Why do you like what you do ???

[Brick Miner]

this is kinda an interesting concept that i have been dealing with internally lately, and thought it might make a good discussion...

why do you like the themes that you do ???

this question is quite a bit different from "what themes do you like, and why ???" it has more to do with your inspirations and motivations, that influence the themes you like to build, rather than the actual themes themselves.

i mean, for me, i love the Wild West LEGO theme... but when i look at my interests outside of LEGO, there is little interest in actual cowboy and indian history (i mean, a little, but not enough to devote a full-time hobby to, as i have done). but, i hate western movies, strange hu ??? i've always stuck to what i like as a kid, the history inspired themes... pirates, islanders, WW, adventurers, etc... however, my interests (outside of LEGO) as an adult have leaded more toward the town/city theme. as an adult, i have always been fascinated with modern city planning, development, and i love skyscraper architecture !!!

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so there must be some other factors (besides personal interests) that draw me toward the history themes of LEGO...

some possible factors are:

1) nostalgic factor... what you liked as a kid.

2) well designed sets, and a well-conceptualized theme

3) outside media influences (movie, books, etc...) (SW fans obviously rely on this one ;-) )

other things that might determine the themes you like, would be your space available for the hobby. for example, trains obviously take up a large amount of space.

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for me, i have determined its well designed sets, and well conceptualized themes... i think the WW nailed this one ;-)

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so, open discussion on why you like the themes that you do !!!

- BrickMiner

[natelite]

i have always liked mechas. don't know why really. mechwarriors, battletech, gundam, you name it and chances are i will like it.

other than that, i also like rpgs, which is mostly castle-related in lego terms. i would seriously like to collect and build armies of different race factions like humans, orcs, undeads, just like world of warcraft! hopefully lego will come up with something in this line! ;-) for orcs, or taurens, i already own about 20-25 viking helmets. just needed the right head and torso. :-P and the viking fortress is just perfect for creating a typical orcish or tauren village/fortress.

[Sting]

For starters, my favourite themes are Pirate, Town, Adventurerers, Castle, and Wild West (Probably in that order too... These are my FAVOURITE themes... so I still love Wild West sets).

The main reason for me liking these themes is from fascination with History. I love the idea of Pirate Ships, and the whole 1600-1800 Period of History (this explains Pirates and Wild West). It is mostly my favourite period of history. I love history alot, so much that I stole a giant History Textbook from my High School for my grade 11 year (we didn't have a World History Class until grade 12). I than returned the book, as I realized later it was a students, and she would have to pay for it if I didn't return it! (But I did it stealthily, so no one noticed LOL).

I also loved the video game "Zelda: A Link To The Past", and with the Forestmen, it made me think "Zelda". So obviously this lead me too it. When I went to my friends house as a kid, we would play Zelda and build Lego - they had mostly Castle Lego, and that got me into it more. Nostalgia Factor perhaps on that one.

Adventurers is mostly my fascination with History, as I did projects on World War 1 and World War 2, and this fits so nicely in there. I also loved the pieces, and I love the airplanes in particular. I just love the entire period of time.

I am dwelling on "Why do I like the theme", but my main thing is an outside source - a fascination with History and Fantasy.

TOWN on the other hand, I cannot explain. I think it is just the design of the sets. Incredibly cool rooms, vehicles. I love little rooms. I think i loved town because of the way Lego presented it! I love made up worlds, and I love making up my own. These themes let me do that.

But a closer look reveals the SPACE theme can let me do that too... and although I loved SPace as a kid, I no longer have desire for it. (To the point of me considering selling of my Space Sets, although Nostalgia makes me unsure about that.

Good question Brick Miner, but the fact that my love of History only covers most of my favourite themes and leaves out Town, makes me not even sure why I love what I do! :-/

[xwingyoda]

G, not zan easy task to summarise all that :-P

I will start with the Media Influence for the simple reason that it was SW that made me come out of that darn dark age :-D

Also I am a real fan of the Indian Jones Trilogy and I thought that the adventurers was relaying that pretty well ;-)

I need not forget Batman too 8-

[Starwars4J]

Hm, hard to say. A large influence is from my favorite movies (can you guess which? :-P )

The heavy space influence drives my love of all things fighter, SHIP, and mecha

My first favorite theme was Pirates, but I moved away from that when Space got a hold of me (sorry Phes!). I don't know why, I guess I just loved the "simpler times"

Then came my love for castle some time after I visited Italy for the first time. It drove my appreciation for beauty of these large ancient structures. That, and some influence from RPGs ;-)

Currently Space slightly edges out castle which are both above Pirates which is greatly abo-well, let me just show you:

Space =/> Castle >>> Pirate >>>>>>>>>>>>>>> The rest

[Zarkan]

Well, the main two themes I'm really into right now are Exo-force and Bionicle. As for why, well:

Exo-force:

Well, for starters, when I saw this theme, I realized that it was the perfect solution to my diliema. You see, I may be 13, but I still have quite a fascination with playing with my lego sets and creations, not just building them and displaying them. It's kind of odd that I still enjoy legos like a 7 year old would, but I really don't care at all. To me, having battles that involve lots of bricks flying off my creations and minifigures having hand to hand combat is no weirder than playing RTS computer games or Dungeons and Dragons. To me, as long as there is nothing morally wrong with it, a person should not be discouraged from their hobby (a boy that likes playing with his younger sisters dolls or a girl that would rather take hikes and climb trees than hang out in malls should not be considered "weird" or a "loser").

But, anyway Exo-force apealed to me like no other them before it because it was the first line lego had made in my lifetime that was perfect for the chaotic and brick flying battles that I loved to have. The lego mechs and vehicles could be engaged in deep, Exo-force comic like battles, blown apart, and re-assembled fairly quickly. I enjoyed (and still enjoy) making different scenerios depending on what kits I had, and what state they were in (built, destroyed, combined or made into something else). I also loved the building experience, as I do with any lego kit, since the construction was complex and intricite, and had a cool, modular feel to it. And, I loved that there were so many cool and useful pieces that worked great in MOC's (which I make a lot of). Exo-force, basicily, was my dream line. ;-)

Bionicle:

Bionicle is in many ways a simalar case as Exo-force, but in a different way. Even though I didn't start buying them until 2003, I quickly memorized the storyline and fell in love with the unique pieces and the oppertunities they presented for awesome looking MOC's. Since the storyline was so complex, the battles I had with them also became fairly complex, as each characters unique powers as well as the different storyline locations that I imagined played roles in shaping the battles and stories into something that you could fill a book with (I do a lot of playing. ;-) ). Soon, I was making my own characters with the cool parts and making a whole storyline arc that came before the offical one. It was so much fun, and I continue to make stories, playing them out and enjoying every bit of it. Bionicle was my savior in what was a fairly dark time for TLC (Bionicle was about all I collected!), and it will always have a special significance to me as an awesome, plot rich and mysterious lego line that is still today one of my favorite lines. ;-)

Well, that about sums it up. X-D

~~END~~

[UltraPrime]

It was Star Wars that got me back after my 25 year dark age. After buying the Millenium Falcon, I discovered I really enjoyed building!

I branched out to City, and wanted to build up a small town (something I'm stil working on...).

Next up came Ferrari, which I got due to my love of motor racing.

Exo-Force was because I have always been interested in that sort of thing for a long time, from BattleTech up to my current interest in Transformers.

And I've always been interested in Batman - have a large collection of graphic novels.

As for the future, I'm interested in the AquaRaiders line, for no other reason that they look great!

[TroyTMoore]

I have always liked medieval related weapons, armour and buildings as long as I can remember. I have several books and some DelTin swords. I have even tried my hand at blacksmithing and making armour.

I did get the "Yellow Castle" in 1979, when I was 7 years old. I am pretty sure that has had a lasting impression on me. I had other LEGO before that but this set exponentially received the most attention over the years.

I have a bit of SW LEGO only because it is so cool. In the late 70's early 80's I had the Kenner figs and some vehicles, which again, I am certain plays a part in why I am attracted to SW LEGO.

More recently I am attracted to more themes but I think that has to do with the fact that some (not all by any means) are really well done.

[Minifig Lecturer]

I love real cities! Cities that are noisy, busy and messy, and not perfect, with many problems such as poor housing, traffic jams, bad planning, good planning, old buildings, new buildings, ramphant commercialism and so on.

This is the kind of city/nation I am trying to create because this is what I love.

[alex54]

I like a lot of LEGO themes. In fact, I think that what makes LEGO products so nice is that with a common base (bricks), you can explore some very different worlds. And that makes me dream!

When I was a child, I wanted all the sets of all the line, exept from space. So I had some CC, pirates, adventurers, city, paradisia (all the themesI like). But when I reallysed that I will never have all the sets of all the line, I decided to choose one line, and my choice was city. I don't know exactly why... Maybe because it is in this theme that I had more sets (in fact, in city/town lines, there always have some small sets, more than in other themes), and because building means more building houses for me than other things. And know, I make my studies in engineering and architectur in the buildings :-)

And with the time, I think that it was a good choice, because TLC always made some city sets (with less or more good design), and it appears that 2007 will be good! And we can't say the same thing for pirates and castle! (well, I know what you, afols of those themes, are feeling...)

After that, I like the SB theme because of the show and how LEGO made it. And I continue to like all the themes I liked as a child, even if I don't have a lot of the sets and the city theme has become my priority.

[Backpack3]

i like the licences, city, and kk

but it would be cool if lego made rock bands like iron maiden & My chemical romance

i'd love to see lego guitars and drum kits. Also lego keyboards!

corny? i know but i'm sick of using brooms and oars for guitars.

[JINZONINGEN73]

I like water themes because we used to vacation at my granparents house on an island in Maine.

The ocean (especially at low tide) is just teeming with strange life.

You walk in the woods... there's a bug... there's a tree... a bird... a deer... BORING.

The ocean and any inanimate object sticking out of it is just coated with interesting junk.

I also like the 9V train system... because:

A. It runs on an outlet and not crappy batteries.

B. It makes Lego creations move... VERY fast.

I used to like Bionicle for the ability to build mecha, but I've come to realize that system is where mecha is at.

...with a few Technic pieces tossed in of course for mobility.

[snefroe]

as a kid, i bought sets from all minifig themes; i built cities, trains, spaceships, castles, whatever. I can't remember having had any preference before 1980-1981 or so. That all changed in the early 80's when the tv started all sorts of SF-series, like battlestar galactica, Buck Rogers, Blake's 7, ... Suddenly, Space took the lead. Star wars may have played a role as well, but not in today's preferences, really.

Today, my first concern is loyalty to Space. Whatever the sets, crap or no crap, i'll buy all space sets.

second, and by far the major element since space left: quality: I have to like it, or it's a good parts pack, or i'm just curious to see the model and if it's not too expensive. I don't care what theme it's from.

Apart from Space, i wouldn't say there's one theme out there that I'll buy completely just because of the theme title.

[Backpack3]

Did anyone read my post LEGO ROCK!

List of ideas:

1. My Chemical Romance http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/My_Chemical_Romance

2. The Beatles http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Beatles

3. Linkin Park http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Linkin_Park

4. Pink Floyd http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pink_Floyd

Don't Worry i'm not done.

[Brick Miner]

The main reason for me liking these themes is from fascination with History. I love the idea of Pirate Ships, and the whole 1600-1800 Period of History (this explains Pirates and Wild West). It is mostly my favourite period of history. I love history alot, so much that I stole a giant History Textbook from my High School for my grade 11 year (we didn't have a World History Class until grade 12). I than returned the book, as I realized later it was a students, and she would have to pay for it if I didn't return it! (But I did it stealthily, so no one noticed LOL).

these are good replies, in fact, sting mentioned one influence that i hadn't considered... education is also a factor for interest.

however, for me, my education has followed my my interests, rather than my interests following my education. but they kind of go hand-in-hand, as one can influence the other very easily.

i can remember doing several "independant studies" in high school because of this.

- BrickMiner

[EXO-CHAMP]

I have always been facinated by mechas.

Ever since I can remember, I just loved big, brutal robots bristling with guns and nasty weapons.

Many years ago I played the Battletech Strategic game, and watched Robotech cartoons. Battletech went belly-up and sold out to Wiz-kids.

When I saw the Exo-Force line in the store for the first time, I just couldn't get my eyes of it. I left without buying any. I'm a grown-up and don't play with Lego anymore (or so I thought).

My step-son is 6 and is starting to read, so I bought him a Donald Duck magazine we could read together. In a small bag there was a promotional E-F glider, and an E-F comic.

My step-son read the Donald Duck, I read the E-F comic, tried the internet-link and that was it. I sold my soul to Lego...

Considering my E-F collection at the present time, that must have been the most expensive Donald Duck magazine I've ever bought. ;-)

[Robiwan]

I'm a Train and Town boy! X-D

I love it because I can build me there my own peaceful world. When I have problems in the "real" world I can withdraw me for my self in it. And I can govern my lown little country. ;-) X-D

I think thats all.

[Brick Miner]

I'm a Train and Town boy! X-D

I love it because I can build me there my own peaceful world. When I have problems in the "real" world I can withdraw me for my self in it. And I can govern my lown little country. ;-) X-D

I think thats all.

yes, LEGO train does have that "immersing " effect doesn't it ??? i just started my first train system... and i love that !!!

- Brick Miner

[Hobbes]

yes, LEGO train does have that "immersing " effect doesn't it ??? i just started my first train system... and i love that !!!

The Train spies/infiltrators work slowly but precisely, and the conversion is all the more effective...

;-)

[Brick Miner]

The Train spies/infiltrators work slowly but precisely, and the conversion is all the more effective...

well, it is a old west train :-P

X-D

- BrickMiner

[Hobbes]

well, it is a old west train :-P

X-D

Doesn't matter, as long as it moves on rails - a train is a train ;-)

[CopMike]

The Train spies/infiltrators work slowly but precisely, and the conversion is all the more effective...

Hobbes - you can say that again ;-) ! You infected me with TOD (train obsession disorder) in Windsor and it

[Brick Miner]

Doesn't matter, as long as it moves on rails - a train is a train ;-)

so, now im faced with a life altering decision... when the system is finished, which forum does the discussion thread go, History or Trains 8-

[Hobbes]

Hobbes - you can say that again ;-) ! You infected me with TOD (train obsession disorder) in Windsor and it

[alex54]

Trains are really attractif because they run! So when you have one, you want to have a nice layout and background to show it in a wonderfull place. So you made a nice town (modern or western style, or other). And you want a new train because just one is few, and a new kind of train will be cool (after the cargo train, apassenger train for the minifigs would be nice!). And a new serie is sold and you can't resiste and another cargo train bring some merchandises for your bigger city... And This is what happened to me! And I know that if TLC will bring us some good trains, I will buy them... Make a City they said!