BlueberryWaffles

Honestly it seems wild to me that we're getting a $470 set, more expensive than either Diagon Alley or the microscale Hogwarts. I really cannot think of anything else iconic enough to justify the price point. It's way too much to just be Gringotts, yet at the same time I feel like having a Diagon Alley expansion out at the same time as the original is unlikely.

There's a reason that the merchandise was so limited. Tom Holland said in an interview a few weeks ago that the original plan was to only market the film as a civil war between Spidey and Dr. Strange. That plan changed later on, assuming because of the leaks and comments from actors like Foxx and Molina. Man, looking at the NWH wave after seeing the movie, I'm whelmed. Might not get any of them honestly and just Bricklink the Spidey suits. The Sanctum set is boring since its too similar to the 2016 set that was already made irrelevant by the improved 2018 building. I have no use for a giant drone or Juniors-style vehicles, and I'm pretty fine with my 2017 Vulture. Definitely getting the polybag though, love the cheap FFH suit and the drone is much more movie-accurate than what we got before. The obvious choice for a set is the one we knew before the movie, the Statue of Liberty. I almost want to wonder if that's the rumored $500 set? A few more comments I'll spoiler tag just in case:

I assume you mean those would be the three options to build? Interesting. The colors don't seem like they would be compatible enough for much overlap to happen.

Maybe the new castle style was driven by a want for more mid-range sets? Sets like the Slytherin bathroom, Fluffy's area, and this new Clock Tower/hospital wing may have seemed hard to fit in to the old pattern of releasing one large set per year to represent a relatively specific area of Hogwarts. I'm guessing not many people would be interested in a $90 "Hogwarts Bathrooms" set. And building off of that, I have to wonder if it's also a factor of the theme being drawn to the earlier years which mostly take place in Hogwarts. I know they're not perfect, but I'd rather have sets that at least make up a castle section than something like the Room of Requirement which is just a wall and can't fit into any display.

The Clock Tower/hospital wing is a little smaller than expected but I still like it. Not bad for $50. Also, who are the two students in the DADA classroom? Hermione and Neville?

Obviously not big on the sets overall (not quite the target demographic) but I do think the Spidey head is cute with the big eyes. Reminds me of a better version of the 2012 Spidey head that got reused to death. Hoping that Rhino head mold gets reused on a more detailed minifig down the line.

And I had just bought one because I thought it was going away. Any word on Herbology, is that still retiring?

I would guess so. There's no way another Republic Gunship is coming this soon to the UCS model.

This is neat! Makes me wish that TT did something similar to the Disney Infinity Gold Editions, where all the content is baked in as a single game file without having to use the physical toys. Obviously they would have to find workarounds for the toypad mechanics (like the size changing on different colors, etc.) but it would help Dimensions to be a whole lot more accessible to newcomers.

Honestly, the one mech I do own (Miles Morales) didn't seem very stable either. But it is weird that they got this far in production without this issue coming up.

The Daily Planet, of course! I know it's not likely, but the thought kept coming into my head when I was building the Daily Bugle. It would fit into any city display well, yet still have that iconic golden globe on top. The Planet has plenty of well-known characters (Clark Kent, Jimmy Olsen, Lois Lane, Perry White) and could supplement its cast with various members of the Superfamily. Throw in some classic villains like Zod and Brainiac and you're set. Realistically, it would be too similar to the Bugle to come out alongside it, and unfortunately it's not Batman themed so that's also another knock against it coming true. But it just seems like the perfect idea for a DC D2C. Like Stark Tower, it's an idea I've had since the launch of the Superheroes themes and I can't believe it hasn't happened yet.

I mean as long as we're hoping, how awesome would a D2C based on the Arkham games be? Really promote that 18+ suggestion. Realistically I would expect the next DC D2C to be another Bat-vehicle (The Bat, Battinson Batmobile, 1966 Batmobile, etc.) but $500 seems too much when the others have been $200-250.

I've been avoiding the Super Mario line since I'm not a fan of the interactive figures and their subsequent "playset" style sets, but this is so close to the model from the games that I'm very tempted. Guess I'll see if it ever goes on sale.

Yeah, when I first saw the Hoth Rebels on Instagram I assumed it was a battle pack to mirror the Snowtrooper one. Splitting the Hoth factions into two different types of sets confuses me.

I like the new Doctor Strange set! Nice to get a solid creature build for once instead of just random tentacles. And it's honestly been so long since news for this movie broke that I completely forgot America Chavez was going to be in it. So is this it for the MoM sets?

I like the new parts but the build itself isn't doing too much for me. It seems pretty small compared to what I expected. Looking forward to the hospital wing reveal.

Just popping in to say that as someone who didn't get them originally, I am excited for P1 Rex and Cody. It does seem weird that they're being put in an accessory set and not a standard set, but I guess I can't complain.

Has anyone modded the 2020 Room of Requirement set into the 2021 modular Hogwarts style? (like the bathroom or the Gryffindor common room) Been picking up a lot of smaller sets recently and the thought popped into my head.

Agreed. One of my favorite sets in the entire theme is Jokerland, I would love to see more sets like that one.

Thanks! Looks like I have a while to get that and the Clock Tower as well. Just out of curiosity, when did we start knowing when sets retire to this level of certainty? I don't follow set production quite as closely as I did a few years ago, but I remember it seeming more vague than this. Are they internal leaks that came out of TLG itself?

Has there been any word about the Hogwarts Express retiring? I know most of the 2018 wave is either already gone or on its way out, but I haven't heard much about the train.

That picture of Vision with the E.M.M.I. makes me wish even more for official Metroid sets. Hopefully that's on the horizon now that TLG is so close with Nintendo. Overall, I do agree with your conclusion. The appeal of the series does seem rather niche, especially compared to other licensed series like DC and Harry Potter which took a more general approach rather than focusing in on a specific area of the franchise. After waiting almost ten years since the Marvel theme started for its own CMF series, it's certainly not what I expected but I'll welcome it anyway. This series does make me wish that 16 figures per series was still the standard. There's notable exceptions from the represented shows. Agatha, Baron Zemo, and Morbius are the biggest ones that come to mind for me. Given the limits of 12 figures, this makes some of the choices seem odd. Zombie Hunter Spider-Man really sticks out to me as a poor choice. While there are small differences, at the end of the day its basically Spider-Man with a cape. As you mentioned, this was probably a limit of who Marvel/Disney told TLG to produce. There's a lot of overlap between the characters in this series and the figures produced for Hasbro's Marvel Legends action figure line, so I'm guessing there were pretty strict guidelines for the Disney+ content. Personally, I'm a little over halfway complete on the series as I've had a little trouble finding them at retail. So far, my favorite part of the entire series might have to be the Throg mold, it's adorable!

This is great! You captured the segmented yet smooth look of the shield very well. I wish the D2C 1989 Batmobile had featured something like this.

Yeah, it is weird how they choose which of these sets do or don't get minifigs. Marty and Doc variants along with a Jennifer minifig would be icing on the cake.

With all the adult display sets coming out recently (like the flowers, bonsai tree, Probe Droid, etc.) I would be shocked if we didn't get a similarly sized and priced Baby Groot in his white pot from the first GOTG. I know that craze has passed, but it still seems ripe for the new product lines.