Klaus-Dieter

LEGO Collectable Minifigures Series 3 discussion

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Lego is very gender-biased in everything it does, so the lack of females here is disappointing but not surprising. Look at the box illustrations for the Games line, for example. Most feature at least two characters playing the game, but out of the 20-ish Games in existence, only two feature females - and one's a family scene while the other's a witch, so they're hardly breaking any glass ceilings. It's just instinctive on LEGO's part to make its figures male unless they're specifically female roles, so the chances of any of those potentially-either figs (elf, snowboarder etc) being female is zero.

There would need to be some fundamental change in the company's thinking for any of that to improve.

However, there's also the fact that young boys tend to avoid anything that looks too "girly." That's a marketing fact. It's the reason why Joanne Rowling uses her innitials on the covers of her Harry Potter books rather than her full name. Boys wouldn't have bought them if they'd known she was female.

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Lego is very gender-biased in everything it does, so the lack of females here is disappointing but not surprising. Look at the box illustrations for the Games line, for example.

What happened to the 1980s catalogues and universal set boxes where boys and girls were both shown playing with Lego in perfect harmony? :cry_sad:

There would need to be some fundamental change in the company's thinking for any of that to improve.

Or at least a new girl-oriented System theme, one can always dream!

It's the reason why Joanne Rowling uses her initials on the covers of her Harry Potter books rather than her full name. Boys wouldn't have bought them if they'd known she was female.

*huh* I didn't know that, it's a disturbing thought.

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However, there's also the fact that young boys tend to avoid anything that looks too "girly." That's a marketing fact. It's the reason why Joanne Rowling uses her innitials on the covers of her Harry Potter books rather than her full name. Boys wouldn't have bought them if they'd known she was female.

There is a very long history of female authors using a male name when writing book, likewise there are male authors that write romance novels under a female name

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It is not a LEGO set, it is a collectible. If you want to know what you are buying, just buy them from bricklink. If you don't want to pay bricklink prices then just buy impulse sets.

It is not a marketing scam, in no place do the packaging suggests that you can know what you are purchasing, the question marks all over the poly-bag should also be a hint.

Please! Don't be so touchy! If you don't consider it a "scam" because there's nothing illegal about it and you know the conditions before you buy, then call it a "scheme." It's a marketing scheme... hand over your money, and you might get what you want! If not, hand over some more money! What fun!

Yes, I know your opinion: so then don't buy it!

But we're here on a public forum discussing this product and people are giving their opinions... don't take it personally.

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Lego is very gender-biased in everything it does, so the lack of females here is disappointing but not surprising.

Someone posted a link to this article at the NYT. The comments are particularly entertaining.

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same here and it's really making me mad. They've had two waves already and i'm pretty sure a large chunk of FoL's hav'ent even got any of series 1 :hmpf_bad:

We've been begging for something like this for years and now you're getting mad that they're releasing them too fast? default_laugh_new.gif

If anything, you can get them on BL. The prices are higher, yes, but you don't have to guess or barcode check so you're guaranteed the figure you want (which, some might argue, takes the fun away but never mind that). And maybe by the time Series 3 is released the production of Series 1 will have caught up with the demand and the prices will go down on BL.

On another note, I'm very excited for the elf, in particular. I've been waiting for elves since that teaser back in '09 fir the Castle theme. I hope the ears, if any, are attached to the hair, though, and not a new head mold. It'd be better for individualizing different elves, rather than have them all having the same face, you can switch heads with any minifgure.

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We've been begging for something like this for years and now you're getting mad that they're releasing them too fast?

It's not that they're releasing them to fast, it's that we've been "begging for something like this for years" (we have? Yes, I wanted a variety of minifigures, but this isn't really what I had in mind), and TLG completely, by some HUGE margin that seems to make no sense to any FOL (adult or otherwise), underestimated the demand.... I personally have not seen a SINGLE pack for sale ANYWHERE, and it's not like I haven't been to a variety of places (multiple times). Granted, I was in the Amazon Rainforest when they were released, and didn't have an opportunity to look until several weeks later, but by the end of June they were nowhere to be found around here.

Unfortunately series 2 had already been planned, from what I understand, so suffers from the same problem... not even remotely close to enough to meet demand. But from what I've read, series 3 will have a much larger run, so here's hoping.

On another note, I'm very excited for the elf, in particular. I've been waiting for elves since that teaser back in '09 fir the Castle theme. I hope the ears, if any, are attached to the hair, though, and not a new head mold. It'd be better for individualizing different elves, rather than have them all having the same face, you can switch heads with any minifgure.

Agreed... unfortunately, like you, I was hoping for Fantasy era themes where we could buy a large number of them, like you could get with troll and dwarf battle packs... but such is life.

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What happened to the 1980s catalogues and universal set boxes where boys and girls were both shown playing with Lego in perfect harmony? :cry_sad:

What happened is that LEGO sets failed to become more popular with girls so such advertising was found to fail. Whatever the reason (it may as well be that prejudiced parents don't think construction bricks is a girl's toy) LEGO products just don't sell as well with girls as they sell with boys.

I actually think that the minifig series so far have had a lot more female characters than the average LEGO line. More so I think that it would be more biased if they used a certain quota to meet (ie: "always make sure 50% of the minifigs are female!").

It's not that they're releasing them to fast, it's that we've been "begging for something like this for years" (we have? Yes, I wanted a variety of minifigures, but this isn't really what I had in mind), and TLG completely, by some HUGE margin that seems to make no sense to any FOL (adult or otherwise), underestimated the demand...

It may make not sense to FOLs, but the ones that would kill for a minifig are really the minority among all the people that buy LEGO products. Collectible minifigs were a risk to take.

Nevertheless, I disagree that TLG underestimated the demand. There are many countries in which the figs were not as hard to get as they were in the US. This is most likely an issue with US retailers underestimating the demand. Some big retailers did not even order them. This can also be explained by the crisis making retailers less likely to take such risks with new products. More so, collectibles should be scarce, that's about the whole point of them.

Edited by vexorian

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Series three of these figures looks good, but not as good as series two. Right now I'm on the hunt for series two which hasn't appeared in Coventry yet. I'm thinking of asking in Argos today if they are going to get them in, and possibly buying some more season one's since they are still in stock there (they have more than one box left but since they aren't advertising them no one knows they are there).

Right now I'm really enjoying the themes and can't wait to get the Karate guy. This is the must get out of the series two just so I can make my own Dojo for them. I really hope they will relelase Shaolin or something in the later sets and carry on the martial arts theme.

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Does anyone knoe how many series they will be?

Thanks.

Yes.

The answer (of course) is 42. Douglas Adams anyone?

Seriously, I doubt anyone (including those at LEGO) know.

Edited by Edmond Dantes

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Does anyone knoe how many series they will be?

Thanks.

I haven't seen an official date yet, I wonder if they will come out for Christmas or early next year. Most likely given the current rate you could see them as early as November

Edited by Sirens-Of-Titan

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Hey JaMMit,

It looks like there are at least five series tentatively planned, but I'm not sure how based in fact that assertion is. I read here that the next two series will be in January and April.

I think as long as they sell like hotcakes, TLC will continue releasing series. We can expect the minifigures to be hit or miss, meaning some people will not be happy with another indian or some such, but this is hands down my favorite product line.

As far as my opinion on Series 3:

Chief: I'm all for another indian. The body prints and face paint alone are worth it. They are useful in so many ways for customizing.

Gorilla: If it's a removable mask like the old werewolf from Studios, I'd be really excited. Planet of the Apes MOC, here we come!

Hula Girl: The torso print (can we dream of a coconut bra?), female face, and possible new hair make it worth getting a few of her.

Alien: Judging from the Space Police aliens, TLC knows how to make cool aliens. Another space gun would also be welcome.

Male Singer: I'd like to see a similar torso and leg prints to the female singer in Series Two.

Baseball Player: I don't have a bat, so that would be cool. The rest depends on the uniform. I don't get much use out of the sports torsos.

Fisher: He'll probably have a nice civilian torso print, always welcome. A fishing rod would be really cool.

Sumo/Karate: Another nude torso would be cool, but I hope the trophy is different.

Samurai: I'm happy with the one I have, but this would be gravy to be sure.

Elf: I agree that is will probably be ears on a hair piece. Can't wait to see the torso.

Dancer: Ballet? Go-Go? Rocker?

Ferrari Driver: I have a handful, so I hope it's different than the Ferrari line.

Snowboarder: Depends.

Doctor: I hope he has his mask on.

Mummy: I'd really like a new mummy. I'm not happy with the face one the mummy I have.

?: Maybe this one is the Invisible Man! That's why he doesn't remember it. While I'm kidding, I would pay rediculous bucks for a trans clear or trans red minifig! I made a clear one, I'll post it on my Flickr when I get a chance. It's a hack job to be sure.

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-elf with bow and big buckler

:wub::wub::wub: !!!

Ooohhhh... an elf!

This could be good and bad. I might have to change my favorite minifig. Robin Hood might be in for some competition.

Although I agree that a more complete fantasy Castle theme with multiple Elves, variety, armour, weapons, sets, buildilngs, etc would have been preferable...

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Thanks Klaus-Dieter,

These are all wonderful scoops, you have a great memory. Do you happen to remember whether the alien head is a new mould, or is it a printed normal head?

many thanks,

Robuko

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Thanks Klaus-Dieter,

These are all wonderful scoops, you have a great memory. Do you happen to remember whether the alien head is a new mould, or is it a printed normal head?

many thanks,

Robuko

Like already mentioned, it looks like one of the SP3 alien heads.

Klaus-Dieter

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Like already mentioned, it looks like one of the SP3 alien heads.

Klaus-Dieter

Thanks very much Klaus-Dieter, sorry I missed your earlier post on this.

Robuko

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where did you read the retailer's catalog at also it would be cool if the alien head was like this :alien:

Agree, that is a good alien head. The alien has me really excited. The spaceman from wave 1 needs some "friends".

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Great find Klaus-Dieter, thanks for sharing with us. I'm really pleased to hear the series are to continue as I wasn't that interested to begin with as I thought we would only get a few specialist one-off figures. I know you probably didn't get a long look and you did really well to remember all you can!

Just a few questions though if you are able to answer...

Was the fisherman like a commercial fisherman with a souwester or just a regular everyday guy with a rod?

Does the sumo guy have the same trophy as the karate kid?

What sort of dancer was the female dancer - ballet?

Does the gorilla just look like a guy in a gorilla suit?

What was the last figure ??? - anybody know?????

Thanks

Although we haven't seen pics of these yet I'm sure they will be great (judging by Series 2) and there is so much potential for these series to continue and I don't get why people complain about 'remakes' - I would love to see variations of each - e.g, different clowns, pop stars, skiers and male/female versions of many of the figures! Can't wait to know about series 4!

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Thanks for the information!

We will see how many series Minifigures Lego will bring us :grin:

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Was the fisherman like a commercial fisherman with a souwester or just a regular everyday guy with a rod?

Does the sumo guy have the same trophy as the karate kid?

What sort of dancer was the female dancer - ballet?

Does the gorilla just look like a guy in a gorilla suit?

What was the last figure ??? - anybody know?????

The fisherman looked like an everyday guy.

The sumo ringer does have the same trophy - but keep in mind these are prelim pics so TLG might change the one or other thing.

I thought it was a ballet dancer.

The gorilla is a regular minifig with a gorilla head mold.

I don't remember the last figs clearly and the last one I completely forgot.

seem that the ??? minifigs are a pirate

and doctor an artist

http://lego.wikia.com/wiki/Minifigures_Series_3

Thank you very much for this information, dariofol! :classic:

An artist sounds promising - the only question is whether it is from music, sports or painting.

Klaus-Dieter

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Thanks for the response Klaus Dieter and dariofol - the fishing guy sounds like a much-wanted civilian figure and I am looking forward to the gorilla! I imagine the pirate will be a pretty specialist model (more elaborate than the recent Pirates line) and I the artist is another good option, which I guess will be a painter.

I guess now we just wait for Series 3 pics and the on to guessing the Series 4 figures... (we should have a thread where we each guess 16 figures and the winner is the one with the most correct guesses when the line is announced!)

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