RichardGoring

There are no publicly known plans or rumours for this. Speculation is that they likely won't release playsets. They did poorly last time, but the adult-focused sets have been doing well. But they are releasing a second, smaller set later this year (a Moria book nook), which could lead to more sets being released, but they may still steer towards adult sets rather than playsets. But nobody knows for certain. If they do continue with adult-focused sets, it seems likely to be large scale sets as they've done for three years, dioramas, or specialty/gimmick sets that they think will appeal to adults. But that's purely speculation on my part, and from what's been discussed above. But again, nobody knows.

I feel like it's worrying that that was my first thought too!

Even better would be BAM. In the US they let you load up with 15 pieces, so you can get lots quickly. Although I know the UK doesn't allow that, so maybe do both? Possibly a lot easier to get from BAM, if this becomes really popular. Watch then pair it with a castle peasant or something...

Amazing! Now watch as they get locked into a single, expensive City set that no one really wants, and then never get used again...

Video review from Tiago Catarino. Nothing groundbreaking or new in it, but sometimes video can be better than static video. He recorded it before knowing the price, so guessed that it might be $220-$250, saying that under $200 would be great. Also suggested that LEGO must have set a budget, but Bag End didn't warrant being big enough to fill it, hence all the side builds. Essentially a lot of what we've all been saying. In the comments he's said that $270 is overpriced. It feels a bit too nice of a review. He's pointed out the party tree as being not great 'in my opinion', but that's about it. Shame, as he used to be somewhat more critical of things. I hope he's not softening. Looking forward to JANG's review, but I might have bought it by then if I want the GWP. Also, did a PAB order last night and bought a bunch of pieces for additional hobbits, so looking forward to filling it in. I noticed that Rosie's torso has TERRIBLE skin printing on her chest. Such a shame. On the other hand, it almost looks yellow, so if it ever appears in PAB, then will be another good torso for castle!

That's definitely great! I had something similar a few orders ago, but it was some extra plates and tiles - nothing nearly as exciting as all the animals! In other news, I had a standard order arrive to the US within a week and a half of ordering. Can't quite believe it!

That's incredible! Definitely going to look into doing something similar.

And yet, here she is eating all the polar bears... Ooh, great news! I bought a second pirate CMF mostly for the cockatoo. Glad to be able to get some more at a lower cost.

It's a shame that it's $270. I was hoping the official reveal would be more sensible. Oh well. It's expensive, and the interior is lacking, but I do really like the front, which is how I'd see it most of the time. The greenery and the detailing on it is great. It's just very overpriced.

Ah yes, the remnants of Nessie's meals. It's Nessie that is thought to have wiped out polar bears from Scotland, but the tourist board never talk about the ecological damage done by the monster.

I wonder if that is because of the approach. They had a large group of designers all working on Rivendell, and the way it was presented seemed to imply it was a passion project, and each of them brought something unique. The other sets have all been produced in a more standard looking way it seems, with a smaller design team, and perhaps the pressure of a standard schedule. This is all speculation, but it feels right given what's happened with the subsequent sets

Comparison is the thief of joy. And that comparison really does steal a lot of the joy from this set. And this is why LEGO rarely remakes large sets they've done before. People always clamour for remakes, but they will generally make more money from doing something new. Overall, I still like it. It feels expensive for what it is, but as I don't have the original, I will get it. Day 1 assuming an excellent GWP, but if not, waiting for a discount or suitable GWP/double VIP.

The interior doesn't look great to be honest, and feels small in comparison with the exterior. I like the fireplace mechanism, but the disappearing trick is disappointing. It's very simple, which is fine, but it doesn't explain why the tree is so poor. It's just a bad tree, which seems odd. Looking forward to seeing better quality photos and videos of it.

They did a sand blue bunny in BAM. Do you really want a blue squirrel?!

Well, I placed a PAB order on Friday (getting parts for a midi-scale Enterprise D from Rebrickable) and I am today shocked that BOTH the Bestseller AND Standard parts have been shipped. I'm in the US. I wonder if these means some/all Standard parts are coming from the US now, or whether the PAB warehouse upgrades have made such a huge difference?

I thought that the Bricklink MOC Pop-up store was great for that. And what makes it so much easier for the designs in the BDP is that they're all from a palette of current, in-production parts, so you can get it all from PAB, instead of potentially several stores and pay the shipping. But on the other hand, they were very careful during the MOC Pop-up to encourage people to buy from Bricklink sellers, which might make it more complex for those who haven't bought from the site before. It's another level of explanation that can be hard to do. FWIW, when I priced up the MOC Pop-up sets from Bricklink vs PAB, it worked out pretty close between the two - shipping included. I went for PAB for most of them though, as I got some GWP, which swung the value towards LEGO for me. But I had to wait a long time for everything to arrive.

Ha ha! Oops. Classic Freudian slip...

Oh, yes, that one is terrific. I wonder if they considered trying to expand to more builders. They've since introduced new rules limiting designers to one successful model per year.

I was hoping for the floating market too. But I can see that the 'modular' would have broader mass appeal. It's still excellent, so I hope it's a reasonable price, but there's a lot in it. Ha! I rather like the flask. It adds a level of whimsy which is often missing from adult-focused LEGO sets. I could see something like that appearing in Elves or Dreamzzz, both of which I enjoy. But yes, for BDP, it's a bit naff I suppose! Agreed that the sets will generally feel expensive for what they are, but maybe Bricklink has considered pricing and decided they can do them at a price that will tempt enough people. I imagine they don't want to have sets fall short of 3000 orders. Or maybe I'm assuming too much planning.

Series 7 finalists have been announced - Designer Program Series 7 [BrickLink] It feels a lot more varied than previous series? Or maybe just no castle-specific sets and the one that is, is part-fantasy, and looks great. The frigate and sushi restaurant look amazing, but are huge and will be pricey. All three are very tempting. I love the creativity, detail, and execution of the robot and antique collection, but I'm not sure they're for me. I await reviews before making a final decision, as they can sometimes bring out things you hadn't realized were there.

Very good point. If it lasts for that long, it will be a medium-term blip at best, hopefully. And yes, I suppose the increase in complexity of models is the major contributor to the price increases, and inflation being so high also makes it feel that things have increased a lot. But it could still make for an interesting natural experiment for them. I do hope Bad End doesn't increase in price further. I fear it would really dent sales and so put future sets at risk.

As we've said before, they have been charging a lot for some of the adult focused sets. I wonder if tarrifs give them a chance to see how far they push prices higher and so don't market research. Of course the US economy might drop and so the market opportunity falls too. Or it might push them towards smaller adult sets at a lower price point, because even more people will struggle with $500+ sets. Or, if it keeps going with all the politics, it may be cheaper to fly to Billund, visit the LEGO House and buy things there.

I understand that leaked photos can't be published here, but this photo was published on the LEGO UK website. It's since been removed. So I understand, is it considered a 'leaked image' because it hasn't been officially announced, or because LEGO have since removed the page? Or something else? Thanks!

Clay, who runs the legoleaks subreddit, said he didn't know where the $200 rumour came from and thought it was inferred from the piece count, rather than ever being something LEGO planned.

Amazing news! So many parts, it feels like such a luxury!