LEGO Ideas Discussion

[JintaiZ]

[deleted]

Edited January 5, 2021 by JintaiZ

[koalayummies]

And still the Ecto-1 is yet another great example of refinement by the Lego designers. The original submission was very nice and many of the original touches and designs were retained but the final official set car was even better and we ended up getting the building that was also in the same submission albeit separately but also polished up.

Could do the comparison like so since the Brickset article doesn't mention that the building was produced separately later (even though we all know that):

Edited January 2, 2021 by koalayummies

[RichardGoring]

9 hours ago, JintaiZ said:

Actually... the Bonsai wasn't based on the project.

Which is a shame. The Ideas Bonsai was so impressive, and felt much more ornate than the official one just released. Although the simplicity of the LEGO version does allow easy swapping of branch styles, which is very cool.

[Merlo]

10 hours ago, Modal said:

It's also a bit funny how little changed between the Old Fishing Store original to retail. It was a well made set from the start. I honestly don't think the Medieval Blacksmith original is at that par, personally. 

I'd say the author of the OFS was just wise enough to offer a set that looks like something Lego would put out right from the start. It's the sort of "abandon your hopes = profit?" approach that seems to be the one to aim for.

Let's be honest, Lego doesn't care about "ideas" ideas.... they just want to gauge what they could build next and will it sell. So whatever idea there is, we should imagine a simplified colorful Lego version of it and not hope for more.

9 hours ago, Lyichir said:

None of those non-Ideas sets were. Conspiracy theorists just like to pretend that Lego "stole" them from Ideas.

Lego can just claim they based whatever idea they had on their own project, even when the sets go down into details that coincidence would struggle to explain (like the ghostbusters HQ).

7 hours ago, Modal said:

I personally really like the Blacksmith set still. It has a bit of a World of Warcraft-fantasy vibe that I really dig. There are a ton of castle submissions coming to Ideas now, maybe more than any other type of set. I’m hoping we get more sets like this in the future! I would die for Fantasy modulars

I'm with you on that. If we'd have fantasy modulars or even additions to the blacksmith, that'd be amazing to have. A single blacksmith that's cute in a Lego way but not impressive in a MOC way is stuck in a no man's land and I still can't convince myself I need it.

[Wesley D]

1 hour ago, Merlo said:

A single blacksmith that's cute in a Lego way but not impressive in a MOC way is stuck in a no man's land and I still can't convince myself I need it.

I'm in the same boat as you. To me the blacksmith feels like it's missing liveliness on its own. I think the set requires more activity, it needs to show a story, what isn't visible right now. Perhaps the accompanying minifigures will convince me more.

I can't imagine complementary sets will follow, as previous Ideas releases were standalone sets too.

[MAB]

On 1/3/2021 at 5:17 AM, RichardGoring said:

Which is a shame. The Ideas Bonsai was so impressive, and felt much more ornate than the official one just released. Although the simplicity of the LEGO version does allow easy swapping of branch styles, which is very cool.

Even if lego had not already made one and the bonsai did pass, it would probably have been redesigned and would end up looking like the one lego produced.

Edited January 4, 2021 by MAB

[LettuceBrick]

7 hours ago, Wesley D said:

I can't imagine complementary sets will follow

I doubt they will, yeah. One option that might help calm some people down is to follow what they have been kind of doing with space in creator. Like the closest to an inhouse scifi theme is those one or two creator sets that have been released over the past few years. So maybe like release a space set, then next year a castle set, and then a pirates set. Rinse and repeat every three years, release a nice generic themed minifig in the set each time. Get everyone complaining about those sets so much they forget to complain about the lack of those themes.

[RichardGoring]

9 hours ago, MAB said:

Even if lego had not already made one the bonsai did pass, it would probably have been redesigned and would end up looking like the one lego produced.

Yes, probably. The foliage on the Ideas one was likely too complex and fiddly for general release. And it's a personal preference that I love the dark blue base that the Ideas one was in.

[someguy827]

Even though I was disappointed by the brightening up of the blacksmith set, one set I have been excited for ever since it’s release is the Winnie the Pooh set! The show and books made my childhood, and I think that a lot of the things that ruined the blacksmith with benefit the Winnie the Pooh set. I want this set to be as bright and colourful as it gets. Also happy about the precedent set with Sesame Street to allow for new molds. I’m hoping we get a ton of characters, although I’m not sure how you’d do someone like tigger, hopefully a new molded tail that he can stand on!

Any guesses as to a release date?

[JintaiZ]

3 hours ago, someguy827 said:

 

Any guesses as to a release date?

Based on the pattern, it would release on May 1. I'm expecting it to be revealed in April...

Edited January 4, 2021 by JintaiZ

[jonwil]

The downsizing I don't have a problem with (its clear that they needed the next Ideas set to be a bit lower in price after how expensive things like the Piano and Barracuda Bay are), my problem (like many others on here from what I can see) is the way they made it much brighter. The roof in particular is totally wrong, the original looks like its meant to be a bluish-grayish slate roof (as one might have found on a real blacksmith shop of the style this building was aiming to copy) but the roof on the finished model is totally wrong and doesn't fit the style of building that the set was trying to copy at all.

The Fishing Store is a much better design, they captured (and even improved upon) 99% of the design elements and details in the original idea and added even more (throwing in a whole pile of fishing/boating/diving/etc parts in there).

There are quite a few Ideas sets that have clearly been improved by LEGO over the original submission (Steamboat Willie for example is better than the original submission IMO, as is the Tron set, the Wall-E set and the space station)

[MAB]

12 minutes ago, jonwil said:

There are quite a few Ideas sets that have clearly been improved by LEGO over the original submission (Steamboat Willie for example is better than the original submission IMO, as is the Tron set, the Wall-E set and the space station)

Although the Steamboat Willie set looks nicer than the original, I'm still not sure it is necessarily better. The original submitter designed a much smaller set that looked fine at the scale, I guess aiming for a much lower price point which may have interested more people. LEGO took it and made it bigger and smoother finish and probably trebled the price knocking out many non-Disney fans that may have bought it, presumably as they know Disney fans can be relied on to pay high prices and so if they are doing it, they might as well go as big as they can to get top dollar. In that sense, it is the opposite of many IDEAS sets.

[jonwil]

We have another batch up for review:

https://ideas.lego.com/blogs/a4ae09b6-0d4c-4307-9da8-3ee9f3d368d6/post/356335d0-84d1-44ab-855d-68896e332159

737 is unlikely (they already make passenger jets in City and Friends and etc and the 737 isn't exactly a particularly iconic or popular or recognized plane, its just boring IMO, maybe if it was something more recognizable like a 747 it might have potential)

Colosseum is out for obvious reasons.

Mystery Shack, depends on whether licensing can be worked out (and whether the show is deemed to be acceptable for LEGO or not, its entirely possible Disney isn't doing toy licensing for Gravity Falls at all)

Brick Town Police Station is also out for obvious reasons.

Bag End is probably out, they know how LOTR sold (or didn't sell, in the case of the latter sets in the line) and I can't see them doing more LOTR at this point (especially with no LOTR content out there right now)

Red Dwarf I think is unlikely (the show isn't popular enough in 2020 for it to work and I don't think its got the nostalgia factor of Home Alone to fall back on either and I say this as someone who loves Red Dwarf)

Last Airbender, they have rejected a few Last Airbender sets previously, maybe the licensing is an issue (or something to do with how things went when they made the previous Last Airbender sets).

Classic Castle. No way they will do a "castle" themed set after just doing the Blacksmith Shop.

Open MRI I just don't see the market for.

Lighthouse would be cool but whether it could be turned into a set at the right price point and still retain the key things like the lights and motor I don't know.

Avatar I would have said is not a good "brand fit" for LEGO (the basic premise is that humans have invaded an alien planet with the sole goal of wiping out the naive lifeforms with a massive show of military power so they can then strip sll the natural resources from the place) but its got a ride at Disneyland and if its got one of those its gotta be something LEGO would be OK with (Disney is even stricter than LEGO on this IIRC)

Spirited Away would be nice but licensing may be an issue (not sure how it works for these Japanese properties) and there is the question of popularity (although the movie DID win an Oscar so that's gotta count for something)

Jumanji I don't see happening, especially since its for the original and not the remake.

Venice not sure about, its a great looking model with good details but I don't know if there are enough people out there interested in the set (or even a smaller less detailed version)

Auto Union, its just not popular enough among people who aren't car guys (there are cars out there that are far more recognizable and work much better as a LEGO set.

Garbage Trucks get done all the time in City so I don't see this one happening.

Not even sure what the TX Master Games one is about (some sort of martial art?). Only appeal would be to martial arts enthusiasts or maybe people picking it up for parts or something.

Milwaukee Art Museum is another building that might be well known in the area where it is but just doesn't have the global appeal needed to make what is basically an Architecture set work.

Car Wash is cool but its also close in style to the Downtown Diner which is probably a negative.

Wallace and Grommet is awesome and I would love to see a set but again, not sure how licensing goes for this.

Among Us seems to be a popular game but is it popular enough to be worth turning into a LEGO set (is the design proposed in the original Idea even the best representation of the game in LEGO form?)

Roman Warship seems just a little too close to say the re-issued Ship in a Bottle (and is a ship like that going to be popular enough?)

Addams Family Mansion is unlikely given the current Haunted House set and the license stuff.

GMC Blue Chip is another car that I just don't see being popular and recognizable enough among people who don't know cars.

Viking Village is neat, it might stand a chance actually.

 

[lego_guyon02]

46 minutes ago, jonwil said:

Bag End is probably out, they know how LOTR sold (or didn't sell, in the case of the latter sets in the line) and I can't see them doing more LOTR at this point (especially with no LOTR content out there right now)

Bag End is the only submission in this round I actually care about and I couldn't disagree more:
- LotR/The Hobbit has a massive following.
- LEGO has a great relationship with WB that's been there for years.
- The sets made in 2012 - 2015 sold poorly because of the horrible way in which they approached the franchise. They skipped most of the franchise's iconic scenes in favor of sets like Shelob's Lair, an Orc Forge, a Corsair ship etc. Not to mention that they didn't even release a single battlepack while the franchise is incredibly well known for it's massive battles, which include some of the best battle sequences in the entire history of film. 
- Even after the theme's cancellation LEGO held onto the license untill at least 2015 as that's when Dimensions released.
- The aftermarket prices for all LotR/Hobbit sets have skyrocketed in the last few years, if no one at LEGO has noticed that they've potentially got the worst trend researchers in the world.
- Amazon is currently producing a high-budget TV series for Lord of the Rings.
- There are currently next to no competitors out there. 

[JintaiZ]

It's fair to say that I like every single one of these projects. I'll rank them by their chance of getting approved, rather than how much I like them:

#25: We've had a number of LEGO game sets already... 
#24: Colosseum (Architecture Style) - Let's not forget about 10276... 
#23: Brick Town Police Station - Let's not forget about 10278... 
#22: Open MRI - Another good idea, but I'm not sure if it's the best fit with LEGO... 
#21: Automatic Garbage Truck - I'm afraid the general idea is too similar to existing City garbage trucks... 
#20: The Addams Family Mystery Mansion - License is probably an issue here... 
#19: Roman Warship - May be too similar to existing pirate ships... 
#18: Spirited Away - This may sell hot, but previous projects with Japanese license were rejected...
#17: Viking Village - This one has a chance...
#16: Motorized Lighthouse - A very detailed build, but the general idea may be similar to 31108 B-model...
#15: Jumanji of 1995 - Excellent build, not sure how popular the license is to LEGO fans... 
#14: The Car Wash - Stands a chance, but similar to 10260 Downtown Diner...
#13: Gravity Falls Mystery Shack - License can be a problem but this is definitely in high demand.
#12: Classic Castle - Medieval Blacksmith is coming out soon, but this will sell like hotcakes if it makes the cut.
#11: Red Dwarf Starbug LEGO Idea - Creative build, but the other red dwarf project may be rejected due to the license...
#10: Boeing 737 Passenger Plane - Will probably get approved if the Southwest plane doesn't make the cut...
#9: Among Us: The Skeld - This one has a good chance, but @VaderFan2187's build may stand an even better chance...
#8: Milwaukee Art Museum - Another creative one, but not sure if LEGO Ideas would approve architecture style sets...
#7: Avatar The Last Airbender - YIP YIP! - If the other similar project doesn't make the cut...
#6: GMC - Blue Chip 100 [1957] - While it's another car, there really are a lot of people that will buy it considering how fast it reached 10k supporters.
#5: Auto Union Type C Racecar - We haven't seen much official sets like that.
#4: The Little Venice - The details are so nice!

Projects with highest 
Avatar the Illuminated World of Pandora - The bright colors and beautiful color scheme will surely attract people.
Wallace & Gromit - This would definitely be popular.
Bag End - This will sell like hotcakes!

Edited January 6, 2021 by JintaiZ

[Digger of Bricks]

1 hour ago, jonwil said:

Mystery Shack, depends on whether licensing can be worked out (and whether the show is deemed to be acceptable for LEGO or not, its entirely possible Disney isn't doing toy licensing for Gravity Falls at all)

22 minutes ago, JintaiZ said:

13: Gravity Falls Mystery Shack - License can be a problem but this is definitely in high demand.

I am crossing my fingers so hard for this submission hoping it'll be approved, as I've kind've become something of an obsessive cultist for this show after checking it out in light of @figura's own submission for such being archived in the manner it was. The thing is, the timing would be right for its release if it were to be approved, as the finalized product would quite likely be released in 2022 upon the show's tenth anniversary. 

[MAB]

2 hours ago, jonwil said:

Bag End is probably out, they know how LOTR sold (or didn't sell, in the case of the latter sets in the line) and I can't see them doing more LOTR at this point (especially with no LOTR content out there right now)

 

I agree that Bag End is not going to pass, but because they already did one at roughly the same scale. Plus LEGO's version didn't have the brick-build book base thing that adds to the part count while adding not much else.

 

 

[Modal]

I can already hear the screams of Avatar (TLA) fans when Appa doesn’t get approved.

Personally, would love to see Classic Castle and Venice get approved, but I doubt either will make it. 

[MAB]

2 hours ago, jonwil said:

Roman Warship seems just a little too close to say the re-issued Ship in a Bottle (and is a ship like that going to be popular enough?)

 

I don't really see the link here. The ship in a bottle is a tiny ship whereas the Roman ship is minifigure scale.

That's like comparing the typewriter to the piano.

[adwind]

While I would like to see a Bag End made into a real set, I think that Lighthouse and Vikings are two proposals with the highest chances in this round! 

[MAB]

I haven't a clue what will pass. I could imagine any one of Venice, Castle, Addams Family or Viking village being done, but on a much smaller scale (like the first house instead of three for Venice, or a similar size for Addams Family). Or Wallace and Gromit.

[smazmats]

I'm actually kind of hoping for the garbage truck. The last city garbage truck came out in 2016, so there's not that much overlap with existing City sets and the mechanism is quite clever. Plus it would be nice to get some smaller more affordable Ideas sets again as the last sub $50 USD set (Tron) came out in 2018.  Wallace and Gromit could be another strong contender IMO.

I say any big building this round has a lower chance since the Blacksmith and Home Alone house are coming out soon and I would imagine the ideas team would want to add a bit more variety.  Also, I don't think any "Among Us" project has much of a chance either. It's a fad game and by the time it gets approved and on store shelves, people will most likely have moved on to something else.

5 minutes ago, Modal said:

I can already hear the screams of Avatar (TLA) fans when Appa doesn’t get approved.

Lol. Imagine what would happen if they approved the other Avatar instead

Edited January 4, 2021 by Black-Brick

[Digger of Bricks]

8 minutes ago, Modal said:

I can already hear the screams of Avatar (TLA) fans when Appa doesn’t get approved.

That ATLA project in the Third 2020 Review is already dead in the water, as the fate of @MinibrickProductions' own project based upon such (part of the Second 2020 Review wrapping-up now) renders it irrelevant whichever way it goes.

Just now, Black-Brick said:

Imagine what would happen if they approved the other Avatar instead

James Cameron's Avatar you mean? I forgot about that, as it is cruelly ironic that they're a part of the same review.

Edited January 4, 2021 by Digger of Bricks

[Lyichir]

Personally I can't help but hope for the garbage truck. Don't think a set that small has been approved through Ideas in quite some time, but the functionality is just so clever. The smaller size and lack of licensing could potentially make it easier than others to slot in between other releases, as well.

ATLA is another one I'm hoping for. Yes, it bombed for Lego years ago, but not only is there a big difference between Lego then and Lego now, but the series has gone from "unconventional kids cartoon series" to "classic". I can't help but hope that the series' recent popularity upon being put on Netflix will make a difference.

Gravity Falls is another one I'd like to see, though I'd see it as less likely given that Disney can be pretty finicky about which movies or series they're interested in licensing at any given time.

 

[koalayummies]

1 hour ago, Guyon2002 said:

- The aftermarket prices for all LotR/Hobbit sets have skyrocketed in the last few years, if no one at LEGO has noticed that they've potentially got the worst trend researchers in the world.

Yeah but that's true of just about every discontinued set, yet other themes resell for even more absurd amounts (green grocer has entered chat).

Your other points are sound though especially Jeff Bezos' TV series.