a look at the Instructions Manual, which features some information about Pharrell, as well as the Creative narrative of this set.

It’s a little light on details, and fails to include substantial mention of Piece by Piece, the LEGO-flavoured biopic of Pharrell’s life that’s the genesis of this set. For such a unique set, I think the manual fails to adequately communicate that this isn’t a stock-standard LEGO set beyond Pharrell’s face plastered all over.

The build was fairly straight forward, but I did particularly enjoy finding out about how the rainbow jetstream base was constructed.

You begin by building the Head Abacus frame, and there are 8 numbered bags in total. In each bag, you receive a column of heads that you add to the Abacus.

The build is also beginner-friendly, likely because of LEGO hopes this will appeal to those new to LEGO, so don’t expect too many cutting-edge techniques here.

Here’s a look at the “Abacus”, filled with Pharrell’s phriends. There are 49 heads in total, split across 7 columns of 7 heads offering the widest availability of skin tones and textures that we’ve ever seen in a LEGO set, surpassing the Table Football.

30 of the heads are exclusive (so far) to the set. By exclusive, I’d like to point out that it’s more likely that LEGO will use them in other sets down the road (LEGO Nike sports sets, anyone?) and they won’t be locked to this set, with the exception of Pharrell and Helen Williams’ heads.

The huge amount of diversity on show here, with so many different options of skintones, facial expressions, glasses, facial hair and even age is such a huge breath of air. This really is a Diversity Battle Pack, and this Abacus, sold on its own for like… US$15-20 would I think sell like absolute hotcakes.

The idea behind this isn’t just a creepy wall of heads, but an invitation to build a version of yourself as astronauts, place yourself in the pilot seat and jet off into the creative infinite of space.

I just want to illustrate that it’s so important that diverse minifigure head options are made readily available, especially for minorities, or those that have non-mainstream skintones or facial features. Being able to colour-match and find a suitable expression really goes a long way in making all types of people feel like they belong.

Here’s a look at the Helen and Pharrell Williams minifigures, which are exclusive to the set. They both feature this very cool Titanium-coloured spacesuit, complete with the silhouette of the Atlantis Space Shuttle.

Here’s a look at the back prints.

And you can also place these titanium-coloured helmets on with the snazzy gold visors for when they rocket into space. These spacesuits are very nicely designed, and it’s quite exciting to get an official Pharrell Williams minifigure!

Here’s a look unnamed Space Shuttle that you build in Bag 2 and 3. It’s a small but tidy modern Space Shuttle that looks very slick with its all-black design and gold canopy.

The shaping and silhouette of the design is especially satisfying, and props to designer George Gilliatt for such a tidy design squeezed into a small form-factor.

Here’s how it looks from the side.

And from the top and back. There’s a massive hole in the back, for it to slot into the jetstream stand but you can also pretend that it’s a comically huge thruster.

Just also want to point out that the interior has quite a bit of colourful bricks, and there’s a big green tile that’s especially prominent. The shade of green I believe is quite deliberate, and could be a nod to Pharrell’s HumanRace brand, which has a line of skincare that utilises that very same shade of green for their packaging and branding.

The space shuttle features two new printed elements, one a nod to the Atlantis Apartments that Pharrell Williams grew up in, which may play a key role in the Piece by Piece documentary, and these round tiles with the Space Shuttle encircled by the rainbow lines.

The cockpit is especially nice and looks super sleek. LEGO MOCers who build spaceships will be delighted with this opaque drum-lacquered gold canopy and I can’t wait to see this in use. Oh and to prevent scratches/scuffs, LEGO also packaged it in its own bag!

There are also clear design influences that hearken back to LEGO Space themes of the past. Here’s a comparison with some of my favourite LEGO Space sets, 928 Galaxy Explorer and the Space Police I SP Striker to illustrate how Pharrell’s LEGO Space Shuttle manages to continue the grand legacy of LEGO space.

Here’s a look at the base, which takes up the rest of the build. It’s heavy and surprisingly stable, which allows it to fully support the Space Shuttle when on display.

The colours are especially striking, and the long pastel-coloured streaks and the little clouds at the bottom create a sense of dramatic movement which looks awesome.

And here’s the completed model with the Space Shuttle attached to it. It instantly strikes you with the dramatic scene of a spaceship blasting off into space, with a rainbow jet stream billowing behind.

It’s honestly one of the most visually striking and aesthetically-pleasing sets because of how it looks, with the black shuttle contrasting brilliantly against the explosion of colours it leaves behind.

Upon completing it, I get why Over the Moon with Pharrell Williams exists. This is quite literally a piece of LEGO art, taking the medium of the Danish toy that we all know and love and transforming it into a beautiful statement piece.

This is such a cool piece to display at home, or at your office because it doesn’t quite look like LEGO, and I also respect that it’s a playable piece of art. You can always remove the Space Shuttle and it immediately becomes a swooshable, playable space toy, demonstrating the limitless creative potential of LEGO.

This is ultimately I believe what designer George Gilliatt and Pharrell Williams wanted to achieve with this set, and it’s executed brilliantly.

It’s also really fun to photograph!

What I liked:

• Pharrell Williams as a minifigure
• Huge variety of diverse heads
• It’s a buildable piece of LEGO Art
• Made to be displayed, yet welcomes you to play

What I didn’t like: 

• Feels just a tad overpriced
• Manual could’ve used more context

Final Thoughts:

This set isn’t for everyone, but LEGO and Pharrell Williams have done something quite remarkable, create a visually striking model that’s closer to that of a piece of art than it is a toy.

For starters, I’m a big fan of Pharrell Williams and have followed his unexpected career, from his N.E.R.D. days, to his Adidas sneakers and also his fashion brands like Humanmade and BBC Ice Cream, and now as Men’s Creative Director for Louis Vuitton, so I’ve been eagerly awaiting to see if he can bring his creative flair to LEGO.

10391 Over the Moon with Pharrell Williams is a stunning display model, unlike any LEGO set that you’ve seen, blending colour with a gravity-defying setup. This is something that would work as a fun statement piece for your home that doesn’t really scream LEGO.

The inclusion of so many different heads is also a huge plus, as it’s a Diversity Battle Pack out of the box, and something that should be celebrated.

The only downside about the set is the price. It doesn’t quite feel like you get US$110 / AU$200 worth of LEGO in this set, and the pricetag will be the biggest hurdle for fans (and non-fans) to cross when it comes to giving this set a shot.

And that’s where the price comes into play. LEGO are clearly targeting this at people (and fans of Pharrell) that want a Pharrell-adjacent Art piece for their home. It’s not geared at LEGO fans who will nitpick over things like Price Per Piece, minifigure printing and other very AFOL things. They’re aiming squarely at fans of home design looking for something fun for their home, and people that collect/display things like Bearbricks where a US$110 feels like a relative bargain.

It’s a whole subculture and world that might feel very alien to traditional LEGO fans, but it does exist.

This set also raises a pertinent question about how you price Art, and whether the price something commands is commensurate to its aesthetics and desirability. These tenets represent familiar territory for those that appreciate designer fashion and other high end things that orbits the likes of creatives like Pharrell Williams.

For what it’s worth, I’m glad a set like this exists. It’s probably the most visually stunning LEGO sets released this year, and nothing quite looks like this awesome sleek black spaceship, jetting off into space as a rainbow jetstream trails behind it.

I am somewhat doubtful that this will be a critical and commercial success, and I think a lot of LEGO fans will dismiss the set because they don’t get (or know) of Pharrell, and will baulk at the asking price. I do think as a LEGO set, it’s a tad overpriced, and this set will likely be discounted in the not too distant future, so it would be prudent to wait for the inevitable sale on this.

But for those that appreciate art, have bopped to the music of Pharrell Williams in all his incarnations, or have been inspired by his mercurial career, 10391 Over the Moon with Pharrell Williams is a lot of fun and represents a bold new look at what’s possible with a bunch of LEGO bricks.

Final Score

3

Build

Fairly beginner-friendly build with some nice surprises thrown in. More of an engineering and design marvel than it is a complex build.

5

Display Value

Just looks stunning, eye-catching and gorgeous on display.

2

Real Value

Feels just a tad overpriced for what you get.

4

Innovation

A great blend of art, hypebeast culture and design, mixed with LEGO’s legacy of cool Spaceships

4

Keepability

Will be something you display for a long time as the parts aren’t super useful or rare, outside of the gold canopy

Audience rating

How would you rate this set?

1 2 3 4 5

What do you think the 10391 Over the Moon with Pharrell Williams? Do sets like these appeal to you?

10391 Over the Moon with Pharrell Williams will be released on 20 September 2024 and will be available exclusively from LEGO.com or your local LEGO Store.

If you plan on purchasing 10391 Over the Moon with Pharrell Williams please consider using the affiliate links found in the post to support the blog, as I may receive a small commission with each purchase.

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