TLG’s 2019 line up

[ElectroDiva]

Appreciate there are topics already for individual themes going into 2019, but it would be interesting (for me at least) to hear people’s thoughts on the overall line-up for 2019.

 

I have to say from a personal perspective it’s not shaping up to be a vintage year (yet). Maybe 2017 & 2018 were particularly good and thus set very high expectations but honestly, I’m not feeling a lot of the sets that have been revealed so far.

 

Pretty much every theme seems to be weaker than its 2018 counterpart. Even the Lego Movie 2 sets (with the notable exceptions of the party bus and classic space figs set) seems much weaker than the Lego Movie 1 line up from a couple of years ago.

 

The highlights for me so far are these two Chinese New Year themed sets - and they may not even be available in the West..

 

 

 

 

[Mylenium]

36 minutes ago, ElectroDiva said:

Pretty much every theme seems to be weaker than its 2018 counterpart.

Seems you have a rather one-sided view here. At least for Technic and Friends arguably the 2019 sets look a lot better/ more useful than what we got this year. Similarly I can find a few sets that are just great in other series like Creator. Sure, it's by necessity raisin-picking, but you can't expect each and every set to be outstanding.

With regards to the LEGO Movie 2 I'd take this with a grain of salt, anyway. It appears to me that everyone is expecting the second movie to be as awesome as the first one, when that's simply impossible. The odds are stacked to high against it. The novelty of the LEGO movies by now inevitably has worn off and you can't re-create the surprise and wonder of the first one that basically came out of the blue. Nostalgia also seems to figure in here as frankly I can't see much of a difference between the sets. Back then I couldn't care less for LEGO, but now that I'm involved, looking at reviews and images of those older sets still doesn't particularly tingle me, which I like to take as a sign that when viewed somewhat objectively and from a distance, those sets aren't any better or worse than some of the stuff we have now.

Beyond that, the "vintage" factor is mostly irrelevant to me. What do I care whether a set will be considered a "classic" in a few years? I live in the here and now and enjoy doodling around and building LEGO, not collecting it. In the end even thinking about such stuff seems pointless. Who knows what new sets will be out in a few years and what parts they will contain? There will always be stuff that invalidates and surpasses what came before just as there will always be legacy sets that may seem superior. In the end it's all specific to individual perception, themes and subjects you deal with and so on, but ultimatly it will probably always balance itself one way or the other. What you consider a not so great set now could easily become next year's big hit, so I'd be wary with generalized observations. Let's wait until we get actually hold the sets in our hands and then there will still be enough opportunity to judge and complain...

Mylenium

[ElectroDiva]

19 minutes ago, Mylenium said:

Seems you have a rather one-sided view here. 

 

Yup - and I make no apologies for that. It’s purely my subjective view based on the sets I’ve seen so far. I started this thread to hear other people’s subjective views on the same subject. Thanks for posting your views and I’d like to respond to a couple of them.

 

With regard to the Lego Movie 1 sets seeming better due to “nostalgia” - sure - that’s possible, but I genuinely think they were more interesting and thoughtfully put together. I picked up nearly the entire LM1 series at the time whereas I can’t see myself picking up more than a couple of the LM2 sets. 

 

With regard to the “vintage” factor - as you say that depends on whether you collect sets or merely see them as parts packs for your own builds. Personally I do a bit of both (although weighted more towards the collecting). There are a lot of other AFOLs out there who do the same and calling that “pointless” is unnecessarily dismissive and antagonistic. There are people out there who enjoy Lego in a different way to you - neither is wrong or right.

 

I do agree with you on one thing though- it’s always worth seeing the sets hands-on before making any final judgements. I do that as a matter of course and have sometimes changed my mind as a result. 2019 will be no different in that respect.

[TeriXeri]

Biggest question for me is, where are the Starter packs for City, would have expected at least one for 2019 Fire or Sky Police.

 

2018  :

- Mining Team - 82 pieces - 4 minifig - €9,99

- Mountain Fugitives - 88 pieces - 4 minifig - €9,99

- Artic Exploration Team - 70 pieces - 3 minifig + dog - €9,99

- Off-Road Chase - 37 pieces - 2 minfig - motorcycle - €5,99

 

2019 we get similar sized sets with 1 minifig only :

- Police Patrol Car - 90 pieces - 1 minfig - €9,99

- Desert Rally Racer -  75 pieces - 1 minfig - scorpion - €9,99

- Construction Loader - 88 pieces - 1 minfig - €9,99

- Barbecue Burn Out (4+ Juniors) - 64 pieces - 2 minfig - €9,99

 

Edited December 23, 2018 by TeriXeri

[Digger of Bricks]

One thing 2019 is missing which was still with us in 2018 are the Nexo Knights and Elves playset themes, therefore leaving Lego with an even emptier basket of in-house lines than the previous year. I mean, remember how many in-house themes there were ten years ago? 

[Mylenium]

18 hours ago, Digger of Bricks said:

I mean, remember how many in-house themes there were ten years ago? 

Could be seen either way. Doesn't do you much good if you have tons of own branded series if you can't feed the machine, in a manner of speaking. That has always been kind of the problem with LEGO's own stuff, hasn't it? They all got stale and repetitive after a while and/ or lacked a power by number of sets. In the case of Elves it also hasn't helped that the sets were massively overpriced and relegated to the "girly" shelf. There's a certain inevitability in those series failing and getting pulped as long as LEGO make the same mistakes over and over again and aren't commited as would be necessary...

Mylenium

[Lyichir]

Personally I'm extremely excited for the 2019 sets. The Lego Movie 2 sets look fantastic to me, maybe even better than those from the first Lego Movie, and Ninjago also looks like it'll be having a banner year with much improved remakes of classic sets.

I will agree with several of the commenters here that with the end of both Nexo Knights and Elves it's a bit of a light year for Lego's own in-house IPs. But those themes lasted three and four years respectively (pretty decent lifespans for "Big Bang" themes), and it wouldn't make much sense to try to launch a new Big Bang theme in their place, at least not for the winter wave when The Lego Movie 2 will be monopolizing so much attention and shelf space. It's still possible that we might see some new themes launching in the summer, perhaps even a more traditional Castle theme to replace the two fantasy action themes that retired last year. And the Systar System sets from The Lego Movie 2 are giving us a tantalizing taste of what a mini-doll space theme might be like.

[Blondie-Wan]

2 hours ago, Lyichir said:

Personally I'm extremely excited for the 2019 sets. The Lego Movie 2 sets look fantastic to me, maybe even better than those from the first Lego Movie, and Ninjago also looks like it'll be having a banner year with much improved remakes of classic sets.

I will agree with several of the commenters here that with the end of both Nexo Knights and Elves it's a bit of a light year for Lego's own in-house IPs. But those themes lasted three and four years respectively (pretty decent lifespans for "Big Bang" themes), and it wouldn't make much sense to try to launch a new Big Bang theme in their place, at least not for the winter wave when The Lego Movie 2 will be monopolizing so much attention and shelf space. It's still possible that we might see some new themes launching in the summer, perhaps even a more traditional Castle theme to replace the two fantasy action themes that retired last year. And the Systar System sets from The Lego Movie 2 are giving us a tantalizing taste of what a mini-doll space theme might be like.

 to all of this. I’m very much looking forward to the whole The LEGO Movie 2 line in particular; I just hope I can afford it all.

I will miss seeing Elves sets on the shelves, I must say. I should try to pick up a few more while I still can. But I’m excited about what’s to come.

[LegoDW]

I am looking forward to a few of the Speed Champions sets in 2019.  Nothing else right now is making my mouth water.  Hope we get some good stuff released mid year

[ElectroDiva]

On 12/23/2018 at 3:20 PM, Digger of Bricks said:

One thing 2019 is missing which was still with us in 2018 are the Nexo Knights and Elves playset themes, therefore leaving Lego with an even emptier basket of in-house lines than the previous year. I mean, remember how many in-house themes there were ten years ago? 

 

Hopefully their demise will clear the way for a re-introduction of Castle at some point - or even a wide ranging new History theme with Myth/Fantasy elements (yes I know it’s unlikely - but a girl can dream... :)

 

20 hours ago, Lyichir said:

It's still possible that we might see some new themes launching in the summer, perhaps even a more traditional Castle theme to replace the two fantasy action themes that retired last year. And the Systar System sets from The Lego Movie 2 are giving us a tantalizing taste of what a mini-doll space theme might be like.

 

I’d love to see a Castle reintroduction in 2019 but can’t see it happening tbh. 2020 is more likely (if it happens at all given TLGs current focus on Licensed and Big Bang themes).

 

A Systar space theme would be pretty cool - perhaps with both minidolls and traditional minifigs for different races. My favourite sets from the LM2 line up are the two Systar sets and Benny’s Space Squad)

Edited December 25, 2018 by ElectroDiva

[Digger of Bricks]

5 minutes ago, ElectroDiva said:

A Systar space theme would be pretty cool - perhaps with both minidolls and traditional minifigs for different races. My favourite sets from the LM2 line up are the two Systar sets and Benny’s Space Squad)

I'd much rather wish for Mayhem and Friends to act as a proving ground for such, as I'd not be very fond of an entire theme made up of the same sense of wackiness used by The Lego Movie & Co. outside of those films. As a Minidoll theme, something like Flash Gordon meets LEGO's Elves would most certainly tempt me... 

[ShaydDeGrai]

My reaction so far is basically: It's early, judging all of 2019 based on a handful of teasers and leaks is a bit pre-mature.  Every year has its hits and misses; on one hand I can see where ElectroDiva is coming from in that my own shopping list for 2019 is pretty short (so far); on the other hand, I already _have_ a shopping list of new kits I plan on picking up (mostly Technic, Architect, and Creator Expert) so the offerings can't be _that_ bad.

So far (again, it's early) I haven't seen much on the licensed IP front that jumps out and screams "buy me!"  Then again, (with a few notable exceptions) 2018 wasn't exactly a banner year either.  They could have done a lot more with Black Panther.  Most of the Marvel sets felt like they were more about collecting the infinity stones than enjoying the builds.  I enjoyed the UCS Hulkbuster, but do we really need three variations on  the hulkbuster in as many years?  As for DC, I'm getting pretty tired of Batman and while Aquaman was a visually stunning film, the sets have been few in number and far less compelling. And speaking of tired and rehashes, I feel like Vader's Castle and the Porg are the only SW models I haven't done at least twice already (and in some cases, a lot more than twice).  The Jurassic World sets weren't bad, but they did feel a bit like more of an excuse to buy dinosaurs and minifigs than classic builds in their own rights.  Harry Potter? The mini-scale castle was a standout, and the rest of the line was pretty solid, but, like Star Wars, the bulk of the offerings had a bit of a been there, done that, feel to it.  "Native" Disney properties do nothing for me, and neither do most of the licensed tie-in sets.

With Elves and Nexo-knights retiring, there'll be a void in TLG's line-up, but we shouldn't assume that this void will go unfilled throughout the year or that any such replacement in the line-up will be of inferior quality.  I will confess that, for my money, neither theme really appealed to me, but I appreciated the creativity and felt that they were some of the best sets when it came to sourcing parts.  They each did a great job of introducing new molds and unique recolors even if the builds themselves were of limited appeal.  My _hope_ is that we'll see a resurgence of a classic castle offering and some equally "out-there"/fantasy/sci-fi offering that will pick up the mantel of interesting models incorporating new parts in new colors, but we'll just have to wait and see if that happens in 2019.

As for TLM2 vs. The Lego Movie, I'll side with the original poster as far as saying that, Benny's Space Squad is the only kit in this wave that made me think "I should grab a few of those" and that thought had nothing to do with the movie, I just wanted some classic space people in various colors.  I'm not sure I'd say this wave is _inferior_ to the kits offered for the first movie, though.  I picked up a few of those earlier offerings and, truth be told, Benny's Spaceship (spaceship, spaceship!), was really in a class by itself, most of the line was forgettable (just as, sadly, I think much of the new wave is).  To put a more positive spin on things, I think TLM2 offerings as just as good as the first wave of TLM kits were.  Imagining the older kits as being "better" is more a function of kind memories and nostalgia for TLM itself and less an objective assessment of the builds, part usage or playability.

Also, when comparing year-to-year, it's important to realize TLG likes to play things close to the vest for a long as possible and we rarely go into a new year knowing what the "really good stuff" is going to be because it simply hasn't been announced yet.  The Technic line, traditionally, rolls out its "flagship" models in early to mid summer (Porsche 911 GT3 and Bugatti Chiron - first sold in June for example),  Summer roll-outs have also been big for Star Wars ( Death Star Playset, Super Star Destroyer, UCS Millennium Falcon, etc).  Creator Expert's Modular buildings typically see two per year, one early (which we know about already for 2019) and one held in reserve until fall.  The Disney Castle and the mini-scale Hogwart's Castle are other examples of great kits that didn't go public until the year was mostly over.  According to Brickset, there were nearly 800 sets released last year and, to date, we have details about less than a quarter of that number for 2019.  In general, January is a terrible time to roll-out new sets, too much thunder gets stolen by after Christmas sales, clearance items on last year's stuff and people still scrambling to pick up the "hot new" toy of the year that just came out in December but was back-ordered until after the holiday.  New items have difficultly getting noticed in that climate, I _think_ that why TLG often waits until at least March (and sometimes much longer) before rolling out its more memorable sets for the year.

Looking back through Brickset release dates for 2018, by this time in 2017, only 5 of what I would consider the "memorable" kits of 2018 had been announced, so I wouldn't worry too much about the shape of 2019, the best is (usually) yet to come.

[Aanchir]

On 12/25/2018 at 7:47 AM, ElectroDiva said:

I’d love to see a Castle reintroduction in 2019 but can’t see it happening tbh. 2020 is more likely (if it happens at all given TLGs current focus on Licensed and Big Bang themes).

People have been saying for years that licensed themes are taking over, and yet non-licensed themes like City, Friends, Ninjago, Creator, Classic, Technic, and Duplo continue to be some of LEGO's biggest hits, with only the Star Wars theme reliably measuring up in terms of overall sales and popularity. I don't think there's any chance that LEGO is going to give up on non-licensed products or even non "big bang" ones (especially since the definition of "big bang" themes pretty much limits them to only one per year, and so far only in years that don't have a LEGO Movie dominating the LEGO Group's marketing strategy).

Plus, with regard to Castle in particular, every new incarnation of Castle since 2001 (except for Nexo Knights) has launched the same year as new "Castle-ish" movie licensed sets from themes like Harry Potter or The Hobbit. And in most cases, the non-licensed Castle themes in question lasted as long as or even outlasted the licensed themes they launched alongside. If none of those themes ruled out a new castle theme, I don't see why any current licenses would, particularly with both Elves and Nexo Knights retiring. The only reason I can imagine LEGO waiting until 2020 to launch the next version of Castle is if they don't want the marketing for it to be drowned out by LEGO Movie 2 hype.

I will definitely miss Nexo Knights and Elves, but so far I'm not at all lacking in other sets to be excited for from themes like The LEGO Movie 2 and Ninjago. I've got about 20 different 2019 sets on my Brickset wish list already, with a lot more first half year sets I might add once we have a better idea what's still to come in the second half (since I don't tend to add stuff to my wanted list unless I consider it a "must-have", and second half year sets can have a big impact on what first half year sets qualify as that),

Moreover, I feel like concerns about a new year's sets being underwhelming tend to pop up pretty regularly at the end of each year, simply by virtue of many of the biggest and most exciting new sets not being revealed or announced until later in the year, and also people being a lot less receptive to media-supported themes until the corresponding movies or TV shows themselves are released to more clearly contextualize them. Like, I've seen multiple comments about the LEGO Movie 2 sets seeming underwhelming compared to the original LEGO Movie sets… but back when the LEGO Movie sets were first being announced, several people were a LOT more cynical about them, with many people specifically deriding them as excessively childish, nonsensical, or chaotic (some examples: 1|2|3|4|5).

Also, from what I've been hearing, LEGO has done a much better job controlling leaks this year than in the past. As the year goes on I'm sure there will be a LOT of surprises in store that will excite lots of people, even many who have been unimpressed with a lot of what's already been announced.

[TeriXeri]

2019 would also be "30 years" of Pirates sets.

They just remade a very classic Pirate figure in the 2018 Employees set, so I wouldn't mind some pirate celebration set either even if it's just 1 set.

[ElectroDiva]

21 hours ago, Aanchir said:

The only reason I can imagine LEGO waiting until 2020 to launch the next version of Castle is if they don't want the marketing for it to be drowned out by LEGO Movie 2 hype.

 

Also, from what I've been hearing, LEGO has done a much better job controlling leaks this year than in the past. As the year goes on I'm sure there will be a LOT of surprises in store that will excite lots of people, even many who have been unimpressed with a lot of what's already been announced.

 

I hope you’re right on both counts @Aanchir and honestly despite the tone of my original post I’m reserving final judgement until we get further into the year. Happy to have my doubts proven unfounded.

 

With regard to controlling leaks - perhaps they’ve gone a bit too far in that respect and killed off some of the anticipation of previous years?

 

@ShaydDeGrai - some very good points raised - particularly around the “really good stuff” being kept in reserve until later in the year. I just remember being more excited about the 2017 and 2018 line-ups at this stage. Maybe that’s rose tinted glasses

 

Agree with you that part of the reason is licensed theme fatigue - there does seem to be a lot of repetition in those. Having said that - if they announced a revamped UCS Imperial Star Destroyer or UCS Blockade Runner I’d be first in line for those :)

[ks6349]

Where can I order the Chinese New Year sets?

[ElectroDiva]

49 minutes ago, ks6349 said:

Where can I order the Chinese New Year sets?

Depends where you live...

 

If you’re in the Far East/Australia/New Zealand they’ll probably be on general sale in January.

 

If you’re anywhere else - you may never get the chance to buy them without resorting to scalpers unfortunately (they appear to be region exclusive)

[ks6349]

5 hours ago, ElectroDiva said:

Depends where you live...

 

If you’re in the Far East/Australia/New Zealand they’ll probably be on general sale in January.

 

If you’re anywhere else - you may never get the chance to buy them without resorting to scalpers unfortunately (they appear to be region exclusive)

I'm in Thailand.....(South Asia)

Usually, for exclusive stuff, will LEGO store sell priced up? and then sooner later they drop the price? Or LEGO usually fix the price always no matter what?

I think we can get it in Thailand but I don't want to get from scalpers

Edited December 28, 2018 by ks6349

[Mylenium]

On 12/26/2018 at 10:09 PM, Aanchir said:

The only reason I can imagine LEGO waiting until 2020 to launch the next version of Castle is if they don't want the marketing for it to be drowned out by LEGO Movie 2 hype.

Technically I don't see much of an issue with that. As I told you in many threads already, here in Europe there's a good chance it would "just sell", regardless of whether there's a lot of marketing buzz or not for castle-ish/ medieval stuff. LEGO would just need to give it some time to really flourish and not pull sets from shelves after a year like they so often do these days. And it better be not like Nexo Knights... Still, it's a fair point at least in terms of what people can actually afford to buy and possibly also how many diverse sets LEGO can produce and handle within their distribution system. The rest will depend on the success of the movie and/ or, in case it doesn't go that well, whether the TLM 2 sets can generate enough interest on their own merits.

Mylenium

[Hive]

There's some decent stuff for the first half of the year, but nothing really spectacular for me. Which has been the case for several years now. I won't be fully happy until Castle and/or Pirates finally return, but I don't particularly see the first half of 2019 as being any worse than recent years. The modular garage is better than the modular last yeaer (controversial viewpoint, I know) and there are sets from both the LEGO Movie and Friends lineups that I can use for other stuff. I'd expect some Creator 3-in-1 buildings for the summer wave as well, those have been the highlights for me in recent years.

[TeriXeri]

1 hour ago, Hive said:

 I won't be fully happy until Castle and/or Pirates finally return

Fingers crossed for 30 year anniversary pirate set(s).

Seeing how LEGO celebrated a lot of things lately it kinda makes sense to do at least something :

- 60 year of the brick (parts boxes also had some Castle/Pirate minifig accesoires)

- 40 year of the minifig

- 20 year Star Wars

- 40 years Classic Space (unofficial, but many of the most iconic sets released in 1979) , also City-Space for 2019 hopefully has some references to that era I hope.

1 hour ago, Hive said:

I'd expect some Creator 3-in-1 buildings for the summer wave as well, those have been the highlights for me in recent years.

I hope so, Emmet's Dream House is at least 1 set fitting the gap. 

Edited December 28, 2018 by TeriXeri

[Hive]

On 12/28/2018 at 1:37 PM, TeriXeri said:

I hope so, Emmet's Dream House is at least 1 set fitting the gap. 

I agree, that is the one LEGO Movie 2 set I am really looking forward to. I really like the roof bricks in that colour.

I'm also considering the Friends set below, mainly due to the windows and the newish arch/rail thingies above the doors and windows in that nice, blue colour. And nougat bricks are always a delight.

[leafan]

On 12/28/2018 at 10:54 AM, Hive said:

I won't be fully happy until Castle and/or Pirates finally return

You know what; rather than new sets of castles they've already done, I'd rather see a dedicated CMF line like "CMF Classics: Castle", which would be a line of 15 or so new Castle Inspired minifigs (and repeat for other classic themes).

That, or a 'Battle Pack' style sets with figures and accessories like a Battle Standard, in the same style as the Chima "Tribe Packs" such as 70229.

Or, if they do go back to standard castle sets, I'd prefer them to mix it up a little and offer more civilian buildings, even if it has to be direct to consumer.

[TeriXeri]

1 hour ago, leafan said:

You know what; rather than new sets of castles they've already done, I'd rather see a dedicated CMF line like "CMF Classics: Castle", which would be a line of 15 or so new Castle Inspired minifigs (and repeat for other classic themes).

That, or a 'Battle Pack' style sets with figures and accessories like a Battle Standard, in the same style as the Chima "Tribe Packs" such as 70229.

Or, if they do go back to standard castle sets, I'd prefer them to mix it up a little and offer more civilian buildings, even if it has to be direct to consumer.

I rather see minifig packs instead of the CMF "random" aspect. Even polybags seem hard to find here.

And yes, castle should have more buildings, and not too many vehicles beyond some siege/catapults.

 

An Xtra polybag purely focused on Castle or Pirate accesoires for minifigs would be amazing.

Edited December 30, 2018 by TeriXeri

[Hive]

8 hours ago, leafan said:

You know what; rather than new sets of castles they've already done, I'd rather see a dedicated CMF line like "CMF Classics: Castle", which would be a line of 15 or so new Castle Inspired minifigs (and repeat for other classic themes).

That, or a 'Battle Pack' style sets with figures and accessories like a Battle Standard, in the same style as the Chima "Tribe Packs" such as 70229.

Or, if they do go back to standard castle sets, I'd prefer them to mix it up a little and offer more civilian buildings, even if it has to be direct to consumer.

I agree. If it's anything like the last Castle line (from 2013 I believe), they won't have to bother as far as I'm concerned. Every single set (apart from the pretty good Dragon Mountain) were rehashes - and poor attempts at a such. And the figures and heraldy... man, don't get me started there...

A CMF line or some battle backs would be fun, but I'd still love a new Castle theme that would run for 2-3 years - if done properly. Something in the vein of Kingdoms.