Unpopular Opinions about LEGO

[MAB]

1 hour ago, howitzer said:

You should note that TLG has never produced any cathedrals or other buildings of contemporary religions, it's against their guidelines.

Not true. It is against the IDEAS guidelines, but not their own guidelines.

There is even a modern example right there. A Catholic cathedral, right in the middle of a skyline set.

[Stuartn]

7 hours ago, MAB said:

The city type views I remember seeing in places with dense populations in Australia are not so different to those in Europe or North America. For me, City is just as Australian as it is British, Danish, German or American. Friends is probably more Australian than British, seeing as they seem to live where it is always sunny and have a very outdoor lifestyle!

Australia is a well represented country relatively, but the issue also applies to many other nations. For example, the Asian market is not very well represented in mainstream sets, despite being a large and growing market, there are surely many Chinese New Year and architecture sets, and that event is celebrated in many other countries besides China, but for many other nations in the region it could generate only the same level of interest as it would for countries in Europe or North America, and Lego is definitely popular in many, many Asian countries. The Ninjago theme has had some oriental influences in architecture, but such a fantasy theme isn't a fair representation when contrasted with the realistic sets other continents get.

I agree Friends does seem rather Australian-ish in some sets, and I'll get over bus doors and steering wheels in City because they take all but half a second to fix, when I compare what Australians do get over other countries.

2 hours ago, Fuppylodders said:

stop trying to be gimmicky with stuff like Adidas

We don't get that here. Well, we can, but from Adidas, not Lego alone.

I agree with your point. I cannot stand gimmicks like apps or whatnot, simply because to me they are not what Lego is. If I want something to do on my phone, I'll go to the app store and get and app for one twentieth of the price.

Lego is the successful company it is today through Lego bricks. The most popular themes don't rely on apps or technology or whatnot. I agree with your point on the environmental sensitivity of Lego. I know Lego isn't regularly thrown out into the environment or whatnot, but one day it will become damaged and will get thrown out.

Edited March 11, 2021 by Stuartn

[Alexandrina]

14 minutes ago, Stuartn said:

Lego is the successful company it is today through Lego bricks. The most popular themes don't rely on apps or technology or whatnot.

I agree with you here in terms of the sets not needing a companion app to sell (underscored by the demise of Hidden Side - I have a number of those sets for the parts and never downloaded the app, and I doubt I'm alone in this).

But technology as a general category definitely helps Lego. I'm thinking video games. When I was younger, I went through a childhood Dark Age - between 2002 and 2007, I only had two new sets (and as they were also released packaged together, I suspect I only got one) but I adored the Legoland game and that kept Lego in my vernacular. Later, Lego Star Wars II became all the rage at my school, so I got it. Played it. Loved it. Wanted some sets. Within six months of getting my first Star Wars set, directly as a result of playing the game, I was an avid Lego fan. I'm only one consumer, but I've spent easily four figures' worth on Lego (possibly as much as five figures if sets bought for me when I was younger count towards my total) and have no plan to slow down. Video games are very useful for hooking the kids in the next generation who are like me.

And they're also really fun to play! 

[MAB]

23 minutes ago, Stuartn said:

I agree with your point. I cannot stand gimmicks like apps or whatnot, simply because to me they are not what Lego is. If I want something to do on my phone, I'll go to the app store and get and app for one twentieth of the price.

Lego is the successful company it is today through Lego bricks. The most popular themes don't rely on apps or technology or whatnot. I agree with your point on the environmental sensitivity of Lego. I know Lego isn't regularly thrown out into the environment or whatnot, but one day it will become damaged and will get thrown out.

I also don't play on the LEGO apps. But then, I am about 40 years older than the kids they are designed for. Whereas my kids do like playing on them. My son really enjoyed the scanning tiles in the Nexo Knights game and seeing what they did in the app, so I can see why it is a hook into buying actual sets.  Although fortunately LEGO is so bad at that sort of thing, you could just scan pictures of them, instead of actually buying the real thing. Same with Vidiyo, scanning pictures of the built sets is enough and they released pictures that work on their website.  They have now taken them all down although it is too late as many fan sites already have them. My daughter also started playing with the vidiyo one at the weekend. Looked rather annoying to me, but she seemed to enjoy it.

[Peppermint_M]

Got to point out: The clothing and other not LEGO brick things are all collaborations. TLG is not producing the clothes, lunchboxes, trainers and storage boxes. They are licencing out their brand. The onus of success is on the heads of the partner company. A contrast to their last foray into extra product that nearly bankrupted the company.

 

[JamesBenjamin]

23 hours ago, Alexandrina said:

I won't go for the gotcha by pointing out that Lego did once produce a church, since that was decades ago and their philosophy has changed since then. It's just a curiosity now. 

However, I mainly used the cathedral as an example because it's a landmark I am personally familiar with but which would make no sense for Lego to produce - religious or not - because most of the world has never heard of it. 

What set is that? (the church)

I'm just not familiar.

[Alexandrina]

6 minutes ago, JamesBenjamin said:

What set is that? (the church)

I'm just not familiar.

Fair warning, it's a vintage one

[JamesBenjamin]

28 minutes ago, Alexandrina said:

Fair warning, it's a vintage one

Oh, I'm not going to buy it. Interesting! I never knew that was out there.

[Alexandrina]

5 minutes ago, JamesBenjamin said:

Oh, I'm not going to buy it. Interesting! I never knew that was out there.

Based on the prices for the exclusive bricks (or indeed the lack of evidence that they've ever been sold) I'm not sure it is out there - at least not in the hands of anybody who wants to sell. 

[Yeetforlego]

Stud shooters should be outlawed.

[danth]

Eh nevermind.

Edited March 13, 2021 by danth

[JamesBenjamin]

7 hours ago, Alexandrina said:

Based on the prices for the exclusive bricks (or indeed the lack of evidence that they've ever been sold) I'm not sure it is out there - at least not in the hands of anybody who wants to sell. 

Well, and setting aside the few printed exclusive bricks, everything else is pretty common so you could build a version of it if you wanted to for cheap.

[The Brick Boss]

Trains shouldn't be a subtheme of City. The cargo and passenger trains should be integrated into cargo or public transport subthemes. 

[Alexandrina]

7 hours ago, JamesBenjamin said:

Well, and setting aside the few printed exclusive bricks, everything else is pretty common so you could build a version of it if you wanted to for cheap.

True, although the bricks without tubes and the waffle-plates might be harder to come by too. 

[1974]

On 3/11/2021 at 8:22 PM, Alexandrina said:

I won't go for the gotcha by pointing out that Lego did once produce a church, since that was decades ago and their philosophy has changed since then. It's just a curiosity now.

There are several churches, weddings and other religious images (Noahs Ark) in the IDEA Books

[The Stud]

23 hours ago, Yeetforlego said:

Stud shooters should be outlawed.

My unpopular opinion is the opposite. I think the hate for stud shooters is overblown. Stud shooters may be lame to collectors like us, but kids have fun playing with them and they don’t look that bad. If anything, I appreciate them giving more of a “Lego look” to minifigures or builds using them.

Of course, being a stud myself, I’m not sure how I feel about the name though.

[Poco Lypso]

On 3/13/2021 at 12:43 PM, 1974 said:

There are several churches, weddings and other religious images (Noahs Ark) in the IDEA Books

But is that book produced by lego?

[Alexandrina]

24 minutes ago, Poco Lypso said:

But is that book produced by lego?

If it's the book I'm thinking of, the author is employed by Lego (at least according to Amazon)

[Poco Lypso]

1 hour ago, Alexandrina said:

If it's the book I'm thinking of, the author is employed by Lego (at least according to Amazon)

Either way there is a reason why religion and politics arent meant to be discussed in most boards on the internet. Lego is doing well not to be producing sets

[Lego David]

On 3/14/2021 at 1:21 AM, The Stud said:

My unpopular opinion is the opposite. I think the hate for stud shooters is overblown. Stud shooters may be lame to collectors like us, but kids have fun playing with them and they don’t look that bad. If anything, I appreciate them giving more of a “Lego look” to minifigures or builds using them.

When Stud Shooters first came out, I loved them. As a kid, I always wished my minifigures had guns that can actually be fired, and when Stud Shooters were introduced, it was almost as a dream come true. However, since then, they have been quite overused, so I do understand why so many people don't like them. 

[Stuartn]

10 hours ago, Lego David said:

When Stud Shooters first came out, I loved them. As a kid, I always wished my minifigures had guns that can actually be fired, and when Stud Shooters were introduced, it was almost as a dream come true. However, since then, they have been quite overused, so I do understand why so many people don't like them. 

That was what I thought too. They were great when they were introduced, and I don't mind them continuing to make appearances, but I dislike when they are in more sophisticated sets like the Tantive IV set and I really dislike their use in City fire sets.

[Lego David]

8 hours ago, Stuartn said:

but I dislike when they are in more sophisticated sets like the Tantive IV set and I really dislike their use in City fire sets.

I think by far the most atrocious use of them was in the 2015 Pirates wave. Like, what were they thinking? Those stud shooters just make no sense within the context of a Pirate theme! 

[MAVERICK26]

Stud shooters are good - but only when you put a tap on the back, a little 1x1 bracket with a 1x1 plate with holder on it, and then a lamp holder as a barrel. Then they start to look like actual weapons.

That's one of mine.

[caiman0637]

On 3/11/2021 at 12:02 PM, MAB said:

There is even a modern example right there. A Catholic cathedral, right in the middle of a skyline set.

It's not like TLG can ignore churches entirely... I don't even see what's so bad about it. As long as they don't mention religion, they're good.

[Peppermint_M]

On 3/11/2021 at 8:02 PM, MAB said:

A Catholic cathedral, right in the middle of a skyline set.

True, but this is from an architectural standpoint and not religious. There is no symbol of religion, just the presence of a historically and architecturally important structure as a feature of a skyline, it cannot be ignored. It would be a different thing altogether if they sold a St Paul's Cathedral set, or an Aisha Mosque set (or insert major religious structure here). 

Ho hum.