BLOCKS: Article 15: A LEGO Collector's Wishlist
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Born in the late 1960s, I have been fortunate enough to see the LEGO World expand into a Universe. I have also been fortunate to have experienced the explosion of television and major motion picture options. The LEGO Group has done a wonderful job for the past fifteen years or so on capitalizing on science fiction and fantasy-based ideas and converting them into popular themes and designs. The STAR WARS theme is the best example of how LEGO took a successful movie product and made it into a successful LEGO product. The characters and vehicles of the STAR WARS franchise were perfectly suited to be transformed into ABS plastic bricks and minifigures. On the flip side, the Bionicle TV show was created by The LEGO Group and a very successful LEGO theme was developed off of the show. But like many middle-aged adults who have an interest in LEGO and science fiction and fantasy-based entertainment, we always want more.
Fast forward to today's current LEGO lineup. There has never been more options for the LEGO fan, both young and old. In any given year, there are well over six hundred different building sets and products available to fans. But, many of these sets and products are not highly "collectible." Many are generic builds from themes like CITY, Friends and basic Creator...to name a few. The LEGO sets that seem to appreciate the best and can be considered "investments" are usually licensed sets or sets that are designed around a specific item...say a vehicle or landmark. LEGO has recently added the Ideas theme as a potential pipeline for collectible LEGO sets. All of the sets are unique, whether they are from licensed entertainment sources or not. Now, I am of the impatient mindset and don't want to wait for some creative MOCer to design and gain approval through the Ideas submission process. I would like to jumpstart the creative engine and give LEGO designers some ideas to work with that would be both fun and collectible in nature. Some are licensed themes, while other ideas are just from my imagination and years of experience as a geek. I think they could be potential winners on both the primary and secondary LEGO markets if ever produced. So sit back and enjoy. If there are any LEGO designers out there, feel free to steal my ideas…
Monster Movie Buildable Figures: The Marvel and DC Comics Super Heroes and STAR WARS Buildable Figures have been very successful with fans and collectors. How about a collection of Buildable Figures based on "old school" Monster Movies? Figures like Dracula, Frankenstein, the Wolfman, the Mummy and the Creature from the Black Lagoon would make wonderful full-sized action figures built with Technic and molded components.
**Military Vehicles/Large Models: **I know that LEGO has some sort of anti-military policy in place, but wouldn't it be cool if we could get a theme based on jet planes and tanks...jeeps, subs and ships? If that wouldn't be acceptable, how about a theme with different passenger airliners or large ship models? It could even expand into sailing ships and other classic ships, like the Titanic for example.
Dinosaur Models: I have always admired LEGO MOCs of dinosaurs and various creatures. How about using Bionicle and Technic components to create a line of dinosaur replicas. It could even be based on skeletons like you see in a museum.
Star Trek/Transformers: I know these two ideas are licensed to another company, but wouldn't it be neat if we could get a Klingon Bird of Prey or the Starship Enterprise done in LEGO bricks instead of those cheapo knock-off brands? How about a LEGO Megatron and Optimus Prime? Awesome.
**NASCAR/Formula 1 Racing Cars: **The recent release of the Porsche 911 GT3 RS gave me the idea of producing a line of NASCAR racing cars, all done in sponsor and company colors and stickers. This could be carried over to Formula 1 racing as well. LEGO could even do Top Fuel Dragsters and Funny Cars.
Chess/Iconic Board Games: One of my favorite LEGO sets of all time was the 852293 Giant Chess set. A whole new theme could be created that made "themed" Chess sets that were done as elaborate as the 852293 Giant Chess set. LEGO could also recreate actual iconic board games like Monopoly in which you have to put together the board in order to play.
Godzilla: I can recall many a Saturday afternoon sitting in front of my television and watching Godzilla movies and building custom LEGO sets. It was some of the best times of my life. There are some really cool Japanese monsters out there that would make dynamic LEGO sets.
Star Blazers/Space Battleship Yamato: Another one of my childhood favorites, the Star Blazers cartoon, with the Space Battleship Yamato/Argo, was just the coolest cartoon ever created in my opinion. The show had great characters and some of the baddest spaceships ever to hit the screen. A show that was way ahead of it's time.
LEGO Bust Collection: The 10018 Ultimate Collector Series Darth Maul is an iconic set...and difficult to build. It is such an impressive display piece that I would love to see other famous and infamous people and characters get the honor of a LEGO bust. How about George Washington? Winston Churchill? Elvis? It could be a very interesting theme.
The Nature Walk Collection: The 21301 Birds set from the Ideas theme is one of my personal favorites. How about if LEGO expanded on this idea and produced other small sets designed around living creatures and their binomial nomenclature? Birds...Reptiles...Amphibians...Fish...Insects...all could be reproduced in plastic and would make stunning display pieces.
