RichardGoring

They have such good financial performance BECAUSE they charge high prices. They clearly like making a lot of money and are good at charging it, so why wouldn't they continue? I still harbour hopes that there is a clever play feature in the tree, which is why it looks so bad. Especially in comparison with the rest of the set.

That's really surprising to retire it after a year, but they clearly have the sales data and I can see it being less popular than the other ones on the market. People who collect them all will have bought it already, and those looking for a nice holiday build would probably choose one of the others.

It looks terrific! Great model and lovely wing deployment.

Yes, exactly this. I don't know if LEGO is getting 'more expensive' compared to the past if you do a like-for-like comparison. But I don't think you can particularly, as so many LEGO sets now are huge. I thought I had a lot of LEGO as a kid - and I did - but if all fit into a single large tub, which is probably not far off what Rivendell and Barad-Dur are together. LEGO has increased the number of larger sets in the last few years, and they're great, but I'm being even more restricted on what I buy because the space is just filling up with so many huge sets. And we have no idea what amazing thing they will release in the coming years.

Has the piece count been confirmed yet? Either way, if it's $270, that does seem high for the 'volume of stuff'. As usual though, I will wait for the full reveal to make a decision.

A curious choice of scene, and somewhat dark!

It looks terrific and I will definitely get it. The addition of the birthday party scenes is great and adds a lot, although I agree that the tree behind the stage is odd. I wonder if it's to accommodate a play feature to make Bilbo disappear, but I can't really see how? The details look terrific. I really like the business of the surroundings of Bag End and how it all flows together. Slight disappointment in that in comparison to the rest of it, Gandalf looks pretty dated with that hat mould and would fit so much better with a new hat/hair combo. Also, despite there being nine figures, pretty much all new, with the party scenes it really could have done with another two or three generic hobbits to fill it a bit. I wonder if they'll include any in a GWP, and then hopefully have the torsos widely available on PAB. Looking forward to seeing more. Finding it amusing that LEGO has leaked it themselves, while also telling everyone they can't show photos of sets revealed by retailers, let alone leaked images!

Looking through the full official pictures and videos, it really is great. When I first saw the 6" deep dimensions, I was worried that it would be far too shallow, but the lifestyle video especially shows off the scale and how nicely it's put together. Some of the play features are terrific. Yes, this is really odd. 10 figures, then 10 characters. I also don't think they can make their mind up on this, as the site lists Lumière, Fifi, Cogsworth, Chip, and Mrs. Potts, but the lifestyle video puts Chip and Mrs. Potts on a cart together and has Sultan the dogstool in there too. But not a character?

Well, at least I don't desperately want the Nintendo D2C sets because I don't really know Zelda that well and... [Mario leak] ...and well I will definitely be getting the Nintendo D2C set! Looks amazing. Took me a moment to realize that it was LEGO. It's so well done. I wonder if Mario will be removable from the kart. And will he scale with Bowser?

It looks good and the figures are great. On the one hand, it's smaller than I thought it would be, but that means it's also less expensive than I expected it to be. In general I like the style, proportions, and details. But, it's a bit of a shame that the lower levels are the same width as the upper levels and it could do with a bit of extra width in the main lavender section on the ground floor, and the dining hall looks like it might be far too cramped to actually use the dining table. It's right on the edge, and could have done with a stud or two of depth. But that might be to give it more space towards the front, so I'd like to see more pictures. Of course, changing either of those things would increase the price. I probably won't get it, unless my children start liking BatB, but it's lovely to see. ETA: The curtains in the hall and ballroom look great. And look at all those books in the library! Modular bookshop, take notes!

LotR probably does have a larger fan base, but about the same order of magnitude compared to Star Wars? It's likely a relatively small difference. But for LEGO, you're spot on. Castle fans boost the sales potential by a lot for the right set. Very fair point.

I bought Titanic because it really does look great, and the build is amazing. But the Endurance didn't really interest me as I really prefer ships to be minifigure scale so that my children can enjoy playing with them. A pirate ship that's not minifigure scale? No thanks. But the fact that this is getting a minifigure crew suggests that it should be minifigure scale. All other recent Icons sets that were smaller than minifigure scale didn't include figures. The French Cafe, Fountain Garden, Tranquil Garden, and in Ideas, the River Steamboat has no figures. Also, related to Endurance and looking at other themes, on the themes pages - Themes | Official LEGO® Shop US - they have pictures of a set with each category. The Endurance is the image used for Ideas. Ha! They can, and do, change their rules at any time, but I'd be so surprised if the Pearl wasn't a minifig-based set.

Fair. That's ultimately what it's all about. For short-term delight and long-term enjoyment.

I don't think Star Wars is the fair comparison though. It has so much investment from Disney and a large marketing push to promote it. Plus a legion of loyal fans who lap it up. Indiana Jones may be a better to look at. Classic films that people love from quite a while ago, not really marketed towards kids, and not a huge amount of merchandise available. LEGO did, in my opinion, three great sets for it, and they were all on heavy discount or clearance not too long after release. And LEGO likely won't touch it again as a result. If prefer LEGO to take the slow and steady approach that keeps it alive, rather than going out in the blaze of glory of a fun wave, where we still wouldn't get everything that's desired.

Arrived back from a trip to find all the pieces I ordered in November had arrived. Hurrah! Nazgul pieces, gorillas, baby gorillas, a boatload of hair pieces in all the colours, and, best of all, the pieces I needed to complete a few things! It will be a satisfying weekend putting them all in place.

They could very easily add a serving of 'corporate greed' and a dollop of people will still buy it' to get up to that number. And then maybe throw in an additional new mould to make people feel better about it. But hopefully they aren't that cynical. Hopefully.

Also, the number of new moulds and printers required for this to happen feels unlikely, although not impossible, for a set like this. Especially if it's closer to $200.

Having the snake head really takes away the need to buy the Trotting Lantern set. It's nicely done, but seems so odd to have combined a display object with a minifigure interior that really has no connection to the other sets the series. I had marked it down to buy if it was in heavy discount, but I'll just get some of the pieces now.

My immediate thought on seeing was that it will be a heavy model! It looks really solid. I wonder how much the interior will match up with the exterior? It feels like it could be similar to 43197 ice palace with only three levels inside (one very small) compared to many levels inside. The windows may well be blocked up inside, which would be a shame, as this is a great candidate for an interior light kit! Looking forward to seeing more.

Wow. Where did you hear that? I take this to mean that standard parts are not returning until June, rather than just a delay of brand new elements coming to PAB.

It occurs to me, what if they tried both scales and did a forced perspective, with the citadel and courtyard minifigure scale, on top of a microscale set of walls. I can't see how they'd pull it off. But it might allow a wider range of figures, and scenes at the gate too.

Agreed with this. Barad Dur felt a tiny bit compromised in proportion to get the internal floors done, but I understand that you really can't do a cut out of Barad Dur at minifigure scale, especially as so little of it was shown in the films. But those locations for Minas Tirith really do feel like they'd do the city justice, and the whole thing could be minifigure scale.

I love it. I was tempted to get the T-Rex skull set, but this is it and all the better for it. It feels like there's a few issues with proportions in a couple of places, but I'm happy to overlook those. I love the little details. And not just in the set itself. If you search the LEGO website for the set number (76968), then it comes up with this! https://www.lego.com/en-us/themes/jurassic-world/magic-word That's just amazing and I never imagined LEGO would lean into a leak like this! Ha! Well done them!

Edit! Just had an email receipt saying that the torn capes I ordered on Nov 12 have been shipped. Only the capes, and not the rest of the order, as others have reported. Really very curious.

Maybe, maybe not. I don't think they're doing it in date order, as my November 12 order hasn't shipped yet. It's not showing as anything out of stock