Modular Building Sets - Rumours and Discussion

[brimbolet]

Don't know if it's the right place to ask, but are there some news on the retro car from the ideas contest? Will it be a gift this or the following year?

[Roebuck]

2 hours ago, brimbolet said:

Don't know if it's the right place to ask, but are there some news on the retro car from the ideas contest? Will it be a gift this or the following year?

Do not know, but it should turn up soon Maybe it is a GWP with the next modular, would make most sense..

[Options]

14 hours ago, Vindicare said:

The Diner fits in just fine, because towns have a mix of old & new buildings & design. Johnny Rockets is much the same. Out of proportion is something LEGO is known for....but the gas pump isn’t one of them. Comparing the 2500+ Bookshop to a 4000+ MOC is just dumb. The MOC doesn’t have criteria it needs to meet or a price in mind. The set is great. Not every building needs to, or should be one gigantic building, that makes for a boring skyline. 

I totally agree. Everything in the modular series is awesome. Thanks for pointing these things out.  It’s almost like an epiphany.

[Vindicare]

4 hours ago, Options said:

I totally agree. Everything in the modular series is awesome. Thanks for pointing these things out.  It’s almost like an epiphany.

Heh, I’m not sure if that’s sarcasm, and I realize Modulars being liked is very subjective. The part that really got me is the comparison of MOCs to official sets. If we got that amazing B&N MOC it would cost $300-400. I know that would be too much for me, amd I’m sure a fair number of others feel the same. 

The Diner as well. Yes, it’s quite the departure from what we’ve gotten before, but it can still work. 

[RichardGoring]

FWIW, I like the Diner. I wouldn't have bothered with modulars if it wasn't for the Diner. And now I've got several other modulars (and doing a MOC 50's modular with Bricks and Pieces to better match the Diner). So from LEGO's perspective, having a variety and trying something different could work well to bring new people into the range? n=1 though, so who knows.

[Vindicare]

On 9/24/2020 at 5:37 AM, AFOLguy1970 said:

It would be interesting to see what the sales and customer feedback has been regarding the Bookshop.  I really liked it and felt like it was more of a return to visual appeal on the exterior.  There did not seem to be any type of intrusive storyline--just some interesting parts such as the Moby Brick book, the chameleon, the bird's nest, and a few other things.  I really enjoyed the split build and ability to detach and rearrange the buildings like the Pet Shop.  Many people felt like it was a definite improvement over the Corner Garage in terms of price and visual appeal.  

I think Bookshop is a step in the right direction, at least for my personal tastes.  It was older, looked good on the outside, and did not have too many parts dedicated to the storyline like the DO and BB.  

I love it as well. As someone who isn’t a big fan of interiors, I’m glad to see them rather empty. The townhouse is great because it really reminds me of the Painted Ladies in San Francisco. I’m definitely glad to see slimmer buildings make a return, it makes for a better street view. 

[Wesley D]

On 9/29/2020 at 3:45 PM, brimbolet said:

Don't know if it's the right place to ask, but are there some news on the retro car from the ideas contest? Will it be a gift this or the following year?

I guess it will come in the first months of 2021, when the new modular building is available. I'm really looking forward to that car, just like the sailboat that I expect next summer!

Just like every autumn I feel my enthousiasm is growing to discover the new modular building!

I hope for a police station as it has been a while since the last governmental building.

[BrickFit26]

I hope we get an unexpected color scheme. Something different.

[Factioneer]

13 hours ago, BrickFit26 said:

I hope we get an unexpected color scheme. Something different.

I have been hoping for sand red to come back for the last several modulars. I doubt this is the year, but I can throw my ridiculous wish in with everyone else’s!

[AFOLguy1970]

Just now, Factioneer said:

I have been hoping for sand red to come back for the last several modulars. I doubt this is the year, but I can throw my ridiculous wish in with everyone else’s!

There is a courthouse in the county where I work which is dying to have a MOC made of it.  Sand red would be its dominant color.  There simply is no other substitute if I want to do it justice.  But yes, I would love to see a sand red structure in the next modular. 

[Factioneer]

2 hours ago, AFOLguy1970 said:

There is a courthouse in the county where I work which is dying to have a MOC made of it.  Sand red would be its dominant color.  There simply is no other substitute if I want to do it justice.  But yes, I would love to see a sand red structure in the next modular. 

The last few modulars seem to be a bit of a reboot to the line, for lack of a better word. A few have tried to create new quasi-copies of the most successful, albeit retired models.  Since Bookshop is kind of a reboot of Pet Shop (structure and use-wise) and Downtown Diner is almost a reboot of Parisian Restaurant’s use and structure, a courthouse isn’t a bad idea to follow up the Town Hall. Not sure if it’s too early for another corner building, but a single-use Corner Courthouse made primarily of sand red profile bricks would be a pretty cool addition to my neighbourhood. 

[Salix]

13 hours ago, Factioneer said:

The last few modulars seem to be a bit of a reboot to the line, for lack of a better word. A few have tried to create new quasi-copies of the most successful, albeit retired models.  Since Bookshop is kind of a reboot of Pet Shop (structure and use-wise) and Downtown Diner is almost a reboot of Parisian Restaurant’s use and structure, a courthouse isn’t a bad idea to follow up the Town Hall. Not sure if it’s too early for another corner building, but a single-use Corner Courthouse made primarily of sand red profile bricks would be a pretty cool addition to my neighbourhood. 

Following the tradition of straight building, straight building, corner building, we need one more straight building before we get another corner building. At least this has been the pattern since the beginning with only one exception at the beginning where there were one corner building and 3 straight buildings in a row followed by a corner building presumably because Market Street wasn't counted at a modular building when it was released, but is counted as such now.

[Withacee]

Sand red. Yes. Sand red. Must have sand red. Definitely. Gimme.

[ReplicaOfLife]

I don't see sand red making a comeback anytime soon, unfortunately. The umpteenth shade of blue, or yet another color in the pink/magenta/purple quadrant seem much more likely.

And with 2020 being the general shitshow it is, I wouldn't be surprised if, instead of adding a color, Lego would go and discontinue a really cool one. I mean, who needs sand green, after all? 

 

Jokes aside, I'd really appreciate another toned-down color that works well in buildings.

[JintaiZ]

38 minutes ago, ReplicaOfLife said:

I don't see sand red making a comeback anytime soon, unfortunately. The umpteenth shade of blue, or yet another color in the pink/magenta/purple quadrant seem much more likely.

And with 2020 being the general shitshow it is, I wouldn't be surprised if, instead of adding a color, Lego would go and discontinue a really cool one. I mean, who needs sand green, after all? 

 

Jokes aside, I'd really appreciate another toned-down color that works well in buildings.

I don't think pink would be likely. It will give the feel that Modulars has mixed with the friends theme...

[jonwil]

I want to see them do an architectural style they haven't done before. Something like Googie/Raygun Gothic would be amazing, as would a Brutalist building...

 

[Aanchir]

2 hours ago, JintaiZ said:

I don't think pink would be likely. It will give the feel that Modulars has mixed with the friends theme...

Why do people always seem to say that sort of thing as if it'd be the end of the world, even if it were true? I mean, nobody ever posts stuff like:

"I don't think tan would be likely. It will give the feel that the Modulars have mixed with the Elves theme…"

"I don't think brown would be likely. It will give the feel that the Modulars have mixed with the Wild West theme…"

"I don't think blue would be likely. It will give the feel that the Modulars have mixed with the City theme…"

"I don't think red would be likely. It will give the feel that the Modulars have mixed with the Ninjago theme…"

But for some reason, there remains this widespread sentiment that colors like pink, purple, azure, teal, etc are inextricably linked to the Friends theme, and that somehow that makes them the antithesis of everything a Modular Building should be. At this point, I've seen complaints about the color schemes of Bookshop, Corner Garage, Downtown Diner, and Diagon Alley being too "Friends-ish" also. Just search for appearances of the word "Friends" in this topic and you'll see plenty of examples.

All in all, I can't think of any reason pinks, purples, and pastels would be any more out-of-place on a modular street than colors like Bright Yellow, Medium Blue, Light Royal Blue, and Sand Green which have already had prominent appearances in Modular Buildings sets. Certainly they are no more vibrant than the sort of colors you might find in many historic European towns like Copenhagen, Venice, Madrid, or Rothenburg. Why not embrace that sort of opportunity to mix things up a little? After all, it'll surely get tiresome if LEGO just keeps reusing the same handful of "earth tones" over and over again…

Edited October 8, 2020 by Aanchir

[JintaiZ]

1 hour ago, Aanchir said:

Why do people always seem to say that sort of thing as if it'd be the end of the world, even if it were true? I mean, nobody ever posts stuff like:

"I don't think tan would be likely. It will give the feel that the Modulars have mixed with the Elves theme…"

"I don't think brown would be likely. It will give the feel that the Modulars have mixed with the Wild West theme…"

"I don't think blue would be likely. It will give the feel that the Modulars have mixed with the City theme…"

"I don't think red would be likely. It will give the feel that the Modulars have mixed with the Ninjago theme…"

But for some reason, there remains this widespread sentiment that colors like pink, purple, azure, teal, etc are inextricably linked to the Friends theme, and that somehow that makes them the antithesis of everything a Modular Building should be. At this point, I've seen complaints about the color schemes of Bookshop, Corner Garage, Downtown Diner, and Diagon Alley being too "Friends-ish" also. Just search for appearances of the word "Friends" in this topic and you'll see plenty of examples.

All in all, I can't think of any reason pinks, purples, and pastels would be any more out-of-place on a modular street than colors like Bright Yellow, Medium Blue, Light Royal Blue, and Sand Green which have already had prominent appearances in Modular Buildings sets. Certainly they are no more vibrant than the sort of colors you might find in many historic European towns like Copenhagen, Venice, Madrid, or Rothenburg. Why not embrace that sort of opportunity to mix things up a little? After all, it'll surely get tiresome if LEGO just keeps reusing the same handful of "earth tones" over and over again…

I honestly don't think a new color is necessary though... they could just reuse a color that was in previous modulars. I don't see big problems with that...

[Legochaek]

15 hours ago, Aanchir said:

Why do people always seem to say that sort of thing as if it'd be the end of the world, even if it were true? I mean, nobody ever posts stuff like:

"...

Um...sexism?

Edited October 9, 2020 by Lego-fire

[ReplicaOfLife]

20 hours ago, JintaiZ said:

I don't think pink would be likely. It will give the feel that Modulars has mixed with the friends theme...

Uh, sorry, that's not how I meant it.
I meant that Lego would be more likely to introduce a color like that, but not that they'd then use it in a modular. Reading it back, I see I haven't made myself clear 

[MAB]

17 hours ago, Aanchir said:

But for some reason, there remains this widespread sentiment that colors like pink, purple, azure, teal, etc are inextricably linked to the Friends theme, and that somehow that makes them the antithesis of everything a Modular Building should be. At this point, I've seen complaints about the color schemes of Bookshop, Corner Garage, Downtown Diner, and Diagon Alley being too "Friends-ish" also. Just search for appearances of the word "Friends" in this topic and you'll see plenty of examples.

 

I cannot see anything wrong with the colours in the Bookshop or the Corner Garage. For Downtown Diner, I cannot really see the sign being anything but bright pink - to me, it's neon and meant to be garish. Diagon Alley, the one I don't like is the Weasley's shop as it is rather bright. But then isn't that the point of it, so again a decent fit?

 

I think there is a red/pink family colour missing though, a somewhat dirty/drab/beige pink or light red, something similar to the old sand red. I don't think it would fit in Friends, and would be ideal for pink sandstone.

[Aanchir]

2 hours ago, Lego-fire said:

Um...sexism?

That's certainly the impression I tend to get, but obviously folks don't tend to respond well to that kind of suggestion, so I figured I'd leave the floor open for people to offer any alternative explanations.

1 hour ago, MAB said:

I cannot see anything wrong with the colours in the Bookshop or the Corner Garage. For Downtown Diner, I cannot really see the sign being anything but bright pink - to me, it's neon and meant to be garish. Diagon Alley, the one I don't like is the Weasley's shop as it is rather bright. But then isn't that the point of it, so again a decent fit?

Trust me, I'm with you on all those points! But it can be surprising how even just a few bright colors can be enough to rile up some folks.

13 minutes ago, MAB said:

I think there is a red/pink family colour missing though, a somewhat dirty/drab/beige pink or light red, something similar to the old sand red. I don't think it would fit in Friends, and would be ideal for pink sandstone. 

That's a valid perspective. Personally, I don't care all that much for Sand Red specifically, since it tended to look kinda dingy (in sort of the same way as the classic browns and grays did), but I definitely agree that the part of the color palette you mention was a little lacking after the mid-2000s simplfication of the color palette. The introduction of Vibrant Coral has helped a bit, though for many historic-looking buildings it'd probably be more suited for use as an accent color than as a main color.

Out of curiosity, do you think that Nougat could be effective for that sort of drab pink sandstone color? Like on the most recent versions of Luke's Landspeeder in LEGO Star Wars, or the garage door of the Simpsons House?

After all, according to a (sadly not archived) page about the Pet Shop set on the old LEGO Creator Expert site, Nougat was considered as a possible color option for the brownstone apartment, before ultimately settling on Reddish Brown with Dark Orange accents. Now that LEGO has expanded the use of Nougat for building elements rather than just skin tones (as well as the overall range of colors present in the modular building series), they might be more willing to use it in the Modular Building than they were 10 years ago.

18 hours ago, JintaiZ said:

I honestly don't think a new color is necessary though... they could just reuse a color that was in previous modulars. I don't see big problems with that...

It's not that a new color is necessary, strictly speaking… but why settle for that sort of mindless repetition when there are so many more unique and creative options for designers to choose from? Or, to put it another way: what would be the harm in introducing some more varied colors?

[JintaiZ]

@Aanchir - What about 10255?

It uses the same colors as previous modulars (10185 and 10218) but it's a huge success...

Edited October 10, 2020 by JintaiZ

[Aanchir]

1 hour ago, JintaiZ said:

@Aanchir - What about 10255?

It uses the same colors as previous modulars (10185 and 10190) but it's a huge success...

I suppose you meant 10185 and 10218? 10190 Market Street's main colors are Medium Blue and Earth Blue, neither of which is used as a wall color in Assembly Square.

And again, there's no reason that every new modular building NEEDS to use different colors than previous ones. But there's no reason for new modular buildings to strictly AVOID using new colors, either. I mean, Parisian Restaurant is the most owned AND most wanted modular building among Brickset users, and it used different colors than previous buildings for both its walls AND its roof. I'm sure there are plenty of "unused" colors on the current color palette that could be used just as effectively.

For instance, what about an Tuscan-inspired building with Cool Yellow/Bright Light Yellow walls and a Dark Orange tile roof? Or a Moorish Revival inpired building in varying shades of pink and nougat? Or a building with an old copper roof that has aged to a tasteful Bright Bluish Green, Sand Green, or even Aqua/Light Aqua patina? Even a Bavarian-style half-timbered building with Dark Brown timbers and Spring Yellowish Green infill?

With over 40 colors to choose from on the current palette (excluding transparent and metallic colors), it'd be a huge waste for the Modular Buildings to continue reusing the same dozen or so main colors indefinitely!

[JintaiZ]

40 minutes ago, Aanchir said:

I suppose you meant 10185 and 10218? 10190 Market Street's main colors are Medium Blue and Earth Blue, neither of which is used as a wall color in Assembly Square.

And again, there's no reason that every new modular building NEEDS to use different colors than previous ones. But there's no reason for new modular buildings to strictly AVOID using new colors, either. I mean, Parisian Restaurant is the most owned AND most wanted modular building among Brickset users, and it used different colors than previous buildings for both its walls AND its roof. I'm sure there are plenty of "unused" colors on the current color palette that could be used just as effectively.

For instance, what about an Tuscan-inspired building with Cool Yellow/Bright Light Yellow walls and a Dark Orange tile roof? Or a Moorish Revival inpired building in varying shades of pink and nougat? Or a building with an old copper roof that has aged to a tasteful Bright Bluish Green, Sand Green, or even Aqua/Light Aqua patina? Even a Bavarian-style half-timbered building with Dark Brown timbers and Spring Yellowish Green infill?

With over 40 colors to choose from on the current palette (excluding transparent and metallic colors), it'd be a huge waste for the Modular Buildings to continue reusing the same dozen or so main colors indefinitely!

Yes, meant 10218.

I don't visit brickset often, but I thought 10185 was the most wanted one...