Star Wars Minifigures vs Other Themes

[Jedi-Bendu]

22 hours ago, RetroInferno said:

Molds for new pieces cost several thousands $$$ ( between 25 000 to 150 000$ )

 

 

If that is so.....then I wonder how it's possible that cheap Chinese clone brands produce them.

Last year I ordered a set of 'Big Hero 6' figures. LEGO never made them, and since I loved the movie I grabbed a set:

Top row: the left Baymax has a unique head and wings sculpt.

Middle row: unique headsculpt, unique hairsculpt, unique helmet sculpt

Bottom row: 2 unique helmet sculpts

Grand total: 6 new sculpts. Total costs would be somewhere between $ 150.000 and 900.000 then.

No offense, but I don't believe a Chinese clone brand would invest that for a figure set that sells for a couple of bucks.

So, if they can make new molds for a low price......why can't Lego?

[RetroInferno]

These chinese molds must be a lot cheaper, they have a shorter production run ( I would guess ) and can skip on the tolerance of the mold. 

Lego molds last for around 120, 000, 000 bricks, which I doubt the chinese equipement would last.

 

I also re-checked the costs and they can go as cheap as 10, 000$, and go up to 300,000$.

 

 

Edited October 2, 2016 by RetroInferno

[1980-Something-Space-Guy]

1 hour ago, RetroInferno said:

These chinese molds must be a lot cheaper, they have a shorter production run ( I would guess ) and can skip on the tolerance of the mold. 

Lego molds last for around 120, 000, 000 bricks, which I doubt the chinese equipement would last.

 

I also re-checked the costs and they can go as cheap as 10, 000$, and go up to 300,000$.

I had never given a though to the fact that clone brands also need these molds, which are expensive for Lego, but you are right. They're probably using cheaper and much lower quality alternatives.

[brobert]

I know we are all FOLs and all, but let's be realistic here: the price is mostly higher because of the 4 letters printed on the boxes/molded in the bricks in the correct order. I don't believe that all the stuff TLG uses is so much better quality that warrants the huge difference in price compared to knockoffs. 

Sure, I understand that the suspiciously cheap knockoffs are probably sh*t, but there's definitely some copycat brands out there who can do almost the same for less. 

[Jedi-Bendu]

3 hours ago, brobert said:

I know we are all FOLs and all, but let's be realistic here: the price is mostly higher because of the 4 letters printed on the boxes/molded in the bricks in the correct order. I don't believe that all the stuff TLG uses is so much better quality that warrants the huge difference in price compared to knockoffs. 

Sure, I understand that the suspiciously cheap knockoffs are probably sh*t, but there's definitely some copycat brands out there who can do almost the same for less. 

Thank you.

Also: look at Hasbro's SW figs. EVERY figure (except some droids) requires a new mold.....and Hasbro is definately not a cheap brand. So, if they can release a bunch of new figs/molds....why can't Lego?

There are many things I (will) believe, but I cannot believe the whole creation of a new mold costs 10.000 to 300.000 (10k: ok, but 300K???? For a plastic brick/head?)

[Dhivael]

IMO, I am impressed at the sheer number of mini figures that lego has made for the SW theme. I am sure this is not the most-widely held belief, but I do not have many complaints about how these have progressed. Main characters are of course going to be repeated. It is the only way to bring new people into the market. The 9 year-old wants Luke and Han, not Willow Hood. 

While this is not truly scientific, according to brick link there are 833 star wars mini figures. This represents almost 1/10th of all the unique lego figs ever made. Regardless of cost, the quality does not seem to be generally lacking either. Yes, I am disappointed that Jyn did not have leg printing. Yes, I was disappointed that there was not a widely available C-3PO in the TFA waves. Yes, some could have (some, or better) arm printing. That said, this has been building for a while. The printing on the SW line seems awesome, and I am overall quite pleased. 

And I will be looking forward to Thrawn next year to fill that particular void in my EU MOCs.  

[pittpenguin123]

I think Lego should go the Kenner rout and release every single character. Even those ones that were in only 1 frame in one seen in one movie. And when they run out just Mix match the figures into new ones.

 

That's what we all want right?... What I can't be the only one who wants prune man or yahk face 

Edited October 30, 2016 by pittpenguin123

[Flandy]

14 hours ago, Jedi-Bendu said:

Also: look at Hasbro's SW figs. EVERY figure (except some droids) requires a new mold.....and Hasbro is definately not a cheap brand. So, if they can release a bunch of new figs/molds....why can't Lego?

The big advantage Lego has over Hasbro is that for the most part it only has to mold a head , or hair/hat to create a new figure, as the bodies are all standardised. And considering it's rare for a set to include any newly molded parts, the rest of the set uses existing parts, alll be it occasionally in new colours. From that point of view, not including more new characters in sets seems very tight on Legos part.

C'mon Lego, give Pittpenguin his Yahk face!

[That Orange Thing]

Just seen the new Batman sets and it just feels frustrating to compare those figures to the new Star wars ones as they have so much going on with dual molding and printing.

I'll just make one quick comparison. Robin, a sidekick, has both dual molded legs and arms, whereas Jyn Erso, the main hero of an entire film, they couldn't even bother to give her printed legs. Heck, they couldn't even be bothered to throw on the new Han legs which must be sitting around in a factory somewhere that would have been adequate. 

Like I said, just frustrating at times. 

[x105Black]

On 10/3/2016 at 9:05 AM, brobert said:

I know we are all FOLs and all, but let's be realistic here: the price is mostly higher because of the 4 letters printed on the boxes/molded in the bricks in the correct order. I don't believe that all the stuff TLG uses is so much better quality that warrants the huge difference in price compared to knockoffs. 

Sure, I understand that the suspiciously cheap knockoffs are probably sh*t, but there's definitely some copycat brands out there who can do almost the same for less. 

Absolutely.  I'm sure that LEGO charges a premium compared to other products.  I am also sure that their business is much better, in terms of customer service and other behind the scenes support.

On 10/3/2016 at 1:25 PM, Dhivael said:

IMO, I am impressed at the sheer number of mini figures that lego has made for the SW theme. I am sure this is not the most-widely held belief, but I do not have many complaints about how these have progressed. Main characters are of course going to be repeated. It is the only way to bring new people into the market. The 9 year-old wants Luke and Han, not Willow Hood. 

While this is not truly scientific, according to brick link there are 833 star wars mini figures. This represents almost 1/10th of all the unique lego figs ever made. Regardless of cost, the quality does not seem to be generally lacking either. Yes, I am disappointed that Jyn did not have leg printing. Yes, I was disappointed that there was not a widely available C-3PO in the TFA waves. Yes, some could have (some, or better) arm printing. That said, this has been building for a while. The printing on the SW line seems awesome, and I am overall quite pleased. 

And I will be looking forward to Thrawn next year to fill that particular void in my EU MOCs.  

I am also impressed with the number of minifigures.  And I definitely agree that the typical child is much more interested in the core characters, which is why we see them over and over.  It would be nice, however, if they made some serious improvements to those characters to bring them up to date.  That said, I'd love to see a Willrow Hood minifigure.  That one would actually be cost effective, it wouldn't require new parts or printing that would be too complex, and he could come in a set that includes other core characters (maybe new versions of them).

On 10/4/2016 at 4:53 PM, That Orange Thing said:

Just seen the new Batman sets and it just feels frustrating to compare those figures to the new Star wars ones as they have so much going on with dual molding and printing.

I'll just make one quick comparison. Robin, a sidekick, has both dual molded legs and arms, whereas Jyn Erso, the main hero of an entire film, they couldn't even bother to give her printed legs. Heck, they couldn't even be bothered to throw on the new Han legs which must be sitting around in a factory somewhere that would have been adequate. 

Like I said, just frustrating at times. 

I completely agree.  I can understand that LEGO is going to put a serious effort into making the LEGO Batman Movie sets the best they can be, since it is a huge proprietary theme, but to do so without making the same effort for one of their biggest selling themes seems like a huge oversight.  I am hoping Star Wars is on the schedule for this level of detail in the near future.

[TWP]

3 hours ago, x105Black said:

(...)  That said, I'd love to see a Willrow Hood minifigure.  That one would actually be cost effective, it wouldn't require new parts or printing that would be too complex, and he could come in a set that includes other core characters (maybe new versions of them).

(...)

Oh, when they put Willrow in an official set he has to have an exclusively molded ice cream machine to go with him!

[x105Black]

2 hours ago, TWP said:

Oh, when they put Willrow in an official set he has to have an exclusively molded ice cream machine to go with him!

I'm sure they could come up with a clever build, but I wouldn't mind an exclusive part.

[pittpenguin123]

They could just do a build like this

[x105Black]

9 minutes ago, pittpenguin123 said:

They could just do a build like this

Perfect.  Now it just needs a release.  Also, notice the dual molding.  Important part of the character.

[RetroInferno]

Ah talking Lego and Bespin at the at the same time hurts so much :(

But yeah as long as they included everyone in their Bespin outfit ( Luke, Leia and Lando ) in a new set ( Do it already Lego ) I'm all for a new molded ice cream machine. 

 

[The lego fan]

I don't realy mind lack of printing on some Star Wars Minifigures because they still look like the right character and sell well anyway. I have to say, I have not truly noticed this before!

[x105Black]

So it has come to light that the Boba Fett included in the Desert Skiff set will be the less detailed version from the Carbon Freezing Chamber rather then the more detailed version from the Slave I.

This is the kind of thing that makes other themes more attractive.  Other themes include highly detailed characters even in the cheaper sets, Star Wars should be doing the same.  Instead, they are keeping this Boba Fett exclusive to a very expensive set (which is a good enough set to sell well on its own, I don't think the arm printing is selling the sets).  LEGO needs to change their policy when it comes to Star Wars and minifigure details, especially in light of how they handle other themes.

[ProvenceTristram]

Really? I haven't noticed a significant dropoff.

Here's a minifigs related question: why haven't we gotten a line of Star Wars packaged minifigs in one of the series releases?

[Duncan Young]

6 hours ago, ProvenceTristram said:

Really? I haven't noticed a significant dropoff.

Here's a minifigs related question: why haven't we gotten a line of Star Wars packaged minifigs in one of the series releases?

One word- Hasbro

They own the rights to selling individual SW figures or something like that and they hold onto that tightly

[atlas]

17 hours ago, x105Black said:

So it has come to light that the Boba Fett included in the Desert Skiff set will be the less detailed version from the Carbon Freezing Chamber rather then the more detailed version from the Slave I.

This is the kind of thing that makes other themes more attractive.  Other themes include highly detailed characters even in the cheaper sets, Star Wars should be doing the same.  Instead, they are keeping this Boba Fett exclusive to a very expensive set (which is a good enough set to sell well on its own, I don't think the arm printing is selling the sets).  LEGO needs to change their policy when it comes to Star Wars and minifigure details, especially in light of how they handle other themes.

Completely agree. The whole "exclusive" argument to me is just rubbish, and like you said it doesn't appear to apply for other themes. I really dislike this artificial scarcity of what should be freely available. I would gain respect for lego if they stop doing this but I can't see it happening which is really disappointing.

[pittpenguin123]

Unless new pics leaked there is no way to tell how detailed the boba is, its horribly blurry and obviously prototype. He didn't have the cape dosnt seem to torso or leg printing and his jetpack is grey

[x105Black]

19 hours ago, pittpenguin123 said:

Unless new pics leaked there is no way to tell how detailed the boba is, its horribly blurry and obviously prototype. He didn't have the cape dosnt seem to torso or leg printing and his jetpack is grey

Fair enough.  Let's hope it's the more detailed version.

[appiah4]

I have a feeling people angry at LEGO for not coming up with enough newer figures or molds are ignoring the fact like late returnees like myself who have missed the last decade of Star Wars sets have a lot of backlog to fill with regards to minifigures..  I realize it's not ideal, but on behalf of all other people in my boat, I'd ask the veterans to be a bit more understanding about this..

[Japanbuilder]

I don't really mind the lack of printing or details. Most of my collection is made up of City sets so the Star Wars ones look overly detailed side by side those in many cases or equal in others. 

I do remember as a kid though in what felt like no time the printing was gone on heads, torsos and everything. Seeing as how these are marketed heavily towards kids I imagine LEGO is just trying to strike a balance. Decent enough quality for the serious crowd but not too overly detailed for when kids inevitably smudge them to zero but still need them to resemble something. 

I do, however, expect for sets over a certain price point to hit a higher standard. Once you start pushing over 50 bucks I do expect a bit more. But a 30 buck set not so much. Same goes for battle packs.

 

[x105Black]

22 hours ago, appiah4 said:

I have a feeling people angry at LEGO for not coming up with enough newer figures or molds are ignoring the fact like late returnees like myself who have missed the last decade of Star Wars sets have a lot of backlog to fill with regards to minifigures..  I realize it's not ideal, but on behalf of all other people in my boat, I'd ask the veterans to be a bit more understanding about this..

I only came back to LEGO a couple of years ago, so I have a lot of characters to buy still.  But I'm glad there was a new Gamorrean Guard recently, because it's a huge upgrade over the previous and I was able to collect the newer, better version.  There are characters I haven't collected yet because they have not been updated to the modern standards of other characters, something that's not an issue with other themes.