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Lyichir

Eurobricks Grand Dukes
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Everything posted by Lyichir

  1. Lyichir
    If Bionicle had been a highly successful theme that was merely branching into Constraction, as opposed to solely a Constraction theme, that might have worked. But when all your eggs are in the one basket of the constraction line and that fails (and the onus to revitalize the brand falls on you and not a powerful external licensor with cash to spare), there's less potential for a dramatic recovery. That's why I specified product category instead of theme. Even if a wave or two of Star Wars constraction figures falters, the Lego Star Wars theme as a whole can still soldier on, and the more dramatic success of, say, the Episode VII constraction sets can be recaptured come the next high-profile movie event. A long-running in-house brand can probably benefit from a similar effect (in fact, the Ninjago theme arguably has done so, with a periodic return to spinner-based sets without that segment sticking around long enough to wear out its welcome). But without the strong foundation of a successful System-based theme to fall back on, the Bionicle reboot didn't have the luxury of weathering a drop-off in popularity.
  2. Lyichir
    I dunno, I kind of appreciate that they all use, y'know, bikes. Helps to sell the "biker gang" theme a little more than it would otherwise, since most other Ninjago factions have used at least one bike as well (just as one out of multiple vehicles).
  3. Lyichir
    Hm? That's not new, it's this piece that was introduced two years ago.
  4. Lyichir
    Sounds like science fiction to me. I can't imagine any universe where Disney even floated the idea of abandoning the sales of "traditional" Star Wars action figures. If anything they are looking to expand their product offerings into new segments, not draw consistently strong-selling ones to a close. Your perception of any of those fan groups being nearly that monolithic also seems unrealistic to me. I've seen a lot of positivity about these figures from all three groups, especially outside of the small bubble that the Eurobricks community often tends to be, and even then what I've seen only skims the surface of the largest Lego fan group of all—kids. Even for people who DO have reservations about the price, that isn't always a deal-breaker (especially when it comes to MOCists, from what I've seen, who are generally happy to get new parts regardless of the label on the box). So far, there is literally one piece of evidence presented alleging that these sets aren't selling well, that being certain sets being shelfwarmers. And that's a phenomenon that happens all the time, even with popular themes, because it's impossible for Lego or retailers to perfectly predict demand for the entire slate of product offerings. On a side note, I doubt it's a coincidence that the most commonly cited "shelfwarmers" are from Rogue One—I've seen plenty of anecdotes indicating that sales of MANY products for that movie didn't quite match those of tie-ins with the traditional "numbered" sequels, possibly because of its separation from the main "Star Wars" saga or its less kid-friendly tone. The new Star Wars media landscape creates a learning experience for both Disney and their partners, and I think we might already be seeing adjustments being made based on the performance of past sets (as evidenced by the new constraction sets focusing less on the standalone Han Solo movie and more on tried-and-true characters from the main saga). It would not make sense to cancel an entire product category just because one wave of sets didn't sell as well as others—better to identify WHY the sets that did sell better did so and apply that knowledge to new sets going forward.
  5. Lyichir
    It looks like additional chains would be attached to the tower in this set (replacing the Trans. Fluor. Green 1x1 round tiles under the elemental icons with additional chains like the ones from the lion and turtle sets). So it's not like the other chains necessarily correspond to an unseen section of the tower/castle.
  6. Lyichir
    It's been confirmed by people who work in the Legoland model shops that it's the same color coming back.
  7. Lyichir
    Webisode 33 is back up on Lego.com. Additionally, the recently discovered Russian catalog pages that show that there will be new webisodes in this year's style next year. Hopefully Secrets of Elvendale will be returning as well!
  8. Lyichir
    So anyway, the day before we got those official pics I accidentally stumbled upon relatively high quality watermarked box pics. I wasn't keen on posting them, and now that we have official pics there's little point in doing so... but one thing those pictures did include that these catalog pictures don't is the names of the animals (listed on the tops of the boxes). So if anyone's curious: Eagle: Lumia (same name as the new elf character, indicating that one transforms into the other) Turtle: Cory Lion: Rowan Dragon: Cyclo Fox: Luka? (this one is slightly harder to read, being on a bigger box with the same image size as the others) Anyway, quite impressed with these sets. The creatures look great, and the color scheme of the villains is quite interesting (seems to be mostly black/teal/cool yellow/transparent fluorescent green). While there aren't too many structures, the ones there are seem suitably unique (a music shop is something I've been wanting to see for some time). I also like the brick-built "weapons" for each of the Elves. As always, hoping this isn't the end for the theme, but am impressed even if it is!
  9. Lyichir
    Lumia is also the name of the eagle Emily rides in her set, indicating that they're the same character.
  10. Lyichir
    Two points for 5. One point for 11.
  11. Lyichir
    Lego is paying Disney for the right to make these, not the other way around. If they weren’t profitable (which for a licensed theme require higher revenues than a comparable non-licensed theme), Lego wouldn’t hesitate to drop the theme. The idea that Disney controls Lego against their own business interest just doesn’t make any logical sense.
  12. Lyichir
    Yeah, while it's easy to be cynical about a new, less funcitonal LDD gallery, to be honest the fact that the LDD team is still working on public-facing content at all feels reassuring. After all, it would be even easier for Lego to take down the LDD gallery without replacing it.
  13. Lyichir
    I have to admit, I laughed out loud at Batman commandeering the Egghead Mech on the back of box picture.
  14. Lyichir
    I don't know if it would have potential as a full movie, but ever since The Lego Movie came out I've been kind of hoping for a shorter Christmas special with those characters. President Business is certainly Scrooge-ish enough to go in a sort of Christmas Carol direction, if they so chose. And I've had some other, isolated ideas related to that... for instance, using a pine tree-shaped car air freshener "relic" as a Christmas tree.
  15. Lyichir
    No, the VW Beetle is Dark Azur. The new Diner is Bright Bluish Green (or Dark Turquoise on Bricklink), a color that has been retired for the past ten years but seems to be coming back with a vengeance this coming year.
  16. Lyichir
    It already comes in black from Chief O'Hara from the Lego Batman Movie...
  17. Lyichir
    I definitely see some neat building techniques... the Technic towball to allow the punching bag to swing, small windows on the side of the radio station, and hood over the grill all stand out to me as amazing techniques.
  18. Lyichir
    Nope. Keep in mind we've already seen the prelim pics from the retailer catalog, and official pictures of the January releases are still trickling out. It'll probably still be a little while before official pictures of March releases like Elves start to show up.
  19. Lyichir
    I think the spider in the mine sets is not just White, but White Glow! The roller coaster track in grey and cars in black might be useful for fans of dwarves, as well. The non-movie Ninjago sets have a heavy focus on bikes and other vehicles (less useful for Castle fans), but the "Spinjitzu Master" spinners each feature shurikens in silver, which could be useful either for fans of traditional ninja or integrated into other weapons like maces or flails. The "Temple of Resurrection" set also features the new fence piece from the Ninjago Movie sets in Warm Gold, and is a nice-looking temple even as-is. EDIT: Also maybe worth mentioning: One of the Ninjago baddies has the "Mr. T" hairpiece in red, which might be useful if anyone wants to add some variety to an army of CMF battle dwarves.
  20. Lyichir
    Could have been that (especially in today's political climate). Could have been not being able to get the likeness rights for both characters for one reason or another. Could be that the business case just wasn't strong enough—it lacks the sci-fi appeal of Ghostbusters and Back to the Future, and I'm not totally sure how popular or well-known it is with audiences outside the U.S.
  21. Lyichir
    Maybe? Funko Pops are also getting TRON figures soon. But it would strike me as a little odd for a marketing push like that to come BEFORE any movement on the movie franchise as a whole, rather than AFTER. So I'm a little skeptical that it's a harbinger of things to come on Disney's end.
  22. Lyichir
    I mean, didn't most of the squirebots (including Dennis) have identical face prints before this year as well? I don't see why that'd change if they turned evil... I would not be surprised if this year's sets are working with a somewhat more limited budget than previous years, but to be honest I think the sets are plenty impressive anyway—arguably moreso than many of last year's sets. If Nexo Knights is indeed on its way out, it's going out with a bang.
  23. Lyichir
    Near the forest's Guardian Tree, the Goblins' pet Panthara has a secluded spot that's all her own! Panthara can leave the cozy comfort of her basket at the top of the tree, descend the ladder, and savor a tasty snack from her tray of food at the base of the tree! Inside a hollow in the tree's trunk, the magical energies of the forest make brilliant crystals grow! This is my entry for the Autumn Animals contest. It's not too grand or anything, but I tried to get SOMETHING together to enter with the parts I had available to me at college, and managed to work in a good amount of the Elves design language despite the small size limit.
  24. Lyichir
    I'd love that, but I think the Forces of Destiny brand as a whole may be an exclusive Hasbro dealie (unlike DC Super Hero Girls). I'd love to be wrong about this, though!
  25. Lyichir
    If you work with Lego robotics heavily, it may be a good investment. Then again, I bought an EV3 set when I was on the Inside Tour, and since I don't work much with programming or robotics in MOCs, I haven't gotten nearly as much use out of it as I'd hoped to.
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