Subject:
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Re: Legends: good or bad?
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Newsgroups:
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lugnet.general
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Date:
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Mon, 15 Apr 2002 19:17:10 GMT
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Viewed:
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579 times
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In lugnet.lego.direct, Chris Maddison writes:
> XPFUT .general
> <snipped it all>
>
> First off, this is XPFUT'd to .general because I'd like to spark an
> intelligent conversation about the Legends line. I don't want this to turn
> into some kind of argument or debate.
>
> Ben,
>
> I can understand your point as a collector.
Dear Chris,
sorry I have been busy with preparing the FGLTC train show till yesterday.
So here comes my answer with some delay.
First let me tell you: I collect trains. Yes, I am a train collector - at
least a little bit.
BUT - of course here comes a "but" - I am only a collector for some few sets
(that are less than 10% among of all the Lego material I do own. So I
have not been arguing against the legends as a collector - I simply see nothing
good on Legends. They do not give anything to me. And the people who would like
to have a legend, I think these people would have no problem
with having something "equivalent". That is the main point.
For the new possibly legends: I do not own any of them (I should own 98% of the
bricks for the 375 castle but lost the stickers and gave the minifigs and
weapons away for cheap money long ago.)
> But, like so many have echoed
> now and in the past, lego is not a very suitable collector's item.
Why not? People do collect everything you can imagine. Lego is a nice
collectors item, but except for a the few train items I am no collector.
And since TLC will never rerelease a 118 set this is a perfect collectors item.
The whole Bionicle stuff (collecting masks) is aiming for 90% at collectors. I
am no collector, but what is so wrong about collectors, that everybody is
claiming against them?
> Tell me
> - what is the difference (other than the age and the mold) between a yellow
> 2x4 brick from the 375 and a 3033? Nothing.
There are lots of sligh differences (the molds have been changed quite often),
but in general they are very similar.
> They're all the same. They
> are bricks, plain and simple. They are designed to have fun playing with.
Take any of the Lego catalogues of the 70ies: TLC always told us it is stuff to
play AND collect. (I am no collector, but what is wrong about them?)
> You call these new sets "fakes." Why?
Because a reprint of Mona Lisa is not the Mona Lisa even if you buy the poster
in the Louvre. A fake is a fake.
> They are just as official as the
> originals, and the new product line gives people like me (only 19) an
> opportunity to experience these great sets for ourselves.
And the experience would be another one, if the set had for e.g. another
colour?
> There are a
> number of reasons why people want sets that were unavailable to them. Age,
> dark ages, lack of money at the time, etc. Why should I have to pay out
> $400 for a yellow castle on eBay, when it's really worth a lot less to me?
If it is so much less worth to you, you would not have to pay that. Just obmit
to have one and buy other sets with better price piece relatio instead. What is
the problem?
> If I were a collector, I'm sure I'd say different.
Surely.
> But I'm a hobbyist.
Me too!
> These plastic bricks, that so many people from so many different
> demographics enjoy, are merely a hobby to me. I don't buy a set with the
> intent of keeping in box, or holding onto it for some-odd years and hawking
> it on eBay or the like.
Same for me.
> I buy a set for that feeling - that experience that
> you get when you build a fun (and sometimes challenging) set, admire it,
> dismantle it, and build something new out of it. What fun are the bricks in
> your "original" yellow castle or "original" metroliner if all they do is sit
> on a shelf looking like a yellow castle or metroliner and collect dust?
One Metroliner is in fact collecting dust, the other ones are loose bricks or
parts of MOCs. It is fun to have this one Metroliner, because none of its
bricks has any scratches. It is still like new and it is of course cool to have
something in perfect mint condition. (Why do you love a new car more than 2
years old when both do the very same job to you). I think this is a feeling
everybody knows about. What should be bad about having this feeling? I enjoy my
116 set which looks like it has been build yesterday for the first time ever.
(And I am not in fear Lego will ever rerelease this set.)
> I can't understand why anyone would not like these new legends sets, unless
> it was merely a "hey, I have that and it's rare, and I don't want you to
> have it too" attitude.
Again: I have none of the sets, that are in danger to become a new legend.
But that argument of yours can be turned to the opposite side easily: why do so
many people claim about collectors but in the same moment they claim about the
small differences of the new set against the old one:
They see the new one is a "worthless" fake copy and they want it to be a
perfect copy, because the are jealous against the owners of the "real" sets.
(this argument is a little bit ridicolous, but yours is the same).
But still tell me: why do people want to have a as perfect copy as possible, if
they do not want it in the way like the collector wants it?
> Like Rick said, it's a form of greed. I'm not
> saying that's *your* motivation, but if it's something else, please explain
> it to me so that I can understand your side.
Maybe those people that do not have the 375 are envious of me having a copy of
the old set? Is that their motivation to get one? (No, I do not think so - and
my 375 will never be rebuilt, because I needed its arched bricks for my train
station and the knights are spread with the wind.
> I remember when I was a little kid, and I'd see all these great sets like
> the Black Seas Barracuda and the Black Falcon's Fortress that I couldn't
> have. Whether it was because my parents couldn't afford them, or because
> they thought I wouldn't take care of them, or whatever, I don't know. But I
> can remember saying "someday". Well, now that someday is here. Lego has
> listened to their customers and is bringing back the best sets from the
> golden ages. And I'm nothing but ecstatic that I can get back a little
> shred of those memories, and actually get to experience a build that would
> have otherwise been lost to me.
I agree the old sets have been superior against town junior and other newer
sets. I never said Lego should not do a turn to better sets, but these legends
are not very helpful to all fans (except those that want to "collect" them for
a cheap price).
I have argued this way: an evidently modification of the legendary set would be
much more helpful to really ALL sides. It would give the building experience
and challenge to the builder who missed the real set and it would offer lots of
new cool parts to the long time fans that have not missed the real sets and it
would be perfect for collectors too, because they need the new evidently
modified set also for their collection.
So again a comrehension of my arguments:
First I would like to see more good sets like for e.g. 10020!
If Lego wants to do a legendary line, it would be much superior if it would be
evidently modified for e.g. in colour: it would offer lots of parts that are
not at all available till today. The costs are no argument here: TLC had to
produce metroliner noses anyway just for the 10001 set. Costs would have been
the same if that set had been released in dark grey or white or brown or read.
But as a person that uses bricks for own models all these parts in other
colours than grey would have been much more useful to all fans - grey ones are
easyly to be found at ebay anyway.
With the 10001 metroliner we have missed the chance to get dark grey train
windows, dark grey train doors, and so on.
THAT ist my point of view. Not the collectors point, but the point of a guy
that loves MOCs.
Kind Regards,
Ben
If you do not believe, check ou my homepage:
http://www-public.tu-bs.de:8080/~rbeneke/lego/ben_abs.html
Or check our yesterdays train show: wehre are the collectors items? There are
pure MOCs (and there could be cooler ones if there was another kind of legend
than the 10001)!
http://www-public.tu-bs.de:8080/~rbeneke/lego/fgltc/fgltc9.html
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Message has 1 Reply:
 | | Re: Legends: good or bad?
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| (...) No, I don't believe that's your point. If that were your point, I'd expect you to be equally annoyed with DUPLO, the Mickey Mouse sets, Jack Stone, etc. If you're against Legends because they're not valueable to you, so what? Why are they a (...) (22 years ago, 15-Apr-02, to lugnet.general)
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