LEGO "Industry"

[Brick Miner]

i've currently become really interested in city building. this mainly comes from my passion for architecture, and in the past my only outlet for the creative interest has been drawing architecture in the panels of my comic book stories and SIMCITY (yes, there is one computer/video game i do love) !!!

though commerical towers are my main interest in architecture, one of my favorite things about building cities im SIMCITY where the huge and nasty polluting giants of the industrial age, "dirty industry." anyone who has driven on the interstates on east side of chicago knows and has seen the giant pollution factories. yes, they are dirty and an evil in the world, but their awe-inspiring (and unique) charcter is unmatched in an urban landscape.

now bringing this all back to my currect hobby, LEGO... i think it would be fun to see a new city sub-theme along these lines. something like "industry" or it could be called whatever (i would propose the term "factory" but LEGO already has that one in use).

some giant polluting set could be the power plants (needed for every growing city): coal plant, oil plant, gas plant. also since LEGO likes vehicle based sets, you could have a car factory with a few cars in it. this set would be a great add on to the RC frieght train *y* other set ideas might be metal processing plants: steel aluminum, etc... and chemical factories.

also, this idea could even be made into a conflict based city sub-theme, and have the "green" friendly government agents (the good guys) make an appearance >:-)

i'd love it... plus this theme would solve LEGOtown's energy crisis :-D

what are your thoughts ???

- BrickMiner

[Joebot]

Sounds good to me. I'm all for more diversity in the City theme. I don't care if it's factories or strip malls, as long as it's not another &%$#-ing police theme, I'm cool with it.

[Asuka]

Sounds pretty cool, but I don

[ZeekyBoogeyDoog]

I would love a theme like this, I really want some gritty urban realism. Especially a nuclear power plant, it would remind me of The Simpsons.

[Brick Miner]

I would love a theme like this, I really want some gritty urban realism. Especially a nuclear power plant, it would remind me of The Simpsons.

ya, i was thinking of some of the key minifigs being like the characters from the springfield nuclear plant.

a mr. burns type character would be the suit "leader."

i also think that LEGO would have to plan this theme just right to get away with it... i think having it be a very character/emotion based theme would be the way to go. this theme might almost be like "pirates" in that it would be a theme based on the "bad guys" and the "good guys" play only a supporting role. in this case it would be the environment friendly agents instead of the imperial soldiers.

im picturing the industry players with an orange color theme, and the environment players in green (obviously :-D ).

if LEGO really wanted to take this theme far, the factories could have mutants, etc... since they are all about man vs. non-man conflict themes. then the sets could be set up like the adventurers, and have obstacles within the factories for the heroes to escape from (ala falling chemical silos, etc..). however, i think this theme would be best if it didn't stray too far from the true city theme... just big ugly monstrous pollution factories *y*

- BM

[Scouty]

It would be an interesting theme, I'd be up for it!

(Now the Lego town can have their own climate problems!)

[Corvus]

I don't think Lego would do this theme simply because it might give them a bad image. Not many toy company would want to promote the industry, because of the global "green" theme occuring. That's probably why they made a recycling truck instead of a garbage truck.

I'd like to see these built, but that's a whole new world of realism for lego. Maybe some "green" energy? I went to Germany last summer and saw a whopping great windmill...Now that's amazing.

[Shadows]

I can't see any chance of this happening, but it would be cool. I'm thinking something bordering on the old game "Beneath a Steel Sky" for those familiar with it (go on you lazy punk, Google is free :-P). Basically it was a dirty, industrialized look at a sort of apocalyptic future, one that would be perfect for huge smoke belching stacks with pipes and vents and metal walkways and such.

Nope, no chance of LEGO doing this, but we could. It'd make a neat group project. Everyone could put together their small ideas for how the whole vision could come together and work off each other's efforts.

I like it. I'd probably participate. Someone make that happen now. *snaps fingers* ;-)

[Brick Miner]

I don't think Lego would do this theme simply because it might give them a bad image. Not many toy company would want to promote the industry, because of the global "green" theme occuring.

right, thats why i proposed that the "factory" be the bad guys, and the "green" be the good guys... only the theme would be dominated by the bad guys, similar to pirates.

i don't know, i think it would work... this theme would most likely have to be based more on fantasy than reality anyway... i think the theme might end up feeling like rock raiders, with mutant pollution monsters and minifigs.

what about that angle ???

--------------------------------------------------

in any case, i did some searching on brickshelf for "factory" and "industry" inspired MOCs, and unless im blind i didn't see much. that leads me to believe this is an unexplored theme (dare i say original concept) to LEGO building. or there is little interest, or... and this is the biggest problem for me, lack of pieces.

i think these theme would be hard to MOC with the elements we have available now... these would really need to be a theme LEGO offered, for me to even attempt making my own creations.

i'd love to see more elements like this:

- BrickMiner

[Shadows]

Ogel Industries vs. Eco-Force! I'm getting bad mental images here, as much as I like the concept.

i'd love to see more elements like this:

Love that piece, never been willing to pay the price.

Throw in some:

and

and plenty of tiles with dials and gauges, round bricks, hoses, and cones.

The real trick would be the plot. Sure, the 'good guys' want to stop the 'bad guys' but how do they do that? Typical LEGO method would be destruction. So in an effort to stop pollution, they blow up factories? Sabotage? I don't think a terrorism theme would be popular these days.

I really do like the idea, but it's clearly an AFOL based theme, not something that could ever be done otherwise. I think it falls somewhere in the Apocalypse and Steam Punk areas, and looking at Brickshelf I see some small things that would be useful for it, but no one seems to have overcome the difficulties in representing something as large and round as a nuclear reactor.

I'm going to keep watching this thread to see if something inspires me. The idea is good, the execution is cloudy.

[Opproperaar]

I actually came up with another idea whilst reading this thread. I suppose that everybody here at some point in their life has seen a controlled demolition of buildings either in real life or on TV. I think that a demolition company could fit in the 'industry' theme proposed here. When (old) buildings have to make way for new construction projects and tearing them down manually proves to be too expensive they call in the demolition companies who plan these projects for several months.

I thought that there was a set in the Steven Spielberg theme where you had a movie set of a bank being blown up. Though I don't have that set myself, perhaps a similar techinque could be used for demolitions.

They examine the building's weak points. Calculate how many explosives of what type (conventional or steel cutting explosives for example) are needed. How the building must fall in order to prevent collateral damage, and weaken vital parts of the buildings like structural columns and elevators so they don't need too many explosives in order to get the whole thing down to the ground.

If you're gonna have old, polluting industrial bfactories and 'green' government agents, you might as well have demolition contracters who tear down the place when LEGOtown's government for example orders the demolishment after a lengthy activists vs industry trial. :-D Just naming ideas here. :-D

Haha, look at it go *wub* *wub* *wub* Explosives rule *y*

Edited September 8, 2007 by Hairy Ruben

[Brick Miner]

Ogel Industries vs. Eco-Force! I'm getting bad mental images here, as much as I like the concept.

ya, that's the kind of feel i was thinking (scary as it is :'-( ).

The real trick would be the plot. Sure, the 'good guys' want to stop the 'bad guys' but how do they do that? Typical LEGO method would be destruction. So in an effort to stop pollution, they blow up factories? Sabotage? I don't think a terrorism theme would be popular these days.

hmmmm... i don't know, here in the states there was a cartoon about 15 years ago that handled the topic of eco-friendly good-guys vs. the toxic pollution bad-guys, called Captain Planet. i think this topic can be handled in an appropriate mannor for children. Captain Planet pulled it off in a saturday morning cartoon !!!

again, it just has to be done right. though, your right, LEGO is all about that technic rubber cannon (seen in almost all conflict oriented themes) these days. and having a cannon take down a factory is probably not a good idea... especially if its a nuclear plant, hmmm...

personally, i was thinking more like the adventurers... where the factories are obscale courses of traps, set up by the villians. sure this take on the theme isn't going to appeal to the common AFOL, but it would produce adequte and abundant pieces to build factories and power plants for our citys... that's all we would really need.

I'm going to keep watching this thread to see if something inspires me. The idea is good, the execution is cloudy.

ya, i'd love to see some factory building come up, mainly to give me some techniques since we have such limited elements for this theme right now. i could see a lot of space "greeble" used, which is a technique i am not too familiar with.

- BM

Edited September 8, 2007 by Brick Miner

[ZeekyBoogeyDoog]

Maybe the good guys could be like the EPA from The Simpsons Movie, with attack helicopters and stuff?

[zeki]

I remember captain planet. The plot in it's stile would be great! Maybe even a theme. hmmm or perhapse just my new mocs :)

Edited September 8, 2007 by zeki

[DJ Force]

Captain Plaaanet, he

[maiq the liar]

Sounds good to me. I'm all for more diversity in the City theme. I don't care if it's factories or strip malls, as long as it's not another &%$#-ing police theme, I'm cool with it.

I still need a police force...Firemen don't have a place to keep Criminals!

[Piranha]

Uggh I hate modern FF(Fossil Fuel) factories :-X

Hurting the enviroment casuing global warming and such..........

So many alternitives

-Hydrogen

-Wind

-Solar

-Tidal

-Hydo-electric

As for Lego sets like that...nope I for one wouldn't buy them

Except maybe an electric powerplant which would be cool

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Coastguard or lifeguard sets I would much rather see

Piranha

Edited September 8, 2007 by Piranha

[Nothing]

That's not such a bad idea. For the green people their logo could be like a long green stripe across the top of the box, however a title for them would be difficult to make up. And then on the front of the box it could also say something like "this can be recycled" and have that logo

[Hinckley]

The real trick would be the plot. Sure, the 'good guys' want to stop the 'bad guys' but how do they do that? Typical LEGO method would be destruction. So in an effort to stop pollution, they blow up factories? Sabotage? I don't think a terrorism theme would be popular these days.

That can be solved with two sets:

1. Clerical office for petitions and lobbying efforts

2. Circuit courtroom

The kids will want ten each!

[Shadows]

That can be solved with two sets:

1. Clerical office for petitions and lobbying efforts

2. Circuit courtroom

The kids will want ten each!

I nearly sloshed myself at the idea. :-$

Briefcases stuffed with $100's! Guys in suits with shark heads. Neon glowing fish and workers.

I'm getting excited just thinking of the possibilities. Or maybe it's my wet shorts, er, the shorts that would be wet if I had sloshed myself, which I most certainly didn't do. :-X

[Hinckley]

I nearly sloshed myself at the idea. :-$

Briefcases stuffed with $100's! Guys in suits with shark heads. Neon glowing fish and workers.

I'm getting excited just thinking of the possibilities. Or maybe it's my wet shorts, er, the shorts that would be wet if I had sloshed myself, which I most certainly didn't do. :-X

maybe you should enter the city ideas contest with that! :-D

[Shadows]

maybe you should enter the city ideas contest with that! :-D

If I hadn't already blown 5 Bricklink orders on dark red bricks for my Chinese restaurant, I'd be all over it. I'll file the idea away though, I think there is great potential for a graft and corruption based City MOC.

[Klaus-Dieter]

now bringing this all back to my currect hobby, LEGO... i think it would be fun to see a new city sub-theme along these lines. something like "industry" or it could be called whatever (i would propose the term "factory" but LEGO already has that one in use).

[...]

i'd love it... plus this theme would solve LEGOtown's energy crisis :-D

what are your thoughts ???

- BrickMiner

That is a very nice idea, Brick Miner!

But I personally don't think it makes sense to open for each City subtheme a new topic.

But there even have been some people in the "Ideas for new City sets" topic who wrote down ideas for powaer plants etc., too. So it would make much more sense to write down all ideas for new City sets here: http://eurobricks.hosting.ipsyn.com/eurofo...pic=9448&st=150

Please don't take this personally - I would have told this everyone else, too.

[Brick Miner]

KD, i am envisioning a high-concept theme... this thread is where we can discuss the different interpretations of a industry based city sub-theme... this type of thread is much different than a "name new set ideas thread", because it is rooted in theme conceptualization, rather than set conceptualization.

for example, i also started a thread about skyscrapers...

http://eurobricks.hosting.ipsyn.com/eurofo...wtopic=6701&hl=

i tend to start thread in areas which i would like extra discussion on the topic, so far these two areas of city building have really taken my interest... commerical tower buildings and industry.

so far though, it appears there is quite a bit more interest in commercial towers though :-(

- BM

Edited September 24, 2007 by Brick Miner

[Klaus-Dieter]

OK, then I missunderstood the aim of this topic. Sorry!