Things non-AFOLs say WAY too often

[SheepEater]

The focus on licensed characters and settings does limit children's creativity, no matter how loudly we protest. When you buy LOTR vs. "Generic Fantasy Castle" you are buying specific characters with preset stories and a certain "right way" that the settings should look. Weathertop is supposed to look like this, and be the setting for a fight between Aragorn and some hobbits on one side and Nazgul on the other. That's the "rulebook" that you get with that set, and once you've built the set and played out that fight, there's little encouragement to do anything else with the set. A generic Castle set is much more open to the children's imagination. They can make up any story they want, because the set doesn't come with its own canon. The minifigs can be named whatever you want. The King's Castle can be built in whatever configuration you want. The Dragon Knights can be the good guys or the bad guys. The Lion Princess can be a prisoner, or maybe she's actually eloping with one of the Dragon Knights. Maybe everybody will end up teaming up against that horrible red dragon. All options are open. You get a much bigger sandbox.

I strongly disagree here. The Helm's Deep set from last year has a better piece/price ratio, more basic bricks and less specialized pieces than the preceding generic castle from Kingdoms. Nothing stops kids from rebuilding Helm's Deep into a generic castle and have the uruk hais as the defenders!

There's nothing preventing kids to use licensed sets and use them in any which way they want. Superman can wear the One Ring and chill in Olivia's bed room with Darth Vader while she serves them cupcakes. There's no "wrong" way to play or build.

Edited August 12, 2013 by SheepEater

[Gryphon Ink]

Nothing stops kids from rebuilding Helm's Deep into a generic castle and have the uruk hais as the defenders!

There's nothing preventing kids to use licensed sets and use them in any which way they want. Superman can wear the One Ring and chill in Olivia's bed room with Darth Vader while she serves them cupcakes. There's no "wrong" way to play or build.

Of course kids can mix and match and invent new stories. They do this all the time. But 99 kids out of 100 will never play Superman as a bad guy or Darth Vader as a good guy because they know that's not how the story goes. They will always be aware of the stories behind these characters; they don't start from a blank slate.

[Vindicare]

I do agree that it does stifle things, a bit. As mentioned, there is a set story and characters and things have been set 'into stone' if you will on what happens. Of course, kids could take that same set with the known characters and have an alternate ending. Like the Nazgul could end up killing Aragorn and the Hobbits try to escape. There is more openness to Kingdoms in how the story could play out and the roles of the characters.

[Tariq j]

Of course kids can mix and match and invent new stories. They do this all the time. But 99 kids out of 100 will never play Superman as a

bad guy or Darth Vader as a good guy because

they know that's not how the story goes. They

will always be aware of the stories behind these

characters; they don't start from a blank slate.

Though that is true what about an MOC? Maybe if a kid wants to make up there own storyline for a theme.

[Saint]

So that was your opinion about LEGO sets, now back to the brighter side of LEGO... what did you hear non-AFOLS say ???

Sorry guys, I'm not a mod, but I think this is a very funny topic, and not a place to moan about the limits of a specific line.. kids wil be kids, and will always find a way to play, even if the set "dictates" that it should be done like this or that...

Grtz Saint

[RaincloudDustbin]

"Saddo"

[Tariq j]

" you need another hobby"

" you actually collect this stuff?"

" I threw mine out ages ago when I was 8"

[eurotrash]

"Seriously? Lego? Really? Aren't you a bit old for that?"

Then I point them at some of the MOCs on this website....

/BrickHeathens/

[Xeen-ia]

Well, most of what i've heard, have already been told by others...

But mostly I get the "you still play with legos" from my co-workers - even tough they frequently ask if i got any news sets recently.

But being the youngest at work has its priviligies...whenever they try to shame me by my collection i just answer with a "well im not as old as you guys" and that shuts them up for a while.

And on the positive side...i got loads of offers on bying their kids lego collection as they grow out of it.

But the strangest thing i've experinced was a couple of weeks ago...

One of the bigger supermarkets here i denmark, Bilka, got their annual 35% off all their lego sets. Me and my husband and son have saved up for that occasion, so we got quite a full cart when we were done. Technic for my husband, City for my son and Friends for me.

On the same day, they had an offer for a KitchenAid, witch we talked about getting for a long time. To get it, we had to ask for someone at the electronics department to go out back and get our model and so we waited with the other clerk (a little people guy, who was the most unknowing electronics guy i have ever met) He was talking to another customer about some specs on a computer he was looking to buy. Both me and my husband work with, and have an interest in computers, and he was more or less screwing this guy over with his lack of knowledge on everything basic about this computer...selling on the terms of "I don't have a clue, but the bigger you go, the more money we earn even though you won't ever need 80% of what this can do"

When he was through with the screwing he turned to us, and saw our cart - looked at my son and said "thats really a lot of lego for you and your little sister"

My son, shameless and all, just answered "the city is for me, but the friends is for my mom - you should see her collection, it's really cool - and shes got modulars too!" Proud and well raised he is...

Nevertheless...the little guy just looks at me as if I was the biggest freak on the planet of the earth...he didn't even have to say anything, the look I got said it all - and I just smiled my biggest, proudest smile ever.

Just to disclaim, I have absoluty no beef with disaled people, or people born with quirks...I was born with a disability myself...but being seen as a freak of nature by af dwarf because of my lego hobby, that has got to be the saddest and funniest thing i will ever experience...I hope.

[Blast]

" you need another hobby"

" you actually collect this stuff?"

" I threw mine out ages ago when I was 8"

Oh man I can relate to this especially the 'You need another hobby' wtf? I don't tell you how to live your life

Edited August 14, 2013 by Blast

[4WD]

My friend and I occasionally tease one another about our respective LEGO and anime hobbies, but no harm done.

It's usually LEGO versus Naruto, so he's all about target audiences and I'm all about the english voices.

Edited August 16, 2013 by 4WD

[Luke_likes_Lego]

"..a guy at work collects LEGO like you do. He bought his wife <<insert expensive set name here>> for her birthday. Ha ha ha"

...doesn't sound so bad to me....

LLL

[GandalfofHoth]

UGHHHHH this is said way too much...

Wow, that is some piece of work, I have never read an attack on lego this pathetic, I was amazed of the nerve of this woman, but I long ago realized that, every ​hobby will have people who have nothing better to do but criticize other people, alas I just tune them out and keep on building.

Back on topic (when seen in lego isle by someone who works with me but doesn't know my hobby) "It's your kids birthday soon!" or "aren't you a nice parent getting that big set for your kid."

[Luke_likes_Lego]

.....when seen in lego isle.....

Ahhhhh.'Lego Isle'....

[Shoujikey]

I get tease by my friends alot.They even call me Immature for collecting Lego.

Well, most of what i've heard, have already been told by others...

But mostly I get the "you still play with legos" from my co-workers - even tough they frequently ask if i got any news sets recently.

But being the youngest at work has its priviligies...whenever they try to shame me by my collection i just answer with a "well im not as old as you guys" and that shuts them up for a while.

And on the positive side...i got loads of offers on bying their kids lego collection as they grow out of it.

But the strangest thing i've experinced was a couple of weeks ago...

One of the bigger supermarkets here i denmark, Bilka, got their annual 35% off all their lego sets. Me and my husband and son have saved up for that occasion, so we got quite a full cart when we were done. Technic for my husband, City for my son and Friends for me.

On the same day, they had an offer for a KitchenAid, witch we talked about getting for a long time. To get it, we had to ask for someone at the electronics department to go out back and get our model and so we waited with the other clerk (a little people guy, who was the most unknowing electronics guy i have ever met) He was talking to another customer about some specs on a computer he was looking to buy. Both me and my husband work with, and have an interest in computers, and he was more or less screwing this guy over with his lack of knowledge on everything basic about this computer...selling on the terms of "I don't have a clue, but the bigger you go, the more money we earn even though you won't ever need 80% of what this can do"

When he was through with the screwing he turned to us, and saw our cart - looked at my son and said "thats really a lot of lego for you and your little sister"

My son, shameless and all, just answered "the city is for me, but the friends is for my mom - you should see her collection, it's really cool - and shes got modulars too!" Proud and well raised he is...

Nevertheless...the little guy just looks at me as if I was the biggest freak on the planet of the earth...he didn't even have to say anything, the look I got said it all - and I just smiled my biggest, proudest smile ever.

Just to disclaim, I have absoluty no beef with disaled people, or people born with quirks...I was born with a disability myself...but being seen as a freak of nature by af dwarf because of my lego hobby, that has got to be the saddest and funniest thing i will ever experience...I hope.

Interesting story... I've been in that kind of situation before but I just remind myself that Im not the only teenager who collects Lego set

[Legonardo]

when you gonna grow up?

theres a huge list, alot has been said already before though

[TheLazyChicken]

Peaple mostly say this to me,

"You STILL play with Lego's?!"

"Building IS playing!" (In a really mad mood)

So that is basically what they say to me. :-I

Edited October 30, 2013 by TheLazyChicken

[Xeen-ia]

I get tease by my friends alot.They even call me Immature for collecting Lego. Interesting story... I've been in that kind of situation before but I just remind myself that Im not the only teenager who collects Lego set

I'm a month away from turning 29 haven't been a teenager for almost a decade - I just work with really old people

[Saberwing40k]

some people have told me I have too much free time. Oh, is extra time to do what you love a bad thing? This applies to all of my hobbies, and my crane otaku habit as well.

[Kommotion]

"Haven't you outgrown toys?"

Lego bricks can create works of art - I don't know if you can say the same about your "grownup" activities like drinking and doing drugs. Furthermore, Lego is actually good for your brain.

[Saint]

The akward silence ...... like they need time to think about it.

In my workspace ( gasstation ) I get a lot of regular customers, most of them are used to see me tinkering with a set or a MOC.. my piggybank is a LEGO-Brick and gets a lot of attention, and when asked I rever too it as my "building-fund" , that puts a little smile on most of the customers and sometimes some small change in my Brick.

[Dr Leg O Brick]

"Grow up" "Get out of your basement and do something with your life" (Disclaimer: I live in a house and have a job (kind of) but because I talk Klingon, watch Sci-Fi, read comics, and build with Lego I'm naturally stereotyped) "Get a life" "Isn't Legos for kiddies?" "You need to get a new hobby" and various other things that I refuse to put here, due to the vulgar and rude nature of them, along with a number already mentioned. I'm lucky I guess because I have a number of friends and a particular other half who are FOL's, so at least some people can be grown up about it.

[Captain Settle]

Them: "Why do you need that piece, you already have it!"

Me: But this is in green, while the other one is light green."

Awkward silence

Them: Well you're to old to play with LEGO anyway

Edited November 10, 2013 by Captain Settle

[Soaring Strawberry]

"Those are cute"

Joe

My mom says this about all kinds of stuff. Not sure why.

Oh and being a girl who liked Bionicle as a teen, I got a lot of "That's for 8-12 year old boys!" from her too. And "You shouldn't talk about it around the other girls, you'll embarrass yourself/ they won't be interested."

I don't get it as much now, maybe b/c I don't get as many lego sets (lack of money + focus on animation)

Edited November 27, 2013 by Soaring Strawberry

[Aanchir]

Nobody has teased me about liking LEGO in quite a long time, if ever. The people in college who knew about it didn't seem to judge me, at least not openly. I didn't advertise it, but I didn't try to hide it either, so if I happened to be in a conversation where it seemed appropriate to bring it up I didn't inhibit that impulse.

In general, if people I know in real life ever wanted to tease me, they've had plenty of better things to tease me about. Most people seem to feel like my dream of working as a LEGO designer is a great ambition, even if I'm now aware it may be hopelessly out of reach, and don't bring it up a whole lot because I just end up depressing myself.

There aren't a whole lot of clichés I hear from non-FOLs when LEGO comes up in conversation. One of the ones I hear most often is "Have you been to LEGOLAND?", which tends to be people's first question when they learn I'm a LEGO fan (the answer is yes, once, for my 11th birthday).

Other than that, what people most often tend to do is bring up something LEGO-related they saw in the news, which may or may not interest me in the slightest.