LEGO City 2020 - Rumors, Speculation, and Discussion

[Joebot]

It's odd to me to see named characters within City. I know it's been done in the past (that Chase policeman from a few years' back), but to date, it's been quite rare. I think Lego has fully embraced the fact that mini-figure CHARACTERS can drive purchases. I shudder to think of how many shoddy Superhero sets I've purchased, only to get some unique, cool superhero figure. I think this same approach in City is misguided though. I sometimes think Lego has forgotten what makes City appealing to fans in the first place (hint: it's not endless police chases, and it's not collecting named characters). 

[AnyColourYouLike]

1 minute ago, Joebot said:

It's odd to me to see named characters within City. I know it's been done in the past (that Chase policeman from a few years' back), but to date, it's been quite rare. I think Lego has fully embraced the fact that mini-figure CHARACTERS can drive purchases. I shudder to think of how many shoddy Superhero sets I've purchased, only to get some unique, cool superhero figure. I think this same approach in City is misguided though. I sometimes think Lego has forgotten what makes City appealing to fans in the first place (hint: it's not endless police chases, and it's not collecting named characters). 

They're from a new Nickelodeon show - LEGO City Adventures. That's why they have names. 

[Digger of Bricks]

Is it just me, or does the female explorer's torso print in the new Safari Explorer set evoking the Adventurers theme's Pippin Reed? 

[The Brick Boss]

@AMD We just think Lego could've done better with this one. 

There was the one from 2005, which had some cook features like the light up piece and the titling helicopter pad. The single jail cell too. 

Look at the one from 2008. Tbh, I was impressed with that one. It had everything I needed (a cruiser, a paddy wagon, a bike, etc). All that was missing was the helicopter. But you could buy it on the side for like what, 10 bucks? That was sarcasm. But back to the point, that was one of the awesome ones. Sold well and playability was a factor, but it looked attractive and tasteful at the same time.

Same thing for the 2011 police station. It didn't include a paddy wagon, but some other vehicle - I don't know what it was supposed to be really. Probably some type of SUV. 

Then look at the one from 2014. Soooooo much detail. I loved the office part especially because of its overall design. It's like you could actually build something like that in real life. 

That goes for the one in 2017 too. Definitely loved that one. It was fun pressing the launcher and seeing the car fly out. 

What we're saying is that Lego could've done better and they have. That's all. We're not here to start any trouble or anything like that. 

[The Brick Boss]

1 hour ago, Digger of Bricks said:

Is it just me, or does the female explorer's torso print in the new Safari Explorer set evoking the Adventurers theme's Pippin Reed? 

Well....and the guy would need is a cowboy hat and he'd look like Johnny Thunder. So that female could be a nod to Peppin Reed. 

[Digger of Bricks]

14 minutes ago, pooda said:

Well....and the guy would need is a cowboy hat and he'd look like Johnny Thunder. So that female could be a nod to Peppin Reed. 

Wait a minute, is the female figure's torso a new print? I'm pretty certain the male figure's isn't. 

[lightningtiger]

Where to start.......well from I've seen so far only the Safari 4x4, alpine air mail plane and maybe the police station are worth the money.

Sadly......oh, boy Ninjago style play copters.......yeah kind of defeats the purpose of building something eh ?

I pray that the ice cream van, bulldozer, tune up workshop and service station are better because right now 2020 might be a bust year for Lego.

I'm afraid they have let a TV network turn city into a Licenced theme with the network telling Lego what to produce.

[K_Tiger]

Sold on that mail plane, no doubt. Might grab the safari 4x4 for the parrot and stump suit.

[AMD]

2 hours ago, pooda said:

@AMD We just think Lego could've done better with this one. 

**snip**

What we're saying is that Lego could've done better and they have. That's all. We're not here to start any trouble or anything like that. 

Again, that's fine.  Everyone has the right to speak and I'm pretty sure LEGO is listening so we may get that chance.

2 hours ago, Digger of Bricks said:

Is it just me, or does the female explorer's torso print in the new Safari Explorer set evoking the Adventurers theme's Pippin Reed? 

Now that you mentioned it. Yeah, she is or she is a reminiscent to Pippin Reed.

[Digger of Bricks]

Just now, AMD said:

Now that you mentioned it. Yeah, she is or she is a reminiscent to Pippin Reed.

I mean, she pretty much looks to be wearing a green jacket over a khaki button-up shirt, with a black belt, red pants, and what's essentially Johnny Thunder's kerchief. 

[The Brick Boss]

36 minutes ago, AMD said:

Again, that's fine.  Everyone has the right to speak and I'm pretty sure LEGO is listening so we may get that chance.

Tbh, I may just try to snag the old one for a discount price. 60141 was clearly more playable. 

Edited November 20, 2019 by pooda

[icm]

After letting the initial shock of the 2020 police wave wear off, I'm more or less OK with it.  The Ninjago flying spinners have done well enough to be released three times, and I'm sure it's occurred to most everybody who's ever handled one of those to wonder if Lego could make a helicopter the same way.  It was going to happen sooner or later.  The spinners and other gimmicks in Ninjago have never ruined the rest of the line, and it's an overreaction to suppose that they'll ruin City.  The police station is a disappointment compared to previous police stations, but the rest of the builds are perfectly passable.  They're all very mediocre builds, but they're not Jack Stone/Town Jr bad.  The magnets have a lot of potential use in other themes, and the helicopters get a pass from me just this once.  If they're successful and durable and fun, justifying their extremely high price relative to similar dollar-store toys, then I hope they return every few years, like the Ninjago flyers - just not in 2021.  After all, most of Sky Police was pretty good - just overpriced because of the parachutes, and stuck with a minimal police station because most of the "police station" set was an airplane instead.

Edit - I am a little worried by the extensive use of large plastic container parts in Friends, Ninjago, and Disney, but even that isn't drastically different than what's done before.  The arcade boxes for Ninjago and the little boxes for Friends are very similar to previous sets, and the storybook boxes for Disney must mean that the Pop-Up Book sold so well they decided to bring the storybook idea down to the bottom price points.

Edited November 20, 2019 by icm

[Faefrost]

3 minutes ago, icm said:

After letting the initial shock of the 2020 police wave wear off, I'm more or less OK with it.  The Ninjago flying spinners have done well enough to be released three times, and I'm sure it's occurred to most everybody who's ever handled one of those to wonder if Lego could make a helicopter the same way.  It was going to happen sooner or later.  The spinners and other gimmicks in Ninjago have never ruined the rest of the line, and it's an overreaction to suppose that they'll ruin City.  The police station is a disappointment compared to previous police stations, but the rest of the builds are perfectly passable.  They're all very mediocre builds, but they're not Jack Stone/Town Jr bad.  The magnets have a lot of potential use in other themes, and the helicopters get a pass from me just this once.  If they're successful and durable and fun, justifying their extremely high price relative to similar dollar-store toys, then I hope they return every few years, like the Ninjago flyers - just not in 2021.  After all, most of Sky Police was pretty good - just overpriced because of the parachutes, and stuck with a minimal police station because most of the "police station" set was an airplane instead.

Honestly the flying spinny helicopters look like a much better gimmick than the new net cannons, the new squeeze bulb firefighting gimmick and the parachutes. (Ok the Parachutes are kinda fun although the minifigs are too light to work well with them.)

[ArneNielsen]

On 11/19/2019 at 3:09 AM, TeriXeri said:

4+ sets have their place, I just skip them myself.

I will get the 4+ sets for one simple reason: no stickers, only printed bricks (love the diamond tile).

[MAB]

4 hours ago, icm said:

Edit - I am a little worried by the extensive use of large plastic container parts in Friends, Ninjago, and Disney, but even that isn't drastically different than what's done before.  The arcade boxes for Ninjago and the little boxes for Friends are very similar to previous sets, and the storybook boxes for Disney must mean that the Pop-Up Book sold so well they decided to bring the storybook idea down to the bottom price points.

These things can be quite useful. My kids have two of the recent 'pods' each. They are all red ones from Ninjago Movie, these ones, as they were really cheap at the time:

I pulled out the 6x6 circular plates and picture and replaced them with different colour circular plates on both sides. Each can hold two minifigures and a small handful of parts. They are ideal when travelling, or for having in a restaurant or similar where you want your kid to have something to do and be quiet. I imagine the new ones will be similarly popular for the same reason.

10 hours ago, Digger of Bricks said:

I mean, she pretty much looks to be wearing a green jacket over a khaki button-up shirt, with a black belt, red pants, and what's essentially Johnny Thunder's kerchief. 

She has even worn the red neckerchief before too.

 

[Digger of Bricks]

12 minutes ago, MAB said:

She has even worn the red neckerchief before too.

Heh, would you look at that, I guess I overlooked that variant...  ...well, in regards to the City figure in question, she'll certainly pair nicely with Series 19's Jungle Explorer (with some modification of course). 

[tafkatb]

Yeah, the big container parts aren't so worrisome if you don't even think of them as "parts" but rather focus on the "container" aspect. Portability goes a long way in increasing a toy's appeal. So rather than comparing them to a brick-built equivalent, I'm thinking of them in the same category as pods or suitcases, in which case they're an improvement due to the greater System compatibility. Can't wait to see what New Elementary does with them!

[The Brick Boss]

What the hell is that? 

[Digger of Bricks]

2 minutes ago, pooda said:

What the hell is that? 

What is what? 

[The Brick Boss]

Just now, Digger of Bricks said:

What is what? 

"Big container parts" I believe it was......

[TheArturro]

Those mudguards (I believe that's what they're called) on the police race car are weird. Are they... angled backwards in a cartoonish style?

Right now, non of these sets appeal to me. I hope that other sets aren't going to be junior-ized as much as this police wave. The police minifigs are pretty good looking tho... 

 

Guess I can safely spend my money 2019s' sets 

Edited November 20, 2019 by TheArturro
Editor has autocorrected my text to a weird code

[Dominic]

Police: Awesome. Love the LCA guys (But where'd the mob come from?)

Fire: Nice to get Clemmons/ McCloud again

Safari: No words to describe how rad that is, hope its a whole subtheme

Mail Plane: Long overdue and awesome

[icm]

1 hour ago, TheArturro said:

Those mudguards (I believe that's what they're called) on the police race car are weird. Are they... angled backwards in a cartoonish style?

Those parts were introduced last year for the Speed Champions 1968 Mustang.

[Joebot]

18 hours ago, lightningtiger said:

I'm afraid they have let a TV network turn city into a Licenced theme with the network telling Lego what to produce.

Yep. I see that happening as well, and I think that's a mistake.

The City/Town theme always occupied a pretty unique space in Lego's product lineup. It's based on real-world locations, which allows you to recreate what you see around you. It's not based on some IP, and it's not character-driven. In my opinion, City/Town allows kids to create a generic backdrop for their own stories and adventures. When I was a kid, I was obsessed with the mini-series "V" about an alien invasion (I'm aging myself here, but so be it). After watching that show, I would plop my Galaxy Explorer ship down onto my Main Street set, and the red-suited space guys would pour out, and it was game on. Sure, I had a fire station and a police station (6382 and 6384 respectively), but I also had Main Street, the Public Works Center, an Exxon gas station, an auto repair, and a paramedic unit. And all those sets were connected with ROAD PLATES (one of Lego's dumbest decisions in the past 15 years is to phase out their use of road plates in City sets), which created a cohesiveness to my town. Everything fit together into a system. Those Town sets provided context for me to create and act out my own stories set in a realistic-ish world. THAT'S the unique and fundamental appeal of City/Town. Lego has essentially turned City into just another generic conflict-driven Action theme, no different from Power Miners or Galaxy Squad or Agents. 

[The Brick Boss]

2 minutes ago, Joebot said:

Yep. I see that happening as well, and I think that's a mistake.

The City/Town theme always occupied a pretty unique space in Lego's product lineup. It's based on real-world locations, which allows you to recreate what you see around you. It's not based on some IP, and it's not character-driven. In my opinion, City/Town allows kids to create a generic backdrop for their own stories and adventures. When I was a kid, I was obsessed with the mini-series "V" about an alien invasion (I'm aging myself here, but so be it). After watching that show, I would plop my Galaxy Explorer ship down onto my Main Street set, and the red-suited space guys would pour out, and it was game on. Sure, I had a fire station and a police station (6382 and 6384 respectively), but I also had Main Street, the Public Works Center, an Exxon gas station, an auto repair, and a paramedic unit. And all those sets were connected with ROAD PLATES (one of Lego's dumbest decisions in the past 15 years is to phase out their use of road plates in City sets), which created a cohesiveness to my town. Everything fit together into a system. Those Town sets provided context for me to create and act out my own stories set in a realistic-ish world. THAT'S the unique and fundamental appeal of City/Town. Lego has essentially turned City into just another generic conflict-driven Action theme, no different from Power Miners or Galaxy Squad or Agents. 

Looks like we're in an agreement there! I'm going to miss City being a generic theme. I guess its for the best though. 

Edited November 20, 2019 by pooda