Lucarex

Really hope it’s not another Alien Conquest or Nexo situation ?

No way to alert AFAIK so you’ll just need to be lucky. Also, I heard the Tree of Creativity is also going on general sale. Those FLW sets were discussed and reviewed a few pages/couple months back in this thread.

Pics of the Castle set still MIA then I take it?

Agreed but there’s just something about the new project... Oslo opera house is another for the list.

Sadly that ship appears to have sailed LONG ago now. It’s a shame about the FLW license, an updated FallingWater would be quite something. House/small structures may be out but striking a balance between recognisable buildings and architectural merit isn’t impossible. Lots of classical or modern examples like Frank Gehry’s UAE Guggenheim, the Pompidou Centre, Musee D’Orsay, Casa Milà, just off the top of my head.

Ah ok wasn’t aware as no interest in the theme, just assumed given the pages of IG posts under leaks. Still no Castle reveal though ? Looks like the latter.

Half-baked could sum up the entire theme. Ingredients were all there and looked good initially but carelessly taken out of the oven too early and...voilà, disappointment. Hopefully just as a result of unofficial Harry Potter leaks day, but feeling a bit ominous we’ve still not seen the actual Castle set yet, just the box art. Should have had it at weekend with the other sets you’d have thought.

Sorry but no, no and no. The theme really needs to stick closer to its origin setting, otherwise what’s the point of it being Ninjago at all? Look at NK and the disastrous “vampires”, there’s a warning right there...

Shades of those terrible out of place tech vampire Byters from Nexo’s final part-cancelled wave. Talking of missing agonists and NK, at least they made Monstrox in book form and brick-built cloud form, but never the minifig version. I’m not too fussed about missing Lady E as didn’t really feel she was anything but one-dimensional character, but it’s a real shame we’ll never see the colourful (angry/sad/wild) transparent boss ghosts in plastic, only in virtual form. These black figures (even the knights which look more at home in NK) are pitiful compared with the likes of Capt Archibald, Dr Drewell etc.

Quite. Or put off customers who love a tourist attraction but think of the word architecture as something negative.

What an amazing thread this is, kudos to those who’ve done such amazing work. How I’d love to make a Crab Mecha! Going to dust off the Art of TLNM book from my shelf now to have a look through.

Errr ok... Assume by “favourite” you won’t go with my clown with syringe MOC suggestion above, try googling “Lego custom donald trump” and there’s at least 2 different options in the UK for you.

Jeez, sense of humour failure, I even added an emoji there just in case... It’s a poor minifig so if it ends up in the BAM section in stores, that’s fine by me. Oh and I also commented on the box art if that helps you.

Already said it, I hope that’s not a bad omen and we see it today. Cancellation of the flagship set wouldn’t be unheard of especially given the theme is probably over at this point. Who cares ? I actually really like the box art style but completely agree that from a retail perspective, the similarity is confusing and doesn’t lend itself to easy identification of different sets, never mind different waves.

Interesting spot, didn’t see that tiny image before as the main box art looks normal tan with the usual ghostly HS filter in place. So looks like the main part of the Castle is light grey as per MF with only the observatory tower in Hogwarts‘ finest tan. Not sure if the two-tone look will look good or just bolted on?

The Architecture logo is now tiny (!) and you almost miss it down there in the corner. Strange to see the LEGO logo also dropped from standard top-left. I do like the schematic/blueprint banner though, which contrasts nicely against the black. Instead we now have that massive hotel-style WH logo (is that official? I’m not familiar) brashly taking centre stage as if to shout “look, I’m the biggliest White House ever!”, very reminiscent of the current tenant.

Already being discussed in the Harry Potter forum, they’re looking at cannibalising it for parts. At least that’ll help bump up the sales ? Who knows. Doesn’t belong anywhere really, the head print alone is awful.

Also, looks like the Castle will be tan or dark tan in colour, in contrast to the dark red of the High School and light grey of the MF Castle.

Not a big fan of the theme, but the Indominus vs Ankylosaurus (hardly a fair fight) looks great. Box art showing what looks like launch rails for a gyrosphere?!

So all the box art but still no actual Castle leak yet? Just saying...?? Will reserve judgment but at least in line with what we expected. The observatory element is a nice touch and clear high school similarities in the front porch and transformation (finally). But nothing really wow in terms of the minifigs or villains (which look very poor this wave). Looks like the transparent AR-only boss ghosts are still in Newbury as they remain on the box.

New White House 21054 has leaked - exec residence plus both wings and gardens as rumoured. Whilst a very uninspired choice, and probably a dull build, it does look nice, the garden helping a lot there set off against the buildings. At almost 1500 pieces though it’s gonna be pricey! Sadly, no clown minifigure with a green "disinfectant" syringe included.

Big difference between LEGO knowing what sells in hindsight and predicting what will sell before launch. Given they develop waves/sets quite a bit ahead of time, I think it’s more likely that when sales dip, they just settle on a quick exit strategy and deprioritise the theme in terms of budget, design and time. That’s clearly what’s happened here. What’s frustrating with HS is the wasted potential.

360 videos now up... weird how the abandoned prison is the only set (so far) with any spring green elements that have been synonymous with HS. Usual teeth behind jail front door and some creepy claws inside the tower cells.

New pic with perspective of the front prison door has leaked, makes it look slightly better but not much. Looked again at the sub set and the brick built “scene” with the statue and AR control, and it struck me just how pathetic that build really is. Embarrassing really. Give my kid a parts bin and 30 mins and he’d have built something better.

Is that the awful white hooded “ghost” (that looks like a kid in a cheap mask wearing a bedsheet at Halloween)? If that’s the standard, I’m not holding my breath.