Ninjago 2014

[LegendsOfNinjago]

Speaking of NinjaCopter, it's only $45 on Amazon. Gonna wait and see if it'll apply with the Price Match at TRU...

[Tobias_Jay]

Could we update the front page with additional pics and/or pricing? Pricing for Australia is $15, $30 (Overborg and Kai Fighter, presumably Destructoid), $50, $80 and the Mechdragon remains unseen in Aus as far as this thread goes. If anyone wants, I may be able to do some written reviews on the new sets.

My guess is that the MechDragon will $120 like the flagship sets usually are. I also assume that the Destructoid will be $40-50 being limited edition.

[Mandate]

Incorrect, actually I just got back from Big W, my Mother bought me the Mechdragon. It is, surprisingly (!), $98, no mark-down. So now we're just waiting for the Destructoid to start showing up. I'm actually assuming that either Big W or TARGET will have Destructoid, because I noticed that Big W had Equila's ultra striker, or whatever that set is. WHile that isn't an LE set, it's certainly showing that Australia is getting more attention this year. While probably something very common in a bigger city such as Brisbane, Sydney etc my local Big W also had the Death Star and the UCS B-Wing. Also, the Ninjacopter is $70 at BW as well, so TARGET has some pretty bad mark ups, but they're cheaper right now due to the sale.

[PenPlays]

Speaking of NinjaCopter, it's only $45 on Amazon. Gonna wait and see if it'll apply with the Price Match at TRU...

I guess I can chalk myself off at getting the Ninjacopter at the lowest price. $27 at Fred Meyers (the NC is priced at $49.99 there) after discount. The other sets I bought were also all relatively 50% off as well.

Edited December 7, 2013 by Penkid11

[Tobias_Jay]

Incorrect, actually I just got back from Big W, my Mother bought me the Mechdragon. It is, surprisingly (!), $98, no mark-down. So now we're just waiting for the Destructoid to start showing up. I'm actually assuming that either Big W or TARGET will have Destructoid, because I noticed that Big W had Equila's ultra striker, or whatever that set is. WHile that isn't an LE set, it's certainly showing that Australia is getting more attention this year. While probably something very common in a bigger city such as Brisbane, Sydney etc my local Big W also had the Death Star and the UCS B-Wing. Also, the Ninjacopter is $70 at BW as well, so TARGET has some pretty bad mark ups, but they're cheaper right now due to the sale.

Boy do I love being proved wrong! But Big W usually has sets a few dollars cheaper than RRP so it may go for $100 in other stores, like the Temple of Light did.

Edited December 7, 2013 by Wall E2624

[Mandate]

True, but TARGET had the Ninjacopter for $79 whereas Big W had it for $69.

[Freddy Bricker]

Um the marathon is over in the states, I missed it, but does anyone know if there was a sneak-peak to Rebooted?

[Mandate]

I doubt there was, and even if there was, it wouldn't have shown much. So far, other than the Beginning to 2014 teaser, we've really only seen parts of presumably one episode, with perhaps a bit of the second. An odd thought came to mind last night regarding this, because last time they did it it was a 40 minute special. While I do doubt it is a simple special, there's also the odd case of the Mechdragon to invoke. This seems more like the "end of year grand finale" set than a "start-of-year-build-up-to-grand-finale". What I mean is, Wave 1 of NINJAGO in 2012. No Great Devourer in sight. A massive giant snake is a somewhat fitting conclusion to a year where humanoid snakes are roaming free. I believe this is the reason why Chima's TV show was moved to Summer, all the sets are readily available and can be shown in the TV show. There was no "giant snake" so to speak of in the sets or the show. There was the Lion Temple, but it wasn't the proverbial giant snake. And this year, there's not really anything. We know we're getting a second wave this year, I doubt LEGO would make a full redesign of the Samurai Suit if they had no intention of using it whatsoever, and not to the level of quality the picture of it is.

But as I was saying, there's not really anything that could top (especially in the TV show... it's insanely massive) the Mechdragon right now. Sure, we could get another Mechdragon, except a good guy one, but what would be the point? It would remove the real suspense of how-the-heck-do-we-destroy-this-thing? If the decide to do a giant robot, what would be the point in that? You've got a big massive robot sitting next to a gigantic robot dragon.

Unless the finale set is Nya's new Samurai Mech, I can't really see any way of concluding this current line... That's not to say there isn't, but it's pretty hard, especially to a kid, to top a giant robot dragon (which is even bigger than the Great Devourer)

[DraikNova]

I can quite definitely imagine something more imposing than the Mechdragon, which the trailer shows to be much smaller than the Great Devourer in-show (maybe twice as thick but about one twelfth as long). Considering Ninjago's tradition of leaving out a set for the big finale threat, we've got another reason right there for the Mechdragon not to be the finale's monster..

Edited December 7, 2013 by DraikNova

[Mandate]

Perhaps you could, but would it fit in with the current theme? And more to the point, would a 9-12 year old think it would be cooler and more menacing than a giant, robot dragon? It might not be as big as the Devourer but you can bet it would still put up one heck of a fight, not to mention the fact that Lloyd powers the MechDragon. The power of the gold ninja (that includes the golden dragon!) being used to power it? But besides that, what could they possibly be planning? This wave itself seems like its own mini-finale. We have... battle-scarred Zane (what?), every single new enemy, etc... Why would we be given battle-scarred Zane so early in the year? And why put his regular form in an exclusive, limited edition set? This is... strange. Essentially this happened last year, like Lloyd's Kimono being sold with a book and his Gold Ninja suit being sold freely, but this is a bit different. We know there's a Summer wave, so why not include battle-scarred Zane with the Summer Wave, with the finale sets, where said battle took place? Unless the battle happens earlier, but it's still fairly ridiculous anyway. Even if Zane gets "battle-scarred" at the start, what would be stopping them from fixing him up in-between the start and the end part? And if it only happens for a short while (unlike Lloyd's Gold Ninja suit, apparently now) why make it the most readily-available form? Why is it that this singular wave of NINJAGO acts like, and is treated like, it is its own start and finale? And why is Nya getting new Samurai armor if she is meant to become one of the ninja? And more importantly to the point of that, if Nya is still around, why keep her out of the first wave of the new sets, especially if this is the only chance to incorporate her as Samurai X before the new graphic novels? And if this wave is not the finale wave of Zane's story arc, then what could possibly top the Mechdragon as a finale set? What could beat the Overlord himself as a mechanical dragon powered by the most powerful living person on NINJAGO itself? I understand Garmadon is meant to come back as a potential villian, they've sealed that fate with Garmadon's bio, but then wouldn't that effectively conclude the current story arc because Garmadon is evil again, and the Nindroids don't respond to him as a commander. Unless, of course, it has something to do with Lloyd being captured and used to power the Mechdragon. But furthermore, in each wave of NINJAGO asides from the 2013 wave, there has always been unrevealed enemies, or revealed enemies that just haven't been put in a set yet. Eg, Pythor, Wyplash, Kruncha, the entire Venomari and Constrictai tribes asides from their staffs, and so on. And Wyplash was only ever seen in two of the mini-movies, and never became even a secondary character as a running gag like Kruncha and Nuckal showing up all the time during Season 2 and 3, and possibly 4 (I think many people will be very sad if Kruncha, Nuckal and Dareth don't come back)

TL;DR version: This wave seems like its own start and finale.

[LegendsOfNinjago]

I think there's more to season 3 than what we see. I'm guessing it will be a full year thing. But I do agree the giant Lloyd powered robo-mech-kill-everything-dragon does scream "Fight Me and you will Die". But Lego makes big bucks off Ninjago. I wasat Target talking to an employee who said the New Ninjago stuff flew off the selves the first week that they had them. I doubt Lego will End Ninjago again for awhile. But I could see someone wake takin the spotlike for a little.

[Mandate]

I didn't mean finale as in, the theme ending, but I meant the current story-arc with Zane and the nindroids. I agree with you on the more to season 3 thing, though.

[PenPlays]

Perhaps you could, but would it fit in with the current theme? And more to the point, would a 9-12 year old think it would be cooler and more menacing than a giant, robot dragon? It might not be as big as the Devourer but you can bet it would still put up one heck of a fight, not to mention the fact that Lloyd powers the MechDragon. The power of the gold ninja (that includes the golden dragon!) being used to power it? But besides that, what could they possibly be planning? This wave itself seems like its own mini-finale. We have... battle-scarred Zane (what?), every single new enemy, etc... Why would we be given battle-scarred Zane so early in the year? And why put his regular form in an exclusive, limited edition set? This is... strange. Essentially this happened last year, like Lloyd's Kimono being sold with a book and his Gold Ninja suit being sold freely, but this is a bit different. We know there's a Summer wave, so why not include battle-scarred Zane with the Summer Wave, with the finale sets, where said battle took place? Unless the battle happens earlier, but it's still fairly ridiculous anyway. Even if Zane gets "battle-scarred" at the start, what would be stopping them from fixing him up in-between the start and the end part? And if it only happens for a short while (unlike Lloyd's Gold Ninja suit, apparently now) why make it the most readily-available form? Why is it that this singular wave of NINJAGO acts like, and is treated like, it is its own start and finale? And why is Nya getting new Samurai armor if she is meant to become one of the ninja? And more importantly to the point of that, if Nya is still around, why keep her out of the first wave of the new sets, especially if this is the only chance to incorporate her as Samurai X before the new graphic novels? And if this wave is not the finale wave of Zane's story arc, then what could possibly top the Mechdragon as a finale set? What could beat the Overlord himself as a mechanical dragon powered by the most powerful living person on NINJAGO itself? I understand Garmadon is meant to come back as a potential villian, they've sealed that fate with Garmadon's bio, but then wouldn't that effectively conclude the current story arc because Garmadon is evil again, and the Nindroids don't respond to him as a commander. Unless, of course, it has something to do with Lloyd being captured and used to power the Mechdragon. But furthermore, in each wave of NINJAGO asides from the 2013 wave, there has always been unrevealed enemies, or revealed enemies that just haven't been put in a set yet. Eg, Pythor, Wyplash, Kruncha, the entire Venomari and Constrictai tribes asides from their staffs, and so on. And Wyplash was only ever seen in two of the mini-movies, and never became even a secondary character as a running gag like Kruncha and Nuckal showing up all the time during Season 2 and 3, and possibly 4 (I think many people will be very sad if Kruncha, Nuckal and Dareth don't come back)

TL;DR version: This wave seems like its own start and finale.

Too many assumptions.

-Garmadon's bio does indeed imply he's still kinda evil, but it never confirms it. Many stories have implied that their anti-hero may still be more evil, only for them to turn out as a completely converted hero. Typical hype ploy.

-NRG Lloyd powering the dragon is plausable, but what if the battery is just a play feature? What if Lloyd doesn't show up until the dragon is already downed?

-About Nya. The longer the wait, the bigger the hype, if she is even released later in the year at all that is.

-Having normal Zane in a limited edition set isn't strange at all. Who knows, maybe that version of him will show up in a summer set?

-I'd also like to add that there is so much story potential beyond Zane's story arc, I have a feeling that the Nindroids aren't going to show up until later in the series.

Also (I know I'm a big time offender here, but...) shouldn't this be discussed in the show's thread?

[Mandate]

Too many assumptions.

-Garmadon's bio does indeed imply he's still kinda evil, but it never confirms it. Many stories have implied that their anti-hero may still be more evil, only for them to turn out as a completely converted hero. Typical hype ploy.

-NRG Lloyd powering the dragon is plausable, but what if the battery is just a play feature? What if Lloyd doesn't show up until the dragon is already downed?

-About Nya. The longer the wait, the bigger the hype, if she is even released later in the year at all that is.

-Having normal Zane in a limited edition set isn't strange at all. Who knows, maybe that version of him will show up in a summer set?

-I'd also like to add that there is so much story potential beyond Zane's story arc, I have a feeling that the Nindroids aren't going to show up until later in the series.

Also (I know I'm a big time offender here, but...) shouldn't this be discussed in the show's thread?

The plot details should be discussed elsewhere, but this is more about the sets really.

- Yes, it may be a Bio, but it's still a major ticker because of Garmadon's unique backstory. He was bitten by a snake that turns people evil (and the snake grows forever as long as it eats, and it can never starve too) and said snake blew up in a massive wave of its own venom. Anyone who has seen the TV show knows what that stuff does, and it's nasty, and smelly But more to the point, in the Zane story-arc the Nindroids are, er, "assimilating" people. Wu is already evil, and so is Cyrus, potentially Lloyd too and who knows if it's reversible.

- It's not just a "battery,", but a prison cell. The OverBorg Attack set description also confirms that it is going to be a major plot point, and Lloyd's bio makes mention of him being a target of the Overlord. Also, Lloyd appearing after the MechDragon is destroyed is a huge assumption in itself, you and I both very well know LEGO and though this is an assumption too it really wouldn't make sense to not feature Lloyd during the battle, even the Great Devourer and the Ultra Dragon's fight in the TV show featured Lloyd in some way, even though insignificant. Furthermore, we know Lloyd is appearing some point after the ninjas get their Techno-Blades, he'll be there after Cyrus is evil, and he's a target of the Overlord (something you cannot be when said character is destroyed again, this time not even by him)

- What's your point? We know Nya is coming back, and there's no reason not t have included her with this wave, especially when she is going to become one of the ninja and thus destroy said opportunity to feature her in her already-seen new Samurai outfit.

- No, it is. Why would you mass-market a handless Luke Skywalker as the main action figure range for The Empire Strikes Back, and make two-handed Luke a rare, limited production action figure? Same principle applies here. Further to the point, if Episode V was

- Well, duh... of course there is more potential. But the problem is, is that Zane's story-arc is the Nindroid story-arc, that's not to say that when Zane (should he die, or leaves) dies that the Nindroid arc will end, but the thing is, there's not that much left to the Zane story-arc itself. For all we know the next story-arc could be based on Cole and the Craglings and mud-monsters, or it could be Jay and a dragon attack, or Nya and some rogue Samurai, etc. But they've limited themselves right now with the Zane story-arc because we know how it will unfold now. Some point before the "grand finale wave 2" sets come out, Zane's going to be nearly destroyed, a massive mechanical dragon will presumably tip the balance of good and evil and allow the Overlord to possess it, Lloyd will be captured, someone's probably going to die, the Phantom Ninja will make an appearance after these events and PIXAL will probably fall in love with Zane. And after that, if the hinting in the Bios is correct, Lloyd might lose his powers and Garmadon might turn evil again.

What I mean to say is, is that this wave is too finale-esque in its own way. Even if you disagree with my reasoning, you have to admit its somewhat odd that the proverbial Great Devourer of this story-arc is already out. And if you disagree with that, well, what could be more awesome and menacing and hope-crushing to a kid than a giant, whopping Mechanical Dragon powered by the most powerful living human being in the NINJAGO universe?

[Tobias_Jay]

^ Trust me, they will think of something bigger and more menacing for the ninjas in the finale. I am almost expecting a giant, multi armed, Overlord possessed mech to be the grand finale.

[DraikNova]

Or possibly a tank covered in sawblades. I've looked into it, and you can achieve a functional, wheeled tank with sawblade action feature for under 2000 parts.

[Mandate]

^ Trust me, they will think of something bigger and more menacing for the ninjas in the finale. I am almost expecting a giant, multi armed, Overlord possessed mech to be the grand finale.

What would be the point of that? Dragons are the Overlord's thing, not humanoid mechs. And to a little kid, how does that surpass the epicness of a giant, insanely well-armed mechanical robot dragon possessed by the Overlord powered by the most powerful living person in the entire NINJAGO universe, piloted by the guy who taught the ninja every single thing they knew about fighting?

[Merc4hire95]

I dont imagine there could be another flagship set for the villians of NINJAGO, considering that a dragon is one of the ultimate forces/power in NINJAGO. For all we know the summer sets could be location based. Just a bit of info, someone recorded th first half of the 1st episode of rise of the spinjistu master and uploaded it on to youtube.

[Freddy Bricker]

What would be the point of that? Dragons are the Overlord's thing, not humanoid mechs. And to a little kid, how does that surpass the epicness of a giant, insanely well-armed mechanical robot dragon possessed by the Overlord powered by the most powerful living person in the entire NINJAGO universe, piloted by the guy who taught the ninja every single thing they knew about fighting?

I agree, but then again I'm also biased and see only reasoning to have the Zane story arc end. Yeah, truth is I want the focus to shift to either Cole or Nya, I think they have good potential as characters. But you did bring up good points, if a Dragon is one of the (if not, then THE) most powerful creatures in Ninjago, and it's being piloted by Sensei freaking Wu, then what else could be stronger? This arc is begging to end, despite it's great plot.

[Merc4hire95]

If the sets will now be based off character/story arcs, this could be an attempt to create an evergreen product to keep the theme going. Though I disagree with Zane's arc being set to end within 2014. I see a lot of potential in this Nindroid route that could introduce the theme to something similar to Exo-Force sets and a story similar to Bionicle in complexity. Personally I would love to see TLG continue this techno look.

[Mandate]

The sets really always have been, it's just now basically confirmed with this story-arc. First was the Kai story-arc (though it wasn't really about Kai, but it was more about him than anyone else) and then the Lloyd story-arc really was about Lloyd, even if the other four did everything for him seemingly in the TV show. Perhaps the real reason this line has its own finale set up is a precaution, NINJAGO has been gone for a while (even if it was just 1 wave of sets) and the demand for it is uncertain, kids might have lost a lot of interest and may never regain it.

But there is still a plethora of potential in this current story-arc and future ones, just not much potential for a big "finale showdown" thing in this story-arc. Potential further story-arcs do include Samurai attacks, a set appearance of the Craglings (though this would be short lived in the reviewing communities, for obvious reasons) and mud monsters, not to mention the OTHER ninja Sensei Wu trained, eg the Phantom Ninja, Neido (if he is canon as a character), etc. There's also the possibility that for when they're done with NINJAGO they release some sort of massive Overlord VS First Spinjitzu Master set. But I really don't see how they can further this current plot in terms of bigger enemies. I still have no clue how you would even STOP something like the Mechdragon, and it's made abundantly clear that it will activate in some way.

[horizon]

Maybe it will be like the Stone warriors release, just one wave for the whole season and the mechdragon is the final bit.

Keep in mind that Lego is doing a Ninjago cinema movie as well.

Edited December 8, 2013 by horizon

[PenPlays]

Now that I think about the Mechdragon, it does have that Great Devourer level of epicness. If I may point out, Garmadon's Dark Fortress was released during the first half of 2011, and The Fire Temple that Summer. i.e. the first year finale set was released in the first half of the year, with a major location to lead the Summer wave. Mechdragon and Borg Tower/Sensei's School anyone?

Maybe your idea about the Lloyd battery for a final battle isn't that far off, JayWalker.

[Mandate]

I was thinking about that, but the Dark Fortress was relatively unimpressive in terms of a "finale" set, because of the nature of it and the build itself. The Mechdragon, however, is, well, I think it's obviously not a Fire Temple or a Dark Fortress, but it's still gonna be very hard to top even if they make the "finale" set for the ninja instead of the Nindroids. I think we can rule out Borg Tower as a set, we know that it's just not going to happen on the scale that Borg Tower is. Sure, they made the Daily Bugle set smaller than it could have been, and the Fire Temple was nothing like the show version or the rather awful bit of Ouroboros that we got, but Borg Tower just is more set in stone as to what it is. You can't condense a tower like that into a set without making it mini-scale. And I'm not sure that even Sensei Wu's academy would be ideal for a set, it's likely to be destroyed early on due to plot inconveniences and Evil Wu.

Personally, I would love to see a proper base for the ninja complete with parking spaces for the ninja's vehicles but I think we all know that won't happen, because it puts pressure on parents to buy all the sets and kids would feel the set is incomplete without all of them. That's not to say it couldn't happen, Sentai Fortress is a great example of when such an idea is done right. The Golden Tower, while great in concept, was not, mainly because it lacked being a proper base in favor of the "finale" set being the Iron Destructor (if I recall correctly, I haven't looked through the EXO-FORCE lore in a while).

In other news, just put the Ninjacopter on layby, so that's my LEGO shopping done until I can get my hands on Destructoid or a Legend Beast

Also, I just noticed something interesting that's making me quite a fair bit relieved. On the LEGO S@H website, while I am VERY late on this, Epic Dragon Battle is $120 USD whereas in AU it is $199 I know there has been some whining about the MechDragon's pricing, but let me put it this way: Mechdragon is $90 in the US and $100 in Australia. That's an AU difference of $99 for 100 extra pieces, and a difference of $20 USD for 100 extra pieces. So I think we should ALL be very glad that this set has a better PPP ratio.

[Merc4hire95]

I was thinking about that, but the Dark Fortress was relatively unimpressive in terms of a "finale" set, because of the nature of it and the build itself. The Mechdragon, however, is, well, I think it's obviously not a Fire Temple or a Dark Fortress, but it's still gonna be very hard to top even if they make the "finale" set for the ninja instead of the Nindroids. I think we can rule out Borg Tower as a set, we know that it's just not going to happen on the scale that Borg Tower is. Sure, they made the Daily Bugle set smaller than it could have been, and the Fire Temple was nothing like the show version or the rather awful bit of Ouroboros that we got, but Borg Tower just is more set in stone as to what it is. You can't condense a tower like that into a set without making it mini-scale. And I'm not sure that even Sensei Wu's academy would be ideal for a set, it's likely to be destroyed early on due to plot inconveniences and Evil Wu.

Personally, I would love to see a proper base for the ninja complete with parking spaces for the ninja's vehicles but I think we all know that won't happen, because it puts pressure on parents to buy all the sets and kids would feel the set is incomplete without all of them. That's not to say it couldn't happen, Sentai Fortress is a great example of when such an idea is done right. The Golden Tower, while great in concept, was not, mainly because it lacked being a proper base in favor of the "finale" set being the Iron Destructor (if I recall correctly, I haven't looked through the EXO-FORCE lore in a while).

In other news, just put the Ninjacopter on layby, so that's my LEGO shopping done until I can get my hands on Destructoid or a Legend Beast

Also, I just noticed something interesting that's making me quite a fair bit relieved. On the LEGO S@H website, while I am VERY late on this, Epic Dragon Battle is $120 USD whereas in AU it is $199 I know there has been some whining about the MechDragon's pricing, but let me put it this way: Mechdragon is $90 in the US and $100 in Australia. That's an AU difference of $99 for 100 extra pieces, and a difference of $20 USD for 100 extra pieces. So I think we should ALL be very glad that this set has a better PPP ratio.

I agree with you on the possibilities of a Borg tower or Wu's academy as sets as they don't seem all that appealing. I would think any location sets would be a temple that will later appear in the show, or some kind of Ninja fortress(Ninja HQ oh plz TLG). Summer villain sets would probably be minor vehicles/weaponry since we already got the Mechdragon.