Do you think lego will ever realese another space theme

[arealhuman]

I do know that classic space is very popular, but do you think that lego would ever bring back another space theme?

[MAB]

Will they ever bring back a space theme? Probably not, unless you include re-doing space in City.

Will they ever do another space theme? Probably.

 

[JintaiZ]

To be honest, there were already a lot of space related sets. They could continue, but I'm not sure if there will be a huge number.

[TeriXeri]

Creator 3-in-1 Winter 2021 will have a Space Mining Mech set, but I don't think LEGO would do another full space theme until at least summer 2021 or 2022.

2019 City Space is retiring , and Star Wars is basicly so far looking like it'll have somewhat of an off-season with no new movie, but what looks like some smaller sized releases of an X-wing /. Tie Fighter / Shuttle.

 

[danth]

EDIT: Warning, rant ahead!

5 hours ago, TeriXeri said:

some smaller sized releases of an X-wing /. Tie Fighter / Shuttle

Oh thank GOD, I don't know what I'd do without YET ANOTHER release of the SAME TIRED DESIGNS over and over again, FOREVER, from a 40 year-old movie!

I mean at what point are we beating a dead horse? This is bordering on sickness. What SW fans could possibly need another release of these vehicles? Let's not pretend these are for kids who desperately want retro space ships from an ancient movie. It's just adults, buying the same thing over and over again. It's frankly a little sad.

I grew up loving Star Wars, but I am so sick of it now. To the point of actual nausea. I want off this SW ride.

EDIT: End rant. Sorry guys, had to blow off some steam. I feel better now.

Edited October 2, 2020 by danth

[icm]

If we're going to beat this dead horse of a topic yet again, can we please get some actual sales data, preferably with demographic information? Otherwise let's just merge this thread with a previous iteration of the topic.

[TeriXeri]

57 minutes ago, danth said:

I grew up loving Star Wars, but I am so sick of it now. To the point of actual nausea. I want off this SW ride.

Oh I agree.

My only SW set in fact is a 1999 Landspeeder with 2 yellow figures, now we are indeed 21 years later.

My point was that next wave doesn't look as huge, so maybe there's some room for in-house space opening up like 2006 started repeating prequel and original trilogy sets, and few sets in general because there were no new movies, and 2007 had an in-house space theme  again after a 6 year break from 2001.

2020 obviously was a Star Wars focused year with episode 9 in late 2019, and The Mandalorian + 40th year Empire, next year looks pretty different.

LEGO is really teasing with the orange spaceman as well, and classic space logo on the Creator torso, I'd be sad if the Mining Mech was the only Space related in-house set for 2021.

Edited October 2, 2020 by TeriXeri

[danth]

40 minutes ago, icm said:

If we're going to beat this dead horse of a topic yet again, can we please get some actual sales data, preferably with demographic information? Otherwise let's just merge this thread with a previous iteration of the topic.

Agreed, we already have a thread for this.

13 minutes ago, TeriXeri said:

Oh I agree.

My only SW set in fact is a 1999 Landspeeder with 2 yellow figures, now we are indeed 21 years later.

My point was that next wave doesn't look as huge, so maybe there's some room for in-house space opening up like 2006 started repeating prequel and original trilogy sets, and few sets in general because there were no new movies, and 2007 had an in-house space theme  again after a 6 year break from 2001.

2020 obviously was a Star Wars focused year with episode 9 in late 2019, and The Mandalorian + 40th year Empire, next year looks pretty different.

Sorry, to be clear none of my annoyance was aimed at you! I was just "triggered" by the news.

You're right, a small wave is good news. And man I really hope the Creator Space Mech isn't a dud!

[Lego David]

11 hours ago, danth said:

EDIT: Warning, rant ahead!

Oh thank GOD, I don't know what I'd do without YET ANOTHER release of the SAME TIRED DESIGNS over and over again, FOREVER, from a 40 year-old movie!

I mean at what point are we beating a dead horse? This is bordering on sickness. What SW fans could possibly need another release of these vehicles? Let's not pretend these are for kids who desperately want retro space ships from an ancient movie. It's just adults, buying the same thing over and over again. It's frankly a little sad.

I grew up loving Star Wars, but I am so sick of it now. To the point of actual nausea. I want off this SW ride.

EDIT: End rant. Sorry guys, had to blow off some steam. I feel better now.

I absolutely agree. LEGO has milked dry the Star Wars IP for quite some time now... There is basically nothing new to do with the theme, other than repeat the same designs over and over again (with a few rare exceptions, like the Razor Crest set).

And given how overpriced most of those sets are, It's hard for me to believe that kids are the main target demographic. My local retailers don't even have a whole lot of Star Wars sets on shelves anymore, just a few battle packs and microfighters, and that's it. 

I think LEGO should take the opportunity that the sequel trilogy is over and release a new in-house Space theme before the next SW movie trilogy kicks off in 2022. But I honestly doubt they would actually do that.

[danth]

9 hours ago, Lego David said:

I absolutely agree. LEGO has milked dry the Star Wars IP for quite some time now... There is basically nothing new to do with the theme, other than repeat the same designs over and over again (with a few rare exceptions, like the Razor Crest set).

Thank you! Nice to know it's not just me.

8 hours ago, Lego David said:

before the next SW movie trilogy kicks off in 2022

Aghhh! We only have two short years? *pukes*

[Lego David]

28 minutes ago, danth said:

Thank you! Nice to know it's not just me.

Believe me, you are definitely not the only one...  

[JeffBuilds]

I wanna say "yes."

 

EDIT: for reasoning, of course 

 

I want to say yes, because a toy company priding itself in encouraging creative play and building things would be short sighted and ham-fisted not to! Since man first looked up to the stars, they were captivated by the vastness of space, and fantasized about exploring those vast expanses,  colonizing planets,  and meeting new lifeforms. One of the big 3 systems that lego started with was Space,  because of this!

 So yes, I'd be willing to wager we'll get another Space related line in the future. 

Edited October 4, 2020 by JeffBuilds

[MAB]

On 10/2/2020 at 7:46 PM, danth said:

EDIT: Warning, rant ahead!

Oh thank GOD, I don't know what I'd do without YET ANOTHER release of the SAME TIRED DESIGNS over and over again, FOREVER, from a 40 year-old movie!

I mean at what point are we beating a dead horse? This is bordering on sickness. What SW fans could possibly need another release of these vehicles? Let's not pretend these are for kids who desperately want retro space ships from an ancient movie. It's just adults, buying the same thing over and over again. It's frankly a little sad.

I grew up loving Star Wars, but I am so sick of it now. To the point of actual nausea. I want off this SW ride.

EDIT: End rant. Sorry guys, had to blow off some steam. I feel better now.

I saw a kid choose a Luke's Landspeeder set yesterday in a store. The dad was trying to push his kid towards getting a Marvel set but the kid really wanted the Landspeeder.

 

Also the LEGO SW comic/magazine seems to sell well here and I imagine it is mainly to kids. Although I will be buying one when they do Cloud City Luke.

[Digger of Bricks]

On 10/3/2020 at 10:54 AM, danth said:

On 10/3/2020 at 1:48 AM, Lego David said:

I think LEGO should take the opportunity that the sequel trilogy is over and release a new in-house Space theme before the next SW movie trilogy kicks off in 2022. But I honestly doubt they would actually do that.

Aghhh! We only have two short years? *pukes*

Make that three years... 

Variety - Star Wars & Avatar Sequels Pushed Back a Year in Disney Release Calendar Shakeup

Quote

With coronavirus cases surging in the U.S. and new hotspots breaking out around the globe, Disney announced major changes to the studio’s release calendar. Most notably, the epic shakeup of film debuts involves delaying its “Star Wars” movies and “Avatar” sequels by a year.

The studio still plans to dominate moviegoing around the holidays when theaters are hopefully able to reopen. Each year between 2022 and 2028, Disney will release a new “Star Wars” adventure or “Avatar” follow-up.

James Cameron’s long-delayed sequels to Avatar” will now premiere every other December starting in 2022 as follows: “Avatar 2” (Dec. 16, 2022), “Avatar 3” (Dec. 20, 2024), “Avatar 4” (Dec. 18, 2026) and “Avatar 5” (Dec. 22, 2028). The second “Avatar” installment, which was originally aiming to open in 2014, will debut 13 years after the first film.

Meanwhile, a trio of “Star Wars” movies will debut around Christmas every other year starting in 2023. The first of three films will launch on Dec. 22, 2023, and two follow-ups will hit theaters Dec. 19, 2025, and Dec. 17, 2027. The studio has kept its cards close to its chest about what those films will entail.

[Scene]

Correct me if I am wrong, but isn't TLG losing out financially on IP related creations? If this is true then surely reviving their own IP space (or any other self created IP) line would be more viable, especially since the majority of that genre are still thriving in their 30-40s and have the opportunity to pass it on to their offspring... or am I just being too naive to the fact that nobody under the age of 25/30 has any interest in anything original and would rather buy/vote for the newest fad/craze social media flaunts in abundance over the last 10 minutes (I'm pointing at all the so called original "Among Us" ideas that pop up at least 3 times a day on Ideas /endrant)?

[icm]

I think that's a bit of a "get off my lawn" post, right there.  Personally, I don't think "get off my lawn" posts are very ... um, insightful?  Not that I have any access to sales data myself, but I've seen forum members talk themselves in circles on this topic until they're blue in the face, and most of that just comes down to who is on whose lawn.

[MAB]

16 hours ago, Scene said:

Correct me if I am wrong, but isn't TLG losing out financially on IP related creations? 

You are almost certainly wrong, as given the number of licensed sets / themes they sell, then they would almost certainly be in poor financial shape now if they lost money on licensed sets.

[supertruper1988]

21 hours ago, Scene said:

Correct me if I am wrong, but isn't TLG losing out financially on IP related creations?

They are not "losing" anything. They are a business. They know kids want to build their favorite IP from movies. They sell a TON of IP related sets for this reason. The only people "losing" are the consumers who care about some perceived value based on the price per part ratio or the physical size or nostalgia or what ever else. 

LEGO is a toy company that sells to kids primarily. They know the numbers, they do loads of market research. If bringing back classic space was a wise financial move, they would. Instead, they choose to put their efforts on things that make them money. 

This whole thread is getting ridiculous IMO. Basic business 101 is make money selling goods/services. They arent a charity, they arent beholden to every consumer and them not making exactly what you (nebulous you not @Scene specifically) is not "wrong" or "bad" in any way. 

The beauty of LEGO is that its LEGO. There are INFINITE ways to put bricks together. Instead of ranting and raving about what they don't do, instead take your time, grab some bricks, and build what you want. 

- "But I can't build good MOCs"  Guess what? Neither could anyone of us at first. There are TONs of MOC guides and technique breakdowns out there. Look at some, build some sets from LEGO, all of this will teach you some cool ways to put bricks together. take those skills and mash them together. The only way to get better at something is to practice it. 

[danth]

7 hours ago, supertruper1988 said:

LEGO is a toy company that sells to kids primarily.

Not at all. They definitely don't sell Star Wars, LOTR, or Harry Potter sets to kid. Maybe Marvel. But many of their big nerd IPs are sold mostly to adults, or adults trying to force their favorite IPs onto their kids.

Kids don't care about Star Wars, or the Harry Potter movies that have been out of theaters since before they were born. That's all adult nerd stuff.

8 hours ago, supertruper1988 said:

Instead of ranting and raving about what they don't do, instead take your time, grab some bricks, and build what you want.

We're talking about sets. Not MOCs.

Besides, by that argument, LEGO shouldn't sell sets at all. Just big buckets of bricks.

[icm]

Here are some things I would like to see more of in threads like this:

Data-driven lines of reasoning about product sales.

Data-driven lines of reasoning about interests of different demographic segments, accompanied by firsthand, or close to firsthand, anecdotes and experiences.

Here are some things I would like to see less of in threads like this:

Broad, sweeping generalizations about sales and demographics that, without data, conveniently reflect the biases and personal preferences of the individual(s) making those generalizations.

[hagridshut]

23 hours ago, supertruper1988 said:

The beauty of LEGO is that its LEGO. There are INFINITE ways to put bricks together. Instead of ranting and raving about what they don't do, instead take your time, grab some bricks, and build what you want.

 

15 hours ago, danth said:

Besides, by that argument, LEGO shouldn't sell sets at all. Just big buckets of bricks.

 

Thinking back to how I used LEGO sets 25-30 years ago, they were basically "buckets of bricks".  Whenever I acquired a space set, I'd build the model from the instructions, play with it for a few days, and then disassemble it for use in space MOCs.  It wasn't until about 10 years ago that I retrieved my box of LEGOs from storage and began reconstructing a few of the original models from the instruction booklets. 

Space sets had several types of unique elements.  Minifigures are the obvious example.  Certain types of structural elements like Support 2 x 4 x 5 Stanchion Inclined, 3mm Wide Posts, trans-colored bricks, plates, windows and canopies, and printed computer consoles are other pieces that made Space sets different from City, Castle, and Pirates.   

For MOC builders, I think having a big dedicated theme available for purchase is less important than having an available library of components to build interesting Space things.  Star Wars sets do provide a number of canopy and computer pieces, although the generally drab color palate is my biggest problem with them. 

For Collectors, or casual hobbyists looking to occasionally build a model for fun, I can see why lack of new in-house Space sets might be boring. 

My read on the situation is that where "Classic" themes are concerned, Creator 3-in-1 is the future.  This year's Space Rover provides a very nice library of components that can be appreciated by children and adult hobbyists alike.  Same with the Creator 3-in-1 Pirate Ship, for those who enjoyed Pirates.  The Lego Movie and The Lego Movie 2 also provided a few years of space themed products.  For those who want to build Space, LEGO is providing the materials.  Sure, I'd like another product line that brings us sub-themes like Ice Planet or original Blacktron, but even without these, there are still plenty of sets that provide options for Space builders.

[Lord Insanity]

I mean there are currently two space themes still on store shelves around me.  (Lego Movie 2 and city space.)  On top of that we just had the creator space rover come out.  That doesn't even count the actual real world models like the Apollo Moon Lander, International Space Station, and the impending re-release of the Saturn V Rocket.

I would love a new classic style or tron-era space theme.  Sadly I don't see it happening with so much competition that already fills that niche for most people on store shelves.  I think our biggest chance is to have the creator rover sell well enough that Lego tries pushing the sci-fi envelope with the next creator space fantasy set.  Really the creator rover does look ten times better just by changing that red stripe to blue.

[Pisces no Aphrodite]

On 10/2/2020 at 1:44 PM, arealhuman said:

I do know that classic space is very popular, but do you think that lego would ever bring back another space theme? 

Hope.

[MAB]

On 10/11/2020 at 5:59 AM, danth said:

Not at all. They definitely don't sell Star Wars, LOTR, or Harry Potter sets to kid. Maybe Marvel. But many of their big nerd IPs are sold mostly to adults, or adults trying to force their favorite IPs onto their kids.

Kids don't care about Star Wars, or the Harry Potter movies that have been out of theaters since before they were born. That's all adult nerd stuff.

Kids do buy or choose Star Wars and Harry Potter sets. Not LOTR as they are no longer for sale.

But even if all the SW and HP sets sold to adults, so what? Classic Space would also only sell to adult nerds, and a much smaller subset of adult nerds than are interested in SW and HP.

On 10/11/2020 at 5:59 AM, danth said:

adults trying to force their favorite IPs onto their kids.

That is what bringing back Classic Space would be - forcing a 30-40 year old theme on kids that have no interest in now out of date futuristic sets from 30-40 years ago.

[Aanchir]

On 10/11/2020 at 12:59 AM, danth said:

Not at all. They definitely don't sell Star Wars, LOTR, or Harry Potter sets to kid. Maybe Marvel. But many of their big nerd IPs are sold mostly to adults, or adults trying to force their favorite IPs onto their kids.

Kids don't care about Star Wars, or the Harry Potter movies that have been out of theaters since before they were born. That's all adult nerd stuff.

I can't say I agree with that assumption. My 8-year-old cousin has been thoroughly enjoying the Harry Potter books since she first reached appropriate reading level.

And that's not just an "adults trying to force their favorite IPs onto their kids" thing. When I was a kid, I certainly didn't care about the age of a lot of the books and movies I enjoyed. I mean, I was an avid reader of Hergé's "The Adventures of Tintin" comics and L. Frank Baum's Oz books, even if they were first published before my PARENTS were born!

On a more cynical level, it's important to keep in mind that big movie studios and publishing companies put loads of money and marketing efforts into keeping their biggest cash cow IPs relevant. I mean, it's not as though the Cinderella sets in the Disney theme are "adult nerd stuff", even though the movie they're based on came out in 1950! Rather, Disney has gone to great lengths to present their classic movies to families as a "timeless" childhood experience.

As I was growing up in the 90s and 2000s, this stuff was kept in kids' line of sight with new "Walt Disney Masterpiece Collection" and "Platinum Edition" re-releases, sing-along videos, direct-to-video sequels, television re-broadcasts, theme park attractions, and crossover media like "Disney's House of Mouse" and "Kingdom Hearts". Nowadays, they've built up the entire "Disney Princess" brand dedicated to marketing these characters and stories even to kids too young to understand just how long ago some of them were first released.

It's the same with other mega-popular brands like Super Mario, Batman, Spider-Man, Star Wars, Harry Potter, etc. Truth be told, despite having been a child of the "Harry Potter" generation and an avid fan of the books and movies growing up, I'm probably most fed up with that brand's enduring popularity at this point, given how their author has taken to channeling her considerable power and influence into defaming and demonizing transgender people.

All that said: it's not a foregone conclusion that the popularity of these brands will maintain peak strength forever. Back in the 90s, the relevance and marketability of Star Wars took a considerable hit, and as much as Disney might try to keep that from happening again, there's aren't any guarantees that they'll be able to manage that. Plus, as we saw during the gap between the prequel and sequel trilogies, it doesn't even take a 90s-level decline in the popularity of Star Wars to open up room for other Space themes to exist alongside it.

Certainly, a lot of people might be apprehensive about Disney's stated plans to avoid another years-long drought between new Star Wars movies. But plans are just that — plans. As we've already seen, Disney's plans to release Star Wars films on an annual basis like Marvel movies didn't end up panning out for them. And a lot of stuff can happen (like the impact the Covid-19 pandemic has had on movie theaters and planned movie release schedules) that even the most thorough market forecasts can't always predict.

-----

On that note, in answer to the original question: probably! After all, "ever" is a long time, and it's not unusual for particular genres or interests to fluctuate into and out of fashion with the passage of time.

Also, space themes are a broad category that can be approached in numerous ways. Right now, "space opera" stories like Star Wars and Guardians of the Galaxy shape a lot of the ways kids think about space travel. But if "first contact" stories, "planetary romance", "interdimensional travel" stories, or so on start to make a big comeback, it could open up an eager market for very different sorts of play and storytelling scenarios than the Star Wars or City themes could ever hope to cover.

And anyway, for all we know, LEGO might already be open to introducing new space themes in the near future. It's only been a year since The LEGO Movie 2 theme launched with numerous space-travel-oriented sets, so they're clearly not averse to the idea. And while stuff like the Systar System and Rexcelsior fleets might not meet a lot of AFOLs' nostalgic criteria for a "true" Space theme, but the same can be said for most Space themes since the mid-90s.

@Nabii, a Classic Space fan and celebrated MOCist who went on to design sets for several of the Space themes of the 2000s and 2010s, has spoken extensively both here and on other sites like Reddit about how basically every theme he's worked on has been condemned by AFOLs (at least initially) for not matching up with how they remember the sets of their childhoods.

So if we're being realistic, we should expect the same reaction to whatever the next Space theme turns out to be. Because no matter what comes next (or when), it's not going to be exactly the hypothetical ideal that each of us has individually decided we want to see in a future space theme. But hopefully it will still be something that we can come to appreciate when looking at it on its own merits, rather than in comparison to a purely theoretical concept we've built up in our heads.