bachamn

My heart weeps, but my wallet is rejoicing. This might mark the end of my short return to LEGO as the Tolkien sets were the main/only reason I'm here. Like others, I never expected to get them in the first place so I'm thrilled with what we got. I'm sure eventually someone will make all the accessories needed to make customs of the figs that we didn't get.

this is what I would expect to happen if I asked my Target, so I've not done it. Just going to wait until the release date and pick up witch king, probably wait on getting the others until I can find a sale or just bricklink the figs individually.

The license being active doesn't mean that they intended to do anything else with it, it just means they have the legal right to if they are inclined. But like everything else, that has already been discussed here ad nauseam.

Checked my local TRU here in Missouri last night and didn't see any of the sets on the shelves yet. All TMNT items were on sale though so I ended up picking up a set of the retro classic series turtles and a foot soldier for a nice price instead ;)

wish I had the foresight to pick up multiples of these, I remember they were flooding the shelves around here when they first came out

hah no not at all, just in the picture you posted, he just looks kind of dirty to me ;)

Agreed, Goblin King's throne is the only set piece aside from Bag End that I display alongside my minifigs. The rest are all in baggies and bound to be sold eventually once I sort everything out ;) I'll likely BL figures for the remaining sets

fixed that for you

"Eomer or Faramir? Hmm, what about Legolas? Yeah, that'll work." - TLG developer

haha man, I find your posts consistently insightful and entertaining. cheers.

For maybe 1 second, but he's not really there in armor, is he? It's basically a mental image he's sending to Gandalf to tell him what's up. Ultimately the character is a wraith-like creature, depicted in the films as smoke/shadows (which is why the Necromancer & Ringwraith figures are so brilliant). The problem with the idea of making a big armored Sauron figure is that in both Tolkien and PJ lore, he never regained the ability to assume physical form after losing the Ring to Isildur. Making any sort of non-wraith Sauron figure outside of a Prologue set or polybag makes absolutely no sense; if anything it would have to be some sort of fan-service fiery-wraith transparent looking figure like Faefrost mentioned (which would indeed be awesome), but even then I have a feeling the outcry for lack of armored Sauron would linger. Ok, but that doesn't make sense. Speaking as a Tolkien fan, as soon as I see 'Dol Guldur' the Necromancer/Sauron is the first place my mind goes (not Azog; Azog is dead). So upon seeing a wraith-like figure in a LEGO set about Dol Guldur, yes my assumption would be that it is the Necromancer. If I were a LEGO fan with little knowledge of Tolkien beyond what I've seen on the screen or in the LEGO sets, then I can absolutely see how the lack of the big black armor could leave one without an obvious connection. I'm sure they polled audiences on AUJ and found that too many people failed to get the connection of Necromancer/Sauron being the big bad guy from LotR despite the multiple discussions/references in the film, so they visually re-imagined the Necromancer (for a split second before making him burst into the iconic Eye) in DoS to provide that nudge. Of course I'm in the minority here, this is a LEGO forum, and obviously my loyalties lie more with the author than the movie depictions from PJ. How exactly does that matter in this discussion though? I'm just pointing out that rants about "how much LEGO effed everything up", many of which have been posted by you, are not very well thought out. You have to remember that there are other fans of these products that do not share your perspectives for reasons you aren't considering. There are plenty reasons behind the production decisions that have been made by LEGO, but the only logic behind what I see in rants about the waves seems to be in the vein of, "They did it because they're bad at making decisions and they don't care about AFOLs! Here are my dream waves! etc. etc." Just keep in mind that you ultimately fall into the minority of the LEGO marketing demographic.

It isn't supposed to. Also consider that since an armored Sauron belongs nowhere near The Hobbit storyline, short of an LotR Prologue set there would be nowhere for LEGO to place him.. As amazing as that set would be for most AFoLs, I feel like it's been mentioned that it wouldn't be one LEGO would actually produce due to the lack of identifiable main characters. I'm going to assume you meant to say "LotR fans". Uh, what? Speak for yourself I guess. I find the Necromancer to be one of the most brilliantly conceptualized figures in the entire Tolkien LEGO line. Simplistic sure, but as accurate as one could expect it to be in LEGO form. I'll take clever execution over "big cool armored guy" any day. Just consider that it's what he looks like under the armor, that might help you feel better ;) You mean to say "would have". It's never, ever "would of". Just trying to help out.

I mean, for people like ourselves who actually pay attention it would drive sales for those individuals (like yourself) who have not already bought what was out, or possible MOC builders who want duplicate fodder. But as a whole, and speaking as someone who didn't pay attention to LEGO at all until I saw LotR on the shelves, I don't think most people would be aware of said announcement for it to have an impact on the larger quantity of sales.

meh, feeling up toy packets in the store makes me feel like a weirdo; I've had relatively good luck getting the ones I needed anyway, and just completed a trade with _epicster_ for all but 1 I was missing so it worked out for us both in the end ;)

Not officially, but if you're interested in aimless, circular speculation about exactly that you'll feel right at home here: http://www.eurobricks.com/forum/index.php?showtopic=78687 ;)

...and who said anything about "being owed anything"? I'm starting to think you make a point to be rude/negative in your replies. Pretty annoying tbh...

Considering they charge for the costume DLC packs I figured they would also be charging for the third movie DLC pack. Has is been confirmed that it's going to be free?

sent you a PM

if they do that, consider me annoyed. pretty sure that isn't happening though, which is why I was saying this probably isn't an option. Don't see how they could provide a promo minifig for DLC ;)

Meh, one should have been Old Bilbo. I don't think anyone is realistically saying it will or even should be included in the new sets, just noticing that it hadn't been made yet.

me too, don't know how I overlooked that. I also agree that it would make a good preorder bonus but since the remainder of the Hobbit series LEGO game is being released as DLC, unsure if that would be possible? Has LEGO ever released a minifigure promo for a non-LEGO game? if they don't make it, does anyone know of a white/gray hair piece that could be popped onto another Bilbo figure to make a simple custom?

Hah I didn't even know about that. I noticed the runes but didn't even think to translate them. Cheers for that ;) yeah that's the design labeled as "Bolg" in the Bridge Direct series of figures and a few other merch items I've seen, was curious what people were calling him after the actual Bolg was released so that's good to know. I prefer the newer CG style for Bolg though as he's clearly modeled after Azog and convincingly comes across as his son.

I'm aware that the following statement will very likely date itself in the future, but unless filmmakers end up really pushing the immersion/3D thing to the point of filming for VR devices (like Occulus Rift) and the experience of going to the movies as we know it changes completely, I don't see what the point would be in remaking something that was already a very convincing adaptation with respect to the production (visual effects, acting, music, etc.). LotR was made in the current-era of films, in high definition, so I have a hard time conceptualizing what technological advances we could see that would justify a remake.