Which set should I buy?

[shaggysanchez]

Leoparder - I can't speak for 8109 as I do not have that set but I do have 42000 and I love it. It was a good build and a very large nice looking model when complete.

[Faefrost]

A local toy shop in my area has three big, discontinued sets on sale and I don't have the budget to buy all three of them.They are:

7066: Earth Defense HQ for €50

7985: City of Atlantis for €50

4194: Whitecap Bay also for €50

I like all three themes, as I like most fantasy/science fiction themes and I already own some sets of those themes. I am aware that the price-per-piece ratio is best with 7066 and worst with 7985, but still, every one of those sets has a certain appeal. Which set should I

The Earth Defense HQ is one of the finest "Space" theme sets ever made. It is great looking, and every single brick of it is packed with wonderful play features and details. There is not a single bad part of the set. And it literally has everything.

Whitecap Bay is a nice set, with some decent figs.

City of Atlantis is a cool set, and is a fantastic source of MOC parts. But the savings you list isn't that great.

[Csacsa234]

I'm amazed by 2 licensed sets but I can afford only one of them:

10237 LoTR Tower of Orthanc pros: the tower itself is beautiful with lots of details, nice figs/ cons: the ent (I hate that it doesn't have knees), not enoguh figs

or

10236 SW Ewok village pros:dozens of great figs, great features, looks awesome / cons: the tower of Orthanc is great too:D, the price/value is worse than the 10237 and there are some minor issues with the detailes on the treehouses

I'm a SW fan but I am amazed by the tower

What do you think?

Edited June 4, 2013 by Csacsa234

[Scorpiox]

I have a new dilemma!

I'm interested in buying one of the new Man of Steel sets for the figures, but I'm sure of which two to get.

As it stands, I am deciding between:

• 76002: Metropolis Showdown
  
• 76009: Black Zero Escape
  

They both have the same Zod and Superman figures that I'm after, but I don't know if it is worth paying £5 extra (Amazon Price) in order to get Zod's armour, cape, and the Lois figure. I like both the escape pod and the sports car, so those are not a defining factor for me.

Which set should I buy?

[Str0ngbad]

I'm amazed by 2 licensed sets but I can afford only one of them:

10237 LoTR Tower of Orthanc pros: the tower itself is beautiful with lots of details, nice figs/ cons: the ent (I hate that it doesn't have knees), not enoguh figs

or

10236 SW Ewok village pros:dozens of great figs, great features, looks awesome / cons: the tower of Orthanc is great too:D, the price/value is worse than the 10237 and there are some minor issues with the detailes on the treehouses

I'm a SW fan but I am amazed by the tower

What do you think?

Would you be buying to display or to build and then disassemble? I'm biased as a huge LOTR fan but the Ewok village is, in my opinion, a much better PLAY set and a much worse DISPLAY set. You already know the kind and quantity of the pieces but if the set you choose is going to stay on display, I wouldn't worry about the price per piece. As far as the ents knees are concerned, I think there are a number of very small modifications that could remedy the problem. I wouldn't figure that to be a determining factor.

Edited June 4, 2013 by Str0ngbad

[BlueberryWaffles]

oops made a mistake

Edited June 4, 2013 by Tolkien

[Darth Caedus]

I have a new dilemma!

I'm interested in buying one of the new Man of Steel sets for the figures, but I'm sure of which two to get.

As it stands, I am deciding between:

• 76002: Metropolis Showdown
  
• 76009: Black Zero Escape
  

They both have the same Zod and Superman figures that I'm after, but I don't know if it is worth paying £5 extra (Amazon Price) in order to get Zod's armour, cape, and the Lois figure. I like both the escape pod and the sports car, so those are not a defining factor for me.

Which set should I buy?

Get Black Zero Escape. It has better pieces, and Zod looks a lot better with his cape (the armor is cool too). The Escape Pod is a dumb build but has great pieces (I tore it apart for scrap) - an excellent canopy.

[SMC]

I'm amazed by 2 licensed sets but I can afford only one of them:

10237 LoTR Tower of Orthanc pros: the tower itself is beautiful with lots of details, nice figs/ cons: the ent (I hate that it doesn't have knees), not enoguh figs

or

10236 SW Ewok village pros:dozens of great figs, great features, looks awesome / cons: the tower of Orthanc is great too:D, the price/value is worse than the 10237 and there are some minor issues with the detailes on the treehouses

I'm a SW fan but I am amazed by the tower

What do you think?

Tower of Orthanc because the more they sell the more likely it is we might get another big LOTR set, but really it does look great Edited June 4, 2013 by SMC

[Leo604]

Tower of Orthanc because the more they sell the more likely it is we might get another big LOTR set, but really it does look great

Very, very debatable.

In your case, Csacsa, I'd probably go with the Ewok Village; like Strongbad said it has a lot of better play features, and at these prices it's more of your personal preference.

[Shushen]

Personally i am going for Orthanc even if i am more of a Star wars fan. There is just something about that imposing black monolith.

One thing you might want to consider is just where you will put it. Orthanc has a much smaller base and so i can put it on a number of available shelves. The Ewok village got huge base and I really only got one potential place to put it where, and there is already a Deathstar there.

[Csacsa234]

Personally i am going for Orthanc even if i am more of a Star wars fan. There is just something about that imposing black monolith.

One thing you might want to consider is just where you will put it. Orthanc has a much smaller base and so i can put it on a number of available shelves. The Ewok village got huge base and I really only got one potential place to put it where, and there is already a Deathstar there.

Your first sentence just tells everything that's in my mind:D Im going for the tower, because I want a good display model, as you said its base is much smaller than the village and I'm lack of free space on the shelves at the time. And my strongest reason: I'd rather command an army of Uruk Hai than get cooked by a bunch of teddybears

Thanks for the advices and suggestions guys!

[TheLegoDr]

Propicz89 - Are you going to be a completist? The Pirate ship set is underwhelming to me, but it does have some great figures. Weathertop actually is surprisingly decent. Yes, it is significantly smaller than you would expect, but they did get the shape right and it comes with some other great figures. Do you want Ringwraiths and another hobbit, or do you want some undead soldiers and a pirate? I think that is what it comes down to.

TDKR2012 - I would choose the Wizard Battle out of those three. It includes the palantir of the eye. That is cool enough right there. Do you have other sets of those themes? If you have the other Superman sets, then that one is pointless. If you have other Lone Ranger sets, then adding to the cavalry would be a good idea. But LOTR wins out almost every time for me.

Cerlin - I don't know the normal prices of those sets for your country, so I can't say anything regarding price. Also, I only own Whitecap Bay out of those. Are you into POTC, and/or have you seen the latest one that set is based on? I purchased all of the sets before I saw the movie, so I had no idea what was going on. It did hit the source material pretty spot-on. The mermaids are amazing, but the rest of the figures aren't the best. The build itself is pretty neat with the light brick and the colors used. Everyone raves about the Alien Conquest set, although I never picked any of them up. My wife (who isn't an AFOL) even liked the Alien Conquest sets, but I still didn't buy any and saved up for Kingdoms instead. I'd say go for the Earth Defense HQ, just because it will probably have the best./longest positive feelings for anyone.

Canada_7 - I would recommend the new X-Wing. I don't have it, but after reading the review on here I was significantly more impressed with it than I thought I would be. I'm not into UCS sets normally, but that one seems to be a great recreation of the set. I don't know much about the Shuttle, so that isn't even on my list. But it sounds like it has been on your list for quite some time. With the price only going up, that might be a good option to get now and try to save up again over the next few years and pick up the X-Wing or Endor Village. Those are brand new so have lots of time left. The Shuttle is retired, so will you regret not getting it in 3 years?

Leoparder - You're right. That Grand Prix racer looks like a great display piece. Are you into racing? I'm not, but I would choose that out of the two right away. Heck, I almost want to buy one anyway now. Thanks a lot...

Sam892 - Without looking too into costs, the only TMNT sets I purchased were the Turtle Lair, Kraang's Lab, and Shredder's motorcycle. That gave me multiple foot soldiers and the main villains/heroes (at least from my childhood). Since Donatello and Shredder were essential to my collection, I had to buy the Shredder motorcycle set. The bike is ginormous, but the figures are great. Which Turtle is your favorite? I think that determines the "must have" set for your collection. If you add up those 3 sets it comes out to be 85 instead of the 75 you have to spend. But you would pick up all of the essentials. I haven't heard a lot of positive things regarding the Shellraiser. I've heard it is too blocky.

[Sam892]

Sam892 - Without looking too into costs, the only TMNT sets I purchased were the Turtle Lair, Kraang's Lab, and Shredder's motorcycle. That gave me multiple foot soldiers and the main villains/heroes (at least from my childhood). Since Donatello and Shredder were essential to my collection, I had to buy the Shredder motorcycle set. The bike is ginormous, but the figures are great. Which Turtle is your favorite? I think that determines the "must have" set for your collection. If you add up those 3 sets it comes out to be 85 instead of the 75 you have to spend. But you would pick up all of the essentials. I haven't heard a lot of positive things regarding the Shellraiser. I've heard it is too blocky.

Well my Favourite turtle is Leonardo, which is great as he's only in the big sets . I was considering Baxter's robot rampage since I have £25 off and I don't fancy paying £40 for it. I think the must have will be the Turtle lair, after all what's the Turtles without Splinter? Thanks for the reply .

[TheLegoDr]

I will propose a question myself then. I have $300 to spend for a Father's Day gift. I collect many themes, so it is hard to narrow down. I want a few of the new SW summer sets (Sail Barge is a maybe, but I don't like that price) and definitely Duel on Geonosis (mainly for the figures) and all of the LOTR sets. I also collect Super Heroes (only would need Arkham and maybe Daily Bugle). I am still missing Town Hall and Palace Cinema, but I want some of the other exclusives also. Mainly the Sopwith Camel is a maybe, the VW van is a possibility and eventually I will want the UCS X-Wing.

As you can see, I'm in quite a predicament. What do I choose to miss out on for right now and which do I choose to jump on? As much as I want the big exclusives, that will eat up the budget quickly and then I will miss out on smaller sets.

Any suggestions or combination of sets to get? Thanks in advance!

[The Joker1]

Blimey Legodr that's a big list, Thankfully I have have quite a few of them so i may be able to help. Firstly i would recommend Arkham to anyone in the world, I am a massive DC fan as my name suggests but the set is a beautiful piece of kit that has something for everyone (Great parts, Figs, Intense beautiful design etc), In my opinion the sail barge looks Crap very,Very bad so if you must have something SW go for the Duel.

Then it all depends on getting one exclusive or some small sets, I personally would go for the small sets as I would already have chosen one big set (Arkham),so would go for all the 3 smaller LOTRs (Black gate, Elrond council and wizard duel) Totaling $100 (I think)

(I am in the UK so these are guesses) Arkham $130+ Duel $40 + LOTR $100= $270

So you would get a big set, Your wanted SW set and a selection of LOTR. Plus $30 remaining to either go towards another small set or towards a big set ;) (Just noticed the $20 jango set looks good?)

This is just my opinion so feel free to ignore

Edited June 8, 2013 by The Joker1

[TheLegoDr]

Thanks for the ideas. I don't love the Sail Barge, but I mostly want Leia and maybe Weequay. I especially don't love the price of the set, but I know Leia will claim a pretty penny to acquire, so sometimes it is more worthwhile to just get the set in the long run. The $20 Jango set is decent and I will probably throw that in there somewhere, but I don't care for the set. I mostly would just want Jango. Yes, it sounds like I could ebay these figures, but sometimes they go for way more than they should.

Arkham is actually $160 here, so your list would put me at $300. I think the Arkham building looks pretty good and the figures are awesome that come with it. Was the build pretty satisfying?

[The Joker1]

True, Being a minifig man the barge may be one to grab, I would recommend waiting for a sale though (You can get the £120 palace for £80 here now!), Arkham is more than I would have expected but the whole thing really is brilliant, If i remember correctly the set was in ten bags and most of them had a figure in, Also as there are loads of different techniques used in on different parts of the building it always feels like you are doing something fresh, So in my opinion yes it is satisfying .

[leoparder]

I just bought the 8109 because it is almost getting impossible to get it for correct prices (skyrocketing very fast). As the 42000 can wait a few months and maybe even get more and more promotions.

In the end, I will get both :P

[TheBatstan]

TDKR2012 - I would choose the Wizard Battle out of those three. It includes the palantir of the eye. That is cool enough right there. Do you have other sets of those themes? If you have the other Superman sets, then that one is pointless. If you have other Lone Ranger sets, then adding to the cavalry would be a good idea. But LOTR wins out almost every time for me.

I dont collect LOTR, i just wanted to buy that set because it looks pretty awesome and i need the minifigs. i dont have any MOS sets and i dont have any of the Lone Ranger sets either :p

[Faefrost]

I will propose a question myself then. I have $300 to spend for a Father's Day gift. I collect many themes, so it is hard to narrow down. I want a few of the new SW summer sets (Sail Barge is a maybe, but I don't like that price) and definitely Duel on Geonosis (mainly for the figures) and all of the LOTR sets. I also collect Super Heroes (only would need Arkham and maybe Daily Bugle). I am still missing Town Hall and Palace Cinema, but I want some of the other exclusives also. Mainly the Sopwith Camel is a maybe, the VW van is a possibility and eventually I will want the UCS X-Wing.

As you can see, I'm in quite a predicament. What do I choose to miss out on for right now and which do I choose to jump on? As much as I want the big exclusives, that will eat up the budget quickly and then I will miss out on smaller sets.

Any suggestions or combination of sets to get? Thanks in advance!

Oh man, nice budget but some tough choices. For stuff tied to a holiday like Father's Day stuff from the family I tend to like the larger sets that get kept displayed. But your tastes may vary. I wish you had asked last week. Amazon had the Town Hall at 30% off for a day or two. I would maybe do the LotR Pirate ship and either Arkham and some small stuff or the Sopwith Camel and VW Van. Just for the nice advanced builds.

[MikroMan]

Oh man, nice budget but some tough choices. For stuff tied to a holiday like Father's Day stuff from the family I tend to like the larger sets that get kept displayed. But your tastes may vary. I wish you had asked last week. Amazon had the Town Hall at 30% off for a day or two. I would maybe do the LotR Pirate ship and either Arkham and some small stuff or the Sopwith Camel and VW Van. Just for the nice advanced builds.

I definitely recommend VW Van, because the build is great and it makes for a nice display piece, plus it's a very recognisable ''recent history'' set.

[TheLegoDr]

Thanks for the input. I've been considering that van more and more. It was never on the radar until I picked up a few other more advanced builds and I really enjoyed it.

Too bad I missed that 30% off sale. That would have clinched that set. I guess I'll continue to wait for another sale then.

[Donut]

Well my Favourite turtle is Leonardo, which is great as he's only in the big sets . I was considering Baxter's robot rampage since I have £25 off and I don't fancy paying £40 for it. I think the must have will be the Turtle lair, after all what's the Turtles without Splinter? Thanks for the reply .

A cheaper alternative to acquiring the turtles is to buy the keychains and pull out the pin on the top. The downside is a hole on the top of the fig head and the fig's legs are glued to the torso.

Edited June 11, 2013 by Donut

[Scorpiox]

Bad new: I recently started playing Arkham City again which means that I'm in another mad rush to get myself some of Batman's foes. Since there are at current no rumours or predictions for any future sets, I'm terribly worried that this one wave is the last we'll get (I bloody well hope not). So, the question for you esteemed gentlemen is this: should I try and grab one of the big Batman sets before they're gone for good?

At the moment I own both the Catcycle Chase and Batwing Battle sets. I've narrowed my options down to either the Funhouse or Batmobile sets, but I'm not sure which one is the best, or whether I should get any of them at all. Although his set looks rather interesting, Two-Face brings an additiona £10 into the mix, but is it worth it? Does the Funhouse have nice enough figures and expansion potential?

Please help me out here, folks!

[Mr. Elijah Timms]

I've narrowed my options down to either the Funhouse or Batmobile sets, but I'm not sure which one is the best, or whether I should get any of them at all. Although his set looks rather interesting, Two-Face brings an additiona £10 into the mix, but is it worth it? Does the Funhouse have nice enough figures and expansion potential?

Good question. In terms of figs alone, if you have the Batwing set, you've already got yourself a Joker... But the Funhouse also offers Robin, Harley, and that excellent Riddler fig. On the other hand, the Batmobile set offers the love or hate orange/purple Two-Face, 2 goons, and a generic security guard you'll probably throw a yellow head onto to dump into your City collection. But you already know all this. In terms of figs alone, I'd say Funhouse.

In terms of the build, I'd also suggest that the Funhouse was a very well-celebrated set, with lots of playability, adventure, and possibilities for adding onto it. The Batmobile, on the other hand, received its fair share of criticism upon release for the design... But I disagree. It's a very detailed and substantial model, and the bank itself sports a unique color scheme that would be right at home in any City layout. Only the Two-Face jeep is a fail here, and if you lose the crane and flick-fire emplacements it's a bit better. I will suggest that if you ever consider picking up the BatCave, then the Batmobile is a must-- they compliment each other SOOO well. So as far as play goes, I'd say Funhouse... But if you're looking more for display purposes, I'd suggest the iconic Batmobile.

I've asked myself, looking back, if I could only have one of the two, which would I pick? And the answer is a definitive FUNHOUSE. But if you can, esp. now that the wave is nearing the end of its shelf life... I'd suggest going for all of the sets. They all look os great displayed all together.