Fantasy LEGO League: Scooby-Doo

Welcome to the next segment in "The Fantasy LEGO League", Scooby-Doo! No. Seriously. Scooby-Doo...

You can see the "rules" of these posts here.

Must-Have Minifigures (A): Scooby and the gang would be cool, but the real appeal would be various mosters in minifigure form. The Creeper. Old Ironface. Jaguaro. That guy who was in the diving suit with the nuclear seaweed all over it. It would also be a great excuse for zombies, wolfmen, vampires, and ghosts!

Propensity for Vehicles (D): There's The Mystery Machine, and...The Mystery Machine...and, um...OK, so this theme would be defined by haunted houses, castles, and The Mystery Machine!

Preexisting Fan-Base (A): Despite being over 40 years old, Scooby-Doo is still generating successful movies and books. It has a fan base both young and old to draw on.

Depth of Theme (A): Remember when I said its been around for over 40 years?! Sure, every single episode followed the same formula, but so does "House" and its the most popular TV show in the world.

Kid Friendliness (A): No worries here...

Likelihood of License (A): Warner Brothers owns the license and TT Games the makers of the LEGO Video Games. Right now Ben 10 and Harry Potter are the only Warner licenses in production.

Overall (A): I think this would have a lot for kids and AFOLs alike. Warner owns the license, a great opportunity for minifigures, not much in the way of an overlapping theme. This would an easy way to bring back a kid-friendly "horror" theme, not seen since the days of Studio. With all of this going for it, I wouldn't surprised if LEGO announced this tomorrow.

(Pictures from KidsWB.com and BrickLink)

Collectible Minifigures Series 1: The Deep Sea Diver

Minifigure Parts and Accessories
Here the figure and accessories are hard to separate. There are six different pieces overall. There's the helmet with trans-blue goggles and snorkel, head, wetsuit torso, scuba tank, legs, and flippers. Although the colors and print are different, this figure is not unlike those offered with the Aquaraiders back in 2007.

As always the figure comes with the new minifigure stand.

Army Building Potential
The "army building potential" or "ABP" for this figure is moderate. The scuba outfits might be desirable for underwater MOCs. They might also be good compliments with figures from the recent Atlantis sets.

Feeling It Out
The scuba tank and flippers might be the best items to feel out.

Bar Codes
The following are the secondary bar codes that can be found on the back of each bag which indicates the figure inside. The bar code on the left is valid for the EU while the bar code on the right is valid for the US. These bar codes come courtesy of Brickset.com where a single pdf containing all bar codes can be found.


The Big Draw
With Aquaraiders only being offered just three years ago, there may not be a big draw for The Diver.

FBTB.net Poll Standings

According to the poll currently on the FBTB.net forums, The Diver has only one or two votes. This would put him on par with The Skater and The Tribal Hunter. As always, those who frequent AFOL forums may not be representative of the broader market, but it looks like this figure might be sought just to fill out a full series one collection.

Official LEGO.com Bio 
“Blub blurb glub?”

The Deep Sea Diver seems like a nice enough fellow, but no one can tell for sure, because no one can understand what he’s saying. Whenever he speaks, all that comes out is burbles and bubbles. He might be easier to understand if he ever took off his diving mask and air tank, but he thinks that he can’t breathe without them and always keeps them on, even when he’s walking around on land – which is a pretty funny sight, thanks to those big flippers on his feet!

The Deep Sea Diver loves the water and can often be found swimming around in fish tanks and bathtubs, hoping to spot rare and exotic fish. He loves to tell stories about his amazing undersea adventures, but of course it’s impossible to guess what he’s actually talking about. His gestures and sound effects certainly make it all sound very exciting, though!

(Back to Collectible Minifigure Series 1 Guide)

(Pictures from FBTB.net, BrickLink, and Brickset)

New Pics and Details on LEGO Star Wars 2010

Toys N Bricks forum member 'batwing' shares the following page from the Toys R Us French catalog.

We get a better look at the new Cad Bane and Aayla Secura minifigures, and of course, that lovely Wampa. Note the word "Juin" in the upper-right corner. Does this mean these two sets will be available in June, not August?!

The article goes on to reveal that the new AT-AT walker may in fact be a Toys R Us exclusive available in August. With many of the figures already available, I think I'll pass.

(Picture from Toys N Bricks)

New Items at BrickForge 3/30/10

The folks at BrickForge have fired up the...um...brick forge, again. We now have bandoliers and head lamps in yellow and reddish-brown appearing on their Flickr stream.

If the printed bandolier on The Cowboy collectible minifigure doesn't do it for you, then holster your guns in one of these babies.

• Yellow Bandolier
• Reddish-Brown Bandolier
• Reddish-Brown Headlamp
  

Check out their store for more details.

(Picture from BrickForge Flickr stream)

Collectible Minifigures Series 1: The Cowboy

Saddle up buckaroos, we are hitting the trail today and rustling up "The Cowboy".

Minifigure Parts
The Cowboy is composed of four parts, a hat, head, torso with bandolier and large belt buckle, brown legs. The hat is a dark tan version of the Indiana Jones fedora. The torso printis new and may be valued for its custom applications.

Accessories
The accessories are a pair of standard revolvers in dark blue gray. Nothing really special here.

As always the figure comes with the new minifigure stand.

Army Building Potential
The "army building potential" or "ABP" for this figure is low.

Feeling It Out
The fedora and guns would be the items one would try to seek out, but it may be difficult to isolate. Luckily the other figures have few features that are similar and might lead to confusion.

Bar Codes
The following are the secondary bar codes that can be found on the back of each bag which indicates the figure inside. The bar code on the left is valid for the EU while the bar code on the right is valid for the US. These bar codes come courtesy of Brickset.com where a single pdf containing all bar codes can be found.

The Big Draw
The big draws here are the fedora if it comes in dark tan, a new color for this part, and the torso print.

FBTB.net Poll Standings

According to the poll currently on the FBTB.net forums, The Cowboy is near the back of the pack with figures like The Circus Clown and The Ninja. As always, those who frequent AFOL forums may not be representative of the broader market, but it looks like this figure might be sought just to fill out a full series one collection. 

Official LEGO.com Bio
“Yee-haw and yippie-ki-yay!”

This hero of the Old West is a master of the lucky shot. With the help of his trusty pair of six-irons, the Cowboy can hit any target at any distance, no matter how large or small. It’s a talent that he’s used to get himself out of plenty of sticky situations, and he’s happy to show it to anyone who asks for a demonstration.

Though he’s a bit of a show-off, the Cowboy is impeccably honest and fair, and always raises his hat to the ladies. He enjoys a good game of cards and a campfire cook-out, especially if someone’s brought along his favorite: chocolate, marshmallows and graham crackers. He never stays for long in any town, though, because he’s always out on the trail looking for his lost horse. After all, who’s ever heard of a cowboy without a horse?

(Back to Collectible Minifigure Series 1 Guide)

(Pictures from FBTB.net and Brickset)

Hazel Posts Pics of New Iron Man Custom Armor

Hazel has updated his Flickr profile with these shot of dark red Iron Man minifigure armor. He mentions that they may be a little delayed in getting up at Amazing Armory, but hopefully they'll be ready for Iron Man 2 out May 7th.

The only question remaining, is where's the War Machine love, Hazel? Where's the love?

LEGO Atlantis Squid Warrior at Store

Over the weekend I took advantage of Toys R Us BOGO sale (now thru April 3rd) and picked up a couple of Atlantis sets.

You too can benefit from my good fortune! I currently have the handsome gentleman (gentle-squid?!) up for sale on my BrickLink store for $10.99 USD. The figure includes his mighty trident! Shipping is flat-rate. Please see my store policy tab on BrickLink for more details.

If you are new to BrickLink you can check out our guide here.

(Picture from Brickipedia)

Admiral Ackmar I presume?!

Earlier this month I mentioned that a LEGO Store employee claimed that there was a Star Wars magnet set featuring Admiral Ackbar that was scheduled to be released along side the two new Star Wars and Toy Story magnet sets. Well it seems we have some additional details thanks to Brickset.

There were two typos on the packaging that prevented the set from being released. Instead of Admiral Ackbar and C-3PO we instead had Admiral Ackmar and C3-PO. Its not known why the print error occurred, but the solution was to over-sticker the packs with corrections.

Huw mentions that he found this at a LEGO retail store, so perhaps they are on their way!

(Picture from Brickset)

New Pics Surface of LEGO Star Wars AT-AT Walker

Toys N Bricks forum members have found this shot of LEGO Star Wars set #8129, AT-AT Walker.

Retailing around $129-$149 USD it will come with seven minifigures: Luke Skywalker (pilot), Han Solo, C3PO, Hoth Rebel Trooper, 2 Snowtroopers, and Imperial Officer.

We can't tell much from this shot, but all of these figures have been available previously and recently. If you are a fan of the new AT-AT design, then it may be of interest. If you are looking for a good buy on figures, then you might want to pass this one up.

More details as they become available...

Bricks by the Bay - April 9th thru 11th 2010

In a couple of weeks Bricks by the Bay, a AFOL convention and event, will descend on Fremont, CA.

The AFOL events require advanced registration and take place on April 9th and 10th. Sunday is open to the public for viewing with a small admission fee.

Mads Nipper,The Executive Vice President of Marketing & Products, and Steve Witt, LEGO Community Relations Coordinator and AFOL liaison, will be in attendance during the convention. This may mean new news from LEGO at the event!

What's in it for the minifig collector? It looks like BrickArms will be in attendance as a vendor, meaning an opportunity to get the goods without that pesky shipping and handling. Also, there will be a scratch and dent night at one of the local LEGO stores with opportunities for savings up to 50%. These will only be available to those who attend the AFOL convention on Friday and Saturday.

For more details, visit the Bricks by the Bay site or see this post by Ochre Jelly on his blog The Living Brick.

Nizam Commands You!

Nizam commands you to read the Prince of Persia Battle of Alamut set review by Clone O' Patra! Nizam is shamed that you didn't see it on Eurobricks! Nizam mocks Cygnet for thinking he could give a better overview of the minifigures included. Nizam has spoken. Nizam is going to get a Turkish coffee at Starbucks...

BiM 2008 Best Brickfilm Winner - Unrenewable

All this week we've shown the four nominees up for the Bricks In Motion 2009 Best Brickfilm Award. I thought we would finish out the week by featuring the 2008 winner "Unrenewable" by Philip Heinrich and Smeagol Studios.

A cross between Blade Runner and Wall-E, "Unrenewable's" noirish style harkens back to detective films of the 1940's. Overall, the film felt a little long for me. It would have been nice to see a little more plot development aside from, 'detective meets shadowy character who knows more than he's letting on' (next scene) 'detective meets another shadowy character who knows more than he's letting on'. Rinse. Lather. Repeat. Big reveal.

I will say, however, that the effects in this film were quite nice. Approaching it from an admittedly naive viewpoint, the rain effects, facial animations, and even that blinky phone-thing were just plain 'neat'.

Ladies and gentlemen, without further ado I give you "Unrenewable", for your consideration...

Custom KISS Minifigures at Firestar Toys

Firestar Toys in the UK has a custom minifigure KISS set for around £125 ! I'm not admittedly a big KISS fan myself, but you have to admit this is pretty cool.

Firestar has a wide assortment of official and custom LEGO minifigures. Browse through their shop when you get a chance.

Collectible Minifigures Series 1: The Skater

Minifigure Parts
The Skater is composed of four parts, a new hairpiece, head, torso with skull "hoodie" print, and blue legs. Both the hairpiece and torso print are new.

Accessories
The accessory is a blue skateboard with black wheels, not unlike previous minifig skateboards. Its been confirmed that The Skater will come with the new minifigure stand too.

Army Building Potential
The "army building potential" or "ABP" for this figure is low.

Feeling It Out
The skateboard is likely the key to identifying this figure in advance. It might be confused with the minifigure stand, but not other accessories. If you wanted to seek it out, or avoid, it shouldn't be too hard.

Bar Codes
The following are the secondary bar codes that can be found on the back of each bag which indicates the figure inside. The bar code on the left is valid for the EU while the bar code on the right is valid for the US. These bar codes come courtesy of Brickset.com where a single pdf containing all bar codes can be found.

The Big Draw
The big draws here are the hair and the torso. The rest is a little "meh"...

FBTB.net Poll Standings

According to the poll currently on the FBTB.net forums, The Skater is at the back of the pack with figures like The Magician and The Tribal Hunter. As always, those who frequent AFOL forums may not be representative of the broader market, but it looks like these figures might be sought just to fill out a full series one collection.

Official LEGO.com Bio 
“Bet you can’t do THIS!”

The young Skater practices all the time to be the greatest skateboarder in the world. He lives for speed and tricky stunts, and when he’s around, any and every surface becomes his own private skate park. His board is his prize possession, and he always makes sure to keep it clean and shiny, even when he gets totally grungy himself.

The Skater is extremely competitive, and he can’t stand to see anyone do something better or faster than he does. His rivalry isn’t just limited to other skateboarders – he’ll try to out-race trains and out-jump pigeons flying in the park, just to prove he can. He hasn’t beaten them yet, but he’s sure he will some day!

(Back to Collectible Minifigure Series 1 Guide)

(Pictures from FBTB.net and Brickset)

Eurobricks Collides with The Crash Test Dummy

Every time I look at the Eurobrick's forum I hear the voice of Jack Nicholson saying, "Where does he get those wonderful toys?!".

CopMike goes dumpster diving and comes up with The Crash Test Dummy.

Not a lot of surprises. Much of what we suspected was true. I am surprised at how much attention this figure is getting, however. Might this fall under the category of "so bad, it's good"?!

(Picture from CopMike and Eurobricks)

LEGO Chrome Stormtrooper World Tour: Hello Canada!

It would seem that starting Friday our friends to the north will be able to get a hold of the LEGO Star Wars Chrome Stormtrooper, seen previously in Europe and the US.

If you buy at least $30(CAN) of LEGO Star Wars sets, then you get one for free. It's not known if they will be on sale separately as they were online in the US. If they do act quickly! They sold out the day they went on sale.

(Picture from Toys R Us website)

The River - A LEGO Brickfilm

Bricks In Motion, a website dedicated to LEGO brickfilm, is currently awaiting the results of its 2009 BiM awards. There are four nominees up for 2009 BiM film of the year. We've already featured three: "A Clone Halloween" , "Alles ist die Noppe", and "Days of Our Pizza". Today we present the fourth and final nominee, "The River" by Winkyburger.

An interesting journey down the river of time, that ultimately deposits our hero at the source of all things...or does it?

Take a look...

LEGO Prince of Persia Now Up On Store 3/25/10

"The Ugly Duckling" store on BrickLink now has LEGO Prince of Persia minifigures and animals for sale.

If you are new to BrickLink, we have a helpful post/guide here.

The new items include the following (all prices in USD):

• Dastan w/shirt - includes swords and scabbard ($3.99)
• Dastan shirtless - includes swords and scabbard ($7.99)
• Sheik Amar ($4.50)
• Ostrich Rider - includes whip ($4.50)
• Claw Hassansin - includes two porcupine hand blades ($4.50)
• Axe Hassansin - includes double-bladed axe ($4.50)
• 2 Ostriches ($5.99 each)
• New Black Persian Horse with saddle ($3.80)

Prices do not include shipping.

As always please read my store policies tab before making a purchase, and feel free to contact me via BrickLink if you have any questions. Supplies are limited. First come, first served.

(Pictures from LEGO.com)

Collectible Minifigures Series 1: The Robot

(Cue Daft Punk - Robot Rock) Robot...Human...Robot...Human...Robot, Robot, ROBOT! (Ahem) I mean, lets initialize and zero in on today's featured minifigure "The Robot"...

Minifigure Parts
The Robot is composed of four parts, a robot headpiece that fits over a standard minifigure head (not unlike Star Wars clone/storm troopers helmets), a torso with machine print and claw arm, and legs with rivet print. The head features some crazy, red eyes and maniacal grin. The torso has been featured on many of the villains from the recent LEGO Agents line.

Accessories
Likely due to the size of the helmet, this is the only 'accessory-like' item with this figure. No doubt to keep costs in line. Of course, the figure includes the new minifigure stand.

Army Building Potential
The "army building potential" or "ABP" for this figure is moderate to high. Many of the individual components of this figure could be used in a wide assortment of ways in custom figures or MOCs. The claw could easily be changed out with various items, again not unlike the Agents line where several villains were simple mods of the claw arm.

Feeling It Out
This figure should be easy to detect through the polybag, mainly by looking for the helmet. The Cheerleader's pom-poms might be close in size, but there one should be able to feel two elements, while the helmet is only one.

Bar Codes
The following are the secondary bar codes that can be found on the back of each bag which indicates the figure inside. The bar code on the left is valid for the EU while the bar code on the right is valid for the US. These bar codes come courtesy of Brickset.com where a single pdf containing all bar codes can be found.


The Big Draw
I would say across the board this figure has a lot to like. The legs may least desirable component of the bunch.

FBTB.net Poll Standings
According to the poll currently on the FBTB.net forums, The Robot is on par with The Cheerleader and The Caveman.

Official LEGO.com Bio 
“Not building does not compute!”

With his powerful metal body and mighty claws, the Robot may look tough, but what he really loves to do is build, build, build! Constantly clanking, beeping, whirring and sending out jets of steam, he works tirelessly day and night, searching out spare bricks wherever he can find them and stacking them together to create the biggest, tallest and most incredible structures that you can possibly imagine. In fact, he loves constructing things so much that sometimes he forgets to recharge his circuits and freezes in place, right in the middle of building.

He’s slow to react to things that he doesn’t expect, and prone to occasional short-circuits, with a tendency to walk right into holes, spin around suddenly in place or crash through walls without even noticing. He also has a bad habit of “finding” bricks in other people’s creations and marching off with them, right over or through any obstacles in his way, but don’t blame the Robot – it’s just his programming!

(Back to Collectible Minifigure Series 1 Guide)

(Pictures from FBTB.net and Brickset)

Eurobricks' ZeeK Grapples with The Wrestler

Eurobricks member ZeeK was able to score The Wrestler!

Not much new information. The figure doesn't appear to have any quality issues. There is no printing on the back (something that I suspect is common among all of the collectible figs to keep costs down). The cape looks like it might be of a higher quality than what we typically see, but ZeeK doesn't reference it specifically.

One interesting piece of information...there are marks on the inner arms often not found on regular minifigures. Also, there's something ZeeK refers to as "digit marks" on the hands. I couldn't see the hand markings, but the marking on the inner arm is clear in the picture on the left.

At this rate, Eurobricks will have access to all 16 minifigures by mid-April. We'll just have to wait and see.

What do you think?

(Picture from Eurobricks)

BrickForge's Reddish Brown Fantasy Collection

Are the armies of Mordor threatening to march again?! The BrickForge has been busy supplying humans, elves and dwarves alike in new weaponry. The BrickForge Flickr stream now has a variety of fantasy-era weapons in reddish-brown, like this longbow (pictured). Seems worthy of Robin Hood himself, eh!? Other items include...

• Hero Sword
• Knight Shield
• Wizard Staff
• War Hammer
• Military Sword
• Falcata
• Elven Spear
• Elven Blade
• Dragon Sword
• Battle Axe
  

Drop by their store today!

Days of Our Pizza - A LEGO Brickfilm

Bricks In Motion, a website dedicated to LEGO brickfilm, is currently awaiting the results of its 2009 BiM awards. There are four nominees up for 2009 BiM film of the year. We've already featured "A Clone Halloween" and "Alles ist die Noppe". Today I give you the third nominee, "Days of Our Pizza" by Keshen.

If you tuned in to LAML podcast's interview with "A Clone Halloween" and "The Force Unleashed" creator Fancy Pants, you would have heard Jordon reference Keshen as one of his contemporaries.

Unlike our other two brickfilms, I will issue a warning. Although certain elements of language of been edited out, some viewers may find some of the content offensive. Parental discretion is advised.

Buying from BrickLink - A Guide

This guide is intended to help you set up an account on the BrickLink website so that you can purchase minifigures, accessories, or other LEGO related items.

What is BrickLink?

Think of BrickLink as an online marketplace for LEGO. Have you shopped on eBay? If so, many of the processes of BrickLink will be familiar to you. Whether an experienced buyer or just starting, I would recommend reading the new user tutorial.

What do I need in order to buy from BrickLink?

Typically you need an e-mail account, a valid shipping address, a BrickLink account, and some way to pay. My store "The Ugly Duckling" only accepts payment from PayPal, so you would need a PayPal account as well. Each store can choose to accept different forms of payment. If its ever a question, look at the "Store Policy" tab for that vendor.

It's also good to check and see if the vendor ships to your country. Again, the "Store Policy" tab should be able to tell you.

Some final thoughts before checking out...

• Make certain you understand the vendor's policy on shipping and handling fees, they are often not included in the purchase price shown.
• If you are buying internationally, then make certain you understand if you order might be subject to taxes, duties, or customs clearance fees. More often or not this is the responsibility of the buyer, and those additional fees can add up!
• Check to see if important accessories like lightsabers, guns, swords, etc. are included with the minifigure. Some vendors sell those items separately.
• If you ever have a question about what you are buying, try and contact the vendor BEFORE you checkout.

Disclaimer: All information published herein is gathered from sources which are believed to be reliable, but the reader of this guide should not assume that the information is official or final. The owner/administrator of this website does not assume responsibility for errors or issues encountered on the BrickLink website or with vendors on BrickLink other than "The Ugly Duckling".The owner/administrator of this website is not affiliated with The LEGO Group, and is only affiliated with BrickLink as it pertains to hosting the store "The Ugly Duckling". Links from these pages to external websites are provided as service to visitors and do not constitute an endorsement. As always 'caveat emptor' or 'buyer beware'.

Fantasy LEGO League: Naruto

Ladies and gentlemen, I give you the fourth entry into "The Fantasy LEGO League", Naruto! You can see the "rules" of these posts here.

Must-Have Minifigures (A+): The world of Naruto is filled with a diverse collection of ninja masters, toad sages, and multi-tailed demons. Three man squad battle packs! I can see them all jumping from tree branch to tree branch now, ready to cross kunai with Orochimaru himself (in minifigure form, of course).

Propensity for Vehicles (F): There are no vehicles of mention in the entire series. LEGO Naruto would be primarily set piece driven similar to a Castle or Kingdoms theme.

Preexisting Fan-Base (B): Both the manga and anime are popular in the US and Japan. Elsewhere? I don't really know, but who doesn't like Ninjas?!

Depth of Theme (A): The manga series has progressed through several storylines and followed the main characters through many stages of growth. At a minimum you could support a licensed collectible minifigure series or two from the first season alone.

Kid Friendliness (B): Older kids and teens would definitely find the license appealing. Parents may frown on the sometimes violent themes for younger children.

Likelihood of License (C): Naruto is currently licensed across many merchandising arenas, LEGO shouldn't have difficulties here. It does appear that the rights to different aspects of the license vary from company to company. Getting all those ducks in a row might be difficult.

Overall (C+): Killer figures, does not a profitable theme make. As I've mentioned before, this could make for an awesome series of collectible minifigures. I myself would like to see a Konohagakure set with miniture ramen vendor. This could also bring the Ninja theme back in a big way.

Custom Options: Not a lot of options, but there some. Exo-force hair is always good for anime characters; however, the only colors currently available are red, bright green, black, blue and dark purple. Hazel developed a custom kunai knife, but I didn't see much else. BrickForge and other custom retailers have a few items like this sai and hook swords.

What do you think? Is Natruto destined to become the Kohage of LEGO sets, or should it have a chidori plunged into its heart?

"Ja mata" for now...

(Pictures from Wikipedia and BrickForge)

Eurobricks Pulls The Magician Out of a Hat

CopMike on Eurobricks must have connections at TLG as he's managed to obtain The Magician from the upcoming series one minifigure collection.

The review is relatively short, but has a few good pics of the fig. Mike does confirm that the wand is a 3L bar, as we previously hypothesized.

If you get a chance, hop over to Eurobricks and check it out.
(Picture from FBTB.net)

Collectible Minifigures Series 1: The Forestman

Today we step lightly into the dappled colors of the forest. Hark! What's that in the underbrush?! Ho! Me thinks we've run afoul of "The Forestman"...

Minifigure Parts
The Forestman is composed of five parts, a tri-corner hat with red plume (parts x106 and 4502a), head with bearded face, torso with jerkin print, and green legs. The comparisons back to the forestmen figures, which ran from 1987 to 1990, are uncanny.

Accessories
The accessories are a quiver and bow in brown (parts 4498 and 4499), again quite similar to what came with the forestmen. Of course, the new minifigure stand is included.

Army Building Potential
The "army building potential" or "ABP" for this figure is moderate. Robin's band of merry men could easily be built by changing out a few heads and/or accessories making the torsos and hats sought after.

Feeling It Out
This figure might be difficult to identify through the packaging with no obvious features or accessories that can be ID'd via touch. Depending upon how the items will be packaged in the polybag you might be able to detect the bow. The figure could be confused with The Tribal Hunter given the similar accessories and parts.

Bar Codes
The following are the secondary bar codes that can be found on the back of each bag which indicates the figure inside. The bar code on the left is valid for the EU while the bar code on the right is valid for the US. These bar codes come courtesy of Brickset.com where a single pdf containing all bar codes can be found.

 
The Big Draw
The big draws here are the torso, the hat, and the chance to own an updated version of a minifigure that hasn't been around for almost 20 years.

FBTB.net Poll Standings

According to the poll currently on the FBTB.net forums, The Archer has a comparable number of votes to The Ninja and The Circus Clown. As always, those who frequent AFOL forums may not be representative of the broader market, but it looks like these figures might be sought just to fill out a full series one collection.

Official LEGO.com Bio 
“Have no fear, for I am here!”

The brave and fearless Forestman is always arriving just in the nick of time to save the day. Whether he’s swinging down on a vine to rescue a damsel in distress, leaping boldly from the castle battlements to duel an evil duke, or making an incredible trick shot with his bow and arrow to help a friend in danger, he is at all times the very model of a chivalrous hero of legend and yore.

The Forestman loves to make a good first impression and is always practicing his dramatic entrances to get them just right. He’d come to the rescue anyway, of course (it’s just in his nature to right wrongs and fight injustice wherever he finds them), but it’s terribly disappointing for him if no one is around to see him gallantly arrive on the scene for his latest feat of swashbuckling derring-do. He’s only sad for a moment, though, and then it’s off to battle the bad guys and save the day once again!

(Back to Collectible Minifigure Series 1 Guide)

(Pictures from FBTB.net and Brickset)

Eurobricks Gets Early Looks at Cheerleader and Caveman

Eurobricks members CopMike and ZeeK get two early looks at the upcoming LEGO Collectible Minifigures, The Cheerleader and The Caveman (sounds like a TV sitcom doesn't it?!).

ZeeK's review doesn't include many pics, but describes some additional details:

• As previously mentioned the beard and hairpiece are similar to the Hagrid's from Harry Potter sets, but instead of molded rubber its made of ABS
• The club that comes with The Caveman is smaller than the Castle troll's
• There is not printing on the back of the figure, only the front

CopMike got his wish and was able to score The Cheerleader. Some additional details include the following:

• The item number of the back of the pack is the same as The Spaceman. It looks like you'll have to revert to "feeling it out" to pre-identify
• We now have a picture showing the pom poms in more detail (i.e. how they connect to the figure's hand)
• CopMike notes the similarity between the Michigan Wolverines cheer uniforms and the LEGO one. What does that "M" stand for anyway?!

That's all for now. More to come as it happens...

Exclusive Minifigure for LEGO Universe Pre-Order

The Spring 2010 LEGO catalogs are arriving the mail with a few interesting tidbits...

LEGO is offering an exclusive astronaut minifigure and in-game items if you pre-order LEGO Universe. The figure is predominantly orange with a crystal insignia on the torso and an orange helmet with visor.

The main feature was the new LEGO Prince of Persia sets. The first five pages are dedicated to the new line with good pictures of the new minifigs.

Finally, the LEGO Star Wars set Luke's Landspeeder was not featured in that section. The set had been sold out for some time. Perhaps there have been problems filling demand?

That's all for now. More to come...

Fine Clonier's Autograph and Minifigure Collection

Custom minifig designer Fine Clonier has a really cool collection of LEGO minifigures with autographs he's collected from fan conventions and signings.

Here's how it works, he takes a relevant standard or custom minifigure, puts it on one of these cool display plates, and then has the artist sign it. I've included an example of C3PO with actor Anthony Daniels autograph (he's played C3PO in all six Star Wars films).

The autographs range from actors in the films to the voice-actors on Clone Wars. It's a really cool concept. If only I could figure out where to get a few of those stands...

(Picture from Fine Clonier's Flickr stream)

Alles ist die Noppe - A LEGO Brickfilm

As we mentioned yesterday, Bricks In Motion is holding its 2009 brickfilm awards now. Yesterday we featured Fancy Pant's "A Clone Halloween". Today we showcase another 'film of the year' nominee that has a more serious bent.

Nichtgedreht has produced "Alles ist die Noppe"/"All is the Stud", a distopian future not unlike Orwell's 1984. Instead of big brother, however, we have a menacing 1x1 plate antagonizing our hero. Take a look and see for yourself...

Collectible Minifigures Series 1: The Wrestler

Now let's grab a ring side seat as the bell rings and crowd roars. Get ready to throw down with "The Wrestler"!

Minifigure Parts
The Wrestler is composed of four parts, a head with luchador-style mask print, a torso with tank top and champion belt print, light-blue legs, and red cape. All of these elements are new to the LEGO universe, except the cape element, of course.

Army Building Potential
The "army building potential" or "ABP" for this figure is low.

Feeling It Out
This figure might be difficult to identify through the packaging with no obvious features or accessories that can be ID'd via touch. If the cape is packaged in the standard cardboard sleeve, then there may be a chance.

Bar Codes
The following are the secondary bar codes that can be found on the back of each bag which indicates the figure inside. The bar code on the left is valid for the EU while the bar code on the right is valid for the US. These bar codes come courtesy of Brickset.com where a single pdf containing all bar codes can be found.


The Big Draw
I think the head is quite nice. The luchador-style mask can be used in a lot of creative ways with custom LEGO minifig creations. This could be used for other wrestler designs or even superheroes.

FBTB.net Poll Standings

According to the poll currently on the FBTB.net forums, The Wrestler has a similar number of votes as The Clown and The Ninja. Not the worst, but towards the back of the pack.

Official LEGO.com Bio 
“I will defeat you – with HONOR!”

Only three things matter to the Super Wrestler: his mask, his honor, and the time-honored art of wrestling. He throws himself at every challenge that comes his way with gusto, counting on the strength of justice and his muscular arms to save the day, no matter the odds or danger. When victory is his, he throws out his arms to the sound of roaring cheers and wild applause…which is a little odd when there doesn’t seem to be anyone else around.

There are few situations that the Super Wrestler doesn’t think can be solved with a bold battle cry and a fancy wrestling move. The surprising thing isn’t that he treats life like it’s all a big wrestling match – it’s that so far, it’s always worked!

(Back to Collectible Minifigure Series 1 Guide)

(Pictures from FBTB.net, Eurobricks, and Brickset)

The Legend of Tigerggyy Continues

Custom minifigure creator Tigerggyy posts another amazing scene. This MOC labeled "Goldcoin" shows off a skeletal horse and rider statue all in gold chrome. The rider is flanked by one black and one white statute.

The gold chrome process has been a recent development in the LEGO community. I don't know if this is their handy work, but ChromeBricks.com offers similar products and will even chrome your parts for a price.

My Chinese is a little rusty, so I couldn't tell you what the characters at the bottom of the MOC say. All I know is that it says "Goldcoin", but all I see is awesome.

A Clone Halloween - A Brickfilm by Fancy Pants

We mentioned the other day that LAML podcast was able to score an interview with "The Force Unleashed" creator Fancy Pants. This prompted me to visit Bricks In Motion, a website dedicated to LEGO brickfilm. Currently, they have nominees up for their 2009 BiM awards for film of the year. Fancy Pants' "A Clone Halloween" is up for that award.

Although I can't speak to all of the technical elements that went into the film, I have to say it's quite funny. Although it may appeal to my brand of random, off-the-wall humor, click the link below to see for yourself.



I'll be posting the other three nominees later this week, and let you know who won once results are announced.

LEGO Toy Story 3 Minifigure: Twitch

While on the hunt for more detailed pics of the new Toy Story 3 minifigures, I came across this beauty posted by 'okayaraman' on the FBTB.net Outpost Flickr forum.

This pack shot gives us a much better look at this exclusive minifigure compared to the box shot from late last week.

LEGO Set Details

"Twitch", as he is unofficially being called on the interwebs, will be found in the Toys R Us exclusive set #7599, Garbage Truck Getaway.

Minifigure Parts

Twitch is made up of four parts, an insectoid head, torso with scale and harness print, green legs with an orange waist, and white wings.

It was revealed recently that the antenna can be removed from the main head part. It is not known how the antenna connect or how compatible they might be with other LEGO parts (i.e. hat holes for things like plumes).

Accessories

There are no clues as to additional accessories that might come with Twitch.

Is it just me or does Twitch look like one of the 'mutant toys' that lived under Sid's bed in the first Toy Story? You know the one steering the He-Man body that walked on its hands? It's likely I'm not the only one who sees this and the custom minifigure/MOC will be forth coming.

I'll be on the look out for more quality pictures of the upcoming figures from the new Toy Story 3 sets. More as it becomes available!

(Back to Toy Story 3 Minifigure Guide)

Toy Story Army Men On Patrol (7595) Sale at Amazon

I'm a little behind on posting this, so many people may already be aware, but Amazon is currently listing set 7595 Army Men on Patrol for $8.97 (40% less than normal list price). They are also offering free shipping on orders over $25, so head on over an build your army today.

As of 7:00 am EST, they still had items in stock. Hurry while they last!

LAML Interviews Fancy Pants: Creator of The Force Unleashed

A couple of weeks ago we featured a LEGO Star Wars brickfilm called "The Force Unleashed". It quickly became a viral hit online. LAML, the LEGO Talk Podcast, has scored an interview with creator Jordon Johnson, also known as "Fancy Pants".

There's quite a bit of technical brickfilm elements discussed in the interview. If you have an interest in creating your own stop-motion LEGO creation, you'll find insights into how films of this type are produced. There's also mention of "Bricks In Motion", a website community for brickfilms. We'll be watching this in the future for new and notable LEGO films.

JasBrick Takes to the Stars

Yesterday we featured a custom minifigure from JasBrick that harkened back to olden days. Today we take off to the stars! All three of these figures use Toy Story minifigure parts in new and different ways.

I really like the Flash Gordon figure. Don't be surprised if Fantasy LEGO League doesn't touch on this soon. I can hear Queen now...Ah, Ah, Ah, Ah, Flash! Ahhhh...I can see the hawkmen minifigures now!

Eurobricks Prince of Persia Set Review

Ricecracker on Eurobricks provides and extensive set review for the LEGO Prince of Persia Ostrich Race! Set 7570 has a lot to like and this review makes me rethink the whole line.

Ricecracker's review covers it all. Ostriches, Minifigures, Weapons, Oh my! The one item I've really been looking for is the double sword scabbard which you can see pictured here. I really can't do it justice, head on over and read the review yourself.

Sir Jas Stands Triumphant: Custom Minifigure

JasBrick steps out of Star Wars with this custom Knight minifigure. Sir Jas appears to have taken out an entire army of the undead. This mohawked minifigure appears to have custom head, but its actually Dr. Inferno from the Agents line.

The armor resembles the fantasy era, crown breastplate; however, LEGO didn't produce it in gold.

The swords? BrickArms creations.

(Picture from JasBrick's Flickr stream)

BrickArms Sci-Fi Battle Packs

BrickArms announces that 2010 Sci-Fi battle packs will be available starting April 2.

The battle packs contain 11 items:

• HCSR (High Caliber Sniper Rifle)
• Apoc SMG
• Plasma Blade
• MK2 Frag Grenade (x2)
• Chainblade
• Energy Pistol
• Photon Pistol
• Needle Weapon
• AC8
• Gunblade

Packs will retail for $12.

Collectible Minifigures Series 1: The Magician

Now, ladies and gentlemen, I present, the amazing, the stupendous, the all powerful "Prestidigitator"! No? Let's just talk about "The Magician" instead.

Minifigure Parts
The Magician is composed of five parts, a top hat (part 3878), a head with mustache and goatee print, a torso with tuxedo print, and black legs. He also comes with a black hair piece for when he's pulling rabbits out of his hat. The torso with black tuxedo print, red, tie and cummerbund appears to be brand new. The closest we've come would be on the Indiana Jones figure from the Shanghai Chase set.

Accessories
The accessory is a magic wand, a 3L version of part 30374 with white print on the tips. As always, the figure will come with the new minifigure stand.

Army Building Potential
The "army building potential" or "ABP" for this figure is low. Don't get me wrong, this is a great figure, I just don't see people clamoring for multiples.

Feeling It Out
This figure might be difficult to identify through the packaging with no obvious features or accessories that can be ID'd via touch. The top hat might be distinctive, but we don't exactly know how the figs will be packaged.

Bar Codes
The following are the secondary bar codes that can be found on the back of each bag which indicates the figure inside. The bar code on the left is valid for the EU while the bar code on the right is valid for the US. These bar codes come courtesy of Brickset.com where a single pdf containing all bar codes can be found.


The Big Draw
The big draw here is the tuxedo torso in my opinion (James Bond minifigure anyone?). The wand being 3L in size, like the laser beam from The Spaceman's gun, then it might be sought after for its uniqueness. To date all of these parts have been 4L.

FBTB.net Poll Standings
According to the poll currently on the FBTB.net forums, The Magician has very few votes, which is surprising. As always, those who frequent AFOL forums may not be representative of the broader market, but it looks like these figures might be sought just to fill out a full series one collection. Then again this might be the surprise figure of the bunch.

Official LEGO.com Bio
“Hey presto, allez-oop – and it’s gone!”

Appearing out of nowhere with a flourish of his cape and a twirl of his elegant, curly moustache, the mysterious Magician is the ultimate in stylish showmanship. He loves a good audience to appreciate his incredible and sense-defying magic tricks, but watch out – not only is he an amazing performer, but he’s also a talented prankster as well! He’ll confuse, bewilder and amaze with a mix of sleight-of-hand and impossible feats, and the more surprised his audience is, the better.

Whether he’s making a flock of doves fly out of his wand or pulling a giant rabbit out of his magic hat, the Magician is always ready to put on a spectacular show…right up until he vanishes without a trace in a flash of lightning and a puff of smoke!

(Back to Collectible Minifigure Series 1 Guide)

(Pictures from FBTB.net and Brickset)

Star Wars Custom Twi'lek Minifigures from Arealight

Arealight, a custom minifig developer from Taiwan, is selling custom, female Twi'lek minifigures at his store.

Female Twi'leks have not been featured in LEGO Star Wars sets to date, but Jedi Aayla Secura is slated to debut this August in set #8098 Clone Turbo Tank. If you can't wait until August, then Arealight can set you up with one of their custom Aaylas.

Arealight also has a custom figure for Darth Talon, a popular Sith from the Star Wars universe. Oola, the Twi'lek dancer from Jabba's palace is also available.

(Picture from ArealightCustoms.com)