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In lugnet.castle, Matt Hein writes:
> You see, I took a trip to my local wal-mart the other day to
> pick up some school supplies (and hopefully some extra sets
> to stock up on), when I noticed that the lego aisle was much
> smaller than I remembered.
Which is fairly normal for the summer as stores clear out stock in anticipation
for big pre-holiday orders. Summer is generally the slowest time for toys as
there are no major gift-giving holidays.
> So, taking a look at the product line (I haven't really been
> doing much lego stuff lately, personal business) I noticed that
> castle, space and all town sets were ostensibly absent from the
> shelves. Heck, even star wars and HP sets were hard to find
> amidst the masses of bionicle and other unmentionable sets. (aaagh!)
Uh, pardon me for asking, but what rock have you been under for the past few
years? None of this is particularly new for the retail summer Lego selection.
> After my gruesome discovery in aisle 11, I picked up my supplies,
> and went to my local TRU, where I always had faith in finding
> something (I've never walked out of a TRU empty handed!)
> Again, the same thing, No space sets!!! I'm not talking about
> SW here, I'm talking about actually space models, you know,
> things like exploriens, at least something that looked aeronautically
> correct and can packe with a killer design. (I'm not really
> a SW afficionado)
Errr, here it is 2002, and Lego's contract with Lucas preventing them from
making dedicated futuristic space craft has been in effect for three years. I
can't remember how many times this has been brought up, but a simple search
would have given you the details.
And what do you mean by "aeronautically correct" designs? Aerodynamics are
irrelevant in space...
> So, discouraged afterthat loss, I decided to pick up a few castle sets, after
> all, a few more chrome parts wouldn't hurt. Again, to my apparent dismay, me
> search turned up nothing amongst those towering shelves of lego, sheesh!
Er, those sets didn't have the same size production run as such sets as Star
Wars or Harry Potter, and have been out of production for quite a while, so of
course they're hard to find...
> Can anyone tell me what is going on here?
Sure; Lego is being more market focused than they used to.
> I don't mean to be impatient or anything, but doesn't anyone
> think it's time lego brought diversity back to their product lines?
Lego has quite a lot of diversity. There is Star Wars, Harry Potter, Galidor,
Soccer sets, Jack Stone, Alpha Team, Technic, Racers, Studios, Life on Mars,
Dinosaurs, Trains, Bionicle, Creator sets, bulk packs, Legends, Classics, My
Own Creations, Sculptures, and maybe a few others I've missed. Many of these
lines have double-digit numbers of sets. And looking at what each of these
lines makes, I'd have to say Lego is more diverse than ever.
> I'm not talking about launching into meaningless action figures,
> or robots named after polytheist island gods, over specialized
> town houses that snap together in one minute, or more bandwagon
> approaches to company names and licenses.
Why not? Expanding the types of products a company makes is diversification.
> I long to see the day again that lego once again brings back a more diverse
> product line
The older product line was LESS diverse. There were only, what, 10 or so
different lines back in the '80s?
> (I don't give a crap about lego direct!
Well, I'm sorry for you because as an AFOL and a castle builder, Lego Direct
and their bulk packs are probably the BEST thing that has happened to my
collection, ever!
> Why can't they bring back items to the shelf?)
See above why the shelves are currently somewhat empty. Just wait a few months
and they'll be full od stuff again.
> Does anyone notice that the lego product line began to turn for the worse
> arounf 97-98, and just went downhill from there?
I disagree, there are a lot of great sets out right now. Harry Potter sets
have been astounding in their parts selections for castle building. I'd love
to clear out a TRU of all of them!
> I saw some red flags with the Insectiods and LOM, but this is just squat
> compared to (I don't want to say it...) GALIDOR. (shudders at the thought of
> this...)
So? You don't *have* to buy the sets you don't like. I am pretty much
completely uninterested in Mindstorms, but you don't see me calling for Lego to
stop making them, do you?
> What is galidor? I'll tell you. It's probably the major part of
> the problem, and might be a precursor to what we see next year...
> It's the evil behind the trend, and anyone that watches it should
> be banished to a swamp. (okay, maybe I went a bit to far, but I think
> y'all know where I'm getting?)
*Sigh* People said the exact same thing about Bionicle, Town Jr., and Jack
Stone. And look at what we have now: Good building and play sets like Star
Wars and Harry Potter; excellent play value in the soccer sets; play and build
value in the Studios sets; a more diverse Train selection than we've had since
the early '80s which great parts and excellent building; and finally, all the
various ther products from Lego Direct like sculptures and classics. If that
isn't proof that Lego is going strong, I don't know what is.
> IMHO, with the diminishing product lines, I think a bunch of
> people are never going to get the lego experience, and a lot
> are probably going to slip into dark ages, including myself, if lego
> doesn't do something soon.
I find it quite sad that people would slip into a dark ages simply because not
every Lego product is appealing to them.
> Oh well, they probably don't care anyway...they'll just market some
> more crappy action figures to cover the loss of one (unhappy) customer.
> And please, lego, next time, just release a wave of legends sets, and
> sell them through the retail market.
If you think they don't care, you obviously have not been reading Lugnet in a
very long time. Lego employees post here and go to events like BrickFest and
BricksWest and interact with us, the fans. If they didn't care, they wouldn't
do that.
Jeff
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Message has 1 Reply:
 | | Re: Say it ain't so...
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| (...) Well, this is particularly new for me, because I don't go a a TRU every other weekend. Even during the holiday season, It's hard to find good sets at a decent price. Heck, most of the newer lines are too juniorized or overspecizliaed, and (...) (22 years ago, 9-Aug-02, to lugnet.general, lugnet.space, lugnet.castle, lugnet.town)
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Message is in Reply To:
| | Say it ain't so...
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| Yeah, I knew this question was going to be asked sooner or later, so I guess I'll have to ask it now. You see, I took a trip to my local wal-mart the other day to pick up some school supplies (and hopefully some extra sets to stock up on), when I (...) (22 years ago, 9-Aug-02, to lugnet.general, lugnet.space, lugnet.castle, lugnet.town)
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