Ardelon

Ouch, I hope its only briefly...

I imagine water could be a bit aggressive towards LEGO. How did it affect the chrome, exactly?

Nah, there is already a cheap way to get Frodo and Gandalf, we cant have them in every set. Maybe Elrond, a generic elf (or Glorfindel/Galdor) and possibly a Gandalf with hair and no hat... (not really a Rivendell set, just a fig-collecing set).

In contrast to a few other posters, I actually think the interior is one of the best (if not the best) yet of the modular line. Maybe its just that its more airy than some other buildings while still being full of goodies, but overall I think this sets has the best use of space so far. As for the frog, why not? Either a paperweight, or a souvenir, or something his kid/nephew/niece made him, or maybe it hides a secret key or alarm button...

It would be really cool if TLG branched out - a modular castle/palace (as in modular scale), modular pirate ship (not sure if horizontal or vertical modules ), ...

My vote went to the post office, as I think it has the best balance of and interesting outside build (mainly the cheese-slope work ) and interior details.

I reposted your whole post in that thread . Thanks a lot for the info!

yys4u posted this in the Pirates of the Caribbean Theme Discussion Thread:

Just in case anyone was wondering (like me) what the crest of Billund (as of 2007) really looked like.

Here is the speculation thread on this haunted house.

I dont know, its looks pretty modular-ish to me, with its size and the "complete/enclosed" look, whereas regular sets are smaller and pretty open, with often just a facade. The fact that we only see two sides isnt helping either of our arguments, as it could be either open (like a regular set) or plain (like a creator set), or just as detailed (maybe a creator set?). And the gate and fence do seem to be offset by a few studs from the edge of the plate, so maybe there is room for a sidewalk. Two sides visible might also mean its a modular corner building. I did think a haunted mansion was missing from the Monster Fighters lineup, but I too am skeptical of an Exclusive for this line. There is supposed to be a set called Zombies (or somesuch), of which we didnt see or hear anything, maybe it would be about some folks besieged in this house by zombies? But what about the ghosts? Couldnt it just be a scrapped idea or prototype, or project just-for-fun, or something?

I like the 32-wide version better, but its a close shave. Each version gives off a different vibe - the 32-wide says "affluent historical city center", while the 16-wide says "crowded high-rise tenements". Plus, the entirely pink storey section looks strange to me. But the inside is sweet, especially the top floor apartment. And the stairs are great too, in either version.

Really impresive set, with nice details, like the bust in the hall, the camera, or the chair in the mayors office. Out of my reach, though. If these sets werent so expensive, they would perfect for the girl market as TLG defines it, IMO - more female figs, a modular build allowing for play as soon as a module is finished, more pastel colors, and a rich interior. It seems the owner/manager of Cafe Corner got elected as mayor! Or is he the groom, with a change of pants and a top hat? I fnd it rather strange that all the upper rooms are open, with a view to the auditorium - there is no way anyone can have a private conversation with the mayor, or a private meeting in the conference room - anyone in the auditorium could listen in!

Another solution is not to make all 13 Dwarves, just the ones with more prominent roles in the movies (not a popular solution, I know). We have a winner! This just might drive up sales of these Friends sets... @ Ash: DaleDVM was merely pointing out that the Uruk-hai Attack set is there for people who prefer multi-faction army-builder set, so BPs should cater to those who prefer the single-faction option. Wanting multi-faction BPs would mean no single-faction option, while the multi-faction niche is filled.

Like this, you can at least be sure what fig you're getting... (collect them all!) (I'll bet most of our fellow Eurobrickers are pretty pissed to see posts like this instead of anything constructive )

Maybe it's just because the internets weren't as widespread as today, so it wasn't as easy to complain about stuff, for all the world to see. (@ def: that's not to say the complaints can't be valid.)

@ DaleDVM: Yeah, I guess it was you! Thanks, I did notice Eomers partially obscured torso, but didnt get a good look at the generic torso.

I would prefer torn sails. GITD parts would be phenomenal, though. The thing is to send them on another quest. Unlike PQ, where the theme was by definition limited to defeating the Pharaoh, these guys could fight other monsters elsewhere. Thats just a hypothesis, though; I believe this theme is a one and done.

The thing is, as someone already said (though I can't remember whether in this thread), some people only want to army-build a single faction, so multi-faction battlepacks might put them off. Good potential fleshie zombie face, on Frodo in the Shelob set. Shame we didn't see the Rohirrim torsos, nor Gandalf's.

Or against a ghost pirate ship, since there are no Pirate or PotC sets on the horizon? Or what about a ghost clown?

I like the NRG ninjas too. The sets are too zany for my liking, but the figs are nicer than the first wave, IMO (I guess because I like the snakes more than the skeletons).

I agree on the park, or at least a paved town square with a fountain and/or memorial. It should be an open space, to contrast with the buildings in the town itself.

The thing is, infant mortality is included in life expectancy, and as infant and child mortality was much much higher in the past, that was what drove life expectancy down. Otherwise I think that once someone lived past childhood (meaning they were a strong and healthy individual), they had a decent chance of reaching 70 at least, and much more if they were an aristocrat with good access to healthcare, which the admirals and governors usually were. Of course, booze, tropical diseases and accidents probably meant that soldiers and sailors in the tropics didnt live as long as they could have... IIRC, "longevity" is the term meaning how long a person/population lives, irrespective of childhood mortality. EDIT: Here's what Wikipedia has to say on the matter: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Life_expectancy#Life_expectancy_variation_over_time

The problem for me is that my notions of age changed as I grew older. For example, when I was a kid, 40 seemed a respectable middle age, while today (at 23), it doesn't seem so old. Anyway, here's how I see them now: for the Imperials: - Broadside and Woodhouse in their late 40s or early 50s - their Lieutenants in their early 40s - the troops in their 20s, possibly early 30s for those lucky enough to survive that long - the new governor around 60 for the Pirates: - Redbeard, Ironhook and Brickbeard in their 40s - the 2 original pirates with eyepatches, as well as the old and new wenches, around 30 - the original nd new moustached pirates, around 40 - the other 2 new pirates, around 30 - bosun Will in his 20s for the Islanders, Kahuka in his late 40s or early 50s, the others in their 20s-30s.

Good to read another review from you so soon, SirSven7. While I like the Forestmen sets better (except for the black trees), I prefer the DF figs, since they look more rag-tag, or "darker". Considering that a Forestman theme seems to be in demand (or maybe it's just among AFOLs?), it's funny that TLG's attempt didn't work out so well. How about pinning a master thread, which would include links to all previous blog posts?