klinton

I don't see how the 'value' of past sets and limited minifigs is a bad thing. It keeps sales of new kits brisk, as people anticipate having to pay more later. It adds a new dimension to collecting, as there are 'crown jewels' in one's collection (either to be prou of, or to hunt for). No one needs everything. And for the collector that does insist on every piece in a line, it gives them more of a challenge, and thus a more satisfying 'complete'. I really don't see a downside here, in regards to the Lego Group's market position. Limited sets drive up the demand for the product as a whole.

That's full cute! So many fun accents to your little town. :D I love your sign for the postal office. It kind of annoys me that Lego stickers are always in english, hahaha.

Right? I'm usually super stoked for the set(s) I've just bought and have to build them. Right now. Hahaha. I'm full jealous of people who can restrain themselves, and have these mysterious unopened sets in thier homes. :p

I'd included a qualifier in that statment: sanity. I've no doubt that there are people out there capable of objectifying minifigs. There are people in the world who lust after my little pony. I just don't think that that sort of, um, fetishization need have any bearing on a discussion of little block people. Printed breast lines are just paying tribute to the fact that women do in fact have breasts, and nothing more. It's not 'selling sex' to kids, as had been implied. If you're looking at a minifig and seeing 'sex'...that's on you. /shrug.

Oh, really? I loved the cast! Like, seriously adored every one of them. Metalbeard is full my favorite, but everyone brought something fun to the table. That said, their story has been told. We've seen the movie (...a few times, hahaha) and have all the toys. Any further adventures of that 'hardy crew' are really up to the viewer now. I'd not be opposed to seeing them again, but I think a new cast would just make more sense. I'm thinking the 'Double Decker Couch' set will feature the sad Unikitty we saw. It'll be a playset of some sort, from the submarine set (where the couch was actually built), with various 'exploding' play features. I expect it'll be a middling set, perhaps in the 'Evil Lair' range?

I don't expect that the sequel will share any 'continuity' either. It's Lego. There doesn't really need to be any sort of unanimous story. I'm not even sure how they could make any sort of direct sequel? While a Duplo invasion was a fun one off scene, I don't expect it would play off very well for an entire film (nor make for desireable tie-in Lego sets...). I'd imagine we'll get a whole new cast of characters and different themes being showcased for the next movie?

I think I have a slight aversion to the classic smiley face now. I don't hate it, but I'm niether here nor there with it. I might be the only person in the world who was kinda dissapointed that Benny's alternate face was the classic smiley and not his super excited 'spaceship' face, hahaha. They make for fine 'background' people and civilians, but thier blandness doesn't endear me to any one of them. I feel compelled to hit up the Lego Store and get those poor people a proper face, every time. :p I can't stand the blank torsos anymore though. At all. Those guys get dumped in the 'extra bits' tub as soon as I get them.

Oh, for sure. I'm not at the 'create random Lego construct' stage yet though (having only just rediscovered Lego very recently with the introduction of Super heroes and now the Lego Movie). Perhaps in a couple years when I've tired of the sets I've amassed and find myself with a mountain of bricks I'll get to that point (I've already started packing up some of them, as they're taking up far too much realestate in my collections room). ;) I see Lego as a brilliant little world building system, who's core is the little brick people who live there, so I'm inclined to appreciate the minifig centric Lego. It's always been about the minifigs though. I think as a kid I had only one or two sets (with those utterly useless red and white doors too small for ANYTHING, hahaha) before I started getting minifig sized pieces. I never looked back. So I've more interest in, say, an 'Executive Ellen' minifig (my current favorite, btw!), than a generic minifig whom I could put a female hairpiece on. I like the idea of specific figures who stand out from everyone else, with just enough personality to make them special, but without any 'set in stone' play pattern or persona (she's a closet lush, btw, who will be living in the apartment over the Parisian restraunt, hahaha). I get that you can infuse whatever you want into generic minifigs, but I'm personally drawn to the modern prints. I guess Ellen would still look good with a simple striped jacket print, but her sinched waist adds an extra level of personality to her, imho. There are still the Creator sets offering simpler prints, no?

They still make nazi minifigs though. I bought a Captain America vs Red Skull set earlier this year. Granted, it didn't feature any swastikas, but he's undeniably a nazi. I'm not endorsing thier existence, but I see no issue with portraying nazis in the context of villainy. It could be the comic book ((where nazis were staple villains for many years) fan in me speaking out of turn, but as long as it's not being glorified, I see no issue with it's mere depiction.

I think you're confusing the narrative a bit. Finn's build and play here included only the 'rebellion'. Cloud Cuckoo Land was destroyed when Finns bricks were 'moved over by the Christmas decorations', and stuffed in a box. IE: his parents had cleaned up his 'mess'. It was a brick construct he'd been proud of that wasn't deemed as relevant as Lord Business' ordered empire and had been destroyed. The movie up until the 'rebellion' was a narrative in his head that explained the situation, and set up his game that day.

I actually prefer the one from 'Rescue Reinforcements' to the on that came with Metalbeard. It's got that extra arm, while mantaining the same imposing stature! :D

Oh wow! That's brilliant! I love it. :D

I've tried to say that I understand your desire. I'm of the inverse persuasion where I'm all for specialized prints and pieces. I love how minifigs have such personality these days! There are thousands of options out of the billions (litterally) of minifigs produced by the Lego Group that fit the 'gender neutral' critera. So, I'm full game for more specialized pieces now. I'm not saying you're wrong in your desires, nor that I'm right. We're just interested in different things. :D

I'm at a loss as to what the 'moral' cosideration is to be at this point. The complaints that Lego had become too skewed towards masculine play seems to me a valid 'moral' concern. The Lego Group has addressed this by pointedly including more female characters. Everything from executives to actresses to soccer moms can be found on shelves today. And that's just in the core Lego lines (I'm unsure what to make of 'Friends', outside of being a source of some fun pieces). Problem solved. That some people don't like that the concerted effort to aggressively include female character play has led to female specific minifig pieces isn't a 'moral' concern. It's personal preference. That the prints don't meet your aesthetic desires isn't a 'moral' concern. It is still simply personal preference. There isn't enough substance here to suggest any sort of 'moral' debate. There are simply people with a desire for more versatile, gender neutral parts. It's a valid desire, but it can't lay claim to any sort of 'moral' high ground. That's just window dressing to try and shore up thier personal tastes.

I love the Laval store! It's fast becoming my second home, hahaha. Seriously though, it's an absolute model of what customer service should be. I even had a young clerk apologize repeatedly for taking a mintue to help a persistent child (it's a toy store! Of course you pay attention to the children first!). The very worst thing that's happend was that they were out of a pouplar set on one visit (but were quick to point out that it was in stock on the website). :D

During the city battle in the Lego Movie, there is a magnificent tree frog seen hopping up the side of a skyscraper. I want this. I tried to Google it, but I can't see any evidence that this actually exists. I figured that since near everything going on in the background during that scene was pretty much showcasing available product and classic favorites, this thing must exist, no? It looks like it might be a Technic model? It features long, flexible limbs and looks much like an actual amazonian tree frog. Does anyone know what this might be from? EDIT: It can be seen at 1:16:39, if you pause the movie just as Benny's ship rounds the corner (just after Bob's Kabob flier flies off the screen).

The X-men set is amazing! It's probably my favorite Marvel themed set to date. It eschews the 'play feature' heavy designs of most other sets, and delivers a solid model for the Blackbird (really, a lovely ship), and tosses in some fantastic must have characters. Magneto, in his 80's 'I'm not a villain' garb, with appropriate hair (and a helmet, although it's not accurate to the costume). Storm is fantastic, with a soft felt cape that attaches to her wrists, as it shoud! Wolverine is in my personal favorite costume of his. Cyclops is...Cyclops. He's just as dull here as he is in the comics. The only beef I had with the set is that the Sentinel feels on the small side at first. I think that's more due to having built too many extravagant mechs in other sets. It is, though, appropriately sized for a Sentinel and grows on you quickly.

Nice! It's fun to see a Canadian specific discussion thread. I'm really only just getting into Lego again, and the Lego Store recently opened in Laval has been an absolute godsend. They're just the friendliest, most helpful folks ever. Is there anyone else on here in Montréal? :D

I'm surprised this topic hasn't seen more action. The Micro Managers are fully one of my favorite things about the Lego Movie sets! I looked forward to seeing what new feature each one would end up with, every time I opened a set! :D Of the eleven that we've got so far (with at least one more coming in January!!), I think the one in the 'Creative Ambush' has been my favorite. He's (its?) full cute, existing somewhere between the smaller ones and the large walkers. He has squat all for action features (a single flick fire missle), but he does have the longer arms that many of his similarily sized mates are lacking. After that, the net firing one from the Sea Cow set would be my second favorite. The feature is so simple, but works amazingly well! The tacky plastic/rubber fiber that the net itself is made of allow it to 'throw' with remarkable accuracy. Really, though, I adore all of these! I was a bit gutted that they weren't included with the last three sets, but I'm glad to see there are more on the way in January. :D

I'm missing something here. How can The Lego Group lose thier trademark due to common usage of the term 'Legos'? Kleenex is still a trademarked brand despite the fact that everyone who's ever sneezed has requested a 'Kleenex', regardless of the brand of tissue on hand. Why would this play differently for The Lego Group? Or are there loopholes when it comes to playthings that don't apply to hygenic items?

This pretty much underlines this entire 'debate' quite accurately. I know it was intended as a reply to a specific poster, but it's all I can think when I see people up in arms about feminine detailing. These are Lego people. No one, in the history of sanity has ever looked at a Lego minifig and decided it was 'sexy'. Ever. Decidedly female shapes and designs are simply to distinctly point out that "this figure IS a female". It litterally cannot convey 'sex' nor 'sell sex to children'. It's a blocky little cartoon figure. I can almost understand the hardcore custom builders who want to swap out bodies on the fly and decide 'this cop body is a woman/man in this build'. I get that desire. I think the trade off of having more visible women in the lines vs having to hunt a little harder for the perfect torso for your MOC tends to fall heavier on the side of pro-female specific prints. It just seems more in the interests of a larger feminist ideal to me. This entire debate is odd to me though. The sheer variety of unique minifig designs and options available these days is amazing! I seriously had no idea how far they'd come until I fell in love with the Lego Movie and started actively collecting Lego. With so many options on the table, with the perfect face/hair/body out there somewhere...more specialized pieces are completely welcome, imho. :D

Athena/Minerva doesn't count as a mythical creature? I'm super stoked to get her! She'll full chill with the Minataur, Medusa, Cyclops and company. :D

They are, though, confirmed to be working on a second one....right? As long as that's the case, I'm happy. :D

More western theme sets. The barn chopper and the saloon plane (from 'Rescue Reinforcements' and 'Creative Ambush', respectively) were full hilights of the line! I'd love to see Wildstyle's pig cart as a set! That would fully make my day. :D There aren't that many more citizen vehicles to make. I doubt we're getting the café plane or the cat cart, because both of those figures were included in the minifig assortment. The cement mixer, and one other (that I can't think of atm) are the only other ones not released yet. Unless they went and created new concepts, not seen in the film...which would be amazing! I can't really think of anything else that I'm absolutely fiending for. They've already done so much with the line, that it feels almost greedy demanding more. Hahaha. Whatever they do, I really hope they include Micro Managers again. Half the fun of these sets has been getting a new Micro Manager, and seeing what they've done with it this time (sadly, lacking from the wave 2 sets). EDIT: And Ghost Vitruvius! He needs to get tucked into a set somewhere! Vitruvius was my second favorite character (after Metal Beard) in the film, so I'm full jonesing for that final version of him. Hahaha.

Hahaha! This is totally how it starts. I just wanted Unikitty, and was quite content with the little Cloud Cuckoo set. Then I bought the movie when it come out, and I decided I really needed everyone. That quickly became I needed every set. I'm chasing up exclusive minifigs now, and Master Builders from past CMF sets. :p But, as has been mentioned, your best bet is the Evil Lair set. That and the Cloud Cuckoo set along with Metalbeard's Duel give you most of the 'team'. You should probably have Batman by now, as he's in every DC set. Benny's a bit tough to come by, but you'll probs want his Spaceship anyhow. Just because. (And, then every other set...because the citizen's vehicles are amazing, and you'll want the Sea Cow for a base of operations...and...and...) :D