Super Heroes 2014 Rumors & Discussion

[Rinzler]

Well, the only why I found out about him was because he was in Secret Avengers, which spurred me to find out more! ( Really a cool charector bytheway )

I found him in Spider-Man: Web Of Shadows

[LipanConjured]

Really? Richard Rider>Sam Alexander all day.

I'm with you. The whole prospect of young/teenage superheroes has always been really unappealing to me, especially when one replaces a bamf like Richard Rider. I just modified my Nova minifig a bit to make him Richard.

I'm kind of hoping if they continue the Ultimate Spidey line they introduce more new villains like the first wave did, not just unnecessary rehashes. The 2014 Spider Man sets are all an easy pass for me. I'm still holding out for Kraven, Mysterio and Scorpion(gotta be Mac Gargan).

[Suspsy]

As long as Hollywood keeps churning out Marvel blockbusters and DC so-so's, Lego will likely continue to produce sets. I really can't wait to see what 2015 will bring. I'm betting that Ultron will reuse the limbs from last year's Darth Maul minifigure in order to give him a more inhuman appearance.

I've accepted that DC will continue to be 95% Batman and 5% special guest heroes. That's just the way it is, I guess. If it means eventually getting Green Lantern, Supergirl, Black Canary, Atom, etc, then yay. Perhaps even a special Superman set where he's fighting a macrofigure Doomsday.

And as always, I continue to hold out hope for Abomination, Juggernaut, and Rhino. :)

Kraven, Scorpion, and Mysterio all sound good too. Not to mention Baron Zemo, Kang the Conqueror, Enchantress, Carnage, Vulture, Leader, and Absorbing Man.

Edited March 15, 2014 by Suspsy

[SoupOrFishOil]

I don't think the problem is "Too much Batman" as much as it is "Not enough anyone else." The solution isn't for Batman's popularity to drop. If that would happen, it wouldn't be until 2017 at the earliest (though it might take a dip next year without a movie or cartoon) with his cinematic team-up with Superman coming out and everyone absolutely hates it and the merchandise rots on the shelves. Then what else would DC have? Batman failing would mean that Superman and Wonder Woman would falter even more so, since they have more to lose, so the line can't shift focus towards them. With the trinity taboo like Green Lantern, who does that leave DC with? Their plan for the cinematic universe seems similar to what their plan with animation has been; make everyone else popular by using Batman as a gateway. That would give LEGO only two options, shift focus towards the Teen Titans, or, more-likely, cancel the DC line. If the "only" two profitable characters become failures overnight and there is little chance that any C- or B-list character will rise in popularity, what else is there to do? No other DC character is in a position to Batman's limelight. You could probably argue that Flash can, but realistically speaking, what are the odds of that?

The best case scenario would be that Warner Bros has figured out what to do with Cartoon Network (I recommend reading this) and they have new animated series for Superman, Flash, the Justice League, or whoever in the pipeline and LEGO is going to make sets for them. There are a few other possibilities (Flash's show blowing away all expectations becoming extremely popular with kids, a Justice League toyline without a tie-in, Teen Titans Go sets) but what will probably happen is that we'll have to wait for the DC Cinematic Universe to get off the ground (any day now... ), and that it helps characters like Green Lantern, Wonder Woman, Cyborg, Aquaman, Flash, Hawkman -whoever they include- either become popular on their own or as members of the League. Personally, I'm just hoping that we can get a couple comic-based Superman sets next year, if we can't get any other variety. I wouldn't even mind new Batman sets as long as they have new characters and he doesn't hog the entire line for the fourth year in a row. Maybe the Batcopter was even a test to see if he could sell two C-listers by himself? If so, I like the idea of team-up with Green Arrow against Deathstroke....

And sorry for the rant, I'm not good at being concise.

Edited March 15, 2014 by Superficial Username

[LipanConjured]

Not to mention Baron Zemo, Kang the Conqueror, Enchantress, Carnage, Vulture, Leader, and Absorbing Man.

Hell yes, I'll take Zemo, Kang and Carnage any day of the week. Sadly Kang is one of those characters who doesn't have a whole lot of exposure outside of comics, so I don't think we'll be seeing him any time too soon.

I'd say Zemo, Carnage, Vulture and Leader could likely appear in minifig form yet.

I'm really hoping the winter/2015 lineup looks better on both DC and Marvel fronts. I'm more of a Marvel guy, but I own quite a few DC sets and I can't see myself buying any of the new sets, most of the builds aren't that appealing and the sets lack unique/new figs in my opinion. When I say unique/new I mean characters we haven't seen before, perhaps one day when they're done making endless variants of their current minifig lineup we'll see some guys like Onomatopoeia and Azrael.

[gedren_y]

Given the spread of DC at the moment, to get Green Arrow in a set with a better known they should go with Superman. Batman and Green Arrow fill the same kind of role. Who would be a good villain for a Watchtower Invasion set? Make it a $50 set like the Marvel AIM set; with Hawkman (doable with Chima parts), Green Arrow (existing but unavailable), Superman (two versions exist), and two attacking villains.

[B-Lister]

I'm with you. The whole prospect of young/teenage superheroes has always been really unappealing to me, especially when one replaces a bamf like Richard Rider. I just modified my Nova minifig a bit to make him Richard.

See, that's where we differ. I have always liked teen heroes. Young Justice was my first comic, and I am a huge Titans fan. Young Avengers was great on the Marvel side of things.

You're free to call the minifigure Richard Rider, but it wouldn't exist if it weren't for Sam.

And yet, Sam wouldn't exist without Richard.

But it's nothing more than a p***ing match. "Rider is Better!" Who cares? Except those who are threatened by the existence of more options? Why can't we love what characters we love without trying to drag down the ones we don't?

I am a Blue Beetle fan. I love ALL incarnations. But I meet people all the time who flat out refuse to acknowledge Jaime, who is an amazing character, simply because they refuse to acknowledge what they consider an usurper, never once acknowledging that Ted has no more claim to the title as he inherited it in his turn.

Sam doesn't take anything away from Richard, but Richard fans try to take away from Sam. Why?

If you want a Rider figure, make a case for one! Show Lego there's a market! There's a Nova set in GotG, is that Rider?

Edited March 16, 2014 by B-Lister

[Moon_Knight]

Given the spread of DC at the moment, to get Green Arrow in a set with a better known they should go with Superman. Batman and Green Arrow fill the same kind of role. Who would be a good villain for a Watchtower Invasion set? Make it a $50 set like the Marvel AIM set; with Hawkman (doable with Chima parts), Green Arrow (existing but unavailable), Superman (two versions exist), and two attacking villains.

Batman & Green Arrow are pals though. They've teamed up several times. Quiver had a moment as well as the the Dark Knight Returns. Plus, DC superhero sets seem to have to have Batman in them in order to exist. I do want the emerald archer though. Green Lantern must happen first because he's a founding JLA member. My JLA won't be complete until I have Hal Jordan.

[korpen4444]

See, that's where we differ. I have always liked teen heroes. Young Justice was my first comic, and I am a huge Titans fan. Young Avengers was great on the Marvel side of things.

You're free to call the minifigure Richard Rider, but it wouldn't exist if it weren't for Sam.

And yet, Sam wouldn't exist without Richard.

But it's nothing more than a p***ing match. "Rider is Better!" Who cares? Except those who are threatened by the existence of more options? Why can't we love what characters we love without trying to drag down the ones we don't?

I am a Blue Beetle fan. I love ALL incarnations. But I meet people all the time who flat out refuse to acknowledge Jaime, who is an amazing character, simply because they refuse to acknowledge what they consider an usurper, never once acknowledging that Ted has no more claim to the title as he inherited it in his turn.

Sam doesn't take anything away from Richard, but Richard fans try to take away from Sam. Why?

If you want a Rider figure, make a case for one! Show Lego there's a market! There's a Nova set in GotG, is that Rider?

Hmm, you make some strong points. My MM arrived today!(finally)

I also got the Penguin set and it is awesome! Penguin and his robot penguin henchmen are especially cool! Scuba Batman blows out other variants of the water(except BTB of course), and the duckboat is cute!

[B-Lister]

I got the Hydra Tank, and glad I did. A really fun build, with a great suspension system.

[Colossus]

I don't understand why DC sets won't exist without Batman. How many DC sets have been made without Batman already to prove it otherwise? The Superman/Wonder Woman set is the only one I can recall. There may have been others. My point is this: how do we know that DC sets won't move without him? Batman is a fantastic character, and easily one of my favourites. Doesn't mean I want 50 variants and the same 5 vehicles rehashed ad nauseum. I think it all stems from DC's business philosophy. They don't take many risks, and when they do, less than 100% effort is put into it. Nolan's Bat-movies were incredible. Great stories and topnotch acting. They worked well for the Batman character. That same formula didn't work so well for Superman because he is such a different character. Not to mention that the story wasn't as strong. When I finished seeing Batman Begins, I knew who Bruce Wayne was and his motivation. Seeing Man of Steel, I had no idea who Superman was and even less about Clark Kent. And what I did see of the Superman character went against everything I know Superman to be. Then there's GL. The movie was OK, but way too rushed. I mean, Sinestro's corruption and his taking the yellow power ring is summed up in a stinger after the credits? Lame. DC flounders because they feel the audience can't suspend belief and accept the comic book character for what it is. DC won't develop a Wonder Woman flick because they don't know to approach the character? Tell that to Marvel. Thor has already had a sequel, Cap has a sequel next month, and Tony Stark is a household name. Their summer blockbuster features a talking, rifle toting raccoon. I wish that DC would wake up. Their fans and their characters deserve better.

[Numbuh1Nerd]

I don't understand why DC sets won't exist without Batman. How many DC sets have been made without Batman already to prove it otherwise? The Superman/Wonder Woman set is the only one I can recall. There may have been others.

Well, we've got the Man of Steel sets.

Just got my Joker Steamroller a bit ago! Super happy with it, even though that Batplane's wing-claw thing is super stupid. The Steamroller itself is one of my favorite DC builds thus far though, and I'm really digging the Damian and Batgirl minifigs. I immediately replaced Damian's hair with the Bruce Wayne hair, because it feels much more accurate. I'd still like to find a good hair alternate for Nightwing, so I can eventually make/get a Red Robin without them having the same haircut. Having an almost full Bat Family and a passable Justice League now (which feels much more passable now that my display of them is based on this image and not the New 52 lineup) really makes me feel a bit better about the Batman saturation. After picking up issue 28 of the Flash today (by the way, this is the first time I've ever bought a Flash book. The only other physical comics I've bought are the Death of the Family Teen Titans issue, an issue of Batman and Robin I lost, another issue of Teen Titans I lost, and the villains month Deadshot book, all of these being New 52) I really really want to see Deadman in official LEGO form. Do you think we'll ever manage to see him?

[LipanConjured]

See, that's where we differ. I have always liked teen heroes. Young Justice was my first comic, and I am a huge Titans fan. Young Avengers was great on the Marvel side of things.

You're free to call the minifigure Richard Rider, but it wouldn't exist if it weren't for Sam.

And yet, Sam wouldn't exist without Richard.

But it's nothing more than a p***ing match. "Rider is Better!" Who cares? Except those who are threatened by the existence of more options? Why can't we love what characters we love without trying to drag down the ones we don't?

I am a Blue Beetle fan. I love ALL incarnations. But I meet people all the time who flat out refuse to acknowledge Jaime, who is an amazing character, simply because they refuse to acknowledge what they consider an usurper, never once acknowledging that Ted has no more claim to the title as he inherited it in his turn.

Sam doesn't take anything away from Richard, but Richard fans try to take away from Sam. Why?

If you want a Rider figure, make a case for one! Show Lego there's a market! There's a Nova set in GotG, is that Rider?

For me, it's not that I feel "threatened" by the existence of more options. I just don't like it when new options completely replacing the old well established characters. The Nova corps is huge, replacing the face of the organization with an adolescent feels unnecessary and forced. Kind of like when Kyle Rayner replaced Hal Jordan for a while.

If I wanted to read a comic about some angsty/quirky kid who got powers I'd read Spider Man. I suppose the fact I'm already indifferent to young superheroes doesn't help.

But I don't think Lego even needs to make Richard his own minifig given how close of a match the Nova minifig is to the original costume. All I did to make my own Richard Rider Nova was throw on some yellow arms/different legs, bam.

[gedren_y]

The fact that Marvel is now owned by Disney may have something to do with the disparity. There was also some discussion that DC gave up a lot of licensing rights to WB. I don't know how much of that is true.

I actually enjoyed the Man of Steel take on Superman, even though I waited until it became available on DVD at my local library. All the movies (and the show Smallville) up till now have stressed the Clark Kent American upbringing. Often his origins as Kal-El were very distant, and sometimes at odds with how he was raised. His Earth story was widely known, but the Krypton story hasn't been.

We also get an explanation of how a society that has the capabilities of interstellar and interdimensional travel can be destroyed by the death of their homeworld. Since I haven't followed DC comics over the years, I don't know if they ever explained that little wrinkle in the story.

I eagerly await the next movie in this storyline, and the Lego sets we should get from it.

On the Nova Corps in GOTG: from what I understand of the storyline, this is before the destruction of Xandar. Thus before Richard Rider. The fig we got was from the USM cartoon, which is the tv version of the Marvel Ultimate universe (Earth-1610) not the prime Marvel universe (Earth-616).

Edited March 16, 2014 by gedren_y

[B-Lister]

What about when Wally replaced Barry? Wally is undeniably the superior Flash. He's had more issues than Barry, and is as recognizable by many fans, as he's the only one they've ever known. I am just as bitter about the new generation being replaced by the guys they were supposed to replace.

Or when Hal replaced Alan Scott?

Oh wait, that doesn't count, only when YOUR heroes are the ones replaced. So it's all about your comfort zone, and has nothing at all to do with giving a new character a fair chance.

I understand now.

And it's still a flimsy argument and always will be.

I am all for Lego producing as many versions of a character as possible. If I had my way, EVERY Flash, Nova, Lantern, and Batkid would be made in every outfit, to please as many fans as possible, rather than being divisive and petty with arguments about which was arbitrarily 'better'.

Edited March 16, 2014 by B-Lister

[clutch]

What about when Wally replaced Barry? Wally is undeniably the superior Flash. He's had more issues than Barry, and is as recognizable by many fans, as he's the only one they've ever known. I am just as bitter about the new generation being replaced by the guys they were supposed to replace.

Or when Hal replaced Alan Scott?

Oh wait, that doesn't count, only when YOUR heroes are the ones replaced. So it's all about your comfort zone, and has nothing at all to do with giving a new character a fair chance.

I understand now.

And it's still a flimsy argument and always will be.

I am all for Lego producing as many versions of a character as possible. If I had my way, EVERY Flash, Nova, Lantern, and Batkid would be made in every outfit, to please as many fans as possible, rather than being divisive and petty with arguments about which was arbitrarily 'better'.

I would love to give sam alexander a fair chance as a character but why did he have to become nova? He could've been his own hero. the idea of replacing characters really only works if the original character has really run it's course. there was plenty of stories left to tell of richard rider but now we will hear less from him since he's been unnecessarily replaced.

[gedren_y]

I would love to give sam alexander a fair chance as a character but why did he have to become nova? He could've been his own hero. the idea of replacing characters really only works if the original character has really run it's course. there was plenty of stories left to tell of richard rider but now we will hear less from him since he's been unnecessarily replaced.

The Sam Alexander and Richard Rider Nova characters are from different Marvel universes. Sam is in the Ultimate universe (Earth 1610) and Richard is in the original Marvel universe (Earth-616).

[B-Lister]

Because he's the son of Nova, and the creators wanted to try something different.

Necessity is a matter of opinion. Your opinion. One which I do not share. And your excuse is "I won't treat this character fairly because I consider him an usurper!" Is as sad, petty and childish as it was in the days of Kyle Rayner.

Sam's existence takes nothing from the Richard stories that already exist.

I hope Richard and Sam can exist together. The universe is big enough for both. I hope eventually fans can see past such pettiness and embrace new ideas without feeling threatened by them.

And again, Lego is also not bound by any timeline, every version of every character and mantle can coexist peacefully, and at the same time.

The Sam Alexander and Richard Rider Nova characters are from different Marvel universes. Sam is in the Ultimate universe (Earth 1610) and Richard is in the original Marvel universe (Earth-616).

Incorrect. Sam exists in the 616.

Plus everything seems to point to the fact that Sam will be instrumental in helping bring Richard Rider back. But I believe there's room for both, and look forward to reading more of both.

Edited March 16, 2014 by B-Lister

[eldiano]

I don't know?! It one if them things! Somethings stick around for ever. Batman has been going for a long time and I guess there have been gaps in interest. Sometimes when there is nothing exiting happening people will loose interest. Until they have a gap it will be popular as they always are pumping out new cartoons and films. Itd almost impossible to say because there are some things people say will never go out of date of be forgotten. Look at other examples such as MSN, a huge step forward in social interaction and people assumed that it would always be popular. Although it is a different scenario the idea is the same. As long as they keep making cartoons and films there will be interest.

Athough I don't care for DC stuff (Marvel all the way for me!!) I still care that other characters get the limelight so I sort of hope batman runs out of steam.

Finally my hydra tank arrived and so glad that I bought it!! Looks awesome!

Right now all the fad is marvel, all I see is iron man figures everywhere, spider man toys and hype of the captain america the winter soldier movie, everywhere, you can go to any store and find that the sets gone are marvel. It's killing me right now, Batman is not that popular, they canceled BtB, the next batman movie is with ben affleck, although I have hopes, I don't think the sets will be awesome, I mean they will repaint the batman suits dark blue and grey, and which other batman suits we and give superman a new costume and get an alternate version of wonder woman. I collect Hot Toys, and I bought the 1:6 batmobile six months ago, but I have been waiting for the batman returns line since 2012 when it was announced and still nothing. The closest thing we got coming is 1966 batman figures on 1/6 scale, but all I see is marvel figures left and right, GIVE ME A BREAK!!!

Look at the comic book sets the marvel springs sets churned out, I know we will see comic book sets other than batman on DC, but it's upto DC I think, Lego can literally release any figure they want based on comics, shows, or classic tv shows if they wanted too. Super Heroes can be bankable if they play their cards, I foresee this line going farther than star wars really. It doesn't matter if it's based on shows or not, maybe in the next five years our minifigures collection will match the lego figure characters as seen in the Lego video games.

Edited March 16, 2014 by eldiano

[gedren_y]

Because he's the son of Nova, and the creators wanted to try something different.

Necessity is a matter of opinion. Your opinion. One which I do not share. And your excuse is "I won't treat this character fairly because I consider him an usurper!" Is as sad, petty and childish as it was in the days of Kyle Rayner.

Sam's existence takes nothing from the Richard stories that already exist.

I hope Richard and Sam can exist together. The universe is big enough for both. I hope eventually fans can see past such pettiness and embrace new ideas without feeling threatened by them.

And again, Lego is also not bound by any timeline, every version of every character and mantle can coexist peacefully, and at the same time.

Incorrect. Sam exists in the 616.

Plus everything seems to point to the fact that Sam will be instrumental in helping bring Richard Rider back. But I believe there's room for both, and look forward to reading more of both.

Okay, accepted. But the fig is from the cartoon, which is Earth-1610.

[B-Lister]

Agreed. Very cool set. I wish I had it. Though I will eventually get Sam, even if I don't buy the rest. Which set was Iron Fist in?

[JaseTJ]

I actually convinced my mother to pick the Daily Bugle up for me a while ago, being a poor college student, and I only have to wait another couple months 'til my birthday :P Still don't have Iron Fist either, unfortunately. He's in the $30 Doc Ock set from the same wave as the Bugle, though.

[Colossus]

I actually enjoyed the Man of Steel take on Superman, even though I waited until it became available on DVD at my local library. All the movies (and the show Smallville) up till now have stressed the Clark Kent American upbringing. Often his origins as Kal-El were very distant, and sometimes at odds with how he was raised. His Earth story was widely known, but the Krypton story hasn't been.

We also get an explanation of how a society that has the capabilities of interstellar and interdimensional travel can be destroyed by the death of their homeworld. Since I haven't followed DC comics over the years, I don't know if they ever explained that little wrinkle in the story.

Sorry, forgot about the Man of Steel sets. I enjoyed the Black Zero build, and my son got a kick out of the little Metropolis battle set.

In regards to the movie, I enjoyed seeing how Krypton was presented. I just can't figure out what irked me about Clark's development, whether it's how it felt rushed to me so they could present more of Krypton, or how it was presented in reverse chronological order. I could accept that Clark's history is the same story as we've seen in numerous tellings. However, the Jonathan Kent's attitude in MOS seems to contradict how he has been portrayed in all these previous origins, discouraging Clark from ever revealing his abilities to protect him from the world. I would have liked to see how this significant difference in attitude may have affected Clark growing up. Thanks for the discussion!

Back to Lego! I hope that DC uses the hiatus from Bats and Supes to give us some JLA/JSA, TeenTitans/Young Justice based sets.

I actually convinced my mother to pick the Daily Bugle up for me a while ago, being a poor college student, and I only have to wait another couple months 'til my birthday :P Still don't have Iron Fist either, unfortunately. He's in the $30 Doc Ock set from the same wave as the Bugle, though.

The Daily Bugle set is pretty good! I would have picked it over the Doc Ock lab set too. If $$$ is tight, maybe check eBay for just the Iron Fist minifig. A quick look showed a couple for $10-$12.

[jonwil]

The Daily Bugle set is pretty good! I would have picked it over the Doc Ock lab set too. If $$$ is tight, maybe check eBay for just the Iron Fist minifig. A quick look showed a couple for $10-$12.

Bricklink would be better, they are even cheaper over there :)

[Godtshep]

I think the Marvel sets need stronger marketing.

I understand that Lego's main audience is children, however children still have opinions on these sets- a 10-year-old won't suddenly think the Spider-Trike is cool 'just because it has Spider-Man in it'.

And instead of making loads of vehicles, why not make the X-Mansion? Loads of fans have been demanding an X-Mansion, and I guess it would sell extremely well.

And I too dislike the Comic-Con exclusives. And I can't really see how they're good for marketing either.

As for DC, though, I am impressed by this year's line up.

The £12 set has a good part count, showing that TLG is learning from it's mistakes in these £12 sets and the Batcopter is cool and has great figures.

The Riddler chase is much better in person-the Batmobile almost has a 'Tumbler' look to it and the dragster is decent too.

The Steamroller is a good model, but the cab is too open in my opinion, and I don't like the Bat-Jet.

Overall, though, this year looks like a pretty good one for Superheroes sets. I hope next year will be just as good.