Oky

Yeah, that's a possibility too. You both have good points. Octan being such a prominent part of the film could be due to product placement, although it does seem unlikely that they would want themselves to be represented as the bad guys. You raise a good point, but here is how I see it: Keep in mind that those real world items are made out of Lego in the set. If we are to assume that the Evil Lair set is the movie set where the minifigs film the movie, this is how they will appear in the Lego universe's version of The Lego Movie, so they wont actually be items from our world. Why the minifigs would want to put things that resemble a giant lollipop, battery, and tube of glue into the movie is a different question. On the other hand, in a world with unicorn-kittens, why not.

I'm glad you agree. Yes, the more I think about it, the more obvious it seems to me as well and I'm surprised I didn't think of this sooner.

I just had an interesting thought... As you may know, Shop @ Home has a promotion right now where you get a free The Lego Movie poster sticker to customize your Palace Cinema. If this poster is canon, that means that the Lego Movie is a movie within the Lego universe! This would explain a lot as it would make the Lego Movie universe a self-contained meta universe that is still part of the Lego universe. Which means that the locations and vehicles in the Lego Movie sets are movie set pieces and props and that the minifigs are actors, kind of like in the Lego Studios sets! So, going by this canon, if you wanted to incorporate the sets in your Lego City layout, you could have the characters gather in front of the Palace Cinema for the premiere of The Lego Movie or reserve a section of your city for the sets to represent the stage where the movie is being filmed. The promotional videos for the Lego Movie support this idea as well. Some of them show "outtakes" of Batman in a recording studio being asked by a director to perform some lines to promote the film. This obviously didn't happen in real life, and it is a minifig holding the clapperboard, so the implication is that the film is supposed to be made by minifigs and that the characters in the movie are actors. This would also explain why Batman's characterization in the movie is a bit off, because it's just a minifig playing a parody of Batman. The actor is possibly the "real" Lego Batman seeing as he acts like Batman in the outtakes as well. This revelation blew my mind. Until we get a more official explanation, this is what I am going with.

Well, the sub was quite large in the show, so I hope they do it justice. Since it has to fit all four turtles, I'm guessing it will be about the same size as the Shellraiser which was also around the same price range.

Ha, that fact is actually funnier than the funny itself (the dead batteries joke has been a bit overdone in my opinion)! Some more from me: Elizabeth Sabé by Oky - Space Ranger, on Flickr Royally Screwed by Oky - Space Ranger, on Flickr General Zod Koon by Oky - Space Ranger, on Flickr That last one was suggested to me by Brickus.

Exactly. I wouldn't say that transforming vehicles have weak structures or are too cliched since TLG successfully makes transforming vehicles in their action themes all the time, but they just don't fit into this particular theme. I believe this theme is a unique cross between an action theme and Creator in that you actually have to use your imagination and build the alternate model of the set.

To get the point across that yes, you can build alternate models with these sets, in case it wasn't obvious. Maybe they didn't include alternate instructions in the bigger sets to save paper. There is a code on the front of the fire mech that you can enter on a website, so maybe the alternate instructions for that set are online. Or maybe there is a picture of the alternate model on the back of the instructions and they leave it up to you to figure out how to build it like they did with sets back in the 90's.

I don't think Simpsons and Chima are popular enough to generate interest for a themed month, although Simpsons might give an interesting new twist on EB's traditional CMF contest. Mixels sounds like a good idea though. We could have a contest for creating new Mixels, perhaps with a 100-piece parts limit.

I disagree. The plane has doors, a doorway with a saloon sign, and plenty of wall elements and plates, so I think there is definitely enough for a facade, plus a few interior pieces like a bar, a piano, and some tables. It's not as obvious as the other alternate models, but the parts are there, so you just have to get a bit creative. No offense, but I think you fail to see the point of this theme. True, it would have been cool if the fire mech was a transformer, but the theme of these sets is creativity, not transforming sets. Much like the movie, the sets are trying to teach builders that you shouldn't always follow the instructions and use your imagination to rebuild mundane sets into something new and interesting. If it was a transformer, it would already be both a fire truck and mech, so the builder wouldn't have to get creative to get a new model. So again, if you want it to be a fire truck or transformer, you can make it happen by thinking outside the instructions and coming up with your own design. Apparently so. I think it's just two of these back to back with one hole covered up.

Neat! That exploding porta-potty in the plumber set is hilarious. But I wonder why the Creative Ambush doesn't have an alternate design? It seems possible to rebuild it into a Kebab stand and a saloon playset, so I wonder why it doesn't seem to include instructions for that. Same for Rescue Reinforcements. Oh well, if this movie teaches us anything, it's to use our imagination.

I think it's time to revive this thread again. I think it would be great if we had a The Lego Movie month to celebrate Lego's first theatrical film! The sets based on it are so quirky and creative and would be a great inspiration for a contest: Use your imagination to rebuild an existing set into a battle-ready vehicle to fight Lord Business and his robots! It would also be fun to have a Disney month to celebrate the release of the Disney Princess sets. We could have a contest to build our favorite scene from a Disney movie and dress our avatars up as Disney characters. Friends month was a big success, so a Disney (Princess) month would be even better! So far I've been pretty good at predicting themed months, so I hope at least one of these becomes true.

Not all of them. I didn't even know there was a Day of the Doctor. I saw the premiere last night and thought it was pretty good, but a bit bland. Overall it was a decent start to the season, more so than the season 3 opener, so I'm looking forward to the next episodes. By the way, has anyone finished watching Korra yet? I would like to hear your thoughts on the finale.

Another Dark & Light shot, this time of "the Mandarin": The Dark Side of the Mandarin by Oky - Space Ranger, on Flickr And here's a picture inspired by Rhodey's secret password from Iron Man 3. WAR MACHINE ROX by Oky - Space Ranger, on Flickr

JeagerEX, if I may offer some criticism, your pictures are always a bit out of focus and your laptop doesn't make a very good background (unless there is some kind of deep meaning behind that Buddha in the back of your recent pics). I suggest using a solid background and maybe a better camera. Also, maybe it's just me, but I never understand your jokes, sorry. Maybe you could make them a bit more clear? Thanks! Here's another one with the Battle Mech and his evil counterpart as part of my Dark & Light Side series! The Dark Side of the Mech by Oky - Space Ranger, on Flickr

"Poor MODOK"? The only thing poor here is the translation, but thanks nevertheless, Piranha! These sets are probably going to be underwhelming like the rest, but the minifigures sound very promising! What exactly gave you hope? The Spider-Copter? The Spider-Trike? The Spider-Car? Let's face it, the Super Heroes theme is going in the same direction as other Marvel/DC toys by making random vehicles and slapping the color scheme of popular heroes on them to sell them to kids who will buy anything that has their favorite hero in a colorful matching vehicle in it. Because the Bat-plane is a giant mess. It's easy to dismiss a lame vehicle if it is just a polybag or small part of a set like Nightwing's glider, but Batman's Flying Bat-Claw of Justice makes up half of an expensive set, so people expect to get their moneys worth, but instead we get a big ugly contraption that doesn't even make sense.

I just noticed something. On the back of the microfighters boxes there is an ad for a Lego Star Wars Microfighters app. Perhaps it will be one of those videogames where you can unlock playable characters/vehicles with the toys you buy? Maybe every set comes with a unique code that will let you pilot that vehicle in the game and fight against other people? I know TLG has been wanting to "blend the physical world of LEGO with the digital one" and are doing so with the Collectable Minifigures Online app, so it would make sense for them to do the same with Star Wars as well. If so, that would add another level of coolness to these sets and explain why they are called Microfighters!

Well, the website lists them as € 16,99, but I highly doubt that's MSRP.

Uhm, no, that's an opinion. It is a fact that they are small and deformed, but that doesn't automatically make them lame, at least not to everyone. It is a common mistake that people like you confuse their opinions as facts. Besides, what's lame about getting an exclusive minifig and a bunch of useful parts for a cheap price? I for one like them and have liked them ever since we saw the prelims. To me, they do look kinda cute and introduce a refreshing new style and concept to Star Wars sets, mini models that can fit minifigs. They may not be accurate, but they're not meant to be; they're supposed to be stylized representations of the vehicles. I can understand why people didn't like the planet sets. While they are nice display pieces, there's not much you could do with those printed balls and display stands. The minifigs were mostly the same ones you could get in regular sets and the mini models were just slightly larger versions of the ones we got in polybags. The microfighters resolve all those problems by giving us mostly new/updated figs with different looking vehicles that they can actually ride without the pesky planet and display stand. It's probably the closest we will ever get to collectable SW minifigures and I think we should all be appreciative of that. Quite frankly, I don't see why anyone wouldn't like them unless the chibi style simply doesn't appeal to you, but even then you could still mod them to look more accurate. It's all a matter of looking at the bright side.

I'm pretty sure those aren't MSRP. All the 2014 set prices on that site are too high. There is no way that tiny Hydra tank is more than 20 Euro/Dollar, even in Europe.

I don't know, I think the green works a lot better than the orange, but I could be biased since green is my favorite color. I do agree about the minifig lineups though. The way they were before gave you a good look at the printing on the minifigs, but now it gives you an even worse look at the figs than the box art does since the accessories are covering the torsos and the legs are faded out.

Ugh. I can't even express how little interest I have in that steamroller set. I was really hoping that the final design would win me over, but it's just a big disappointment. Aside from Batgirl, none of the figs are truly new or particularly interesting, except maybe the henchman, but he's too scene-specific. The steamroller is OK, but not very versatile. I mean, how often do you see the Joker cruising around in a steamroller? But my real gripe with the set is that Batplane-thing. I was hoping its ugly design would be justified by a cool transforming feature, but no, all it does is fold its wings forward to crush the Joker apparently. That's the dumbest play feature I have ever seen. I really hope that there will be a Batgirl keychain or magnet or something because there is no way I am spending all this money just to get her (and the bricklink prices probably wont be any better). Sorry for this rant, but it's pretty sad when a JUNIORS Batcave looks more appealing than the flagship set of a wave. At least the Juniors set has some useful new pieces and the new 60's-style Batman & Robin. The other sets have grown on me, though, especially the Penguin set. I like that Penguin comes with an Arkham City style coat, and Scuba Batman is too hilariously awesome to resist.

That's kinda off topic and old news. It's Han. There was a voice actor who had credit for playing Han Solo in the movie on IMDb, but that listing is gone now. The Falcon is also said to appear and maybe other characters too.

I'm a little disappointed that the prizes this year aren't purely Star Wars as usual since there were a lot of nice SW figs this year that I couldn't afford, but "cool & hard-to-get minifigs" is definitely a good theme as well, so I'm not complaining! Seeing as the Fetts seem to be the Xmas minifigs for SW this year, here is an ornament showing them both building a snowmandalorian together. Fett Xmas Tree Ornament by Oky - Space Ranger, on Flickr

Thanks for all your detailed thoughts, everyone! I'll try do address all the points made so far. Ah, thanks for correcting me on that. I haven't actually read those comics or played LU, so I apologize if I got my facts wrong. I haven't read that book either, so I can't really judge how it fits into canon, but maybe TC is right, maybe that all took place inside Bill and Mary's imagination. But if it is canon, perhaps it is part of the Clutch Powers theory that each theme exists on its own planet. Another game I haven't played, so I can't say much about it, but I did play the Lego Racers games, which involved Stargate-like portals, and as far as I know, Lego Island 2 had those too. Whether these portals bring you to a different island on the same planet, a different time period, another dimension, or an island on a different planet was never quite clear I think. Really? Well, I'm glad I didn't disappoint. True, there have been several different representations of the Lego world with varying amounts of non-Lego elements in them, but I think that these styles are really just that, different styles of fleshing out the Lego world, and don't affect the canon of the Lego universe. In the Lego Movie, it's different because there are only a few non-Lego objects, so they stick out like a sore thumb and seem like they were included for a reason, whereas in other Lego movies, games, etc. it seems more like the artists were just too lazy to design the entire world in bricks. That makes sense. The fact that the story didn't come directly from Lego confirms that it is not part of Lego's own universe. Interesting question. I don't think they are part of the Star Wars universe, but they are part of the LEGO Star Wars universe, which are two different things. The Lego Star Wars universe is different from the Star Wars universe in that everything is a bit sillier and all the characters, vehicles, and objects are made out of Lego. Darth Maul may not be around in the OT in the Star Wars universe, but apparently he is in the Lego Star Wars universe (which makes sense since he was revived and never killed off again in The Clone Wars). It is in the same vein that I think the universe of The Lego Movie differs from the official Lego universe. It is a parallel universe that is a bit different in nature, but still based on the official Lego universe. In the movie, it could be a town that is inhabited by anthropomorphic animals just like how Heartlake City is a town inhabited by minidolls in that world, or it could be a TV show or something. We can't really know for sure at this point since the movie seems to incorporate different themes in its own kind of way. In the Lego universe, I think Fabuland is a planet of its own, but that's just MOCanon. When talking about Lego canon, you usually only count the System themes. The armless minifigs are largely ignored in all of Lego's canon material. Even the Lego Movie seems to limit itself to regular minifigs and a few brick-built characters. Interesting point. I always thought they just stole those jackets too, and since there was hint of Octan being evil in any of the other sets, I'm sticking to that theory. I'm kind of afraid that the movie will taint the name of Octan, causing Lego to not represent it as much in sets anymore, but the 2014 City sets don't show any sign of this happening, so I hope this is not the case. While I do think that there is an overarching Lego canon, you are right that some materials like the Lego Magazine crossovers (both modern comics as well as the old Lego Maniac comics) seem to make up their own canon, creating contradictions with other pieces of canon, and should therefore probably be considered less canon. I don't think that trying to sort out which of these things are actually part of Lego's official canon is overthinking things, it's just trying to make sense of the stories that Lego tells us. For some references, you might be right, but I don't think this is true for all references to past themes. Some of them, like the ones you mentioned, are very specific. If they say Ogel is a descendant of Vladek, it means that the two themes take place in the same universe/timeline. Same for Johnny and Josh. Why would they go through the trouble to give us this information if they didn't intend the stories to be connected? I doubt that they would do that solely for fan-pandering. Thank you for your detailed analysis of Lego lore, TC! And yes, MOCanon (My Own Canon) is a perfect word to describe Lego headcanon! You're right, there's unfortunately not a single Lego canon, but rather several different pieces of canon. One can try to piece them together to form a complete Lego universe, but some pieces wont fit into the puzzle since Lego has not always been consistent with their marketing materials, especially in the beginning. Still, one can put together a lot of the more consistent bits of lore that will form what I consider the official Lego canon, which is what you have been doing quite thoroughly lately with your Lego planets and timeline indexes which I appreciate greatly. I enjoy thinking about this too (you're the one who got me into it) hence my creation of this thread. In the end, it's all about what everyone's personal perception of the Lego universe is, and that's what this thread is about, to find out what those perceptions are! Piecing together a unified canon for Lego themes and using it as a guideline for your playtime stories is certainly not mandatory, but it is fun for some people. Even the author of that essay you linked to admits that it is fun to think about these things. As TC put it so wonderfully, it is like building with your Lego bricks and seeing if you can put them together to form something that looks unified. So if you want to find out how the themes are connected according to Lego, you can do that, but if you rather want to come up with your own continuity, that's perfectly fine as well. To each their own. I have heard a lot of complaints about how Lego is limiting the imagination of children these days by writing complete stories for the themes they create and thereby telling them what they can or cannot play and build with their sets, which is also why many don't like licensed themes, but I don't think that this is true. As many have pointed out in this thread, whether or not there is an established Lego canon, you still have the option to make up your own, especially if you don't like the canon you are given. This is true for any toys based on stories, and I think everyone, especially children, are aware of that. If they want to have their pirates fight their spacemen, they will, regardless of what the "official" stories of those characters are, as evidenced by your own childhood. The Lego Movie supports this idea by showing a world where all themes mix together and implying that this is how a child plays with Lego. It also tries to teach us a lesson about not taking the rules that Lego gives us too seriously. As I said before, the choice to accept the canon set forth by Lego or not is all yours. Nobody can tell you how to build or play with your Lego, not even Lego themselves. Speaking of not taking things too seriously... Young Han Solo - Canon? by Oky - Space Ranger, on Flickr