Mature Themes We'd Like to See (discussion, rumour, wishful thinking)

[legoSDR]

This is a theme inspired by LEGO's decision to create Stranger Things LEGO which is probably their most mature (age-wise) theme ever! This topic is for discussing what other more AFOL/adult oriented themes you wish/hope/want LEGO will make. We can also share any customs/MOCs based on more mature themes that we think would make great sets, like Game of Thrones or the Marvel Netflix shows. Or any TV and movies. This is more specifically geared toward ideas based on shows and movies that are rated TV-14/PG-13/15(UK)/R-Rated and above

Edited May 10, 2019 by legoSDR

[Alegrispa]

Idk, Stranger Things seems like a niche thing. A lot of people say it's not for kids, which is huge BS.

While it is mature, it is not exclusively intended for adults like for example GoT or TWD are.

But I'm also not saying this doesn't mean anything for the future of licenses. It seems as long as it doesn't include excessive swearing, nudity or bloody gore (though there was Indiana Jones...), it's fair game for TLG.

Edited May 10, 2019 by Alegrispa

[legoSDR]

48 minutes ago, Alegrispa said:

Idk, Stranger Things seems like a niche thing. A lot of people say it's not for kids, which is huge BS.

While it is mature, it is not exclusively intended for adults like for example GoT or TWD are.

But I'm also not saying this doesn't mean anything for the future of licenses. It seems as long as it doesn't include excessive swearing, nudity or bloody gore (though there was Indiana Jones...), it's fair game for TLG.

Yeah I agree ST is unique in that respect. But I definitely think this will open doors for more mature content. I'll never hold my breath for GoT but it's nice to talk about what they could do

didn't know they were reviewing the Office, that's quite exciting

[Aanchir]

A couple things:

LEGO has seemingly been OK with licenses rated PG-13 or the equivalent since the early 2000s — Stranger Things is not groundbreaking in that regard. Past examples include:

• Star Wars (Episodes 3, 7, 8, Rogue One, Solo, The Force Unleashed, and The Old Republic)
• Indiana Jones (Temple of Doom, Last Crusade, and Kingdom of the Crystal Skull)
• Harry Potter (Goblet of Fire, Prisoner of Azkaban, Half-Blood Prince, and Deathly Hallows)
• Pirates of the Caribbean (all movies)
• Marvel Super Heroes (all movies)
• Fantastic Beasts (all movies)
• DC Super Heroes (all movies, Arrow, Legends of Tomorrow)
• Jurassic Park/Jurassic World (all movies)
• Prince of Persia
• The Lone Ranger

As such, I'm surprised at how many people see themes like Overwatch or Stranger Things as uniquely groundbreaking.

THAT SAID… I also think that in general there are some types of "mature content" that LEGO seems particularly keen on avoiding — specifically, stuff that's likely to directly relate to trauma that kids and their families might have experienced. Even though they have no obvious objection to scary or violent content involving, say, medieval siege warfare, dinosaur attacks, space battles, etc, it's worth noting that they tend to steer clear of content such as police brutality, house fires, suicides, modern warfare, etc.

As such, I think a lot of "mature" brands are likely to largely remain off the table — for example, media with storylines involving rape or sexual assault like Law and Order SVU, Game of Thrones, or Watchmen, media focusing on realistic modern warfare like Call of Duty or Apocalypse Now, etc.

Now, as for potentially dark or mature themes I would enjoy seeing, "A Series of Unfortunate Events" has been a passion of mine for a long time, and the recent Netflix series could make a neat foundation for a LEGO theme. And while it includes a lot of scary situations, it generally has lower content ratings than many of the examples listed above (TV-PG in the United States, PG in the United Kingdom). But of course, now that it's reached its finale, it's probably past the prime opportunity for a tie-in theme.

"The Legend of Zelda" games vary in their ratings, but could be seen as somewhat violent (the latest for a home console, "Breath of the Wild", has an E10+ rating in the United States but an M rating in Australia, just to give a sense of how varied the perception of its violent content can be). Still, I think they'd be a neat subject for a LEGO theme.

The "Ace Attorney" series of video games is another I've enjoyed thoroughly and thought about as a potential subject for at least a stand-alone set. But since it's a series about murder trials it naturally has a lot of blood and violence. Most games in the series have a T rating but the fifth game, "Dual Destinies", had an M rating — possibly due to some of the animated cutscenes being more graphic than earlier or later games.

That's all that I can think of right now. It's far from the only/most mature media I enjoy, but a lot of the other examples like "The Adventure Zone" and "Monster Factory" aren't exactly stuff I can envision making particularly interesting LEGO sets/themes.

[legoSDR]

50 minutes ago, Aanchir said:

A couple things:

LEGO has seemingly been OK with licenses rated PG-13 or the equivalent since the early 2000s — Stranger Things is not groundbreaking in that regard. Past examples include:

• Star Wars (Episodes 3, 7, 8, Rogue One, Solo, The Force Unleashed, and The Old Republic)
• Indiana Jones (Temple of Doom, Last Crusade, and Kingdom of the Crystal Skull)
• Harry Potter (Goblet of Fire, Prisoner of Azkaban, Half-Blood Prince, and Deathly Hallows)
• Pirates of the Caribbean (all movies)
• Marvel Super Heroes (all movies)
• Fantastic Beasts (all movies)
• DC Super Heroes (all movies, Arrow, Legends of Tomorrow)
• Jurassic Park/Jurassic World (all movies)
• Prince of Persia
• The Lone Ranger

As such, I'm surprised at how many people see themes like Overwatch or Stranger Things as uniquely groundbreaking.

THAT SAID… I also think that in general there are some types of "mature content" that LEGO seems particularly keen on avoiding — specifically, stuff that's likely to directly relate to trauma that kids and their families might have experienced. Even though they have no obvious objection to scary or violent content involving, say, medieval siege warfare, dinosaur attacks, space battles, etc, it's worth noting that they tend to steer clear of content such as police brutality, house fires, suicides, modern warfare, etc.

As such, I think a lot of "mature" brands are likely to largely remain off the table — for example, media with storylines involving rape or sexual assault like Law and Order SVU, Game of Thrones, or Watchmen, media focusing on realistic modern warfare like Call of Duty or Apocalypse Now, etc.

Now, as for potentially dark or mature themes I would enjoy seeing, "A Series of Unfortunate Events" has been a passion of mine for a long time, and the recent Netflix series could make a neat foundation for a LEGO theme. And while it includes a lot of scary situations, it generally has lower content ratings than many of the examples listed above (TV-PG in the United States, PG in the United Kingdom). But of course, now that it's reached its finale, it's probably past the prime opportunity for a tie-in theme.

"The Legend of Zelda" games vary in their ratings, but could be seen as somewhat violent (the latest for a home console, "Breath of the Wild", has an E10+ rating in the United States but an M rating in Australia, just to give a sense of how varied the perception of its violent content can be). Still, I think they'd be a neat subject for a LEGO theme.

The "Ace Attorney" series of video games is another I've enjoyed thoroughly and thought about as a potential subject for at least a stand-alone set. But since it's a series about murder trials it naturally has a lot of blood and violence. Most games in the series have a T rating but the fifth game, "Dual Destinies", had an M rating — possibly due to some of the animated cutscenes being more graphic than earlier or later games.

That's all that I can think of right now. It's far from the only/most mature media I enjoy, but a lot of the other examples like "The Adventure Zone" and "Monster Factory" aren't exactly stuff I can envision making particularly interesting LEGO sets/themes.

All very good points. Excuse my ignorance when it comes to USA TV ratings but I thought PG-13 was mature lol. Stranger things is definitely older than PG-13 though so in that way I'd say it's fairly groundbreaking. from what I can guess by your list of PG-13 content it's equivalent to a UK 12/12A, Stranger Things is Rated 15 in the UK (same rating as the Marvel shows, as well as Deadpool, Logan etc)

Edited May 10, 2019 by legoSDR

[Alegrispa]

7 hours ago, legoSDR said:

Yeah I agree ST is unique in that respect. But I definitely think this will open doors for more mature content. I'll never hold my breath for GoT but it's nice to talk about what they could do

didn't know they were reviewing the Office, that's quite exciting

Very excited about The Office. But if the project falls through, then it's not because of the property, but because they couldn't reach a deal with NBC.

The Big Bang Theory (yuck) and Friends sets set a precedent that TLG is most certainly willing to take on licenses of current sitcoms and sitcoms that have been off the air longer that they've been on.

Edited May 10, 2019 by Alegrispa

[Alegrispa]

6 hours ago, Aanchir said:

 

LEGO has seemingly been OK with licenses rated PG-13 or the equivalent since the early 2000s — Stranger Things is not groundbreaking in that regard.

In the US Netflix rates it TV-14 and in german speaking countries (which are generally a lot less prude and comservative) it's 16+ (same as the LEGO rating, which, as we heard in The LEGO Movie itself, is more of a suggestion).

It may not be as groundbreaking as some people belive it to be, but it does create some cracks.

Stranger Things as a show itself takes the 80s "for kids" approach. Poltergeist, Gremlins, Ghostbusters, Indiana Jones, Back To The Future, Beetlejuce, Who Framed Roger Rabbit were all originally rated PG, while all of them contain at least on scene, word or theme which would earn them an R-rating nowadays.

(F*ck the MPAA raitings board btw)

Edited May 10, 2019 by Alegrispa

[Aanchir]

4 hours ago, legoSDR said:

All very good points. Excuse my ignorance when it comes to USA TV ratings but I thought PG-13 was mature lol. Stranger things is definitely older than PG-13 though so in that way I'd say it's fairly groundbreaking. from what I can guess by your list of PG-13 content it's equivalent to a UK 12/12A, Stranger Things is Rated 15 in the UK (same rating as the Marvel shows, as well as Deadpool, Logan etc) 

In the US, Stranger Things is rated TV-14, which is the same rating most PG-13 movies like The Avengers, Iron Man, and Guardians of the Galaxy when broadcast on TV. So I'm not sure I'd describe it as "definitely older than PG-13". In general, I would generalize PG-13 ratings for movies, TV-14 ratings for TV, and T ratings for video games as intended for teenagers and older, but acceptable for kids with adult permission and supervision.

Also, for what it's worth, the UK ratings for Stranger Things vary between episodes. In Season One, episodes 1, 2, 4, 5, and 6 are Rated 12 in the UK, while only episodes 3, 7, and 8 are rated 15. And in Season Two, episodes 1, 5, and 7 are rated 12, while episodes 2, 3, 4, 6, 8, and 9 are rated 15.

And while a 15 rating in the UK is often applied to stuff that has a "mature", 17-and-up rating such as R or TV-MA in the United States, like the examples you named, it's also often applied to other movies and shows LEGO has licensed in recent years such as Beetlejuice, Gremlins, Arrow, Black Lightning, and of course James Bond. So while LEGO hasn't been licensing Rated 15 properties for nearly as long as TV-14 or PG-13 ones, Stranger Things is not quite their first time for that, either.

[Lyichir]

If you'd asked this a couple of years ago, one of the first and most obvious answers would probably be the Netflix Marvel series, which skew more mature than the movies in general. But I feel like with the cancellation of all of those series that ship may have sailed.

One other thing that I'd love to see, while not particularly timely in terms of high profile media adaptations, would be DC/Vertigo and Neil Gaiman's "Sandman". I'm a big fan of that series and it'd be neat to see characters like the Endless adapted into Lego. But with every attempt at a TV or movie adaptation amounting to nothing, I doubt there's much benefit that Lego could draw from adapting a more than 20-year-old comic book series.

Another fun comics property that might be stymied by an adaptation that I've heard is lackluster is Mike Mignola's Hellboy. Like Stranger Things, its mature content tends toward the fantastic rather than the real, and its moody settings would make for some awesome sets. But not only would Lego potentially be wary of adapting a series that for certain audiences even the title might be considered mature, but last I checked Mega Bloks had acquired the license for their "Kubros" series of buildable figures, which might make it slightly harder for Lego to get the rights to (not impossible, of course, as that was several years ago now).

[MatthewRC]

47 minutes ago, Lyichir said:

If you'd asked this a couple of years ago, one of the first and most obvious answers would probably be the Netflix Marvel series, which skew more mature than the movies in general. But I feel like with the cancellation of all of those series that ship may have sailed.

One other thing that I'd love to see, while not particularly timely in terms of high profile media adaptations, would be DC/Vertigo and Neil Gaiman's "Sandman". I'm a big fan of that series and it'd be neat to see characters like the Endless adapted into Lego. But with every attempt at a TV or movie adaptation amounting to nothing, I doubt there's much benefit that Lego could draw from adapting a more than 20-year-old comic book series.

Another fun comics property that might be stymied by an adaptation that I've heard is lackluster is Mike Mignola's Hellboy. Like Stranger Things, its mature content tends toward the fantastic rather than the real, and its moody settings would make for some awesome sets. But not only would Lego potentially be wary of adapting a series that for certain audiences even the title might be considered mature, but last I checked Mega Bloks had acquired the license for their "Kubros" series of buildable figures, which might make it slightly harder for Lego to get the rights to (not impossible, of course, as that was several years ago now).

The Kubros line has since been dead and buried, but Mega Construx recently released a Hellboy micro figure in their Heroes line.

[Ultron]

As far as I'm aware Mega Construx is developing a Game of Thrones theme so...

But I'd definitely like an Elder Scrolls or Fallout series. 

 

 

[Aanchir]

Truthfully, I think the biggest "door" that a Stranger Things license opens is not with regard to its content but with regard to its format. This is the first time LEGO has developed a licensed theme based on a show exclusive to a streaming platform like Netflix.

While they've had several TV show based licenses, and even had series of their own brands released as Netflix exclusives like LEGO Bionicle: The Journey to One and LEGO Elves: Secrets of Elvendale, this is a bridge they haven't previously crossed, and one that could potentially open the door not only to some of the shows that are more "mature" than many mainstream television series, but also to Netflix's many amazing kids' animated programs like Carmen Sandiego, Hilda, Trollhunters, 3Below, Little Witch Academia, and The Dragon Prince.

In the past I've thought about how fun it would be to see LEGO sets based on these properties, but my biggest worry wasn't their content so much as whether they had enough viewers for LEGO to see a potential market there (Netflix doesn't tend to release viewership numbers for their individual shows, and it's often tricky to gauge the popularity of more kid-targeted properties like these based on online buzz.

Sadly, one of the Netflix series I've been enjoying most lately — She-Ra and the Princesses of Power — is still owned by Mattel, which means it's likely to remain outside LEGO's grasp for the foreseeable future (that said, I'd be interested to see if Mattel would consider making Mega Construx sets based on this brand, and if so whether their attempts would live up to the awesome designs featured in the Netflix series).

Now, I haven't watched a whole lot of more "mature" Netflix exclusives yet aside from Stranger Things and some of their Marvel series. And in a lot of cases, what I have seen pales in comparison to their kids' animated content as far as potential subject matter for LEGO sets is concerned. I suspect part of the reason is that it's hard to make huge, stunning, Hollywood-caliber live-action setpieces on a TV budget, and adult animated series like BoJack Horseman are notorious for having relatively low production values. That said, I've heard great things about Netflix's Castlevania, despite having yet to watch it myself.

And in terms of not-yet-released Netflix stuff that I think might be worthwhile for LEGO to look into licensing… well, there's a live-action Avatar: The Last Airbender series in development which seems to have better chances of being faithful to the original than the disappointing movie adaptation from back in the day. The original animated series was full of amazing locales, characters, and scenarios that LEGO simply wasn't able to do justice when they had that license back in 2006. I could see a faithful live-action adaptation as a great "second chance".

Other projects Netflix has in development that pique my interest are Chronicles of Narnia series and films (Netflix has the rights to all seven books, something no other production company has had before), Wizards: Tales of Arcadia, a live-action Carmen Sandiego film, and a Pacific Rim anime. Some of these are all-ages series while others I'm not so certain about. But regardless, it's interesting to think about the possibilities…

[Digger of Bricks]

12 hours ago, legoSDR said:

This is a theme inspired by LEGO's decision to create Stranger Things LEGO which is probably their most mature (age-wise) theme ever! This topic is for discussing what other more AFOL/adult oriented themes you wish/hope/want LEGO will make. We can also share any customs/MOCs based on more mature themes that we think would make great sets, like Game of Thrones or the Marvel Netflix shows. Or any TV and movies. This is more specifically geared toward ideas based on shows and movies that are rated TV-14/PG-13/15(UK)/R-Rated and above

Premise-wise, I honestly think this topic is not much different than the one @Agent Kallus had started yesterday:

Perhaps this topic should be merged with the former @Captain Nemo? 

[tafkatb]

What mature themes would I like to see? Well, that depends on your definition of "mature." My pop-culture tastes skew decidedly kid-friendly, so LEGO pretty much already has those bases covered. (Stranger Things and Jurassic Park are probably the upper limit on the violence and gore I can handle.) The only other license I might like to see would be Universal Monsters, which I guess is more "adult" - not necessarily due to being inappropriate for children, just not as likely to interest them, especially when LEGO can take essentially the same public-domain characters and give them a wacky spin like they did for Monster Fighters and Series 14 Minifigures.

Architecture and (some of) Ideas are arguably "mature" themes already. In the former, I'd like to see some more... intellectually mature subject matter, I guess? More stuff that's significant to the field of architecture and design even if it's not as well-known among the general public, like the Eames House, Barcelona Pavilion, or Piazza d'Italia. (OK, that last one might be debatable, but I have a soft spot for it.) As for Ideas, I've really enjoyed the "1:1" type sets like the Maze, Ship in a Bottle, and Pop-Up Book. I've seen several submissions for things like typewriters and life-size musical instruments, and I think those would be really fun to build as well. Again, they're mature in the sense that the subject matter would likely just bore most kids rather than offend or traumatize them.

[TheBrickBuilder14]

The one theme I would love to see is James Bond. The possibilities are endless.

[Digger of Bricks]

It may only be a PG-13 franchise, and honestly not offer much in the way of sets, but it'd be cool to see the more recent Planet of the Apes trilogy with Andy Serkis represented by Lego in some way. 

[TheL390Man]

1 hour ago, TheBrickBuilder14 said:

 

The one theme I would love to see is James Bond. The possibilities are endless.

 

That’s not actually so unlikely, considering the recent creator expert DB5. But Spectre did have a scene with ‘sexual nature’ and the old ones are pretty sexist, which would definitely fall outside TLGs scope of acceptable themes...

[icm]

2 hours ago, tafkatb said:

What mature themes would I like to see? Well, that depends on your definition of "mature." My pop-culture tastes skew decidedly kid-friendly, so LEGO pretty much already has those bases covered. (Stranger Things and Jurassic Park are probably the upper limit on the violence and gore I can handle.) The only other license I might like to see would be Universal Monsters, which I guess is more "adult" - not necessarily due to being inappropriate for children, just not as likely to interest them, especially when LEGO can take essentially the same public-domain characters and give them a wacky spin like they did for Monster Fighters and Series 14 Minifigures.

Architecture and (some of) Ideas are arguably "mature" themes already. In the former, I'd like to see some more... intellectually mature subject matter, I guess? More stuff that's significant to the field of architecture and design even if it's not as well-known among the general public, like the Eames House, Barcelona Pavilion, or Piazza d'Italia. (OK, that last one might be debatable, but I have a soft spot for it.) As for Ideas, I've really enjoyed the "1:1" type sets like the Maze, Ship in a Bottle, and Pop-Up Book. I've seen several submissions for things like typewriters and life-size musical instruments, and I think those would be really fun to build as well. Again, they're mature in the sense that the subject matter would likely just bore most kids rather than offend or traumatize them.

This.  I know that "mature" is often used to mean "sex, violence, and gore rated R/M/TV-MA," and I understand that the intent of this thread is to suggest possible licenses with such ratings.  But in a wider sense, there's more to maturity than the ability to watch graphic sex and violence onscreen without feeling the urge to commit copycat crimes.  In many ways, the sort of "mature" themes I'd like to see more of are covered very well already - the Statue of Liberty, Empire State Building, Creator Expert automobile series, Saturn V, Bugatti Chiron, and upcoming Liebherr excavator are prime examples of the kind of adult-oriented collectors sets with emphasis on aesthetic accuracy and mechanical complexity that really appeal to me.  I'd like to see Creator Expert expanded to take on all sorts of engineering feats, particularly in aviation and space technology, and more of the creatively bonkers ideas like the Ship in a Bottle that inspire exclamations of you made WHAT out of Lego?  The playable piano currently in Ideas review is another great example of this.  So if we define "mature" as "stuff that will probably bore a preteen kid" instead of "stuff that you don't want to let your preteen kid see," I'd like to see more real-world items, more clever translation into Lego of things that seem to be impossible with Lego as we know it (ship in a bottle, flyable airplane), and perhaps some adaptations of public-domain classic literature that often gets adapted for children's works by other companies.  Maybe, along the lines of the James Bond Aston Martin DB5, we could get something like the Joad jalopy from The Grapes of Wrath.  (I know that's not public domain yet.)  However, I recognize that the more "real" a subject gets, the less likely it may be to appeal to a global market lest we get into arguments about favoring a certain country or economic bloc more than another one.  Pop culture licenses are a much safer bet, since at least in theory they don't get mixed up with politics and nationalism nearly as much.

Edited May 11, 2019 by icm

[legoSDR]

On 5/10/2019 at 10:49 PM, Lyichir said:

 

Another fun comics property that might be stymied by an adaptation that I've heard is lackluster is Mike Mignola's Hellboy. Like Stranger Things, its mature content tends toward the fantastic rather than the real, and its moody settings would make for some awesome sets. But not only would Lego potentially be wary of adapting a series that for certain audiences even the title might be considered mature, but last I checked Mega Bloks had acquired the license for their "Kubros" series of buildable figures, which might make it slightly harder for Lego to get the rights to (not impossible, of course, as that was several years ago now).

A Hellboy LEGO theme based on the comics or the Guillermo Del Toro movies would be incredible

On 5/11/2019 at 3:54 PM, Digger of Bricks said:

It may only be a PG-13 franchise, and honestly not offer much in the way of sets, but it'd be cool to see the more recent Planet of the Apes trilogy with Andy Serkis represented by Lego in some way. 

I love this idea

[MAB]

For Planet of the Apes, I'd prefer the original series. The latest movies would be lots of apes with straps across their chests. I'd like to see those damned dirty apes in their uniforms of the original movies.

[hachiroku]

Clearly Mad Max. Or at least something inspired by that (we just had it with The Lego Movie 2).

Lego Interceptor V8 from Mad Max Fury Road by hachiroku24, en Flickr

Doof Wagon from Fury Road by hachiroku24, en Flickr

Lego Mad Max Fury Road Bigfoot by hachiroku24, en Flickr

[BaneShake]

What I would want as "mature" themes would almost never be accepted, but hey, I'm all for wishful thinking.

Primarily, I would be all about Assassin's Creed. I would buy any and all sets for any of the games. Even for Arno, and he's a right ol' stick in the mud.

[Foxes Productionz]

13 hours ago, MAB said:

For Planet of the Apes, I'd prefer the original series. The latest movies would be lots of apes with straps across their chests. I'd like to see those damned dirty apes in their uniforms of the original movies.

You could have the very iconic scene in LEGO, when our protagonist realises he’s been on Earth the whole time seeing the statue of liberty - but I guess we kinda already got that with TLM2 sets. 

[Digger of Bricks]

BIOSHOCK

For no other reason than to see some serious Decopunk architectural representation from Lego.  

[zoth33]

On 5/10/2019 at 6:54 PM, Ultron said:

As far as I'm aware Mega Construx is developing a Game of Thrones theme so...

But I'd definitely like an Elder Scrolls or Fallout series. 

 

 

Oh yeah Elder Scrolls would be awesome, there is so much content there and with the new Elswyer chapter coming out.  The dragons alone would be enough for me.  But the many different races and creatures in the game would be insane to get.  Ever since The Hobbit/LOTR line ended I've been wanting that fantasy adventure void filled.  Harry Potter and the Elves lines have some great stuff I just need that something extra that Elder Scrolls/GOT/WOW/ DrangonLance/ Forgotten Realms etc would bring to the table.  Or even WarHammer or League of Legends would be good too.