Lyichir

The TV show is the core story. Everything else is supplementary side stories. So if you're trying to get up to speed as fast as possible, the TV series is the way to go. The chapter books and graphic novels are both excellent. When buying the chapter books be sure to stick to the early ones by Greg Farshtey. The past few years have only featured dull adaptations of the TV series by Tracey West, but the Greg Farshtey ones tell independent stories that are really quite good. The graphic novels are all good, so no worries there.

Oh, I have no doubt that they'll keep making Lego movies if they can. But there are already two other Lego movies in production, and it's stupid to assume that EVERY other movie announced by Warner Animation Group will be a Lego movie, especially when Warner Bros. owns many high-value cartoon properties ranging from Looney Tunes to the entire DC animated universe. So many sites are reporting this as "three new Lego movies", but the actual news suggests no such thing

I was very particular about capitalization for a brief period a while back, but I gave that up after copy editing gave me the realization that adhering to every brand's style guides for the formatting of their brand names can get slightly ridiculous. If I were writing an article for a Lego fansite or something I might still capitalize the brand name, but in casual forum posts and discussions it's not that important. I occasionally might use "Legos" in casual speech but never typed out, unless of course I'm using it ironically.

Those aren't confirmed to be Lego movies and even if some are I doubt they all are. The Lego Movie may have been the first successful movie from Warner Animation Group in ten years, but they aren't going to want their success going forward to be completely tied to a single brand they don't even own.

Yeah, those helmets had a tendency to crack. The idea of having the character's helmet cracked was part of the film's attempt to give all the characters a "played with" quality—that's also why his torso printing looks so worn away.

I have some ideas of how a Lego Movie advent calendar could work, even if it looks like we won't see one this year. Exclusive figs could include a version of Vitruvius or President Business (AKA Finn's dad ) as Santa as well as some festive version of Unikitty. Builds could include other "relics", possibly including a brick-built car air freshener as the "tree", as well as microscale models like the mini Sea Cow or Octan Tower from the movie. You could include playable models, too—perhaps an updated Classic Space rover for Benny to drive around in, or a catapult like the one in the Cloud Cuckoo Palace set for Unikitty. Honestly, I do hope to see SOMETHING Christmas-themed related to The Lego Movie. Perhaps a stop-motion Christmas Special showing how the characters prepare for the holidays? It'd be a great way to rekindle interest in the sets in time for the Christmas shopping rush.

I spent some time this morning trying to think of which sets we might see next year. -Police Twin-Rotor and Copper Chopper: This one is a no-brainer, being one of the most toyetic models that didn't appear in a set. It could potentially come with the flying form of the Super Cycle, and potentially even a segment of brick-built monorail track! -The Batwing/The Batmobile: Obviously this one would have to be redesigned/scaled down, but it'd make a great set. My only concern is that Batman's appearance in the small set we've seen could indicate that he's not planned to appear in another set. If they do make this set, they might add the Dragon from Middle Zealand to provide conflict. -The Submarine: This one's practically confirmed thanks to Sad Unikitty's redesign showing up at the panel at SDCC. I'm not conplaining. Perhaps it could include a scuba-cop or two as well. -Top of the Tower/TAKOS: The main reason I'd expect a set like this is that a smiling President Business appears as a key light but not in any sets (just like the new Green Lantern, who will finally appear next year). This one could easily include him and potentially some more vehicles for the citizenry and Master Builders. Alternatively... -Planet Duplo Attack: I don't really expect this one, since the conflict isn't quite as defined and Duplo parts have only shown up in a System set once. But this could be another option for smiling Pres. Business, along with the "de-Kragler" watering can. -Western Racecar: This one would have to be heavily redesigned to appear as a set. But it's a good scene, and could potentially include some of the awesome Police horses (or the grounded version of Bad Cop's car) in pursuit. It makes sense for there to be a new set with Bad Cop, since he's a popular character but so far appears in only one wave 1 set. -More 2-in-1 sets: The most obvious candidate for this would be the cement mixer, but others might work as well.

I agree that a "collection" would probably be the best term.

What an amazing idea! Train layouts are great but sometimes they can blend into one another, whereas this is sure to stand out, especially among the younger set. The model you have so far is great-looking! What colors does that model use, though? It looks like you're using parts in colors that they aren't produced in, which would be a problem if you want to build it in real life for shows. In particular, you seem to be using Light Nougat (Light Flesh on Bricklink, a rare color for anything other than fig parts) for the walls and Olive Green (a less rare color, but one that lacks window frames like you're using) for the windows. The Light Nougat can be easily substituted for the much more common Brick Yellow (Tan on Bricklink), and even though it might be a poorer match I think the Olive Green parts mostly exist in Earth Green (Dark Green on Bricklink). I can't wait to see what else you come up with!

Wishing for something is fine. Demanding it, or insisting you have a right to it as some people seem to be doing, is selfish. So is wishing these sorts of exclusives weren't offered at all because you were unable to get them (which, again, is a sentiment I've seen far too often). If Lego stopped offering exclusives it wouldn't automatically ensure obscure characters like Zur-En-Arrh Batman would appear in sets. Now, there is an argument to be made that certain characters should not necessarily be limited to exclusives. But I haven't seen a lot of that argument. Most of what I've seen is pleas for Lego to widely release past exclusives (which would basically render their description of them as exclusive a lie, and an expensive lie for those who waited in line for hours and spent large amounts for them), or to stop offering exclusives altogether (which would eliminate a lot of the good press Lego gets when they offer exclusives, as well as a lot of the interest their booth gets at the con itself).

I think that's phrased poorly. What it says is "New colors are okay, but Please only propose existing elements, as well as stickers and printed parts." That definitely makes it sound as if they're only allowing existing stickers and printed parts, but given that, as you say, sets have introduced new prints in the past, I think it's supposed to mean that you can introduce new prints and stickers to spruce up existing elements. Seeing as no projects are being removed for having new stickers or prints I'm going to give them the benefit of the doubt and assume that's what they meant. It'd be nice if someone could get clarification, though!

The two parts you list as "new" are actually incredibly old. The tread has existed solely in that color since 2003 in 20 sets and the plate with Technic pins has existed since 2005, in that color in 40 sets. To put that into perspective, every single orange part besides the 1x2 slope is newer than those two parts. The orange 1x6x3 panel with side studs is, in fact, actually new, never before appearing in sets in that color. The Trans. Light Blue boulder piece is also new, only appearing in this and the other Arctic sets. Other than that this is an AMAZING review. Your photography is top-notch, perfectly capturing the set from just about every angle. So please don't get the impression that I'm dissatisfied!

Why would a reboot be disastrous? If anything it'd bring back a well-loved theme while discarding a lot of that convoluted story, "starting fresh" in a way that Bionicle couldn't really manage to do while it was still running.

I think a Jeep (or even Humvee) is far better than a tank. The thing about the warplanes Lego has made is that while they originated as war machines they didn't necessarily stay that way. Sopwith Camels and Red Baron lookalikes were staples of air shows for long after they stopped being used in war. Jeeps are even more common, commonly having mainstream civilian use. Tanks, on the other hand, are rarely more than weapons. They aren't used by civilians nor are they typically featured in shows or parades. If a tank is crawling through your neighborhood, you likely either live on or near a military base or are in a part of the world where war is a grim reality.

The new figs look quite good to me. Of the ones we hadn't seen before, The Pizza Delivery Guy is a standout. Finally a pizza that actually looks like a pizza, and a pizza box to boot! Wonder what his hat says... I also dig the Fairytale Princess' hairpiece, the Jester's playing cards, and the Lifeguard's binoculars and sunglasses. The Hun Warrior looks great even if historical figs aren't always my thing. The Rock Guitarist looks good, though his guitar is really bizarre. A little disappointed in the Genie Girl, as I was hoping for something more pink or purple, but otherwise she's a perfectly decent fig.

It's worth noting that none of the Toa seem to have blasters. Only the smaller "defenders" do.

No, that's a TERRIBLE idea. What better way to piss off the legitimate buyers who bought something with the knowledge they couldn't get it anywhere else? Lego would have to cut into their own pockets to produce additional figs and rush to a decision on how to market them and still make a profit, and meanwhile the thief would still have a crock full of stolen minifigs which would suddenly look less obviously suspicious and would still retain some of their value.

That's... not true. As a member of the My Little Pony fandom I know for a fact that Hasbro (Lego's second biggest competitor) does no such thing with their exclusives. And I'm sure the same applies to several other manufacturers.

If you mean rerelease the exact sets: not going to happen. The 2002 sets themselves were a rerelease, and were not that successful. A modern rerelease could be expected to be even less successful since even more of the old parts and colors have been taken out of production. That's why Lego rarely does rereleases of old sets—they can enjoy far greater success with a new theme designed for modern audiences than with sets that are already owned by many and will be viewed as inauthentic. If you mean release a new Western theme, as has been done (and will be done again) with Pirates, I expect it to happen at some point. For now, The Lego Movie sets feature a number of Western-inspired builds, and I imagine that Lego will be looking at the sales of those to see whether there's room for a full theme in the modern lineup.

Personally, I think this set looks great. Yes, a little pricy, and I'm sure Smaug adds a lot to that. But he looks great, with folding wings (that pivot with a ball joint) and great detailing all around. I never really expected him to be brick-built, since for better or for worse licensed themes tend to strive for greater detail, but the molded version still ended up exceeding my expectations. The scenery and action features also look amazing, and based on the picture there might be even more that we can't see! HOWEVER... Is anyone else disappointed that none of the characters use multicolored legs? When I first saw the new molds for Bart and Lisa Simpson that allowed for multiple colors on the legs, I felt sure that they would be used in the Hobbit sets to give the dwarves boots or more importantly, to give Bilbo bare feet. I guess I can see how they might not want to make the figs inconsistent with earlier ones, but it's still a darn shame.

I voted: No on stopping exclusives. AFOLs can whine all they want, but the amount of press Lego is getting for these proves their marketing power. And many of the figs released as exclusives (lookin' at you, Zur-En-Arrh Batman) are figs that would likely never get produced otherwise. No strong opinion on bringing back Classic Space. I love sets like the Exo-Suit and Benny's Spaceship. I also love sets in themes like Space Police III, Alien Conquest, and Galaxy Squad. If Lego thinks they can make more money from a Classic Space revival than from a new space theme, they should go for it, but if not they'll probably release something no less awesome. Continue LOTR? Yes. I don't think they've exhausted the line's potential subjects yet, but I do think the clock is ticking and that both LOTR and The Hobbit will be on their way out after the third Hobbit movie's hype has waned. Better that Lego capitalize on that hype to launch more LOTR sets while they have the chance than miss that chance entirely. Bring back Vikings? No strong opinion. Again, I liked the Vikings theme, but recent castle themes have been good too. Lego has better knowledge of whether that decision might be wise than I ever will. Cut ties with Shell? No strong opinion. Lego should definitely do cost-benefit analyses of that relationship but ultimately I think it'd wind up in Shell's favor in the near future. Military theme? No. There's plenty of evidence that depicting modern war in sets would be problematic in many markets, and since Lego can get away with most of the trappings of the past century's wars in fantasy contexts, I see no point in doing a realistic take on the subject.

The small space base IS an actual set from the '80s, but you're right that we're unlikely to see it redesigned or rereleased.

No, I'm fairly sure he starts the same build all three times. It's significantly larger than the ship in that poster.

While I would love for the gender ratio of Bionicle to be improved, and want the element-based gender rule to be eliminated, I don't think the Toa Mata (or characters named after them) should have their genders changed. That's not because I don't think a female Tahu or Lewa would be awesome, but rather because many of the comments here seem like they reflect how the new characters would be received. It's not just the fear that older fans might be turned off by the idea instantly, but rather, what I'm worried about is that characters whose gender changed would basically invite criticism of their gender itself (not just their character) whenever their character fell short of fans' nostalgic memories. Every time "girl Tahu" fell short of a goal, or any time "girl Lewa" showed any sign of weakness, fans with an inclination toward sexism would automatically attribute those failings to the most obvious change in the character, that being their gender (despite the original Toa Mata being riddled with similar character flaws). And of course any growing pains a reboot could potentially have (such as weaker storytelling as the new theme found its feet) would result in fans looking to place the blame somewhere, and a change as progressive as changing characters' genders would be an easy target, even if it wasn't relevant to the problems being discussed. The obvious comeback to this is that older fans have never been the determining factor for a theme's success. But I'd argue that in todays era of social media, they matter more, ESPECIALLY upon a theme's launch. Take Hero Factory for example. A lot of the criticism of the theme (both fair and unfair) came the early reactions of Bionicle fans who were bitter about the theme's cancellation, and it spread from there and went on to define a great deal of the narrative pervading the organized fan community for the theme's entire lifespan. And while sites like BZPower have managed to beat down the least valid of those common arguments on the site itself (such as the common "how do they have personalities if they're just robots" argument), we now live in an era where fans don't flock to organized communities so much as they do to nebulous ones like Twitter or Tumblr, where anyone can post whatever they wish and have it visible to everyone who searches the tag, making it much, much harder to control the narrative. I used to search for good Bionicle art on DeviantArt, for example, but a Hero Factory fan who does the same is more likely to find image macros bashing the theme than they are to find art of their favorite characters. Lego would do well to try to avoid letting the same thing happen to a new Bionicle. For that reason I think Lego would be wise to try to appeal to nostalgia, at least in this first wave, which judging by the set names is what they seem to be doing. That means changing as little as possible about the original Toa, including changes like gender. By doing so they'd be able to better keep the fan narrative positive and keep the focus on things like the improved sets, rather than opening with a story change that could potentially be divisive, and create negative memes that spread to the target audience.. That's why I'm hoping for the gender ratio to improve more on a conceptual level at first—doing away with things the rule that only Ga-Matoran are female—so that future characters (and hopefully, sets) have the chance to do better than one in six.

More importantly, this set serves as a battle pack of sorts. While Batman and Angry Kitty are obviously unique characters (like all the "good guys" in the movie), it looks like this'll be the cheapest way to get a Micro Manager, and includes a Skeletron to boot. In fact, I wonder if part of the reason for this set was to make sure Micro Managers stay available for longer, since there weren't any in the summer 2014 sets despite multitudes of them playing a big role in the scenes with the SPACESHIP! and Construct-o-Mech. And yeah, given that this set will likely be cheap, it WILL be the easiest way to get Batman and Angry Kitty, who had previously only been available in relatively large sets. So it does seem like it has sales potential. But I do hope that this set isn't the only one due out next year!