LEGO Sci-Fi Ongoing - Rumors, Speculation, and Discussion

[icm]

I’ve been sort of thinking of the Buzz Lightyear movie as “Lego Classic Space: The Movie” based on the first trailer, so it’s fitting that the spaceship set should have a trans yellow canopy. I can’t wait to see what people will build with it.  That set isn’t quite as nicely shaped in the nose and canopy area as I hoped, but I’m really digging the two storage areas in back and the new nozzle pieces.

Edit, I am a bit surprised by the use of that new part though, since it really isn't a good match for the XL-15 in the trailer, which has a curved canopy in a color that might be better matched by this or this.

Edited March 28, 2022 by icm

[danth]

Hot damn! That is a perfect set with a perfect canopy for Classic Space fans.

I'm getting strong Galaxy Squad vibes from the spaceship. The logos are similar.

3 hours ago, Classic_Spaceman said:

The newly-revealed Lightyear ship has a new canopy - In Trans-Yellow! - that bears a striking resemblance to this classic canopy piece! Considering the fact that LEGO could probably have made due with an existing part, I am curious to see what plans they have for this new piece. 
 

My thoughts exactly on the shaping of the windscreen. That's getting some definite re-use. I really want to guess that we're going to get an official Ice Planet throwback Creator set. 

3 hours ago, icm said:

I’ve been sort of thinking of the Buzz Lightyear movie as “Lego Classic Space: The Movie” based on the first trailer, so it’s fitting that the spaceship set should have a trans yellow canopy.

Same! This is probably going to shut me up as an angry Classic Space fan for at least a little while. The parts and set design are really Classic Space to a tee.

3 hours ago, icm said:

I can’t wait to see what people will build with it.  That set isn’t quite as nicely shaped in the nose and canopy area as I hoped, but I’m really digging the two storage areas in back and the new nozzle pieces.

Edit, I am a bit surprised by the use of that new part though, since it really isn't a good match for the XL-15 in the trailer, which has a curved canopy in a color that might be better matched by this or this.

Yes, those new nozzle pieces were the other thing that jumped out at me. They look great!

You're right about the canopy. I'm also surprised (pleasantly) that they used trans yellow and not orange or just trans black, and that it has no stickers or printing.

[icm]

I saw on another forum that the nozzle pieces are actually half of the recently introduced differential housing for Technic.  So they're not new nozzles, but they're Nice Parts Use anyway.  And using Technic driving rings as jet nozzles is pretty well established by now, it's been done in City and Star Wars and Super Heroes loads of times.

[danth]

I really like the little brown trooper figs, especially the helmets.

When I first saw the troopers in the Lightyear trailer, I immediately thought of the Guges power suit from the Appleseed manga/anime:

[icm]

Look at these juicy tweets by Angus MacLane, well-known AFOL and fan designer of the Ideas WALL-E set (and, oh yeah, don't let me forget, the director of WALL-E and Lightyear ....):

https://twitter.com/AngusMacLane

Looks like it's not such an exaggeration to call this "Lego Classic Space: The Movie" in a backdoor sort of way ....

Edit, he wasn't the director of WALL-E, he was the Directing Animator.  (I don't know what that means.)

Edited March 28, 2022 by icm

[danth]

Quote

As an AFOL, I really wanted some new transparent yellow canopies. So I figured I’d make a movie that would require them. SPACE!

Holy crap, it really is as bad as I've been saying! 🤣

This guy is my hero!

One of the guys that made The Lego Movie basically did the same thing, according to an interview that I can't bother to find right now. His childhood Space sets were actually in the movie.

[danth]

Hey now we just to get someone inside NASA. 😂

[Murdoch17]

15 minutes ago, danth said:

Hey now we just to get someone inside NASA. 😂

The guy who designed the NASA Mars Science Laboratory Curiosity Rover ideas set 21104 worked on that actual real-world rover. Here is the Ideas project page where he talked about it.

Edited March 28, 2022 by Murdoch17

[Maple]

Is the canopy piece the same as the one in the new Clone Wars tank set?

[icm]

No, the new Clone Wars tank set uses the current X-wing canopy.

[TeriXeri]

That modern version of the "classic" Space Police / M-Tron / Ice Planet / Aquasharks shaped canopy is definately interesting.

Even if the shape isn't 100% the same as the old one, it's very nice to see it return in a modern way.

While I liked the Nexo Knight canopy shape a lot, this straight-end is more classic and also easier to use.

The spaceship itself looks very good too.

Edited March 28, 2022 by TeriXeri

[RichardGoring]

I love that tweet so much. Awesome that people can bring together their passions in a huge corporate world.

[Robert8]

That's just unbelievable

 

Can he include a goat in Lightyear?

[icm]

Maybe he suggested a robot goat but the rest of the Pixar brain trust convinced him a cuddly cat would be better.

[Robert8]

Imagine the pitch meeting for this movie

Angus MacLane: We need to make a movie so TLG'd need to produce new transparent yellow canopies

Disney: Approved

 

[Lord Insanity]

I thought it was odd that the City space sets didn't have a ship or shuttle this time around.  Now we know why.  I do find it hilarious that we have a very NASA X-15 inspired ship (they barely even changed the name) that has a trans-yellow windscreen and it is automatically awesome.

So if we take it as a given that LEGO was never going to make the City space sets "windows" trans-yellow then Mr. MacLane is my hero for insisting on it.  But what if he unintentionally made the City space sets not use trans-yellow to differentiate them?  Oops!  (That still doesn't explain whey they used that lame City trans-light blue instead of the awesome Space trans-dark blue)

When I first saw the thumbnail pic I immediately thought of 6872 Xenon X-Craft.  Then I looked at the full picture and realized it suffers the stupidly oversized problem most Star Wars fighters have.  Despite its shaping being more like what should be a $10-$20 set the actual size and price point is more like an update to 6780 XT Starship or 6931 FX Star Patroller.  I don't mind that for a long range interstellar exploration ship but I would have preferred a smaller exploration craft. (The Slave I from 75222 Betrayal at Cloud City and Vader's TIE from 75251 Darth Vader's Castle proves LEGO can make awesome looking smaller craft even in Star Wars)

So lets see, in 2022 we have:

1.  Basically a modern remake of 6901 Mobile Lab in the form of the City space 60348 Lunar Roving Vehicle (Which can have its windows upgraded to trans-yellow)

2. Basically a modern remake of 6970 Beta I Command Base in the form of the City space 60350 Lunar Research Base (unfortunately stuck on lame trans-light blue for now)

3. Basically a modern remake of 6985 Cosmic Fleet Voyager in the form of the terribly colored 80035 Monkie Kid's Galactic Explorer  (Yes seriously, watch Jangbricks's review)

4. The upcoming XL-15 from Lightyear  (Which seems to be the best overall color scheme of the bunch.)

Talk about Space fans being spoiled for choice right now.

[Lyichir]

Not April Fools! Lego Friends Olivia’s Space Academy set pics! https://heartlaketimes.blogspot.com/2022/04/olivias-space-academy-41713.html
 

I’m quite impressed with this—it’s everything I’d hoped for from a Lego Friends space set. Zero G training equipment, adorably bubbly space shuttle, and a quite impressive little mission control facility.

[icm]

I’m impressed by how little Friends-ified the space shuttle is. Just a minimal purple stripe and a cockpit fitted for two minidolls. In nearly every other respect it’s like a cross between the 2017 and 2021 Creator 3 in 1 space shuttles. The multi axis swing is fun and unique, the space suit and blue shirt minidolls are nicely designed, and the model of Sun Earth and Moon in the building is a nice touch. I don’t like the trans purple glass on the building though.

[TeriXeri]

Looks like Friends-i-fied version of the 3-in-1 shuttle but I think it still works great as it's subtle color change and not a full pastel/pink shuttle.

The shuttle design can certainly look like it came from the same shuttle manufacturer, yet a slightly different model. 

I do like the round 6 wide cockpit window, it's a bit of a cartoony look but fits with Friends very well.

The minidoll suits look nice as well , it uses some coral/light pink but it's not like LEGO went full Sweet Mayhem on it.

 

Edited April 1, 2022 by TeriXeri

[Murdoch17]

26 minutes ago, Lyichir said:

Not April Fools! Lego Friends Olivia’s Space Academy set pics! https://heartlaketimes.blogspot.com/2022/04/olivias-space-academy-41713.html
 

I’m quite impressed with this—it’s everything I’d hoped for from a Lego Friends space set. Zero G training equipment, adorably bubbly space shuttle, and a quite impressive little mission control facility.

That set actually looks like a good start to a science museum building. And, as a handful of the US science museum's have gotten a space shuttle since they were retired, you don't have to remove the space shuttle walkway or ship!

EDIT: and now there is a Duplo lightyear set, for those of you interested. It's set "10962: Buzz Lightyear's interplanetary mission" and it even comes with a triangular robot we don't have in mini-fig scale!

Edited April 1, 2022 by Murdoch17

[danth]

I don't see how NASA Space shuttles are relevant to the Sci-Fi forum.

[Lyichir]

1 hour ago, danth said:

I don't see how NASA Space shuttles are relevant to the Sci-Fi forum.

Cope. Especially in the absence of a full "space theme" I don't see the harm in discussing less "far-flung future" space content from other themes, especially since there's a lot of overlap between fans of sci-fi and fans of real-world scientific endeavors, and because parts from those sorts of sets could be useful for more otherworldly MOCs.

Partswise, one of the things that sticks out to me most is the shuttle using the windscreen for the Creator Expert space shuttle, unprinted (I think for the first time). That could be useful in space MOCs, either wholly original ones or ones for a faction like Galaxy Squad that uses transparent windscreens. I know a lot of spacers prefer more colorful windscreens—for them, I suppose the trans purple window panels (not new but still distinctive) will have to suffice.

[danth]

57 minutes ago, Lyichir said:

Cope. Especially in the absence of a full "space theme" I don't see the harm in discussing less "far-flung future" space content from other themes, especially since there's a lot of overlap between fans of sci-fi and fans of real-world scientific endeavors, and because parts from those sorts of sets could be useful for more otherworldly MOCs.

I feel that. We'd have nothing to discuss here without themes like Monkie Kid or Lightyear.

This Friends set nothing futuristic or Sci-Fi about it at all though, as far as I can tell.

[Maple]

6 hours ago, danth said:

I don't see how NASA Space shuttles are relevant to the Sci-Fi forum.

Because why not? The only time you will see a space shuttle in flight ever again is in sci-fi movies.

Plus the trans purple windows are sci-fi looking.

[icm]

Just imagine it's a space shuttle in Moonfall doing ridiculous Roland Emmerich things, or a space shuttle in Armageddon doing ridiculous Michael Bay things, or a space shuttle in Moonraker doing ridiculous James Bond things.  Or even a space shuttle in For All Mankind doing ridiculous Ronald Moore things that the space shuttle couldn't actually do.  There's plenty of precedent in the movies for a NASA space shuttle to do ridiculous sci-fi things.  Just imagine, right?