Markalus

The box is gorgeous. Are Lego putting 18+ on all the sets designed for AFOLs/display now? As for the model itself it looks OK but a little ‘chubby’ to me if I’m being critical. Based on the RZ-1design the nose comes to a much narrower point, the Lego model ends abruptly.

You left out “An A-Wing. Why not ‘X’ vehicle which has much broader appeal...to me?”

No I didn’t. The active promo at the time was the 40th anniversary holiday train and Dots mini frame, neither of which I cared for. The weird thing is though the order is still displaying as ‘in process’ but with a zero dollar value on all the items. The guy on the phone assured me it was canceled so I’m not sure why it still says in process? It’s been like that for three weeks. Strange.

It must depend on where you are located because in Australia my card was charged for the full amount immediately. I had to call and cancel the order. I’ll wait to see what the May 4th holds and pre-order then if it’s an attractive promo.

Yep. Couldn’t happen to a more humble guy. Everyone else; stays at home to save lives. The one guy who could literally stay in their bedroom and not be affected; drives around in their new ‘Tang’ to look for a park that isn’t closed to play ball. I don’t mind the set, just the circumstances in which it was released are a little off. They literally sent him a personal message the day before release and said “don’t tell anyone but here you go”. A comment in his video summed it up best “You look like a guy who just lost his virginity...”. Well done TLG Nice. I guess that lays to rest any notion that the Mando fig was a placeholder and we might get Beskar armour Mando instead.

So many weird things about this comment. Firstly, why 17? I was five when ANH first screened and yeah nostalgia value is a big factor in my Lego SW collection. Secondly, the retirement age in most developed countries (ie. TLGs biggest markets) is not 60, its 65+. Thirdly, “even alive”? The life expectancy in said countries is typically late 70s-80s and the median age is probably higher than you think. And yes, I still display Lego in my office

Even if he did have information (unlikely) he’s not going to divulge it to a random customer. It won’t be rare. Probably scarce initially due to high demand but TLG know anything Mandalorian and especially with baby Yoda is going to make them a lot of money. Why would they make a limited production? It makes no business sense. The fact that they are pre-selling it seven months out in some markets suggests they know it’s going to be popular.

I was answering as to why people preorder, not the reason/s why TLG have set up a preorder in the first place. But you’re probably correct as to TLGs motive to go this route, at least partially.

Well it’s not released until Sept. so there’s that. But the point is people want to secure one and demand will likely far outstrip supply when it’s released. I haven’t seen the AT-ST Raider in stores in my country since November when it aired. It briefly came back in stock at Lego S@H a week ago but has since sold out again...and that’s without the pull of baby Yoda and Mando’s ship.

Yep. Available to preorder on Amazon too but not the .au site and and of course restrictive geo-licensing means they won’t ship to Australia. I just hope Lego Australia haven’t done an exclusive deal with a local retailer.

They’ve done a fantastic job with The Razorcrest! The official description says “New for August 2020 The Mandalorian and The Child minifigures”. I take that to mean they are placeholders and I’m hopeful we will see him in his Beskar armour. He spent like 80% of the show with it and it was integral to the plot. The fact they’ve announced it so early, are taking preorders and specified “new for August” speaks to them wanting to bank on the hype but the minifigure design may not finalised. Speaking of preorders, which countries can you preorder on S@H? Preorders are not up in Australia as yet.

They have in the past - MYER, Toyworld etc. I hope TLG are fully aware of how popular this set will be, although I somehow doubt it. Flippers will ensure it’s an instant sell-out regardless.

^Exactly my thoughts. Then Slave 1.

I have no idea who Jedi Bob is but it makes sense particularly since they’ve differentiated between accurate model focussed UCS and playset-style MBS sets.

It occurred to me that the question Lego ask of “which minifigure would like to see included” in the set you vote for could have a major influence on people’s decision. For example, I went with the Nebulon B Frigate but thinking in terms of minifigs left me scratching my head. IMO there are so many more potentially cool minifigs for the Republic Gunship, which is why I think it’s more suited to a regular playset but some might vote for it as a UCS set based on potential minifigs. I also find it strange they say minifigure and not minifigures...is this just a translation thing? Or do they just want to identify a single fan favourite?

I wouldn’t be surprised if TLG pulled out all the stops to rush at least one ‘real’ Mando set with baby Yoda minifig before Christmas 2020 (please be ‘The Razorcrest’). It’s amazing what the promise of guaranteed huge financial gain can do to speed up things up. Also, the internet is a fickle beast and baby Yoda mania will invariably wane with time before the release of season 2 so the longer it’s delayed will translate to lower sales. I can’t imagine the bean counters at TLG wanting that to happen.

Wow, fan vote for the next UCS is huge news and a great move IMO. I vote for the Nebulon B Frigate over the Republic Gunship purely because UCS is the only way we will get this ship. I’m hopeful they will (re)release a system scale Republic Gunship to coincide with S7 of The Clone Wars.

I totally agree. And yes, the AT-ST Raider was abundant (and on discount) in my area until the episode in which it featured aired, then it vanished from shelves almost overnight and has not been restocked. Any set with ‘baby Yoda’ is undoubtably going to be a huge seller for Lego.

But they are in the business of making “what will sell”, otherwise they’d go out of business. Casual fans or parents may not recognise more obscure vehicles/ships. I would expect to see The Razorcrest released at some point and probably more to come from The Mandalorian not because it’s interesting to hard-core fans but to the masses. The AT-ST Raider and Mandalorian battlepack are constantly sold out, at least in my part of the world.

Paz Vizla is his name...credited and voiced by Jon Favreau. He isn’t in the Mandalorian battle pack though.

Yes. When the add to cart button is not there it means they are out of stock. I’d imagine it was popular as it’s the only place in Aus I’ve seen them available. It looks like the 25% discount was only for 24hrs too but I suspect other retailers will release before Christmas as even the local S@H have them listed as coming Dec 18.

Most of the new Rise of Skywalker sets are available as of today in the Australian retail store David Jones and are 25% off! No Mandalorian BP though.

I picked up the small box for the Pasaana speeder chase set and promptly put it back...a $40 set disguised as $90. The Yoda set on the other hand; great value it is, and proving hard to find.

Haha re the upside-down. LEGO does have a hub/warehouse here in Australia. It opened last year and one of the benefits was significantly reduced shipping costs. Yes, our price does include 10% GST. Even $150 would be reasonable. Getting double VIP points on Force Friday certainly helps but the new sets are already available at 20% discount at local resellers.

The global disparity for free promotional items is getting worse. To qualify for the Force Friday Endor set the min. spend is $75 USD, which equates to approx. $110 Australian dollars. Yet, the actual min. spend in Australian dollars is $200. I find it very hard to justify that number based on tax, relative size of market, shipping, etc. Still, ’market forces’ is such a great hand wavy term and I’m sure I’ll get flamed for complaining about the cost of a “free” item which has no real value.