LEGO Star Wars 2024 Set Discussion - READ FIRST POST!!!

[Shiva]

14 hours ago, CloneCommando99 said:

Based

Speeders go vroom?

I think so?

+ yeah, LEGO still does +4sets for LEGO.

[BrickBob Studpants]

They just released a wave of 7 playsets this month and y'all are acting as if TLG stopped making them altogether  Yes, the ratio between playsets and 18+ sets is getting close to 50:50, but so what? Like or not, but that obviously means there's a huge market for 18+ sets. And no, playsets aren't going anywhere.

And like clockwork, fans prophesy the death of (LEGO) Star Wars. Must be a hobby in its own right  

[Yperio_Bricks]

Germany gets a T-6 Jedi Shuttle minibuild in October after the TIE Pilot we get in September with the LSW magazine. Sabine nowhere to be seen

[Horation]

[redacted-pointers]

Edited September 30, 2024 by Horation
pointer-based redaction

[Mandalorianknight]

 

6 hours ago, BrickBob Studpants said:

They just released a wave of 7 playsets this month and y'all are acting as if TLG stopped making them altogether  Yes, the ratio between playsets and 18+ sets is getting close to 50:50, but so what?

So a lot of us prefer the playsets and don't like that the amount released per year is getting so low. No one's saying that they're gone completely, but the number's decreased significantly.

Edited August 31, 2024 by Mandalorianknight

[Shiva]

Wait, what sets are counted as playsets, vs not playsets?

Any list for 2023-2024?

[Llewop]

1 hour ago, Shiva said:

Wait, what sets are counted as playsets, vs not playsets?

Any list for 2023-2024?

Anything that isn’t a diorama, helmet, UCS, MBS, buildable figure, midi scale ships. 

I’d say anything that would be considered a normal Lego set 10-20 years ago ie a ship with some figures, or a building and some figures. 

so this year the RTG sets, the dual on peridia, Saarlac pit, the 3 Mando S3 sets, the Darth maul ship, the boarding set, battle packs and the 4+ set that no one bought from January (I might have missed a set) but basically there the normal playsets

[Coryo]

1 hour ago, Shiva said:

Wait, what sets are counted as playsets, vs not playsets?

Any list for 2023-2024?

Playsets would include battle packs and regular minifig-scale vehicles or location sets.

Display sets are the dioramas with black bases and quotes, as well as buildable Droids/characters, and midi-scale/UCS ships.

So from 2023-24 the playsets would be:

• All four Ahsoka series sets (Ghost, E-wing, T-6, Peridea Battle) 
• The Mandalorian sets (Spider Tank, Pirate Snub Fighter, Fang Fighter vs TIE Interceptor, BARC Speeder, Paz Viszla/Moff Gideon Battle, Ambush on Mandalore)
• All three Rebuild the Galaxy sets (Dark Falcon, Bob's Starfighter, X-Wing/TIE Mash-up)
• Battle Packs (Clones vs. Droids, 501st Specialists, 332nd)
• Young Jedi Adventures sets (Tenoo Temple, Crimson Firehawk)
• Yoda's Starfighter
• TIE Bomber
• Coruscant Guard Gunship
• Yavin 4 Rebel Base
• Boarding the Tantive IV
• Darth Maul's Sith Infiltrator
• The Onyx Cinder
• Desert Skiff & Sarlacc Pit
• Imperial Star Destroyer
• Maybe the Holiday Diorama?

Not sure how to classify things like microfighters and mechs though

[CloneCommando99]

The Empire and Republic are the most well-off factions right now.

But the empire now needs some sort of ground vehicle on shelves since the AT ST has retired. Empire’s got the least Ground Forces right now. (Even the rebels have a play-scale scout speeder)

[MaximillianRebo]

1 hour ago, Shiva said:

Wait, what sets are counted as playsets, vs not playsets?

Any list for 2023-2024?

I crunched the numbers on this recently:

2023: 15 playsets out of 28 total sets

2024: 15 playsets out of 26 total sets.

[AD_Bricks]

2 hours ago, Coryo said:

Not sure how to classify things like microfighters and mechs though

Gimmick sets is probably the best label for them. You could argue that the helmets and midi-scale ships are gimmicks too, though they definitely aren't the sort of thing you could describe negatively as "gimmicky", so it makes sense to classify them separately. Could include battle packs here too but the line between them and playsets is too blurry, particularly with the recent "super battle packs" and other small-medium army builder sets like the armoured marauder.

[BrickBob Studpants]

3 hours ago, Mandalorianknight said:

So a lot of us prefer the playsets and don't like that the amount released per year is getting so low.

I didn‘t say people have to like this development. I was just pointing out that it‘s silly to see this as a sign that the sky is falling

3 hours ago, Mandalorianknight said:

No one's saying that they're gone completely, but the number's decreased significantly.

I know. I only said people are acting as if it were the case, with all the „TLG is gonna drop the license“ nonsense  Yeah, they‘re gonna slaughter their 25 year golden goose, sure.

[BacktoBricks]

13 hours ago, Flieger said:

So we had the same experience. I for one refused to give a knight in plate armour the 'long' kite shield, because they did not coexist. A friend of mine build Lion's knights only trying to emulate Richard Lionheart's time.

I can tell you: we were not alone; we are not alone.

...

Anyway, I do not mind adult sets because I perfectly accepted that Lego is for adults, too. I am just annoyed by quality issues when the claim says I am buying the best and the higest quality. And I am more annoyed when I am told I must not care because kids do not care, which is both untrue regarding children and inappropriate regarding such a high-price product.

Count me in. For instance, It did my head in as a child that my dolls' house didn't have stairs to get between levels so I built a staircase out of my 2x4 Lego bricks.  My pedantic child brain refused to believe the house's occupants could fly between levels.

And the child aspect aside, it doesn't change the fact that Lego is actively pushing Lego as an adult product, hence the mounting 18+ labelled sets, so if it only matters to adults in an argument then the excuses are rapidly wearing thin. 

Nevertheless, neither audience changes the fact, like you say, Lego promotes itself as a premium product with the motto of only the best is good enough, and yet, ultimately, when the picture starts to become one of multiple mistaken details, quality downgrades, and glaring instruction manual errors, the sense becomes one of apathy for both the product and the consumer. It's not a good look and often does the designers' a disregard I think.

[Something_Awesome]

8 hours ago, Horation said:

Lego mentioned Star Wars as one of their top selling themes in their last financial update, I don't see why they'd drop it anytime soon...

I thought you were a Lego fan, why such Hate for so many items? I mean there are so many sets released each (and they cost so much...) that you can't really tell me there's nothing you like, if anything that leaves you with more money to spend elsewhere!

So according to... I guess toy insiders... Star Wars toys are doing terribly outside of LEGO. Black Series is only doing "decent" when it used to do very well.

I live near three LEGO stores in Los Angeles. For about the past year and a half, the Star Wars section never has anyone browsing it at the LEGO store. But There are always young kids at the Ninjago section. This is interesting to me because, after taking note of the kids' ages (assumptively), it looks clear to me that Ninjago was around before a lot of these kids were even old enough to get in to it. It's possible they've picked it up from older siblings. I don't know. But even watching certain reviewers like Danibob, she said her nieces and nephews also much prefer Ninjago over Star Wars. Star Wars is not cool with Gen Alpha. And there is no reason for it to be. The franchise has not made anything compelling. And as for the content from Star Wars that the majority would consider great (episodes 1 - 6?), that stuff has not aged well.

But let's say you think the Bad Batch show is good. What's the standard? Maybe it's good compared to cartoons that have come out in the last several years. But the industry used to pump out actual masterpieces, and it seems like the fandom has forgotten that. I don't know that the X-Men cartoon from the 90's will ever be topped at this point. 

As a side now, I was at the most recent May the 4th release at one of my LEGO stores (a big store). I was there before the store opened. A fairly sizable crowed. No kids. A lot of men and women that were easily 40+. This is who LEGO Star Wars is for. Adults with nostalgia from the franchise they loved for decades. A license cannot last with out new blood. Star Wars does not attract new blood anymore.

 

EDIT: One thing I want to add, as much as I HATE Star Wars display sets, I still think overall LEGO is doing a great job with the theme. I mean, I don't blame them for catering to adults since that's where the money is. But they are still managing to make great stuff. The AT-TE is a 10/10 set. I loved the most recent playscale AT-AT. The Mos Eisley set is also 10/10. The Black Falcon, while not for me, looks AMAZING. Also, I don't mind the helmet holes on clones; however, cloth waistcapes need to come back and I have reason to believe they are coming back in 2025.

Edited August 31, 2024 by Something_Awesome

[BrickBob Studpants]

1 hour ago, Something_Awesome said:

As a side now, I was at the most recent May the 4th release at one of my LEGO stores (a big store). I was there before the store opened. A fairly sizable crowed. No kids.

Isn‘t that to be expected though? I can’t imagine too many kids being interested in standing in line for GWP sets and promos with rather high thresholds  Of course that sort of thing attracts collectors more than kids.

Also, I’d wager most kids don’t buy sets on day one, instead waiting for birthdays or Xmas, or saving up their allowance first.

[Darth_Bane13]

this is purely anecdotal but it seemed like when Ninjago came out around 2011/2012 it overtook Star Wars as the most popular LEGO theme among my friend group which were 8-9 years old at the time. I would guess Ninjago and Marvel are the most popular among kids today.

[Horation]

[redacted-pointers]

Edited September 30, 2024 by Horation
pointer based redaction

[Mandalorianknight]

9 hours ago, BrickBob Studpants said:

I didn‘t say people have to like this development. I was just pointing out that it‘s silly to see this as a sign that the sky is falling

I know. I only said people are acting as if it were the case, with all the „TLG is gonna drop the license“ nonsense  Yeah, they‘re gonna slaughter their 25 year golden goose, sure.

That was one guy, who's been saying things to that effect for a long time. Most of us are just pointing out that over the last few years lego has shifted a massive amount from playsets to 18+ sets, and that yes, that is concerning for the future of playsets. Not that they're going to go away entirely, but that we're getting significantly less and this is going to significantly limit the options for what gets made.

1 hour ago, Horation said:

Well, we visit this discounted surplus store often, and there are still toys from the Rise of Skywalker. I completely agree that it's less popular than before, and I feel like the latest offerings aren't even pleasing old blood, let alone the younglings!

Just bringing in what I see at my local discount stores-

The retro kenner figs, a black series wave (off the top of my head it's mainly less "cool" characters/outfits like Tarkin and other "suits", but Palpatine, Dengar, and Cody were there too which surprised me), pretty much the entire TLJ toyline- black series, the force link or whatever it was called, etc, and the YJA temple thing. No legos whatsoever.

I will say though, I know this store only brings out new toys either when a similar slot opens or christmas season approaches, so the most recent product they have out right now (aside from the YJA temples, which showed up when they either sold or trashed a Solo Kessel playset) are the Mando S2 retro figures. I know from my walmart and target clearance aisles that this particular discount location will be getting shipments of the lola droid from kenobi come october/november.

[Kit Figsto]

9 hours ago, Something_Awesome said:

I live near three LEGO stores in Los Angeles. For about the past year and a half, the Star Wars section never has anyone browsing it at the LEGO store. But There are always young kids at the Ninjago section.

Conversely, the LEGO store by me is always sold down on Star Wars products, and for the past 3-4 years, I've had a hard time finding new SW releases at big box retailers once they come out, usually it takes me about a month before I see some of the non-battle pack/microfighter sets.  For example, I just saw the Dark Falcon in stores for the first time yesterday, and I'm at Target/Walmart usually at least twice a week.  

To be clear, I don't doubt your experiences, I'm just pointing out that there's not a whole lot that we can definitively conclude from anecdotal evidence.  I certainly agree with you that it's interesting the direction the line has gone in - clearly the 18+ stuff is selling well, otherwise they wouldn't keep making it (and I'm not sure why people on this forum continue to suggest that "no one wants it" when very obviously people do, otherwise these lines would've been cancelled long ago), and while I personally am more interested in the playsets and MBS stuff, I've been tempted by some of the dioramas and buildable characters as well.  

What I would love to know, and there's no way that this would ever come out, is what the sales and production figures are for, say, an 18+ helmet set versus a $20 battle pack or a $50 playset.  If a helmet is roughly $60, are they producing and selling 3x $20 BPs for every one helmet?  Are the BPs outselling the helmets?  What about a similarly sized playset? 

Because I think that you raise a good point, with the adult focus on the line, are kids still interested the same way that they were 10-20 years ago?  There's more competition for it these days, as there's way more licensed lines (and seemingly themes in general, compared to say, 2007), and there's also been a shift towards more of a story-focus in some of the non-licensed themes.  City, for example, when I was growing up, was more of a realistic depiction of everyday life, whereas now, there's aspects that are much more story/action focused, something that I could see drawing in more young buyers.

Anyway, just my thoughts.

[BrickBob Studpants]

I know it’s tempting to think that the 18+ sets take the spots of desirable playsets, but the truth is we won’t ever know what they’re “replacing”  Some of the helmets, figures, and dioramas might just as well have taken the spots of remakes that a lot of people would be annoyed with (ever notice it’s been a while since the last Landspeeder or Snowspeeders came out?), or a gimmick line geared towards kids.

And I doubt we’d lose good set ideas because of it. It’s not like one designer is suggesting a Jedi temple and another goes “nah, drop that idea forever, we’re making a Boss Nass statue with laughing function instead!” If they thought it’s a good set idea but outside their budget for that year, they’d surely consider simply releasing it another year

[Shiva]

Cheers for the playsets vs non-playsets. Especially to Coryo.

Children can use mech, microfighters + even midi-scale ships in their plays. Well, atleast I would have used.

 

[Mandalorianknight]

3 hours ago, BrickBob Studpants said:

I know it’s tempting to think that the 18+ sets take the spots of desirable playsets, but the truth is we won’t ever know what they’re “replacing”  Some of the helmets, figures, and dioramas might just as well have taken the spots of remakes that a lot of people would be annoyed with (ever notice it’s been a while since the last Landspeeder or Snowspeeders came out?), or a gimmick line geared towards kids.

And I doubt we’d lose good set ideas because of it. It’s not like one designer is suggesting a Jedi temple and another goes “nah, drop that idea forever, we’re making a Boss Nass statue with laughing function instead!” If they thought it’s a good set idea but outside their budget for that year, they’d surely consider simply releasing it another year

We get significantly fewer playsets/year than we used to. We get significantly more 18+ sets than we used to. This is really simple.

I dunno where you're seeing people saying that we're never going to get playsets again -again, aside from the gentleman who only appears to pop up to say LSW is dying or spoil paz's death-, or that the 18+ sets are specifically replacing super desirable sets, but it's taking the very clear concern most people are expressing to a semi-absurd extreme. You're arguing past the point most people are making.

[Classic_Spaceman]

The Rebels vs. Imperials set actually has a new female Fleet Trooper head, but it unfortunately also reuses Captain Antilles' head (I would honestly prefer two identical troopers over one with a named character's head). The Imperial dropship looks bad, with an unclear silhouette and lots of gaps and jarring brown pieces; the Rebel speeder, on the other hand, looks amazing! The size is nice, but it can also be extended a bit quite easily, and in addition to being a faithful update of the OG battle pack build, it looks straight out of an old Battlefront game! 
 

[BrickBob Studpants]

16 minutes ago, Mandalorianknight said:

I dunno where you're seeing people saying that we're never going to get playsets again -again, aside from the gentleman who only appears to pop up to say LSW is dying or spoil paz's death-, or that the 18+ sets are specifically replacing super desirable sets, but it's taking the very clear concern most people are expressing to a semi-absurd extreme. You're arguing past the point most people are making.

Fair enough, I might be reading too much into it  Nobody stated anything like that explicitly in this thread, it’s more the vibe I’m getting from some of the arguments

[CloneCommando99]

20 hours ago, Something_Awesome said:

So according to... I guess toy insiders... Star Wars toys are doing terribly outside of LEGO. Black Series is only doing "decent" when it used to do very well.

But There are always young kids at the Ninjago section.

Ok. I have seen some reports on this topic. Like I know that Hasbro had to offload a whole lot of licensed merch a year and a half ago (including SW) because a tax write off would lose less money.

 

Honestly I don’t blame them. Ninjago is peak fiction.

5 hours ago, Classic_Spaceman said:

The Imperial dropship looks bad, with an unclear silhouette and lots of gaps and jarring brown pieces; the Rebel speeder, on the other hand, looks amazing! The size is nice, but it can also be extended a bit quite easily, and in addition to being a faithful update of the OG battle pack build, it looks straight out of an old Battlefront game! 
 

I personally like the dropship. It gives my Empire At War vibes. I love the enclosed design. Feels like a patrol cruiser.