Kingdoms 2012?

[Jack Bricker]

Maybe if it didn't swoop in and seemingly kill off a really really beloved theme like Kingdoms, people would generally be less hostile to it. :)

I like LOTR personally, but I don't like insanely inflated prices and fleshy minifigures - and I most certainly don't like Kingdoms ending.

Are you basing this statement on some kind of hidden facts or purely your own level of fanboism? I don't doubt that LOTR has a very strong following, but I strongly doubt that ANY fantasy/sci-fi brand has as strong a following as Star Wars. But feel free to present me with facts stating otherwise.

Would you kindly present me with the facts that LOTR is not going to last long. Have you seen into the future? Have you talked with a lot of Official Lego reps or are you just bashing LOTR for whatever reason?

I think that the reason there is so much of a backlash is that Kingdoms was a historically based theme and the historical fanboys are disappointed that it isn't going to last longer and no Kingdoms was not the most successful castle theme. If it was it would be continuing in spite of LOTR. It is just the same old rife between the fantasy fans and the historical fans. Personally I hope that Lego takes all of these posts with a grain of salt because I think the theme will sell very well do to Lego being a very popular toy, LOTR having a huge following and being one of the greatest books of all time, and because the sets look very detailed and cool. I am tired of hearing people say the sets look awful just because they want to say it. All you have to do is look at them and they are very well done. Do they compare with Medieval Market Village and others? Well, no but they do certainly compare to all of the non-exclusive castle sets out there and they are going to be an awesome edition to the Lego fantasy genre and I think with all of the hope that this theme would be made in past years I think that they will sell very well.

P.S. If you don't like spending money on Lego you can always stop. The prices of sets are always going to go up with licensed themes because that is the way it has to be. You cannot fault Lego for that and to fault them for doing licensed themes is rediculous. Sure they cost more but, they are also cool and give a lot more variety to the Lego universe then just the same old re-released sets every three years with a few minor improvements.

Edited January 7, 2012 by Jack Bricker

[lightningtiger]

Remember when pirates was canned for POTC, the same happen in the pirate forum. We will have some people welcoming LOTR with open arms and other's wishing it's downfall.....I actually can't wait for LOTR so I can add some different sets to my son's collection.

[Saruman the White]

Would you kindly present me with the facts that LOTR is not going to last long. Have you seen into the future? Have you talked with a lot of Official Lego reps or are you just bashing LOTR for whatever reason?

I think that the reason there is so much of a backlash is that Kingdoms was a historically based theme and the historical fanboys are disappointed that it isn't going to last longer and no Kingdoms was not the most successful castle theme. If it was it would be continuing in spite of LOTR. It is just the same old rife between the fantasy fans and the historical fans. Personally I hope that Lego takes all of these posts with a grain of salt because I think the theme will sell very well do to Lego being a very popular toy, LOTR having a huge following and being one of the greatest books of all time, and because the sets look very detailed and cool. I am tired of hearing people say the sets look awful just because they want to say it. All you have to do is look at them and they are very well done. Do they compare with Medieval Market Village and others? Well, no but they do certainly compare to all of the non-exclusive castle sets out there and they are going to be an awesome edition to the Lego fantasy genre and I think with all of the hope that this theme would be made in past years I think that they will sell very well.

P.S. If you don't like spending money on Lego you can always stop. The prices of sets are always going to go up with licensed themes because that is the way it has to be. You cannot fault Lego for that and to fault them for doing licensed themes is rediculous. Sure they cost more but, they are also cool and give a lot more variety to the Lego universe then just the same old re-released sets every three years with a few minor improvements.

Fantastically well said. June can't come quick enough.

[Vindicare]

Maybe if it didn't swoop in and seemingly kill off a really really beloved theme like Kingdoms, people would generally be less hostile to it. :)

I like LOTR personally, but I don't like insanely inflated prices and fleshy minifigures - and I most certainly don't like Kingdoms ending.

Are you basing this statement on some kind of hidden facts or purely your own level of fanboism? I don't doubt that LOTR has a very strong following, but I strongly doubt that ANY fantasy/sci-fi brand has as strong a following as Star Wars. But feel free to present me with facts stating otherwise.

This. While I don't have any stone hard facts that SW is in fact bigger than LotR, I would bet my collection on it. Just look at this forum. SW has it's own entire section witness some serious die hard fans who know more about SW than anybody should. (sorry SW buffs ) I guess we'll have to wait and see if/how many new EBers we get due to LotR

theme. Maybe we'll even see it get it's own section...although I doubt it.

Jack Bricker, where in that post did he say that LotR wouldn't last long? Cause I don't see it..

Edited January 7, 2012 by Legocrazy81

[Elander]

I love LotR as do you, but Star Wars does still has the clone wars tv series which is a big draw for kids; yet has the diehard adults. Though I know there is a large following of LotR, I don't believe it's larger than Star Wars. I don't think it will become a better line than Star Wars, that line has been going for years and I don't see it stopping soon.

It is possible that Lotr could last 10 or so years, but I think that as little as three is probable too. Depends on how large of a following will buy LEGO. I think DaleDVM's idea is most likely. LotR lasting 3-4 years, with castle coming back after a couple years.

Hi,

that is now off topic, but I think I can add these rumores.

Meanwhile talk more and more people in different forums about possible Silmarillion movies. And maybe will Tolkien Enterprises really sell these Silmarillion licenses. Ok, that are overall only rumores (allways the same procedure) but also needs Hollywood allways new movie-stuff. Additional the Video Game Industry, they still have anyway the same interests. And the Silmarillion would give enough movie- and video game stuff for min. 10x movie episodes and min. 20x video games. ^^ That's a lot of money.

And here I have to say: LEGO can for Star Wars develop non-stop X-Wings or Tie-Fighters but Tolkien's Silmarillion is really too huge. I think LEGO would need min. 50x waves if they want to develop every landscape into only 1x LEGO set.

Back to topic:

I can't still believe that LotR/Hobbit replace Harry Potter, PotC, and additional Kingdoms. That are whole 3x themes! [And no, Marvel Comics are none medieval fantasy stories and do not replace Harry Potter or PotC.]

I'm sure, no, I'm pretty sure, that the historical Kingdoms theme will be replaced by an other historical theme and not by LotR/Hobbit!

-Kingdoms is a non-license theme an will be replaced by an ancient-, Wild West- or an other historical theme.

-LotR/Hobbit is a license theme and replace the license themes Harry Potter and PotC. That are 2x themes!

I have no idea which historical theme we will see, but I think it will be a welcome change.

[Piranha]

Would you kindly present me with the facts that LOTR is not going to last long. Have you seen into the future? Have you talked with a lot of Official Lego reps or are you just bashing LOTR for whatever reason?

I think that the reason there is so much of a backlash is that Kingdoms was a historically based theme and the historical fanboys are disappointed that it isn't going to last longer and no Kingdoms was not the most successful castle theme. If it was it would be continuing in spite of LOTR. It is just the same old rife between the fantasy fans and the historical fans. Personally I hope that Lego takes all of these posts with a grain of salt because I think the theme will sell very well do to Lego being a very popular toy, LOTR having a huge following and being one of the greatest books of all time, and because the sets look very detailed and cool. I am tired of hearing people say the sets look awful just because they want to say it. All you have to do is look at them and they are very well done. Do they compare with Medieval Market Village and others? Well, no but they do certainly compare to all of the non-exclusive castle sets out there and they are going to be an awesome edition to the Lego fantasy genre and I think with all of the hope that this theme would be made in past years I think that they will sell very well.

P.S. If you don't like spending money on Lego you can always stop. The prices of sets are always going to go up with licensed themes because that is the way it has to be. You cannot fault Lego for that and to fault them for doing licensed themes is rediculous. Sure they cost more but, they are also cool and give a lot more variety to the Lego universe then just the same old re-released sets every three years with a few minor improvements.

calm down now, responding with blackish of castle fans by calling them "fanboys" is not the way to go and will definitely incite others. Please don't try and force LOTR on everyone. Thank you

Edited January 7, 2012 by Macoco

[Artanis I]

This topic is for Kingdoms 2012. In the midst of all this off-topic childish arguing about whether LOTR is bigger than SW or not, I would like to point out that (ON TOPIC) we have just been told with absolutely no possible way of misinterpretation that KINGDOMS IS NON-EXISTENT FOR 2012 BESIDES THE JOUST.

There is now nothing other than the Joust set to talk about - and it has its own topic. This one should be closed. Especially since the last few pages have just been a flamefest.

[Perry the Platypus]

So Kingdoms is ending in 2012? That's a dead shame. I was expecting some sort of Medieval village set.

[Hive]

Would you kindly present me with the facts that LOTR is not going to last long. Have you seen into the future? Have you talked with a lot of Official Lego reps or are you just bashing LOTR for whatever reason?

Would you kindly present me with a reference to where exactly in my post you think I said anything about the length of LOTR? Did you even read my post at all? Because it sure doesn't look like it, judging from your weird reply.

[Vindicare]

So Kingdoms is ending in 2012? That's a dead shame. I was expecting some sort of Medieval village set.

Indeed. After seeing MVR I was pretty excited about what was to come. I was also hoping to see another MMV set... Maybe we will someday...

[DaleDVM]

I don't think the thread needs to be closed. Some people are still just learning that the Kingdoms sets are now unavailable.

I do agree that everyone should take a step back and relax. This is a fun hobby about toys. There is a lot of LEGO out there to buy and we will all be OK in the end.

Another castle line will come along soon and perhaps we might even get a couple of Kingdoms exclusives in the meantime. The run for LOTR will not be as long as some say and longer than others. It is not something to fight about.

I have some reservations about the LOTR theme. In particular I have 5000 yellow castle figs that won't fit in well with the fleshies. However, I don't hold a grudge against LOTR fans. I am happy for them. I have collected castle for 25 years and it will be back better than ever in the near future.

In the interim I will collect these sets as they do have nice castle environments. I will likely need a lot of yellow hands and heads to convert the figs though...

[Vindicare]

I don't think the thread needs to be closed. Some people are still just learning that the Kingdoms sets are now unavailable.

I do agree that everyone should take a step back and relax. This is a fun hobby about toys. There is a lot of LEGO out there to buy and we will all be OK in the end.

Another castle line will come along soon and perhaps we might even get a couple of Kingdoms exclusives in the meantime. The run for LOTR will not be as long as some say and longer than others. It is not something to fight about.

I have some reservations about the LOTR theme. In particular I have 5000 yellow castle figs that won't fit in well with the fleshies. However, I don't hold a grudge against LOTR fans. I am happy for them. I have collected castle for 25 years and it will be back better than ever in the near future.

In the interim I will collect these sets as they do have nice castle environments. I will likely need a lot of yellow hands and heads to convert the figs though...

I'm ok with LotR coming about, there will be a lot of great figs to be had. Helms Deep looks like it's going to be a good set. As of the pics we have so far, I'm not happy they stopped Kingdoms in favor of LotR(do we even KNOW that they did?) But, fantasy nuts now have another Orc horde to add to the factions, as I'm sure these will differ quite greatly compared to the earlier ones.

[Piranha]

well I decided to take an unbiased look at the LOTR prelims for the first time and I my first impression was wow those are terrible , they look so uninspired and boring, I instantly thought of the similarity of the style of building to KK2 with sort of a HP mix. Also reminiscent of POTC just weak sets it looks like IMHO. No details or nothing also I don't approve of the animated horse on the box art standing, the horse is not posable and should not be portrayed that way. Sure they are prelims but prelims as we know are pretty much close to final.

I did spot one thing I liked and that was the tan horse.

[Artanis I]

well I decided to take an unbiased look at the LOTR prelims for the first time and I my first impression was wow those are terrible , they look so uninspired and boring, I instantly thought of the similarity of the style of building to KK2 with sort of a HP mix. Also reminiscent of POTC just weak sets it looks like IMHO. No details or nothing also I don't approve of the animated horse on the box art standing, the horse is not posable and should not be portrayed that way. Sure they are prelims but prelims as we know are pretty much close to final.

I did spot one thing I liked and that was the tan horse.

Where have you been? We're expecting a new horse piece that is either posable or is in a permanent reared-up state (that possibly doubles as a charging horse).

[Vindicare]

well I decided to take an unbiased look at the LOTR prelims for the first time and I my first impression was wow those are terrible , they look so uninspired and boring, I instantly thought of the similarity of the style of building to KK2 with sort of a HP mix. Also reminiscent of POTC just weak sets it looks like IMHO. No details or nothing also I don't approve of the animated horse on the box art standing, the horse is not posable and should not be portrayed that way. Sure they are prelims but prelims as we know are pretty much close to final.

I did spot one thing I liked and that was the tan horse.

I'm with you on not being a huge fan of these. Hopefully the HD pics will shed a new light on the theme. I'm eager to see the figs and new swords and such.

[SirSven7]

I'm just ganna add my two cents into this whole discussion.

point 1: I am so sad that Kingdoms is going, I still need to pick up the darn castle and it flew off the shelves so fast it looks like its ganna have to be a bricklink order (got the rest thought so its ok)

point 2: at the mo the Lord of the Rings look but that is just cause they are prelim images, I had the same fellings about POTC and now I own and love every set (still a tiny part of me wishes Lego had not created them and given me a few more years of the 2009 pirates)

Point 3: I don't know about you guys but the set I am most excited for is the Vampire Castle from monster fights, sure its not classic castle but its still a castle and we get to delve a little deeper into the fantasy theme (and don't have to pay the Licening Mark up for a set)

Cheers all

[David Thomsen]

Where have you been? We're expecting a new horse piece that is either posable or is in a permanent reared-up state (that possibly doubles as a charging horse).

Too bad this horse didn't come out earlier, it could have been included in the Kingdoms Joust set. Still, one of the LOTR sets has a black charging horse, so that's easily substituted. Just need a white one now.

Like POTC, I'm only really interested in how new parts can supplement classic themes. That horse is a good start. Can't see anything else though, but preliminary images use mostly pre-existing parts anyway. It's good that LOTR has already been out for a few years, Lego don't have to worry so much about keeping these images a secret.

[Nagyzee]

Even though I wasn't really fond of Kingdoms I can still feel others' pain. The line disappeared way too fast, especially the last wave which was available for only a mere 6 months or so. And though I quite like LOTR I would have probably still preferred a return to Fantasy Era. The second half of that theme was great and got me into Lego again. I gave in when seeing the Troll Warship at a supermarket as it instantly reminded me of the intro of Warcraft 2. Anyhow back to topic: I think Kingdoms was not diverse enough. Most of the sets lacked the novelty factor to me. The Dragon Knights' two structures were quite awful imho and Outpost Attack was also weak (Tower Raid is a million times better). The Blacksmith Attack was an okay little set, and the big castle of this theme was better than the main castle of Fantasy Era though. Still the only set I'd really like to have is Mill Village Raid. Maybe colour scheme plays a big part, too. The dark blue of Crownies is so much better than the red of the Lion Knights.

[Piranha]

Where have you been? We're expecting a new horse piece that is either posable or is in a permanent reared-up state (that possibly doubles as a charging horse).

Really? now that has caught my attention although one would question the feasibility of a horse always in the charging position, making another one necessary for non action and such. Although a posable one would solve that problem I just am wondering how TLG would execute it.

However that said, I would draw the example of the Indiana Jones Bull Whip. Yes, originally we got a coiled up version. However later on we got the "action" version as it would look like being utilized. So the possibility of a permanently posed horse is likely as well.

But I look forward to seeing what it is. By the way was this discussed in the other topic? If yes could you provide the post number? I would like to take a look but don't want to read almost 100 pages

Too bad this horse didn't come out earlier, it could have been included in the Kingdoms Joust set. Still, one of the LOTR sets has a black charging horse, so that's easily substituted. Just need a white one now.

Like POTC, I'm only really interested in how new parts can supplement classic themes. That horse is a good start. Can't see anything else though, but preliminary images use mostly pre-existing parts anyway. It's good that LOTR has already been out for a few years, Lego don't have to worry so much about keeping these images a secret.

Me too, POTC provided a brilliant range of new parts. Rum bottles, buckets and more. I can only hope we get loads new pieces here too.

Maybe colour scheme plays a big part, too. The dark blue of Crownies is so much better than the red of the Lion Knights.

But color is pretty subjective as to preference.

Edited January 11, 2012 by Macoco

[Nagyzee]

Of course. I just stated my opinion, not an objective verdict or something.

[David Thomsen]

Since there are obviously other people besides myself who haven't been following the LOTR discussion and weren't aware of the new horse design, I wonder if there are any other interesting details relevant to non-licensed castle fans that we might like to know about...

Edited January 11, 2012 by David Thomsen

[Piranha]

Since there are obviously other people besides myself who haven't been following the LOTR discussion and weren't aware of the new horse design, I wonder if there are any other interesting details relevant to non-licensed castle fans that we might like to know about...

agreed

[Artanis I]

By the way was this discussed in the other topic? If yes could you provide the post number? I would like to take a look but don't want to read almost 100 pages

Mention must've been limited to the other topic. Sorry, but these two threads have been regurgitating the same opinions over & over, crossing over & back again & again it's hard to keep track of when things were said first and where they weren't said ever.

Well, I would say you'd only need to read the last 40 odd pages - when the images first turned up! It is of course only speculation, but because it's misleading advertising to use CGI for the model (and it appears identical in 2 sets in 2 colours) it's been suggested (and agreed on by many) that ir's a new horse piece that will most likely appear in those 2 sets plus one other (showing a standard horse in a forced rearing pose - as is the norm) that may have been photographed before the mold was made. Speculation is over whether this horse piece is posable in any way, or if it is made so that it can be in a reared pose only (pretty limiting) or that it also looks like it's charging if placed front feet on the ground.

That is all there is to it! Although I like the idea of the rearing+charging horse, it doesn't look to me judging by the Uruk Hai Army image that there is a stud hole under the front hooves, nor by the Weathertop image that the rear hooves would stand it up in a charging pose either.

[Hive]

I think Kingdoms was not diverse enough. Most of the sets lacked the novelty factor to me. The Dragon Knights' two structures were quite awful imho and Outpost Attack was also weak (Tower Raid is a million times better). The Blacksmith Attack was an okay little set, and the big castle of this theme was better than the main castle of Fantasy Era though. Still the only set I'd really like to have is Mill Village Raid. Maybe colour scheme plays a big part, too. The dark blue of Crownies is so much better than the red of the Lion Knights.

I agree that the blue in the Fantasy line looked much better than the red in the Kingdoms line. But on the other hand, I think the dragon colours were the best in a Castle theme EVER. And the crownie shields were pretty boring and bland compared to either shield in Kingdoms (though I'd love to have seen the lion shield with dark blue instead of red, that would have been truly something special!).

Structurally in terms of the sets, I definately don't agree with you that Fantasy had it better - and certainly not more diverse. I think that especially the last line in Kingdoms was incredibly diverse. I mean, look at MVR, King's Carriage and Blacksmith Attack... is that not diverse?

But yeah, the dragon faction lacked a really good structure. Still, I actually rate Kingdoms as the best LEGO Castle subtheme ever, all in all. And I think it's really too bad we never got to see a dragon castle and a ship or two of some kind (which Fantasy at least did).

[David Thomsen]

Since we know there won't be more Kingdoms sets after the Joust, I guess there isn't much to do but give our final opinions on the theme.

Personally, it was my favourite Castle theme, and I wish my funds hadn't been tied up elsewhere or I would have collected it. I do admit that dark blue was a better colour than red, but since that had already just been used, I think red was the next best thing. I like the way the theme evoked the earliest castle themes, with lion knights versus dragon knights. I like the inclusion of civilian sets. I like that the 'Prison Tower' set isn't the traditional medieval castle, but something different.

The only thing I didn't like is that the theme wasn't long enough. If they had brought out a Forestmen faction this year, I would have started collecting the theme and also acquired the previous sets. So my wallet was spared a blow there.

I will be happy if they at least continue the 'historic' theme in some other manner. With both Pirates and Castle down, there isn't much left. They could of course revisit the Europa theme, which is like Castle sets in the era of Pirates, and will make everyone happy. Or they could revisit the Western, Ninja or Viking sets, or try something new like Roman or Greek.