Joebot

WOW! Really impressive stuff. That is a great Tumbler. I would expect the Lego version next year to be right along those lines. My favorite Batmobile is the one from The Animated Series, simply because it was so absurd. The hood was the size of a football field! Its turning radius must have been about four miles. Very cool stuff, thanks for sharing. Nice photography and website design too!

I would say that I'm ... "cautiously optimistic." Mostly, I'm thrilled that the theme is even continuing at all, because I wasn't so sure after the small second wave of sets. Based only on the titles (and maybe my opinion will change when we see pics), the sets feel a little repetitive -- more two-vehicle sets with a Bat-vehicle and a villain vehicle. We've seen a lot of that already. I'd like to see the designers bust out of that rut, and come out with a Gotham police station, maybe a bank or a jewelry store set. You could still have the Batman vs. villian conflict, but focused around a building, rather than two vehicles. Or even a Wayne Manor set! And more charaters please!! I'd like to see Lego pattern the Batman theme after the Star Wars license. With Star Wars, they've given us just about every character imaginable. For heaven's sake, we got a freakin' Lobot! I mean, geez, was there anyone out there clamoring for a Lobot mini-fig??? Does Lobot have a huge cult following that I'm not aware of?? But, hey, Lego made one, and that's awesome. Similarly, Lego should go all-out with Batman, and give us all kinds of third-string villains and assorted supporting characters. Mostly though, I just want Ra's al Ghul. As others have pointed out, there might be additional characters that aren't mentioned in the set names, so I've got my fingers crossed for that.

That thing is monstrous! I hope these cops aren't trying to be undercover. I can't figure out the point of the little tower / building thing. I still say it looks like a tollbooth.

There was a big topic over in Lego News and General Discussion about a list of rumored new sets for '08, including Batman. I just thought I'd break out the Batman discussion into a separate thread. Here's the list, in case you missed it: Batman's Buggy: The Escape of Mr. Freeze

Hinckley, you should definitely check out Hitchhiker's Guide sometime. I think the humor (or "humour" I guess, since Adams was British) would be right up your alley. Lots of random silly nonsense. I watched the Hitchhiker's movie again this past weekend. It's ... okay. I can't make myself like it as much as I WANT to like it. It actually starts off great, but goes wildly off the tracks about half-way through, and just kind of meanders to the end. And since today is Thursday, I feel obligated to add, "This must be Thursday. I never could get the hang of Thursdays."

It was bad enough when Lego switched from yellow heads to flesh-toned heads for the Star Wars license. Are they now going to switch AGAIN to a cartoony anime design style for the faces? Blech. I hope not. That picture of the new Anakin head looks awful. As someone wisely once said, "I have a bad feeling about this ..."

Wow, I didn't realize this wasn't coming out for almost another year. That's a long ways away. However, this does give me some hope that we'll see some new Batman sets next year.

That is the million dollar question right there. Knowing the answer to that question would resolve a lot of endless debate on this message board (but, hey, where's the fun in THAT?). The sad fact is, we don't know. I suspect even Lego doesn't know. My guess (based on absolutely nothing) is that we're not as dominant a factor as we like to think we are ... but we're not as insignificant as Lego seems to think we are. Reality is probably somewhere in the middle.

I'm surprised no one has brought up the online Pick-a-Brick store, which in my opinion is the most earth-shattering thing Lego has ever done. Need 376 grey 2x2 tiles? Here you go! For we old-timers, that's just incredible to be able to do that (aside from Bricklink, which is very cool; but if possible I prefer NEW pieces). My hope is that the online Pick-a-Brick store continues to grow and expand with new pieces. I think TLC is approaching a transition period. How much longer can the two heavy-hitters (Bionicle and Star Wars) continue to rake in cash? The SW license is ending in a few years, and I have to believe that Bionicle will begin to fade. What's going to step in to replace those two cash cows?? I can't imagine any third-party license will ever approach Star Wars. That was a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity, and to Lego's credit, they smacked it out of the ballpark. But once it's done ... then what??? I can already see my interest in SW sets waning. Although I understand and appreciate the enthusiasm others have for the Clone Wars sets and the EU sets, I don't share it. I have no interest in any of that stuff. I don't like this trend of what I refer to as "disposable themes" (themes that pop up for one, maybe two, years, then disappear). I think that's a foolish, short-sighted marketing concept. I'd like to see Lego streamline their product catalog down to a handful of strong, well-designed themes, rather than this scattershot, let's-throw-anything-against-the-wall-and-see-if-it-sticks approach. Overall, the past few years have been terrific. I'm skeptical about the demise of the 9V train and where Lego takes that, but otherwise, the next few years could be awesome. Maybe not a second Golden Age, but definitely a Silver Age.

Ah yes, the great Myth of the Liberal Media!! That's one of my favorite conservative fairy tales. The Liberal Media is like the Loch Ness Monster -- lots of people claim it's real, but no one ever has any proof. Just for the sake of argument, let's pretend that MSNBC is in fact a bastion of liberalism, with all those filthy, dirty hippies. I have as much a problem with THAT as I do with Fox New's right-wing slant. Politicizing the news is a HUGE problem, regardless of which side of the political spectrum it falls on. People turn to the news for objective reporting of current events, and sadly, most Americans are too busy / lazy / stupid (take your pick) to apply any critical thought to what they hear. Without an informed populace, democracy doesn't work. How can people make intelligent decisions on election day when they've been fed nothing but propaganda and sensationalism masquerading as "news?" I realize this is getting waaaaay off track from the topic of Legos. That Fox News piece is a perfect example of what I'm talking about though. It could have been a really interesting piece, talking about child development, and how parents and teachers work together to address issues they see in the students' behavior. Instead we get a shrill, mocking commentor shrieking "Commies!!!" Ugh.

Dude, terrific post. Very well said. I'm as liberal as they come, and I can't possibly defend these teachers' actions. It was a really poorly thought out response. If they were having issues with the students' behaviors, there had to be a better way to address the problem. Banning Lego blocks is just absurd. It's not the Lego blocks that are the problem, it's the students' assumptions about power and ownership that are the problem. A good, creative teacher would find a healthy, productive way to deal with that. That being said, this kind of crap on Fox drives me up the wall. Nowhere in this piece did they interview any teachers, school officials, or school board members. How about an interview with a parent? Maybe a child development specialist?? Nope. All we got was an interview with Jim Copland from the Manhattan Institute. What's the Manhattan Institute? A right-wing think tank. They've got a great big quote from Rudy Guiliani across the top of their website. What does Jim Copland know about child development?? I have no idea. So, before every points their fingers and gasps in horror and outrage at the filthy commies, let's all take a minute to consider the messenger, realize that this was a bunch of sensationalistic nonsense, and then we can all shrug and laugh and move on with our lives.

Wow, that seems like a bit of a stretch, don't you think? Is Guiliani going to use that in his campaign materials? "Vote for the Democrats and watch your Lego blocks get banned!" I love the so-called "journalist's" mocking tone of voice as he's talking. Fox News doesn't even pretend to have any objective journalistic integrity anymore, do they?

This issue is particularly annoying when the shop at home catalog displays the new expensive road plates RIGHT NEXT TO their remaining stock of old green road plates, which are still $6.99. Way to call attention to the fact that the new road plates are a rip off.

I like the lawn mower ... but I can't help but wonder why there's a giant ostrich following that poor mini-fig who's just trying to get his lawn mowed. Weird.

Indeed, you are correct. Sorry for the confusion, the term was a Simpsons quote. I think it was the one with Love Day, where the corporate execs are trying to make up a new fake holiday.

That's a good point. However, if the building in question IS supposed to be a church, it seems devoid of any religious symbols of any kind (cross, Star of David, etc.). If Lego were to take on race AND religion, what's next? Politics??? I considered making a George Bush-as-mini-fig joke here, but I think I'll just let it go. X-D

Personally I think it's a Town Hall, mainly because of the clock on the front. You don't often see churches with clock towers. Presumably the bride and groom just paid a visit to the Justice of the Peace.

Wow, looks great! I love the basic concept, and the throwback '50's design is something we've never seen Lego do before. Looks like tons of mini-figs too, which is really cool. I have two minor complaints: 1) The colors of that movie theater are beyond garish. Yikes. 2) No road plates??? Otherwise, very cool set.

In regards to page 5, yes, that is intended to be a bit unclear at this point. It's a plot issue that will be resolved in Chapter 9. That's also when we'll find out all about this mysterious Jack Pfister. And Hinckley is correct about Death Pli

Hey guys, thanks!! Yep, you're probably right, I put it in the wrong forum. D'oh! I'll stick with YOC for future updates. I think I went with Town and Trains because I had some new pictures of my town to announce as well. Anyway, thanks again for the feedback. Hopefully the next chapter won't take as long to put together. As for being Hinckley's mentor ... it's an exhausting, thankless job. Much like a Sith Apprentice, I fully expect him to one day rise up against me. In the meantime, only cruel, vicious discipline will keep him in line. Back in your cage, Hinckley!!

Wow! Dude, that is a LOT of mini-figs. Really great stuff in there. I especially liked Harley Quinn. That's exactly how I picture an official Lego version. Oh, and Krypto made me laugh. What a simple, yet elegant solution. My only complaint -- Zatanna and Black Canary need fishnet hose! X-D Thanks for sharing! Now ... go make some Marvel characters. As for your comments on the Batman theme, I share your concerns. This year's two sets were pretty ho-hum, and I haven't come across any rumors or gossip about '08 sets. Is Batman done already???

I'm sorry if you feel outcast. I wasn't trying to attack you when I brought up the issue. The problem is that the term "gay" is loaded with meaning. It's a simple question of respect and courtesy. Some members of EB might be gay (I really have no idea, but statistically speaking, it's probable). They might read your post and take offense because you seemed to be using the word in a disparaging manner. That was my only point, and I'm sorry if you felt attacked. I hope you'll stick around and keep posting ... and maybe come up with a shorter username .... X-D

Another Batman fan here too! That's a great list, Batbrick. Wayne Manor and Gotham Police Station (with a light-up bat signal?) seem like such no-brainers to me. How could Lego NOT make those sets?? More bad guy hideouts would be awesome. The recent Riddler/Bane set ended up being a big disappointment in that regard. In general, I'd like to see Lego get away from their trend of including Batman and a villian in each set. They do this with Castle and Space too, where they put both the good guys and the bad guys in each set (and yet, they don't do it with Star Wars; why not?). It makes for some dumb sets, like the ridiculous Bat-dragster. If they had just made a cool Catwoman set, and left Batman out of it, it would have been a much stronger set. I want a UCS Batmobile based on Frank Miller's "The Dark Knight Returns."

Agreed. That's one of my pet peeves too. But Oobie apologized, and it's all cool. And he obviously didn't intend to cause offense. ANYWAY ... back on topic .... I think these pictures are prototypes. There was a thread about that in the Castle forum in regards to the new Castle sets, so it stands to reason that the rest of the pictures from the other themes are prototypes too. I mean, geez, we're not really going to get that classic space jacket as the torso for the postman sets, right?? That would be dumb. So presumably, the exact torsos, faces, etc. are all subject to a final revision.