Mandalorianknight

Same here. I was talking to relatives the other day and realized that as of now, the only 2025 lego set I have purchased is a little $15 impulse buy from the Marvel Line (Iron Man mech with Ultron.) The year just isn't doing it for me. what few sets actually interest me are ones I am waiting for sales on. It's possible the Night Trooper Pack reaches... I'd say $17 is what I'd get it for.... before the end of the year, but if it doesn't, my lego spending went from a few hundred in $2024 to... $15* of official sets and a few bricklink part orders. *I bought two copies of the 2024 skeleton crew set because they were on absurd walmart discounts to sell the figures and use the parts for a MOC, but the discounts were so deep that selling the figs was a net gain, meaning my lego spending would be negative for the year! Exactly. At $500, this would have been a fine, unique format for the DS. At $1000, it really should have been a sphere. I think this is going to be a big factor for a lot of people. There's a lot of analysis as to whether or not it's "worth it", and while I personally think it seems better value than most SW sets these days... I honestly don't care if the value is there or not. $1000 is just more than I would personally drop on a single set. Yup. Though if it shot actual plasma bolts I would probably pick it up just for the novelty of owning an X-wing capable of lethal force. (If it was lasers as in just the literal meaning of the laser lights, I honestly don't see $100 still. lighting kits are expensive but not THAT expensive.) Yes- if kids aren't into a toy product now, the brand will die. It's true of anything that can't draw in new fans. With lego star wars there's the additional wrinkle of needing new star wars fans. I agree with your wider point that these smart brick sets are a bad idea, but come on. This is ridiculously false. Lego makes scores of $100+ sets aimed at kids every year. Star Wars, Ninjago, City, Friends, etc. Lot to go over during the down time: $1000 death star: Not as bad as it could have been. I think it actually looks quite nice, and the value doesn't seem bad. My primary issue is simply that it should have been a sphere. This is a nice display model, for $1000 the value is there, but the $1000 price point needs to be the flagship of a theme. The Death Slice simply doesn't work for me as the crown jewel of star wars. The old death star is more kid-oriented, sure, but it was iconic. It's quite literally so iconic that an emotional beat about it is part of the final scene of a spider-man trilogy. (We get a shot where Peter adjusts the Emperor Palpatine minifigure from the set- assumably the only part of it he could scavenge from his apartment- on his table before leaving to swing into the night.) I just can't see what is much more of an art set/display model taking it's place in that regard. It should have been smaller, correspondingly cheaper, and able to be wall-mounted. Other leaks: Yoda and Amended Vader busts: Another new 18+ gimmick to abandon after two years. Excellent. I hope the yoda looks worse than his 2018 buildable figure. TIE Advanced and X-wing: "Boy, I hope we get some new OT sets, maybe a TIE advanced" *Monkey's Paw curls* This is awful. We might not have two normal OT sets for another 1HY, for one thing, but it's not even as if they're being replaced by helmets or busts or system sets from another era. No. They're a gimmick, and one that drastically increases the price, but in a horrible twist of fate they're also a gimmick that resets the clock on getting a normal version of the advanced. I will be tweaking my digital Advanced moc tonight and ordering parts tomorrow, because it looks like we really aren't getting a normal one any time soon. Yeah, I've never heard about stability issues either. I had mine up on top of a dresser that I bumped into probably every morning before school (I was not the most coordinated child or teenager) and it never so much as wobbled, even when other builds fell over or plopped off the shelf. I wonder if it's people who don't own it thinking a sphere would be unstable, and not really getting that it was flattened on the bottom and not fully spherically built down to a 6x6 or something. Come on, don't be like this. It's not unreasonable to hype up the first version of a major vehicle in a full decade. Don't act like that's some sort of slight. If there truly is an electric brick in it, this is no win. Arguably it's significantly worse than a TIE avenger, because instead of getting a different cool TIE variant and waiting a little longer for the Advanced, it's an overpriced gimmick that resets the clock on a normal version of the set. If it's any consolation it was highly unlikely that if there was an avenger in the pipeline, it would have been this anyway. We know the fastest turnaround for a full system set is 1.5 years (assuming the No Way Home set was pushed out as fast as they could), so if Lego thinks the demand is sufficient, we won't see it until 2027 anyway.

To add more to this, other star wars merch doesn't seem crazy expensive compared to other brand equivalents- a quick google shows your average Black Series figure is the same $24.99 pricetag as your average Classified Series (GIjoe) or Lightning Collection (Power Rangers) figure. (Same with your average Marvel Legend, but that's disney too so I figured it wasn't as relevant). Lego is charging more for these star wars sets because they think they can get away with it, and if this forum is a good representation of the market, it seems like they can indeed get away with it.

If it is the $70 set I doubt we have to worry about downsizing. The 2016 one was half a $90 set, or $120 today. Dropping that in half we're at $60. This doesn't seem like the type of set lego would price gouge (both with there being no clone legion, and with lego's $60-70 offerings this year seeming like solid value), so I think it'll probably be about the same size, if not a little bit larger. I mean look, your choices are your own, but I wouldn't buy it even to make fun of it. People like Solid Bricks got the word out about it being an overpriced house of cards. One sale won't make a difference, but a couple hundred to thousand people thinking "one sale won't make a difference" sure will. And therin lies the other issue- the people who don't need to worry about money, or can write-off the purchases for a youtube channel, treating it like a $160 battle pack. The kids buying it just for the figures. The adults buying it just for the figures. Lego clearly believes they can pump out an objective failure of a build, throw in the 999th legion we haven't gotten before, and double whatever their pricing a few years ago would have been, and people will complain and say it's awful and somehow tie it into lego hating the prequels... and then buy it anyway. Ideally we can show them this approach won't work, but it kind of seems like it is... It is odd- people clearly HAVE the set, and at least a few are bold enough to take pictures of it. They must have used the rug in the background of the figure lineup photo to figure out who leaked it and eliminate them.

Once the NWH sandman set retires, I wouldn't be surprised if we got a set exactly like the one you described. Though I suppose the symbiote suit wouldn't be in a set based on the final fight- maybe an armored car set similar to this year's train car? Edit: No, he was in the standard red/blue there too. What fight scenes does he have in the symbiote suit? Is it when he tries to kill Sandman underground?

Ok, so the issue isn't that the leakers are hyping remakes, just that you personally wouldn't like THIS remake. I don't think there'd be anything wrong with hyping up a major vehicle we won't have seen for a literal decade. What's funny is the advanced probably is canonically the best, right? It's that or the Defender. (Or the Avenger, but we don't really get any dogfighting feats for it so it's hard to gauge whether it was meant as a defender-style starfighter or more of an anti-ground/personnel the way Cassian uses it. Though I guess by that logic we also have to take the Advanced's feats with a grain of salt since it's one of the most skilled pilots in the galaxy using it) I do think there are a few major design changes we've had for TIES that I'd like to see here. While lego didn't carry it on to the bomber or interceptor, all standard TIEs since 2018 have used a different method for the grey panel siding, one I personally vastly prefer to the "grey plate between two black plates" method the 2016 model uses. The 2016 model also uses a lot of larger sloped bricks for the cockpit area, which we've long since swapped out for more accurate curves.

Agreed. And I think it'll happen, too- the AT-TE in particular had such massive demand issues it was delayed in the US and impossible to find for like two months, and yet it still ended up at $100 within less than a year. No way the turbo tank- featuring a much more obscure legion, 250 fewer parts, featuring a structural flaw, and being a less iconic vehicle- is going to sell better. I think I got the AT-TE for a little under $100 in early 2024, but that's about standard for a set that size 1.5 years after release. Same. I made my own bomber and interceptor back before lego released them in 2023, but I never got around to buying the parts for my Advanced, and I'm hoping I won't have to because we'll have an official one on shelves. *Mark Hamill voice* "There's nothing Mere about that Mortal Remake!" But you yourself say that you think the summer 2025 wave really was "eating good" when it itself is comprised mostly of remakes (AT-RT/DSD, Turbo Tank, MTT, V-19, Jango's Slave One). Unless you think they were referring to the buildables and the firespeeder, they were talking about the remakes. Sure, some of them have a different coat of paint, but many of them don't even have that. Would it be that much of a stretch that a leaker could be similarly excited about a new TIE advanced, especially when the previous year was fully devoid of OT system retail sets?

I agree that it'd be nice for them to come back, though I think it's the other way around. Sets now have a larger number of smaller pieces compared to a smaller number of larger, often more specialized ones. There was a channel called Brickbros UK that used to make alt-builds for probably half of all the star wars sets released between 2015 and 2019, though they dropped off the face of the earth years ago. People here like @Wurger49 keep the spirit alive.

I mean yeah I'd be plenty excited for this and I think a lot of people would. It's a pretty iconic vehicle, it'll have been a decade since the last one when this releases, and for Tarkin specifically it'd be the first time he was in a non UCS set since... well, the last TIE advanced a decade ago. It's important to remember that a pretty big chunk of fans haven't been seriously collecting for over a decade, and even with those who have, it's not like we can buy everything that releases. There's nothing inherently unexciting about a remake for most people, unless you already own the previous iteration of the set and aren't looking for an upgrade, and I doubt most people have the money and space to own the hundreds of lego star wars sets released over the past decade. Yup- there are two major reasons for this 1. I guarantee you a number of the people saying that either didn't have the willpower to follow through or never intended on it in the first place and just said so for internet points (and that a number of these youtubers telling people not to buy it are going to somehow have 327th and galactic marine armies by christmas) 2. With the 327th BP especially, plenty of kids are still getting it. Most parents aren't calculating price per piece/price per gram (because, c'mon, that's ridiculous to expect some random joe to know to do), they're looking at the box lego strategically oversized and going "yeah, sure, it looks like it's got plenty of guys", if they're even doing that. As for why the kids themselves want it, the average 8 year old watching a video on how cool and awesome a new set's clone troopers are isn't going to be overly affected by "but don't get it because it's expensive", especially when they're not the one footing the bill. Even for the kids who can grasp the idea that they're getting fleeced on the set, kids aren't exactly known for extreme patience. I think it'll be a more extreme example of frontloading than we've been seeing with even the previous clone sets- now that the people who could stomach the cost, the kids, and the ones with low impulse control insta-bought it, demand should slow. I still fully expect to see both the flagship sets for under $100 within a year. But if it hasn't slowed lego's roll yet, I wonder just how much those first-week sales account for that they can eat the costs of the set shelfwarming for 2/3rds it's life cycle.

While this seems in line with their overpricing, I think it would be good to have this on some recent SW sets we consider better value before using this metric.

Oop, you're right. Glad we're charging $100 for that set, by the way. Really makes that one minifigure worth it.

They DID use a new mold on Batwoman for no apparent reason- no way they held onto the 2018/19 mold for six years- as well as a new recolor on Batwing. (I still stand by that this should have been Nightwing and Red Hood if the theme continues to be dead, or Orphan and Signal if they plan on giving us the other two in normal sets at some point, but even if you want batwing, I've always remembered him as having a mostly exposed head with sort of a pointy domino mask.)

October 21st, at the median. I really am excited for that $10 ghost rider bike. I've liked the $10 marvel sets in concept but haven't gotten either of them- I don't collect much MCU anymore, and I have no use for a half-venomized Doc Ock. This is a great way to get a character I've been missing and a vehicle that makes sense in-universe. The second figure being spidey is a little annoying- it's not like even the newest collectors aren't going to have a number of him anytime soon, so while obviously they can't do mephisto it'd have been nice if it came with even a generic goon or something- but not a big deal. The main focus is Ghost Rider and the bike. And who knows, maybe it'll be an updated suit, we've been using the 2021 version long enough.

I don't know, it's been a long time since the last one and we've got the 50th of the franchise coming up, I think 2027 seems pretty likely. I agree that May 2026 is going to be a prequel set or D+ set. I'd be shocked if it wasn't either an ETA-2 or Mando's N-1 (As we are getting the movie this year). Closing out the first trilogy: Speeder Bikes ($9.99): 2x Imperial Speeder Bike with Luke Skywalker (Endor) and a Scout Trooper Shuttle Tydirium microfighter ($12.99): Princess Leia (Endor) Emperor Palpatine mech ($14.99): Emperor Palpatine. The base of the mech is his throne, and trans-blue elements make it look as if lightning is powering and flowing through it. Imperial Troopers ($19.99): 1x each of a Royal Guard, Imperial Stormtrooper, Scout Trooper, and Imperial Navy Trooper. The build is a small hallway segment of an imperial bunker or base with a console, holder for 2 blasters, and a small turret, that can be combined with itself to make a larger hallway. Ewok Attack ($29.99): Ewok Catapult and glider. Comes with 2x Ewok (Wicket, Palpoo) and 2x Rebel Commando (one in a green trenchcoat, the other with a tan vest) Rancor Battle ($49.99): Brick-built rancor and gate with drop function. Comes with Luke Skywalker, 2x Gammorean Guard, and Malaki. TIE Interceptor ($64.99): new Interceptor with 1x TIE pilot, Darth Vader, Moff Jerjerrod, and an Imperial Advisor (Janus Greejatus) AT-ST Ambush ($89.99): New AT-ST with two-seater cockpit, as well as two tall trees with a small bit of ewok village up top and a swinging log function. Comes with 2x AT-ST pilot, Chewbacca, Chief Chirpa, Chirpa, and Teebo. Rebel Command Center ($109.99): B-wing starfighter, A-wing starfighter, and a small conference room build. Comes with an A-wing pilot, B-wing pilot, Ten Numb, Mon Mothma, Crix Madine, Admiral Ackbar, a Mon Cala Crewer, and General Lando. Enter the Sarlacc ($179.99): A new Jabba's sail barge with desert skiff and sarlacc pit. Comes with Jabba the Hutt, Salacious Crumb, Princess Leia (huttslayer), R2-D2 (server), C-3PO, Luke Skywalker (Jedi Knight), Han Solo (blinded), Lando Calrissian (skiff guard), 1x Gammorrean Guard, 1x weequay, 1x Gran, Max Rebo, and Amanaman UCS/MBS: Endor Bunker and Ewok Village ($499.99): Endor bunker with interior generator room, armory/barracks, command center, and main hallway, with a tree cluster on either side containing bits of ewok village up top. Also included are a midi-scale AT-ST, a tiny ewok catapult, and 2 speeder bikes. Comes with R2-D2, C-3PO, Han Solo (endor), Princess Leia (Endor), "Rebel Commando Captain" (Endor Rex), Chewbacca, 2x Rebel Commando, Wicket, Palpoo, Logray, Teebo, Chirpa, 2x Ewok (one white with pink hood, and 1 black with dark green hood), 2x Stormtrooper, 2x Scout Trooper, 2x Imperial Navy Trooper, 1x Imperial Officer, 1x AT-ST pilot, Force Ghost Yoda, Force Ghost Anakin, and Force Ghost Ben Kenobi.

Pack it up, we've won, the august wave has been pulled from shelves and replaced with TIE avengers at every price point. No one can withstand such a debilitating blow. Yeah, it's global-scale manufacturing so we can't tell exactly what it should be, which works in lego's favor- though if the Mexico bricks are covered by the USMCA, which some base-level research would imply it is, they're definitely overcharging unless they're bringing a number of parts in from China. Yeah I don't know what market research lego's doing that implies people want the 332nd so badly. I feel like even the most die-hard clone guys would rather have a legion we DIDN'T just get. I mean I personally am cloned-out to the point that a super battle pack based on one of my favorite legions (327th) won't have me buying even at a reasonable price, but if that 2026 $20 pack was wolfpack or coruscant guard (with the hound trooper) or something I'd probably get a copy or two at some point. Yup- 2008 era sets were at a significantly lower level of detail. And when you account for inflation, in many cases the cost/figures ratio is worse than today. Glad to hear it, and I completely agree. Yup. Birthday presents aren't why these are so expensive anyway. Especially not a $45 set meant as an army-builder. Darn, man, now you've got me wanting to mass-order these on PAB for my imperial officers. (And you know, I say that, but I just looked at my officer meeting and I only have 4 DBG officers aside from Tarkin- who I already gave dual-molded legs to off a batman. Now, if they've got LBG and Dark Tan legs with boots as well...)

To be fair, So they're definitely in the movie. What's unknown is whether or not it'll be considered something too spoilery for lego. That is awesome.

Even @BrickBob Studpants has helmet holes, assuming the profile picture is some sort of shared consciousness between the two figures. Yes. Of course.

The worst part is I think I would actually prefer this to a rectangle. At the end of the day it's because lego believes they can charge more and use tariffs as a deflection, whether it's accurate or not. Just like the inflation/raw material increases a few years back, the price increases aren't consistent with either what you'd mathematically expect or eachother. On some sets lego could be taking a bit of a haircut on profit. On others they're probably making more than if there weren't tariffs/inflation and the price didn't adjust. If lego thought they could get away with charging $23 for a battle pack in 2024, they would have. Just like when they were gearing up to charge $27 in 2023 before thankfully chickening out. (And ironically for both 2026 and 2023, it's a 332nd battle pack we're talking about.) It's good to hear that an in-hand review confirms this- it's what I've been thinking as well, though I haven't bought any sets this year. The price seems reasonable, the build looks solid and a good scale for a starfighter, and 2/3 of the figures are excellent. I share the desire for an armored anakin, I hope if they do we get the navy/maroon robes rather then the black/brown they originally went with. It's one of anakin's best looks. Incredible. Even amazon knows they can't move sets at these prices. Hopefully lego themselves catch up.

Called it a month ago. Don't most of us have several holes in our head?

I would imagine we'll probably get three. It's a spider-man movie, after all, and it doesn't seem like this one will be hiding the plot/characters as much as NWH. I hope so, but it would be kind of funny to see comic miles vs 2099 when I don't even remember if they've fought in the comics ever.

Yeah, you've got to watch it then! Yup. The end credits theme is excellent and does a perfect job heralding in the new galaxy. What's crazy is to my knowledge nothing official has ever come out implying Abeloth is coming beyond the hints at Mortis, it's just naturally where the story has to go. I'm disappointed we haven't gotten further confirmation on what shape the Death Star is- we know the set is out there since the figure side of the box leaked. I think it would help a lot of people decide whether or not they'll be spending $1000

I mean.... the alsume all started off of the words "why doesn't man call in the justice league? Is he stupid?" But on a more real notion, it's possible. The little batman stuff we do get doesn't seem to be selling great- the D2Cs might do well but the few standard retail sets we get shelfwarm hard, at least around me, probably because we've gotten to the point where almost all lego makes are overpriced Batmobiles with batman and 1-2 villains. There was a user here who's personal lego batman headcanon involved Brickheadz Joker being the big villain, if I remember right because being a brickheadz, he had a huge head, and therefore must have been very smart. Purple-13 was his gang, I believe Yup. They've been making a number of exceptionally poor decisions, especially with their licensed themes, for years now. I haven't seem anything credible saying they're losing the license, but I wouldn't put it past them to let it go. The nickel joke is so overused it's actively turning me into Brickheadz Jonkler

Yes, I'm aware some people aren't a fan of it, and ironically I myself don't love Ahsoka as a character- she's fine, but not saga-leading- but that show is the most hopeful I've ever felt about the future of the franchise, primarily with the concepts it sets up- the new galaxy (or rather, the old galaxy), the Heir to the Empire campaign, Baylan getting ready to break the cycle, etc. Also the characters- Baylan is the best live action antagonist since either Witwer's interpretation of Maul or the OT, Sabine has an excellent character arc and it's a fun inversion to her early dynamic with Ezra, Ezra "The only weapon I need is the force, and also this gun I found" Bridger is great, Shin is excellent, Thrawn is a good mix of his legends and canon novel selves who's actually allowed to win the season, etc. It also has KILLER music, something that I always like to see in star wars. This is true- it's easy for me to not think about TLJ or Kenobi when watching the throne room scene- I keep forgetting the Kenobi series exists at all, for that matter- but it is a bit tougher watching the Mando S2 finale and then seeing "next episode" and he's immediately back with Grogu. Yeah everything I've seen about Starfighter implies it is very much a sequel movie, and it does not seem like a clone wars type "recontextualize a rough trilogy" project- I'd much rather have it be something with Literally Me going up against the Hutt Cartel or some other villain that could be set anywhere in the timeline. This is not a take I expected to see on a forum about collecting plastic toys

Ironically I'm very excited for the Ghost Rider bike in the next marvel 1HY, but yeah, I get the overall point- both themes have weak 1Hys at the moment. I wonder if there's sales data showing that sets releasing in the latter half of the year sell better. To be fair, it could be worse- by all accounts DC isn't GETTING a 1HY next year. It seems like we're discussing whether or not people are getting burned out by the franchise as a whole due to the lack of variety and quality in many of this year's offerings (plus the indication that it won't change next year), and personally I am not. Whatever they do with current media, I've always got the old stuff to fall back on. I rewatch Ahsoka and reread the legends Thrawn Trilogy at least once a year.

It gets a lot weirder if you count the shows. Or if you think about whichever actors Gunn worked with in the DCEU getting to reprise their roles. Or Blue Beetle's actor being stated to be canon but not really having any projects on the horizon? Having a clear start and focusing on the trinity do not seem to be the goals of this universe. Him being in an R-rated movie makes it less likely to see him than if he just wasn't in anything that year.

Not to fully get into this, but yeah, it has a lot of stuff that could have worked very well in a different movie. Seriously. 1HY 2026 is a bit of a wash if they end up being disappointing. Cobb and Bane in a cheapish set is solid, and the $10 mando speeder bike is an excellent choice by lego, but neither are standouts or going to be a particularly special build. One is interesting because of the figures, and the other is interesting because of the price point. That's it. MBS was never real. Just the dream of a marketing agent from Billund. But really- all it means is a location vs a ship. The Death Star is both, so it could be either, but like you say I think MBS as a label is dead anyway.