RogueTwo

Does anyone have any inkling as to whether or not Diagon Alley and the CMF will be released on schedule (September) in the US? I would hope so, since the CMF are produced in China, and no D2Cs have been delayed so far, but I'm just kind of learning to be pessimistic this year. EDIT: D2C, not DLC.

I would easily pay $30 or even $40 for a set with Harry, Draco, Fang, a unicorn, and Firenze, and another couple trees. It would be a creature battle pack!

I have the figures from the original Burrow, and the one without figures was $60 US on eBay (since the set hasn't even been released yet in the US, that's a pretty good deal for me). I did the same with the Astronomy Tower, because the Slug Club figures are so niche, I figured I could live without them. The only problem would be if I change my mind and decide I do want the new figures, which could happen. I mean, I do want them, but to me the builds are the most important to me.

I think this should be the standard against which we measure all future sets. In all seriousness, my copy of The Burrow sans-minifigures should be arriving in a matter of hours, and I'm super excited!

The advent calendar is probably the best ever, maybe even better than the HP one last year! Hopefully it will be available before Christmas in the United States...

That's a good point, I completely forgot about the Weasley twins, and I don't know how. My best guess is that LEGO wants to save them for a certain huge set that includes their shop. But I don't know, we'll see. As for Fang, I actually think there is still a chance. I couldn't believe it, but when I went back to rewatch the movies recently, Fang isn't in Prisoner of Azkaban (he's in the book, of course). But as the recent Hagrid's hut was completely POA-based, I think Fang could (and MUST!) still show up somewhere. Also, sorry for the long and frequent posts, but I just realized that the Star Wars Advent Calendar is now listed as "Coming Soon" on the LEGO Shop website. Surely the HP one must be revealed soon?

I'm guessing because it was molded in a different factory? Not sure. Thanks for bringing this up, because I was really psyched out as I was assembling that minifigure ("I didn't remember Dobby's head being so squishy!"). I also just finished Privet Drive, which arrived from Zavvi two days ago. My overall impressions are pretty positive. The house itself is pretty much perfect; it's a little small, but it reminded me so much of "An Unexpected Gathering" from The Hobbit line, which is high praise, indeed. The minifigures are a mixed bag. While I'm happy to get all three Dursleys, it was beyond lazy to give Vernon a generic, reused torso that doesn't even have back printing!! I mean, Dudley gets a printed belly and Vernon doesn't? And if the set is supposed to be based on Chamber of Secrets, why give us a Dudley wearing his Philosopher's Stone outfit and a Petunia wearing her Prisoner of Azkaban outfit? These little things bothered me. Also, the flying car is a complete waste, IMO, and I think the boot, the bonnet, and the windows are all a step back from the one the came with the Whomping Willow. That may sound critical, but overall I absolutely adore the house, and I would give the set overall 7.5/10 if paying full price (as it happens, I paid slightly more than full price, so I'm a tiny bit salty). Even my brother, who is not a FOL, looked at Privet Drive and said, "That's an awesome little set!" Too bad the price tag is not exactly little.

I also agree. Hogsmeade seems incredibly likely to me, either for 2022, or maybe even next year, if this line continues to be a powerhouse. Not only would the minifigures be great, we could also be guaranteed a Shrieking Shack remake, which seems unlikely as a standalone set, since the only minifigure that hasn't been released is werewolf Lupin, who could show up either as a promotional figure or CMF. I sincerely hope we don't get another D2C next year, though...my wallet will need some breathing room!

I actually recycle all my boxes too (I could make back some money selling them on Bricklink, though). But as most of us seem to agree, the new “adult” boxes are so...lifeless. When I bought the A-Wing this past May the Fourth, I was seriously put off by the box art. The box isn’t just a collector’s item, it’s what everyone sees first when they see a set on a store shelf. IMO, every aspect of Diagon Alley should look magical. Edit: @BacktoBricks You beat me to it again! Childlike nostalgia and that sense of wide-eyed wonder are what got me back into HP!

I just realized that Diagon Alley is probably going to come in a big black box with "18+" on it. That really makes me mad. Obviously it's not a big deal in the grand scheme of things, but it's one of the cringier things The LEGO Group has done recently. I feel like they're trying to make extra money off of the pandemic by marketing all expensive LEGO products as stress-relieving "projects" exclusively for adults. I think they are first and foremost toys (whatever Will Ferrell's character might say in The LEGO Movie), and I've never seen any problem with adults playing with toys.

Just another public service announcement for those in the US: the LEGO Shop website has all three helmets, D-0, and the $160 Millennium Falcon back in stock. The four D2Cs currently available: -Tantive IV -Death Star -Imperial Star Destroyer -Millennium Falcon are sure to follow soon.

I do! And I guess that's what I get for not being informed about rock music; I thought he was just some random guy...

Interesting! I decided not to preorder because it’s not going to sell out any time soon, and I wouldn’t be surprised if the US release gets pushed back to September, anyway. As far as Diagon Alley is concerned, one of my most wanted buildings is actually the Leaky Cauldron with an interior of some kind. I know it’s not the most exciting place, but it’s the only one that features in Prisoner of Azkaban, my favorite movie. It would be AMAZING if they included a minifigure of that random minifigure reading “A Brick History of Time: By Stephen Blocking,” but that will never happen. (If you have no idea what I’m talking about, go rewatch the scene where Tom the Inkeeper escorts Harry through the parlor and up the stairs).

I don’t know the exact difference between the two URLs, but you’re fine. I certainly wouldn’t cancel your order. My Privet Drive set from Zavvi US shipped yesterday, and it’s already gone from London to Germany, getting ready to be DHL-ed over to the States, supposedly arriving by Wednesday!!

A new Lucius will almost certainly be coming in Diagon Alley, regardless. As for Dumbledore...I really wonder if we’ll be getting that Ministry battle set after all.

I completely agree, even as someone who dislikes the Goblet of Fire movie (the book is better) and prefers Prisoner of Azkaban and Half-Blood Prince. The Carriage without the Durmstrang Ship makes little sense to me. Even if the LEGO designers hoped that some fans might have the 14-year-old Durmstrang Ship, which is a ridiculous expectation, that set is long-outmoded, anyway. Similarly, having the Hungarian Horntail without Merpeople seems silly to me. Sure, we'll probably get both of those sets eventually, but it does seem like very poor prioritization. As beautiful as the Carriage set is, I hated the characterization of the Beauxbatons in the movie, so it was a tough sell for me, even when I bought it for $40 US. And...clearly we've run out of 2020 news, LOL.

So far... I'm delaying gratification on most of this wave so that I can try to get Diagon Alley on day one (unless it's bad, of course). That will give me time to pick up the other sets on discount, and feel for the Collectible Minifigures, between now and next summer. Also, I've come to accept that the builds are more important to me than the minifigures. I like sets to be minifigure-scale, and I like having a number minifigures to populate them, but I realize now that I can no longer afford to buy a set just for the minifigures, or to Bricklink 8 different variants of Harry, each wearing a different cardigan. I wasted way too much money on Star Wars before giving up. And I wasn't even attempting to collect every set, just the Rebel Alliance starfighters that I liked! The difference between these two themes is not just cost, however. Star Wars sets have (IMO) decreased in quality, repeated themselves, and generally cheaped out, possibly in an attempt to recoup on the Disney license. With Potter, everything thus far has been top-notch (not counting a few reused head pieces and plain dress pieces, but at the end of the day, if that's the worst part of a set, it's probably a good theme).

I may be biased, because it's coming out at the perfect time for me: right after my graduation, and I still have some birthday money left over. That said, $400 is insane. Seems reasonable next to the UCS Falcon, though!

I've decided that if I can just have Diagon Alley, I will skip the Forbidden Forest, the Buildable Hedwig, the Collectible Minifigure Series, and the Advent Calendar. Does anyone else have the feeling that, when this set is revealed, it will completely blow them away and be their favorite set of all time? Or is that just me?

Well, we don’t know that it ISN’T happening. It actually sounds quite plausible to me. It’s just that we can’t trust Kingnono, so we’ll have to wait and see. If there is a GWP, I sincerely hope it is offered at the same time as the D2C is released, rather than months later, as was the case with the “UCS” Hogwarts and the micro Diagon Alley.

Assuming that DA is minifigure scale, I would suggest that you skip the UCS Hogwarts and just get all the minifigure-scale sets. I say this as someone who bought and loves the UCS Hogwarts, but overall regrets having made that purchase. Others may feel differently, of course.

Actually, the "probably" is a bit concerning to me. If it's microscale, I think they're going to lose a lot of sales. Not trying to reopen the same can of worms, just saying...

I swear to God, if the announcement is an imminent US release date, I'm going to hate myself for cheaping out and ordering sets without minifigures... It's...a Diagon Alley confirmation that we already knew about?

So, sorry to retread old territory, but at this point we have no concrete leaks as to whether or not Borgin and Burke's will be included as part of the D2C, right?

Yep, that's the one! I also specifically asked if they had an extra Astronomy Tower by any chance, and lo and behold, they did. This day is really looking up for me! Good to hear that everything went well with that seller! I also ordered Privet Drive from Zavvi, since they finally lowered the listed price to $70. I can wait until September for the three smallest sets...I think.