are we falling into a dark age again?

[snefroe]

Anyway, I am going to go take pics of my mecha, build my boat, pack my bricklink orders and paint my railing. I am past the point of too much LEGO anyway. This year I spent considerably less and next year will probably be next to nothing. Which is a pleasant thought as regardless of what is coming out I won't have anxiety about it.

If you know what is coming share it with my privately. At least then I know whether I should sell a kidney or pick up a paper route to have a litlle extra available.

this is what SuvieD wrote in another topic, i just thought I'd copy and paste it into this new thread because I find it very relevant to my own Lego experience in this last year. I also spent a lot on lego last year, but i've hardly bought anything new this year and it is very well possible that next year will be even less...

Are we falling back into our Dark Age?

are there others who feel they're scaling down?, buying less than a year before, because they lose ... i don't know... a connection ?

[gylman]

I think these things wax and wane.

Maybe you need to be away from a hobby for a while because you get too saturated and it loses its excitment. Then, something catches your eye a year later and you're excited again.

Or maybe people just move on.. life changes, you change. Sometimes we don't want to admit to ourselves that we are moving beyond something that was very important to us for a few years, or for many years: a hobby, a group of people, a spouse (yikes!).

Most AFOLs don't keep their Lego hobby until they are old, do they? There is a constant influx of new blood, and the oldies fade away gradually. You don't see too many 40 and 50 year olds at Bricklink do you? I may be the oldest regular at EB at 41.

I am in something of a dark age now - haven't built much this year mostly due to lack of time, but previously I would do it even if I was too tired, and would be up 2, 3 after midnight trying to figure something out. This year none of the sets have really excited me, Technic was especially a disappointment, The lack of Adventurers sets also cut down on the amount of time my kids play with Lego, since that's their favorite, and one of mine too. I had hopes for Avatar, since they really love that show, but the Avatar sets were not quite as good as they could have been. I never seem to find enough time to start a really big project.

But, my keychains keep my going with little things that don't take much time, and I have rediscovered how great the old castle sets were, partially thanks to the discussion here (esp. Norro's reviews). I have spent relatively little on new Lego (pretty much only for the kids), but significantly more on parts and sets on eBay and bricklink.

Also, even if I am not building EB helps me stay involved with Lego - I should probably spend less time posting and more time building.... but posting is so much easier, and can be done in 5 minute snippets, which is how my time is organized these days.

[xenologer]

I've only come out of dark ages for a year now, but I think I can relate to this...

rediscovered lego, bought a bunch of sets and had fun,

but I think I'm all done for the rest of this year.

I guess it's because of all the themes... I already have 1 from each that looked good, no point in getting yet another Takeshi or Batman clone, right?

and already have all the Town/City stuff that looked worthwhile...if only they had some women minifigs or something that isnt just another fireman... I dont need another one...

Next year I might be more active again, AquaRaiders could be good...

In the meantime, its just LDD Factory and maybe a small MOC whenever I get a cool idea...

speaking of which... I think I want to make a Harvester or Feller Buncher have a look

[ApophisV]

I really can second this feelings.

Since the Event in Windsor I didn't really spend any money on LEGO. And I probably won't anymore this year. I started saving some money for the Viking longboat but I've already spend it for ther things.

I didn't build much MOCs this year either, especially nothing that was really something special for me.

For my absence from the LEGO world there are three reasons:

1.) Money:

Nowadays I spend most of the money I used to spend on LEGO for comics which became quiet expensive since I am collecting 90% of the Marvel comics that are released here in Germany.

And building always with the same parts you are used to gets boring after some time.

2.) Classic sets:

The Vikings from 2005 were the last sets that had a bit of the classic LEGO feel to it. The two new Viking sets lost almost everything of that feeling, cool accessorie packs, but nothing else. The wheels of the carts look like canister caps and the blue dragon only would need five or six miniguns and some transparent parts to look like another Exo-Force crap thing. The Batman line sure is cool, but for me as a Marvel fanboy those sets aren't much more than nice parts packs. Expensive ones actually.

Finally we got Exo-Force. Yes, I really HATE this Pokemon-Yu-Gi-Oh-Whatever-Manga'ish look to it. I got some of the sets, but only because they are great parts packs.

Conclusion: Most of this year's sets are missing alot of the charme LEGO had in the 80's and 90's. Last year TLC brought back this charme with the vikings, but they didn't manage to keep it up for 2006.

3.) Shooting mechanisms:

I am NOT completely against military or violent toys. Okay, I wouldn't buy them and if I ever get kids they won't get those too.

But including Miniguns and shooting mechanism and rifles and laser guns (Even if this is EXACTLY looking like a Minigun it is INTENDED to be a futuristic Laser gun kids would never recognize as a weapon that destroys and kills! And the yellow-orange stuff at the illustration isn't muzzle flash but funny shaped flowers coming out of the lazer gun! Yeah, good ol' LEGO is soooo harmless! We hate violance!)

Really, LEGO isn't anymore what it used to be.

4.) Summer time:

Yeah, another reasons why I wasn't building much lately. It's not that funny to sit into your room and build something if you know it's sunny outside and you could have ice cream in the city and watch all those pretty girls in their short skirts... ;-) (*awaits angry comment from dana*)

Nowadays the temperature here in Germany isn't more than 15

[DoubleT]

My anserw is short, Lego is now doing some great sets, so no dark age for me :)

and yes there are some bad parts/sets, but one must take the evil with the good...

[natelite]

star wars and exo force will keep me past 2007. :-P a couple of city sets for my boy...some castles too if they are cheap. i like vikings, but probably during a sale (looking forward to black friday!)...and that's about it. i never buy at retail...so, doesn't really matter to me.

[xwingyoda]

I really don't know who "we" is suppose to refer to. Definitly NOT me (and far from it).

Since the end of the dark ages, my favorite theme (i.e. SW) is getting better and better every year (and '07 will be a dreadfull money spending year :-D ).

Then add other great themes like Vikings, Sponge Bob (yes I do love those sets, and I am really NOT ashame of that :-P ), Batman...

Ok, there are some crappy points (like the shooting mechanism BS), the lack of real life City sets BUT there really is a huge load of progress in the air:

* TLD do really take fan's wishes - SW Minifig packs, PT sets

* KK are really getting way better: the newest '06 sets got rid of those horrendous skittle knights

So we can be sure that '07 still holds loads of surprises and maybe a great new "history or adventurer" line

I think that aquaraiders might be a good step in that direction !!

So for now, dark ages are two words that are not in my vocabulary ;-)

Positive On !!

*yoda*

[phoinix]

well i just got out of my dark ages a year ago and have been spending like crazy this year!

i fear to count the money!!

im sure each year will hold 3-4-5 good sets for me to keep up with my hobby and even if TLC does crap there are still lots of old sets i would love to get..

so no i hope this isnt dark ages for me..

*skull* IM ADDICTED TO THE BRICKS!!!!!!!!!!! *skull*

but no i havent been moking like when i was a kid...im more like build ..look..display...be happy...and thats how it goes..

(well i made a house for my town the other day but thats pretty much it)

but if you consider me discovering ALL these web-sites for lego and visitting EB on a daily basis a would say lego is here to stay ( at least for a few more years!) ;-)

[Starwars4J]

For me I have my classes (I'll be a senior in University in a few weeks), so I haven't had much time to build. Of course when I can't build my mind is filled with all the ideas I don't have time for, and when I have the time I'm busy with other things. Then classes start again and I curse my lack of time :-P

I'm looking forward to some of the new sets, 2006 was impressive, but not as much as 2005. Hopefully 2007 will fix that, and it's looking decent so far. Once I actually FINISH a MOC I think I'll be in a much better mood. I haven't build something I was satisfied with in MONTHS *wacko*

And yes, as people have said before, it comes and goes. I'm sure in the coming years we'll see less and less old-time EBers, and more newbies like myself. Sadly it's the nature of time, and the nature of the human heart, though I despise change more than you can imagine, and will often latch onto something long after I have grown tired of it, as I don't want to admit to myself that I too, have changed.

All I can do, all anyone can do is stay true to who they are (hobby or not) and remember the good times, and try to make more. I'm not in a dark age, let's just call it a grey one ;-)

[BillytheKid]

Well, i dont buy much lately anymore. I need my money for other things. So I think I have a sort of dark ages right now........

[Athos]

I have to agree. I've not been impressed with many (most) of the offerings Lego has produced this year. Part of it is a personal issue for me and probably not indicitive of other customers. I think a lot of it is the new colors for me, since it renders the sets' usefulness as parts packs to a minimal level. I also think taking on a new full-time job (something I've been away from for a few years) has curtailed the time and energy I have to devote to Lego. I also think set designs have not been as good and I am very unimpressed by the explosion of technic pieces and construction techniques included in almost every set.

All that being said, however, I am currently about halfway through the minifig ISD... so I guess I'm not entirely in a dark age...

Steve

[Hobbes]

No dark age dawning on me, either.

I've been back into LEGO for 2 1/2 years now, and my spending hasn't really increased or decreased. It just depends on what's available at what price. There's still some sets out there (Technic mostly) that I'm going to buy, just not now at regular price. I still buy lots of old Town and Train stuff if I find anything at garage sales, flea markets or the like.

My building time has been very limited this year, though, so it's been more of a "gathering and hording" year. But that'll change soon :-)

Or maybe people just move on.. life changes, you change. Sometimes we don't want to admit to ourselves that we are moving beyond something that was very important to us for a few years, or for many years: a hobby, a group of people, a spouse (yikes!).

What..? Mine's understanding and helpful... ;-) Although I have to admit, preparations for the official "enspousement" do take their share of time...

So, no, I can't second SuvieD's feeling - but I can understand it.

[mutley777]

I got back into lego in 1999 when the star wars line first came out (boy does my wife regret buying me that first set now :-D ). For the first few years i just bought one of each set, but over the last 2 years one set has not been enough! I have found myself want more than one of each set as the sets just keep getting better and better! This year i have bought so many mutipule sets it frightens me! 3 turbo tanks, 3 a-wing, 2 b-wing, 2 tie interceptor, 6 clone scout walkers, 2 wookie attacks and loads of minifigs of BL. So this is deffinately no dark age for me! :-P Bring on 2007!

[CopMike]

I came back 4 years ago and I

[SuvieD]

I am not sure if I am heading for a dark age. I never really had one though. I usually do everything in spurts. It has come time for change though. After this Friday I will no longer have a job. I have decided to go to school and if able to do it debt free. This requires saving most of what I have made over the last year or so and nearly everything I will make (once I get a part time job) for the next four years.

I really am not so much taking a break as I do that naturally but letting something else consume my time. But I will be buying much less. Like many of you though, I really don't care for what LEGO is doing right now with sets. They are sort of fad like. In fact there are only a handful of parts I will be getting this year. A return to classic castle or space type stuff would certainly change that but only marginally as even if I wanted them funding will not apply leaving me with only with gifts or selling LEGO to get more LEGO.

Don't give up building though Sne. You have a great style and a unique way to build. Best of all you like space so we know you are smart. Maybe buy less and build more. You could even start a community type project or standard.

Phes is suffering from a little burnout also. I would say the two of you should take a little time off and refresh your batteries. If you decide LEGO just isn't for you any more then you can just move on in life. If you realize how much you enjoy it and that you had too much for too long or maybe you started looking at it in the wrong way then just change your approch.

I have two pages full of thumbnail doodles related to space and mecha that I have not had the time to bring to life. So no dark age for me, just a dark age on my wallet for quite a few years. Though I need to decide where to trim the LEGO fat, I will probably pass on my used old bricks to my future grand children.

LEGO has never lost them magic. Good and bad designs will come and go but imagination and excitement are the true basis of building enjoyment. If one or both fade no set will ever look very good.

[natelite]

i'm with mutley. hehe, i was shopping for a duplo set for my boy when i saw the new exoforce. i originally moved on from lego to toy models, mostly f1, gundam or fighter planes and stopped for like 8-9 years since. and when i saw the new exoforce i thought to myself...that's kinda neat...a mech model from lego. i wonder if it can change from jet plane to mech like those in macross. so i went and bought the 7700 set thinking of using it as a silly display for my table. that stupid model got me hooked, and i went and bought the rest of the series. then tru had a buy 1 get 1 for 50% sale, and i went and bought more. after i found more afol websites, read some of the reviews, posted on the forums, i went out and bought star wars, then batman...and now i even bought creators series, KK2 castles, city sets. i think the only themes i didn't touch yet are the nickelodeon, the vikings, and technic sets. i am behaving more like a woman...buying sets i don't need just because they were on sale. curse ebay!! :-P and i really like vikings, but they are never cheap. :-( and the bad news is that target and walmart never carry them. so i will have to wait for a tru clearance. :-P

[JINZONINGEN73]

I'm only in a dark age because I'm poor as dirt.

And because my housing situation is unsteady, meaning unpacking my stuff might be bad.

And because goo and plaster from a caved in celing has defiled my Lego bins.

Other than that, any year of Lego is good with me. Any one part, (as long as they had the brains to make it freaking symmetrical), can be anything.

[WhiteHexagon]

It's a good year for me. I've been buying bits of LEGO over the last couple of years but nothing serious since my youth. It was only through researching my game that I discovered that LEGO even had an online community! Obvious really.

So having great web sites like this, and people like you of EB, have inspired me to collect more and enjoy it more! I no longer feel guilty being an adult and buying LEGO for myself :) Although it is distracting me from my programming efforts ;)

As long as TLG bring out 1 or 2 sets that I really like each year, then I guess I'll keep collecting. And I don't mind if there is other LEGO themes that I really hate, because it just saves me some money. Although I long for the simpler days of classic everything :)

[alex54]

The expression "dark age" is not for me. In fact, my "dark age" period was with the TLC one (99-03). So I missed nothing good, all the sets of this period look so crappy! :-X

And I never spent so much money in lego than in the 4 past years, with a record for 2006 (I don't want to know how much...). I find that TLC makes half the way to refind its old "touch". And the fact that TLC doesn't make some alive city sets exept police and firemen, I try to integrate some other sets in my town like the arkam asilum, it is a very good challenge for me! And I really like the vikings line, a very beautifull one. And with Spongebob, I think that TLC has made a good job too (I like this line so much, but not release in Europe, but I've bought them on Ebay, I can't wait to have them :-P ).

I think that I'm too young to enter in the dark age (I'm 22), maybe with the time... but not for the moment!

A good think to keep my lego feeling is that I don't have my bricks during a major part of the year, becuase I don't have spaces in my student room. So, when I come back to my parents home during the holidays, I can built and built witouh being fed up with lego.

This is why I have spent a lot of time during my summer holidays to ameliorat my town.

And I have just started a new challenge: to clean all my old sets! After that I rebuilt them and see if there are some missed parts. This is permit me to rediscover my old lego with my chilhood feeling which aer associated. And I can take pictures to add to my BS gallery, so I can see my set when I'm at school! X-D

For me it's more the silver age (I hope a golden one which will come if TLC makes a very good work for the next years!)

[Freddie]

No dark age for me either. I just rediscovered the magic roughly a year ago, and when I got a job in a toy store it went to overdrive! It is now "idling", meaning I lack time, space and money for more LEGO. The time I have I use to rebuild many of the older sets I have, fifteen and even twenty year old sets! The only sets I buy right now are good sets I missed, which I just happen to get a chance to buy (If I have the money to spare), like 7045 which I came across in an Edwis store in Sarpsborg. Always wanted it, never got it until last friday! :-) And I'm saving up for 7898, but I'm waiting a bit on that one.

The rest of the money is for fuel for the car, bying whenever it is at it's cheapest. Having to drive to school is not cheap, especially not if it's an hour's drive! And taking the bus costs even more! X-O *wacko*

[JoeMI6]

I've never really had a dark age, per say. I've just faded in and out of the hobby really. I might try and limit my spending a bit next year though, as other things are drawing my attention.

As for TLG and the lego community, a lot of new revalations are showing that we are not really in a dark age at all. Apart from excess of stuff like lame action features (missles, launchers), things could not be better. I mean, mini fig packs. Fans have been crying out for those since god only knows when. And stuff like Bionicle has never been stronger. I think a lot of people are setting too much store by the bad stuff. Ok, Exo-Force may just be Lego trying to cash in on the Anime popularity, but it's churned out some pretty nice sets. And Lego have learned from their mistakes; wave 2 will probably be better than ever.

Just try to look on the bright side, as 2007's shadow looms, I think we could be genuinely surprised.

[DoubleT]

Right now i feel its hard to be negativ, ofcause there is bad sets, but lately Lego have done many great sets, so now i think if one go to Dark Age... Then its a personal reson... or.... one cant afford..

[Robiwan]

I'm back from my dark age for one year! Since a journey to legoland Guenzburg. But now I must do a hard decision. My Lego hobby has not a good effect on girls. Each who has experienced that I play/build with lego had laugh and say: "bye you child" or so similar! I don't no why it have so a effect or that I have alone this problems.

Now I must decide me for lego or anytime a girlfriend. I don't no I love to create my own world with lego.

Its a hard decision, back to the dark ages or not. Because now where I have spand a lot of money in new things. *wacko*

[Asuka]

From time to time i need some alternation even in my long time hobbies. Maybe one year is focused on

reading, another on canoeing.... I

[Zane]

If I still mainly bought Bionicle, I'd be slipping away right now, judging on the appearence of one of next years sets. But I've moved to SW instead, since I love that B-Wing, and it'll overall cost less, since there are few SW sets a year than Bionicle.

Next year is promising, too.