LEGO Ninjago 2022

[Lyichir]

I really love the combining mech and temple, the two car sets both look good, and Lloyd's dragon looks unconventional but like a solid build. On the smaller end of the scale, Zane's mech and Kai's dragon look simple but decent while Lloyd's mech and Jay's dragon look mediocre. Still, I won't complain about sets I can skip, especially with so many good Monkie Kid sets launching next year. Fig-wise I like the ninja designs (vibrant accent colors are cool), and it's great to get a new Pixal! The snake baddies (which seem to have a robotic/mechanical theme?) aren't the most exciting but the builds associated with them generally look good.

There are more pics on JB Spielwaren.

[TeriXeri]

Lloyds Dragon really reminds me of a Dragonspawn general from Warcraft, like a bit too "fat" to fly, but still has a very strong, muscled look to it.

Temple doesn't look bad either.

The huge combi mecha is the best vehicle set for sure as you get 4 vehicles in 1 + the big mech option as well.

 

Edited December 2, 2021 by TeriXeri

[Robert8]

Only the temple looks good

The rest is meh at best

 

[The Stud]

Very mediocre looking wave, which is fine by me as next year is going to be a very expensive one and I need to cut costs somewhere. 
 

I like a few of the sets, like the dojo and big mech, but ultimately, I have plenty of good looking Ninjago mechs and temples so I’m fine skipping these ones.

Edited December 3, 2021 by The Stud

[Takanuinuva]

Combo mech is pretty neat. As is Lloyd's Dragon

One thing I'm wondering. Unless one of these 2 different snakes is the main bad guy. This might be the first Ninjago Wave without the main villain in the sets

(I looked and it's 2 different snakes with varying accessories. (Orange head and Gunmetal Head) So unless the snake with the gauntlets is the one in charge. This wave has no main bad guy fig)

Though their color schemes and the fact that Nya is back and isn't in her water spirit form. Might lend some credence to it being Nadakhan as the bad guy. And not having him in the sets is to prevent his spoiler as a return.

 

Kind of like how Seabound aired before the sets were revealed to somewhat avoid spoiling NRG Nya.

 

Edit: There's an extra set on bricklink labeled 71764: {?}

Which is the Ninja Training Center. And it not having pics might be cause it includes the main villain.

Edited December 2, 2021 by Takanuinuva

[GarmaFan]

1 hour ago, Takanuinuva said:

Kind of like how Seabound aired before the sets were revealed to somewhat avoid spoiling NRG Nya.

That probably wasn't intentional. 

 Surprised this hasn't been posted yet, but this twitter thread explains what this new sub-series. It seems it is completely unconnected to the show and Seabound's aftermath.

[Takanuinuva]

Ah I see. Bit of a shame. Would have loved to see the combo mech in the show.

Not really sure I'd call this wave an epitome though.

[GarmaFan]

4 minutes ago, Takanuinuva said:

Ah I see. Bit of a shame. Would have loved to see the combo mech in the show.

Not really sure I'd call this wave an epitome though.

It's mechs, vehicles, snakes, and a temple with no additional themes beyond generic Ninjago flair. It's not the best of the best, but it's a summary.

Edited December 2, 2021 by GarmaFan

[Meaf]

Having looked at the sets again, I think the combo mech is actually pretty great. The arms look a little bit unfinished with all of those visible technic pinholes, but otherwise I really like it. The separated vehicles all look alright too, and the fact that the whole thing is a massive Gurren Lagann reference is also a plus. The Temple is neat but as I mentioned before, it doesn't really look like it does enough to justify me buying it when I already own four Ninjago temples, especially considering all the other great sets coming out next year. The simplified designs for the smaller sets are definitely disappointing to me, but one other complaint I have is with the antagonists. I don't even really care that they're snakes again, but I really wish there was at least one big bad. I don't need four generals or whatever, but an obvious leader with a unique design would have gone a long way in improving the villain faction, for me anyway.

[Kim-Kwang-Seok]

20 hours ago, Lyichir said:

I really love the combining mech and temple, the two car sets both look good, and Lloyd's dragon looks unconventional but like a solid build. On the smaller end of the scale, Zane's mech and Kai's dragon look simple but decent while Lloyd's mech and Jay's dragon look mediocre. Still, I won't complain about sets I can skip, especially with so many good Monkie Kid sets launching next year. Fig-wise I like the ninja designs (vibrant accent colors are cool), and it's great to get a new Pixal! The snake baddies (which seem to have a robotic/mechanical theme?) aren't the most exciting but the builds associated with them generally look good.

There are more pics on JB Spielwaren.

to answer your respond in the '21 thread: yeah, there are new dragon parts but we have never seen not a single minifig-part. I think to a large extend reprinted parts are actually fine. More diversity for parts we've got instead of new parts which disappear after 1-2 recolours!

And I think the sets are actually looking pretty good. Some probably more sleek than the more difficult "adult" builds for a few years ago. Just they are not for me personally; too comical and I don't see any interesting parts other than Pixals head + hairpiece. I think at least some kind of new flag piece would have been cool - to replace the super old one and the "sticker on a tile on a clip"-assemblies.

Anyway I am curious what the disconnect to the show means. Maybe they cut down on the show and we'll get just some shorts for the WW and a proper season for 2nd half. If the show in it's more or less original form would end though (with a minimal continuation through shorts and stuff) I'd hope we get one more final season. I really think it would be fine to just keep the theme this way ("core"). Not my thing probably but that's just me. I could see many kids loving those sets much more then some of the overcomplicated builds that I might prefer.

 

[JJ Tong (zfogshooterz)]

Yeah, I find this wave to be a mixed bag for me too. Some sets I find it to be really good and the rest to be just not for me.

My definite favorite of this wave would be Jay's Race Car - I have always liked tuner cars from Racer's Tiny Turbos so that probably why I find it cool. Combined with all the golden blades to make the car stylized in a samurai-esque sense is just awesome! I would really love it if we could have more of this in a future wave. I know we already have a street racing wave with S.O.G. but it would be really nice to have another with more focus on Japanese tuner cars - to me at least. I would most likely buy this if I have the extra cash!

The ones that I dig - The Dojo - The silhouette and the build reminds me of the base sets of the 90s Ninja theme which is pretty dope! Lloyd's Legendary Dragon - That's one solid Dragon! The interesting chest build gives this dragon a very unique proportion.

The ones that I find decent - Lloyd's Race Car - the build looks pretty good, but with Lloyd's color, the car looks like a smaller (but still slightly different) version of the Ninja Nightcrawler. If it were in a different Ninja color, I would have liked this so much more. (Would be really awesome if it's in Cole's or Nya's color) The Ultra-Combo Mech - When I heard of this set in the listing, I was kinda hoping it would be more Megazord or Voltron-like since the Ninja are kinda like Power Rangers now. While I understand that this is inspired from Gurren Lagann, I find that original mecha design to be more suited for villains (of Ninjago). The mech definitely looks cool but...it's not for me. Kai's Fire Dragon - It's decent, just not mindblowing. The head reminds me of the Beasts from Hero Factory Invasion from Below which is interesting.

The ones that I'm not much of a big fan -  Jay's Thunder Dragon.... Yeah, it's not great. I understand that's it for 6+ but it's still not great. Zane's Power Up Mech - The vibe of this set feels too similar to SotFS's ShuriCopter with the latter being much better. Given a choice, I would also prefer Nexo Knight's Battle Suit over this.

Overall, in terms of being the epitome of Ninjago toys, I'd feel that LEGO did hit the mark while at the same time also missing the mark. If you consider that mech, vehicles, dragons, snakes and temples being pretty much what Ninjago is, then yes, they hit that mark. However, I find that this wave - like Legacy - to be heavily unbalanced where every set is just a hero set - this has even got to the point where there's multiple sets specifically for the same Ninja in a wave which is why I find that the mark was missed too. Part of the magic of a wave (at least to me) is to check out what the villains are and how cool their own sets are.

Another reason on why I thought the mark was missed was the mentioning of the Classic aspect. I feel that the theme of the hero sets to be all over the place (Which is also my criticisms for certain types of ninja vehicles in older waves too). I guess this shouldn't be surprising since this is a "core" wave. But when it comes to classic, I would think back to 2011 and a bit of 2012 too which includes a solid set for each of the Ninja and also a variety of solid sets for the villains too. This wave would be much more awesome to me if the sets that weren't dragons have more of a dragon-esque designs while also having three to four snake-centric villains sets. Of course whether that would have work or not in this age, I have no idea.

That said, I also want to add that this is the first time that a non-mainline Ninjago Ninja suit design (with the exception the the Legacy Goldens) that I actually find to be really nice. I'm indifferent towards Legacy 1. I don't particularly like Legacy 2 due me already not liking ToE suits in the first place and Legacy 3 feels underwhelming. This new design strikes the balance between modern Ninjago and keeping the Ninja motif. I definitely dig it! A nice highlight of this wave for me.

That's about it on my very long two cents haha.

Edited December 3, 2021 by JJ Tong (zfogshooterz)

[GarmaFan]

The push they got from leadership to make an entire wave not connecting to anything in the ongoing canon for the first time is interesting. Could they be trying to see if the sets can stand without the show, to possibly phase it out? 

[toothdominoes]

Don’t worry, since its beginning, we have always understood that Ninjago needs its TV show in the long term. There are no plans to do away with the show. This wave is just a special case to account for shifts in consumer demands and the plans for our 2HY 2022 wave. 

[Exetrius]

22 minutes ago, toothdominoes said:

Don’t worry, since its beginning, we have always understood that Ninjago needs its TV show in the long term. There are no plans to do away with the show. This wave is just a special case to account for shifts in consumer demands and the plans for our 2HY 2022 wave. 

Thanks for clarifying!

[GarmaFan]

39 minutes ago, toothdominoes said:

Don’t worry, since its beginning, we have always understood that Ninjago needs its TV show in the long term. There are no plans to do away with the show. This wave is just a special case to account for shifts in consumer demands and the plans for our 2HY 2022 wave. 

Good to hear, then! Thanks for being transparent.

[Rolyat24]

Considering this wave is being treated as the main line, I get the feeling that this means Legacy will continue, perhaps in summer 2022. I think it would be a shame to drop Legacy entirely, considering how great it is for both new and old fans. 

[The Stud]

Is Ninjago getting three waves next year like it did this year? (10th Anniversary/Legacy in January, The Island and Ninjago City Gardens in March and Seabound and final 10th Anniversary sets in August.) I know the Dojo add-on is supposed to come out in March but is anything else?

[GarmaFan]

4 minutes ago, The Stud said:

Is Ninjago getting three waves next year like it did this year? (10th Anniversary/Legacy in January, The Island and Ninjago City Gardens in March and Seabound and final 10th Anniversary sets in August.) I know the Dojo add-on is supposed to come out in March but is anything else?

We'd already know if there were two waves releasing in 1HY by now.

[The Stud]

4 minutes ago, GarmaFan said:

We'd already know if there were two waves releasing in 1HY by now.

I figured that but I haven’t really kept up with Ninjago news/rumors the last month or two so I wasn’t sure. 

 

Weird that the store exclusive Dojo add-on will be the only Ninjago set that month, but similar things have occurred in the past.

[The_Fiery_Rooster]

4 hours ago, GarmaFan said:

We'd already know if there were two waves releasing in 1HY by now.

We do though. The $10 spinjitzu training sets and the addon to the dojo temple are scheduled for March.

(I'm using Promobricks as my source here: https://www.promobricks.de/lego-ninjago-2022/130707/)

[Takanuinuva]

Looking more at those new limb pieces for the mechs and dragons. I wonder why they didn't think to make it 2 parts that ratchet at the middle?

Like a 2x2 version of 

Would have kept the simplicity of the design but allowed for more articulation.

As is they are a lot more limited. 

 

[Pirean_Grammaticul]

50 minutes ago, Takanuinuva said:

Looking more at those new limb pieces for the mechs and dragons. I wonder why they didn't think to make it 2 parts that ratchet at the middle?

Like a 2x2 version of 

Would have kept the simplicity of the design but allowed for more articulation.

As is they are a lot more limited. 

 

good tweet on that actually

i'm still mixed on these personally but this looks to be a very bright future for ninjago and i'm excited to see how the range grows from here next!

Edited December 4, 2021 by Pirean_Grammaticul

[JJ Tong (zfogshooterz)]

Yeah, upon a slight reflection and seeing those sketches for armoring customizations on Twitter, I can see the possibility for really cool stuffs to happen. What's revealed now definitely looks a bit basic (6+ I understand) but now I'm actually kinda looking forward to see how this system is going to expand.

Heck, this could go beyond just mechs and become specific characters themselves too. I can imagine a Masters of the Universe-esque theme using this system for the characters. Okay....I'm starting to be a little more excited at the potential.

Edited December 4, 2021 by JJ Tong (zfogshooterz)

[a guy from somewhere]

So very blurry pics just leaked on Instagram from a Spanish catalogue that’s so horrendously blurry you can’t really make anything out, but it does show on the final 2 pages the ninjago sets in prelim form, and we get a view of the March sets. The spinners look to be basicly spinjitzu slam, and the training grounds actually bear resemblance to the city of oraborus from the show, with a large statue in the centre (snake head?) and 2 sections connected to it with miscellaneous things dotted around and a white spinner in the centre. The post in question has multiple pics and actually starts off with a catalogue view of the dark trooper battle pack. Poster is “ohslego”

 

After learning more about the wave and why it exists, I have come around on some of the sets. The 2 small dragons are beyond saving, tho I like the side builds in the Kai one. Jays car isn’t great, it’s to overclusterd with all the gold blades on it. The Lloyd thagon (thick dragon) is alright, but I still find the combo of the head, massive chest pieces and the weird wings making the whole thing feel like just a regular toy, and not a “Lego” set. The temple is fine but a bit on the high side, and the Lloyd car is pretty nice tbh. Zanes mech is great, I love it. It’s just those unbending knees but considering it’s for a younger audience and it’s part of the new system I can forgive it. Lloyds mech is Lloyds mech.

 

Edited December 4, 2021 by a guy from somewhere

[NoOneOfImportance]

7 minutes ago, a guy from somewhere said:

So very blurry pics just leaked on Instagram from a Spanish catalogue that’s so horrendously blurry you can’t really make anything out, but it does show on the final 2 pages the ninjago sets in prelim form, and we get a view of the March sets. The spinners look to be basicly spinjitzu slam, and the training grounds actually bear resemblance to the city of oraborus from the show, with a large statue in the centre (snake head?) and 2 sections connected to it with miscellaneous things dotted around and a white spinner in the centre. The post in question has multiple pics and actually starts off with a catalogue view of the dark trooper battle pack. Poster is “ohslego”

 

After learning more about the wave and why it exists, I have come around on some of the sets. The 2 small dragons are beyond saving, tho I like the side builds in the Kai one. Jays car isn’t great, it’s to overclusterd with all the gold blades on it. The Lloyd thagon (thick dragon) is alright, but I still find the combo of the head, massive chest pieces and the weird wings making the whole thing feel like just a regular toy, and not a “Lego” set. The temple is fine but a bit on the high side, and the Lloyd car is pretty nice tbh. Zanes mech is great, I love it. It’s just those unbending knees but considering it’s for a younger audience and it’s part of the new system I can forgive it. Lloyds mech is Lloyds mech.

 

Just went to find it, and the post was taken down.