Merlo

I often hear about classic space, mtron and blacktron, space police and then after those ice planet and then after those maybe futuron and rock raiders and a few others. If I had to guess I'd say that many would love to have remade whatever sets were among the most coveted ones in those lines, like the Cosmic Fleet Voyager, Mega Core Magnetizer, Mission Commander, Monorail Transport System, Deep Freeze Defender, etc. 10497 seems to me was the talk of the town far and wide, and that one remade a ship that was not that interesting to start with (because it was among the first so the design is more modest). I can't imagine that if the same designer remade any of the sets I've mentioned up there that I wouldn't buy them. Heck, I bought 10497 and I never had any classic space sets in my life.

Thank you for proving my point. Even though I do not know of a manufacturer that has Lego's brick quality yet (some are close, though) and individually none of them measure up to Lego, if we look at just Lego VS the entire rest of the market, in 2023 it's a fight Lego cannot win. Eldorado Fortress, the colorful mess that it is, trying to imply detail with an inadequate brick count (love the ramp this time for a change) doesn't really measure up to the perhaps equally uninteresting, but none the less much more tasteful and elegant BlueBrixx offer. It even snatched the modular idea from it. https://www.bluebrixx.com/en/pirates/105181/Governors-Island-Harbour-BlueBrixx-Special As others have mentioned, give me a set I can rebuild easily (Creator castle was not that bad in this regard) or give me a big elegant "grown up" set for display purposes. Don't give me a big expensive set that's neither detailed enough nor it can be played with and rebuilt easily and 10305 has the colors and the details of a smaller set for a younger audience on a non-rebuildable scale. If we ignore the scale (bigger is not always better, especially for the wallet), it has a 6081 vibe, but without the ability to rebuild it easily as you please. And the BlueBrixx 105181 ironically looks like what Eldorado Fortress might have looked liked if the Galaxy Explorer designer got that assignment as well. So whatever my criticism for the new GE were, that set does some things great, top notch, loved it. EF does nothing great. It lacks both skill and inspiration and feels like one of the weaker fan made remakes and tributes online. It basically survives out there only due to the fact it's Lego and whatever other offerings exist - are not Lego or call for ordering parts.

How so? These are Lego-themed forums so something like that is all but expected. I can't tell you how many times people asked me why I don't play a Fender guitar even though my guitar was much more versatile and much more expensive to buy. I thought we were talking about 10305. Creator castle I imagine was technically not from the castle line but just a creator set that happened to be a castle and creator sets seem to focus more on brick building things and thus don't have generous minifigure offerings.

I think what you're talking about has more to do with Lego deciding to make it an 18+ set. As for the waves of sets you can easily build and rebuild, the preponderance of tiny pieces might have made that a part of history already. That being said, I would love a wave of smaller sets that are a part of the bigger whole. This way I feel Lego has peaked in 1992 with modular castle sets you could rebuild and connect any way you wanted. Honestly, my bar goes as low as "remakes but that have some detail in them". Like this, if we disregard the fact the front part is too different:

I noticed there's a number of people on eurobricks that don't really like bricks/designs so much as they like Lego - the brand. So no matter what the set is like, it's better because it's Lego. Compare just the wall on the right one to the wall of 10305. 10305 badly needed to take at least a half-hearted stand on whether it wants to look cool and like an imposing castle or fun and playable. Obviously 31120 doesn't need such a wall as it's meant to be fun. 21322, I think, was a good example where they knew what they wanted. They were having none of the brown seriousness of the idea and just made it a colorful fun playful set. I thought that would set a precedent of sorts and we'd have no more sets that are neither as cool nor as fun as they could be, but I was wrong, sadly. Not realistically, no. Maybe if you're a MOC maker already, then sure. But if you're just a regular "I like Lego" guy, you'll never have the time or the skill to rearrange 4000 pieces. IIRC still much better than we had with castle sets of old. I have problems selling regular sets, let alone BDP ones :) I set the price just a smidge lower than the currently cheapest available used set for sale on Bricklink and obviously the shipping is cheap or free if a local buyer meets me, and yet no one is interested. Pic, or it never happened ;) That was also kinda my point. I am not THAT picky about sets that have something. I might want something different, but I'll appreciate what they have as well. The oriel is cool, but look at how many different windows and arches and small decorations it has. It has snow, actual water tiles, it has a certain vibe, like mildly gothic, set in a harsh environment, there's an angled wall. It has a lot of visual points of interest that are aesthetically pleasing more than just providing a function. Now look at 10305's walls - all straight and uniform surrounded by terrain that looks woefully inadequate. And by "decorations" I don't mean it should have been a later period castle that has ornaments, I mean just little touches that break the illusion of everything being molded out. Isn't that what the new GE is? I've seen many fan remakes before the Lego set came out that were not as good design-wise as the Lego set, but that had a certain vision. Lego GE is lacking that. It's either a cool looking play set that is too big and clumsy to be swooshable or it is a display set that's not intricate enough for one to be able and feast their eyes on it. Imma let you finish, but for all it's faults I don't think many people are realistically saying "Explorien Starship? So boring!" :) That goes in line with what I was saying - Lego used to try and make things crazy, fun, interesting or some combination of similar attributes. They didn't always manage this, of course, but they sure tried. I don't feel the new GE is "fascinating!" "intriguing!" or anything like that. It's a very pedestrian version of a fantasy ship that has the vibes of someone taking an X wing and cutting off 2 wings to make it more realistic :) Yes, so much so. They felt like they were celebrating a spirit of invention, discovery and exploration. Other sets even more so than the GE. You could clearly see this vision when looking at the set lineup, it was almost palpable. The main vision behind the new GE seems to have been "ship goes vroom".

@Ruthin Road Couldn't agree more. The reason I think Lego could probably do better if they wanted is precisely that - when discussing this with my friends we can agree on a lot of points, just like I agree with you. So even though some of the requests I might have are unique to me, I feel a good chunk of it are actual valid points about the areas where the set could have been improved. @Triceron Yep.

I'm not super fond of olive as Lego sets are not usually detailed enough to offer a smooth transition like the one that would exist IRL, but I can appreciate when it's done well. With 10305, if looking only from a personal perspective, I'm not going to put that thing on my most prized display space as it's a bit too plain looking for that. Even 31120 - not plain looking. As seen here - with a bit of an effort to add actual texture even completely gray walls can look interesting and reminiscent of actual weathered castle walls. I don't like everything about this, sure, but I love that. And it also does not work as a set to play with (other than in a dollhouse way) because of the sheer size of the thing. I can remake 6081 into a different build each day, it'd only take an hour :) Btw when googling that I got a hit for this: https://www.bricklink.com/v3/designer-program/series-1/482/Mountain-Fortress As I just mentioned, I don't like a lot of what this castle has. But at the same time... it looks more like a real castle than 10305 if you want to pretend it's a real castle. It has a more interesting shape and look if you want to pretend is a fantasy castle built for play. It has enough little touches of novelty to give it just a little bit of oomph to make it stand out. So it seems that this castle, I've randomly stumbled upon a minute ago and have never seen before in my life, is at least somewhat better than the 4000 pcs official Lego castle everyone has been waiting for ages. And rather than spending a fortune on MOC's I would not be able to resell, I'd like for Lego to reach at least this level of: "okay, it's not my thing exactly, but darn it, it's good enough to buy it".

"See, I feel like I strongly disagree with this on all counts." - when you open like this, it's hard to think you'll be objective or perhaps that you're so easily pleased that you'd be happy with anything. "I feel like your criticisms of it speak more to your particular, individual perception of what the original was "supposed" to be like, rather than any actual deficits of the new version." - my criticism is not really related to the original GE as one would think. I am not particularly fond of that ship. However when one looks at the ship, one can notice it possesses certain qualities. It doesn't even matter whether you or me like what we see or don't, just a sum of things that can be said that the GE encompasses. The new Galaxy Explorer adds very little to that overall sum, even losing some in the process, so it's hard not to think of it as lazy and uninspired. It has the detail of an 18+ set paired with the complexity that wouldn't be enough for a 10 year old me. I think the failure of imagination is most obvious in the fact that the designer felt that to make a childhood icon adult-friendly one needed only to up the size of the thing. But obviously as an adult you're not looking for the same ship. You can probably buy the same ship already if you haven't already. What you're looking for is some artistic integrity... i.e. - give me your view of what made this ship wonderful to you. I don't have to be you and agree with you to respect you and your work. Just capture that feeling you had with childhood Lego in any way you can, as an artist would, as a musician would try to capture an emotion. It seems like this designer has long lost the contact with his inner child. "For the Lion Knight's Castle, I feel like the introduction of more complex texture and the reduction of more basic color-coding go hand-in-hand. The new version, for instance, doesn't need the scattered dark grey stonework to add detail because parts have been introduced that physically add actual texture. Yes, these features are subtle, and you can lose them if you squint—but why are you squinting instead of properly taking in the subject with your senses uncompromised? Why is the inconsistency between flags or types of trees a negative, rather than adding a realistic level of variety to the build?" - this is the crux of the problem with a lot of modern Lego sets. What makes anything exquisite is having a strong vision and then reaching a certain level of mastery within that vision. Lego's artists today don't have that. Their work often seems like they had a dozen wildly different requests for the build and a very short time span to realize the whole thing and please everyone. So 10305 has a lot of everything, but doesn't excel at anything. Well, it kinda excels at looking sleek, which would work great for a more detailed set, but makes a set of this level of detail appear flat. I cannot look at it as a playful set, as a lot of it is too plain and reminiscent of an actual castle for that, and I cannot look at it as a depiction of an actual castle either, as a lot of it lacks detail to support that. Not sure how you can argue 1 piece trees add realistic variety to an 18+ set. The larger the difference between elements the less it feels like a Lego set (brick-made) and more like any other plastic toy that just happened to be built from several parts. Having things like the same flags creates in your mind an image of what the representation of a flag (or the basis for it) is in a Lego world. Having factions with different colored flags of similar design philosophy activates that "gotta catch em all" center in our mind that's primarily what leads us to collect minifigures, etc. The old Lego flags can also be thought of as pieces that just represent cloth of any kind, to be colored and used as appropriate. A faction flag is a one-off piece and it breaks that philosophy. If it was more similar in material and size to the other elements, it would be less of an offense or maybe a necessary evil of sorts. As far as composition goes, I was expecting this to get mentioned but sets absolutely do not have to be simple to have good composition. I can name quite a few that still do. "And despite your insistence that they are "amateur" or have failed" - you're not being honest here when depicting my thoughts on the matter. You can go to brickset, etc, and look at who designed each set and try to conclude what their contribution was. This particular designer, I have quite a few sets of his and I absolutely love them. I think he's supremely skilled and have already praised the build of the new GE extensively. In fact, looking at all the sets I have and looking at which ones are his, I don't think I could claim any other designer did a better job than he did. It seems to me that he excels at reproductions and depicting objects in an aesthetically pleasing way, but not in eliciting a childlike sense of wonder. And these two sets in particular were representations of what was possible in Lego Castle/Space lines 30-40 years ago. And when someone tells you "imagine what it would be possible in those lines today after so much time and so many improvements", if you answer "the sets could be same(-ish), but much bigger and with smooth edges!" that can only be a failure of the imagination. "I think the success of these sets speaks to the fact that the designers have succeeded at that challenge" - as I've said, Lego is on a high right now and they're lowering standards all around. Upping set counts, brick counts and set turnaround times and in turn lowering both design quality and brick quality. Not in terms of designer skill, but in terms of having a vision to put the skill to good use. "But frankly I don't think you've done anything good enough to merit personally insulting their artistic skill as if you have done or could do any better." - as a side note, a lot of what you write does not seem logical and seem to be emotional reactions more than anything. If you were under an oppressive dictatorship, would you defend your supreme leader to everyone simply based on the fact all the people suffering have never even ran a state of any kind, not even a tiny small insignificant one? :)

I didn't mean the jet fighter comment quite so literally. The original GE didn't look so "fast". It looked like a multi-deck spaceship with some serious bulk that commanded respect. I mean, also not literally, of course, but it did what a lot of set did great back then - it implied scale that most definitely wasn't there. And I loved how Lego designers managed to do that back in the day. The GE wasn't even among the best ones at that, I immediately think of Cosmic Fleet Voyager and the Mission Commander. They used different techniques to add interest to the ship exterior so you didn't immediately know what was going on, adding mystery, intrigue and the possibility to imagine whatever you wanted. The new GE is a complete opposite of that. Instead of looking like the brick count demanded to scale down a big ship they could not realistically make, it looks like a small two-seater swooshable craft was enlarged so much it can now fit more than two. 10305 I've covered in its topic. When that first trailer thingy showed up and rumors that it might be the new castle I was thinking there is no way because it looked too simple to be interesting, too rough and, most of all, like the designer suffered from such sever lack of imagination that he just copied the layout of the creator castle: set on water, a big front part, tree to the right, a wattle and daub building, a mill wheel and even the single thing I like about 10305 - an irregular layout, like the one you get from connecting different side builds of the creator castle together. It's a 4000 piece set with detail befitting a much smaller set. The ramp is ugly, the grey terrain is shaped below my own amateur standards as a bad MOC-er, let alone Lego standards. It contrasts the fairly detailed shingle roof with 1-piece trees scattered around. The walls are just flat and gray and architecturally (besides the irregular shaping, which I love) it doesn't look that interesting. Because of this lack of texture it looks like a cheap plastic toy that was cast out in one big part, like a big dollhouse. Did I mention the level of detail is inconsistent throughout? Because it is. But even more than detail - color composition, the arrangement, combination and interaction of different colors. God, the composition... back in the day Lego sets had masterful composition. Some of them, I still can't believe... you can bring them to art class to explain to students what color composition is. Nowadays? It feels like if you did brought them to the art class and explained them to modern Lego designers - they still wouldn't get it. Look at this image: 6080 is a castle with very boring shape, 10305 wins this, hands down, no contest. But now look how 6080 deliberately places colors to both contrast and highlight, how they're spread around and repeat and play off of each other. If you just told me "boring gray castle, a bit more colorful soldiers" I would have yawned. But the execution surpasses the idea so much. The way the shields don't repeat, the helmets, the weapons, the way the wall pieces are same, but different. All this makes that very boring castle look somehow irresistibly cute and playful. Look at the soldier's uniforms. A simple decoration next to a wall that also has - a simple decoration. It's not a crazy detailed minifigure next to a wall that's just gray and flat with only very subtle highlights. It looks like it's all in the same ballpark, a part of the same world. Not a 100 piece tree next to a 1 piece tree. Not a flag design, next to a completely different flag design, next to a completely different flag design, all of them different thickness and shape and detail and supposedly representing the same flag fabric. If you squint a bit there's clear logic to 6080's color distribution. If you squint with 10305 it looks like a gray thing that a child carelessly dirtied with paint, or a gray doll house with stuck modelling clay :)

If he did, he would have understood some basic concepts behind it. E.g. the fact that a ship called "galaxy explorer" was not supposed to look like a jet fighter or that the straight sides were due to the brick limitations and were not a highlight of the build. He took something that was moderately interesting for the time (40+ years ago) and instead of updating it just made it sleek, like putting a new car body on an old race car. Not only is it not "faster" or "handles better" (it handles worse actually), it doesn't have neither the excitement of the new (seeing, owning and playing with things you've never seen before) nor the excitement of the old (vintage, classic, piece of history). It's just sleek and soulless. It's a great build that's boring and I've just chucked it somewhere in the back. Same as 10305, which I think is from the same designer. Sleek and no imagination whatsoever.

Same. Before I was bothered if I had a small scratch on a see through part, now each new part has scratches the likes I've never had.

Ninjago City Markets had more elements and colors I've never seen before than the last 10 years of sets I've built combined :) I actually googled Lego magnets before reading this and saw there are new ones. Agree they would fit better in some instances. For others maybe a taller/narrower brick would suffice. I don't think this would be a dealbreaker either way.

I wipe my monitors with mf, never a scratch. Maybe there's different kinds though. If it would just remove the shine without scratches, I would do that on purpose :)

I know of a way that's not great, but would work. Some Lego parts are encased in protective shells. Make an unopenable shell for the magnet that's too big to swallow. We'd have a part that's bigger than it needs to be, but better than no sets at all.

That makes sense, but keep in mind Lego - in its core - is already the kind of toy that is dangerous to young kids that might swallow it. Some elements in particular would be really really bad in this scenario.

What I had in mind was the possibility of mold appearing within the newly formed damp environments. I always have the former in mind, the latter I successfully avoid by staying as far away from stickers as possible :) Informative, thank you. I assume putting a set in the shade for a dozen hours would then likely be "same path to yellowing, only faster", rather than "aaaaaand it's all yellow now".

The logistics of that might prove tricky ☺

Like, use some mild soap and follow with a lukewarm water spray and let it dry? My guess would be no, as water might creep into places where it wouldn't be able to dry, but it's been a long time since I've first had this thought and every now and then someone would say they do just that and had no issues thus far. I washed a small non-Lego set this way to test it and it seems fine so far. It dried out pretty fast, but the interior and things like "snot holes" took longer. I've partially disassembled it a day later and everything seems dry to the touch and looks dry under the flashlight. Not sure if it would be that easy with bigger, hollower sets. Another question I have is about sunlight. Does Lego yellow if it's just exposed to natural light? Or if the sun is blasting at it due to the placement/time of year, etc. So, for example, could a Lego set be outside if it's always in the shade or no way? And is it only the white bricks that suffer?

Probably. Well, here's to making Renegade sleek and boring, I guess? Something like the Aerial Intruder would lend itself much better to a modernized version I'd think. For me the Forest Hideout remake is a clear indication that new Lego designers don't really understand what made these old sets appealing. That was one of my favorite sets as a kid, but when I saw the remake, it was a hard pass. I think I could probably fill a page or two on everything that's wrong with the remake. I can think of several highly regarded spaceships they can make, not to mention other vehicles and stuff. I found the Galaxy Explorer surprisingly (in a good way) simple compared to other 18+ sets I've been building. There was (comparably) very few tiny pieces, just bricks and plates, old school style. DFD has interesting shaping, but I'm not sure how they would translate the colors into an 18+ set nowadays. For the same reason, I'm not sure why magnets would be a problem for grown ups. Maybe Lego would refuse to make them, sure, but there are plenty of toys that would be dangerous for kids and that are sold with warnings.

Well, Lego seems to cater a lot to the "have endless money" crowd lately and they can probably just buy 3 more galaxy explorers to get those GWP's and then trash them afterwards :)

Yes, that's the one, thanks! That looks great from the standpoint of added size and complexity. What I would do is just bring them together in style. For example the MOC has decorative "round" corners - that could be "fixed". Same for: Match battlements style, remove the roofs, match windows style, etc. In the end two castles could feel like they're a part of the same theme, just like Lego castles of old used to (through usage of common elements more than anything).

Do you know if anyone who has 10305 and 3x31120 MOC tried to mod them to fit in the same imaginary theme/period? It sounds like a really fun project and I wish I had the time to do it myself. Now, it might be a big ask to make 10305 more interesting (for someone of my skill, at least), but it seems like it would be very easy to just incorporate the recognizable elements of 10305 into the design of 3x31120, as if both castles were made by the same architect. Lego used to excel at this back in the day, if you recall. Just popping off the roofs and the side builds would already go a long way towards making it into a tall keep-like castle. https://ibb.co/1GH5BX9

I don't imagine this was meant to be swooshy at all. I can pick it up by one wing no problem. The very edge of the wing - of course not. But with that, and especially the red bulges... I think it's obvious just from picking the set once that it has too much weight for you to even think about doing something like that. The guns - I've seen better. But the ships goes for a uniform elegant look throughout, so guns that look better by themselves might have made the entire ship look worse, or like they don't belong.

Epic, EPIC colors. I almost feel like I'm there in a place that never existed.

How so? There's nothing taller than that teal tower.