Mahtion

I grew up with Yellow only minifigs and flesh tone is a massive improvement. It may not be iconic but it looks much better than having a world populated by Simpsons characters. I will not buy any yellow figs because it is the past and obsolete.

It's a real shame too because the TOR theme had some of my favorite sets including the splendidly malicious Sith Fury.

But TRU pricematches with Walmart, Lego.com and many other retailers. I find them very reasonable compared to places like Walmart who don't even price match their own online prices. At least in the States we have that option. You wouldn't be able to take advantage of the promotions however, I tired during a BOGO 40% on some Microfighters and Battlepacks.

True. However, if you change the hairpiece you can make generics rather easily so I'm in favor of new unique hair molds for variety.

Well to be fair don't' these countries have higher standards of living with higher overall prices and better average pay? I mean the exchange rates also show that value of currency is worth more than the US dollar. Also I believe I have read that Lego keeps prices lower in the United States because of the high volume that occurs here. I could be mistaken. Yes, yes! I like this reasoning. I read that the Empire, especially Agent Kallus views imperial law as the only form of organization and order in the galaxy. By their perspective, the rebels stand for anarchy and disorder intent on undermining security and structure. Hopefully, I am certain Lego will make some Stormtrooper centric sets for Rebels.

I've read Unfinished Tales and HoME, much of the 2nd Age is about the Fall of Numenor and fragments of the Elves vs Sauron. I think it's a shame that Tolkien never had a chance to determine when Galadriel left Eregion or how it was founded. To me this period of time is the least fleshed out in the Middle Earth mythos. Considering how much Tolkien changed characters and their lineages, who knows what the end result would have been. Christopher had to extrapolate and make inferences into the story segments to even publish the Silmarillion. I just feel that if Shadow of Mordor is successful maybe we will see more stories of the Second Age because it is very much like the world we see in the Third Age. Whereas the First Age of the Sun and the Years of the Trees are much more dramatic. More importantly many are waiting for the Silmarillion adapation but no one has the rights. A story set in the Second Age would be great to green light because it has the movie rights and the creative freedom for daring screenwriters and directors. And with a new license would come more lego of the Middle Earth variety.

I have seen these on eBay as well. I was almost tempted to purchase Rex with 501st Clone Troopers but noticed that the feet are more round than authentic Lego minifigs and I think the body looks odd too. Thanks for posting, we should all be more vigilant.

I really like the design of the magic halberd and the Necromancer Peak. With Prince Orion's magic shield it says that it can generate magical shields of energy. I think it would be better to include an actual shield under the magic formed shield Orion is holding. Maybe something like a Lego shield with a circular stud to connect it. Will you be making more sets? The magic spring missiles are a great idea!

I think other than Silmarillion or Children of Hurin, a movie could be made about the Second Age because Tolkien never fleshed out the ideas and I believe the rights exist for Eregion, Annatar, Gil-Galad, etc. Looking at Shadow of Mordor with Celebrimbor and backstory for rings of power there is certainly a lot PJ or another filmmaker could work with or add their own ideas to complete the narrative. At the very least we wouldn't have to wait for new rights and the setting is mostly familiar having been hinted at in LOTR films. Eregion stood for almost 700 years, there is plenty of story there and we could see Elrond, Galadriel and some other actors return. It's either that or some kind of tie in like a cartoon show. Perhaps the license could be like POTC where when a movie does come along more Lego sets will be made? Unless POTC license needed to be renewed for the new film.

Which state do you live in? I'm in Florida and I haven't seen any yet in stores though toysrus.com says that the Ghost and Phantom combo set is available for in store pickup near me. More than likely retailers have the sets but haven't set them out on display quite yet.

I highly doubt Lego will make a new expensive ram mold for two reasons. One, Smaug is expensive so he probably used much of the budget and secondly we don't know when pj decided to use the rams. If lego designed the set over a year ago or more, chances are new designs won't be incorporated because Lego did not have them to see in production. I also don't see BoFA's being another dwarf heavy set. We got 4 as it is in the Lonely Mountain. We also get at least 2 in BoFA, having two more generic Iron Hill soldiers would take up all of the spots of the set as we are likely only getting 5 minifigs. I agree with others who said that Dain, Armor Thorin, armor Thranduil and 2 orcs would make more sense. I would love more minifigs to have the generic Elf and Dwarf soldiers but it seems unlikely.

Prescribing to a preconceived aesthetic of good looking or pleasing is not even how the world works. As you say ugly cars are a reality and are still just as much cars as the more popular or better looking ones. The design for the Wookie gunship does look the least OT Star Wars design but then do Cloud cars or sail barges fit in a neat category of what constitutes as Star Wars looking? They certainly don't look like anything we normally associate with starships and normal Star Wars vehicles. Also the concept art looks much smoother and less angular but when adapting a design into Lego it doesn't quite translate every detail. Also there is more color saturation in the plating with a greenish tone. Though I agree the gunship looks out of place with the other Rebels designs, I don't think we should dismiss its place in Star Wars based on it's appearance.

I agree with you on certain points regarding the need for profit for company sustainability and Lucas self financing for his movies. Though let's not conflate high dividends with employee satisfaction or improved benefits. A company like Lego could use their acquired financial resources to provide a better product or hire more people but they are not required to. In many cases this does not happen, the company shares the profits with their executive board and the CEO. With LOTR Lego, more profits are good because it means the line will likely continue but is no guarantee. In the United States we see a form of avarice that has not existed in decades. Certainly, there exist sound strategies for corporate growth but most of the time it is just greed. Companies have deliberately kept wages low weakening the middle class and their purchasing power. Doing things like having satisfied well paid employees seems to make good business sense and yet corporations are reluctant to do simple things which will actually increase profit. A stronger middle class would spend more and be able to better stimulate the economy. Such short sighted perspective is illogical and seems driven by a blind greed. Lego is not a US company, so they may have higher standards and hopefully we will see that reflected in better Lego products and more detail spent in LOTR as we have seen with better print detailing and more unique molds being produced. More profits for Lego from the movie and themes will allow Lego to take more risks and be more artistic. Not to mention all the dangerous shortcuts companies take to save initial costs and end up paying more down the road. Or the neglect of safety and regulatory practices to save marginally and yet again pay or will pay much more when a problem will arise. One last note, yes Lucas created a merchandise juggernaut but some of his questionable choices to benefit the toy market such as keeping Han Solo alive for more action figures seems a bit skewed in priorities. I am sure he weighed his options but we shouldn't sacrifice all art and vision for immediate profit in every case. At this point Lego does care more about their product name and they have gone to great lengths to publicly spread good business by allowing kids to keep their creations and giving out more exclusives. And the same should be said about sacrificing non renewable resources or public needs for fiat money that is not even backed by real currency anymore. Why sacrifice lives and human safety and viability for just a little bit more profit, I can only see the answer as being greed. While business is very important, it should not be the only consideration and priority. I am certain working for Lego or on the LOTR theme is a fun and rewarding job and since Lego is a European company, they probably follow all the safety and environmental regulations and pay their due taxes to their country which does support their community. Good job Lego! I hope they decide to continue LOTR and perhaps they will.

Very good start! I thought about a Fantasy theme involving 4 factions about right before LOTR wave 1 and while still in my Lego dark age. It involved 4 regions or kingdoms. The West was a huge forest with Elves, the South was a swamp belonging to Goblins who had overrun and destroyed the meadows and streams of the Hill Elves. The East are the dwarves who stay to themselves but are embroiled in a new war with the North. The North are an ancient human kingdom that was destroyed in the past and are now ruled by Necromancers and undead. The Forest elves have magic defenses against the undead towards the north. While their Hill kindred refugees try to retake their old streams now made swamps by the Goblins. The North kingdom of Necromancers is invading the Dwarven realm to steal a powerful magical artifact called the Tear of Mediai. The Goblins are shamanistic and primitive so most of their design reflects that with voodoo like encampments strung across swampland amongst decaying beautiful ruins of the once proud elf cities. I had originally designed maybe 2 sets for each faction. The largest one was Dwarven and involved the Tear of Mediai chamber and battle for it. One was a Forest Elf outpost fighting an Undead small force. Another was a Battlepack of Undead vs Forest Elves Another set was a Goblin swamp being infiltrated by Hill Elf scouts. The other Goblin themed set centered around a broken fountain in elven ruins and a battle there between Goblins and Elves. The Undead had a set with one of their half frozen and broken castles to the North with Dwarven siege weapons trying to preemptively strike.

Same here with my local TRU. One day it may go on sale even cheaper but once it hits a dramatic cheap point, they will likely sell out quickly.

I sure hope so, he should have been made a minifigure before now. Hopefully he's in some action scenes to warrant his inclusion.

We can always bricklink the other helmets to switch with the Rebels Stormtrooper. Cheaper than buying the whole minifig.

Exactly it's not about how many ships you destroy or bases you conquer, it's about winning the heart of the people of the galaxy at large. In the last 60 years, the galaxy has been embroiled in corruption and war. The republic fell because it proved ineffective and was perceived as obsolete. The Jedi were branded traitors. Then the empire came and things got much worse for average people. With the authoritarian rule of the Empire weakened, citizens are not willing to simply embrace the old, arguably failed Republic. They need time to decide and for each system it may be preference to side with the Alliance or the Imperials. Enter Luke and the new generation to teach the galaxy what the Republic means and what the Jedi stand for once again. You are correct to say that the general populace do not understand the Jedi vs Sith. They barely knew what the Jedi were unless they lived on Coruscant and even then the planet is so large they may go there entire life without visiting the temple or understanding the order. They certainly have no knowledge of Dooku or Palpatine as Sith Lords. They will only recall the Clone Wars and the traitor Jedi and now the son of Vader wants to reestablish a failed system of superstitions and hockey religions. Why should they trust either the Alliance or the new Jedi?

Very good points. I like this line of thinking and it makes perfect sense considering how force users are always a threat, whether Jedi or not. I like the idea of a hollow victory. That the emperor died and Vader but the Rebels have not been able to provide a stable alternative for galactic rule. It could be that imperial agents or Inquisitors are undermining the Alliance and making them appear weak so that the galaxy does not trust their authority. It could a role reversal while at the same time allowing a legitimate threat behind the scenes in a form of shadow war. On the outside the Alliance is governing the Republic but behind the scenes the Imperials are terrorists and subverters. Luke could be harassed and hunted so the Jedi do not come back and with it the new fully powerful Republic as of old. Without a centralized Republic and the Jedi the civil war will continue and the Empire has a chance. Brilliant! I think going off rebels "he's not a Sith" inquisitor that the enemies in sequels will be a mix of imperial officer and Jedi Hunter. I very much think that imperial remnants will be ruled by grand moffs who won't give up their systems to the alliance meaning a unified republic is impossible

Lego would never release the ep7 sets after ep7, that's just silly. Now if Lego moved the summer 2015 wave to around the films release where the Hobbit sets were released last year that would be ideal. I would imagine that since Lego Star Wars is a huge seller for Lego they would easily move the Star Wars wave for the maximum selling potential of ep7 Lego sets. The biggest buzz would be right before or as the movies are released.

Yup. I have mentioned the SW rebels visual guide a few times now. It's a great wealth of info and indicator of future Lego sets. ;)

Ok according to Rebels visual guide the gunship is made by Appazanna Engineering Works on Kashyyyk. It is made with indigenous Wookie design along with their well known craft Oevvaor Catamaran and Raddaugh Gnasp flutter craft. It's a Auzituck anti-slaver class gunship with 3 Sureggi twin laser cannons. "Since the Empire invaded Kashyyyk, those left in the Wookie military must now focus their efforts on battling slavery. Wookie gunships, custom painted in traditional clan designs, are sent on assault and rescue missions.

Looks very close to the design in the Rebels visual guide. The color is off, looks more olive or light green/yellow but the design is accurate. The design in the book looks the least Star Wars like to begin with, though the galaxy is a huge place. As for authentically wookie, I don't know. I do believe that this set will be popular with kids and afols because we all like wookies.

So is OT done by 2015? With Rebels having so many new designs begging to be made in Lego and ep7 on the horizon, this may be the last of OT sets. I'm guessing some more micro sets and then half rebels and half OT sets. By summer next year everything will be ep7 to coincide with the momentous release hype. Then it will be Rebels and ST only for 2016 and beyond. I think Lego will definitively make the Broken Horn with Vizago and his droids. Along with the Tie Advanced with Inquisitor. Then probably an AT-DP for another set. And then a set with Kallus leading stormtroopers in an Imperial Troop Transport.

Was brown the most accurate color for the new MTT?