The_Chosen_1

I didn't see anything in your post phrased as a question, let alone two questions. I'll assume you're wondering about the metallic silver lightsaber hilts, and the inclusion of the Han head w/ pupils... The lightsabers have been the metallic silver color for some time now. There are notable exceptions however, such as 10212 which did include two silver hilts. I'm not sure of the reason for the change, but my guess would be cost efficiency by not chroming all of those hilts. As for the inclusion of the new Han head w/ pupils, the only reason I can think of is that TLG began putting them in as production went on. 10188 was released right before the SW line made the switch to the new style of heads, so they were probably just switched in at some point.

Looks like a great little set! I too hope that these will be made available in the U.S.

Sorry to hear that, qvack. I'm having some issues with my final order as well. I placed my BL order from a seller in Denmark, and it arrived with more than half the pieces missing. That was two months ago, and the problem still hasn't been resolved yet. Needless to say, I'm getting very anxious to get my pieces and start building...

Um...I'm failing to see why those two reasons are "the only possible way" to include a Rancor. If TLG wants to include a Rancor, they'll do it. There's no requirement to include a Rancor pit or make it a UCS set in order for that to happen. Although, I wouldn't argue one bit about the second option.

I wasn't too happy about the new TIE Fighter at first, but WOW...!!! It really does look fantastic! Most of the sets look great. The X-Wing isn't as much of an improvement as I had hoped, but still a definite buy for me. My main complaint about this new wave is revolves around the newly designed TIE fighter and C-3PO, even thought they look great. It must be the OCD in me, but I don't like how they create inconsistency with previous TIE releases and protocol droid designs.

Very well said, StoutFiles. I agree with all of that.

The question to ask yourself if you're in favor of re-releasing sets like 10179 is "when does it end?". Where do we draw the line on which popular sets see a re-release and which ones don't? There are plenty of sets out there, Star Wars and otherwise, that command a high price on the secondary market. I don't think we should put too much stock in thinking that Lego will eventually put these sets out there again. I missed out on getting 10179 the first time around, and I'm perfectly fine with that. If someone wants a rare set enough, they'll find a way to get it.

Yeah, I was a little disappointed to see that as well. The sets look decent for the most part, but I'm hoping to see more playset or scene-style sets.

Misleading to a child, maybe...but any rational AFOL could realize that there are no bricks included. On a side note, I think these new storage cases are pretty cool!

I hope not....I really like the "pupil" style.

I'm only 25 pieces away! I'll probably place my final order directly through Lego. There are some hard-to-find/expensive ones in this last lot.

Have you tried Bricklink?

It's the first, but hopefully not the last!

Just do your research before buying any pieces from either Bricklink or from Lego directly. The more rare pieces are worth buying directly from Lego. Also, if there is a piece that's sold very sporadically on Bricklink (meaning you'd have to place lots of orders from different sellers just to get them all), it's probably worth the small extra price to get them all from Lego.

In the parts list toward the back of the manual, each element has a corresponding number directly underneath it.

A Lord of the Rings theme is just a wishful rumor at this point...

There is also a Dark Red 6x14 plate with 10215, which is still in production. It should be around for a little while longer, at least.

I ordered those 1x16 Dark Bluish Grey Technic beams direct from Lego. If you want to be 100% accurate with those pieces, that's the way to go.

8097 is definitely a keeper! It's easily the best version of Slave I out there, and the minifigs are fantastic.

The easiest way to part out a set is to follow these steps: 1. Log into your Bricklink account 2. Click on the "Wanted" tab in the main menu bar 3. Click on "Part Set" within the "Wanted" tab Once you get this far, simply enter the number of the set that you want to piece together. Other options are available as well (eg. whether you prefer 'New' of 'Used' parts, how you want to be notified, etc.). As a side note to a comment that was mentioned above, several of the pieces are quite hard to come by and are better off purchased directly from Lego. Also, the exclusive pieces that Lego no longer produces (ie. the radar dish) are quickly increasing in price. Those who are even thinking of parting out this set might want to pick those pieces up first before prices skyrocket even more. EDIT: Beat me to it, Jason! That's a great explanation.

I don't own the original model, but I'm perfectly fine with TLG never re-releasing another version of the UCS Falcon. Other than including an interior (which would be difficult to do while keeping the same perfect look of the model IMO), it's already the perfect set.

Cars has been a marketing machine for the past 5 years or so. The toys are big sellers, and I can only imagine that the Lego theme is doing pretty well. There may be no more films in the near future, but if the theme is successful it'll stay put for now.

I voted for all of them except the Imperial Shuttle. I plan on getting the UCS version one of these days, that'll do it for me. Jabba's Palace is the set that really needs to be on that list, but I'd be happy with a redo of the Sail Barge as well.

Great to see that it's not just a re-use of Blackbeard's beard piece, as was rumored some time ago.

I scored the Podracers from Toys R Us for a just over $60. There's a 20% off coupon right now that can be stacked on top of the existing 25% discount. I used the Shoprunner trial for free shipping, bringing the total with tax to $60.89. You have to remove the free items from your cart for the additional 20% to take effect, but it's totally worth it IMO.