AFOLguy1970

If you ordered that set set from Spain, you would also have to factor insurance into the equation. It may not be mandatory to buy it, but not doing so with a price that high is really taking a big risk.

Thank you for the review. We ordered this for 2x VIP points and hope to see it soon. Fortunately, I emerged from my Dark Ages just in time to snag the Black Pearl. We also have the LOTR pirate ship. This will be our first pirate ship from the Pirates theme. You make some good points that it may not compare to features on other ships, but it will be fun to build it with the boys. I am not particularly crazy about the red bricks, but kids do indeed like color in their sets. Nevertheless, I look forward to building the ship and may consider modding some of the features such as the open door into the cabin and replacing some of the red and blue parts.

It usually updates within 24 hours of the time that the last item on your order was shipped. If your order has to be split due to a backorder or online PAB, it sometimes will not update until the last item ships.

I had a similar issue with my browsers and was able to get it to work after unloading my cart and reloading it. Yeah, they do seem to have a bad habit of having a nonfunctional site when people are most likely going to want to buy something, ie. day 1 of new releases or day 1 of VIP points. I too bought a backordered item, but I think my kids will really like the Pirates Chess set. As long as it has an expected shipping date, they should let you order it and it would still qualify for the VIP x2, even if shipping is delayed.

I did not think the Ghostbusters HQ had a good chance, because it might have appealed to too narrow of an audience. We have also already had a Fire Brigade, therefore some modular collectors might have seen this as redundant. Having Ecto-1 and the four ghostbusters with the building would probably have helped, but they made these separately. If they had elected to make it, imagine having it come out right as Ecto-1 sells out, not good. The Natural History museum is a good Ideas candidate because you do not need a license, and it has scientific appeal for many. As for playability, if Lego insists a modular has to have it, then I agree a printing press might work. A bank could have a blow away wall for the robbers to get through just like all of the City sets, as would a police station. It is hard to have a corner building made from two sections, therefore I imagine this would be one structure. Hopefully, they revert back to more attention to the exterior. I am still on the fence about whether or not to buy the DO. My gut is beginning to tell me this is not something I need to have, especially since some people have proven you have to have two to make it worthwhile.

I can sympathize with those who are working on projects that require lots of green baseplates, and were unable to complete the setup before the color change. It does seem unnecessary and no doubt does not sit well with large scale builders.

I have a question regarding the chess set. Forgive me if it has been asked, but after searching some threads, there is not mention of it, but...... What exactly is the brick built structure on the Pirate's side acting as the knight supposed to be?

Yes, as long as the site allows you to purchase the item.

The only challenge I see so far in a potential future wave is that this one provides us with all of the gang and the Mystery Machine, which are the true icons of the theme. They are going to have to rely on different scenes and monsters to maintain the interest level. You pretty much have five main characters in the show, all of which are covered in the sets in addition to the main vehicle. I do like the idea of some crossover with the "guest stars" such as Batman. I dont know what kids would think of the Globetrotters or the Addams Family, but they could try and use some familiar favorites or new exciting locations to keep us buying those sets.

Yes, go for the Pet Shop while it is still out. As for older modulars, perhaps you could Bricklink one at a time. You can probably collect the individual parts for cheaper than a sealed box, and can keep the price down if you make a few substitutions. For example, some people have built a "Blue Grocer" using the same design at the Green Grocer, except they used the much cheaper and more available blue parts.

It is certainly a fine build, and I think it is certainly unique from the other modulars. It would be great to have something like this, but it would be very costly indeed-- sort of how I would like to have a Death Star, but we would have to give up all hobbies for four months to get it. Have you shared this with Barnes and Noble directly? It would be interesting if it were possible for them to work with Lego and make this an in store exclusive. Who knows if this is possible, but it could be worth asking.

Well done! I am looking forward to more of the Napoleonic builds.

The value seems good. You get 4 minifigs, a creature, and other parts for $10. It certainly is a cheap way to get a few minifigs and an alligator. The two crooks remind me of Zeb and Zeke from the original Scooby Doo series where they had a mystery to solve in the swamp.

Nice and creative!

Excellent representation of the real building!

Great details. I also like the way you did the floor with the bricks on their sides to give it texture.

The potential snag with charging a fee is that the Lego Ideas site prohibits you from selling anything related to your project. That could include charging a fee to display. The decision whether or not to allow the museum to display your MOC remains yours. If I were in your shoes, I would be honored to have a museum display the model. The worry would be more based on security measures. In other words, how easy would it be for someone to tamper with or take part or all of your model while it is under the museum's supervision? Hopefully, either they or you have a glass case of some kind to use. Anyway, it is a very nice mode of Rivendell. The extra attention the museum could bring might also be beneficial to you.

I disagree that Lonely Mountain was targeted at AFOLs. The play features like the breakaway throne steps and the gold launcher are not really things AFOLS care about. If anything at all was a nod to AFOLS, perhaps it was the Witch King set. I think the biggest mistake Lego made with LM was putting Smaug in it. Already, it would have been about an $80 set without the dragon. They honestly thought that a $130 set would be Johnny's Christmas present under the tree. Dont get me wrong, there are plenty of kids out there who really badly wanted LM. If course, a lot of us badly want a mansion to live in, but we share the same problem those kids have with LM, it is out of the price range. I agree that Dragon Mountain probably took the place of Smaug, or simply other action figures, Lego themes, and toys did. I have said this before, but they should have placed Smaug in the Lake Town set. It would have been a much more approachable price and maybe more people would have bought it. With that said, it is probably a good investment down the long road. When Smaug is no longer on the shelves, some people are going to want him. This could be the only time Lego ever delves into Tolkien. He might not be the next UCS Millenium Falcon, Galaxy Explorer sealed in box, or the Cafe Corner, but he will command a high price somewhere down the road.

Lots of good details on this. I really like the above ground vaults that remind me of the ones found in New Orleans. And like lightningtiger said, you are probably going to enjoy the offerings of the Scooby Doo line later this year.

I am not going to make an assumption that there is an invisible $50 limit on the Ideas sets just yet. Of the current group in review, it appears that the piano is the only set smaller than that threshold. Even the maze looks like it has a considerable size, and it likely needs a lot of support pieces not visible in the photos. There are at least a couple of projects that Lego is might willing to go with that will be larger than we have seen. Hopefully I am right about this, but I would say do not give up just yet.

So here is a different take on the Lego/sunlight issue and this relates to the thread on deliberately cutting Lego to use to your advantage. Has anyone actually tried to expose some bricks to the sun in order to try and "create" a different color? The thought has crossed my mind. On my MOC, I am thinking of doing some interior work, and one of the main colors really does not exist in Lego. The color I would like to achieve is in the photo below. Lee County Courthouse by stevesheriw, on Flickr As you can see, it is not really pink or red, it is sort of a salmon color. I wondered if perhaps exposing some ordinary red parts in the sun long enough would actually create something at least close to this color. Yeah, it sounds crazy, but neither red nor pink seem to be a decent substitute. So, has anyone tried to do something like this?

Definitely a grim story, but the details are outstanding! I remember reading something about this years ago.

If you can make a clean cut and it improves your design, then I would say go for it. Personally, I would not cut any Lego because I simply am not that precise and do not possess the skill to make the cut look like it was done professionally. It looks like some of you have the tools to make a decent go at it. If anyone has photos of a successful mod using cut parts, please post them.

The cookie prohibition storyline and features in the Detective Office

Nice detail, I like the greenery too. Look forward to seeing the complete castle!