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I must say, I'm impressed by the Fire Temple; great design combined with good figs. The temple splitting play feature seems pointless to me, but fortunately it will be easy to mod out. Seeing as I missed out on the original Ninja theme, and I assume this is the closest we are going to get to a 'proper' Ninja theme for some time, I really want to pick one up. However, I am not very enthused about the price; $154.99 is very steep, so I will hopefully wait for a sale. The other set that interests me this wave is the Blacksmith's Shop. This set would be much better if the shop had a blacksmith but it is fairly good as-is. As mentioned by prateek, the spinning function is pretty slick.

Reading through the release a second time, it looks like you may be right, Haltiamieli. In my exuberance, I must have somehow missed that they are displaying already released Lego as well. Sorry if I misled anyone! Mods, please delete/lock this thread as you see necessary.

I was skimming through TLG's press release for the New York Toy Fair I found at A Modular Life when I noticed something interesting: LinkAssuming that Lego is treating Series 4 & 5 as the (officially) unseen minifigs, I believe this is confirmation that there is going to be a sixth series and that we are going to see pictures of them this weekend. If that assumption is wrong, then we will be seeing Series 7 & 8 as well! Sorry if I'm jumping the gun.

To me, this series is a bit of a disappointment compared to series 4. Of course, that's not going to stop me from getting at least one of each. Criticisms: Fitness instructor Ugh. This figure is way too similiar to the popstar. At least give her different coloured hair, LEGO! Snowboarder Okay, but somewhat unoriginal. No new molds. Monkey-keeper Too many recycled parts (banana, hair, legs), but at least there is a monkey. The biggest criticism I have for this series is there are no minifigs that stands out. Most are good, but not excellent. Off topic, but is it just me or is Lego introducing a lot of specialized animal pieces recently? Monkeys, chickens and goats (not that I'm complaining!). Hopefully Series 5 is not the last series and Series 6 will be even better!

When I first saw this preliminary pictures of this set, I really liked it (it was one of the few sets of this wave I considered getting). However, now that it is out, I am no longer interested. Maybe because of the price, $35 CAD (!), which is high for a set with such an insubstantial build. Thanks for the review.

My member number is 13553, so it isn't currently a set number (perhaps a future modular building/ UCS set? ). Anyways, if the last digit is omitted, I get: 1355-1: Temple of Gloom JOHNNY THUNDER!

Come now, don't tell me you really believe this. While I will concede that society can be blamed for stigmatizing those that go outside gender roles, to say that society 'programmed' girls into liking dolls and playing house and boys into soldiers and toy cars, is completely ridiculous. Have you not considered the possibility that boys and girls can (not always) have general likes and dislikes which are different, which would be reflected in their choice of toys? The effect of society is more of a reinforcing effect, as opposed to a directional effect. You can't get kids to play with toys they don't want to play with (they'll play with the box instead). Anyways, I agree with the general sentiment that Lego should focus on expanding City to include civilian elements, preferably with a good amount of female minifigs. This would not appeal only to girls, but to AFOLs as well. I also think that creating a fairy-tale/animal-orientated theme would also draw in girls, (and AFOLs!) and this is an area that Lego is missing out on (see: Playmobil). However, I don't shoehorning female minifigs into every theme would work well (for example, having many female knights/pirates seems unusual to me).

LOL and I mean it! I literally laughed out loud! That was not something I was expecting at all... It is too bad the polar bear only came in white; maybe you could paint one? Otherwise you should brick build one because I don't think the Belville bear will fit in with minifigs.

I am a big fan of Indiana Jones, so I would be very happy if a good fifth Indiana Jones movie was made. I would also be ecstatic if more Indiana Jones sets are released (I missed most of the theme, thanks to my dark ages). On the other hand, if the fifth movie is anything like Kingdom of the Crystal Skull (ie. a complete disappointment), then I would rather a fifth movie not be made. The bottom line is if Indiana Jones is to return as a theme, it will only be if a fifth instalment is released, which would happen at the earliest in 2012.

Maybe it will be something like this: I like the idea of watching Star Wars on the big screen (like Legoman & prateek I didn't see any of them in theatres), but I find 3-D to be irritating and tiresome after a while. At least we are likely to see more remakes and possibly some completely new sets from Lego!

What are the odds of Lego re-releasing another Republic Gunship (LAAT) in the next couple of years? It is one of my favourite ships from the prequel trilogy but I missed out on 7676 due to my dark ages. Also, I know this is a probably not the best place to ask, but would you guys recommend watching the Clone Wars TV series? I am interested in knowing what happened between Episoeds II & III, but I find the animation style to be a turn-off (although it looks better than the 2003 series). There is a part of me that feels like it is just a cash-in by George Lucas (no offence to CW fans).

For me, the draw of this set are the regular (non-cheap plastic) versions of Nya & Garmadon. The fortress itself does not appeal to me at all. In cases like this, I would usually go to Bricklink, but they are no use in this regard as they do not distinguish between regular and cheap plastic minifigs. Thanks for the review, Alan.

Pigs are available in many sets (including an impulse set), but cows are harder to get because they are cash cows (heh) for Lego. Cows are only available in big sets (MMV and 7637 Farm) as an incentive to drive people into buying them. Offering cows separately would cut into that. This is the same thing Lego does with exclusive minifigs (although magnets could have been considered to be substitutes). I would love to the Farm subtheme continue on as it is a nice change from all of the Police/Firefighter sets. However, judging by the leaked 2011 sets I am not so confident it will.

I found an interesting article with more information. Hopefully this means we will get some of those Target-exclusive polybags!

I definitely like the idea of a Mercedes-Benz theme (or any other brand, really). The only thing I don't like about scale models of cars made with Lego is that the curves of a car do not translate very well to Lego bricks. That won't be much of a problem if they made a set for the G-Wagen (which they should).

I came across this thread while I was lurking here (before I joined) and I did a bag build of 8398 BBQ Stand then. Since this thread has been revived, I'll post it now: AussieJimbo, I commend your patience in doing bag builds for those trucks! Even with less than 20 pieces, I found this set to be quite irritating to build; the drumstick kept slipping out of his hand! EDIT: Deeplinked photos from Brickshelf to free up attachment quota.

Nearly a week since I posted about not finding any minifigs, and they're still not here! (In Canada; not S@H) Yes, most of the time. Ogre, I'm guessing you got them online/ in-store at the Lego store?

Very nice review, ZO6! (Or is that Z06?) I actually received this set for Christmas when I was young and it was the biggest set I had as a KFOL. What a nostalgia blast! The one thing about this set that bothers me (even as a kid) is the secret entrance. It seems like a strange place to put it (why not just go through the main entrance, only a couple of studs away?). I think I will go check to see if I still have all the special pieces and try to rebuild it. I know I still have the instruction manual (even then, I was a stickler for such things) and fortunately I have Bricklink for any missing parts. Thanks for the review!

I know this thread is a general discussion about Series 3 and not about availability, but has anyone in Canada seen any Series 3 figures in-store? I've checked five Wal-Marts and two Toys R Us since Sunday, some more than once, and haven't seen a single one (they weren't sold out; they just didn't receive any). I find it strange (and a bit ridiculous) that it's been nearly a week since the release date - Jan 1st, going by the date on Lego S@H - and yet there aren't any available. For example, you wouldn't expect a movie or a video game to be still unavailable a week after the release date. Granted, the AFOL fanbase is probably not as big as those of popular movies and games, but it much more rabid. How much longer must we wait? (I know they are available at the Lego store in Calgary and online, but the Calgary store is on the other side of the country and I doubt I could cheaply get a full set online. I actually bought 5 figures off Lego S@H with my order; I calculated roughly a 50% chance of getting duplicates so I decided to try my luck. Hopefully I won't get five race car drivers!) I'd hate to get it into the price argument again, but I think you mean 'lucky' Americans. After all they got the first two (and a bit of the third) series for $1.99 and are finally paying a price that is equivalent to the rest of the world.

I do this too, although I do like to mix them up once in a while to create new characters. When I'm done, uh, playing building they will go back to their original forms. Somewhat off-topic, but I played Lego Island when I was younger as well, although my copy did not come with the Infomaniac minifigure. The comic/manual it came with was pretty cool and I'm sure I still have it somewhere (the game CD itself cannot be read, however ).

When I first saw the Cars sets in the leaked catalogue, I couldn't help but feel slightly disappointed. To me, they look very <insert that tiresome argument>, very Megablock-ish. I know it isn't easy to faithfully recreate the characters at such a small scale without stickers/specialized pieces, but they look like they are getting frighteningly close to the danger zone (ie. Megablockland). I hope that when I saw clearer pictures of them they will look better. However, seeing as Cars is one of my many favourite Pixar movies (despite the rather poor plot), I know I'll be getting my hands on a couple of these. Lego always gets me in the end.

Very nice review, WhiteFang, thank you. If I can offer a single tiny criticism, it is that some of your images look a bit washed-out, making them not as crisp as they could be. Do not get me wrong, I am no photography expert and these pictures are still very good. The images just look a bit 'clouded' as if they were taken in a dream sequence in some TV show. It's really too bad there are no spare parts in this series, and I hope this won't lead to further cost-cutting in future series. Something else that disappointed me was that the uneven distribution of minifigs of the previous series has gotten worse. I find only two complete sets per box to be somewhat ridiculous, even if I had no intention of buying a whole box. However, in the end I will buy at least one complete set, and a couple of doubles for a select few (Elf, Samurai, Tennis Player and a couple of others). I wonder when they will hit Canada...

The second wave of Star Wars looks great; much better than the first wave! 7956 Ewok Attack A bit small, but it looks like a good add-on for those who already have 8038 Battle of Endor. I will need a closer look. 7957 Dathomir Speeder I don't even know what this is, and it looks weird. Pass. 7959 Geonosian Starfighter Ki-Adi-Mundi and a Geonoian make this a potential buy. However, I don't like the design of Geonosian ships in general; I would have preferred a Geonosian ground battle. 7961 Darth Maul's Sith Infiltrator I like the minifigures, but the actual Infiltrator itself is not something I am interested in owning. Possible buy. 7962 Anakin & Sebulba's Podracers I never really cared for podracing, but the design and the minifigures put this in the maybe category. I also own 7131 Anakin's Podracer (or used to own it, I can't find it ) and would love to see them side by side. 7964 Republic Frigate I will have to see how it compares with the 7665 Republic Cruiser. I will buy the better one. 7965 Millenium Falcon I missed out on the previous ones, so this is a definite buy. I find it strange they included Darth Vader. Out of the first wave, I am only interested in 1 out of 8 (Battle of Naboo). However, out of the second wave I am potentially interested in buying 6 out of 7. I can't wait!

I've never been a fan of the Pokemon animated series, but the handheld RPG series are simply superb. I think having a licensed Pokemon/Nintendo theme would have great potential. There are a lot of iconic characters and locations, along with a gigantic fanbase that would support it. As for the MOC, I think you've captured Ash, Jesse and James' look very well, but in my opinion James' hair looks a bit funny. Pikachu looks good, considering you are limited to such a small size in order to keep in scale. Keep it up!

While I never considered myself a big fan of Castle/Kingdoms, it looks like I am about to be converted! These new sets look fantastic; 7189 Mill Village Raid especially stands out as must-buy for AFOLs. Too bad we have to wait six months before we can get our hands on these!