Don’t pass on this The Lord of the Rings Balrog Book Nook set

Lego’s latest book nook is here and it pays tribute to the greatest fantasy trilogy of all time, Lord of the Rings. This Lord of the Rings Balrog Book Nook 10367 set features the confrontation between Gandalf the Wizard and the Balrog, from The Fellowship of the Ring. Oh, and the guy who did Braindead also made a film of it. We’ve heard it did fairly well, despite the lack of lawnmower action

Like the Lego Sherlock Holmes Book Nook, it can sit on your shelf, or open up into a full diorama. Well, full-ish, but we’ll get to that later. Closed, you can see Gandalf standing in front of the Balrog, and unfolded it reveals the Balrog’s massive wingspan.

Since this is very much a one-on-one confrontation, the only minifigure is Gandalf himself. But it’s his foe that dominates this set. Unfolded, this 1,201 piece set is 22 cm high, 44 cm wide and 17 cm deep. Both Gandalf and the Balrog can be detached, so you can set up the scene as you like.

As with the Sherlock Holmes book nook, it’s a display piece, and is priced at £109.99/$129.99. It’s also available to pre-order today and will ship from June 1st. However, we’re not 100% on board with this set. We may change our minds if we get our hands on it, but there’s a lot of white space behind the nook, which we find a bit off-putting.

Related: Lego reveals the ultimate set for Lord of the Rings fans

It’s true that the Lego Sherlock Holmes Book Nook is similarly background-free. But our eyes are drawn to the house and shop fronts. Imposing as the Balrog is, look behind him and you see, well, nothing. We’d have preferred anything, a rock wall, blackness etc, compared to just being able to see through the model.

That gripe aside, it’s still a cool set. The Lord of the Rings Balrog Book Nook 10367 set is available from June 1st. Like the Lego Lord of the Rings: The Shire and the Lego Lord of the Rings: Barad-Dur sets, it’s sure to delight Lord of the Ring fans.