TheLegoDr

I guess I didn't realize they weren't selling well. The planet sets are some of my favorite. You get a neat character and a neat mini build that I normally wouldn't attempt to build.

Thanks for the review. I will definitely pass on this, but mostly because I don't need any white bricks. The booklet is probably worth it, but I don't want to spend 150 on that. It does have some nice visuals and a large piece selection.

When I first watched LOTR, I definitely confused who they were. It didn't help that I saw the second one before the first one. So that funny is very fitting. The Thor one did make me chuckle a bit. I could picture him saying that.

Great job. I like the designs used, but if you do real bricks you will have to swap out some colors. I don't think those Windows come in that large of variety. I like the front window of the Quidditch store the most. And interesting roof technique on the Owlery. I have been meaning to build my own Diagon Alley, but am torn if I want it more realistic to the movies or if I should follow LEGO's lead.

It was the turntable windows. I liked the effect it gave. It would work well for stained glass windows also. That is something I am planning on doing with a Modular I am building.

The scale is impressive. The angles used is neat. I like the furthest left building the most. I need to look at those windows a little closer. Great stone ground in the courtyard. I love the mix of round tiles and plates. I hadn't considered doing that before, but I definitely will now whenever I finish my castle. Keep up the great work!

Brilliant! It looks very lifelike indeed. I had to do a double take at that cannister spilling out. Very fluid piece usage there. The garbage at the bottom of the water seems very natural too. In fact, the whole build is natural. Look at that bridge! Poor kid...I guess once something goes there, it should just stay there. I'd rather buy a new ball. Keep up the great work!

I like the beetle more, but both look great. Great use of pieces at that scale. The curves work well with the beetle. But this is coming from a non-car builder. Keep up the great work!

There are a lot of great characters they didn't make...hopefully in the future. I don't know how much stream the series has left, but I've enjoyed them. Plus, anything for new pirate LEGO.

LiamM32 - I love the Modular line, so I would definitely pick one of them up. As others have said, I will repeat. Buy the Grand Emporium first. Once you buy one, it's hard not to get the rest and with that leaving first, probably not a bad idea. In all honesty, I'd go for the Fire Brigade (which wasn't on your list) because it is a really fun build with a beautiful end result. That will also be leaving soon (before the GE I believe). It was my first Modular and I love it, but the GE is a great addition also. The Town hall will have some shelf life left, so I'd hate to rush into that and wait on something else you may end up wanting later. Technic is not for me, so I have no opinion there. But you won't be disappointed with the GE. OrcSan - I would agree with others. The Funhouse Escape is a brilliant set with some great figures. I think in the end it depends on how much you are willing to spend. But I'd go with Funhouse and the Superman/Wonder Woman set to get some nice DC variety. Now for my own question. I have about $300 to spend after August 1st, which is when the new SW sets come out officially. I'm only a passing SW fan, but I love a lot of the figures. The sets are hit/miss with me, so I hate buying the sets, but at the same time most often it is cheaper to just buy the set than each figure individually. With that said, I'm only missing the summer SW sets and then any large exclusives that are currently out. The main sets I'm looking at would be: Jabba's Sailbarge, the Jango Fett droid set, the three planet sets, and Battle of Geonosis. As far as exclusives, I need/want VW Van, Sopwith Camel, Arkham, Town Hall, and Palace Cinema, and the CUUSOO BTTF set. I realize that is a large list, but maybe others who have the sets can attest to them. I know I will get all of those exclusives eventually, the only matter is when. The SW sets are more hit/miss. I don't care so much for the Sailbarge, but the figures look cool but the price is a downer. I mostly just want Jango Fett, but I don't want to spend upwards of $15 (from what I've seen) on a figure in a $20 set, thus why I buy sets. Anyway, thanks in advance!

Depending on which motorcycle, some have a recessed stud underneath that you could attach bricks/plates to. Otherwise, as in the new Catwoman set, it has this piece used to balance it. You can do something with that to prop it up so it won't topple over. Just a thought. I haven't attempted displaying motorcycles before.

I can understand the fatigue. The ideal situation is finding a new unopened box and a chair to leisurely feel the packets. Normally when I am able to feel the packets, I have my toddler in tow, so it can be quite difficult to pay attention to both. Needless to say, it requires multiple visits to get the figures I want in the numbers I want. That also adds to the fatique. The CMF are a great addition to the LEGO world, but it does add up getting multiple figures, plus all of the other sets out there. I think I am going to have to quit some themes just to make sure everything gets into my LEGO room. I'm not a completist by any means, but I like having a collection. With exclusives/rare figures, I gave up the idea of having one of everything. But for most things, I am an army builder, so that ends up taking up a lot of the money that could have went to an exclusive figure.

I hadn't thought of that. I love minifigures and of course am a fan of smaller designed creations, but a VW scaled Delorean would have been awesome. Either way, the review is top notch and I can't wait to buy this set. It's already sold out near me, so I assume it is a huge success so far.

I think the big thing is looking for deals, if you're patient. Eventually I will probably want to have a copy of every single figure, but at the time, I'm just buying the figures that interest me the most. Obviously you'll feel better about your purchases if you only buy the figures you like. The accessories are hit/miss depending on what they are. Some unique shields can go for a lot more than say something spread out across other themes, as mentioned above. With the newer production numbers, some figures are more rare than others, thus causing a spike in value. The earlier series, I think, were rarer anyway because of distribution. Not everywhere received the same as they do now, so some figures weren't easy to come by. Plus, I'm sure LEGO wasn't sure if they would have such a goldmine on their hands at the time. With that said, some figures can be found pretty cheap after they are out of stores, whereas the MSRP is a steal for others. I've seen the Spartan for about $12 on average, so I'm not sure where people are seeing some of these higher prices. I just bought a nurse not too long ago for under $10 with accessories. The zombie definitely goes for above $20 pretty consistently though. TLG did release a monster pack not too long ago that has the same zombie, only with a different color suit, so that satisfied my needs for the time being.

I joined the first day it was available, but I haven't been back since. I'll have to take some time and see how smooth it all is. If prices are affordable, I may have to make an order sometime.

I really like the latest trailer. It really adds to the book I think. I can't wait to see it in real time. As far as I remember, we only know what some of the hours do. But it will be neat how they portray the hours we do know.

I picture Eddie Murphy dropping the Mic after Sexual Chocolate performed in Coming to America.

I'm late to the party, but polycarbonate is also impact resistant. It's very popular for eyeglass lenses by making the overall prescription thinner/lighter/and then more impact resistant. As far as LEGO figures go, it's been discussed above that it has more friction and thus can't have a full transparent minifigure. They used to do (IMO ugly) molded figures in the earlier SW universe. They could go back to them maybe? Or like someone mentioned the ghost shroud. Make a figure (again, molded/immovable) out of that opaque material to give the same effect. It wouldn't work like a normal minifigure and that might make people upset, but it would give the same overall silhouette in the end. Just an idea..

Amazing build. Very impressive. Very clean. I like it a lot. The details are a nice added bonus. The little nooks and crannies here and there really add to the overall look. I don't love the dark orange chimney as much, although I'm sure it is realistic in coloring. But the rest of the house is a great color scheme. And I love those bay windows (or are they bow windows based on the interior?). That front door is top notch too. I love brick-built LEGO doors.

Nocturnus in tights. Do I hear a musical coming on?

Absolutely brilliant! And inspiring! The final model looks great as it is, but then that you can take it off and hinge it open is even more impressive. Add to that the interiors, makes this a slam dunk. I definitely want to get back into castle building and this is inspiring enough to do so. I love how it hinges open and has the two sides to each room. There is a part of me that always would want to make each hinged open section be a separate room, even though when combined wouldn't make much sense. Keep up the amazing work. I may need to sit down and work out some new castle formations.

Thanks for the review. I did pick this set up back when it was on a special sale because I needed large amounts of the sand green cheese slopes for my mini-Hogwarts build. I may have to pick another up considering this is the only set it comes in. One difference I would recommend is going through new parts or new colors in a separate picture, just to add some justification to buying the set. I haven't looked in mine to see if it had an English and German name plate. Did they all come with that? Otherwise I think the set hits the actual gate pretty well.

Very impressive. I have only seen that movie once a long time ago, so I definitely need to rewatch it thanks to this MOC. But, I can picture the scene vaguely and I'd say this hits it on the head. The ground being rounded with the grating effect looks amazing. The ceiling without four walls helps the MOC a lot I think. It looks very futuristic. Keep up the great work! Good luck!

Simply ridiculous. The scale alone is worth mentioning. I'm always impressed with dedicated digital designers. I've worked with it some, but it is so time intensive, I'd prefer to work with real bricks most of the time (if I can). But this is greatly detailed. I like seeing all of the classrooms and how you decorated all of them. Good job!

Great little build. A lot going on, so that's a plus. I like the oven idea and the sculptor rounding out the edges. It seems very fluid and lifelike with everyone having their own task. The brown statue is interesting since I normally only see them in gray, but I like it. And something I should have seen before on anything Avalonia, I really like the sand green arms on the dragon knight torsos. I know that is our colors, but I haven't really paid much attention to how that looks. Good luck in the competition.