LEGO Store "Build a Minifigure"

[Accio Lego]

52 minutes ago, SirBlake said:

For the sake of this topic, I'm going to end my participation in this here. 

I second that. If we can agree on anything it’s that this really isn’t the right space for an in depth discussion of this topic. 
 

What we really should be debating is the much more on topic issue of how on earth a 10+ year old cmf torso ended up in a BaM tower. I’ve seen cmf stuff turn up in BaM often enough, but usually only about a year or two after they originally appeared - but series 3 was over a decade ago! Quite the mystery. 

[williejm]

1 minute ago, Accio Lego said:

I second that. If we can agree on anything it’s that this really isn’t the right space for an in depth discussion of this topic. 
 

What we really should be debating is the much more on topic issue of how on earth a 10+ year old cmf torso ended up in a BaM tower. I’ve seen cmf stuff turn up in BaM often enough, but usually only about a year or two after they originally appeared - but series 3 was over a decade ago! Quite the mystery. 

Nah, lots of the early stuff still shows up in my experience. The nurse’s torso from series 1 is pretty regular at making a comeback for example 

[SirBlake]

9 minutes ago, Accio Lego said:

What we really should be debating is the much more on topic issue of how on earth a 10+ year old cmf torso ended up in a BaM tower. I’ve seen cmf stuff turn up in BaM often enough, but usually only about a year or two after they originally appeared - but series 3 was over a decade ago! Quite the mystery. 

Isn’t that weird? I don’t make it to the Lego store very often, but when I do, there’s usually something strange like that. The series 4 surfer girl stuck around here in the BaM for years. 

[Accio Lego]

2 hours ago, williejm said:

Nah, lots of the early stuff still shows up in my experience. The nurse’s torso from series 1 is pretty regular at making a comeback for example 

 

2 hours ago, SirBlake said:

Isn’t that weird? I don’t make it to the Lego store very often, but when I do, there’s usually something strange like that. The series 4 surfer girl stuck around here in the BaM for years. 

Clearly I just don’t have much luck at my local store. Then again, they’re hopeless at keeping all the different parts separate so usually I’m more worried about plumbing the depths of the bins just to find any heads and wouldn’t necessarily notice any interesting old prints. 

[Black Feather]

Did LEGO ever say if/when the online BAM is coming to the US?  I read about that a long time ago and thought it was a cool idea.  I always plan to try BAM at the store but change my mind with quick glance at the mess there.  Would probably use the online version a lot, especially seeing some of the parts that were available there. 

[TeriXeri]

37 minutes ago, Black Feather said:

Did LEGO ever say if/when the online BAM is coming to the US?  I read about that a long time ago and thought it was a cool idea.  I always plan to try BAM at the store but change my mind with quick glance at the mess there.  Would probably use the online version a lot, especially seeing some of the parts that were available there. 

I assume they'll add it to US after EU version gets out of "beta" , currently the selection of parts is limited.

The knight shields and such people were hyped about were only available for a few days in April. During May the service was down for a while.

 

Edited June 17, 2022 by TeriXeri

[MAB]

14 hours ago, Accio Lego said:

I second that. If we can agree on anything it’s that this really isn’t the right space for an in depth discussion of this topic. 
 

What we really should be debating is the much more on topic issue of how on earth a 10+ year old cmf torso ended up in a BaM tower. I’ve seen cmf stuff turn up in BaM often enough, but usually only about a year or two after they originally appeared - but series 3 was over a decade ago! Quite the mystery. 

What is weird? They print exclusive parts for the BAM these days. It just shows they still have the design files for the CMF and that they think these will be popular if reprinted. They have done other existing torsos in the past, sometimes with or without changes, changing colours or prints or parts, or doing only one sided instead of two, and so on.

[jonwil]

I know for sure I snagged S1 nurse torsos from BaM long after they were discontinued. (Nurse came out in 2010, first BaM to open in Australia was 2017)

 

[SirBlake]

6 hours ago, MAB said:

What is weird? They print exclusive parts for the BAM these days. It just shows they still have the design files for the CMF and that they think these will be popular if reprinted. They have done other existing torsos in the past, sometimes with or without changes, changing colours or prints or parts, or doing only one sided instead of two, and so on.

I guess it just feels weird because the selections seem pretty arbitrary. 

[SamVimes]

On 6/16/2022 at 9:48 AM, SirBlake said:

 

Thanks for doing me that courtesy, but if you'll re-read my post, I was speaking to the eagle feather in general, as were you in the post I was responding to (at least partially). I'll concede that there may be the germ of a false equivalency there, but it was a quickly-pulled comparison to make a point, not an effort to score in a structured debate.

More than a germ of false equivelency, given that the sacrement is open to all, while war bonnets are only worn by a select few.

I disagree with the simplicity you are assigning to some sort of cultural approval process. I think that would be vastly more complex, and rife with potential pitfalls. That being said, how would we even know if there were some effort on TLG's part to do exactly that? Does any non-white European minifig have to come with a press release?

Consultation wouldn't be that hard, Nearly every tribe have a record keeper who will know patterns, styles etc. Also "oh no it might be difficult" isn't a reason to not do it. 

I believe this is a very important note by you that does a good job of pointing out the core of the problem:

“this could be a problem if the right steps weren’t taken while making it, and that’s why some people might have a knee jerk reaction to thinking it’s a bad idea”

Must we be beholden to knee jerk reactions? Nobody in this conversation can point to any instance of any Native American or representative organization taking umbrage with this minifig. Instead it's just fuel for culture war, instead of appreciating different cultures on their own merits.

There is a reason LTG stopped making the western theme. These are tokenized, objectified, static images of Native cultures that are not really representative or contextually appropriate. As for "representative organizations" Each tribe represents itself, but stuff like clean water, pipeline protests etc useually takes the lions share of time. The womens brick initiative has an in-depth look at POC and lego   https://womensbrickinitiative.com/diverse-lego-minifigure-petition/ 

Preservation of culture is essential for identity, No one is waging "war", Just protecting and promoting their identity. 

For the sake of this topic, I'm going to end my participation in this here. I should know better. Keyboard battles rarely change minds. 

[TeriXeri]

2020 BAM Dachshund isn't on online BAM (Europe) anymore since recently.

https://www.bricklink.com/catalogItemIn.asp?P=53075pb02&in=S

Currently it's still listed as in Beta tho.

Edited June 19, 2022 by TeriXeri

[Roebuck]

1 hour ago, TeriXeri said:

2020 BAM Dachshund isn't on online BAM (Europe) anymore since recently.

https://www.bricklink.com/catalogItemIn.asp?P=53075pb02&in=S

Currently it's still listed as in Beta tho.

I bought 3 to get the forestmen GWP last week, but maybe it is the Beta version here

[MAB]

21 hours ago, TeriXeri said:

2020 BAM Dachshund isn't on online BAM (Europe) anymore since recently.

https://www.bricklink.com/catalogItemIn.asp?P=53075pb02&in=S

Currently it's still listed as in Beta tho.

It is the same for the UK, existing but not purchased figures are showing it as out of stock. I've already got the max of 40 per order and another 40 on the way, so that should last me a while.

[MKJoshA]

On 6/18/2022 at 3:45 AM, SamVimes said:

For the sake of this topic, I'm going to end my participation in this here. I should know better. Keyboard battles rarely change minds. 

Both Accio and SirBlake already came to a truce. Please continue to keep the topic on track as you've stated you want to do.

[zoth33]

On 6/16/2022 at 9:57 AM, Accio Lego said:

Umm… the cultures who wore these styles of outfits absolutely are still alive, and very much vocally taking offense to caricatures of them being used as sports mascots and such. They have every right to be consulted on a representation of their culture as modern day Japanese or Pacific Islanders. I’m flabbergasted that you claim that this is ‘part of your culture’ but seem to incorrectly claim that culture is extinct - which is it? I might just be a white American, but I learned enough at school over the years to know that Eagle feathers and the Eagle feather war bonnets like the one the lego figure is depicted wearing were of great spiritual significance, and I’ve seen enough callout posts about not using them as Halloween costumes every year to confirm that the relevant Native American tribes get pretty offended by them being casually appropriated. I’m not saying lego shouldn’t make minifigs of Native Americans and other indigenous peoples, but they have to work with the cultures they’re representing if they want to be respectful, and that goes for any global culture. 

But why did they make the Eagle warrior and more recent jaguar warrior.  Or Samurai  or any vikings, pirates, or anything for that matter.  You just have to take things for what they are these are not meant to be offensive.  I think people are to soft nowadays and need to think outside the box a little sometimes people have tunnel vision and can't see the whole picture.  

On the BAM bins the one in Danbury CT does have the new Falcon torsos and the wizard.  

[SamVimes]

On 6/20/2022 at 5:29 PM, zoth33 said:

But why did they make the Eagle warrior and more recent jaguar warrior.  Or Samurai  or any vikings, pirates, or anything for that matter.  You just have to take things for what they are these are not meant to be offensive.  I think people are to soft nowadays and need to think outside the box a little sometimes people have tunnel vision and can't see the whole picture.  

On the BAM bins the one in Danbury CT does have the new Falcon torsos and the wizard.  

Um...Last I checked bro, The Aztec empire is kinda finished. The Samurai abolition happened in 1876. And Lego has 2 in recent history (everything else is Ninjago which is excellent use of myth and legend)

 

 

 Pirates...I mean Henry Every was possibly the last great one, and they very much, like Ninjago are based on myth and legend. 

 

Vikings, Did what they did best and adapted to a changing world...And the last one was fairly accurate, quite an excellent figure.

 

 

 

So all of them are 'dead' cultures. They are costumes at best. 

Indigenous north american cultures on the other hand are, very much, still living cultures. You get how they are different right? 

I mean today is National Indigenous Peoples Day here in Canada, so lots of living, breathing culture going on today. 

 

 

As for "soft" you mean empathetic and culturally aware right? And I'm pretty sure the box you reside in is plenty small. 

 

 

[SirBlake]

Question for the group: would it be appropriate/acceptable if I started a separate “BaM sightings in the wild” thread?

The arrival of BaM stuff seems to be super-inconsistent and according to my local store, delivery of new elements is not something that’s based on a calendar event, but rather initiated at the employee level based on their individual stores inventory. 

I was thinking it would be handy if we had a thread dedicated to alerting other members when they spot new BaM parts so others don’t have to call and hassle their local store like I do, lol. 

[zoth33]

@SamVimes  What I'm saying is not everything is offensive to everyone.  Just like somehow the Washington football teams symbol on their helmet was developed by a Native american chief and yet somehow became offensive to people.  This is way off topic now so moving on.  

[RichardGoring]

29 minutes ago, SirBlake said:

Question for the group: would it be appropriate/acceptable if I started a separate “BaM sightings in the wild” thread?

The arrival of BaM stuff seems to be super-inconsistent and according to my local store, delivery of new elements is not something that’s based on a calendar event, but rather initiated at the employee level based on their individual stores inventory. 

I was thinking it would be handy if we had a thread dedicated to alerting other members when they spot new BaM parts so others don’t have to call and hassle their local store like I do, lol. 

Great idea. Can it be combined with a photo of the Pick a Brick wall too?

[SirBlake]

Just now, RichardGoring said:

Great idea. Can it be combined with a photo of the Pick a Brick wall too?

That would certainly make for a more lively thread, lol. I’m open to it. 

[karrit]

2 hours ago, SirBlake said:

Question for the group: would it be appropriate/acceptable if I started a separate “BaM sightings in the wild” thread?

The arrival of BaM stuff seems to be super-inconsistent and according to my local store, delivery of new elements is not something that’s based on a calendar event, but rather initiated at the employee level based on their individual stores inventory. 

I was thinking it would be handy if we had a thread dedicated to alerting other members when they spot new BaM parts so others don’t have to call and hassle their local store like I do, lol. 

Unfortunately while it's a great idea I don't think this will work too well and will be very frustrating to those of us whose stores rarely if ever get the new stuff.  A lot of people on the east coast & midwest have found the parts already but not every store.  So unless everyone posts what they find & when at there local store I think calling your store to find out what they have in stock is still the best option.  My nearest store is 1-1/2 hours away so I don't get to go very often as I have to plan a day long trip to hit both stores in my state.  I'm not going to call them constantly just to see what they may have gotten in because it's not a trip I can make at the drop of a hat.  One of the stores isn't even keeping up their BAM tower, they just have a few random built 3 packs of undesirable/common in my opinion parts hanging up at any given time.  The Store I prefer to visit keeps things up pretty well but they run out of good new parts quickly so I often miss out.  They are usually months behind in getting newer BAM parts if they even get them in.  I don't know what the issue is with the employee who does the BAM & PAB ordering but I don't think it's the Store Manager that monitors the ordering for parts, one of her assistants does it from what I've been told.  I've yet to see any of the Profile Brick with groove that some others have found frequently in their PAB Walls.  I have occasionally lucked into a few interesting new PAB parts but not too often as they usually get cleaned out within a day or two of receiving them.

[MKJoshA]

@SamVimes @zoth33 Time to drop it. I may agree with one of you. I may disagree with both of you. Doesn't matter. This topic is for BaM discussion, not political opinions. This forum is not for political Lego discussion. Those conversations can be valuable, but for sake of community we are not allowing them here on EB. In my opinion they are best had in person, not online. It's too easy for things to go wrong if you try to hash those kinds of talks out online.

[MAB]

There used to be at least two sites for tracking contents of PAB walls. One had every physical store, and what they had in every bin location. Unfortunately both sites essentially died as they weren't updated by users frequently enough and so became useless. 

[SirBlake]

6 hours ago, MAB said:

There used to be at least two sites for tracking contents of PAB walls. One had every physical store, and what they had in every bin location. Unfortunately both sites essentially died as they weren't updated by users frequently enough and so became useless. 

Dang, that’s too bad. Such a thing would be handy these days. 

[Black Feather]

Well the knight is definitely popular.  Grabbed three prepackaged BAM with knight-wizard-pirate on Sunday.  Went back today and no knights at all.  Plenty of everything else.  I even went through the piles (for the first time ever) with help from my kids, but all I found was one shield and 5 helmets.  No torsos.  Is this something that gets restocked or is it one wave and done?  I actually live close to a store but usually shop online except to check the wall for parts occasionally.  But will start checking BAM too if they make figures like that.  I really hope they do the online version in the US soon.  Don’t like the open bins where the pieces get tossed about, arms and legs rearranged etc.