Could LEGO remake Fright Knights?

[Fulcrumfan91]

Just wanted to throw it out there. Do people think that could be something we get at some point? Would love to see an updated Night Lord's Castle!

[Lyichir]

I mean, they COULD do anything. I don't know if a remake of one of the quirkier, more niche Castle subthemes would necessarily be on the shortlist for what they'd opt for if they do another castle theme, though. I think they'd sooner either return to a more "basic" faction or come up with something completely new.

Of course, for fans, MOCing is always an option. Fright Knights' color scheme is wonderfully accessible (especially if you substitute newer greys for the older ones), and the design language of using inverse arches for curved roofs is not only still doable with modern parts, but arguably moreso than ever with the introduction of new curves and arches. And spooky figure parts are fairly plentiful in the collectible minifigures and in the selection of seasonal parts from the Build-a-Mini, so it shouldn't be too hard to give some of those classic characters a fresh look if you want! I've seen some fantastic Fright Knights MOCs over the years at conventions.

[icm]

I'd like a Fright Knights remake/tribute theme. Here are a couple of MOCs:

 

[Fulcrumfan91]

Aw man those are spectacular!

[BardDandelion]

They could and should but won't do that. :(

Regular Castle series of any kind would be amazing but seems that kids are no longer interested in historical theme (which are also considered to be problematic) so LEGO is not going to give us them. :(

[MAB]

Rather than remaking an old theme, I'd prefer they did something similar but more modern. Also I prefer them to revamp figures / factions through the CMF. The Fright Knight CMF was a good modern re-imagining of the old insignia.

 

Similarly Wolfpack was re-imagined as the Rogue.

[Triceron]

I have the Witch's Magic Manor.  I hate the design with a passion.

I think if Fright Knights were to be remade, I would want a complete revamp of the theme in the vein of Lion's Knight Castle being a spiritual remake.

To me, Monster Fighter's Vampyre Castle is the ideal Gothic style castle.  Hidden Side's Mystery Castle is a close second.  I think these would fit better for Fright Knights than the original run.  The Fright Knight CMF fits really well with the style and color themes of these castles.  All we really need are some updated banners and emblems using the new Fright Knight logo designs (which I think is far better than the original, just needs to use the brighter red).

 

Also seeing the mocs above, I really love the brick built dragons there!  But looking closely, I haven't seen some of those parts in those colors.  Is it even buildable?

[hikouki]

If Lego would, I'll guess not this coming year? They're already releasing that castle village, and 2024 will be dedicated to the space theme. 

[Fulcrumfan91]

On 9/6/2023 at 1:52 PM, MAB said:

Rather than remaking an old theme, I'd prefer they did something similar but more modern. Also I prefer them to revamp figures / factions through the CMF. The Fright Knight CMF was a good modern re-imagining of the old insignia.

Yeah I wouldn't mind this at all!

[BardDandelion]

On 9/6/2023 at 7:52 PM, MAB said:

Rather than remaking an old theme, I'd prefer they did something similar but more modern. Also I prefer them to revamp figures / factions through the CMF. The Fright Knight CMF was a good modern re-imagining of the old insignia.

 

Similarly Wolfpack was re-imagined as the Rogue.

The problem with CMF is that they are expensive and rare. :(

And now, after the change from blind bags to boxes getting interesting figs will be even more difficult and expensive.

[MAB]

11 hours ago, BardDandelion said:

The problem with CMF is that they are expensive and rare. :(

And now, after the change from blind bags to boxes getting interesting figs will be even more difficult and expensive.

They are cheap and common at the time they are on shelves. 

[Triceron]

12 hours ago, BardDandelion said:

The problem with CMF is that they are expensive and rare. :(

And now, after the change from blind bags to boxes getting interesting figs will be even more difficult and expensive.

They were still cheaper than picking all the parts separately on Pick a Brick.  The cheapest option is if you are lucky enough to find shields and armor pieces on Build a Mini and your local store allows you to buy in bulk.  Otherwise just the shields alone on PAB are $1+ each.  I managed to snag a bunch of Fright Knight CMF shields for $.75 CAD each on bricklink when they were still new and available, but I'm sure that price has been marked up since.

[BardDandelion]

13 hours ago, MAB said:

They are cheap and common at the time they are on shelves. 

I can't agree with that. Spotted latest Disney series in toy shop once. They used to be available in supermarkets but last time I saw them in one was early 2023. Two-three years ago and before that I was able to get as many CMFs as I wanted but this is no longer a case. Seems that supply is limited, prices went up and only beneficiaries are scalpers who buy out them for resell.

Obviously my perspective is limited to Poland but this is how I see it.

[MAB]

2 hours ago, BardDandelion said:

I can't agree with that. Spotted latest Disney series in toy shop once. They used to be available in supermarkets but last time I saw them in one was early 2023. Two-three years ago and before that I was able to get as many CMFs as I wanted but this is no longer a case. Seems that supply is limited, prices went up and only beneficiaries are scalpers who buy out them for resell.

Obviously my perspective is limited to Poland but this is how I see it.

Can you purchase on lego.com in Poland? The only rare CMF is Mr Gold. 

[Mr Maniac]

Can't really disagree with the rising cost of minifigures (as it seems to go hand-in-hand with rising costs everywhere else from my perspective), though I certainly wouldn't mind if LEGO revived this subtheme through one set.

I think @Triceron was getting close to my thinking, where I could see the company maybe bringing out a revamped Night Lord's Castle, like the current Eldorado Fortress, where the broad design is similar to the original set, but with updated colors, pieces, building techniques, and maybe even newer play features.

Of course this is all speculation, since there's been no rumors indicating LEGO would bring this theme back, but if current trends hold, where certain iconic sets get revived every few years, why not bring back this esoteric theme through one set?*

 

*(Although given how there's no official word or rumors that LEGO would be bringing this theme back, guess I'll keep working on my version of Night Lord's Castle, among others )

[Sir Dano]

I'd rather see Black Knights, Dragon Masters, Wolfpack, Royal Knights and Dark Forest be remade first.

[MAB]

41 minutes ago, Sir Dano said:

I'd rather see Black Knights, Dragon Masters, Wolfpack, Royal Knights and Dark Forest be remade first.

I guess that is the issue with so many smaller factions,  everyone has their favourites.  The insignia on the rogue CMF was nice, but I'd like to see a fairly plain Wolfpack figure (or just the torso) done in an updated modern style like for Lion Knights, Black Falcons and Forestmen. Despite being a small theme, I liked the Wolfpack vibe.

[JimBaggins]

Yeah Black knights/dragon Masters, along with forestmen variants would definitely be my ideal remakes. Especially the black knight shields and dragon master helmets. 

I already have 3 CMF fright knights, somehow a toy store has a bunch of cmf 19s for $5 they got wholesale. 

[JimBaggins]

. 

Edited September 13, 2023 by JimBaggins

[DaleDVM]

The Fright Knights followed by Knights Kingdom threw me into my dark ages... and contributed to LEGO nearly going under.  

I collected all of those sets anyway.  But it took me a decade to open them.  And when I did.  They were just as bad as I expected them to be.  
IMHO, it would be better if they never happened in the first place.

[Classic_Spaceman]

I doubt that we will see remakes of Fright Knights sets, but I can see the faction returning if we get a Castle theme with spooky villains. 
 

[Kit Figsto]

I'm curious if LEGO will ever truly reboot Castle/Pirates/Space again, or instead keep sort of doing what they've been doing the last couple of years with adult-focused sets that are very, very reminiscent of the 80s/90s sets and then continue to have GWPs along the same lines.

It's been almost 10 years since our last full Pirates theme, and 10 years since our last full Castle and Space themes (by my count, the last Space theme was Galaxy Squad, unless I'm forgetting something).  It seems like these themes don't have the same draw that they once did, especially with the number of licensed themes competing with them, otherwise we probably would've gotten reboots.  There clearly is a demand, otherwise we would've have gotten a half dozen D2Cs based on classic sets, but I'm just not sure if it translates to full on themes.

What's sort of unfortunate about that is, while the D2Cs we've gotten have been super cool, it doesn't leave any room for the smaller sets that a full theme would've brought.  For Pirates, for example, that means it's pretty much just going to be large ships and forts, not the small forts or buried treasure sets.  Of course, GWPs can fill that niche, but there's only a couple per year, and you have to buy other stuff to actually get that.

So to bring it back to this question, I would say it's unfortunately not likely, probably the best we could get is if they did a Castle set that included Fright Knights as one of the factions, or maybe a GWP remake of the Witch's Windship set (that's probably the Fright Knights set that I personally think of most, at least).

[MAB]

I think LEGO is trying to work out whether the classic themes should be for nostalgic adults or modern kids. While there is some overlap in desires from those two extremes, what makes something appeal to one market won't necessarily appeal to the other. The current demand for ICONS sets shows there is nostalgic demand, but what do they compare it to for demand from kids? The last 2013 Castle sets and Galaxy Squad didn't seem to dare so well, but was that too long ago for them to compare?

[Black Falcon]

Themes like Ninjago show that it is possible to make themes that are suitable for both Adults and Kids, IMO. 

As a Kid I had some Adventure, Castle, Western and quite some City Sets. I could play just very well with them, and I belive that Kids still can do that today. So I don´t see a problem that those Sets wouldn´t suit Kids to play nowadays - but of course Ninjago might seem cooler to Kids nowadays than some Knights but that doesn´t mean Kids wouldn´t play with them anymore.

Anyways the nostalgic Sets we had yet were made for adults mainly, while of course Kids still can play with them. I would say the Eldorado Fortress is more in a direction that would attract both Kids and adults, than the Explorer and the Castle were. 

Sadly, I still don´t think we will see whole themes of that kind but I am happy with getting a few Sets each year for now.

[SpacePolice89]

They should release new sets for the Royal Knights simultaneously with the Fright Knights and do a lot of marketing. I believe it would be popular with both kids and AFOLs. But unfortunately Lego seems nowadays more interested in making sets based on popular mass culture.