LEGO Ideas Discussion

[Artanis I]

Thanks for the opinion! I think I'll go ahead and jump right in with the new show, then seek out the older stuff if I like it.

Spoilers, but the original show was just your typical 80s boys cartoon, not much in it really. I loved it, but I was 6. You may find it difficult to watch (despite the coolness of aliens, spaceships, transforming robots etc).

[Blondie-Wan]

The LEGO Women of NASA project is getting attention of social media because..... well, you know....

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/entry/women-in-nasa-lego-set_us_5795d108e4b0d3568f83b0b1

http://www.natureworldnews.com/articles/25618/20160721/lego-honors-5-women-nasa-mini-figures.htm

http://www.popsci.com/women-nasa-get-lego-sized-tribute

Good for it! At this rate, it stands a decent chance of getting its full support in time for the current batch. The Modular Construction Site also looks likely to get into the same one, thanks to being just a few hundred votes away now.

While there are several other projects besides those two that have lots of votes and that will surely reach 10k, none of them seem to be either close enough or fast-moving enough to do it in time to get into this batch. I think this batch will be those two, plus the six that have finished already.

Edited July 27, 2016 by Blondie-Wan

[Robert8]

It's already in the top 21

I'd say it will get the 10k supporters by the end of this week

As it is now, about 2500 pieces.

Thanks!

Edited July 28, 2016 by Robert8

[Blondie-Wan]

New notice on the site:

"Starting August 4, we will no longer support importing old LEGO® CUUSOO accounts when creating a LEGO Ideas profile. LEGO CUUSOO was the predecessor community to LEGO Ideas that ended when LEGO Ideas launched April 30, 2014. If you don’t have a LEGO CUUSOO account, or if you’ve already imported your old LEGO CUUSOO account, this change won’t affect you."

I wasn't aware there were even any CUUSOO accounts left to import, but okay. I presume everyone here switched over long ago though, right?

[Blondie-Wan]

If this joke becomes a set, i change sex.

Why, and what makes you think it won't be?

[x105Black]

If this joke becomes a set, i change sex.

What is your current gender?

[Robert8]

If this joke becomes a set, i change sex.

If you are taking suggestions, I'd say Princess Consuela Bananahammock is a really badass name

Edited July 29, 2016 by Robert8

[Blondie-Wan]

Because a project based mainly on minifigs , based on gender postulate and not on individual postulate, is a joke. The fact it gains so much votes in so few times is a joke too. There are plenty other Nasa related project that would make a better set.

I don't think it's a joke at all - I'm sure the project creator and virtually everyone supporting it is doing so because they really want it to be a set.

And nobody disputes that there are other fantastic NASA projects that would make excellent sets, but whether this one becomes a set or not won't prevent any of them from becoming sets - lots of them could become sets without getting in one another's way (and indeed, they can even complement one another). In fact, the project most recently approved to become a set was another NASA one, the awesome Apollo 11 Saturn V.

_______

Meanwhile, the Modular Construction Site has now reached 10k, becoming the seventh project to enter this batch. Congratulations to ryantaggart!

Edited July 29, 2016 by Blondie-Wan

[Robert8]

LEGO Women of NASA has already +7000 supporters

I think this set would be heavily promoted on social media, that's exactly why I think it will pass the review

[Blondie-Wan]

LEGO Women of NASA has already +7000 supporters

I think this set would be heavily promoted on social media, that's exactly why I think it will pass the review

It's not just that it's being promoted; it's that so many people who learn about it then go and vote for it. Very few Ideas projects accrue support as quickly as this one is doing, and it boosts the project's chances enormously. The idea obviously has a lot of admirers, so there's little question about the set's commercial potential; it also has the positive role model and science education aspects that LEGO surely values.

It undoubtedly will also help that the project creator has personal connections to the subject matter. From her profile, she's an editor and writer at MIT, and when someone commented to suggest the set include planetary scientist and NASA advisor Carolyn Porco, her response noted that Porco was not only the first custom minifigures she ever designed, but is also a personal friend. Reading things like this, one can't help but be reminded of the similar connections of research scientist Alatariel to her Research Institute set, JPL engineer Perijove to his Curiosity Rover set, and Pixar animator MacLane to his WALL•E set.

Nothing is guaranteed, of course, and there's no telling why they might sometimes decline a project that seems like a shoo-in. But given everything I just mentioned, I think this's project's chances are very, very strong. It hasn't even actually achieved its full support yet, but I'm not only confident it will do so in time to join the current batch, I think it's actually the likeliest of these eight projects.

Edited July 30, 2016 by Blondie-Wan

[rodiziorobs]

Quick support by social media word of mouth is no guarantee, however; I suspect that it is accruing supports so fast because of many people who like the idea of promoting women of science, but who actually have zero plans to spend money on Lego, similar to Purdue Pete.

I suspect part of the review--especially when a project races ahead like this one has--is looking through to see how many of its supporters are active Ideas community members vs. one-timers.

Edited July 30, 2016 by rodiziorobs

[Blondie-Wan]

Quick support by social media word of mouth is no guarantee, however; I suspect that it is accruing supports so fast because of many people who like the idea of promoting women of science, but who actually have zero plans to spend money on Lego, similar to Purdue Pete.

What makes you think the supporters of either Women of NASA or Purdue Pete have / had zero plans to spend money on it? I'm sure there are a few such people mixed in both projects' supporters, but I'm also sure both have / had plenty of people who genuinely wanted to buy them (and that TLG decided against Purdue Pete because they decided they didn't want to get into doing mascots, logos and such; they may also have feared, not unreasonably, that if they'd approved Pete, they'd then have had to wade through the next few reviews overwhelmed by projects for pretty much every other university mascot, and called upon to explain themselves by the fans of all the ones they didn't approve).

I suspect part of the review--especially when a project races ahead like this one has--is looking through to see how many of its supporters are active Ideas community members vs. one-timers.

They certainly do look at supporter survey data, but remember, if a project means they can sell LEGO to people who don't normally buy it, that's a win in their book, not a loss.

Moreover, there are also tons of people who are regular Ideas users who are supporting this. After all, half of the "women in science" theme behind this is science, which means it's drawing upon that same crowd that has rallied behind so many other projects pertaining to STEM, exploration & research, science history, etc. - including the ones that became Shinkai 6500, Hayabusa, Curiosity Rover, Research Institute, and the forthcoming Apollo 11 Saturn V. I can't speak for everyone, but I can say my own household is planning to get two copies of Women of NASA if it's produced (one for me, one for my wife).

[Artanis I]

I don't think that the type of people who sign up simply to one-off support Ideas like that realise how much a Lego set would cost once it's released. They may be expecting to pick up a $50 set for $20 and therefore baulk at the purchase, so I agree, some of these projects may well have a lot of "supporters" that won't actually end up buying it. Compare that to submissions like (eg) Voltron where the non-Lego fans of the subject are likely to be toy collectors already, and probably have expensive statues, action figures and other nerd-type items, and are more likely to expect to drop a fortune on something like that.

[rodiziorobs]

I don't mean that none of its supporters would actually buy it. And it's entirely possible that it will pass review regardless. I just doubt the ideas community by itself is active enough to whip up that many supports that quickly. Maybe some of those one-timers will stick around, but my guess is that a lot of them would be the kind of people who (if the set passes review) would see the set show up later on Pinterest, say "oh cool, I remember that," and never give it another thought.

(Granted whatever sales are lost there would be immediately made up by scalpers gobbling up as many sets as they could, hoping to cash in on the Research Institute phenomenon).

[Blondie-Wan]

I don't think that the type of people who sign up simply to one-off support Ideas like that realise how much a Lego set would cost once it's released. They may be expecting to pick up a $50 set for $20 and therefore baulk at the purchase, so I agree, some of these projects may well have a lot of "supporters" that won't actually end up buying it. Compare that to submissions like (eg) Voltron where the non-Lego fans of the subject are likely to be toy collectors already, and probably have expensive statues, action figures and other nerd-type items, and are more likely to expect to drop a fortune on something like that.

I don't mean that none of its supporters would actually buy it. And it's entirely possible that it will pass review regardless. I just doubt the ideas community by itself is active enough to whip up that many supports that quickly. Maybe some of those one-timers will stick around, but my guess is that a lot of them would be the kind of people who (if the set passes review) would see the set show up later on Pinterest, say "oh cool, I remember that," and never give it another thought.

(Granted whatever sales are lost there would be immediately made up by scalpers gobbling up as many sets as they could, hoping to cash in on the Research Institute phenomenon).

I don't know whether this is your intent or not, but both you sound as though you doubt there are enough people actually interested in buying this for themselves (as opposed to investments) to make it worthwhile. I'm confident that's not the case, though, and that there are plenty of people who'd want it. In fact I think it would sell more copies than any of the other projects in this batch, with the possible exception of the Voltron - Defender of the Universe one.

[Artanis I]

I'm just saying that supporter != buyer. Especially for people who aren't even Lego fans and just signed up to vote for a single project, and perhaps there are also a lot of younger users that can't afford to buy the sets they vote for. Irrespective of which project you were talking about.

And to comment on that particular project, I don't understand why it has to be a "Women of NASA" bandwagon. Why does it have to be "oh look, a girl did something lots of men do, let's give her a medal"? I see it as either demeaning or divisive (depending on the source). People are people. What next, Hispanics (or whatever) of US Congress? Whites of NBA? If the project had generic (and gender neutral) minifigs with those little space builds it would be a nice Idea. Honestly I don't know (or care) who any of those people are, whether they're short/tall, black/white, male/female/other (seems you have to include that sort of thing these days), rich/poor, whatever. If it passes review and gets made I might grab it for the parts and mini-builds, but the minifigs are just going to be parted out. (Obviously if they are generic they would be yellow, and a lot of "buying this for parts" people would prefer otherwise!)

It would be a nice set on face value, I disagree with the motivation behind it. It will quite possibly pass, but that remains to be seen.

[Blondie-Wan]

I'm just saying that supporter != buyer. Especially for people who aren't even Lego fans and just signed up to vote for a single project, and perhaps there are also a lot of younger users that can't afford to buy the sets they vote for. Irrespective of which project you were talking about.

By that logic, they should never approve anything, and instead should just shutter the entire Ideas program.

And to comment on that particular project, I don't understand why it has to be a "Women of NASA" bandwagon. Why does it have to be "oh look, a girl did something lots of men do, let's give her a medal"? I see it as either demeaning or divisive (depending on the source). People are people. What next, Hispanics (or whatever) of US Congress? Whites of NBA? If the project had generic (and gender neutral) minifigs with those little space builds it would be a nice Idea. Honestly I don't know (or care) who any of those people are, whether they're short/tall, black/white, male/female/other (seems you have to include that sort of thing these days), rich/poor, whatever. If it passes review and gets made I might grab it for the parts and mini-builds, but the minifigs are just going to be parted out. (Obviously if they are generic they would be yellow, and a lot of "buying this for parts" people would prefer otherwise!)

It would be a nice set on face value, I disagree with the motivation behind it. It will quite possibly pass, but that remains to be seen.

It's meant to provide both inspiration, and to go some way towards addressing the vast gender representation disparity in sets. The vast, overwhelming majority of minifigures in official sets across all themes portray men, or male characters.

And the set is also meant to be educational, in a variety of ways. The fact you don't know who any of these people are (as indeed, many don't) is a perfect illustration of exactly the value such a set could have (though honestly, just reading the project description would suffice to tell you who these women are, if you cared to do so). Of course, I know you said you also don't care, which is certainly your right, but it's not really reflective of the entire audience for CUUSOO / Ideas sets, if the Shinkai 6500, Hayabusa, Curiosity rover, Research Institute, and Apollo 11 Saturn V are anything to go by.

Edited August 1, 2016 by Blondie-Wan

[Aanchir]

I think the biggest obstacle the Women of NASA project will face in review is that it depicts several real people, and as such, LEGO needs to reach agreements with all those people (or their next of kin, for those who are deceased). That might be more complicated than your run of the mill licensing agreement.

[Blondie-Wan]

That's certainly a consideration, but I don't see it being a huge obstacle, for two reasons. First, many of these individuals (and/or their families) are apparently willing to approve this sort of thing, as evidenced by their inclusion in things like space exploration trading cards and the like. Secondly, the five women chosen aren't the only candidates, and if any of them or their heirs say no, there are numerous possible substitutions.

[Robert8]

Women of NASA by 20tauri is the 8th project to achieve the 10k supporters.

[LegoFjotten]

Will be interesting to see if it passes review.

Personally I would guess no.

[Sarah]

I sort of like the idea behind the Women of NASA project, but I have no interest in a "Minifigures on a background" display on the wall thing. It feels like it is trying to get around the no minifigures only rule and that strikes me off. I'd rather have the figures doing something. So a Sally Ride (the only one I'd heard of before) standing on the stairway to the shuttle, etc. (And no Christa McAuliffe :( )

My husband is a mathematician and might be interested in the mathematician one. Though probably not just on a lego background.

Oh I see there are also 4 mini-dioramas to go with it. This is the first time I saw that. Again, its not really one set. Its a set of stuff. Though I guess they have done that before... I won't be surprised either way I guess.

Edited August 2, 2016 by Sarah

[CM4Sci]

Yeah I don't think my project is gonna make the September mark. January at most.

There is no way that'll win. That's.. I just think that's a fact.

[Blondie-Wan]

Yeah I don't think my project is gonna make the September mark. January at most.

There is no way that'll win. That's.. I just think that's a fact.

Which one - your Roblox project, or Women of NASA?

Edited August 2, 2016 by Blondie-Wan

[AFOLguy1970]

I sort lof like the idea behind the Women of NASA project, but I have no interest in a "Minifigures on a background" display on the wall thing. It feels like it is trying to get around the no minifigures only rule and that strikes me off. I'd rather have the figures doing something. So a Sally Ride (the only one I'd heard of before) standing on the stairway to the shuttle, etc. (And no Christa McAuliffe :( )

Sally Ride is also the only one I have heard of from the list. Funny thing is that I also thought of Christa McAuliffe before even regarding Sally when I heard about this project. Excluding her makes the set seem incomplete, yet including her could potentially be treading difficult territory. As a designer, it would not feel right to me to profit off of selling something with her namesake on it, especially if her family members were not involved in the profit/licensing. On the other hand, having her in the set would have its merits in the form of educating the younger generation about her being selected as the first teacher to go to space and the Challenger accident. Children would probably be able to relate more to her than the others since her primary job was to teach them. It might in a way even honor her memory in this regard. In my opinion, she definitely would deserve to be in this set, but others might disagree.

I agree that the set does seem like a minifigure pack with just enough basic builds to get around the no minifig only rule. Yet, this has a high chance of success because Ideas has a history of space sets selling well in addition to the near instant sellout of Research Institute. This offers a combination of the two, so it would not be surprising in the very least if this got approved.