Review: The Star Trek Borg Advent Calendar Is A Gift That Keeps On Assimilating

The Star Trek Borg Advent Calendar
Eaglemoss/Hero Collector | $149.95

The big question after your first look at Hero Collector’s Star Trek Borg Advent Calendar is going to be: Is it worth the money? The answer in short, which shouldn’t make you any less curious to read more about the tiny wonders inside this collection of gifts encased in an “ominous and iconic” Borg cube, is that it’s an extraordinary gift for the right person. Star Trek fans will have a blast opening each of the tiny surprises inside, all of which were made exclusively for the calendar.

(For those who want to watch an unboxing video before reading the details, it’s at the bottom of the post.)

You CAN judge a Borg cube by its cover

The cube has an elegant design featuring Borg circuitry all over the outside of the box, on the front-facing sides of each of its four drawers (so you know how to put them back in), on each individual numbered box and envelope inside the drawers, and perhaps best of all, on the delicate tissue paper wrapped around each gift.

Side view showing the four drawers inside

If you buy this for someone who celebrates Advent, every day of it will reward them with a joyful moment as they carefully unwrap that day’s surprise. (The boxes are numbered.)  If you give it as a holiday gift instead, the lucky recipient can choose to do what I did, and spend some quality time opening one tiny present after another. The tissue paper makes it into slower, more delicate work, which only makes the process more fun. Whether or not they return the item to the box, they’ll find themselves carefully putting the tissue paper back in before sliding the box back into it drawer.

Every drawer houses multiple boxes, each with something different inside.

What’s inside

The items themselves (spoilers coming!) range from the practical to the whimsical. My particular favorites are practical (vs. purely ornamental) and has a deep cut, like the SS Botany Bay luggage tag. (The only person who’s going to know it’s Star Trek-related will be someone who likes Star Trek.)

S.S. Botany Bay luggage tag in Borg circuitry tissue paper

Some strive to be both, like a refrigerator magnet (practicality debatable) with a drawing from Glenn Dakin’s book Mr. Spock’s Little Book of Mindfulness. You’ll find things you can use, like a Quark’s Bar bottle stopper, an IDIC keychain, an espresso cup commemorating Zefram Cochrane’s first flight, TOS playing cards, socks, and a beautiful tea towel depicting Starfleet Headquarters in San Francisco, designed by Jezzie Hill, which will definitely make it into my kitchen despite my non-Trekkie husband.

Fridge magnet with drawing from Glenn Dakin’s Mr. Spock’s Little Book of Mindfulness

Espresso cup in Borg circuitry tissue paper

Among the purely ornamental: a Vashti art print, and a lot of Hero Collector pins of various characters from across the franchise, all very specific: Janeway as a Borg from “Unimatrix Zero,” Sisko in the series premiere of Deep Space Nine, Mirror Universe Archer, and more. (To be honest, the pins would’ve been more fun if they’d been grouped together as one item; by the time the fifth one is opened, it starts to feel a little redundant.) Every item in the cube  comes with a card that tells you something about the item itself or some in-universe Star Trek fact related to the design.

Mirror Universe Archer pin with info card

And somewhere in the middle: a set of postcards by (one of my favorite Star Trek artists) Juan Ortiz, Star Trek coasters, and a few items that seem almost anachronistic for a 21st-century gift from a franchise about the distant future, like a delta-shaped paperweight that I’m determined to use because I like it so much.

Star Trek postcards by artist Juan Ortiz

Delta paperweight

Unboxing the Borg

Eaglemoss sent us their unboxing video.

Bottom line: A great gift (and it’s on sale)

Not everything in the cube will appeal, but that can be mitigated by the joy of having 24 presents to open. It does come with a steep price tag, but if there’s a Star Trek fan in your life who deserves some extravagance, this is the perfect gift. In all honesty, I wouldn’t buy this for myself due to the cost; if I were going to drop $150 on Star Trek merchandise, I’d want something more substantial. But as gift, it’s a definite win.

The Star Trek Borg Cube Advent Calendar is available now at the Eaglemoss Shop for $149.95. However, currently, they are running a Black Friday/Cyber Monday sale discounting the box by 20%. You see the savings once you add it to your cart.

Find more Star Trek product news and reviews here at TrekMovie.com.