Class of '15 - sets we loved and hated

[Val-E]

So the year is pretty much done in terms of sets to be released that haven´t been leaked - Hoth Exclusive is the main exception.

What sets that came out in 2105 have grabbed your attention in a good or bad way and why?

Here, in no particular order, are my top 5 good and bad ones:

Good.

42043 Mercedes. Pneumatics, record parts content and outstanding use of Lego to create an accurate and complex workingmodel. What many AFOLs have been waiting for.

60095 Boat. I love the shipwreck and the storytelling element to this set. It really stands out from run-of-the-mill City remakes.

750093. Final duel. Good to see a new OT set that isn´t a spaceship. Again, the storyteling element is fundamental.

70751 Temple of Airjitzu This is what the F40 could have been. Detail, size and a shot in the arm for the theme.

75104 MF. Xmas wouldn´t be the same for reselleres without an MF to flip!

Bad.

10248 F40. Not a bad set but it has only served to disappoint those who were looking for a bigger, more detailed set.

41543 Turg. Lego´s Donald Trump prize for P.R. goes to the byline for this model.

10249 Toy Shop. Haven´t I seen you somewhere before?

76035 Jokerland Yet another overhyped and overpriced Batman set. Messy execution, the sum is not greater than the parts.

21302 Big Bang. It´s just a baseplate and a wall. Ok, there are minfigs and printed parts too, but I don´t get it. Seems I am in the minority when sales are taken into account!

 

 

 

[hepcatpunk]

Like in no particular order:

Trevi Fountain, Temple of Airjitzu, Slave 1, Morro Dragon, Wall-E, Mystery Machine, Dinos (as parts), Series 14 minifigs, Ferris Wheel

Not like:

The non-Dino parts of the JW sets, Ferrari, Superheroes glut, T-16 Skyhopper (c'mon---just 1 Tusken Raider?), BBT

[fossilrock]

The good:

• UCS Slave 1 (another amazing UCS set)
• Imperial Shuttle Tydirium (this set is a winner)
• Ferris Wheel
• Mystery Machine
• Wall-e (haven't seen it in person, but it looks fantastic)
• Birds

The bad:

• Almost every bionicle set made
• lego dimensions
• Star Wars winter and summer waves going too heavy on already overdone prequel and rebel sets. The only decent one was the droid carrier).
• The pirates line (seems they could have done better, and the brick bounty could have looked much better)

[areyounormal]

The biggest surprises for me as I wasn't sure I'd love until after building them were the UCS Tie Fighter and the Ferrari F40 - both are great sets IMO, and then I was disappointed with the 2nd wave of minecraft (excluding the Desert Outpost which I really really like) which I felt was not as inspired as the first wave - kinda let down.

oh and the Lufthansa polybag was awesome - for sure my favorite polybag ever.

[bricketycricket]

The only 2015 set I've built is the Slave I, which is awesome. But I plan to get others including the Ferris Wheel, Detective's Office, and Kwik E Mart.

[Huskers1236]

Favorite set of the year is UCS Slave I, and while I won't buy them, I have been surprised at the resurgence of Ninjago this year.  The sets are pretty cool.

Biggest disappointment of the year for me was the Pirates line.  It seems like every time they re-hash this line it gets worse.  Pretty sure I'll be saying the same thing about Nexo Knights next year too after initially hearing it was a Fantasy Era re-boot.  I was also disappointed at the F-40, but I have also yet to build it, so I'll save some judgement there.  T1 and Mini set the bar pretty high in the replica car area.

Actually, I'm going to amend my biggest personal disappointment with Lego in '15, and that's the obvious end to Lord of the Rings without a hint of Gondor.  I mean, Chima gets a mammoth but LotR doesn't?

[wsuskee]

Good

- Holiday sets (40120 V-Day, 40121 Easter,40122 Halloween, 40123 Thanksgiving, 40124 Winter, 40125 Santa Visit)

These are fun to build, my kids love them and they are great to flip.  I know the last few havent been released yet but I figure I would include them.

- 75902 Mystery Machine - Was worried the Scooby Doo sets would be more like the movies and not the cartoons but I was wrong and I like the whole line.  This should be a great reseller this holiday season as well as years to come.

- 70818 Double Decker Couch - What is not to like about this set?  It was a great quick flip and comes with 5 figs and blue tiles for 15 bucks.

- 76035 Jokerland - Fun build, many exclusive figs and I love something to add to my theme park collection.

- 10249 Toy Shop reissue - I just got back out of the dark ages less than 2 years ago and I started building the WV with my daughter.  My daughter really wanted to add this to the collection but I cant stand to pay more than retail so once its gone I rarely ever consider paying top dollar.  I finally gave in and was ready to pay $160 or whatever they were going for before the announcement of this release.  I seriously had one in my cart when I decided for whatever reason to check out the latest Lego news.  Nice to have luck on my side for once.

Just missed my top 5: 40153 Birthday cake(nothing like having slave Leia jumping out of the cake, and Series 14 figs I just love Halloween so this was an instant winner for me.

Bad

- 21302 Big Bang Theory, I like the show, love Lego but really dont like this set.  The figs dont even look like the characters.

- 31035 Beach Hut, looks like something that could had been produced 10 years ago.  Think they could do so much better.

- 41062 Elsa Castle, My daughter is nuts for Frozen and Lego but didnt play with the castle for more than a day or so.  She still enjoys playing with the figs but the staircase set as she calls it is boring to her.

- 75916 Dilo Ambush, you could put the whole line minus the dinos.  The Dinos are great but the builds and the figs are just plain boring to play with.

- 76037 Rhino Sandman, the set seems to fall apart if you try to play with it.  Wish Rhino was more like Hulk or Grodd.  

[Val-E]

Weird how BBT is not getting a lot of love as a set but selling really well - could it be Delorean part 2?

[Ciglione]

My good ones:

- Detective's Office (one simply cannot have enough modulars).

- Temple of Airjitzu

- Ferris Wheel

- Final Duel (very appealing).

- Imperial Shuttle Tydirium (see Final Duel)

Bad ones:

- BBT, I just do not understand the series and the set. Maybe I am not geeky enough?

- Slave I, I just do not like the colour scheme.

- WTS (no comment needed).

- Minecraft theme (see BBT).

[Val-E]

My good ones:

- Detective's Office (one simply cannot have enough modulars).

- Temple of Airjitzu

- Ferris Wheel

- Final Duel (very appealing).

- Imperial Shuttle Tydirium (see Final Duel)

Bad ones:

- BBT, I just do not understand the series and the set. Maybe I am not geeky enough?

- Slave I, I just do not like the colour scheme.

- WTS (no comment needed).

- Minecraft theme (see BBT).

If you don´t get BBT series that means you are TOO (not ToO) geeky and you think it is a documentary not a comedy

[biking_tiger]

BBT is no BTTF.

WTF, IKR?

[Val-E]

Demand is there though so it depends on how long they keep it going - they got in while the series is at its peak and with very little merchandising, unlike the simpsons. It´s amazing that they haven´t been able to make enough Birds to keep up with demand - that one will be an interesting one to follow post EOL.

[dcdfan]

Demand is there though so it depends on how long they keep it going - they got in while the series is at its peak and with very little merchandising, unlike the simpsons. It´s amazing that they haven´t been able to make enough Birds to keep up with demand - that one will be an interesting one to follow post EOL.

Didn't Birds only start selling due to the documentary? I thought it was crawling before, no?

[Alpinemaps]

Some winners to me:

Ferris Wheel
Scooby Doo line
Detective Agency
Temple of Airjitsu
Jokerland
Louve
Slave 1
Snow Plough
Doctor Who (provided we get it this year!)
Changing Seasons
Monster Minifigs

Some losers to me:

Toy Shop reissue
Birds
Big Bang Theory
Star Wars stand up characters
Star Wars Series 2 Microfighters
Batman Batboat with Deathstroke
Flat Iron Building
Lincoln Memorial
Simpsons Series 2 Minifigs

Edited August 26, 2015 by Alpinemaps

[Val-E]

Didn't the Birds only start selling due to the documentary? I thought it was crawling before, no?

Yes, it went viral after that. That´s why it will be interesting to monitor developments.

[dcdfan]

Yes, it went viral after that. That´s why it will be interesting to monitor developments.

I'm not sure it means much over here though. It doesn't appear to get much love & hasn't ever been outta stock anywhere that I've seen...

[biking_tiger]

Some winners to me:

Ferris Wheel
Scooby Doo line
Detective Agency
Temple of Airjitsu
Jokerland
Louve
Slave 1
Snow Plough
Doctor Who (provided we get it this year!)
Changing Seasons
Monster Minifigs

Some losers to me:

Toy Shop reissue
Birds
Big Bang Theory
Star Wars stand up characters
Star Wars Series 2 Microfighters
Batman Batboat with Deathstroke
Flat Iron Building
Lincoln Memorial
Simpsons Series 2 Minifigs

Excellent choices on this list. I'm a fan of the bigger Deep Sea sets (Exploration Vessel and Operation Base), too. The City Pickup Tow Truck is also pretty nice. I know there's always a City Tow Truck, but this one is unique and looks a lot like some I see puttering around town.

[Val-E]

The Agents ship deserves a mention too being the nearest thing to a set that has retired before it was launched (in EU)

[biking_tiger]

The Agents ship deserves a mention too being the nearest thing to a set that has retired before it was launched (in EU)

I feel we should break a ceremonial bottle of champagne over the bow.

[pickleboy]

YOU SUCK....TOY SHOP!!!!

[srm_520]

Some winners to me:

Ferris Wheel
Scooby Doo line
Detective Agency
Temple of Airjitsu
Jokerland
Louve
Slave 1
Snow Plough
Doctor Who (provided we get it this year!)
Changing Seasons
Monster Minifigs

Some losers to me:

Toy Shop reissue
Birds
Big Bang Theory
Star Wars stand up characters
Star Wars Series 2 Microfighters
Batman Batboat with Deathstroke
Flat Iron Building
Lincoln Memorial
Simpsons Series 2 Minifigs

This post made me smile because I'm the polar opposite. To each their own!  

My winners:

Slave I was the best of everything

Toy Shop reissue
Birds
Big Bang Theory
Star Wars stand up characters
Ferris Wheel
Flat Iron Building
Lincoln Memorial
Simpsons Series 2 Minifigs

My Losers:

Elsa's Castle was by far the biggest letdown.  Plus I hate minidolls soooo badly.

Pirates line in general

Scooby Doo in general

F40 - just wish it were bigger 

Doctor Who - I just don't get it I suppose

 

[Val-E]

If only Elsa has launched a few weeks earlier it would have made a lot of people a lot of money.....

[Siddy]

Are we talking selling/profit wise or our personal faves?

I adore the series 14 minifigs, the seasonal sets with Painting Easter Eggs in the frontline. The upcoming Thanksgiving set and Wall-E is good.

Not completely sold on Doctor Who and BBT set. 

 

Not buying anymore: Bionicle, Minecraft and Ninjago sets.  Although the new Ninjago asian palace looks spectacular. I may get one eventually.

 

[Val-E]

Are we talking selling/profit wise or our personal faves?

I adore the series 14 minifigs, the seasonal sets with Painting Easter Eggs in the frontline. The upcoming Thanksgiving set and Wall-E is good.

Not completely sold on Doctor Who and BBT set. 

 

Not buying anymore: Bionicle, Minecraft and Ninjago sets.  Although the new Ninjago asian palace looks spectacular. I may get one eventually.

 

Your criteria entirely. COuld be good investments, one you gave someone as a present that made their day, good build or just sets that stood out for you.

[Christmasbricks]

Winners - everything except Chima

Losers - Chima