The crack team of TLCB Elves dispatched over The LEGO Company’s perimeter wall at the end of 2020 had – we thought – all returned. By ‘all’ we actually mean ‘the survivors’, as each year we always lose a couple to German Shepherds with a taste for Elf meat. A simple ‘ceremony’ is held for those that didn’t make it, by which we mean they’re crossed off a list, and then we all get on with our lives.

Today though, we’ve got to get the TipEx out and add two names back onto the list, because a pair of Elves have miraculously returned, weeks after they were thought lost/eaten!

We’re not sure what took them so long, and we probably never will as we don’t understand the jibber-jabber of Elvish, but we’re pleased they’ve made it back, because it means we can share two more new-for-2021 Technic sets!

The first is this rather fetching orange contraption, the 42120 Rescue Hovercraft, or ‘Luftkissenboot fuer Rettungseinsaetze’ in German (it’s a beautiful language).

Aimed at ages 8+, 42120 includes 457 pieces – many of which are orange which is excellent – and features thrust propellors that rotate as the model is pushed along, and working steering that both turns the hidden wheels underneath and swivels the aforementioned fans.

Decals are included a-plenty and there’s a reasonable looking B-Model too. Expect 42120 to cost around $35/£30 when it reaches stores in March of 2021.

The second cause of today’s Elf-list-amendment is another new 8+ set, the excellent looking 42121 Heavy Duty Excavator. A purely mechanical set, 42121 includes around 100 pieces more than 42120, two of which are small linear actuators that operate the excavating movement.

A pair of hand-powered cogs drive these to extend the boom and tip the bucket, and it’s great to see mechanical functions are still (sometimes) alive and well in the Technic range – although there is a risk of these being rather annoying in practice, based on our past experience.

Superstructure rotation and rolling tracks are present too, and 42121 also includes a few extra details like warning cones and some ‘rubble’ for added playability. A slightly odd B-Model completes the set and you can expect it to cost around $45/£40 when it reaches stores later this  year.

We think these two additions to the 2021 Technic line-up are rather good ones, joining a range that looked pretty strong already.

You can take a look at the other 2021 Technic sets revealed here via the Search box (just type ‘Preview’ in it), and you can check out our reviews of past years’ sets via the Review Library.

Take a look whilst we try to convince our Administrator that adding the Elves back onto the list is probably less work than Option B.