Enter Tom Nook. 77050 Nook's Cranny and Rosie's House.
Store owner, real estate agent, and mover of small economies, Tom Nook is the big guy in town.
He's a tanuki (Japanese raccoon dog), which explains his Japanese name (Tanukichi) and English name (Tom Nook sounds like Tanuki).
Appropriately, his accessory in this set is a sack of Bells, the game's currency. In the original Japanese, the game's currency is also called Bell(s). It's a word pun, as the Japanese words for "money" and "bell" sound similar.
The other character here is Rosie. Until looking her up for this blog post, I didn't know that Rosie -- like Tom Nook -- has been in every main Animal Crossing game.
Nook's Cranny (a play on the words "nook and cranny") is Tom Nook's general store which is found in most main AC games.
Double front doors are flanked by a shipping box and a signboard.
In the game, this shipping box allows you to sell items anytime -- which is useful outside of the store's opening hours -- albeit at reduced price. The signboard, meanwhile, changes daily and displays what "Hot Items" the shop will buy from you at a good price.
No Timmy or Tommy here. The nephews of Tom Nook are the guys who run Nook's Cranny in Animal Crossing: New Horizons, as their uncle is occupied with his role in Resident Services.
For sale: potted flower, radio, electric guitar, and bucket.
Cash register and a Bell coin.
The cupboard contains three new printed parts: DIY recipe (the tile with acorn print), box of fish bait, and box of flower seeds.
At first, the interior of Nook's Cranny seemed a little sparse to me. Then I recalled that the game's shop is fairly minimalist too. The Lego
version shows most of what is found in the game version: items for sale, shopkeeper's counter, and the cupboard. And, as a nod to miscellaneous
decor, the Lego version has a barrel with broom and shovel.
Now, onto Rosie's House. It's my favorite of all the Animal Crossing Lego buildings so far. Both the exterior and interior look great. Even if you only displayed the exterior, that would be enough!
Every Animal Crossing Lego tree has a secret compartment; this orange tree happens to contain a boring branch. It's a nod to the game, in which you can shake trees and something useful might drop from them.
The interior is pretty sweet. In case you can't see, the stove in the middle contains a cream cupcake. Minifigs with protruding tails can't lie flat on their beds. They can still lie down, just awkwardly.
I love the level of detail both in and out Rosie's House. That could be why Nook's Cranny felt a bit sparse inside; despite being a shop, it's not as crammed or dense with objects as Rosie's House is. But at least the exterior of Nook's Cranny looks good, especially the colorful awnings.
I didn't intend on keeping this set for good, but it kept growing on me as it sat in the display cabinet. I kept putting off dismantling it. Maybe there's strong sentimental value for me in Nook's Cranny, a shop I visited regularly when playing Animal Crossing: New Horizons -- which I did daily for months at the start of the Covid-19 pandemic.
I'm glad I bought this set in the end. It's another addition for the cheerful squad!
