Blondie-Wan

Here in Tallahassee, FL, I have yet to see them in any store other than Toys 'R' Us. The TRU here keeps them with the rest of the LEGO sets, though I understand other stores in other locations do things differently.

So just who is Dawes, anyway? In one of the threads about these new minifigs I saw someone else asked about this name on the tile, as well as the number on the dummy's license plate, and I was wondering the same thing. Maybe the number has no significance, but I can't help but imagine that "Dawes" has some relevance to some LEGO designer...

Given how successful Star Wars has been as a LEGO theme, I'm sure both TLG and LFL would like to continue it. Personally I expect the license to be renewed.

I think that may indeed be the launch date for most vendors, and that TRU got a special exception to offer them early. I've actually seen TRU ads in the past that touted TRU being the first to offer certain new LEGO sets; I imagine TLG sometimes grants TRU small windows of exclusivity and other considerations (like exclusive sets) since TRU is such an important vendor for TLG's products. Whatever it is, my TRU here in Tallahassee, Florida has been selling them for nearly a week (at least), so if nothing else I can attest it's not simply a Virginia thing.

The most disappointing quality issue I've encountered recently came with the six large tires for the truck in the Indiana Jones set Race for the Stolen Treasure. I just opened and assembled a second copy of this a couple weeks or so ago, and the tires for the truck were so bad with the oily / sticky problem I left them off completely, though the smaller tires for the troop car in the same set were just fine. Going back to my first copy of the same set, which I had stored in a drawer and hadn't touched in a while, I noticed that that copy's truck tires were slightly icky as well, though nowhere nearly as bad as those in the copy I just opened. Looking earlier through the thread I see reports that this was an issue with tires for several years up to 2008, but apparently was fixed then. I have noticed it occasionally with tires from various sets over the last decade or so, but seldom encountered tires quite as bad as these in Race for the Stolen Treasure (which of course is a 2008 set). This copy of the set is one of six I got late last year from the same source (I have a total of seven), and the remaining five are all still sealed; I'm worried they may all have icky tires. I really hope not. Though I'm sure LEGO's customer service will replace one set, I fear they might think I'm just trying to score a bunch of free tires if I repeatedly make the same request every time I open another copy of the set, but I don't know what else I'd do. The hands seem translucent? That's a new one to me. I don't have any issue with the zombie shovel or the forestman feathers. The former does have a different feel to it, but it is a retooling or new sculpt, and I can't help but wonder whether the mold / shape (the texture, the bluntness, etc.) is influencing people's perceptions of the plastic quality, even though they're really different issues. My zombies' shovels (I have two) both seem quite rigid and strong, at least. I don't know for sure, but I suspect if people here tried applying just a little light stress to the piece they'd be surprised to find it's stronger than the texture / finish might be leading them to believe. As for the forestman feathers, the two that came with my forestman seem at least as good as the original versions, if not actually slightly better; I'd say the same of the diver's swim fins.

Oh, how I wish I had a Galaxy Explorer. There's just something so classic about that set. I think it's a very serious contender for the title here. Alas, I never had any really large sets in the classic Space era, though I did have a number of the smaller ones - but then, equally lamentably, I no longer have any of those... That said, if we broaden our scope a little to include things that would fit the topic but not necessarily the forum, I think some of the Star Wars sets are worth consideration as well, particularly the UCS ones. And then there's the forthcoming Space Shuttle Adventure, which looks like a great set as well...

Hey! In all seriousness, I think it's a great time to get into Pirates - perhaps not as good as it would have been six or eight months ago, but definitely better than it would have been a couple years ago. As everyone is pointing out, most of the '09 line is still available - pretty much all the regular sets except the two impulses and the semi-exclusive Shipwreck Hideout - and they're an affordable "in" with lots to offer.

I was wrong; it is indeed possible to identify the figures by feeling the parts through the bags, as others have attested, though it does work better for some than others. I went back to TRU yesterday without my barcodes from the first set and still cherry-picked a second zombie. I do think I'll need the barcodes to get some of the others I want, though (but I'd be happy with another full set anyway, so I may just go and pick up another sixteen with different barcodes whenever time permits - yeah, I do want more than one or two zombies, too).

I meant to reply back when this was first posted, but didn't get around to it for some reason or another. I just wanted to add my voice to the others acknowledging what a lovely review this is, full of charm and win. Thank you for sharing it.

That is gorgeous. I love it.

I imagine different stores will all have their own way of displaying / offering these minifigs, but for what it's worth the LEGO aisle at my TRU has a pegboard over the shelves at one end, which they use for anything LEGO-related that comes in packaging that can be hung on pegs - the small Creator polybags offered at Christmas, the Santa magnets, the LEGO-licensed walkie talkies and MP3 players, etc. The minifig bags are on some of those pegs in the main LEGO section, not up by the registers or anything like that (at least, not unless they've put them in more than one location; I didn't see any up front when I went to make my purchase, at any rate). Correct. Of course, as we've already mentioned, TRU seems to frequently offer new LEGO products at the standard MSRP for a few days or so and then jack the price up, so it's quite possible that TRU will sell them for $2.49 or $2.99 or more in a week or so, but for the moment they're $1.99, which is the official MSRP. I'd say it's pretty hard - maybe not impossible for some of the accessories, but definitely tough. Note also that some of the accessories are similar for more than one figure (both the forestman and the Native American hunter come with both a bow and a quiver, for example), and some of the accessories are quite small (the syringe, the feathers, the robot's claw hand, etc.). On the whole, it's just way easier to go by the barcodes. The luchador's cape deserves a special word of caution here, incidentally - it's a thin piece of fabric, after all, and unlike the capes in many regular sets it doesn't come in its own little box, but is instead just floating around loose in the baggie along with everything else. It's therefore essentially impossible to feel at all through the bag. One could very easily wind up accidentally cutting right through the cape when cutting the bag open. Ideally, one could just tear the baggies open to avoid this, but they're really too tough - you pretty much have to cut them open. I suggest that before cutting the baggie, you grab it by the seal where you want to cut it and shake it first, like shaking a restaurant packet of pepper or sugar, to get the cape away from the end you're going to cut.

Ah, Ok, thanks. Still, though, it seems as though a bunch of US stores all simultaneously got them in just the last couple days, so I wouldn't be surprised... At the Orlando store I think it wouldn't be particularly practical - not because the staff would necessarily try to stop you or anything like that (they all seem very happy to help people out, in fact), but just because the store is so incredibly busy; at least, it has been each of the few times I've been there. The place seems to always be packed, with hordes of children, their parents, AFOLs, you name it, all making noise and bumping into each other and picking stuff up and marveling at all the merchandise and so on. I get the impression that if one tried to pick out a set of minifigs, half the bags would get accidentally moved around, picked up and carried off by other shoppers and so on before one could finish. It would probably be easier if one were simply looking for certain figures, though, assuming one had copies of the particular barcodes one needed, or were using something to read them like the iPhone application some have talked about...

For some accessories it may be possible to make good guesses sometimes, but on the whole it's not a remotely reliable way to tell; the material the bags are made from is quite tough and a little less flexible than the usual LEGO polybag, as well as being completely opaque. Honestly, I think you'd have a better chance of figuring out what minifigs are in what bags by weighing them than by feeling them, if that gives you an idea. However, judging from my experience yesterday they do indeed have unique barcodes on the back, so it is entirely possible to figure out which figure a bag contains simply by looking at the barcode, provided you know what the barcode for each figure looks like. And if you're not trying to get only specific figures but just want to complete a set, you don't even need to know that much - you can just compare bags against one another until you've found sixteen different barcodes, and you'll get one of each, as I did yesterday. :)

D'oh! I was there Saturday and Sunday, and they told me they'd get them the 21st of next month. If only they'd had them one or two days earlier, I could've gotten them there and gotten the VIP points. Then again, going through the baggies to cherry-pick a full set would probably be much more difficult in the chaotic environment of that store than in Toys 'R' Us...

I just got back Sunday from a weekend visit to Orlando that included some quality time at the LEGO Store at Downtown Disney (woohoo!), and as others here have said, they told me these minifigs are due (in the LEGO Store, anyway) June 21, but I stopped by TRU after work yesterday and they were out! Huzzah! They weren't by the register or anything; they were simply hanging on pegs in the LEGO section, right alongside the leftover Christmas Creator polybags. I've noticed the exact same thing on multiple occasions, and even mentioned it yesterday to my girlfriend, before seeing this post. I naturally just spent a lot of money on LEGO at the store in Orlando, but given this observation about TRU, and also considering I don't know how long these will last in stores (or whether I'd be able to cherry-pick at stores other than TRU), I caved like a house of cards and decided to try for a complete set right there. I compared the non-UPC barcodes on bag after bag until I was sure I had found sixteen different ones, and bought them, and... one of each minifig! Success! Huzzah! I'll try to post a detailed review sometime, camera permitting...

Really? I personally love, love, love the LEGO logo on her hoodie; I've wished for this specific minifig (or at least the torso) for a while because of that very feature, which was indeed on the back of the torso before, at least according to Peeron.

Now that is a really attractive, compelling (and original!) piece of work, and one that I'm sure will add immensely to the farm. Not working on a farm, I don't know / can't fully appreciate how realistic all the details you've put in and described are, but it certainly seems extremely well thought-out. And the building exterior is quite lovely, and the trucks look great.

I guess you had to be there. I actually could see LEGO doing a TRON theme, even if it'd be one of those brief licensed themes that's gone in less than a year. It would fit LEGO at least as well as most other licenses they've actually done. Unfortunately, since they would surely time the launch to coincide with the release of the new movie and we'd surely have heard about it a few months ago if such a theme were coming this year, I think it's safe to say it's not going to happen. Oh, well.

Yow, you really think so? I think the later sets are even better than the early ones (well, save for Temple Escape, which is an oustanding early set, and hard to top). I really hope the theme continues next year after the current hiatus. Prince of Persia looks like a terrific LEGO theme so far regardless of how good or bad the movie might eventually prove to be, but I doubt the theme will last into a second year.

He might be a better actor than Ford - certainly he's a very good one - but I doubt he's a way better actor as you allege; Ford's underrated, perhaps because he seems so natural a fit for his two best-known characters (Han Solo and Indiana Jones) that the extent to which he's actually performing isn't really appreciated. If you're interested in seeing just how far his range is known to go, though, you should check out The Mosquito Coast. Ford's range isn't infinite, to be sure, but it's far greater than is generally realized, and he's certainly terrific in those roles and several others. (And at any rate, Molina wouldn't even have his second LEGO minifig role if not for the existence of Harrison's second.) Aside from Ford, Molina, Hamill, and Davis, Pat Roach has multiple minifig characters, all within the Indiana Jones theme.

I admit I don't see what the location of the marks has to do with the quality of the plastic, and I respectfully disagree that it makes these "awful." To be honest, while I can understand preferring the older ones with less prominent markings (I would, too), it seems like a pretty trivial issue to me. If the plastic quality really isn't up to snuff, that seems a much greater concern, but I can't tell anything about that from the picture. But that said, if it does concern you so much, why not write to TLG to let them know it upsets you, and that you'd like to see them go back to using molds with the marks somewhere else on the piece?

Very attractive! I'm a little perturbed, I must admit, as I wanted to do a voodoo lounge myself, and wanted to be the first, but this is worth seeing. I envy you having those old lights. I wish I had some.

I never had that problem, though admittedly I didn't move it often (if you mean picking up and moving the whole thing, as opposed to just turning the head).

Pirate ('90s) / Legends: 6291 - Spaniard Ship / Armada Flagship 6292 - Enchanted Island (x2) Studios:* 1411 - Filming of a Pirate Scene (x2) Pirates ('09): 8396 - Soldier's Arsenal 8397 - Pirate Survival 6239 - Cannon Battle (x2) 6240 - Kraken Attackin' 6241 - Loot Island 6242 - Soldiers' Fort 6253 - Shipwreck Hideout other: 6192 - Pirate Building Set All of these were acquired new while they were in release (lots of them still are, of course), albeit several through clearances; I just can't afford to go chasing the long-discontinued stuff around eBay, alas. While I got all these sets new, I no longer have the packaging for most of them, save for the polybag I kept from one copy of Filming of a Pirate Scene, plus two recent / current sets I haven't opened yet (Shipwreck Hideout and one of the two Cannon Battles). I hope to add Loot Island, Soldier's Fort, Brickbeard's Bounty and Imperial Flagship to my collection in the hopefully not-too-distant future (and I'd love the 2009 Pirates Advent Calendar as well, if I could get it), but money's tight (though if I can swing it, I'd like two or three copies of some of those anyway, particularly Loot Island). (Edit: Set added I'd inexplicably forgotten originally ) (Edit: Recent acquisitions added) *(technically a Studios set, but I like to consider this a "theme crossover" set)

While not main characters, something I've wanted to try for a while is using spare Vader heads (not the helmet, obviously, just the grey head with the charred, ashen face of Anakin underneath the helm) along with grey torsos and legs for the other, grey body-painted Ugha warriors. I just picked up some grey torsos and hips from PAB mostly for this very purpose, actually, but I haven't put Vader heads on them yet.