At this point, The LEGO Group has mastered the craft of making entertaining movies, specials, and TV series. The first 10 episodes of its latest series, LEGO DreamZzz, have all the elements that make a great show.

Currently streaming on Netflix and YouTube, LEGO DreamZzz features a cast of interesting characters, a story that has momentum, and a world that is a blank canvas, ready to tell all types of stories.

I admit that these 10 episodes of LEGO DreamZzz are engaging and fun to watch, but it is also showing the age of The LEGO Group’s animation-generating engine.

It is difficult to build a foundation in a theme that implies anything is possible, the plot needs something to grip on to move forward and an undefined world does not offer a hold. So I understand that the show uses arbitrary limitations and rule changes to get traction, but it feels forced.

For example, we see the same construct being used over and over again to solve different problems, the heroes are often thwarted because their MacGuffin ran out of sand, and the threat of the villain changes from episode to episode.

On top of that, nothing in LEGO DreamZzz is brick built, not even the vehicles that are going to be made into LEGO sets in August. Only the characters and some small creatures are minifigs and minifig based.

It is also strange that The LEGO Group choose to release the first 10 episodes of LEGO DreamZzz almost three months before the sets. Wouldn’t kids (and adults) want the sets immediately after seeing the show? Does LEGO DreamZzz need to be LEGO at all?

I think the best thing about LEGO DreamZzz is the fact that all the characters are minifigs. Because they are yellow toy people, they have personalities instead of stereotypes, they are characters kids can project themselves on instead of being represented by, and because they are defined by who they are instead of what they are, these minifig characters become more relatable.

Hopefully, LEGO DreamZzz (both the toy theme and the show) is here to stay. LEGO could use a breakthrough original theme that is culturally neutral.