kelceycoe

I know it's been 13 years but you noted there were no promotional materials inside... do you still happen to have the box and can you photograph the copyright side? To my knowledge none of these American boxes, except for the big four Pirate sets of 1989, has just a 1989 copyright date but also a 1989, 1990 date.

My sincerest apologies as I quickly skimmed pages 28-29. In the 1989 Toy Fair Dealer Catalog for he United States of America, the Lego Pirates line was only introduced but not actually featured. If you look on the table of contents on page 3, you'll notice you do not see Pirates anywhere yet at least 4 sets appear on pages 28-29. Why? Because I overlooked what page 28 says - Advertising and Promotion. This was a subchapter for the LEGOLAND chapter. The text on Page 28, while the page itself displays some Pirates info, reflects the promotional marketing plan for December 1988-December 1989, in that the ENTIRE yer would only see TWO commercials promoting Legoland sets - ONE in FIRST QUARTER (I am guessing January-March) and ONE in the FOURTH quarter (October-December). What we know now about the commercials thanks to archivists is that this was referring to these 2 Lego Maniac commercials: Town/Space Lego Maniac USA Commercial : Castle/Pirates Lego Maniac USA Commercial: It should also be noted that I have found December 1989 airings of the Castle/Pirates commercial during the Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer airing here in the USA: https://archive.org/details/capture-a-4544 There were also commercials for the 1989 Lego McDonalds Happy Meal toys released here in the United States. The Lego Motion campaign ran from July 28 through August 24 in 1989. I have found 2, one featuring Dick Christie who played the boy's dad in the weirdly-hit 80s sitcom, Small Wonder. I am sharing them below. The Happy Meal toys weren't anything fancy and honestly too reminiscent of Lego era prior to 1978 with its blocky bricks construction and more of a major advertising win for Lego (despite having success in 1986 with McDonalds already): Better quality: McDonalds even used their own mascot - Ronald McDonald - to promote these sets: And just for the fun of it, because unlike Europe which released all of the original Pirates sets in 1989, here in the United States the Big Four were available to retailers with the 1990 SAH catalog claiming they were making four smaller sets available to catalog customers August 1989 (no confirmation this ever happened - also, every box I have ever found for these sets had a 1989, 1990 copyright date; only the Big Four had a sole 1989 date. ALL of the 1989 sets in Europe had a 1989 date but I have not seen of 1990 was ever added to any in Europe). 1990 is really when the Pirates line took off here in the United States and was officially launched here in the United States, so the 1990 US Toy Fair Dealer Catalog is now heavily sought after for scans/photos of every page. So for the fun of it, this was the commercial for the Pirates line here in the United States: UPDATE: 9/16/2025 : I have found further evidence that Lego did reuse commercials in later years. This 1990 commercial was reused towards the end of 1991 with new voice-over naming the actual 3 sets: https://archive.org/details/capture-a-1370 I did NOT remember Lego doing this but they re-released a 1987 commercial for 1989; in this case they used the Thomas Edison commercial (for the record they did at least one ore like this homaging the Wright Brothers): https://archive.org/details/capture-a-3992 ADDED BONUS: The Pirates line, as you have seen above, was co-promoted with the Castle theme in 1989. This was done in the above commercial and again in the small leaflet/poster/mini-sheet/one-sheet found in small Lego sets in America : https://archive.org/details/1989-lego-mini-pirates-castle-us-catalog/mode/2up They each had their own mini-catalogs in 1990: https://archive.org/details/1990-lego-mini-pirates-catalog/page/n1/mode/2up https://archive.org/details/1993-lego-mini-castle-catalog They also each had their own sheets in 1989 Europe: https://www.bricklink.com/v2/catalog/catalogitem.page?C=m89eupi#T=S&O={"iconly":0} Note: I *may* update the first post of this thread later with this new information to make it all clearer.

Thanks to a recent E-bay seller, we now have very good phone photos of this highly in demand catalog. I was able to save them from Ebay and uploaded them for everyone to enjoy. A bit of disappointment but neat nevertheless. View and download these "scans" here: https://archive.org/details/lego1989toyfaircatalog What do you think the other Pirates commercial was? I know about the Pirates / Castle Lego Maniac commercial (it aired fourth quarter and you can find some recordings of it along with many program airings, such as a December airing of Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer in 1989) but I don't think I have seen another Lego Pirates USA commercial.

Anyone know what the difference was during the 1980s and 1990s : How did Lego define small, medium, and large? Because back then the smaller sets got 1 page mini-sheet catalogs while the medium and large sets got the medium catalog (here in the US) and large sets got the Large catalog in Europe.

Never mind, found them!

I am updating with a second list but I want to keep this list separate since it covers another topic - Polybags and Special Sets, No Matter the Region. If it wasn't promoted with the main themes or were known as polybags or special gift sets they appear here. I haven't went through the catalogs and named the "Kits" - from my knowledge those were just a name given to a bundle of sets in the USA SAH catalogs, although I think i did list one from Bricklink as Bricklink listed it. Polybags Value Packs, Gift Sets and Special Sets, No Matter the Region - Pirates 1989-1997 (Basically if it didn't come in a standard box it appears here) Credit: Steve's Blogs for most of it 1989 (Europe) 6255 Pirate Comic 1989 (USA) 6200 Pirate Double Pack - Buried Treasure / Harbor Sentry (Brick Kicks Fall 1989 Club Members only offer; unknown if these came as separate sets or in a package bundle) This one very likely had shooting cannon and was the ONLY time Harbor Sentry came with a shooting cannon in the USA 6265 Sabre Island Bonus Offer with LEGO Backpack (Listed as 6265 -2 on Bricklink: From submitter: Austrian only release as a bonus offer for summer holiday ('Ferien-Abenteuer') including the set 6265-1 together with a LEGO backpack. The discount price is specified in Austrian Schilling (the currency before Euro).) 1990 (USA): 6255 Pirate Comic 5150 Pirate Elements (Service Pack polybag) 1991: 1481 Pirate Desert Island (US and Canada Only) - Part of a 5 set Value Pack - 1476 5 Set Bonus Pack- 1992: 1464 Pirate Lookout (it was strangely later boxed as 1696) 1492 Battle Cove (US and Canada Only) (Polybag) 1889 Pirate Treasure Hold (US and Canada Only) - Part of 1891 4 Set Value Pack 6271-2 Imperial Flagship with Free Storage Case (looks USA only): Violet Storage Case with Two Latches 40 x 48 x 13 studs VP31 Pirates Bundle Pack (Sets 6247 and 6261 with Captain Red Beard Activity Book) USA (possibly Wal-Mart Exclusive) See images here: https://www.facebook.com/marketplace/item/1337898001669210/ and Special Note / Dick-head alert: A submitter listed this on Bricklink and links the Captain Roger Activity Book (I happen to own this version and I can tell you it's the European version of this activity book). I asked the submitter for better pictures and got a rude response and no clarification just that he added the book to the inventory. 1993: 1970 Pirate Gun Cart (US and Canada Only) from 1967 Bonus Pack 5058 Pirate Accessories (Service Pack polybag) 1994: 1713-1 Shipwrecked Pirate polybag 1729 Barnacle Bay Value Pack (US and Canada only) (I owned this set) 5122 Pirate Accessories (Service Pack polybag) 1995: 1788 Treasure Chest (Box was shaped like a treasure chest, I got it for Christmas; appeared one of the Lego SAH catalogs in 1996 but I thought it was stores only at first) 1996: 1795 Imperial Cannon (US and Canada Only) from the 1723 Castle / Pirates Combo Value Pack 1802 Tidy Treasure polybag

Updated with updated links; I do NOT own the site I linked to. Both Activity Books, as well the as the original comics and German dramas can be downloaded here 9(uses Mega link and clearly they got these from my old site lol): https://emilyinternet.zone/realm/pirate

The Lego Book was outsourced and contained many errors. The Lego Club Magazines were more official than anything DK publishes, especially since they just publish several other topics. If you look at the Lego Mania Magazine, on page 10 he is clearly named Jake the Snake Blake. Then if you read the comic on page 13, he appears and even speaks: http://www.miniland.nl/LEGOclub/lego mania magazine mar apr 1996.htm Clearly, and this is when analytical skills come to play, at no time was this minifigure supposed to be Captain Iron Hook. The Lego Group decided to cheaply rehash existing parts and make "another distinct minifigure" just as they had done in the 1989 Comic with Flashfork / First Mate Rummy and having Pirates that resembled them (I believe the wench even got a different color bandana herself and was meant to be another Pirate). As a historian I can only treat The Lego Book as entertainment only and by no means as an official book of facts. It leaves out so much. If anything it relies too much on hasty generalizations and despite several errors having already been reported, I cannot in good faith consider that book or any edition as truthful. It's very weird that The Lego Group struggled with Captain Iron Hook and Red Beard's identity. In the American commercial, he is ignored and Captain Red Beard attacks the Islanders yet he appears in so set with any Islander. In one of our magazines, Captain Red Beard is said to command the Renegade Runner. I found this same mistake in a 1993 Bricks N Pieces magazine you host on your flikr - clearly The Lego Group did a test run with kids here in America and they all thought these were supposed to be the same characters so here in America he was never named yet even where he had his own name and identity in Europe even their own writers and editors got confused.

I loved the feeling of walking down the isle and finding a new set too! The SAH catalogs made me feel like a Lego expert so I was surprised with very happiness when I did find - and buy - sets like Barnacle Bay and Showdown Canyon, for example. I do remember passing on the 1990 Pirate Comic Book thinking it was silly to buy a comic book and 2 Pirates when I already had the ship and I also remember passing on a Adventurers Desert set that came with the mummy because I thought it was the more popular version I already had. Yeras later I bought both of them. Wal-Mart still sells Value Packs and seems to be the only store who does so for the most part (then again there's really not many stores left to do so). I bought the Batman set last year - it came with the smaller 1989 Batmobile, Batman Returns Bat symbol and I thought something else and maybe a Lego drawstring bag. I remember buying the girl from The Lego Movie era - she came with a few sets inside a carrying case. So all is not lost.

As an American I concur these are accurate to the best of my knowledge. I chose to borrow this list from the perspective of somebody from Europe - Steve's Blogs - not only because great detail was given but since he lived in Europe he has better access to its resources and availability. Being an American kid, I knew these sets existed because I either seen them in person at the stores, catalogs, or I owned them, but I could not have known for certain if these were exclusive to my country unless I had actually left my country as the World Wide Web wasn't established well enough to know about regions being excluded from certain sets. Pretty much all of these were either sets included in Value Packs, as gift packs or bundles. Trust me Europeans, these were usually crap-designed and just impulse buys/money grabs but a cheaper way to add more mini-figures and accessories to our collection. They should only be sought after if you're a completionist otherwise you're basically just buying a remake of a remake of an existing set (see Buried Treasure and its many remakes). Note: I am the original owner of a few of these sets, many I frankensteined together from repeat sets or the Mini Figures set. 1991: 1481 Pirate Desert Island (US and Canada Only) - Part of a 5 set Value Pack - 1476 5 Set Bonus Pack- 1992: 1492 Battle Cove (US and Canada Only) (Polybag) 1889 Pirate Treasure Hold (US and Canada Only) - Part of 1891 4 Set Value Pack 1993: 1970 Pirate Gun Cart (US and Canada Only) from 1967 Bonus Pack 1994: 1729 Barnacle Bay Value Pack (US and Canada only) (I owned this set) 1995: 1788 Treasure Chest (Box was shaped like a treasure chest, I got it for Christmas; appeared one of the Lego SAH catalogs in 1996 but I thought it was stores only at first) 1996: 1795 Imperial Cannon (US and Canada Only) from the 1723 Castle / Pirates Combo Value Pack

Throughout many Youtube influencers videos I often go EEK at the scrupulous amounts of misinformation about various things. One thing that irks me in particular is when these guys claim the Black Seas Barracuda was originally $110 USD. Not even close, it was around $89.99. So, as unattractive as the video is, I made this video WITH SUPPORTING EVIDENCE INCLUDED explaining the original prices. I hope you enjoy and if you have any catalogs or sales data from 1989 or so please provide them here.

I love the whole concept and attention to detail and sources, but I find it impossible to see the relation with Captain Iron Hook to Jake the Snake Blake, especially since it was just slipped in there and I followed up on the sources you cite and nowhere does anything ever ties those two as one minifigure lol. While I disagree with American Lego for withholding the name Iron Hook from us Americans and confusing our stuff for many years since I was a child, I am thankful they later gave a name to that Pirate that resembled Captain Iron Hook but wasn't, even if it were located in one of the most awkward places to name-drop a new Pirate.

If you look on Youtube for a guy doing a review of the set (early copy he got) you can probably gather how it is done. Or just wait for the instructions to be released. Honestly, after buying the set, I cancelled my order. While that is a cool function, it's not worth the $375 this set will cost after taxes (assuming it's even released here in the US given the tariffs) nor the ugly addition to my mostly Monster Fighters castle color-schemed buildings. Plus once I bought this I'd feel like I'd need to upgrade my Arkahym Asylum to have semi-matching color schemes. Plus I found the minifigures to suck especially Dracula. All that money and Lego couldn't even reuse the Dungeons and Dragons head YET we get a female vampire just fine in a lower-cost set? Dumb, dumb. Plus that "coffin" design absolutely suck and doesn't even look like a coffin. Lego done way better with the Adventurers and I digress.

I conclusively solve these issues in these topics below:

Updated....

This forum doesn't allow attachments past 100KB and I already reached that limit 11 years or so ago. How else do you want me to post these? Feel free to download these and repost them how you'd like.

That's funny and I can stand behind that lol

This is why I posted the American perspective and tried to do so with the same thought process I had as a kid with the limited resources I had to do so (I did have a family member living in Europe at the time but she never bought me a Lego set from Europe that I remember so I wasn't exposed to the Captain Iron Hook lore). We weren't exposed to these inconsistencies but we were also misled to believe he and Red Beard were the same person. If you ignore all the literature and treat the set order I listed above it all makes sense. Also, I found out what caused me to bring up this subject - Youtube influencers. One went so far to say - and used the European article on the "Indigos" claiming Red Beard and Iron Hook were the same person (see Bricks 'n Pieces – Spring 1994) - the influencer was really young and kind of just went with the flow about things) yet many of the European catalogs thankfully separated them.

I wasn't aware of the comic but I was aware he was also called Blackbeard in some countries due to translation issues from what I can only guess. No it doesn't make sense. The comic is even more confusing since he has a pegleg in the Islander sets, unless he loses his leg after he was captured by the Islanders in that same comic, but I also noticed this magazine was May 1995 a year after the Islanders dropped so definitely an idea. Needless to say I feel now this is a resolved topic. Factually, Captain Iron Hook was unnamed in America but was either Iron Hook or Black Beard depending where you were from. No matter his name, he is definitely a distance character from both Captain Red Beard AND Jake the Snake who appears in the 1996 ship known as Red Beard Runner and The Marauder. But ultimately, each to their own and there's nothing that really forces anyone to derive from the facts and make up their own versions.

Also, looking at both Bricklink and Brickopedia, I am unsure what caused me to write this. I think it's because of something I read on this forum or there could be older information on those sites not yet updated because after looking they definitely make it clear who Captain Roger Red Beard (Bricklink, bless them, also differentiates between the older Red Beard and newer Redbeard - and yes there is a difference in name and appearance even though one refers to the vintage original and the other refers to the remake from far back into the early 2000s). But I do feel, at least, this was needed because, obviously as kids growing up, some of us may not have had the Club magazines so could easily be even more confused. Once I put the sets in order of appearance (only assuming Barnacle Bay - which technically isn't an "official set" in the sense and tied only to North America) did it actually make sense as the Captain Iron Hook figure started with legs and then with a legleg. I only wish American media would have honestly just adopted the name Iron Hook here to make it less confusing for us overall and I didn't have to wait 30 some years and for the Internet to have some better clarification.

I was only giving the American perspective because most of the other sites have ignored the perspective. Which I do understand because Lego is ultimately an European toy and with anything else, American kids aren't known for their interest in lore or the like, especially back then, and I remember the story why we don't have the real Kinder eggs - because American kids aren't very bright and wouldn't understand there is a toy within that chocolate hollow kid. If anything, the American perspective of not naming the pirate from 1992-1995 as Iron Hook when the rest of the world did honestly would have made everything in this country make more sense, especially when our comic in our country claimed Red Beard commanded the Renegade Runner despite that figure having legs. To us in the US, maybe we thought they pulled a Gold Medallion and gave us some weird younger, origin version to Red Beard as they had done in the Gold Medallion set.

Oh thank god! I can see why I missed it but I knew - without having proof - he really wasn't Captain Iron Hook despite Bricklink having him listed as so. I really wish someone would begin correcting all the errors there. As a kid, thanks to the Lego Club Mania magazines from 1994-1995, I too always thought he was a shipwrecked/castaway version of Captain Red Beard that was more rugged and down on his luck and happened upon the Islanders. I always thought they were cannibals too and I probably got that assumption after watching National Geographic documentaries as a kid. After watching the film, "Cannibal Holocaust," I most definitely feel like the premise of the film loosely inspired the Islanders, even though the Club Magazine from Winter 1994 wrote an article about islanders from Fiji and related the Kahuka statue as similar to the ones on Easter Island. (In case you're what what connection I am seeing with the cannibals from Cannibal Holocaust and Lego Islanders - in the film the cannibals were peaceful until they were threatened; much like the Islanders here, if you watch the commercials and notice the dioramas the Islanders are literally some of the more earlier brutally violent groups to come to Lego - they feed their enemies to crocodiles and many fans believe they were also headshrinkers so yea some serious tribal stuff).

As many of you know, I have spent days trying to zero in on making this issue much more clearer than what's already out there, sort of a "one stop shop." After spending countless hours studying, analyzing many sealed copies of the 4 big Pirates sets from 1989 (because they had open flaps) from UPC codes to the numbers beside them to the numbers printed on the back of the boxes and in some cases inside front flaps, I sadly can conclude the following: The ONLY way to accurately know which cannons your set had is If you got a photo of the set, with flap opened -- or a photos of you with the set just after opening it. The cannons must be visible for this to work. As you can about imagine, I am very sick my research didn't turn out any results other than studying boxes is an absolute waste of time. I am devising a cheat sheet that could, in some sense, help you to identify which ones you have -- but this will require having a good memory. I'm known throughout many fandoms for finding answers and many times rare items and how something that seemed so easy turned into one of my worse losses ever. If you feel something is inaccurate or would like to add to it please comment. WHICH CANNONS DID YOU GET WITH YOUR PIRATE SETS SOLD IN AMERICA 1989-1990? ALSO INCLUDES HELPFUL DATA ABOUT MINIFIGURE HEADS, TREASURE CHESTS, AND FLAGS As many of you know, we Americans were screwed by The Lego Group in 1990 and beyond due to unsourced "safety concerns." I have not found one piece of evidence connecting why The Lego Group - who originally packed the sets here in the USA with shooting cannons - changed the cannons. Any contact anyone made with The Lego Group and they'd just respond with "safety laws" or the like. The Lego Group's 1989 sets were already compliant with then THEN voluntary ASTM-F963-86 safety standards which covered small parts/choking hazards and projectiles. Actual laws in effect during this time affected the materials used in the plastics, ensuring they did not have lead in them - Federal Hazardous Substances Act An amendment was made - Toy Safety and Child Protection Act - ad had it been passed it would have been effective January 1, 1990 -- but as far I can tell this didn't actually become law until 1994, where it first went int effect January 1, 1995 and had minor revisions/effective dates throughout 1995. Ever since this went into effect, The Lego Group has been printing Choking Hazard warnings on their boxes. This cheat sheet is based on information I collected and observed over the years from fans who posted to Bricklink, Brickset, Brickopedia, Facebook and EuroBricks and therefore may not solely be accurate. It should honestly be truthful for any region that followed the typical release dates for the Pirates line, except Europe always received shooting cannons with their sets. I can also confirm, that unless your box had a open flap (the big four sets definitely had this, the rest could be hung on a wire hanger), NO IDENTIFYING NUMBERS INCLUDED SMALL NUMBERS PRINTED ON THE BOTTOM OF THE BOXES OR THE INSIDE OF THE FRONT COVER OR IN/AROUND UPC CODE COULD BE USED TO IDENTIFY WHICH CANNONS WERE INCLUDED WITH YOUR SET; THE INSTRUCTION BOOKLETS ALWAYS REFLECTED SHOOTING CANNONS, AT LEAST THROUGH 1990. I am not sure when the tall brown ladders changed from 27 to 28 studs in length. Also, when Bricklink lists a part as a "counterpart," this is where you'll find the part was substituted in older sets; so the actual parts listed above is the best data to use for when the piece debuted. Early means the first six months of the year and late means sometime during the last six months of the year. If your sets were manufactured in early 1989 and released in August/September 1989... Note that the original Pirates line was made available throughout much of Europe July 1989 and catalog customers in the USA could buy ONLY THESE FOUR smaller sets in August 1989: 6251 Pirate Mini Figures ; 6257 Pirates Raft (later called Castaway Raft); 6260 Pirates Treasure Island (later called Shipwreck Island); 6265 Governor's Fortress (later called Sabre Island), but the big four Pirate sets would first be sold to American retail stores (the USA catalog claimed that was the only way to get these 4) in September 1989. In some sets your flags may have been white flags with stickers. This has only been suggested on Bricklink with no actual evidence or dates suggested. You got shooting cannons You got heads with a solid stud Treasure chests had no slots and the lids had very thin hinges that wore out when played with too many times. Sets, with coins, came with 8 coins. If your sets were manufactured in later 1989 and released later in 1989 or later... Your flags were printed. You got shooting cannons You got heads with a solid stud Treasure chests had no slots and the lids had very thin hinges that wore out when played with too many times. Sets, with coins, came with 8 coins. Some reported disabled cannons showing up in sets purchased in late 1989. Because I got two of my sets in October and the one I got for Christmas likely had been bought earlier (I'm guessing my parents bought them for me - I was 6) all of my sets came with printed flags and shooting cannons. If your sets were manufactured in early 1990 and sold early 1990 or later... Buried Treasure, Harbor Sentry, Shipwreck Island, Sabre Island, Castaway Raft, Pirate Comic, Pirate Minifigures are officially released to retailers in the USA. Pirate Decorative Elements is released to the USA catalog. Harbor Sentry, Shipwreck Island, Sabre Island officially debuted the disabled "transitional" cannons. These cannons included a black handle with the spring removed but could "shoot" at a limited distance with a flick to the handle. Previous four sets rumored to have disabled cannons. Your flags were printed. You got heads with a solid stud Treasure chests had no slots and the lids had very thin hinges that wore out when played with too many times. Sets, with coins, came with 8 coins. If your set was made in later 1990 and sold late 1990 or later... You should now have disabled cannons. These includes the crossed canons insigna, a wick, a raised semi-circle. Your flags were printed. You got heads with a solid stud Treasure chests had no slots and the lids had very thin hinges that wore out when played with too many times. Sets, with coins, came with 8 coins. If your set was made early 1991 and sold early 1991 or later... You should now have disabled cannons. These includes the crossed canons insigna, a wick, a raised semi-circle. Your flags were printed. You got heads with a solid stud Treasure chests now had slots and the lids had very thick hinges that have lasted the test of time. Sets, with coins, came with 4 coins. If your set was made late 1991 and sold late 1991... You should now have disabled cannons. These includes the crossed canons insigna, a wick, a raised semi-circle. Your flags were printed. You got heads with a solid stud Treasure chests now had slots and the lids had very thick hinges that have lasted the test of time. Sets, with coins, came with 4 coins. If your set was made early 1992 and sold early 1992 or later... You should now have disabled cannons. These includes the crossed canons insigna, a wick, a raised semi-circle. Your flags were printed. You got heads with an open stud Treasure chests now had slots and the lids had very thick hinges that have lasted the test of time. Sets, with coins, came with 4 coins. Imperial Guards introduced. Unnamed Pirate Captain with legs (referred to as Captain Iron Hook in Europe with a Dark Red/Brown (varies under lighting/angles)) released. If your set was made later 1992 and sold late 1992 or later... You should now have disabled cannons. These includes the crossed canons insigna, a wick, a raised semi-circle. Your flags were printed. You got heads with an open stud Treasure chests now had slots and the lids had very thick hinges that have lasted the test of time. Sets, with coins, came with 4 coins. Imperial Guards introduced. Unnamed Pirate Captain with legs (referred to as Captain Iron Hook in Europe with a Dark Red/Brown (varies under lighting/angles)) still released. No enemy mini-figures are seen with him If your set was made early 1993 and sold early 1993 or later... You should now have disabled cannons. These includes the crossed canons insignia, a wick, a raised semi-circle. Your flags were printed. You got heads with an open stud Treasure chests now had slots and the lids had very thick hinges that have lasted the test of time. Sets, with coins, came with 4 coins. Imperial Guards introduced. Imperial Soldiers sets are still sold alongside these sets. Skull's Eye Schooner replaces Black Seas Barracuda; however many catalogs in the US continued to sell Black Seas Barracuda throughout most of 1990s. Unnamed Pirate Captain with legs (referred to as Captain Iron Hook in Europe with a Dark Red/Brown (varies under lighting/angles)) still released. No enemy mini-figures are seen with him. If your set was made late 1993 and sold late 1993 or later... You should now have disabled cannons. These includes the crossed canons insignia, a wick, a raised semi-circle. Your flags were printed. You got heads with an open stud Treasure chests now had slots and the lids had very thick hinges that have lasted the test of time. Sets, with coins, came with 4 coins. Imperial Guards introduced. Imperial Soldiers sets are still sold alongside these sets for the final year. Skull's Eye Schooner replaces Black Seas Barracuda; however many catalogs in the US continued to sell Black Seas Barracuda throughout most of 1990s. Unnamed Pirate Captain with legs (referred to as Captain Iron Hook in Europe with a Dark Red/Brown (varies under lighting/angles)) still released with no enemies. If your set was made early 1994 and sold early 1994 or later... You should now have disabled cannons. These includes the crossed canons insignia, a wick, a raised semi-circle. Your flags were printed. You got heads with an open stud Treasure chests now had slots and the lids had very thick hinges that have lasted the test of time. Sets, with coins, came with 4 coins. The Islanders are introduced and exclusive enemies of Captain Iron Hook in the sets; however, in the American commercial, Captain Red Beard invaded them not Captain Iron Hook. Imperial soldiers officially retired by this time. Imperial Guards are still relevant and fight with Captain Red Beard. Skull's Eye Schooner replaces Black Seas Barracuda; however many catalogs in the US continued to sell Black Seas Barracuda throughout most of 1990s. Unnamed Pirate Captain with legs (referred to as Captain Iron Hook in Europe with a Dark Red/Brown (varies under lighting/angles)) still released BUT ONLY IN NORTH AMERICA EXCLUSIVE - BARNACLE BAY AS 1873 Pirate Treasure. He still has no known enemies while he has legs. This same Captain aka Captain Iron Hook now has peglegs in both FORBIDDEN COVE and ENCHANTED ISLAND. The Islanders are his enemy. If your set was made late 1994 and sold late 1994 or later... You should now have disabled cannons. These includes the crossed canons insignia, a wick, a raised semi-circle. Your flags were printed. You got heads with an open stud Treasure chests now had slots and the lids had very thick hinges that have lasted the test of time. Sets, with coins, came with 4 coins. The Islanders are introduced and exclusive enemies of Captain Iron Hook in the sets; however, in the American commercial, Captain Red Beard invaded them not Captain Iron Hook. Imperial Guards are still relevant and fight with Captain Red Beard. Skull's Eye Schooner replaces Black Seas Barracuda; however many catalogs in the US continued to sell Black Seas Barracuda throughout most of 1990s. Unnamed Pirate Captain with legs (referred to as Captain Iron Hook in Europe with a Dark Red/Brown (varies under lighting/angles)) still released BUT ONLY IN NORTH AMERICA EXCLUSIVE - BARNACLE BAY AS 1873 Pirate Treasure. He still has no known enemies while he has legs. This same Captain aka Captain Iron Hook now has peglegs in both FORBIDDEN COVE and ENCHANTED ISLAND. The Islanders are his enemy. If your set was made early 1995 and sold early 1995 or later... You should now have disabled cannons. These includes the crossed canons insignia, a wick, a raised semi-circle. Your flags were printed. You got heads with an open stud Treasure chests now had slots and the lids had very thick hinges that have lasted the test of time. Sets, with coins, came with 4 coins. The Islanders are introduced and exclusive enemies of Captain Iron Hook in the sets; however, in the American commercial, Captain Red Beard invaded them not Captain Iron Hook. Imperial Guards are still relevant and fight with Captain Red Beard. Skull's Eye Schooner replaces Black Seas Barracuda; however many catalogs in the US continued to sell Black Seas Barracuda throughout most of 1990s. Unnamed Pirate Captain with legs (referred to as Captain Iron Hook in Europe with a Dark Red/Brown (varies under lighting/angles)) now has peglegs in 1788 Treasure Chest. The Islanders are his enemy. If your set was made late 1995 and sold late 1995 or later... You should now have disabled cannons. These includes the crossed canons insignia, a wick, a raised semi-circle. Your flags were printed. You got heads with an open stud Treasure chests now had slots and the lids had very thick hinges that have lasted the test of time. Sets, with coins, came with 4 coins. The Islanders are introduced and exclusive enemies of Captain Iron Hook in the sets; however, in the American commercial, Captain Red Beard invaded them not Captain Iron Hook. Imperial Guards are still relevant and fight with Captain Red Beard. Skull's Eye Schooner replaces Black Seas Barracuda; however many catalogs in the US continued to sell Black Seas Barracuda throughout most of 1990s. Unnamed Pirate Captain with legs (referred to as Captain Iron Hook in Europe with a Dark Red/Brown (varies under lighting/angles)) now has peglegs in 1788 Treasure Chest. The Islanders are his enemy. This is the last appearance of Captain Iron Hook in a new set. If your set was made early 1996 and sold early 1996 or later... You should now have disabled cannons. These includes the crossed canons insignia, a wick, a raised semi-circle. Your flags were printed. You got heads with an open stud Treasure chests now had slots and the lids had very thick hinges that have lasted the test of time. Sets, with coins, came with 4 coins. The Islanders are introduced and exclusive enemies of Captain Iron Hook in the sets; however, in the American commercial, Captain Red Beard invaded them not Captain Iron Hook. Imperial Guards are still relevant and fight with Captain Red Beard. Skull's Eye Schooner replaces Black Seas Barracuda; however many catalogs in the US continued to sell Black Seas Barracuda throughout most of 1990s. Unnamed Pirate Captain with legs (referred to as Captain Iron Hook in Europe with a Dark Red/Brown (varies under lighting/angles)) now has peglegs in 1788 Treasure Chest. The Islanders are his enemy. If your set was made late 1996 and sold late 1996 or later... You should now have disabled cannons. These includes the crossed canons insignia, a wick, a raised semi-circle. Your flags were printed. You got heads with an open stud Treasure chests now had slots and the lids had very thick hinges that have lasted the test of time. Sets, with coins, came with 4 coins. The Islanders continue and exclusive enemies of Captain Iron Hook in the sets; however, in the American commercial, Captain Red Beard invaded them not Captain Iron Hook. Imperial Guards are still relevant and fight with Captain Red Beard. Red Beard Runner replaces Skull's Eye Schooner and Black Seas Barracuda; Black Seas Barracuda no longer appears for sale in Holiday 1996 US catalog. Unnamed Pirate Captain with legs (referred to as Captain Iron Hook in Europe with a Dark Red/Brown (varies under lighting/angles)) now has peglegs in 1788 Treasure Chest. The Islanders are his enemy. This is the last appearance of Captain Iron Hook in a set sold in the catalog until a year or so later. The Imperial Armada are introduced as the final enemies of Captain Red Beard. If your set was made early 1997 and sold early 1997 or later... You should now have disabled cannons. These includes the crossed canons insignia, a wick, a raised semi-circle. Your flags were printed. You got heads with an open stud Treasure chests now had slots and the lids had very thick hinges that have lasted the test of time. Sets, with coins, came with 4 coins. The Islanders are discontinued along with Captain Iron Hook. Imperial Guards are discontinued. The Imperial Armada are introduced as the final enemies of Captain Red Beard. Red Beard Runner replaces Skull's Eye Schooner and Black Seas Barracuda; Black Seas Barracuda no longer appears for sale in Holiday 1996 US catalog. Note: Islanders and Imperial Guards sets do appear in Holiday 1997 US Catalog but did not in either Spring or Summer catalogs. JANUARY 1998 US CATALOG Pirates were officially removed in the January 1998 US catalog. SPRING 1998 US CATALOG Pirates were officially removed in the January 1998 US catalog. 6204 Buccaneers set promoted as a surprise set through the Magical Box of Surprises offer. NO OTHER DATA FROM HERE RESEARCHED.

I bought mine through a third party site like Bricklink or Ebay 15+ years ago. It came in a general ziplock bag big enough to hold the instructions, which were folded four ways. The paper feels a little heavier than standard computer paper and smoother, possibly printed on a computer from Legoland California but I cannot confirm that and it appears not many people have this (I'm the only one who marked it in my collection on Bricklink). Download both" https://drive.google.com/drive/folders/1LkZ6ObcJZ1s4IjABJB_5_j4devS6LlZi?usp=sharing Download each page: https://drive.google.com/file/d/1Wodp4X2s0quuv1VZs0L54i1mxmzUiGWl/view?usp=drive_link https://drive.google.com/file/d/1Bq_fSxEsOuzItJI7mNDkLQvhdJFCZ4YV/view?usp=drive_link

I tried to delete my other posts so I could redo newer posts that were shorter and conclusive, so here goes.... After reviewing commercials, catalogs, and club magazines across Europe and the United States (and limited Japanese media), I have finally been able to resolve this issue. Understand, growing up here in America, we were not exposed to much Pirates lore as other regions so this is more in respect to Americans than anyone else. First, the name "Captain Iron Hook" is NOT recognized by ANY official American Lego media (some of you may say But wait, what about The Lego Book... and remember, that is published by DK out of the UK). Captain Red Beard, in America, was always promoted as the sole Pirate captain. Both mini figures were rarely seen together in America (I only recall the 1993 commercial and even then the guy we call Captain Iron Hook was cowering behind Red Beard on Rock Island Refuge). Not to mention throughout many American catalog diaramas Captain Red Beard can be seen many times throughout various scenes ("Captain Iron Hook" was usually hiding in the distance or not as easy to find). Second, wherever a minifigure appeared from 1992-1996 with a red, tattered shirt, SO DID the "dark red / brown face resembling Captain Red Beard." This can also be verified on Bricklink by searching for all instances of this torso - you will notice it always matches the "Dark Red" version. Note that usually, but not always, this head appeared Brown when the lighting was angled a certain way and Dark Red in other ways (to see this, stack all of your heads with Dark Red and lay them besides a stack of Captain Red Beard heads; I verified all of my heads, most this way, but counted the number of heads I had and verified this was accurate - this brown/dark red face only appeared in 7 original sets and 2 reissues, so if you even collected the reissues you would have a maximum of 9, assuming you never repeated a set). This doesn't exactly rule out the fact we Americans were MISLED to believe he was Captain Red Beard - the blame on that goes to the Lego Club Mania magazines for 1994-1995 where they stated Captain Red Beard led the Renegade Runner - a ship with the "Captain Iron Hook" minifigure. Third, many of us confused ourselves about his legs. If we laid out the sets BY THE YEAR RELEASED as I have done so below, it all makes sense: He started out with legs but during the Islanders sets he now had a pegleg. I go on to argue, as no evidence suggests this (and TLG was NOT a company that left fans the "open possibility" to make our own inferences about lore) that the "variation" of "Captain Iron Hook" that appeared in the 1996 set WAS NOT, AT ALL, THE SAME MINIFIGURE and that TLG basically did the same thing they did in The Black Seas Barracuda by just repeating faces/torsos and mashing them with different legs hats / legs (see Will, First Mate Rummy and Flashfork for examples). UPDATE: Thanks to TalonCard (see post below), he provided evidence that names the Ironhook-lookalike in the 1996 set, Red Beard Runner, as Jake "the Snake" Blake - completely proving Bricklink's reference to him as Iron Hook as another falsehood on Bricklink. 1992 Raft Raiders - legs 1993 Renegade Runner - legs 1994 Barnacle Bay - NA only set - legs 1994 Forbidden Cove - pegleg 1994 Enchanted Island - pegleg 1995 1788 Treasure Chest - pegleg So in summary: In AMERICA: The "second Pirate Captain" has no official name, from an American perspective. His facial hair is either dark red or brown, dependent upon the lighting and angles and always with the tattered red shirt torso. He started with legs but ended with a legleg. He is NOT the same minifigure seen in the 1996 ship set as Bricklink claims. His real name is Jake "the Snake" Blake. Therefore, as it relates to an official cannon for those of us here in America, his backstory has no factual meaning to us, i.e. friends in Europe or enemies in Japan. To each his own. If an American fan wants to adopt the name "Captain Iron Hook," honestly it's probably better for us that we do since he began with legs and his set reign ended with a pegleg.