I am a big WALL-E fan, so having this set (Lego 43279) on hand to do a review was a lot of fun and inspiring. I have watched the movie countless times and coming up with photos for this review gave me an excuse to watch the movie again to get inspired. It was a fun build that captures the soul of the film – from WALL-E’s expressive eyes to the tiny plant in the boot.

WHAT’S IN THE BOX
The set comes with 811 pieces and builds the following:
WALL-E – complete with expressive eyes, treads and his garbage cube
EVE – sleek and smooth, with hidden arms and a little compartment for the boot plant
M-O – the tiny, grumpy cleaning robot
HAL – the cockroach (yes, even he made it in!)
Plant in Boot – gotta have this key element from the movie

Compared to the previous release (Lego 21303 – which I don’t own but did think of purchasing before), this current set definitely has more bang with the extra characters.

Building Experience
It took me 4 hours to build all the elements in the set. Not sure if this is an average speed for an 811-piece set. As a toy photographer, I want to plough through the build and get started on the photography aspect of the assignment. As always, it’s cool to see how everything come together, as each small piece builds on top of the next.

Building WALL-E first feels like meeting an old friend again. He’s a bit smaller than the 2015 LEGO Ideas version, but more polished and detailed. His arms move, the chest door opens, and you can actually pose his head to give that curious, lovable look we all know. EVE is a completely different kind of build — clean, round, almost sculptural. I appreciated the clever parts that hide her joints. Her printed face is spot-on, though I wished Lego had provided additional expressions.

Adding M-O (a character that I had been hunting for some time!) and HAL really completes the cast. They’re small but packed with character — the kind of little builds that make you smile when you finish them.

Nice touch with the addition of Hal and the plant in the boot

What I Love
Multiple characters in 1 box, especially M-O!
The engineering that went behind the build to give the characters more articulation (important for toy photographers!)
Great value for what you get
No stickers!

What Could be Better
Overall, I love the set, but feel that Eve’s head is not as accurate as the movie version. I suppose it could be some engineering limitations. Somehow, her head felt a bit squashed. She felt a bit chunky too. Despite my compliant about Eve’s shape, she still shots well with backlighting and rim light. She photographs almost like a product design object — minimal, modern, and graphic.

Despite my gripe about her not being movie accurate in terms of proportions, she still photographs great

Toy photographability (Did I just invented a new word?)
From a toy photography standpoint, the set is a definitely plus. As mentioned earlier, the articulation of the main characters is great and lends itself well to many storytelling potential. I especially love how expressive WALL-E’s eyes are. Similar to the movie, any slight head tilts create completely different moods.

So expressive!

When it comes to Legography, I mostly just shoot custom minifigures, so the characters in this set did feel a bit too big for me, especially WALL-E…but that’s just me. However, as this review shows, I am always open to new challenges!

You can never have too many Wall-E figures

Conclusion
If you are a fan of Wall-E, this is a must have. I can’t stop admiring the engineering that went into the main character’s articulation, especially the arms. If you enjoy telling stories through still images, experimenting with light, or creating small cinematic moments, this set isn’t just worth building — it’s worth shooting.