April 5, 200915 yr and now that we are seeing more detailed torsos and heads, folks are calling it "cartoony" For me that's not the reason to call it that way. If I look to Castle for example, the (human) minifigs are really great, and much more detailed if I compare them to the ones from fifteen years ago for example. It's just how they are designed. The Castle-figs don't look cartoonish to me, and it's not a theme-thing (the castle-figs were a big improvement, the sets weren't).
April 5, 200915 yr Plus, the new line has only been around for a year, and the sets may well improve in the next wave (Although I think they're already great.) Generally, sets improve every year, so those who aren't big fans of them may still decide that they're as good as I do. I also have to add that I love the new line for some different MOCing pieces. The old line had little brown which is quite plentiful in the new line, along with dark brown and some other lovely colors.
April 5, 200915 yr The only thing which got worst in the pirate line for my own tastes is the minifigs' faces. I think the simpler faces were better, now too many of the minifigs look like nasty people.
April 5, 200915 yr People were nasty in that time, the soldiers were not the most lovely persons on earth... I think the new faces are awesome, highly detailed. All the minifigs have been improved a lot.
April 5, 200915 yr I think the new ones are quite good: It looks much similar. And the colour of the new cannon is better. you see, red coat at Napoleonic war:http://www.fotobank.ru/img/BR00-7258.jpg?size=l and new lego pirate red coat.http://www.bricklink.com/ML/pi104.jpg The only thing which got worst in the pirate line for my own tastes is the minifigs' faces. I think the simpler faces were better, now too many of the minifigs look like nasty people. I recommend you to read novels at those time. Like Sharpe.
April 5, 200915 yr Honestly I was also disappointed when the new pirate sets came out, since to me Captain Brickbeard and the BB ship only looked like an updated version of Captain Roger and the BSB ship. Maybe I'm biast since I prefer the older sets which I grew up with as a kid, especially the early ones up to 1992-93; so I won't give a clear and fair opinion of the new ones. Nevertheless it was a great pleasure and surprise to see the pirate theme back!
April 5, 200915 yr Maybe I'm biast since I prefer the older sets which I grew up with as a kid, especially the early ones up to 1992-93; so I won't give a clear and fair opinion of the new ones. Finally!! Someone who's admitted to the Nostalgia Goggles effect!
April 5, 200915 yr If you people don't like the new sets, you don't have to buy them, y'know. I for one, love the new sets, and think they are just as equally awesome as the old sets.
April 6, 200915 yr People were nasty in that time, the soldiers were not the most lovely persons on earth... Yes, but it was still better for me when Lego minifigs looked all dumb & happy. It's a toy, it doesn't have to be historically accurate, and it's a little better if it delivers a more positive message to kids.
April 6, 200915 yr Are people still whinging about this issue? And for the pettiest reasons! "Too few cannons", "too grumpy faces", "too childish skulls in the sails". Come on, people, none of that stuff really matters! The fact remains that the new sets are exactly what they're supposed to be - new. They have new colors, more detailed minifigs than before, a bit of fantasy thrown in the mix... There's just no going back to the "good olden days" when everything was simple and clean-cut. If you thought you were going to get the exact same sets you had when you were a kid, you're delirious. You should really open your minds to this new chance pirate fans have been given. People, after ten years of waiting and whining for a proper System Pirates theme, you finally got one! So just be happy and shut up!
April 6, 200915 yr Are people still whinging about this issue? And for the pettiest reasons! "Too few cannons", "too grumpy faces", "too childish skulls in the sails". Come on, people, none of that stuff really matters!The fact remains that the new sets are exactly what they're supposed to be - new. They have new colors, more detailed minifigs than before, a bit of fantasy thrown in the mix... There's just no going back to the "good olden days" when everything was simple and clean-cut. If you thought you were going to get the exact same sets you had when you were a kid, you're delirious. You should really open your minds to this new chance pirate fans have been given. People, after ten years of waiting and whining for a proper System Pirates theme, you finally got one! So just be happy and shut up! Amen. You have new Pirate sets, buy them if you don't want to miss out, pass on them if your 'rose-coloured glasses' tell you too. I for one wont miss this chance to get some great sets from a line I never had the chance to purchase in my 'dark ages'. Cheers ISC (or is that Screambob Clonepants)
April 6, 200915 yr Well if you consider that there hasn't been Lego pirates in a decade, I would say that something is better than nothing. Yea I feel the older sets were great and will never be surpassed, but the new sets offer great new parts and minifigures, and who is to say that there will not be a pirate set in the future that will blow us away.
April 6, 200915 yr I've noticed that A LOT of people hold their precious memories of their childhood LEGO sets and quickly dismiss the current sets as inferior or "nothing like what they used to". Hailing them as THE MOST AWESOMERESTEST sets. Well they probably were because you were a kid, imagination is at its peak. I hope that these guys probably just don their nostalgia goggles. I Agree, Very well said. In my opinion here are some pros and cons of the new set Pros: - Great new colors that blend with the older sets - The cannons (the color is great) and they shoot just like the original ones I had as a child) - New parts (telescope, fish, ect.) - New Shakos (I was tired of paying $4 each) - New 2 sided Torso's (now we just need some blue coats) - More Female Minifigs in the line - The soldier impulse set is great for army building - The "Extras" (its nice getting extra epaulettes etc..) Cons: - The <insert that tiresome argument> skull and cross bones (I just got more of the other sails on bricklink) - The piece count could be higher (I think that is a common complaint with newer sets in general) - No Anchor on the ship and no whole in the hull for an anchor - The Imperial fort is too small (although it does have room for expansion) - Stickers instead of painted brick for the Fort All and all I am happy with the new sets. Could they be better??? Of course they could.....Could they be worse??? We could have Pirates VS. Skeletons......Yeah that would have sucked
April 6, 200915 yr I like the new line. I like it a lot. Why? Because it means we have more to work with, and something is better than nothing. I have heard a lot of people trashing BB. Im sure if they made a ship EXACTLY like one of the old ones, those same people would be mad that they didnt make something different. I like that ship, I like it a lot. I also like to commit the sacrilige of converting the pirate ships to imperial service! In that regard, BB is a piece of cake! It looks nice that way too! Eldorado Fortress was *way* more expensive when released - I'll tell you why: £35 was worth *way* more in 1989 than in 2009. Just think, 20 years later with annual inflation every year that was quite significant in some years.So the new Lego is particularly incredible when you consider it is essentially dirt cheap today. AMEN! I did an inflation calculation and then translated what the old sets would cost now. That is my price point when bidding on ebay. I bought a couple nice caribbean clipper cheaper than new once inflation was factored in. When we were kids, $20 was a lot of money. What is it worth now?!
April 6, 200915 yr When we were kids, $20 was a lot of money. What is it worth now?! It is worth a lot to me. I am out of work right now and the snow is taking forever to melt (That means spring cleanup is putoff) So $20 is a lot to some people.To others it is worth nothing.
April 6, 200915 yr I don't think the new sets are nearly as nice as the old ones. Though I can't exactly explain why. And its not just nostalgia, as I really like the new castle line. Steve
April 6, 200915 yr There is no shortage of older sets on ebay. If you like those (and who doesn't) buy them. I want new sets from TLG with new parts and colors and figures. Use bricklink to replace sails and masts and painted wall sections and add anchors if you can't live with or without them. I hope they make more new sets for years to come. I would love to have the chance to buy a (and by "a" I mean a whole bunch) new imperial ship and new bluecoats. The fact of the matter is they will make more sets if they determine that they can make more money than producing some other theme. I for one am making the most of what they are offering now and buying all I can.
April 7, 200915 yr Are people still whinging about this issue? And for the pettiest reasons! "Too few cannons", "too grumpy faces", "too childish skulls in the sails". Come on, people, none of that stuff really matters!The fact remains that the new sets are exactly what they're supposed to be - new. They have new colors, more detailed minifigs than before, a bit of fantasy thrown in the mix... There's just no going back to the "good olden days" when everything was simple and clean-cut. If you thought you were going to get the exact same sets you had when you were a kid, you're delirious. You should really open your minds to this new chance pirate fans have been given. People, after ten years of waiting and whining for a proper System Pirates theme, you finally got one! So just be happy and shut up! I agree with Sandy... so be happy and let us hope there will be more to come.
April 7, 200915 yr I really like BB, and the new imperial trading post. I agree that it is fantastic to get new sets, and Im happy to get whatever I can!
April 7, 200915 yr The old lego pirate sets are awesome!! but the new ones that just came out are terrible ii dont like them at all.
April 7, 200915 yr The new sets are good, but they're not amazingly great. The builds are kind of simple and not really that interesting. (However, I think they're targeted perfect for the slightly younger builder). As many others have said, where they really shine is in the new parts and minifigs department. That said, I think a lot of the older Pirates stuff is fairly awful too, relying on increasingly repetitive iterations of the same sets/ ideas. Even adding factions did nothing to reverse this decline, culminating in disparate messes like the overrated Enchanted Island. Don't get me wrong, the first year of Pirates in 1989 was absolutely brilliant, top-notch stuff that more than holds its own today (Black Seas Barracuda, Eldorado Fortress, Forbidden Island), but after that the creativity and design fell off rapidly. So... Pirates 2009 - not as good as the first wave, but much better than a lot of the dross that came out under the Pirates banner the first time round. Heretical but true!
April 8, 200915 yr I'd say the new lego pirates are good but not great! heres my 2 cents, I think the new pirate line will have bigger and better sets to come.. If you look back at the sets in 89 they were pretty good I mean i know the Eldorado fortress was way bigger and better then the fort battle but the pirate ships were similar in some ways! it was 3 years latter when you started to see the bigger and real awesome sets so I think if you give lego some time and see whats to come you might change your opinion on how the new pirate line is hopefully it will have better sets to come. I'm waiting for a new imperial flagship!!!!!!!!!!
April 16, 200915 yr I think the new pirates sets are fine but I would like to see pirates and soldiers that have that old fashioned feeling to them like govener Broadside . Edited April 17, 200915 yr by gormadoc1
April 16, 200915 yr On some level (and this has been already noted), I believe we're all a little guilty of nostalgia coloring the lens of how we are evaluating the old sets in comparison to the new ones. That being said, I find myself preferring the old sets like just about everyone here. I don't think the new sets are fundmentally inferior in any way, but they do lack...something. Hard for me to put a finger on it. More than anything, the new sets feel more cartoonish than the older ones. Somehow, more plastic and childish. Don't know if this makes sense, it's just the feeling I get. The introduction of medium-sized ships, more Imperial sets, and some kind of new element (Aztecs? With pirate curses? More developed Spanish-looking sets? A great pirate port town?) would be immensely appreciated and would siginificantly change my mind about the new sets. If the 2009 sets are only a start of many things to come, then it is a successful series. On its own, not so much.
April 20, 200915 yr I used to have a couple small Pirates sets from the years I believe somewhere during '93-'97 but I was more into Western Lego as a kid. Those Pirates sets always have been pretty neat imo. I've recently noticed the new sets but I don't find them that attractive except for Brickbeards Ship and the fort. The minifigs are excellent tho, I bought the fort past week mainly for its nice parts as an addition to my Castle collection. I made myself stick to 1 or 2 themes to maintain somewhat control over myself (Castle). I buy pretty much every set (in duplicate) available from the theme tho. That means I tend to look at sets released in other themes more as partpacks, Creator and Pirates seem to be the only ones tho lol. Saying current Pirates sets deffinately aren't bad, I haven't owned enough sets before nor do I own enough now (just 1) to state the current sets are worse than the older ones.
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