fred67

I'd like to add my thanks... now that I've been able to actually start getting these guys, I'm super happy to read more about them and see the pictures to keep tantalized about getting them... One thing I hadn't seen until I actually got one... the Gorilla Suit Guy has a zipper on the back of the torso! I may have just missed it in other threads, but it was a nice surprise. For those worrying about the bumps/dots, most of the desirable figures should be fairly easy to tell by touch. I've got big meaty hands and figured I wouldn't be able to tell anything, but the elf is instantly obvious (with the bow and shield). Samurai a bit harder with the sword, but it's thinner than a baseball bad and you feel for the hilt... I just bought a handful randomly, but I also felt around for the elf and the Samurai, and was 100% sure about them.

As I said, I'm pretty sure that TLG makes more profit in the U.S. than any other market. That's profit, not profit margin... the margin might be quite a bit lower. That being the case, nobody is "subsidizing" U.S. LEGO sets... if he actually used that term, it was used incorrectly. I wasn't simply referring to income taxes, but corporate and import taxes. VAT and other taxes go on top of that, and income taxes do count - once that shipment hits the shores of any country (after import taxes have been paid), income taxes come into play every other step of the way, as well as other corporate and sometimes "matching" taxes (for example, employers here "match" our social security and medicare taxes... but as far as the company is concerned, they are passing along the entire cost to the consumer of their products or services).

This is all I know right now: $59.99 at Amazon

Hit the LEGO store for the first time since before Christmas, and of course most of the sale stuff was gone or stuff I didn't want. However, I got the biggie... the big enchilada, the set us Harry Potter fans have been waiting for months... Diagon Alley. A few series 3 figs, too. It's very unusual as our LEGO store manager usually won't put stuff out early, but I guess they were so cleaned out of sets that they felt like they needed something.

For the first time I've personally ever seen, my local LEGO store is selling items early. My big prize today was Diagon Alley, but my son and I felt through a few dozen series 3 figures... got an Elf and a Samurai, and grabbed a handful (5) others. My son got an Elf and Samurai also. The truly random ones I got were... another Elf(!), a fisherman, tennis player, ape suit guy, and mummy... gave the mummy to my son, the ape suit guy to my daughter. I had a great experience at the store, though... a woman was there with her two young daughters and they were trying to figure out which ones were the "girl" ones, so we were all standing there feeling the packages trying to figure out what they were. The mom was telling me it was hard for them to trade because they were girls and didn't know many (any, actually) other girls that were "into" LEGO. Once we were back in the mall, my wife went to the Disney store and my son and I sat on a bench and looked at what we got... I ran back to the store to see if they were still there to trade the tennis player for ... pretty much anything. Not that I don't want the tennis player, but I'm sure I'll get another, and it really made them happy.

Right... I don't see either one on sale anymore anyway, but you're probably right. Edit: They are the same (at least in US, item 8887).

Yes, a tiny fraction. I don't think you understand what it means to have a LEGO Store in NYC (I used to live near there) or Chicago, Miami, LA... do you realize how large these cities are? There's a LEGO Store in the Atlanta area, for example. If you happen to live near it, great. If you happen to live on the other side of Atlanta, you're looking at 100 mile round trip. If you're going to save $50 or $75, it's not worth it. NYC and LA are probably a bit better - instead of driving, you'd take the subway and it wouldn't cost so much - if you don't value your time, that is. And your estimation of the population is WAY off, even if you expand your definition of, for example, Philadelphia to include a large metro area, and the stores in those areas, as I've pointed out, don't "service" people who live more than about 25 miles away (that's a 50 mile round trip). For those people it's only worth it when they "happen" to be in the area. So yes... a couple dozen LEGO stores, with how the U.S. is spread out, and even with how major metropolitan areas are spread out, only "service" a tiny fraction of the population. But it depends what you mean by "service." If trekking 50+ miles round trip is "service," then we'll have to agree to disagree.

The best thing I got was the Imperial Flagship; I'm not even a pirate fan, but that ship transcends theme divisions. I also got the Slave 1, which I put together today... it's probably what I was most anxiously awaiting, being a big OT fan. I got a handful of smaller sets, as well... the log cabin, midi Star Destroyer (although I ordered a few of them from the current sale, also). The White House and Rockefeller Center complete my the Architecture series for me (so far).

What you say is true, but they could say that (other stores do it... "not available online" or "available at the LEGO Store!"). Considering how many people are worthwhile-ly close to LEGO B&M stores in the U.S. (i.e. a tiny fraction of the population... depending on what you're getting, even 25 miles may not be worth it), it's incredibly annoying.

Well, I see mobricki has already decided, but I wanted to add that I agree with LegoSjaak - if you are starting now, the only reasonable choice is PF. It'd just be asking for a very painful train experience trying to acquire 9V stuff to start. If you already had 9V, and just need replacement parts occasionally, it would be a different story. EDIT: BTW, LEGO S@H has the charger on sale... of all the PF stuff, the rechargeable battery is a pretty bad price-wise, but $25 for a (10v?) wall-wart is highway robbery, and right now it's half price.

I still don't think you're getting. Too much rum in the eggnog? It's not that people missed a set - they have no right to complain, they've all been on sale long enough (advent calendars notwithstanding), it's not that items are getting sold out - we all understand that's the point of the sale, to clear away stock; it's that many (most of the more desirable ones) were sold out BEFORE the "sale" even started. It is BOGUS announcing a sale on an item that is no longer available. If something sells out during the sale, that's a different story. I even suggested it wasn't on purpose, that some computer just switched a list of items to be on sale at some point in time without regard to availability... it's ANNOYING. No longer available items should just drop off that list.

Not if you have a receipt. So I checked out the "epic" sale, and found most of the decent stuff sold out... the problem is, a LOT of the stuff was already sold out BEFORE the sale, so it's kind of bogus, if you ask me. For example, Green Grocer's been sold out for a couple of weeks, and now it's "on sale?" Ditto train track packs and a few other things. I haven't switched trains to PF (I use PF for other things, though) and one of my big complaints is the expensive battery pack PLUS another $25 for the charger... but the charger was half price. Still... waiting for new battery packs, still $50 for the rechargeable. I suppose they just had their computer timed to trigger a sale of a list of items, but it seems somewhat shady, almost bait-and-switch-ish, although I did get a chance to get a few things... I picked up several Midi ISDs and several Pig Farmers, among other things. Pity you can't preorder Diagon Alley or Series 3 minifigures, though.

Merry Christmas, Hanukkah, and Festivus for the rest of us. I'm going to skip the airing of grievances and go straight to apologizing for offending anyone this past year with my typical undiplomatic, straightforward way of just saying what's on my mind. I know it bothers a lot of people, and I'd like to consider everyone here as part of a group of adults who can take it as it is, just discussion that can sometimes be a bit... oh, let's say "animated." And I'll probably not spend a lot of time here next week, so Happy New Year to everyone as well.

When did they state this? Sounds like forum conjecture to me. Even so, that last statement is absolute and complete, utter GARBAGE. TLG is a profit driven company, they wouldn't sell here if they weren't making a profit. Unless you don't know what the word "subsidized" means, you'd understand why that statement is false - as long as TLG makes a profit in the U.S., there's no "subsidy" from anywhere else... and I might add that even with a lower profit margin, TLG still makes more money here on volume than probably anywhere else, so I'm not going to feel guilty about paying less. And I'll say it again... at least half the price premium, if not more, is due to taxes/tarrifs in other countries. Some may be visible, like VAT, but the retail price contains "your share" of the company's taxes they have to pay to operate within your country, including the business/corporate taxes the retail outlet pays, the shipping company pays... everyone along the line of production is charging YOU for their taxes.

First you plan it out, figure out the exact parts you need, then go to bricklink or LEGO Shop at Home pick-a-brick and buy the parts you want. You're not going to get what you need in a single set.

Yup... makes me want to go back, but I have little free time even now that I'm off work for the rest of the year... I managed to feel my way to an Elf and a Tribal Chief, two the "must haves" on my list, but I'm afraid if I go back now the boxes will be all but picked over and only dregs left. I did feel my way through what was obviously tons of spacemen and alien guys... they both have short (L3, I think) bars, and are the only ones with that piece. I think I could pretty much determine anything at this point by feeling.

None taken. But instead of telling me I should feel lucky, the people in other countries ought to be asking TLG why they are paying so much, instead. I don't really see why I should feel better because others have it worse... that makes little sense to me. I want us all to have it better. The simple fact is that it must have to do with supply, demand (thus the price increase), but also more lucrative markets... I'm not going to apologize for TLG making a lot of money in the U.S., and therefore keeping prices lower here than elsewhere... I'll keep whining and complaining when they raise their prices, though, because I want it to stay that way or, at least, I'd rather prices around the globe come down instead of the prices here going up if you insist on equity.

Thanks, guys... grabbed two each of the Ostrich Race and Desert Attack. I'd like to point out I saw a number of other reduced prices for LEGO POP, including Battle of Almut at $59.99.

I guess the problem is I don't care what you pay in Australia. Not to be a complete jerk about it (too late, right?), but if you're not happy with the prices, then don't pay it. If you don't think the price you're paying is worth buying items blind, then instead of arguing with me about it, you should also be complaining that you're paying to much. Frankly, and I don't know what the tax structure is elsewhere, I'd bet a lot of the premiums people pay outside the U.S. come from taxes - and not just the visible ones you know you are paying, but the corporate and import taxes that you don't see first hand because they're built into the price of the item. So, OK, honestly, I am interested in TLG's price structure around the world, and I know we get a good deal in the U.S., but it doesn't make a 50% price increase an easier pill to swallow, and it doesn't mean we're supposed to hold hands and dance just because we still pay less than somewhere else.

Well, there was a time in the 90s, maybe late 80s, where we were getting these large specific pieces that almost seemed directly contrary to what LEGO is all about... those were "specific," but I'm not understanding what you mean by "specific" pieces now. What it seems like now is we have a wider variety of pieces, including (and especially) greebles that give us a wider range of flexibility, they are not limiting at all... and people are using those pieces in amazing and creative ways. I would suggest that rather than losing creativity and imagination, that those aspects have actually grown along with the availability of all the new parts. Certainly it's hard to use a boat hull or airplane fuselage as anything else, but those days seem to be long past, with those larger pieces now being ones you can use in any manner of ways. I have to admit, though, I am disappointed at some of the newer trains for just that reason, but by and large I think the greater availability of parts has only allowed for more creativity, not less.

Should be here.

POTC may be forthcoming, but while you may consider Cars and Toy Story to be Pixar, those are Disney licenses. I wouldn't mind a new monorail. I would rather have a generic one for my city, but I'll take a Disney-fied one over nothing.

I may go back. They had collectible minifigures (the first time I've seen them in any B&M store beside The LEGO Store EVER) for rip off $4... but it seems that TLG may actually be charging $3 anyway, which means BOGO50 brings them to MSRP at least. I was at my local one on Saturday and there was plenty of LEGO. I'm not sure what I could possibly get, but there's smaller sets I could stock up on (I use the Knights Showdown as a better alternative to army building than the battle packs even at MSRP). Pity about Pharaohs Quest though; I love it, but I'm not inclined to get involved in a new theme when I can't even afford the themes I already buy. I'm not a big fan of TRU, but you might as well have a loyalty card, too... I buy when they have sales, and you get 10% credit back, if I'm not mistaken (I think that's still going on through Christmas). I think TRU is getting desperate, as they've now gone to open 24 hours until Christmas, and every day the deals are quite good for what they are, including the deals on LEGO.

I agree with the minifigures perhaps being one of the bigger changes. I would add: the slow but continuous trend towards licensed themes (now with POTC actually displacing a non-licensed one). Gray to Bley... I think this was more of an indication of TLG's cost cutting evolution, as are the so-called "inferior" Chinese parts. I think the biggest change I've seen, and it's certainly a "for the better," is the complexity and advanced building techniques. For me it started with Medieval Market Village and the modular building sets. It's true, Big Cam, that people might notice the difference between minifigures first, but show them a typical LEGO building from the 70s and compare it to, say, Green Grocer.

Except you know what you're getting with the build-a-minifigure deal. If they're going to charge more then we should know what we're getting. I don't think we should just let them have it both ways.