The Stud

I'm a bit disappointed at the apparent lack of Bad Batch sets for this season but yeah, there's not a lot I could really see them making. There's still a couple things I can think of, beyond the obvious battle packs we would all want (Elite Squad Troopers, P2 Shinies, Coruscant Guard, TK Troopers) and maybe a Havoc Marauder remake someday.

One of the r/legoleaks mods mentioned that those were two of the figures they’d heard as possibly coming in the set, but other than that, there hasn’t really been much evidence one way or the other. I could honestly kinda see Lego basing a new Gunship off this flashback but I don’t see it as likely. I think just getting a new BARC Speeder with Sidecar on its own is far more likely. Whatever this Amazon Exclusive ends up being, I’m excited to see it. The Amazon Exclusive Star Wars sets have had a good track record with Vader’s Castle and the Razor Crest. Like I’ve said previously, I think anything’s on the table for this set and the 1080 piece set. Wasn’t someone suggesting that we’d be getting a rebel capital ship this year, like Home One? Or was that speculation about what ended up being Yavin IV?

There's nothing suggesting this besides MandR throwing that idea out in his video today. It's definitely possible but I find it unlikely.

I’m late to the party but was I the only one who had a really difficult time finding these at any stores? I can probably count on one hand the number of times I’d seen these in-person. Anyway, I decided to finally try to get my complete series last week so I went to a Walmart that was farther away from me. This paid off though, as they had the packs discounted to $3 a pop, which brought back memories from when that used to be the norm. I was able to find most of the characters there, plus an extra of that Classic Spaceman. I found a ton of the Referee there interestingly. The only characters I wasn’t able to find any of were the Falconer and Rocking Horse Girl, both of which I managed to pick up at a Joann’s Fabric, where I was also able to get the packs for $3 each interestingly enough. All in all, the only figure I missed in my hunt was the Space Robot because I accidentally grabbed an extra Dinosaur figure. I guess I mistook the Dinosaur head for the Robot head, which was especially annoying because I knew I felt other Robot figures later on but didn’t grab them because I thought I had already found it. I ended up just ordering that one online, but now I can say I have a complete set! I believe this is my fifth complete CMF series in a row. I generally liked the series when it first got leaked last December, but I wasn’t feeling a huge rush to go out and get them. That may be due to my ongoing Lego burnout recently, but I was pretty impressed with all of the figures once I had them in-hand. I will say that none of them really stand out to me as a clear favorite, besides the Classic Spaceman which feels like a cheat of answer. Despite my difficulty finding it, I did really like that Space Robot figure. I also like the Koala Guy, Dinosaur Suit, Newspaper Boy and surprisingly I really like the Ref figure for some reason. Maybe it’s because it’s my first time getting a piece with that new highlighter yellow color. The only one I really dislike is the Rocking Horse Girl just because she’s so bland and generic. I will say that I did notice some small quality issues on a few of the faces however. The face paint on the Queen looked a little rubbed off and a few of the other characters’ face prints were a bit imperfect as well, including the Classic Spaceman. Nothing too major but I feel like I said something similar about one of the other CMF series last year. All in all though, I like this series. Kinda crazy that this will be the last non-licensed series in bags.

It's not that we can't get those anymore. There's just so much Star Wars content out there, with new stuff constantly coming out, and there's only so many sets Lego can make in a year. I actually think that if and when the KOTOR remake happens, we could definitely see some form of Lego representation. Then again, Fallen Order was a massively successful game and has only gotten that BD-1 set, so I might be wrong there.

For what it's worth, I saw one of the mods on the legoleak subreddit also comment on hearing about Rex and Luminara *possibly* being in the Swamp Speeder. I'm still a bit skeptical but stranger things have happened. I'm amazed Lego has gone this long without making a new Rex. I can kinda understand not doing it in 2020 because they probably designed those TCW sets a while in advance and were playing it safe, though that Anakin Interceptor set would have been a great place to include him. But not in 2021 when we got two more sets from TCW S7 or when we've gotten a TBB set in 2021 and 2022 as well? Creating the buildable helmet set shows they know the popularity of the character, and I'd argue that creating a Rex helmet that could hold a range finder was part of their motivation for the new P2 helmet mold, but they're still taking their time to actually make a new figure for whatever reason. I wouldn't expect a new Rex figure, young or old, from the Ahsoka series either since he only seems to be playing a very small role, if any, in that series from what we've heard so far. I'd say a new Ezra and Thrawn are far more likely and even then, I think Lego will save them for a "spoilery" Ahsoka set in 2024. That was just the reason one designer gave in a random interview. Just like the clone pilot answer, I think this is just another example of Lego designers not being the greatest at PR and that they're probably just spit-balling when it comes to questions like this. What's more likely is that they underestimated demand for the game (and as silly as it is for a franchise called Star Wars, being wary of any potential violence ahead of the game's release still could have played a role as well), hence why we didn't get anything for Triple Force Friday in 2019. When the game turned out to be a smashing success, they already had their 2020 lineup planned and set slots in the following years since then have been limited with all the other new content coming out. We did finally get something in the form of BD-1 last year, and I thought that was a sign we'd get more Fallen Order/Survivor sets this year, not to mention the return of the Rio Durant arms for CMF Stitch this year which would be great for a Greez Dritus figure. That being said, I'm not feeling too confident about us getting anything at the moment. Sad, because I loved the first game and am really excited for the new one. There's so much they could do but oh well. I'm still curious as to what these mystery sets are, but we'll find out in the next few months I guess. If we are indeed getting a 1000-ish piece set AND a 1300-ish piece set in addition to the Ahsoka sets in September, I'm pretty intrigued to see what they could be. My preferences would include the Mantis, a TBB S2 set or, yes, a Gunship, but I'm keeping my expectations low. Since they already revealed the updated live-action model at Celebration last summer, I think he could very well be coming in one of the two Ahsoka sets.

Nah. I fully expect that set to be a pointless remake with boring Yoda and R2 figures again and no one else. I’d be happy to be wrong though. The Clone Wars 20th Anniversary is an arbitrary label that Lego and other merchandise companies are slapping onto boxes to sell even more Clone Wars merch, which has already been selling fairly well anyway in the last few years. They’re not even really doing anything to commemorate the 2003 Clone Wars series which is the Clone Wars that actually came out 20 years ago. Most of the attention is being given to the 2008 series, which begs the question of why they aren’t just doing a 15 year anniversary for that? Anyway, I can’t imagine Lego is unaware of the demand for a new non-UCS Gunship but I don’t know if I see it happening this summer. I said otherwise a couple months ago but I’ve changed my mind. In the past, Lego always released AT-TEs and Gunships side by side but nowadays, Lego probably doesn’t want to dedicate shelf space to two large prequel sets at the same time (plus a large TBB set which is essentially prequel-adjacent), especially with all the new content coming out. I think this 1000+ piece set is a true wild card, just like the two $100 sets in Summer 2020 were. If it is an OT ship like Home One or the Nebulon Frigate, I wouldn’t be disappointed by any means, but it’d feel a bit odd for Lego to dedicate two of the largest non-D2C sets for the summer/fall to the OT, especially with all the new content coming out in 2023. At the same time though, out of all that new content, I don’t know what they’d base this set off of. I’d love it if it was a Jedi: Survivor set of The Mantis, but I’ve kinda lost hope of Lego touching that franchise. (I thought last year’s BD-1 was a clear sign that Lego would do more but now I’m not so sure.) The Fondor would be nice but I don’t think Lego will make that until 2024 when Andor season 2 releases. Maybe it could be a Bad Batch season 2 set, but I’m kinda doubting that for some reason. I think a Skeleton Crew set is more possible than I thought initially, but I still think it’s too soon. The show probably won’t air until late 2023/early 2024, and like most of the other Disney+ sets, we probably won’t get sets until after. As for the remaining 2023 Mandalorian set, I’m glad to hear confirmation that it is indeed a Fang Fighter. As much as they’ve been slipping up lately, I don’t know why people were so quick to assume Lego got the ship name wrong and assumed the set was just going to be based off the dogfight in this week’s episode. For starters, the minifigure selection probably would have been exactly the same as the Spider Droid set, plus a TIE pilot and maybe another figure or two. Also, we still haven’t seen that leaked Death Watch Mandalorian in the show yet. We could (and apparently will) see more TIE Interceptors later on in the show, so the Fang Fighter is definitely still on the menu. I do think it’s bizarre how Lego is handling the release of these Mandalorian sets though. This set is apparently based off of the last episode (or at least a later episode) in the season, right? It apparently contains spoilery elements and they’re revealing AND releasing it within two weeks after the season ends. And knowing Lego, they somehow still expect for this thing to not leak. So why is the Spider Droid and the Microfighter releasing in August and this set releasing in May? It’d make more sense for all of these to either release together at some point during the summer or for the set that actually contains potential spoilers to release in August, rather than the two smaller ones that have absolutely nothing spoilery within them. Also, if Din Djarin doesn’t appear in the Fang Fighter vs TIE Interceptor set, then that means the titular character wouldn’t be coming in any of the Season 3 sets until the second wave in August. That’s just really weird. Back to the Fang Fighter though, I bet that one of the spoilery inclusions ties in with a recent credibly sourced leak/rumor that

Rachel Morrison, the director of Chapter 18, posted a picture of the actual Spider Droid prop they used for the episode and I have to say that the Lego model does look fairly close to it. Much more accurate than I thought it was. Including a cockpit but not the cyborg that includes it is very bizarre however. Hopefully some ingenious builder is able to design a custom one that can fit inside. That new Bo-Katan figure is absolutely STELLAR. The face and hair piece are perfect. Honestly might be one of the best and most accurate Star Wars figures ever. I hope Sabine gets this same level of detail with the Ahsoka series sets. The Rebels S1 and S2 figures we got were a bit underwhelming and inaccurate.

That’s how I felt at first when we heard what was coming in that set, but Lego probably doesn’t have much to go off of for the second half of the season. This set is only from the second episode and it still has quite a few inaccuracies and odd omissions. If Season 3 is anything like Season 2, most of the trailer footage is probably from the first half of the season and I’d imagine that in that same vein, Lego was probably only able to make sets from the first four episodes. Now that I’ve slept on it, I like the set a little less now. Like others are saying, it’s another gray hunk of junk and I don’t feel really accurately represents that really cool scene from the episode. As someone trying to collect all The Mandalorian sets, I feel very *whelmed* by the Season 3 sets so far. I’ll still get everything but I’m still hoping the TIE Interceptor vs. Fang Fighter blows me away and makes up for the rest.

I really like the look of this set, though I do have some problems with it. The spider droid definitely looks a bit oversized and it looks like the cyborg thing itself is not included to be inside this thing, which is pretty disappointing. I also would have liked to see a print or sticker for the creepy eye on this thing. I would have also liked a side build of some sort, whether it be the Mandalorian rotisserie thing or Grogu’s new pram. And for $45, I wish they would have included another figure (one of those Alamites or I guess the cyborg itself). It kinda feels like they did the bare minimum in a lot of ways on this one, but in spite of that, I do still think is a good set. The build looks really cool and unique, which I appreciate. Like I’ve mentioned before, this set will really stand out in a Star Wars display. There’s not many other sets that we’ve gotten quite like this. And even though we could have used 1-2 more figures here, the updated Bo-Katan looks amazing and it’s sweet that we’re getting the updated helmet print and darksaber piece for Din Djarin. The set could be improved in some ways but I really dig it overall and will probably pick it up sometime in August or September.

Glad I was right about the new Darksaber mold. This set sounds like it'll be a really cool one, especially with the updated Bo-Katan included here. Fingers crossed that the rest of the figure gets slightly updated beyond just the arms. I wish we could have gotten an Alamite here as well, since (minus the updated helmet printing) another Din and Grogu isn't very exciting, but I'm excited to see pictures tomorrow regardless. The spider droid thing looks really unique and will really stand out in a Star Wars display.

Really? I hadn't heard anyone complaining about this. Most of what I've heard is that people thought this guy looked cool and they liked these new pirate characters. Glad to hear there's still hope for the Jabba diorama. I am curious what that 9+ 1083 piece set is though. I would think it's based on newer media seeing as how we don't know what it is yet. I think it's still too soon for a Skeleton Crew set, especially one at that size, so maybe it could be TBB Season 2 or Jedi: Survivor related? I guess Lego didn't have material to go off of until after they were already working on the Snubfighter and Interceptor VS. Fang Fighter, but they still got it soon enough that we don't have to wait super long like we did with a lot of the Season 2 sets. I'm more confused why we have to wait for the N-1 Microfighter?

Not necessarily. Of all the signs pointing to the potential cancellation of the DoD sets, this was always one of the least compelling arguments for me. (Just to be clear though, I’m feeling pretty doubtful about these sets actually releasing, but not because they didn’t mention them today.) If they are still coming, they don’t want people focusing on other sets coming out later that they haven’t revealed yet. They want people to focus on these ones first.

This is exactly what I was talking about a week or two ago when I talked about the lack of fanfare around this revival. After weeks of leaks and people finding the sets early, pictures are just getting dumped onto Shop@Home. No big or spectacular press release and all of the attention is on the Temple of Doom because Lego won’t give a straight answer about why or technically if it’s cancelled. All signs are pointing to it being cancelled anyway, it’s just the PR BS that annoys me.

Don’t get me wrong, I’m feeling frustrated and annoyed with this whole situation too, but this is an odd stance to take about DoD. The potential lack of Lego tie-in is idiotic, but the movie itself still looks really good. It’s funny how for years I was talking about how I wanted Indy 5 to finally be made just so we can get the Lego theme back, and now I’m more excited for the film itself than the revitalized theme. Such a nothing statement, but that’s classic Lego PR for you.

I probably would have preferred the $50 August Mando set to be based off of something “bigger” or more “spoilery” later on in the season, but I really enjoyed Chapter 18, so I wouldn’t be mad if the set is what I think it is. At least it’s something fresh and new, and it was a pretty memorable element in the most recent episode. I imagine Bo-Katan will be updated to match her live-action appearance and the same old Din Djarin (but with the updated helmet printing), plus one of those Alamites as the third figure perhaps? I could definitely see Lego finally making a special mold for the Darksaber and including it here, but we’ll have to wait and see. I’d like to get an updated R5-D4 as well, but I’m unsure how likely it is that he’d be included here. Maybe it’s just the bad vibes from the Indy theme, but I’m getting more and more nervous about the Jabba Throne Room not coming.

Oh, I fully agree. It’s just ludicrous at this point.

Apparently fans are taking the “501st approach” by commenting on Lego’s Instagram posts about revealing the Indy sets and releasing the Temple of the Doom. I don’t know if it will really accomplish anything this time around, but kudos to them. It gives me a good chuckle at the very least. (Though like with the 501st situation, I’m sure a few people will take issue with this and complain about others “harassing” a multibillion dollar brand’s social media page.)

Adding onto @Mandalorianknight’s point, Lego is especially concerned with show sets based on the animated series. If it’s not TCW, they’re probably not going to do much. Their missteps with the Rebels subtheme ended up dooming that line and has played a big role in the way they go about developing sets for other animated shows. Arguably the biggest reason the Rebels line floundered was probably because they did too many large sets and too many of those sets were vehicles with too little screen time. Lego went off of early concept art and they still seem to struggle with getting relevant concept art for sets based off the animated shows, as two of the four sets from the Resistance and TBB lines were also ships with very little screen time or recognizability. (The Black Ace TIE Interceptor and The Justifer respectively.) With how clone-crazed fans have been in the last couple years, I do think that it’s interesting that we have a TCW-esque show that’s solely focused on the clones, but we’re getting very little merchandise from it, and not just with Lego. To be fair though, TCW is tried and true. Generally speaking, sets with clones and Jedi against battle droids will probably draw more people than new stuff from TBB. It’s also hard to tell how well the Bad Batch sets have sold so far. I know TBB Shuttle was a set I saw overstocked quite a lot and very few people were clamoring for the iconic vessel known as The Justifier. (Though that is still a pretty good set, and I’m not just saying that because I got it for free.)

I’m going to wait and hold judgement on these changed prices. The Golden Idol Temple and Fighter Plane prices are plausible but $80 for the Well of Souls is just absurd. I haven’t been super pleased with Lego as of late, especially because of the lackluster way they’ve been handling the revival of this theme, but to their defense, I do think this could just be a pricing error in that particular Target store. I think Lego will finally get around to revealing the sets within the next few days so hopefully *some* of our concerns will be laid to rest.

Ohhh, I see what you mean now. If that’s all they were referring to, a changed release date doesn’t really matter much to me. If they mean the set won’t release on May 1st, and also not on any date after that, that’s when the disappointment would set in.

No, that was just a guess. It could have been what Minecraft Goat was referring to, it could have not been, we have no idea.

Oh god, don’t jinx it. That’s one of the sets I was most looking forward to. Like others are saying though, vague fearmongering is going to get people more riled up than actually saying what you know. Most people are going to be pissed at Lego, not the leaker, if some disappointing news comes out. And if for some reason you can’t say something, or you’re not confident enough about the veracity of your intel, then don’t drop vague hints at all. As for the new Mando sets, I’m collecting every set from that series (excluding the helmet sets) and its related spin-offs, so I’m getting these two sets regardless of any qualms I might have. The N-1 microfighter is whatever. It’s kinda weird that they’re waiting until August to release it, especially because I’m sure the updated Din Djarin helmet print will also come in the other Mando set coming out in May. Just like the full-size version from last year, the fuselage of the N-1 looks fine but the wings leave a lot to be desired. Still, it’s nice to include Grogu and Mando in such a cheap set, even if it should be much cheaper. It’s crazy to me that as of a couple years ago, you could have gotten a full-size Jedi Interceptor for just under $10 more than a Microfighter. Or even the Trouble on Tatooine set, which included the same two figures (minus the updated helmet on Mando), one additional figure and more pieces/builds, has also been very easy to find for close to the same price. The Pirate Snub Fighter is a *decent* set, but as I touched on the other day: without Gorian Shard or a main character like Mando or preferably Season 3 Greef included here, the set’s just kind of boring. The pirate figures included here are fairly nice and well-detailed, but even then, they dropped the ball by making them share the same face. The design of the ship itself is pretty nice but like others have stated, I’d like a little more color variety in Star Wars ships. Other than the lacking minifigure selection and $35 price, the set is a good one but those two qualms really hold it back. If it weren’t for that price, I’d even say that the set is good for army building as Mando had a dogfight with multiples of this ship, and with a good discount, I still might get extras of this set myself. Releasing it on May 5th is oddly specific, but I’m guessing Star Wars Day festivities will be the weekend after May the 4th since May the 4th is on a Thursday this year. In that case, I might actually go to the Lego Store on release day to get the two new Mando sets, the TIE Bomber, the Tusken Brickhead and hopefully the Jabba diorama.

Not going to lie, I don't know how much more disappointment I can handle from Lego this year.

Yeah, obviously stores get sets before they’re officially released. They don’t magically appear on store shelves on release day. My point is that Lego waited so long to reveal these sets that at least one of these stores that got them early has already began to sell them. These kinds of things happen all the time when Lego waits until the last minute to reveal things, but they never seem to learn. The difference between this theme and something like the launch of Avatar is that they announced the Avatar theme months in advance, even if they waited to announce most of the sets themselves until closer to their release date. With Indiana Jones, Lego hasn’t officially said anything about the theme coming back less than a month before said theme is coming back, outside of one advertisement in a catalog in one region. As @BrickBob Studpants pointed out, other recent Licensed themes got press releases months in advance. To me, it just feels like they’re waiting until the last minute to announce the theme and reveal its sets at the same time. That’s what I mean with a lack of fanfare. That, plus the rumors we’ve had to operate with (TOD getting cancelled and the Indy 5 sets being up in the air), while we wait for Lego to officially acknowledge the theme are just giving me bad vibes all around.