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LEGO has released a version of the Droid Escape Pod twice previously. In 2001 and 2012, they released sets called Droid Escape (7106 and 9490.) Each time the set has been visited, it has gotten more expensive. Accordingly, the number of separate pieces has increased in each set. This set should be the most detailed and complex of the sets released to represent this scene. In 2001 the set only had the droids. In 2012, the Escape Pod came with the droids, 2 Sand Troopers and a speeder. This time, we get 2 droids, 2 Jawas and no speeders.
Most people were content with the fairly recent version. Most collectors would have preferred something else take this slot. I have never actually bought an Escape Pod, so this is my first time building it. Upon cursory examination, I thought it looked good for a $19.99 set. Then I recalled that it was a $24.99 set. After a huge sigh, I decided to go ahead and look again.

REVIEW: SET DETAILS
Set #: 76050
Name: Droid Escape Pod
Theme: Star Wars
Parts: 197
Price: $24.99
I want to talk value for a second. Instead of concentrating on the price per piece, I'll look at the actual item that we get. It's a small box, smaller than all of the other $24.99 sets released at the same time. (Why did they have to all be $24.99 anyway?) You get 4 minifigures, which is more than any of the other sets released in this wave and price point. The number of pieces are small, but some of those pieces are big.
BOX CONTENTS
Some people may wind up picking up a set that is open box or, want to verify the box contents before beginning a build. For this set, there are 2 numbered baggies, a sticker sheet, and an instruction book. Boy, there's a bunch of big stickers here.

BUILD AND EXECUTION:
BAG 1: You start almost immediately with the stickers. 2 of them are trying to add depth to the curved panels.

The next thing that you make is a little platform with a rounded base that will snap into the base of the Escape pod.

Here you can see the platform with all of the side studs slotted in between the existing bottom and the new top.

Turn it over and start creating some new shapes for the bottom. Also, please note the swinging panel.

Hinged rounded panels complete the cylinder of the Escape Pod. 2 large stickers go on the inside. I hate these stickers. I'm not sure I got them anywhere near straight.

Lots of slopes go on the bottom. I was trying to remember the shape of the escape pod. Were these the thrusters? It really wasn't coming to me. I guess I could look at the box, but that's not me.

You can't really see it here, but there's a platform that snaps onto the slopes. It has tiles to facilitate the opening and closing.

BAG 2: The stickers on the outside actually look good and go all the way around. These stickers are really big.

Thankfully, they created "seating" for the droids with a steering column. I liked how they shaped it to try to follow the curves of the ship.

There's a window that you can't really see through. I'm actually liking the shaping and the way that they added a few small thrusters on here.

You add some various thrusters onto the bottom platform. There's main thrusters and directional thrusters. All in all, the design is satisfactory.

It is a bigger, more complex craft than any previous version. It is satisfying to look at.

REACTION:
I forgot to show it before, there's some Death Star plans that slot into the front of the craft. While I think that this ship looks fine, It really doesn't do a lot for me. It feels expensive for what you get. If you're not a fan of stickers or have a problem applying them straight, this is not going to be a fun set for you.

There's 4 figures in this set. The more recent R2-D2 is dying for some back printing. They've updated nearly everything else on him. It must be difficult to print on curves if they're not willing to update that.
The 2 Jawas are the same as the ones in the UCS Sandcrawler and the 2015 Advent Calendar. Way to devalue the Jawas on the aftermarket there LEGO.
This C-3PO is unique. He's better than most of the regularly released C-3POs, but not as good as the Sandcrawler version or even the Force Awakens C-3PO polybag.


FINAL THOUGHTS:
Amazon will probably discount this set for most of its life. I can't imagine it staying at $24.99 if they want to sell any. People will want to army build the Jawas, and this is the cheapest way to do it. R2-D2 and C-3PO aren't major draws. If you want a hero set for investment, this probably isn't it. The 2 previous versions of this set hover in the mid to high $30's. I would expect this one to be the same.
EXTRA PIECES:
There's not a lot of extra pieces. I feel like the cone isn't supposed to be extra. I think it's supposed to go somewhere, but I can't tell where I missed it. 

The Avenjet Space Mission is yet another Super Heroes set, where some random vehicle is thrown in to give the LEGO Group something to hang a bunch of minifigures on. That doesn't necessarily mean that it's a bad set, just that it may not be something that fans really care nothing about. I really badly wanted some of the minifigures with this set, so I went ahead and got it. I figured there would be some out there who wondered if this set was worth getting. Let's review.

REVIEW: SET DETAILS
Set #: 76049
Name: Avenjet Space Mission
Theme: Marvel Super Heroes
Parts: 523
Price: $59.99
BOX CONTENTS
Some people may wind up picking up a set that is open box or, want to verify the box contents before beginning a build. For this set, there are 4 numbered baggies, a sticker sheet, a comic book, a baggie containing pieces for Thanos and an instruction book.

BUILD AND EXECUTION:
BAG 1: Technically most of Thanos is like bag 0. You pull the pins from Bag 1. Construction of big figs is pretty consistent.
Thanos: Captain America, I have a new plan for conquering the universe.
Cap: I wonder why you would tell me instead of just doing it.

I honestly have a hard time figuring out why we are building something for Thanos to stand on. The end result is kind of goofy looking. It's too small to be useful.
Thanos: Behold my new weapon of universal domination!
Cap: Is it a hoverboard? You have to be careful with those, they catch fire.

Yeah, they look like roller skates. In my opinion, Thanos needed either nothing, or something much more impressive. These are forgettable, except for the fact that they are there and they are ridiculous.
Thanos: Quake in fear as I don the Infinity Skates! Forged in times most ancient from the remnants of the first of mighty Galactus skateboards, I can skate the cosmos with power cosmic.
Cap: Be sure to wear knee and elbow pads. I grew up with a kid that fell down a lot when trying to roller skate.
Thanos: Insignificant insect, I will find someone worthy of my attentions.

So, we move onto basic LEGO ship building. It's not exactly the same as every other plane, but it kind of is. Notice the 1X4 pieces in back, the slots are to make this whole smaller build ingrate into the larger one later. Also please note the single pink brick that will be buried in the build. I have no reason to point it out except that it's there.
Cap: Tony said this thing was really going to knock my socks off. So far, my socks have stayed on.
 

The interesting thing here is the use of those hinge pieces attached to the tiles. I guess it's supposed to be armrests.
Cap: Well, I sure am glad that these very thin tiles are between me and the dangers of space. I'd hate to have a solidly built wall there.

Add some slope pieces to give the thing a slightly space-y shape and cover up that pink brick. Hinges for the eventual canopy. Note the hinges from the previous step. I think the slot is a cup holder. Why not? Super Heroes get thirsty.
Cap: You know, I think Tony is messing with me. Building space ships is nowhere near as much fun as he kept saying.

You build the wings onto a section that you made with tabs on it. 
Cap: Did you know that LEGO instructions inspired those amazing IKEA instructions? I bet you always sort of assumed it.

Oh look, there's one of those awful stud shooters, right on top of the wing. It's a good thing the Avengers use nonlethal laser bolts. Or do the Avengers kill? I forget.
Cap: We only kill aliens, because they can't sue us.

Make a mirror image wing for the other side and add a canopy, and you're done with the spaceship. Glad we got that out of the way. Let's see what other vehicle they have us build.
Cap: I'm not sure that this thing has enough space for me and several friends to go to the other side of space and kill green guys.

Here's the end of bag 1, a small plane, a goofy looking Captain America and Roller Derby Thanos.
Thanos: Puny Mortal I have returned, because you offer the greatest challenge in the galaxy.
Cap: So, no one else would talk to you?

Bag 2: Start by making Iron Man.
Tony: Hey buddy, I see you finished the smaller spaceship. Didn't think you could handle the big one?
Cap: On my army salary, you're lucky I was able to make that one.

A part of me likes when we use Technic bricks (not technique by the way.) It makes me hope for some advanced techniques (not technics by the way.)
Tony: Look Cap, this stuff is really easy, especially if you've got a super genius brain and a fancy robot suit.

The ratcheting hinges in front told me that we'd soon see something to make this a super space plane, not a run of the mill space plane.
Tony: Starktech practically builds itself.

I don't really know, is this supposed to be a crew compartment or some kind of cargo bay? Definitely some place to clip some wings into.

Bag 3: We start on the wings. Wing construction is pretty much the same no matter what theme you buy.
Tony: Wings are my things. Ha, I'm a genius at being a poet too. Hey wait, where's Cap? He's supposed to be building this thing.

Wings are wings,you've built one, well you've probably built 2 since every plane has 2. Anyway, they're all pretty much the same. I know I said that already, but since I've already built 2 other wings in this set, it bears repeating now.
Cap: Did I ever tell you about how I joined the Air Force and flew fighters during the war?
Iron Man: No, you didn't. I thought you did all of your fighting on the ground.
Cap: That's because I never did. I don't know anything about planes. It's probably not a great idea for me to be building one.
Iron Man: Hey, that's nothing. I had a dozen martinis before I started.

Now you add a giant rotor to make it look fancy.
Cap: Hey Tony, does this big fan help make the Avenjet go in space.
Iron Man: Don't be simple. There's no air in space for that thing to push against.
Cap: So this is entirely decorative?
Iron Man: Stark engineering at its finest.

I know I didn't mention him before, but you also build Hyperion in this bag.
Hyperion: Hey guys, whatcha doing?
Cap: I don't know if you can tell, but this wing is incredibly heavy, and Iron Man's not really lifting.
Iron Man: It's called supervising.

Make a mirror image of that wing
Hyperion: Look what I made super fast. I thought you said this thing is heavy.
Cap: Who is this guy?
Iron Man: I think he's Hyper-Lame-One or something like that.

Now you need to add some decorative paneling with a lot of slopes to give it the air of Aerodynamics.
Cap: Hey Tony, don't you have some kind of factory to make these things? I mean I like these little projects, but I'm not sure I'm qualified.\
Hyperion: Anything you can do, I can do better. I can do anything better than you.
Iron Man: That dingbat sings show tunes? I hate show tunes.

End bag 3, you've added a couple of smaller wings on hinges to the larger wings. Plus, flick missiles.
Hyperion: Oooooooooooo-klahoma, where the wind goes sweeping down the . . . hey guys? Where'd you go?

Bag 4: Ok, I'm going to admit this now. Captain Marvel is pretty much the biggest reason I bought this set. If She and Thanos had been in bag one, I might not have ever made the Avenjet.
Thanos: Child of Earth, I have come with my Infinity Roller Skates to destroy your planet and subjugate your population.
Captain Marvel: Yeah, I'm pretty busy here. Do you mind pestering someone else?

Look, we're building a cockpit. I feel like we already did that.
Thanos: Bow down and tremble at my feet. Behold the might of my Infinity Skates!
Marvel: Look, I respect that you rock the purple unitard, but I'm just not interested. Plus, I'm busy.

It looks more like a sled at this point. but, I assume it will pull together the rest of the build once it's complete. Plus, here we find our requisite fire extinguisher. No Super Heroes set is complete without one.
Marvel: 6 years in the Air Force, I thought I had seen my fill of pushy guys.

More tiles to fill out the body of this ship, no arm rests or cup holders this time.
Thanos: Cower before me. I am the mightiest being in the cosmos.
Marvel: Look bozo. I tried to be nice about it, but no means no. Not interested.

And now we're adding a canopy. It's like Deja VU all over again.
Thanos: If you become my disciple, I will allow you to conquer beside me.
Marvel: When did I become a magnet for jerks like him?

Now you just peg the cockpit onto the hinge posts I mentioned earlier.
Iron Man: Hey look, Marvel brought the cockpit, We're almost done.
Marvel: Yeah. I was getting harassed by some jerk named Thanos. He wouldn't leave me alone.
Cap: Yeah that guy was pestering me for a while too.

Now, just slide the small jet onto a brand new hinge piece and you can make a really big Avenjet.

Many many steps after you initially make Captain America, you make his backpack. I'm not sure if it is a jet pack, some kind of star spangled rockets, or an external air supply, but it doesn't really matter. It looks dumb. Sorry, I love Captain America, I hate this fully loaded Minifigure. Even Captain America can't get his shield to work right in space.
Captain Marvel: There we go, looking good.
Captain America: Are you sure? I don't want to look ridiculous.
Marvel: Nope, completely understated.

Below the smaller craft is a pivoting platform that ostensibly you can attach Iron Man to. I don't think I assembled it incorrectly, but Iron Man doesn't really pivot down or up correctly since there's a plate in the way. If I assembled it incorrectly, I apologize, but I can't see where I made the mistake.

REACTION:
I actually liked the build. It was fun, it doesn't look terrible, the play features aren't intrusive. The ship however is somewhat fragile. Certain parts easily  fall off if nudged slightly. 2 ships in one build is good play value for a kid. Especially for kids that might not have a clue who some of the characters are. The white and red might be a subtle visual tag for a parent that collected action figures in the 80's. It kind of reminds me of the Transformer Jetfire, or a Macross/Robotech Valkyrie If you squint a little and tilt your head, you might see a hint of an X-Wing that just gives you a subtle good feeling that you'd like to pass on to your kids. I am not saying that this vehicle is as iconic as those three, far from it. I'm just saying that I think the designer took a little inspiration. I assume that the Avenjet is just a poorly named space Quinjet. They had to call it something different so that consumers would be fooled into picking it up when there's still the Quinjet City chase and the Super Hero Airport battle that both have Quinjets in them on the shelves at the same time.
So, let's talk about the minifigures, the main reason anyone would pick up this set. Let's get the duds out of the way. Space Captain America has the body of comic Captain America and a head with goggles and a thing on the back of his head. I don't know what the thing on his head is, I guess it has something to do with his breathing apparatus. You build a backpack/jetpack or whatever. I love Captain America, but I am totally over Space/Scuba/whatever Captain America. Speaking of Space/Scuba/Whatever, let's talk about Space Iron Man. At least it's possible, even likely that Tony Stark would have a spacegoing suit. The best thing about this suit is that you can just throw it into your Hall of Armor display and forget it.
Ok, so let's talk about the new characters. I'm going to start with the one that I am least excited for, Hyperion! First thing's first, many people have no idea who Hyperion is. He's a bad guy and member of Squadron Supreme. Squadron Supreme is a reality hopping team that is the analogue of the Justice League. Hyperion is Superman basically. They have the same abilities and to make things even more similar, Hyperion has the same head as the most recent Superman figures. The figure has 2-tone molded arms, but not legs which is weird to me. His cape is an interestingly odd shape. He's an interesting enough figure, but really not an important enough character to move this set.
It's a coin toss which of the other 2 characters is a better figure. Maybe it's just my own prejudice, but I'm going with Captain/Ms. Marvel. This figure looks great. I do sort of wish that the colors would pop better on the dark blue parts. I also wish there was a soft goods scarf, but that's just wishful thinking. What we did get was some good detailing and a pair of heads with a spiky hairpiece. I love the fact that you can swap her head so that she has 3 different faces. 3 faces? That's crazy! No, I love the character. So maybe it's just me, but I was lukewarm on the set until I saw that she was included. With Marvel announcing a Captain Marvel MCU casting, we are sure to see the character again.
So, maybe the reason most people would want this set is for Thanos. You remember Thanos from that end credit scene in Avengers or those small glimpses in Guardians of the Galaxy. Obviously he's important in the Marvel Universe, but he didn't always used to be. In the 90's there was a weird confluence of events that made Silver Surfer important, and in so doing made Thanos one of the most powerful and evil villains in the Marvel universe. Thanos had to be a bigfig. It seems like he's 2-tone molded legs, and his decoration pops on his dark body. The LEGO styling of the face is hilarious. Is he happy? Is he grimacing? It doesn't matter, he could totally be evil with either expression. I am slightly disappointed that he doesn't come with an extra Infinity Gauntlet fist. This figure is the obvious lynchpin of the set. We're going to get another Thanos. There's no question of that, but if he's not notably different from this figure, Thanos will not rule the Galaxy.



FINAL THOUGHTS:
I like the 3 new figures for this set. I'm okay with Iron Man. The selling point of this set will always be Thanos. If this is the only comic Thanos, it should do well. If the eventual MCU Thanos is fairly similar, forget this set. The Avengers Space Plane is not really interesting enough to draw eyes to this set. The biggest threat to this set though is the Chinese Bootleggers. Chinese knockoffs are the death knell of pretty much every Super Heroes set. 
With a Captain Marvel movie on the horizon, we'll be getting an MCU Captain Marvel too. She should be different enough from this version to keep this one relevant. That doesn't mean that they won't reissue this one though at some point.
Should we pin future growth hopes on Hyperion, the poor lonely nobody that is unlikely to ever be remade? No. The rest of the Squadron Supreme will see the light of day half past never. I would expect low to moderate gains eventually. There's enough unique stuff in this set that people may not be able to get them another way within a year or two.
EXTRA PIECES:
2 extra flag pieces. Initially, I thought that I had made a mistake, but in the following bag when I had another extra, I couldn't believe that I had made the same mistake again. Look, a white lightsaber handle, oxygen mask and an extra star round tile.

For me, one of the LEGO sets that I most want in my collection, but am least likely to get is the 10123 Cloud City. In Star Wars Episode V: The Empire Strikes Back, a lot of the action takes place in Bespin's Cloud City. Strangely LEGO has been reticent to release sets that correspond to this location. (Maybe we'll talk about the similar lack of Dagobah sets sometime later.) When LEGO announced the Carbon Freezing Chamber 75137, many thought that it would replace this set. In the minds and hearts of many, 75137 is just a pale comparison to a small part of 10123 Cloud City. LEGO Star Wars fans groaned, and owners of the original rejoiced.
Cloud City is 698 pieces and originally retailed for $99.99, which at the time was pretty pricy for that number of pieces. A complete used set sells in the $600-$700 range. If you want an unused, unopened set, you're looking at $1000 or more. Brickpicker price guide Why would a used set be worth 7X the original cost of the set as it was when new? What makes this a set that I can't build on my own?
698 pieces is a lot, but it doesn't sound insurmountable. There are 189 different elements in this set, meaning unique types of part/color combinations. Of those elements 39 are dark gray, consisting of 203 total pieces, and 50 are light gray consisting of 133 pieces. I specify those colors, because these are the pre-2004 Grays, not the newer blue grays that you find in all modern sets. These colors have not been produced for over a decade now. Almost half of the set is made from out of print colors.
The first thing that I want to take a look at here is the pieces that you need the most of. Thankfully, in a set with less than 700 pieces (even less when you take out the piece count of the 7 minifigures) none of the required elements is incredibly unwieldy. For this list, I am going to take a look at the parts that you need 10 or more of.
(Apologies for the images not matching the color. We are using the basic element picture to represent the item from the set. Please pay attention to the color listed in your inventory)
You need 36 Dark Gray 2x2 Plates Element 3022 that averages about $.04 each

22 Trans Neon Green 1x1 round Plate with straight side Element 4073 average out to about $.02 each

Element 30136 Tan 1x2 Brick modified (Log) is next with a piece count of 21 for close to $.05 each

Dark Gray Brick 1x2x5 Element 2454 occurs 17 times in this set and the average cost is close to $.15 each

There are 14 Black  2x8 Bricks Element 3007 

12 Tan 1x6 Tile Element 6636 average almost $.20 each

You also need 12 Trans Neon Orange 1x1 round Plate with straight side Element 4073 average out to about $.02 each

Dark Gray element 3005 Brick 1x1 appears 12 times as well, you can get them for $.03 or $.04 in the quantity that you need, but the average is closer to $.10

11 Light Gray 1x1 round Plate with straight side Element 4073 can be easily found for about $.02 each

You also will need 11 Round 1x1 Brick with Open Stud in Tan element 3062b for $.03 each

Dark Gray element 3700 Technic brick 1x2 with hole only needs 10 For an Average of $.04 each

10 Dark Gray 2x2 Tiles with Groove (Element 3068b) are next. They run about $.25 each for a total of $2.50

You will also need 10 very common black 1x2 bricks for about $.03 each (Element 3004)

Element 2412b Modified Tile with Grill and Bottom Lip in Trans Neon Orange is only available in 12 sets but, will only run you an average of .05 each for 10.
 
Thankfully there are no stickers in this set. So, an old sticker sheet or peeling stickers are not going to impact your overall  price.
We've already looked at the more common elements that you need the most of for this set, now let's take a look at the unique, rare, and specialty pieces that make up this set. Some of these pieces are not terribly expensive when compared to others, but I would think that anything over a certain average is notable.
First and foremost, let's look at the most expensive (non-minifigure) pieces in the set. Element 33230 16X16 round corner brick in Light Gray is unique to this set. Each one averages about $24 and you need 4 of them. Even in other colors, this is not a common part, appearing in 8 sets over 9 years.

Element 75c20 is a 16.0 mm (20 long) rigid 3 mm hole in light gray. You need 1 and it's going to average almost $12 each. This hose is unique to the set. Although, right now on Bricklink, there is only one available for $19.99

There is a single Dark Gray plate modified 3x2 with hole that is over $4. It is unique to this set. Element 3176. You may be in luck, 2 Bricklink sellers have this piece for significantly below average prices.

For another $4 You'll get a Light Gray Support 2x2x8 with side grooves and peg on top, also unique Element 30646b (Be careful of the light bluish gray one which is more common and cheaper.) Although at this time, there are none available on Bricklink, so if you want one, you wind up forking over more.

There are 4 1x4 Trans Neon Orange Element 3066 Brick 1x4 without bottom tubes for more than $2.50 each. None of the cheaper sellers on Bricklink have the 4 required, so you will need to make multiple orders.

You're going to need 2 Light Gray Element 75c09 Hose, Rigid 3mm 7.2 mm (9 long) which are more common, appearing in 2 other sets. It averages more than $2 each. If you can find other stuff though, several shops have this element for less than half of the average.

7 Light Gray 4x6 bricks Element 2356 run about $2 each. This part appears in 5 other sets including 10030 UCS Star Destroyer.

While not a minifigure, the next part represents a character. Element 2454ps5 is brick 1x2x5 black with Han Solo in Carbonite Pattern. It appears in 3 other sets and is a bit less than $2.

Unique to this set is Element 3741 Plant Flower Stem in brown. Usually this piece is found in green or bright green with a couple of other outliers. You need 2 and Bricklink doesn't show any currently for less than $5. The average looks like it's usually a bit closer to $2

Dark Gray Brick 8x16 (element 4204) looks like a staple in older Harry Potter sets (appearing in 8), but none of them use as many as the 5 required for this set. It can be found pretty readily for less than $1 each.

Tan Plate 6x12 is only found in 3 other sets including the Landspeeder. It's available pretty handily for less than $1 (element 3028)

There are some pieces where I look at the naming conventions and I understand why it's called that, but it's a lot of words,and I wish there was a better shorthand. Element 30516c01 White Turntable 4 x 4 Locking Grooved Base with (Same Color) Top, Complete Assembly is one such. It is available in one other set. Despite the rarity, you can get it for less than $1.

I am going to group these together, elements 41767 and 41768 4x2 Wedge (Right and Left) in Dark Gray are each available in only 2 other sets. They average less than $.50 each.

Appearing in only one other set, White Technic, Gear Worm Screw (element 4716) can be easily obtained for less than $.50. You need 4.

You need 2 2x2 black round tile with gray machinery pattern also known as element 4150px17 for this set. It was also available in set 7190 Millennium Falcon. It's also less than $.50

4 other sets contain element 2577 4x4 Brick round corner, full brick in light gray. It's very easily found for less than $.50 and you need 2.

You need a single black brick 1x6x5 element 3754 available in only 2 other sets. It can also be easily obtained for less than $.50

If you have a fleet of crashed TIE FIghters, you may have element 30366pb02 Trans-Black Windscreen 3 x 6 x 5 Bubble with SW 8 Spoke Radial Light Gray Thin Lines Pattern that was available in 4 (5 if you count the reissue) other sets. You only need 1 and I doubt that you will need to spend over $.25 to get it.

The final piece on my list, (but by no means the last piece in the inventory) is element 3307 Dark Gray Brick, Arch 1 x 6 x 2 - Thick Top with Reinforced Underside that was also available in a single other set. Prices on this piece average less than $.25

When I look at the minifigure selection, I cannot understand why the LEGO Group has never updated the major players in this set. To me these look so outdated, almost primitive, and the yellow heads and hands just do not fit with the modern aesthetics. This particular collection of minifigures consists of some of the most expensive minifigures produced.
First we have the somewhat common Darth Vader SW004 who has appeared in 5 sets. Be sure that your has the original gray head and not the newer gray.

The Stormtrooper with plain yellow has appeared in 4 sets, and is the least expensive mini in this set. SW036

This version of Han Solo was also released in a Minifigure Multipack with a Boba Fett and Jedi Luke. SW045

This version of Luke Skywalker in Bespin gear has never been released in another set. His Torso, head and hair are exceptionally common. Be sure that the hips and legs have the proper decoration. Make sure that someone doesn't swap in these legs or these legs for your $70+ SW103

Bespin Princess Leia is unique to this set and has also never been made again in a modern version. She can be found for around $40 SW104

Lando Calrissian, that sly scoundrel is going to cost you close to $100. Be very careful of his double sided cape. (Why has he never been made again? #Where'sLando?) SW105

Here's the one that I don't fully understand. This Boba Fett is one of the earliest figures with arm printing, and the arms probably get broken or worn more than most, but he'll run you $200 or more. Frankly, you can get the UCS Slave 1 for that and get a much nicer looking Boba Fett that also has arm printing. SW107

The Instruction book for this set can be found online, but if you wanted to have one, or felt like the set was incomplete without it, Bricklink shows sales data from $37.50 to $53.27 while Ebay has an auction that closed for $21.75 (including shipping) and several Best offer accepted Buy it Now listings. Of note is that most of the listings on ebay have sold, and Bricklink only shows 5 available.

Many hope (and pray) that the LEGO Group releases a large playset of Cloud City, much like Ewok Village, Death Star, and the rumored Forthcoming Hoth set. Any large Cloud City set would have a detrimental effect upon the overall value of this set. However, this set has a certain cache about it. Anyone who collects LEGO Star Wars has probably wondered why there's not been a Bespin Luke, Leia or Lando in over a decade. The perceived rarity probably matches the actual rarity.
Based on Bricklink sales data for the past 6 months, If you wanted to put this set together yourself, you'd be looking at an average price of just over $728 for the bricks and pieces (which is actually $40 more than the average in January when I started this particular article.) A huge chunk of that cost is in the minifigure selection. If you wanted to add the box or the Instruction book, your total continues to climb. This is all before considering the multiple orders needed to accumulate all the pieces. The shipping costs of those orders could push your costs up by an extra $100 or so. 
Please check out Jaisonline's build and review
*NOTE: not every element of the set is listed. This article is meant to highlight the most common elements and the most unique elements from the set. It is not an inventory of the entire set.
All images are the property of Rebrickable.com, Bricklink.com, and the LEGO Group.
An image has been found online of a new, upcoming Star Wars polybag of Rebel A-Wing pilot. There's no news yet of where or how to get it.Astute fans may notice that the figure more closely resembles a B-Wing pilot, but this character is based upon the design for Star Wars Rebels.The original report was available on hothbricks.com. More news when it is available.

I couldn't really get behind the Mighty Micros sets. Something about the short legs and the goofy expressions didn't click with me. At least the Microfighters have normal sized minifigures. But I kept looking at those goofy expressions and I could sort of dig them. I like Captain America, and the idea of a Unique, goofy Captain America half appealed to me. I kept picking up Captain America Vs. Red Skull and putting it back because I didn't relish the thought of spending money on something soooo goofy and juvenile. Eventually I felt like I had to, just so I could give it a real shot and not let my prejudices take over. This review will take a look and see what I actually think of this set.

REVIEW: SET DETAILS
Set #: 76065
Name: Mighty Micros: Captain America Vs. Red Skull
Theme: Marvel Super Heroes
Parts: 95
Price: $9.99
BOX CONTENTS
Some people may wind up picking up a set that is open box or, want to verify the box contents before beginning a build. For this set, there are 2 unnumbered baggies, a sticker sheet, an ad for Civil War sets and a pair of instruction books.

BUILD AND EXECUTION:
There are 2 builds in this set and each build has its own instructions. The parts for the 2 builds are mixed between the 2 bags. To help me sort and build, I asked Li'l Captain America to help me.
Li'l Captain America: Call me Cappy.

Well, Cappy's assembling the base of the mighty micro.
Cappy: Made with pride in America.

I'm beginning to notice more of these car pieces with the molded headlights. I'm not entirely sure what these megaphones are supposed to represent. I'll call them exhaust pipes.
Cappy: If I talk through one of these, it sounds like I am taking your drive thru order. Would you like fries with that?

The jumper plates are sort of interesting, It's so you can offset the 2x3 plate in the next step
Cappy: This car is automatic, it's systematic, it's hydromatic . . .

 
I think that the turret for this tank is pretty interesting. You put a pail on to represent the barrel of the tank. It doesn't look too bad. Sure, it's stubby, but so is the whole aesthetic. The whole turret slots onto the pin. It barely has any room for rotation, so not much of a turret.
Cappy: Who needs guns when you have fists of righteousness. And a shield,don't forget my shield.

The wheels are small and wide. You also attach a light to the front of this go-kart.
Cappy: Easier than changing the tires of my old bicycle when I was a wimp.

I'm not entirely sure, but I think this is the first time LEGO has made a tank. They've made Star Wars tanks, but I think this is the first time that they made one that looks like it belongs here on earth, well sort of.
Cappy: Well, tanks for the memories.

Here's the Li'l Red Skull with his Cosmic Cube or Tesseract as the case may be. Let's call him Skully.
Skully: You vill call me Ze Red Skull!

The body of Skully's Hydra-mobile is even more simplistic than Cappy's tank. Plus, he's got a steering wheel. It should be easier to drive with a steering wheel.
SKully: Insolent worm! Ze Hydra-mobile is hydramatic!

 
I really have no idea why you attach a steering wheel to the back of this thing.  It's interesting, but totally pointless.
Skully: Ze best of German engineering to provide a smooth ride.

This mighty micro is a representation of the hydra tank that retired at the end of last year. You can see the sloped body shape coming together here.
Skully: I zink zat ze people at ze automotive store were messing with me when zey said zat I needed headlight fluid.

I'm not sure if this part is intended to just be a structure to support the additional floodlights and missiles, or if Skully just needs a super plush headrest.
Skully: German engineering is both functional and comfortable, SHWEINHUND!

Hey Skully, I'm not sure we really need rockets.
Skully: ZE RED SKULL ALWAYS NEEDS ROCKETS! Zey call me rocket man!

As a chibi representation of that Hydra tankish thing that LEGO released previously, it works. It fully represents what it is supposed to.
Skully: Born to be WIIIIIIIIIIIIIILD!
 

Together the vehicles don't look so ludicrously out of place as they do when you photograph them one at a time. Just havingthem inthe same shot, they look like a part of something. Something crazy.
Cappy: You know, I just realized how hard it is to steer this thing when I am sideways and have a shield in front of my face.
Skully: DUMBKOPF! Watch where you are going, or you will hit me!

REACTION:
These sets are not really for me. While I find the simplistic, cutesy builds appealing on one hand, they just don't fit my desire for more comic accurate figures. I think that the minifigures are hilarious, but they don't meet my wants/needs. I found it hard to talk about the build process because there just wasn't anything to talk about, and I couldn't even make any smart-alec remarks. That being said, these guys may photobomb future reviews if I am not overly interested in those builds. These sets are like the microfighters in that they are smaller, cuter, simpler sets at a lower price point that will appeal to younger kids. Unlike Microfighters, for the same piece count you are building 2 small vehicles instead of one. That means that your simple build is super simple.
The shorter stature and simplified decoration with comedic expressions will likely turn off a lot of "serious" collectors. That having been said, a truly serious collector might want to grab these unique figures. Like Pokemon, they have to catch them all. Captain America reminds me of a sketch that the original artist of Walking Dead did for me years ago. He insisted that if he was going to draw Captain America it would be the 70's TV version with the motorcycle helmet and the see through plastic shield. I told him that in that case, he should have a big dumb grin and a thumbs up. I love that picture.


FINAL THOUGHTS:
There's a part of me that says that serious collectors are never going to go for these things. Serious collectors sometimes like to go outside of their particular box. Once you've bought the regular stuff for your chosen theme, these lower cost sets might appeal to fill in the gaps. Remember what happened with the microfighters series 1. A lot of people discounted them, but fans were willing to pay 2-3X MSRP a year or less after retirement. The chances of Chinese bootleggers wanting to make these figures seems slim, so maybe their initial unappealing nature makes them perfect for later large gains.
GO GET IT ON AMAZON!
EXTRA PIECES:
 

Hello, I'd like to tell you about an idea that I had. I'd like to make June 25th Give a Sick Kid a Brick (Break) Day. This would be a day where we can give to a little served cause. It might not even cost you a dime.
I don't know how many of you have had a sick kid. My child's been to the emergency room more times than I can remember and admitted to the hospital for observation 3 times. The children's hospital is just as dreary, just as stark and joyless as an adult hospital. Somehow it seems worse because the child doesn't have the same acceptance as an adult in the same position. What an adult endures, a child fights. Shots, procedures, nurses, doctors and specialists poking, prodding, checking and waking them up at all hours becomes like torture. Enduring being cooped in a place that is not their home with few comforts and little to occupy them while they are sick grates upon them.
Some children endure better than others, but eventually they all rebel. They fight against another shot or collecting urine, or enduring another hour of therapy. It's hard for them to understand that the discomfort is to help them get better. So, how does the nursing staff deal with the recalcitrant patient? How do they cheer up a child that is trapped in the hospital on their birthday or an important holiday? Bribes of course. Most children's hospitals have some form of room/closet/cart that holds toys. They promise the patient a trip to the closet if it will help them to do a particularly aggravating procedure, or when they're well enough to go home. The promise of a toy keeps their spirits buoyed over several days as they look forward to choosing something special. Sometimes the staff wrap the toys or make a gift bag or package to present to a child that is down because they can't celebrate birthdays, Christmas, Hannukkah or whatever holiday with friends and extended family.
I can tell you that it doesn't matter what is available, the kids are just happy to have something to look forward to. Sometimes the promise of a toy is enough to strengthen them as a needle is imminent, or placate them as they contemplate the third hour long breathing treatment in a row. They look forward to getting a toy as part of their release. It's a graduation of sorts.
The toys in these closets are provided through donations. Some people donate money to a foundation that purchase toys, some sponsor a toy closet and run toy drives to collect stuff to fill it, and some private citizens donate toys. All of that prelude was to get to this last point. I have asked @Ed Mack for permission to address this community and ask you to mobilize for a cause.
I would like to ask you to commit to donating some toys to your local children's hospital. I would love it if people would publically say that they will help out. I'm not offering any rewards, no chances at winning something good. I really couldn't afford to make it worth your while. It has to be something that you would want to do. I'd like to address some concerns that people may have.
There are children's hospitals in most communities. I am not asking that you send me money or toys, because we should all act locally. Plus, you'll have no fear of having someone take your money or items and not do what they said they would.
Many of us as collectors, parents or investors probably have new toys that have no place. As a collector, perhaps you have something that you bought that doesn't fit or that you were never really happy with. Parents will sometimes stockpile toys for future gift giving, or stash extra presents that their children received because there's just too much. Investors may have some dud that they picked up that they have no real hope of making anything off of. As long as the toys are unopened, they should be acceptable, so you might not even need to spend money.
Some people won't donate to a specific organization because it's associated with a  certain religion or political group. There's a fear that the goods or money will be spent on administrative costs or misappropriated. In this case, you won't donate to a foundation or to a charity. You would donate to a hospital for sick kids, the hospital of your choice.
Some people point to the adult community that collects toys and say that we are taking these things out of children's hands. Here's our chance to give back. I know that many of us have given, sometimes extravagantly. I ask that we give again.
Most people are charitable at certain times of the year. There's a greater push for charitable contributions in November and December. I chose June 25th to ask people to donate because it is half a year from the time of year that many people would end their holiday charitable donations. I think that this time of year is harder on the groups that rely upon people's generosity. June 25th is just a guideline.
I can't make anyone do anything. All I can do is ask, please help. Lift the heart of a child that is hurting.
Now, obviously, you will never meet the child that receives your toy, and they will never know you. Child safety laws and patient confidentiality being so important. That doesn't mean you shouldn't do it. Post a picture to this thread of what you're donating, maybe it will encourage others.
Check Google for your local children's hospital. Most of their sites will list what sort of toys/books or other items they need. They will also tell you how to collect your receipt for the tax deductible donation if you want it.
If you have the inclination, pass it along and try to get others to donate too.
Please remember that all toys must be new, unused, unopened. There's serious concerns about exposing children to germs and if you want to  donate used toys, there are other places like group homes that would love to have them. New doesn't necessarily mean fresh from a store, just unused and unopened.
 
LEGO opened its largest store to date on Wednesday May 11, 2016 at the Shanghai Disney Resort in China.
Lego said in a statement the Chinese market was "one of the best performing markets in 2015".
Lego is also setting up a factory in China which should be operational in 2017 in Jiaxing, 100 kilometers from Shanghai.
Links to Reuter and Baidu for video and pictures from the opening day.

Today, we are going back in time to almost three years ago (time flies!) and taking a look at one set that had the forums and the entire LEGO community talking almost non-stop: the LEGO Technic 4x4 Crawler Exclusive Edition.
Unlike the majority of LEGO sets released throughout the years, the Limited Edition Crawler was designed through a fan base contest, with one of the conditions being that the creators utilized the chassis of the 9398 Crawler. The winner model was to be selected and produced as a limited edition of only 20,000 copies.

Even since the winner was announced, investors and collectors were excited about the possibility of getting their hands in what many saw as a highly collectible set. Whether it was for resale, long term holding or just for personal collection reasons, the expectation was that such a unique set was bound to be extremely hard to acquire at retail price ($199.99).
Months after the announcement, on August 1st 2013, the set was finally released to the public on LEGO Shop at Home and brick and mortar locations. As many expected, and worried about, 41999 sold out online the very same day, forcing customers to either hunt the set at retail location or source it from the secondary market.
As one would expect, the hype surrounding the set meant that most brick and mortar locations sold out as soon as they put the set on the shelves. In turn, prices on eBay and other online platforms rose to close to $450, with sets selling within minutes of being listed as collectors worried about it becoming even more expensive, investors hoped for the next $1,000 set and, as some of you might remember, some even attempted to corner the market by acquiring dozens of copies a day.

While I will not get into it, it is also worth mentioning that the circumstances surrounding the set generated a lot of controversy, and ethical/moral discussions popped up almost daily on some of the forum threads.
In theory, it all made sense; LEGO released a set that was not designed by your traditional LEGO design team, limited it to 20,000 copies worldwide and, to top it off, included a number of rare and unique elements that increased collectability (first Technic set to use dark blue, chrome elements and a uniquely numbered license plate).  Furthermore, the box and instruction manuals were both higher quality than average and added a little bit of value to the set.
It had all the potential in the world to become an extremely sought after and expensive set in the long term, but as you can see from the chart below, in the end that was not the case.

The set has almost completely stagnated at around $360, the price it finally settled at a couple months after the hype died down at the end of 2013. That’s a close to 0% gain for anyone who has been holding the set for the last 2 or so years!
Clearly, the weeks after release were the most profitable times to sell the Limited Edition 41999. I sold some of these within this timeframe and took advantage of the hype surrounding it, but at the same time thought that the set had a lot of long term potential (as many others did!). Looking back though, the performance of the set has not been anything but a disappointment.
While it is always hard to pinpoint the exact reasons a set is not as popular as expected, I think that there are some generally accepted factors that contributed to the Crawler not doing as well as expected.
Technic has always been a niche market. While there is definitely a following to the theme, its popularity is nowhere near as close to some of the licensed themes, reducing the customer base.
The set on which 41999 was based on, 9398 Crawler, was readily available until 2015. Given the similarities between the two sets, having a much cheaper version in the market could have definitely impacted the performance of the Limited Edition.
The set simply grew too fast, reaching maturity shortly after its release. All the circumstances surrounding the set allowed it to reach its ceiling way faster than the average LEGO set, explaining the lack of growth since.
So, knowing its past, what should we look forward to? Honestly, I don’t see how the trend can be reversed. I would not expect to see any significant growth out of this set, as I believe that if its unique characteristics have not generated any more interest in the past couple of years, there is no reason to believe they will in the future.
Don’t get me wrong, this is still a cool model and a very interesting piece of LEGO history, so there is definitely a value in owning it. But if you are still holding it with the expectation of above average result, I would definitely take a few moments to reconsider and compare it with some of the better options currently available.
Thanks for reading!
 
More often than not, the main question LEGO investors are trying to answer is “When is this set retiring?”. As we all know, once a set is retired is when it really has the potential to start growing in value, so it is not surprising that the EOL question is as common as it is in the forums. However, focusing entirely on currently available sets may be causing investors to miss on a potentially lucrative market: sets that have already been retired for quite some time.
It is not the first time I write about this, and I know some of other members like fellow Mod Grolim used to bring up quite often in the earlier years of Brickpicker, but taking a look at my last article pushed me to write about a set that I see as a potential money maker even at its current market value. Before getting into that though, let’s take a look at some of the arguments in favor of investing in retired sets.
Removes the uncertainty of retirement date and, in some cases, performance. Investing in retired sets allows you to reap the benefits of growth as soon as you acquire a set, removing the need to park your money waiting for a set to go EOL.
Most of the already retired exclusives that are performing great are way more scarce than any of the newer exclusives will be once retired. It is pretty clear that the LEGO investing market has seen an influx of buyer over the past couple years, prompting LEGO to produce more and more of the popular sets and keeping them around longer; the older sets were not as massively produced or hoarded.
Of course, there are also a couple of arguments against this practice, and it would not be responsible of me to simply omit them. The ones that come to mind are:
Risk of remakes. We have seen the two sides of the coin related to this point, as the remake of the UCS X-Wing failed to completely depress the prices of the older version but the new Winter Village Toy shop completely destroyed 10199. Acquiring an already retired set increases the likelihood that investors will be holding a set at the time a remake is announced.
High amounts of capital are usually required. While practically anyone can invest on sets that are currently available, it becomes harder when you are targeting sets that are worth upwards of $500.
Also, it is important to mention that this article assumes readers are Buy and Hold type of investors. Flipping and selling other sets in the short term can more than likely generate the same or more returns by moving sets quicker.
The case for investing in the UCS Super Star Destroyer
Some of you may remember the good old times when we saw the Super Star Destroyer selling for $319 on Amazon. Clearly, those days are over, but that does not mean that it is too late to put some money into this impressive set with the idea of making some good money in a couple of years.
Why do I even bring this up? Well, just take a look at the following chart showcasing the performance of some of the UCS sets in the past two years1:
  
1Actual values for December 2013 and 2015. 2014 Data is just an interpolation.
Clearly, the performance of these sets has been outstanding over the past couple of years, and some of them were already extremely expensive back in December, 2013. We are talking about an average return of close to 93% in just 2 years over an average price of $750! (90% if we do a weighted average).
Even more impressive, most of the sets shown in the graph above have been retired for more than 5 years at this point. Seeing these levels of growth over just two years indicates how solid most of the UCS models are in the long term.
The UCS Super Star Destroyer is already selling for almost $1,000 based on the latest Brickpicker data. As mentioned before, investing in these expensive sets requires a certain amount of capital and a moderately high risk tolerance, but looking at how similarly valued sets have performed in the 2 years we have data for, it is a strategy with high reward potential.

Back when the SSD was available for retail it already sold for $400 most of the time, making it one of those sets that are somewhat more difficult to hoard for most investors, reducing supply in the secondary market. Besides this, the set is probably one of the most impressive in both size and detail LEGO has ever released, and one that we are more than likely won’t be re-released for quite some time.  LEGO has so many other sets to re-release before we ever see another SSD in stores (Imperial Star Destroyer, Millennium Falcon, Snowspeeder, etc.).
Honestly, I see this set with the potential to reach $2,000 in a few years, much like its older sibling the Imperial Star Destroyer. This is only an opinion, but I figured I would bring the topic up for discussion and let each investors make up their own mind about it.
Thanks for reading!
 
LEGO hasn't released much for one of the flagship titles of the Marvel comics universe. Marvel Super Heroes X-Men vs. Sentinel is only the second set featuring those popular mutants. 4 Popular characters, an iconic vehicle, and the most notorious instruments of government sponsored mass murder in the Marvel Universe should lead to one of the best sets that LEGO has produced for this theme. Let's take a look and see how well they accomplished  what should be an amazing set. Let's review.

REVIEW: SET DETAILS
Set #: 76022
Name: X-Men Vs. The Sentinel
Theme: Marvel Super Heroes
Parts: 336
Price: $49.99
The general consensus is that this set is overpriced. The number of pieces is really low for the cost, but you get a lot of big pieces. That may not mean much against typical evaluation though.
BOX CONTENTS
Some people may wind up picking up a set that is open box or, want to verify the box contents before beginning a build. For this set, there are 3 numbered baggies, a sticker sheet, a comic book, 2 Hull pieces and 2 instruction books.

BUILD AND EXECUTION:
BAG 1: Along with all the parts to make the Sentinel, you get Wolverine and Magneto. Magneto has a platform that you create for him to fly on. I guess 80's Magneto couldn't just lift himself? I forget.
Magneto: You fool, attacking me when you have bones laced with metal.
Wolverine: This is the80's bub, your powers are magnetic and Adamantium is non-ferrous so I can cut you into sushi.

The first stage of the Sentinel has to be the torso. When I started, I thought for some reason that this was the shoulders.
Magneto: Maybe we should team up. I've heard of these mutant hunting super robots.

The fully printed slope for the torso is pretty great looking. It's too bad that they used up all of the printing money for the Sentinel.
Magneto: Curses, this robot is also made from non-ferrous metal. It seems like in the 80's I was much easier to defeat.
Wolverine: Don't worry about it bub, I've got claws. SNIKT

The head also looks pretty good. I could have stood for the printed area to be larger, but it really does recall the classic sentinel.
Magneto: Did you just say SNIKT?
Wolverine: I'm the best there is at what I do and what I do is say SNIKT.

I actually like the legs. He's got big stompy boots,just like the classic sentinel.
Wolverine: Let's see, where can I go berserk on this thing, bub.
Magneto: You fool, you're supposed to destroy it, not have a piggyback ride.

The shoulders are slightly bulky, but I think that's just so it can look like it has biceps. I have no idea why a robot has to have muscular biceps, but that's the way it's been shown for a long time.
Magneto: I'll use my metal hovery disk to pick up this monster.
Wolverine: Hey I just thought of something, if my bones are all covered in adamantium, are my teeth metal too? I can chew through this guy, bub.
Sentinel: ALERT! ALERT! MUTANTS DETECTED!

The hands are actually somewhat clever. His hand blast is an interesting use of the spring missile. The flick missiles on his back look somewhat awkward.
Sentinel: PRIORITY ONE! DESTROY MUTANT KNOWN AS WOLVERINE!
Wolverine: UGH Bub!
Magneto: Curse these magnetic powers that only work on magnetic metals.

Sentinel: MORE MUTANT LIFEFORMS DETECTED!

BAG 2 & 3:
You start building the bluebird sorry I mean blackbird. Cyclops comes in bag 2 and Storm in bag 3. I find it interesting that the missiles are almost the first thing you build. I kind of expected them to be last.

As with most LEGO planes, this set kind of looks like a boat when half completed. It certainly looks more like a boat than a plane. Also, here you see the first sticker from the set.
Cyclops: Hmmmm, this sticker says that there's a Sentinel around.

There's 4 seats in the bluebird, not terrible considering that technically there's only 3 X-Men.
Cyclops: I love to sing while I work. "You put the boom boom into my heart . . ."

I always assumed the blackbird would be sleek and ths build just makes it seem tubby and squat. You'd assume that with the seat being so low, the canopy would just go right there, but this big chunk  with a handle goes right there, effectively blocking line of site for the person steering the ship.
Cyclops: "Wake me up before you go go, don't leave me hanging on like a yo yo,"

Cyclops: Looking pretty good if I do say so myself
(no, no it's not.)

In bag 2, we come to one of the most consistent things in Super Hero sets, whether it's marvel or DC, there's usually a fire extinguisher. To paraphrase Tony Stark "We might not save the world, but you can be darn sure that we'll extinguish small fires."
Cyclops: Hey Storm, can you help me finish building this thing? I think Professor X was way out of line thinking I could design, build and fly a jet all by myself.
Storm: Where does he get enough money to build his own armed stealth jet?

The cockpit canopy attaches with a pair of stickers and the blue whale is really taking shape. Check out the flick missile That doesn't look lame or anything just tacked on the outside. (Now that I called it out specifically, you're going to notice it in every picture from now on.)
Wolverine: Oof bub, SNIKT.
Cyclops: What the? where did he come from?
Storm: It sounded like a distant explosion and he just came flying from somewhere else like he had been blasted here. (Tell don't show, I learned that from George Lucas.)

There's another hatch for the back compartment. I was pleasantly surprised with how much I liked the fact that they designed it so that you could actually play with your characters back there. Not that it's innovative or any better looking than any of the rest of this thing.
Magneto: Quickly X-Fools, the Sentinel is coming, get your flying whale thing ready.
Wolverine: Yeah, he's on our side for now.
Cyclops: it's not a whale, it's a sleek blackbird.

Attach the engines and a couple of stubby wings
Magneto: Hurry fools it is coming!
Storm: You know, it would go a lot faster if you helped Magnet man.
Magneto: Unfortunately you designed this ship out of non magnetic metals so that I couldn't stop you in flight.
Wolverine: too bad your arms are broken then bub.
Magneto: But they're not.
Wolverine: They will be unless you help, bub.

The final stretch where you attach the wings provides an optical illusion. You almost think that it's sleek with those long canted wings. They're just sort of tacked on the back though. The rest of the ship is still an ungainly blob. I really wish they had made the wings more a part of the ship. The blackbird was based on the SR-71 blackbird, one of the most interesting planes of the 70's/80's. 

If you throw enough stuff around it, you might not notice how disappointing the plane is.
Wolverine: Grrrrr, the Sentinel's here bubs. SNIKT
Cyclops: Oops, why did I design this where I have to stand to fly it?
Magneto: I'm out of here, you guys have a handle on it.
Storm: Come back here you coward.

REACTION:
The Sentinel looks fine. It's not great, but it serves its purpose. I almost think that it works better than Groot. I wish it were bigger and solider looking, but what we got isn't terrible. The blue blackbird is not good though. I think it looks terrible. It's more like a blue whale than a black bird. Building this set and the Avenjet within a day of each other really makes me realize how disappointingly bulbous and goofy this set is.I was happy with the wings until I looked at the complete vehicle and realized how much more satisfying almost every other Super Hero  plane that I made is.
The minifigures are all unique. Magneto and Wolverine were both released previously in other costumes. The Brown and yellow costume is kind of classic for Wolverine. Magneto's Purple costume was a mistake from the 80's and should have been forgotten. I would have 1000x have preferred a straight repack of the previous Magneto. Cyclops hasn't worn this costume in like 30 years. I distinctly remember the last issue of X-Men that he wore it in (I think) X-Men 201 when Mohawk Storm beat him for leadership of the X-Men. Frankly, this entire set reminds me of the 80's, except that stupid plane.
Wolverine and Storm are the highlights of this set. Cyclops is sadly a little too plain to really stand out, and Magneto is just lame.

There are a lot of accessories for these guys.

The only figure in the set without a dual sided head is Cyclops. The detailing on Storm is fantastic including the painted legs. Wolverine's goggles can be used with the mask or even the hairpiece.


FINAL THOUGHTS:
There's a part of me that looks at this set and sees the disappointing Sentinel and Blackbird and the lame looking Magneto and thinks it's a loser. The larger part of me looks at the fact that LEGO is not releasing X-Men sets consistently. So far there have been only 2 X-Men sets and the previous one blew up. I feel like this set is a slow burner. In a year, people will realize there's not another X-Men set coming and go after this one. This set has lingered a long time, but I think it's just because no one has confidence. They feel like this one is overpriced, so aren't putting money into it. When X-Men Apocalypse comes out, featuring most of these characters, it will disappear from retail.
Plus, how inaccurate can it be? it looks like this toy from the 90's (gag)

EXTRA PIECES:
You get an extra missile and claws plus the standard small pieces

Here is the list of current and upcoming polybags in the LEGO world.  If you've found a polybag that's not on this list, or have any update to give us, please note it in the comments below.  This information is put together from a number of different sources on the Internet, including real world reports. Availability in your area may vary.  This information is US-based.  These are from within the last 12 months.
Polybags Currently Available

Set # Theme Set Name Locations 30347 City Fire Car TRU 30349 City Sports Car Legoland, Target 30311 City Swamp Police Helicopter TRU 30471 Creator Helicopter Legoland 30285 Creator Tiger TRU 30397 Disney Princess Olaf's Summertime Fun Legoland, Target 30259 Elves Azari's Magic Fire Legoland, TRU 30375 Elves Sira's Adventurous Airglider Lego.com 30396 Friends Cupcake Stall Legoland 30204 Friends Wish Fountain TRU 30320 Jurassic World Gallimimus Trap Gamestop 30371 Nexo Knights Knight's Cycle Legoland, TRU 30373 Nexo Knights Knighton Hyper Cannon Legoland 30374 Nexo Knights Lava Slinger Legoland 30291 Ninjago Anacondrai Battle Mech Legoland, TRU 5002144 Ninjago Dareth vs. Nindroid TRU 30421 Ninjago Skybound Plane Legoland 30277 Star Wars First Order Star Destroyer Legoland 30602 Star Wars First Order Stormtrooper Lego.com 30279 Star Wars Kylo Ren's Command Shuttle Legoland 5002122 Star Wars TC-4 Legoland 30603 Super-Heroes Batman Classic TV Series - Mr. Freeze Lego.com 30447 Super-Heroes Captain America's Motorcycle TRU 30604 Super-Heroes Cosmic Boy DVD/Blu Ray 30168 Super-Heroes Gun mounting system (Iron Patriot) Gamestop 5002946 Super-Heroes Silver Centurion Gamestop 30448 Super-Heroes Spider-Man vs The Venom Symbiote Legoland 30446 Super-Heroes The Batmobile TRU 30601 Scooby Doo Scooby-Doo DVD/Blu Ray (Preorder May 2016) 30605 Star Wars Finn (FN-2187) Gamestop (Preorder June 2016) 30606 Super-Heroes Nightwing DVD/Blu Ray (Preorder June 2016)  
Polybags Coming Soon

Set # Theme Set Name Locations Status Date 5004409 Bionicle Accessory pack   Unknown 2016 5002942 Bionicle Bionicle Villain Pack Non-US release only? Unknown Dec 2015 30350 City Drilling Machine   Unknown 2016 30348 City Mini Dumper EU release No Recent Sightings Feb 2016 5004404 City Police Chase Non-US release only? Unknown Jan 2016 30346 City Prison Island Helicopter TRU Unknown 2016 30474 Creator Reindeer   Unknown 2016 30217 Duplo Duplo Forest Random Bag Non-US release only? Unknown Dec 2015 40167 Duplo Promotional polybag   Unknown 2016 30322 Duplo Wildlife   Unknown 2016 5004401 Duplo Wildlife Puzzle   Unknown 2016 30399 Friends Bowling Alley   Unknown 2016 5002931 Friends Disco Dance Floor Non-US release only? Unknown Oct 2015 5004395 Friends Jewellery and Sticker Pack   Unknown 2016 30473 Juniors Racer   Unknown 2016 5004390 Nexo Knights (Exclusive Minifigure) Lego Store Unknown Jul 2016 30292 Ninjago Jay Nano Mech Aus/NZ release No Recent Sightings Oct 2015 5002920 Ninjago Ninjago Accessory Pack Non-US release only? Unknown Nov 2015 5002922 Ninjago Ninjago Role Play Non-US release only? Unknown Oct 2015 5002919 Ninjago Scenery and Dagger Trap Non-US release only? Unknown Nov 2015 30423 Ninjago Sky Pirate   Unknown 2016 5004391 Ninjago Sky Pirates Battle Non-US release only? Unknown 2016 30424 Ninjago Wu Cru Training   Unknown 2016 5004406 Star Wars First Order General   Unknown 2016  
Polybags That Appear to be Unavailable

Set # Theme Set Name Locations Status Date 30256 Chima Ice Bear Mech Target No Recent Sightings Jan 2016 30312 City Demolition Driller TRU No Recent Sightings Dec 2015 30314 City Go-Kart Racer Target No Recent Sightings Jan 2016 30315 City Space Utility Vehicle Legoland, Target No Recent Sightings Jan 2016 30228 City Police ATV Kmart No Recent Sightings Oct 2015 30188 Creator Cute Kitten TRU No Recent Sightings Oct 2015 40146 Creator Lufthansa Plane Lufthansa No Recent Sightings Oct 2015 30472 Creator Parrot Lego Store No Recent Sightings Mar 2016 30284 Creator Tractor Lego.com No Recent Sightings Oct 2015 30321 Duplo Duck Lego.com No Recent Sightings 3/1/2016 2000447 Education Mini Milo CES 2016 Giveaway No Recent Sightings Feb 2016 30398 Friends Adventure Camp Bridge Lego.com No Recent Sightings Jan 2016 30112 Friends Emma's Flower Stand TRU No Recent Sightings Jan 2016 30203 Friends Mini Golf TRU No Recent Sightings Dec 2015 30205 Friends Pop Star Legoland No Recent Sightings Dec 2015 30202 Friends Smoothie Stand TRU No Recent Sightings Dec 2015 5004388 Nexo Knights Nexo Knights Intro Pack Lego.com No Recent Sightings Jan 2016 30372 Nexo Knights Robin's Mini Fortrex Lego.com No Recent Sightings Jan 2016 30422 Ninjago Kai's Mini Dragon Lego.com, Target No Recent Sightings Mar 2016 30294 Ninjago The Cowler Dragon Target No Recent Sightings Jan 2016 30286 Seasonal Christmas Tree Target, TRU No Recent Sightings Jan 2016 40055 Seasonal Halloween Pumpkin TRU No Recent Sightings Oct 2015 5002947 Star Wars Admiral Yularen Legoland No Recent Sightings Nov 2015 30272 Star Wars A-Wing Starfighter Legoland No Recent Sightings Mar 2016 30274 Star Wars AT-DP Legoland No Recent Sightings Mar 2016 5002948 Star Wars C-3P0 TRU No Recent Sightings Jan 2016 30276 Star Wars First Order Special Forces TIE Fighter Target No Recent Sightings Mar 2016 30246 Star Wars Imperial Shuttle Target No Recent Sightings Jan 2016 30278 Star Wars Poe's X-Wing Fighter Target No Recent Sightings Mar 2016 5002938 Star Wars Stormtrooper Sergeant TRU No Recent Sightings Jan 2016 30275 Star Wars TIE Advanced Prototype Target, TRU No Recent Sightings Jan 2016 30304 Super-Heroes Avengers Quinjet TRU No Recent Sightings Jan 2016 5002125 Super-Heroes Electro TRU No Recent Sightings Feb 2016 5003084 Super-Heroes Hulk TRU No Recent Sightings Feb 2016 30303 Super-Heroes Joker Bumper Car Legoland, Target, Walmart No Recent Sightings Jan 2016 30305 Super-Heroes Spider-Man Super Jumper Walmart No Recent Sightings Dec 2015 5002943 Super-Heroes Winter Soldier Lego.com No Recent Sightings Oct 2015  


 
Tonight starts the LEGO May the 4th Star Wars Event.  To start with, you at least get 20% off most Star Wars items.  On top of that you get your Double VIP points on all Lego Star Wars products which ends up being a decent discount.  Based on discussions in the forum, it appears that many are starting to eye up the 75094 Imperial Shuttle Tydirium. 
Free shipping on all orders with no minimum. Free 30602 First Order Stormtrooper (pictured above) with your order of $50 or more of LEGO Star Wars products. Double VIP points on all LEGO Star Wars products. Free LEGO-fied Star Wars The Force Awakens poster with all LEGO Star Wars purchases. All offers are good from April 30th through May 4th while supplies last at all LEGO Brand Retail Stores and online at LEGO Shop@Home.
If you were lucky enough to get one of these invites below, you can get early access to a LEGO retail shop and hopefully get yourself one of those Limited run Space Slugs


If you are located in the USA: CLICK HERE
If you are located in Canada: CLICK HERE
If you are located in the UK: CLICK HERE
LEGO Star Wars May The Fourth 2016 Sale List
Item name – US MSRP / US Sale Price / CA MSRP / CA Sale Price
75074 Snowspeeder™ – $9.99 / $7.99 / $12.99 / $10.39 75075 AT-AT™ – $9.99 / $7.99 / $12.99 / $10.39 75091 Flash Speeder™ – $29.99 / $23.99 / $39.99 / $31.99 75092 Naboo Starfighter™ – $49.99 / $39.99 / $59.99 / $47.99 75094 Imperial Shuttle Tydirium – $99.99 / $79.99 / $119.99 / $95.99 75096 Sith Infiltrator™ – $89.99 / $71.99 / $119.99 / $95.99 75106 Imperial Assault Carrier – $130 / $103.99 / $149.99 / $119.99 75107 Jango Fett™ – $19.99 / $15.99 / $24.99 / $19.99 75108 Clone Commander Cody – $19.99 / $15.99 / $24.99 / $19.99 75109 Obi-Wan Kenobi™ – $24.99 / $19.99 / $29.99 / $23.99 75110 Luke Skywalker™ – $19.99 / $15.99 / $24.99 / $19.99 75112 General Grievous™ – $34.99 / $27.99 / $44.99 / $35.99 75113 Rey – $19.99 / $15.99 / $24.99 / $19.99 75115 Poe Dameron™ – $24.99 / $19.99 / $29.99 / $23.99 75116 Finn – $24.99 / $19.99 / $29.99 / $23.99 75117 Kylo Ren™ – $24.99 / $19.99 / $29.99 / $23.99 75118 Captain Phasma™ – $24.99 / $19.99 / $29.99 / $23.99 75126 First Order Snowspeeder – $9.99 / $7.99 / $12.99 / $10.39 75131 Resistance Trooper Battle Pack – $12.99 / $10.39 / $15.99 / $12.79 75132 First Order Battle Pack – $12.99 / $10.39 / $15.99 / $12.79 75139 Battle on Takodana™ – $59.99 / $47.99 / $74.99 / $59.99 75140 Resistance Troop Transporter – $69.99 / $55.99 / $89.99 / $71.99 75141 Kanan’s Speeder Bike™ – $19.99 / $19.99 / $24.99 / $19.99 75142 Homing Spider Droid™ – $29.99 / $29.99 / $39.99 / $31.99 853471 Keychain C-3PO – $5.99 / $4.79 / $6.99 / $5.59 853449 Keychain Yoda – $5.99 / $4.79 / $6.99 / $5.59 853451 Keychain Chewbacca – $5.99 / $4.79 / $6.99 / $5.59 853469 Keychain Wicket – $5.99 / $4.79 / $6.99 / $5.59 853470 Keychain R2-D2 – $5.99 / $4.79 / $6.99 / $5.59 850996 Darth Vader Keychain – $5.99 / $4.79 / $6.99 / $5.59 850997 Princess Leia Keychain – $5.99 / $4.79 / $6.99 / $5.59 850998 Boba Fett Keychain – $5.99 / $4.79 / $6.99 / $5.59 850635 Magnet Darth Vader – $6.99 / $5.59 / $8.49 / $6.79 850446 Keychain Darth Maul – $5.99 / $4.79 / $6.99 / $5.59 5005008 LEGO® Star Wars™: Small Scenes from a Big Galaxy Book – $24.99 / $19.99 / $28.99 /$23.19 5004853 LEGO® Star Wars™: Character Encyclopedia: Updated and Expanded Book – $18.99 / $15.19 / $Not Carried / $N/A 5004854 LEGO® Star Wars™ in 100 Scenes Book – $18.99 / $15.19 / $Not Carried / $N/A 5004605 Boba Fett Watch – $24.99 / $19.99 / $24.99 / $19.99 5004606 Darth Maul™ Watch – $24.99 / $19.99 / $24.99 / $19.99 5004608 Luke Skywalker™ Watch – $24.99 / $19.99 / $24.99 / $19.99 5004609 Stormtrooper™ Minifigure Watch – $24.99 / $19.99 / $24.99 / $19.99 5004195 LEGO® Star Wars™: The Visual Dictionary (Updated and Expanded) Book – $21.99 / $17.59 / $Not Carried / $N/A 5000249 Boba Fett™ Minifigure Clock – $29.99 / $23.99 / $29.99 / $23.99 2856203 Yoda Minifigure Clock – $29.99 / $23.99 / $29.99 / $23.99 2856080 Stormtrooper Minifigure Clock – $29.99 / $23.99 / $29.99 / $23.99 2856081 Darth Vader Minifigure Clock – $29.99 / $23.99 / $29.99 / $23.99 Other Sale Items
If you’ve made it this far you should also know that there are additional non-Star Wars items going on sale during the same sale period, from April 30th through May 4th. The items on list, too, will see the same 20% discount applied and free shipping with no minimum, but unfortunately there are no other perks to this list. Here are the items on sale:
Item name – US MSRP / US Sale Price / CA MSRP / CA Sale Price
60131 Crooks Island – $29.99 / $23.99 / $39.99 / $31.99 70730 Chain Cycle Ambush – $29.99 / $23.99 / $39.99 / $31.99 70731 Jay Walker One – $39.99 / $31.99 / $49.99 / $39.99 70744 Airjitzu Wrayth Flye – $9.99 / $7.99 / $12.99 / $10.39 70324 Merlok’s Library 2.0 – $24.99 / $19.99 / $29.99 / $23.99 21124 The End Portal – $59.99 / $47.99 / $74.99 / $59.99 70335 ULTIMATE Lavaria – $9.99 / $7.99 / $12.99 / $10.39 70325 Infernox captures the Queen – $24.99 / $19.99 / $29.99 / $23.99 70334 Ultimate Beast Master – $9.99 / $7.99 / $12.99 / $10.39 41068 Arendelle Castle Celebration – $59.99 / $47.99 / $74.99 / $59.99 41066 Anna & Kristoff’s Sleigh Adventure – $29.99 / $23.99 / $39.99 / $31.99 21126 The Wither – $39.99 / $31.99 / $49.99 / $39.99 41554 Kuffs – $4.99 / $3.98 / $5.99 / $4.48 41555 Busto – $4.99 / $3.98 / $5.99 / $4.48 41556 Tiketz – $4.99 / $3.98 / $5.99 / $4.48 41557 Camillot – $4.99 / $3.98 / $5.99 / $4.48 41558 Mixadel – $4.99 / $3.98 / $5.99 / $4.48 41559 Paladum – $4.99 / $3.98 / $5.99 / $4.48 41560 Jamzy – $4.99 / $3.98 / $5.99 / $4.48 41562 Trumpsy – $4.99 / $3.98 / $5.99 / $4.48 60071 Hovercraft Arrest – $44.99 / $35.99 / $59.99 / $47.99 60096 Deep Sea Operation Base – $99.99 / $79.99 / $129.99 / $103.99 75900 Mummy Museum Mystery – $14.99 / $11.99 / $17.99 / $14.39 75903 Haunted Lighthouse – $49.99 / $39.99 / $59.99 / $47.99
After a somewhat long absence from writing articles, I decided that a good way to try and get back into the rhythm was to revisit one of my 2013 articles, The LEGO December Effect.
For those of you who have not had the time to read the previous article, back in 2013 I noticed an interesting price trend for the most expensive sets: they seemed to take a big deep in value in the month of December. Back then, I decided to compile some data for a few of the most expensive sets at the time and do a comparison between their November and December value. The table below is the one I originally used.

It is pretty apparent that a majority of the sets in the list dipped quite significantly in the month of December, with the Eiffel Tower dropping a whopping 33% alone. However, it is important to remember that these expensive sets also tend to have the lowest sales in terms of quantity, a factor that result in one out of the norm sale to affect the set’s value in the Price Guide.
Back then some theorized that one of the possible reasons for this deep in price could be that AFOLs, by far the most likely group to spend hundreds of dollars in these sets, put a temporary stop in their set spending in order to prepare for the holiday season.
I also noticed that there seemed to be an increase in supply for these sets in the months leading up to and including December. This coupled with the above theory about collector spending gave a pretty decent explanation for the “December Effect” at the time.
A couple of years have passed and I honestly regret not keeping track of this and analyzing it on a yearly basis, as the more data we had the easier it would be to determine if it was a fluke or an actual recurrent event. But, no point in worrying about what could have been while there is still time to show what happened in the last holiday season.
The table below includes the same sets I researched back in 2013 and some others that have since retired or significantly increased in value. They are sorted from Largest to Smallest set value.

Surprised? I certainly am. While a plurality of the sets in the table still decreased in value, the number of sets that didn’t is as close as it could be without being the same (12 vs. 11). More significant is the fact that the magnitude of the dips in value seems to have been smaller in this past year, with none of the sets decreasing by more than 10%.
Something crossed my mind while I was looking at this table. Could the release of Star Wars: The Force Awakens have generated enough buzz that interested for older UCS sets was impacted?
Looking at the average decrease in price from November to December shows that while all the sets in the table aggregate to around (1.16%), Star Wars sets decreased at a lower rate (0.75%) relative to the (1.70%) of the remaining sets. For reference, the numbers in my last post were pretty much even at (8.3%)
While there seems to be a small variance between Star Wars and other sets this time around, it is very hard for me to say that this is completely due to the release of the new movie. If the non-SW sets had performed similar to the way they did in 2012, it would be easier to make that point, but that wasn’t the case.
In conclusion, it seems that the “December Effect” was nowhere near as strong this year as it was the year I originally noticed it. Clearly, we need way more data to determine if it is even a thing, but for that we will have to, once again, wait until next year!
Thanks for reading! You can revisit one of my 2013 articles, The LEGO December Effect to gain more insight on this topic.
LEGO Elves was launched in March 2015. This set was released in a small second wave late that summer. I purchased this set at RRP a few days after release, but it has taken me until now to actually put it together. Below is my finished product:   SET DETAILS: Set #: 41078 Name: Skyra's Mysterious Sky Castle Theme: LEGO Elves Parts: 808 Regular Retail Price: $79.99   BOX CONTENTS For this set, there are 7 numbered bags, one loose 6 X 12 dark sand beige plate, one sticker sheet, one pegasus-style horse and one thick 132 page instruction book.    I liked that the book was a single binding as compared to the multiple inconsistently-sized variety I have seen in other sets.     SET AND BUILD OVERVIEW:   I will start with the figures, as they are assembled in bags 1 and 3. Mini Dolls (Queen Skyra, Naida the water elf, and Emily Jones) and Pegasus:   And their capes:   The smaller capes are the standard coarse material while the full-length cape is of a softer, silkier variety. I would like to point out that I had some difficulty stacking both of Queen Skyra’s capes on her very slender neck and then attaching her head. Once assembled, I enjoy the look of the white embellished “collar” against the dark violet cape. Basic assembly of the other figures was fairly simple. It is always a bit tricky to snap the round tile onto the curved elf hand. The pegasus design is nice, but I found myself trying to figure out how to position the wings while the creature is standing. Fully upright wings look too heavy, but when they are placed in a downward posture, I think the animal looks vaguely wounded.     BUILDING THE STRUCTURE:   Bags 1 through 4 assemble as independent structures. At the end of 4, three of them are connected to provide the base of the finished build while the structure from bag 1 remains separate. (I had a picture of this, but used the box as the background. When putting my review together this image was scrapped because it was hard to see what was box art vs. built pieces in front). Bags 5 and 6 are also assembled independently of the structure, but the resulting piece is attached at the end of the instructions for bag 6. It was a bit tricky to determine the point of attachment for this upper deck. Further scrutiny led me to decide the bottom plate should be flush with the frontmost part of its supporting structure (completed in bag 2). I’m not sure if one could build 5 directly attached to structure 2 because of the portal mechanism. Bag 7 contained all of the finishing touches including the lilac turrets, elemental keys, leaves and jewels.   The elemental keys are pretty great looking:   But they have no mechanical function (with regard to opening the portal) when they are positioned as pictured in the instructions. I cannot explain this, so I guess I need to watch the show...     THE GOOD AND THE BAD:   I love the colors! Despite my distaste for mini dolls, Elves is one of my must buy themes because of the colors, shapes, and unique pieces. I like the design of the Element elements. The lilac fences, use of transparent and jewel accents, and the fact that it’s a castle drew me to this one in particular.  Build was fairly straightforward and simple without becoming boring or tedious. There was a bit of trouble trying to line up the mech and axle beneath the portal, but I was able to work it out with some determination. NOTE: Younger builders may need assistance with this.   The biggest flaw, in my opinion, was the mechanism that opens and closes the portal. It was slightly confusing trying to get it all lined up, and in the end, the portal is activated by turning a large knob. (Again, maybe I need to watch the show). Perhaps Skyra’s sceptre was supposed to turn it, but it doesn’t fit. I think you could use one of the keys, but I believe the idea is that each key needs to be in place to activate the portal. My best guess is that the portal is opened and closed by magic forces, so the actual opening mechanism is not intended to be part of the play function, but I found it disappointing. In my opinion, magic levers should be behind the active play area to maintain the illusion. Queen Skyra: "If you wish to return home, Emily Jones, I must summon the power of the mysterious sky hand to open the portal." Awkward maneuvering as Sky Hand presents itself and completes a quarter-turn of the center pedestal Emily Jones: "Thank you Queen. Your mysterious sky castle is mysterious no more."   My only other gripe is regarding the stickers. Although I don’t particularly enjoy ANY stickers, these were the worst kind. I have yet to figure out how to keep my fingerprints from becoming a permanent addition to the application of transparent stickers. I have trouble with small decals as it is, so tweezers or gloves seem to me that they would only add to the clumsiness. Thankfully, all decorated pieces after bag 5 are all pre-printed.   All said and done, I enjoyed building it. I understand that the build-by-section method is accepted as a good way to break up the build, but I did find myself asking when is this going to turn into one integrated piece. (I’m still not sure where to position the earth doorway or the dining table).    Spare parts:   I found it odd that there were so many duplicate spares. The additional fuchsia (official color name?) flowers give the builder an option to balance the bouquets into three of each color (which I prefer). Each round 1 x 1 element tile also has a backup. I can always use extra cherries and cookies, but it would appear that I may have already misplaced one of those spare cookies.     INVESTMENT POTENTIAL?   My best guess is that this will have little demand as a set. There are some new and unique elements from a parts perspective, but there’s no real way to tell if they will stay rare as more sets are produced. If you can pick one up for yourself or as a gift, great. If plan to buy this as an investment, I think you will be hard-pressed to find a buyer desperate enough for this one to pay above RRP. (As of now, this set is already being reduced at major retail outlets). That's my two cents. Thanks for listening.   Disclaimer: This being my first published review, I recognize that my photography leaves a lot to be desired. I appreciate your patience through my learning stage.
The LEGOLAND Discovery Center Arizona is set to have their grand opening on April 22, 2016. They are located in the Arizona Mills Mall 5000 S. Arizona Mills Circle. Tempe AZ 85282. Tickets are $22 for a single day admission, and you have to book a time for entrance. An individual annual pass is available for $65, or $60 per person for a family of 4 or more. The incentives for the annual pass holders include a 10% discount in the LEGO retail store and a 20% discount in the cafe as well as skipping the line and going right in to the center. Pass holders do not have to pre-book.
I was able to get in early as part of a soft opening that they hosted for their annual pass holders. It was nice to see and experience everything without the lines or hordes of people. It was also a little sad to see so many employees waiting quietly for someone to approach them. I don't expect that this experience will be one shared by most after opening day.
The first thing that we did was wait in line to get our annual pass cards. They took our pictures so that we can't pass off our cards to friends and family. Luckily, we had preregistered and prepaid, so our wait time was minimal. You enter the first chamber and are directed to a photo station. That's just not my bag baby. I endured the multiple suggestions for poses then got in line for the virtual factory tour.

They warn you that the factory tour may induce vertigo in people who suffer motion sickness. It's a large set of screens with control panels close enough to make the screen size overwhelming. The control panels provide you with the ability to interact with the tour minimally. The virtual tour seems like an idealized robotic factory. I am pretty sure that none of it was filmed in a real LEGO factory. I was hoping that their factory tour would have the machines used in the process like LEGOLAND California, only working. It was an interesting enough video,and as soon as you exit the room, the kids are handed a Duplo brick stamped with LEGOLAND Discovery Center.

The next stop in the Discovery Center is the Kingdoms Quest ride. You get in a buggy and pull out a LEGO style pistol to shoot various things like bats,spiders, trolls and skeletons. It's fun enough and they take a picture right at the end. Sure, the picture is a cash grab and maybe overpriced, but you get to commemorate your high score. Interestingly, there's a dragon's tail sticking out of the wall above a sign about a missing dragon. The front half of the dragon is on the other side of the.wall, but you might not remember it as part of the joke by the time you see it.
Miniland is where you come to next. Several local landmarks are represented in LEGO form. From University of Phoenix Stadium, site of Super Bowl XLII, to the Grand Canyon and the cities of Phoenix and Tempe, attendees are treated to a mini marvel. If it was just me, I could have stared at these builds for 3 or 4 times as long as I did. I was delighted by the mini LEGOLAND Discovery Center in the Tempe scene. Each miniland station had button activated features and the room had a day/night cycle that revealed lighting effects throughout. The city scenes at night were spectacular. Vehicles in each area moved and sounds could be heard representing the scenes that you were seeing.

When you leave Miniland, you enter a large, open room. a fair portion of the open space is taken with tables and seating for the cafe. With so few customers, the room seemed echoing and empty, I can only imagine how noisy it will be on Friday.

The perimeter of the room is divided into zones. Each zone is devoted to a specific theme and/or activity. Clockwise from where you enter, there are the following zones: Friends/Heartlake City, City/Town Play Zone, Restrooms, Master Model Builder, 4-D Cinema, LEGO Racers Build and Test, Parent's Lounge, Cafe, Birthday party rooms, Creative workshop, Merlin's Apprentice and LEGO Duplo village.
Heartlake City, Duplo Village, Build and Test, and Creative workshop are all sort of free build areas. Hearltake City has the large statues of the minidolls and a full cityscape for Friends. Duplo has large, life size Duplo cow and other features along with Duplo bricks and a larger rubberized brick. It's great for the little ones. Build and Test and the Creative workshop allow kids to experiment more with what they build.

The City/Town play zone is just a play area that is themed like a construction site and a police station. It's a large hamster habitrail and has more of the large rubberized bricks. Make sure that your kids have socks. If they don't, the snack bar will conveniently sell you a pair for $1. My kids loved this part of the attraction, but my wife and I were stuck outside waiting until we grew too bored.

The 4-D cinema has 2 different movies currently. Each movie is about 10 minutes and requires the use of 3D glasses. The room is damp because they mist water at various times throughout the film as well as blowing a fan, blowing bubbles or making mist. Of the 2 films, the Chima one was better. The Kingdoms one seemed aged and confused the kids because no one spoke, they just mumbled nonsense sounds.

The Parent's lounge looked comfortable enough and probably had some measure of soundproofing. We had no need to go since the place wasn't terribly noisy during this preview weekend.

The birthday party rooms looked somewhat plain and functional. I can't say that I'd be excited to have a 75 minute birthday party in one.
Merlin's Apprentice was a nice little ride. It's pretty much like the Dumbo ride at Disneyland. Except, you have to pedal to make the thing raise and lower. My legs are slightly too long to work the pedals properly, but thankfully it still worked if you pedaled in reverse, which was easier for me. The kids enjoyed it.
I know, I skipped over the Master Model Builder. It seems slightly awkward to watch someone who is trying to work and to pester him to ask questions. I tried not to be too intrusive or let my kids be either. He had to design and build more than a dozen register screens before opening this week. I did find out that 3 of the other finalists from the Master Model Builder contest received some position there as well. I spoke to one briefly who recognized me from the event.

To reach the exit, you have to go back through Miniland and out an awkwardly nondescript door. I feel like when they get up to capacity, this will create an enormous bottleneck, You have people entering the attraction and exiting in the same area without any clear demarcation. Maybe I'm wrong, but we shall see.
The exit lets out into the LEGO retail store. It's not exactly the LEGO store because the VIP card doesn't add points to your account and they don't participate in the promotions like polybag giveaways or double VIP. The sets are all retail priced, not increased to account for being in a mall or at an attraction. As far as I could tell, most of the LEGO Shop exclusives were present including hard to find ones like the Ewok Village. They seemed to have more role Play items than the regular LEGO Store and were doing a fairly brisk business.
There's a good amount of stuff for kids to do, but as an adult, it doesn't seem like it. All of their literature says that it's aimed at kids 3-10, and I would probably cut it off about 3-8. As a parent, you're paying to shepherd the kids from one place to another. You might have some fun on the rides, in the theater, or participating in building, but it is not designed with you in mind. The place is so not designed with adults in mind that adults can't get in without a child (except for a certain night every month.)
Anyone may participate in minifigure trading. Cynically, I would suggest it is just to sell you build a minifigure or CMFs in the shop, but kids (and adults) can bring their unwanted minifigures from home and trade them with any employee that has a minifigure on their badge, or register. That's an activity that is fun for everyone, but selection is basically limited to what you see and what the kid before you may have left. My kids participated, up until my oldest lost all of hers somewhere.
The Cafe was disappointing. Everything was prepackaged,and most of it was unsuitable for my child who has a dairy allergy. You can't bring in your own food, so eat first. If you buy a one day ticket, you cannot return to the attraction once you leave without paying again.

All in all, I can't see spending the money for a one day pass. I guess as a once in a long while treat for a kid, it would be fine, but parents might wind up feeling ripped off. The discount in the store for annual pass holders is a nice incentive, but you have to balance the cost against how many sets you're going to buy and how many times you'll visit the attraction. If you plan on visiting more than 3 times in a year, get the annual. If you buy a lot of LEGO exclusives, $65 might be offset very quickly by the discounts that you receive. The store will give an automatic 5% discount for VIP holders, but that discount will not stack with the annual pass. Still, 10% is more than sales tax, so most large exclusives would be slightly cheaper than Amazon or the LEGO shop.
I'm going to try to swing by on Opening Morning to see if there's any special ceremony.
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I picked up this set and put it down in the store so many times, I just can't recall. Nothing about it made me want to build it or own it. Clash of the Heroes was not speaking to me. One day I thought of something that amused me. I decided that if I was going to do it, instead of describing the building process, I would tell a story and put the pictures in reverse order to tell it. You'll still see the build in steps, but I'm not going to give my thoughts about each little chunk. I'll give you my reaction at the end of the review like I normally do. For now, I ask your indulgence as I play with my LEGO a little bit.
To differentiate this from the more serious reviews this (and any others like it) will have an "OUTSIDE THE BOX" title.

REVIEW: SET DETAILS
Set #: 76044
Name: Clash of the Heroes
Theme: DC Super Heroes
Parts: 92
Price: $12.99
It's sort of interesting, sort of sad that there's a $3 markup on these licensed sets over the unlicensed counterparts. 92 pieces including 2 minifigures for $12.99 seems a bit on the pricy side to me. 
BOX CONTENTS
Some people may wind up picking up a set that is open box or, want to verify the box contents before beginning a build. For this set, there are 2 unnumbered baggies, a plate, a single sticker and an instruction book.

BUILD AND EXECUTION: (to see the build in order, you kind of have to look at these pictures in reverse)
"Hey Bruce, just came by to pick up that DVD I loaned you and . . . Hey, is that Kryptonite?"

"Hey Superjerk, stop taking my stuff apart!"
"Kryptonite weakens me!"
"Yeah, I can tell."

"You're so inconsiderate keeping your Kryptonite out when I come to  visit. I'm taking back the Bat mirror I bought you as a friendship gift."
"I'm gonna give you one chance to put all that stuff back."

"I need to fold this stuff around the Kryptonite to protect myself."
"It's weird how much I hate guns, yet I keep these things everywhere."

"All I wanted was my Dances with Wolves DVD back."
"Hang on, I've got something for you. . . Let's see, Tab A into Slot B . . ."

"Catch!"

"Your turn jerkwad! I was going to loan you Driving Miss Daisy next."

"Here hold this for me."

"Man, all my stuff is messed up. I can never keep nice stuff with you around."

"Heh heh heh, I just remembered, I loaned that disc to Aquaman. My bad."
"Superdunce."

REACTION:
Even though I started off with no enthusiasm for this set, I still went into it with the intention of being fair and balanced. Spending all of the extra time to think of a story with these 2 gave me a chance to play with the toy in a way that most adult collectors aren't going to, but some kids might. I can appreciate that the kids might like the flick missile bat shield or the shove bar in the back. Those didn't do a lot for me though. So, apart from the play features that I didn't like or want, we've got a small, uninspired platform. I can't tell if the railing in front was a turret or just a railing with cannons. Regardless, it stays on very poorly. I couldn't get Batman to 2 hand his bazooka, which would disappoint kids.
Since most people are only getting this set for the minifigures, let's look at them. The minifigures look good. Both of them are unique.

Superman's only slightly different from the version in 76046. In this version he does not have red boots. To me, that makes his plain blue pants stand out. Unique, in this case, is not better. His hair and torso are shared with the other BvS Superman. The hair is molded in a different color for Captain America in the Black Panther Pursuit. The head is shared with Dimensions Superman and Hyperion from the Avenjet set. His cape is the spongey softer fabric being used recently. The torso and head have printing on both sides. All in all, despite the plain legs, a successful figure.
Batman is entirely new. Every single piece of the figure is new and even most of his accessories are unique in some way. The head is painted to look like a balaclava which is so much better than the previous sweatband version from most older sets. It's got printing on both sides grim and angry-grim (angrim?) It's also cast in glow in the dark plastic so that the eyes will glow. That seems like a lot of plastic for 2 tiny angrim pinholes. The torso has some fantastic printing on both sides that is almost entirely obscured by the armor and the cape. At least when Johnny and his friends lose the accessories, he'll still look like armored Batman. The leg printing is nice and detailed, I guess being a billionaire, he can afford leg printing. The cowl is the older version, which I guess works best for the armored look. It's never been released in this color. The armor seems a little plain. I guess they wanted to have the option to use it for other characters later on, so no bat symbol. It's got 2 attachment points in back. His cape is a simplified version of the Batman cape. Since it doesn't have to wrap around his shoulders, it only has one neck hole. The top 1/3 is covered by the armor. The cape is also the stiffer cloth that I thought they moved away from. His other accessories are a standard stud shooter, a batarang molded in light silver, that cool little grappling hook launcher that's pretty new and a light grey grappling hook. Batman is far and away the star of this set.



FINAL THOUGHTS:
This set is common as dirt and it's cheap. Every little Jimmy is going to easily be able to afford this one or get it as a gift from a well meaning (but cheap) friend or relative. It has a lot of kid appeal, 2 major Super Heroes and a neat little Batsignal. Will future collectors respond to it and need to get this set? I feel like it is bound to do better than the disappointing Metropolis Showdown. The exclusive Batman is bound to see to that.
I don't really feel like this set is going to take any major jumps on the aftermarket. This is definitely the cheapest way to get these 2 iconic heroes, and I fear that it will always be. If you can get a significant discount on this set, it's going to hold value and appeal to people who still want a cheap Bat/Supes set. I'm thinking that the upper limit of this set cannot be above $17.99.
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EXTRA PIECES:
You get an extra silver batarang, which is cool. I know I can't be the only one that has no use for an extra stud shooter trigger. I mean I get so many sets with stud shooters, I have more extras than I can count (mostly because I throw them in a big bin full of all the small extra pieces and try to forget them.)

To differentiate this from the more serious reviews this (and any others like it) will have an "OUTSIDE THE BOX" title.
It seems like not many people really like this set. Reviewers are down on it, prices are down, heck, I didn't even want it for myself. I found one at a price that was too good to pass up, so I thought, why not? Since it's a set that I wasn't super excited about to begin with,I thought that the Rhino and Sandman Super Villain Team-up was perfect for an outside the box review.

REVIEW: SET DETAILS
Set #: 76037
Name: Rhino and Sandman Super Villain Team-up
Theme: Marvel Super Heroes
Parts: 386
Price: $39.99
BOX CONTENTS
Some people may wind up picking up a set that is open box or, want to verify the box contents before beginning a build. For this set, there are 3 numbered baggies, a large Tile, a comic book, a sticker sheet and 2 instruction books.

BUILD AND EXECUTION:
Rhino: All right Spider-Man, time to put your dukes up!
Spidey: Uh, did you forget something? Where's your Rhino suit?

Rhino: I forgot, I got a new one. I need to put it together.
Spidey: Oh, ok. I can wait.

Rhino: The instructions aren't really clear which of these goes on which side. Urgh.
Spidey: What? Did you buy that thing at Ikea?

Rhino: I've got it. This is going better than I expected.
Spidey: Well, just wake me up when you're done.

Rhino: Look, if you want this fight to start sooner, you could help you know.
Spidey: Well, I guess so. After all, I do have a High School science award.

Spidey: You know, all the money you spent on this thing could have been used to go straight.
Rhino: Shut it web-head.

Spidey: I'm just saying, I spend like $35,000 a year on webs and spandex because of you guys, and this elliptical machine must be at least 20X that.
Rhino: I'm gonna enjoy squashing you like a bug. Get it? Bug! Ha ha.
Spidey: Spiders aren't bugs Einstein. 

Spidey: Hey Rhino, you're a sharp one, huh? Sharp as that horn.
Rhino: Shut up!

Spidey: What are those holes in the fingers for?
Rhino: Just these little explosive projectiles.
Spidey: Rhino's shoot missles?  

Rhino: Ok, now I turn the key and press this button and Hang on a sec. Nope, I flip these switches and rotate that knob and . . .
Spidey: Getting bored now.  LATERZ!

Spidey: Man, that guy's dense. Hey, someone's making a sand castle.

Spidey: What kind of castle are you making? Princess, Medieval, Nexo-Knights?
Sandman: Go away bug.
Spidey: Oh come on, spiders aren't bugs.

Spidey: I was going to ask if you wanted me to bury you in the sand, but it looks like you're taking care of that.
Sandman: Leave me alone.

Spidey: I'm not really getting this abstract watcha-ma-call-it. Did Picasso make it?

Spidey: You know,I hate sand. It's coarse and gets everywhere.

Spidey: Hey Mr. Grabby-Hands,  I'm not that kind of date.
Sandman: I told you to go away, now you're going to get it!

Spidey: Hey stop with the shaking! All of my change is coming out of my pockets!

Spidey: Hey look, there's Taylor Swift!
Sandman: Where?
Spidey: I'm outta here.

Iron Spidey: Weird place for a sandbox. Something about it is making my Spidey sense tingle . . . 

Spidey: Is it my day for meeting weirdos? Luckily I got away from that guy.
Iron Spidey: Look, it's getting bigger all by itself. The sensors in my Starktech limbs will tell me more about it.

Spidey: What the, who are you?
Iron Spidey: I'm Spider-Man.
Spidey: Hello me, meet the real me.
Sandman: Now there's 2 of him?

Spidey: I spy with my spidey eye something with a hammer.
Iron Spidey: Is it Hammertime? Get it? Can't touch this - oh-oh oh oh oh-oh-oh.
Sandman: It's about to be.

Spidey: Why do I feel like I forgot something?
Rhino: Hello from the other side!
Spidey: I should have known that Rhino was an Adelle fan.

Iron Spidey: Hey, did you notice that not all of this stuff is sand? How's he do that?
Spidey: Sand-and-other-stuff-man is just way too long to yell in a fight.
Rhino: Hey, where'd he go?

Rhino: Get down here so I can squash you bug!
Spidey: I already told you, Spiders aren't . . . oh never mind.

Iron Spidey: Hey Mr. Grabby hands, I'm not that kind of date.
Spidey: Ha ha, I already said that loser.

REACTION:
I started off unimpressed with this set. I looked at it through the eyes of an adult who wants to display his toys,and not a child that wants to play with them. The entire thing looks like a mess. It's a mishmash of unrelated things that are just supposed to look like Sandman taking over a construction site. The Rhino is entirely disappointing. Why you build him a suit instead of a big figure is beyond me. All of that said, as I played with the set to tell my bizarre little story, I gained some appreciation of all of the play features. They were not designed for me.They were not designed for adults. A kid could have fun with all of the moving parts. But, this set is not for me.
Let's take a look at the minifigures. This is the biggest reason why anyone buys Super Hero sets, so they should be amazing,or spectacular, or even ultimate.
First off, there's Iron Spider(-Man). This guy's unique. I mean red and gold is Iron-Man's thing. Anyway, he's got 4 robotic arms attached to a neck bracket, and I think that's inaccurate. I thought he only had 3 in the comics. I like that his back printing looks like the retracted limbs.
Sandman is boring to look at, but you can't blame LEGO, he's always been boring. He's got a 2 sided head and brown joker hair. The sandy torso and tan limbs show that he's always mid change and sometimes angry.
I didn't think that there was anything they could do to Spider-Man, but they gave him those 2 tone legs. It looks good, but I am bored of getting Spidey figures.
Rhino, well, he's just some dude, Pretty sure he's got a clone head. 2 Sided torso printing doesn't make him look any more like a bigfig.


FINAL THOUGHTS:
There's a lot of tan in this set. People like to buy tan parts for MOCs, I think if you get this set cheaply enough, there's a good demand for the parts. The large tile is the same one used in most UCS sets. Iron Spider is the big draw for this set. So he's sure to appreciate a little bit once this set goes.
I'm stuck thinking about how roundly unpopular this set is. Will it pass into obscurity once it is out of sight, or will people clamor to grab it later on to complete a collection? Not being a fan of this set, I tend to come down on the former. For me, it's a parts set and that's where the value will always lie. If you have a child that likes LEGO and Super Heroes though, this set is a winner for them. Lots of interesting parts, a couple of Spider-Men and some guys for them to beat up. Invest cautiously at steep discounts.
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EXTRA PARTS:
Some people might not include the super jumper in extra parts, but that's not me. I definitely don't think it belongs in the set.

Lego has some nice offerings planned for May including the annual Star Wars "May the 4th" weekend events and products.  If you are unable to visit a Lego retail store, be sure to checkout their website at shop.lego.com .
Some highlights...
Star Wars May the 4th includes a free exclusive minifigure (First Order Stormtrooper) with every Star Wars $50+ purchase   Earn Double VIP Points on selected Star Wars purchases.  A free Force Awakens poster is also available.
New sets : The much 'beloved' UCS Assault on Hoth will be available. Additionally, an exclusive set is planned to be released on May 18th.  According to rumors, it could be the 10253 Creator Expert "Big Ben" set.  This is famous clock at the north end of the Palace of Westminster in London.  The calendar also shows other new sets.
Polybag promos include a Civil War Captain America’s Motorcycle (May 27-30 with a $35+ order).
Events for children include a minifigure swamp, hedgehog build, Elves build, and club meetings. Also, Master Your Force event which involves visiting the store to earn character cards: week of 5/9 for Jango Fett card and 5/23 for Zeb card.
It should also be noted the Disney Collectible Minifigures will be available for purchase. Please review the calendar for more information especially exact dates.


In 2003 LEGO released the Cloud City set 10123. For 13 years, there was no representation of the last third of the Empire Strikes Back. People have been asking for new Cloud City sets in the decade since. When information leaked about the Carbon Freezing Chamber, there was a lot of hope, a lot of speculation, and a lot of fans quivering with excitement. When we saw the pictures of 75137, there was an enormous outcry. How could they take an amazingly iconic set of scenes and chop it down to a half of a set with a goofy action feature?
Well, I was one of the disappointed masses when I saw this set. No Bespin Luke, Leia or Lando. No gantry for a duel. There's not even a torture chamber or a lift arm for the freeze chamber. So, in my review, I'd like to set aside all of my frustrations and disappointments. I'd like to start fresh and view it with eyes unclouded. Let's take a look.

REVIEW: SET DETAILS
Set #: 75137
Name: Carbon-Freezing Chamber
Theme: Star Wars
Parts: 231
Price: $24.99
I recently gave up on the price per piece calculations. You're all smart enough to figure out a rough valuation based on that. I will say that 3 minifigures seems to be pretty standard for this price range. I'll discuss them later.
BOX CONTENTS
Some people may wind up picking up a set that is open box or, want to verify the box contents before beginning a build. For this set, there are 2 numbered baggies and an instruction book.

BUILD AND EXECUTION:
BAG 1: 
It's hard to tell at first what you are building. this is a guide for the main play feature of this set. Note the tiles that allow it to slide properly.

The play feature takes shape with a hinged axle. This allows for a different axis of movement.

You build up the wall to support the rest of the structure and complete the entire play feature here. when you pull on the pin, it rotates down, and you can turn the axle to allow it to rotate. At the end of the review, I'll show it in action.

We begin to create the greater structure. Throwing up walls to hide the armature and other structures of the play feature.

Here, you begin to create a deck platform to hold your characters.

Here, you are creating a play feature. It's supposed to be a prison bed that you can put Han on. At least I think so. It might be a place to hide a minifigure.

You snap the hide-a-bed onto the hinge on the left and cover it up with a wall panel.

You add a bunch of decoration here. It's actually starting to come together fairly successfully.

You add one more partial segment to the right side and throw some tiles on to clean up the edges.

Here you can see that the outer part of the structure is fairly plain, but obviously better than the inside. The problem is, to utilize the play feature of the raising and lowering bed, you have to look at this side. Without more of a jail cell, I can't imagine utilizing the bed though.

BAG 2: 
You start by making a lift. The lift pops into the slot on the pre-existing structure.

You build around the armature so that you can have a track to raise and lower the lift. The armature even has a swinging arm with ball to "lock" it into place. Notice in the background that there is also a control panel.

The next thing that you build is a rather impressive looking staircase. You utilize 2 stair pieces and a bunch of tiles. My biggest problem with it is that it's inaccurate. As far as I can recall, there weren't any stairs leading down from the deck, they all went up.

The last thing that you build is a mounting bracket for the Carbonite block. It's not really anything special, just a way to keep it upright. It snaps onto the pivoting table.

So, I am not a fan of play features in general. This one in specific takes up far too much space since it has to go out as well as down. The action is smooth, but it's not nearly as discreet as it should be. If it were me, I'd make an elevator with a turntable.

REACTION:
I actually wound up liking this set better than I expected to. It was a fun little build. I'm actually not overly impressed with the character selection. I've already got Boba Fett and Carbonite Han. I can understand why they used Boba, and this was one of the most dramatic and visually interesting parts of the film. I'd love to try to figure out for myself how to MOD it into a playset that I actually want to display. I don't care about the action features, even though I again understand the need to make it playable for all of the kids that want a playset based on a 35 year old movie.
The minifigures are interesting. Boba and Han are pretty similar to but not quite the same as 75060 UCS Slave I Boba's torso is new and Han has dark brown instead of reddish brown pants. The Ugnaught is the only fully unique character in the set. We've never gotten an Ugnaught in LEGO form before. He really does tie together any Bespin Freeze Chamber scene. I don't knowwhy they spent the effort to print Boba's back with all the stuff he wears. It does look pretty good though.
The Ugnaught is excellent. He's probably not going to be worth a ton, but like the Jawa and the Ewoks (until they got released in more sets) he'll have value. People will be making MODs of this set or MOCs for years to come and want more than one. I just wish we could get a little variation.



FINAL THOUGHTS:
Small sets with hero figures seem to be popular. Playsets seem to be less popular. This set will be dependent on a few things. Ugnaught is the first thing to take into consideration. He's a new character that collectors would need multiples of if hey are making a larger scene. The species has been used in the Rebels cartoon, so may see a refresh in a later set. Boba Fett is enduringly popular and Han Solo as a main will attract attention. However I feel like this is the least popular version of Han. 9496 was another small, cheap set with Boba Fett and another main character. Since its retirement, it has done reasonably. People who bought it at retail experienced an increase of about 80% and many bought it for less than retail.
This set will see sales. It is inevitable that we'll see it for at least 19.99 for a segment of its life. I fear that more Boba Fett sets will come along causing the main impetus for this set to diminish. So, we'll be banking on a disappointing Bespin set and an Ugnaught to drive future sales of this set. If another Bespin set comes along that can be paired with this one, we'll see a lot of aftermarket demand. I doubt that will happen though. Modest gains will probably be made, but not as much as a vehicle.
EXTRA PIECES:
You get an entire bag of extra viewfinders. I wonder why LEGO decides to do a baggie full for one figure, but it's standard.

I love Captain America. For over twenty years, if you asked me who my favorite super hero was, I'd tell you Cap. When Ed Brubaker introduced Winter Soldier it blew my mind, I loved Bucky as a character, which is something I never had done before. LEGO's Black Panther Pursuit has both of these characters. I was ecstatic when I heard about it. 
There's something that people probably know about Super Heroes sets. Invariably they will contain some kind of plane, motorcycle, truck, or helicopter. In this review, we'll look at which of these is contained within, and how successful it is.

 
REVIEW: SET DETAILS
Set #: 76047
Name: Black Panther Pursuit
Theme: Marvel Super Heroes
Parts: 287
Price: $29.99
I am officially giving up on the price per piece. You're all smart enough to figure out a rough valuation based on that. I will say that 3 minifigures seems to be pretty standard for this price range. I'll discuss them later.
BOX CONTENTS
Some people may wind up picking up a set that is open box or, want to verify the box contents before beginning a build. For this set, there are 3 numbered baggies, an instruction book, a comic book and a sheet of stickers.

BUILD AND EXECUTION:
BAG 1: So, we're going to start building Captain America's jeep/truck thing. Of course there's a bracket on one end to hold a tile for a license plate.

Construction is fairly standard so far. I don't know how you could really innovate a truck/jeep thingy to make it more interesting.

I don't understand the "Taskforce" sticker. I guess it's because SHIELD is sort of disbanded or something. I'd rather some symbol or something instead of "TASKFORCE." Maybe it makes sense after we see the movie. I doubt it though.Heavy uses of blue so that you know it belongs to Captain America.

Add a spring missile launcher and a couple hinges. The hinges are interesting in their placement.

So, you build out a grill on the front with another license plate tile.

The railing makes an interesting window shape. The hinges allow you to cant the window, and you build some side view "mirrors." The black bar 1x4x2 can flip down to act as a battering ram. I don't know if that's intentional, but it's what I thought of first.

Add wheels and shove the spring missile in. That spring missile makes this vehicle a one seater. I guess you could throw people in back. Maybe I shouldn't have given Cap his angry yelling face.

BAG 2: Time to start building the plane. Honestly, it almost looks like a boat. I forgot that boats are also somewhat common in super hero sets.

So, our boatplane is taking shape, including 2 stud shooters and a sticker control panel. A note on colors. I like the use of purple in this set to offset the black. I just don't understand the lime green. Just because Joker sets require purple and green, but Joker's pretty far from this one.

Time to cover over most of that green. There's a hint here that we're not going to finish the wings in this bag. Only one wedge piece. I like the Dark blue tiles with jumpers. The hinges pointing sideways interested me. I like to speculate what we're going to do without looking back at the picture.

You build your first wing. I loved that the hinges created a way to hang the wing at a different angle.

The nose of the plane looks good  The wing sits in an interesting way. More stickers to potentially mess up.

So, the hinges give you a way to change the shape of the fuselage.

Bag 3: You start by making Winter Soldier and his motorcycle. Sort of strange considering that the plane is still only 2/3 done. The motorcycle is completely standard, not even an attachment point for his gun.

Create a mirror image of the wing and attach it the same way. Look, an orange tile for no reason.

Cover up the attachment points and the tile with more black and purple. It's still very pleasing to see this combo.  Quick fact, I think that the purple is supposed to represent the Vibranium that gives Wakanda their technological and financial edge.

More lime green. I think it's supposed to represent the thrusters. It's a very understated propulsion system. I can totally appreciate that, in this case, less is more. Add some black slopes for more shaping.

Finish the tail, snap on the 6x2 wedge and the cockpit canopy, and you're almost done. Don't forget the fire extinguisher that many Super Hero sets have to have. Why do we have to have a fire extinguisher? Well, Super Heroes blow a lot of stuff up.

REACTION:
Well, the jeep is lame. There's no getting past that. It's dull. It's standard. If it were the main vehicle in the set, I'd be heartily disappointed. As it is, I can't decide whether I should see if I can throw it farther than Crossbones' Hazard Heist, or just smash them together as hard as I can. For now, I'll just stick them on the back of a shelf. Winter Soldier's motorcycle is standard. Nothing special, nothing bad. It can be used for anyone. Throw it in a bin and forget about it.
Black Panther's jet is wonderful to look at and interesting to build. My problem is that it's just another jet. It's just filler for a set that contains 3 minifigures that I wanted. I don't mind it, but I don't crave it. It's the curse of Super Hero sets. There's very few iconic vehicles that don't have Bat as part of their descriptor. Does Black Panther fly a black and purple jet in the upcoming movie? I really hope so. Otherwise, Pantherplane is going into a box.

The minifigures are fantastic. For someone with my budget, unmasked Steve Rogers was a no go. A loose one would cost almost as much as this set. To protect the value of the Helicarrier Captain America, this one has different hair and head. He really should have a less red hairpiece. Despite the hair color, I love this figure. It's what I wanted since the first Captain America minifigure. The body printing is the same as all of the AOU Caps. Because of the head and hair, this Captain America is unique. His head is 2 sided, a smirk and an angry yell.
Winter Soldier is entirely different from the polybag version. I LOVED the polybag version. This version is awesome too. Disappointing that he doesn't have a holster or a knife or something printed on his legs. His arm printing is great. The Russian star is worn and scraped, whether due to damage or an attempt to remove it, who knows? But they printed it to look like it's partially missing. This exact Winter Soldier is also available in 76051 Super Hero Airport Battle. His head is dual sided and is shared with Owen from Jurrassic World and Star-Lord from Guardians of the Galaxy. Does that mean that Winter Soldier is secretly Chris Pratt?
Black Panther rounds out the set. He's a unique minifigure. He has a unique headpiece. I like the "tooth necklace" mixed in with the angular armor deco on his torso. Dual sided printing on torso and head sort of point up how plain his arms and legs are. I really feel like he should have a set of claws like Wolverine. All of that said, I didn't buy this set specifically for Black Panther. He's more an extra afterthought to me. For me, he serves exactly the purpose I need him to. I'm not disappointed in him really.
All in all, not a bad set. I would have liked something more interesting for the truck/jeep and/or the motorcycle, but the jet is nice. Speaking of those 3 vehicles, you remember when I said that the hallmark of a LEGO Super Heroes set is that it has either a truck, a motorcycle, a plane or a helicopter? Well, this set almost completely proves my rules. I love it when I can sort of make up a rule and prove it with the thing I am currently working on.



FINAL THOUGHTS:
Super Hero sets are almost entirely driven by the minifigures. The only unique character in this set is Black Panther. Black Panther is not really popular enough to drive aftermarket price. He'll probably hold value, but he's not going to increase it. The Captain America will add some value, especially since the Helicarrier is so expensive in comparison to this one. If the plane is used in the upcoming film, and if Black Panther isn't refreshed, this set could gain moderately well. If the vehicle is not used, well, it'll gain somewhat slowly. Use caution when investing, as with all Super Heroes sets.
EXTRA PIECES:
you get a handful of common extra pieces including Black Panther's headpiece.

The Brickpicker Brick Index was updated recently. This index gives an indication of the movement in value of each set based upon the previous 6 months of sales data from Ebay.
You can review the sets by theme if you like, but @Jeff Mack has accumulated the top 20 performers for the last 6 months on the landing page. I'd like to take a look at the data and see what it tells us. First, let's take a look at the data that is presented. Each set is ranked by what percentage of value it has increased in the past 6 months. There's a handy graph of that period of time showing a whole dollar value on the Y Axis and months expressed numerically on the X.
A cursory overview of the data shows us that this table is very heavily weighted towards Star Wars. 75% (15) of the top 20 are Star Wars sets. 10% (2) are Super Heroes and LEGO Movie, Ninjago, and Creator each make a single entry to close out the remaining 15%. Does this mean that Star Wars is the only way to go to ensure maximum profits? Let's take a look. Data without analysis can lead to bad decisions.
The biggest earner in the list is 75048 The Phantom. With a monstrous 128+% increase in the past 6 months, it came out swinging. Original retail on this set was $24.99. For many months, it was available at Amazon/Target/Wal-Mart for $19.99. Current price guide value is $46.73. This set is a prominent part of the Star Wars Rebels IP and has one popular character who is only found in this set.
Rank #1
75048-1 The Phantom
  128.84%
Next on our list is a set that was looked down upon for most of its retail shelf life. It lived with an almost permanent discount of $19.99 from a $24.99 retail. Now it lives in the $41+ zone. I think a lot of people put off buying this set always assuming that there would be another time and time ran out. You get an interesting vehicle from a pivotal scene in Revenge of the Sith with 2 hero minifigures. Both of the figures are unique to this set and the Grievous alone is selling for almost the MSRP of this set.
Rank #2
75040-1 General Grievous' Wheel Bike
  115.83%
In a race to the finish between 75054 and 75055, the AT-AT 75054 sold out first. For a time, you could get a slight discount. Within days of selling out at retail it was already selling at 50%-60% above the retail of $99.99. It's now struggling to reach $200, which most expect to happen by summer.
Rank #3
75054-1 AT-AT
  98.18%
Number 4 on our list is the 75038 Jedi Interceptor. This one has 2 hero minifigures in the form of Anakin Skywalker and the updated R2-D2 minifigure. It originally retailed for $24.99 and seems to have been selling for that amount up through retirement. It's now selling in the $48 range. The only reason that it doesn't outrank the similarly priced 75040 and 75048 is because it sold better at retail and was not as discounted. (75135 is bound to drive the price of this set up as people try to complete their hero pairs.)
Rank #4
75038-1 Jedi Interceptor
  96.05%
The Ant-Man Final battle is the first non Star Wars set on our list. This set went under a lot of radars, Within 6 months of release, it was done. It started life with production problems and disappeared without a whisper. The growth of this set is probably not done. Limited production, continued media support for the character, and no forthcoming reissues will keep driving buyers to this set.
Rank #5
76039-1 Ant-Man Final Battle
  95.72%
There's a saying that a rising tide raises all boats. The interesting thing about this set is that since it was already rare and had retired almost 2 years ago. It's value was already much higher than the $9.99 retail price of the set. The movie hype in December appears to have nearly doubled the price again. That tide raised the high as well as the low.
Rank #6
75011-1 Tantive IV & Alderaan
  95.13%
As mentioned previously, the Imperial Star Destroyer 75055 barely lost the race for sold out to the AT-AT 75054. It had a higher price to begin with and also lived with a semi-permanent discount. It is competing neck and neck with the AT-AT on the race to $200. The only reason that the AT-AT is higher on the list is because it started at a lower MSRP. Both of these large vehicles are on the same trajectory, and the Star Destroyer is less likely to be remade as soon.
Rank #7
75055-1 Imperial Star Destroyer
  85.75%
Number 8 is yet another recently retired Star Wars set. The Snowspeeder 75049 was a $29.99 set that could frequently be found with a $5 discount. When it and the AT-AT retired at the same time, demand for one increased demand for the other. Demand has lifted this set up to the $50 range, even with another Snowspeeder soon to be available in the Assault on Hoth set. If another AT-AT returns to shelves without this corresponding vehicle, look for it to return to this list.
Rank #8
75049-1 Snowspeeder
  85.17%
The Microfighters Millennium Falcon was existing somewhat above retail. A lot of people had been dismissive of the entire Microfighters line, but the first series gained some traction. The Millennium Falcon had the distinction of having a hero minifigure and it is the most iconic vehicle in the series. When the Force Awakens was released, people on a budget looked for an alternative to a $150 set. Demand pushed the value up, and will probably maintain the price for a while to come. Kids and fans have come to accept and enjoy the aesthetic.
Rank #9
75030-1 Millennium Falcon
  79.09%
Halfway through the list, we come to a set that surprised many. It's a large exclusive that only really fits in with an unprofitable theme. Not a lot of people were buying this set. Anyone who wanted it put it off because there would always be time later. Large exclusives tend to have a certain cache. The question that remains is, is this increase sustainable? By all accounts it is a fun build. People who want something unique will migrate to this set.
Rank #10
70810-1 MetalBeard's Sea Cow
  73.37%
Wait, a Ninjago set made the list? Did the poles reverse themselves? Are we in the end of days? is Ronin's R.E.X. a sign that everything we know is wrong? Well, probably not. This set is still widely available at retail, so there's no reason for it to sell above retail, and it doesn't. This set made the list because sales were bad.It sold for roughly 40% of retail price and has increased to about 80% of retail in the ebay marketplace. Anyone contemplating buying this set at retail might as well hand $10 to a stranger and walk away.
Rank #11
70735-1 Ronin R.E.X.
  72.48%
The ARC-170 fighter had a short life. It lived on shelves for less than a year. It sold many times for below retail. It was part of the second series and came from the less popular prequel trilogy. It had a lot of things against it, which probably led to less production and less hoarding. It seems like Microfighters are the little engine that could on this list. Frequently overlooked and underestimated. Could this be a sign that the Star Wars Constraction figures will surprise many?
Rank #12
75072-1 ARC-170 Starfighter
  68.80%
Next up, we have a Star Wars playset. The smart money says that playsets don't do as well as ships. Well, that's partially true. Look at all of the other recently retired ships that outpaced this one in % increase. The Mos Eisley Cantina was also selling below retail before retirement (Noticing a distinct trend here.) When it retired, it jumped up above retail and continued to increase. This set has a large number of minifigures (8) with a bigfig creature and a small vehicle. It truly is a nice set, and will likely capture buyers for years unless they make another cantina set.
Rank #13
75052-1 Mos Eisley Cantina
  67.39%
Number 14 on our list is the second Super Heroes set, DC's Batboat Harbor Pursuit. A 66% gain sounds like a good thing. There's some problems with the appearance of this set on our list. This set was released at the same time as Ant-Man's final battle, so is this another early EOL that jumped up big? Nope. This set is currently available at retail. For a long time, sellers on Ebay were selling it for significantly below retail. The jump in value can be attributed to it now selling for almost retail. Is this an indication of post EOL performance? It's unlikely, unless you assume that it will sell for close to retail after it retires.
Rank #14
76034-1 Batboat Harbor Pursuit
  66.25%
3/4 of the way through our list we have the Ghost. This is the single most used vehicle in Star Wars Rebels. This set was easily found on Ebay for a significant discount from retail. It was unpopular with resellers and suffered from not being a set from a live action Star Wars movie. Despite the fact that it had an average length shelf life, its retirement seemed to catch people off guard. With continued support in media, this set should continue to show growth, but it's unlikely to have the significant gain that it received just returning to MSRP.
Rank #15
75053-1 The Ghost
  63.85%
The droid gunship honestly surprised me when I saw it on this list. Sure, it's recently retired, sure it's Star Wars, but it's a non-hero vehicle from a minor scene in the prequel trilogy. Looking at the data, it seems that this set took a significant dip from retail, and all of its gains were just to put it back on an even footing with its original MSRP. 
Rank #16
75042-1 Droid Gunship
  62.88%
Number 17 is an anomaly. Not because of how poorly it was doing before, but because it was a set that had already increased since it retired a year ago. When this Target exclusive set retired in Dec. 2014 it had a retail price tag of $39.99. A year later it was hovering in the $60 range before receiving another boost above $90. In this case instead of the rising tide saw, let's consider the words of Walt Disney "Quality will out." As collectors scoop up 75135 and 75038, they'll remember this one and realize that it's probably not getting a refresh anytime soon. Is it on track to match 7661? Hard to tell, but if the clones taught us anything, fans seem to like a rainbow of the same thing.
Rank #17
9494-1 Anakin's Jedi Interceptor
  60.11%
Approaching the end, 90% of the way through, we find a battle pack. Battle packs are cheap, small, easy to store and frequently found on clearance. This battle pack has the virtue of being composed of screen accurate Original Trilogy troopers. It was the strongest contender of the recently retired battle packs for future growth and it found it. It's the same story though. The starting position of this set was ~20% below retail. Many will have gotten this set from the Wal-Mart clearances, so will realize even better returns than shown here.
Rank #18
75034-1 Death Star Troopers
  58.82%
Number 19 on our list is a true representative of the rising tide theory. This set retired 2 years ago. It languished below retail since it retired until the Force Awakens came along and propped it up. Instead of being somewhere around $5 below retail, it gained $15 above retail. Honestly, not the performance vector that anyone should be looking for. It's a 2 year hold time to gain an actual ~35%.
Rank #19
75017-1 Duel on Geonosis
  58.17%
Our final entry on the list is also not Star Wars. The Creator 3 in 1 Mountain Hut quietly retired without fanfare. The data indicates that its value dipped 25% below retail in the late summer and stayed there all fall long. Post EOL it has recovered the loss and added 20% to its value. I looked at some of the other recently retired Creator 3 in 1 sets and saw a similar trajectory. A low increase in value, but it was there.
Rank #20
31025-1 Mountain Hut
  57.60%
Looking at this list, we see a lot of Star Wars sets that retired a short time ago. Their initial post EOL bump was probably accelerated by the release of The Force Awakens. Many of these sets were living below retail before they retired. It's easy to make significant gains when the first gain that a set makes is to get back to its original MSRP. 10-25% value jump when it disappears from Amazon or Wal-Mart would be standard. We're not even taking into account the significant clearance reductions on most of these sets. I am not discounting the money that was and is to be made on these sets. People buying at discount cleared and are poised to receive greater profits.
Before I end here, I'd like to give a special nod of the head and tip of the cap to the set that's 91% more influential than Kanye West. For folks who are wondering where their favorite Tumbler falls, I found it in the DC Super Heroes theme in second place behind Batboat Harbor Pursuit. Since this set never really got discounted, that's where the starting value falls and it has since increased by over 50%. I guess it's time to start telling everyone how right you were to buy these at the last minute.
 
76023-1 The Tumbler
  52.32%
In the final analysis, what does all of this tell us? The status is actually quo. Good sets from a popular series that retire will increase. Rare sets and exclusives will increase, and things that routinely sell for significantly below retail will sometimes sell for retail. Most of the sets on the list were not exclusives, and the biggest exclusive retirements were not the largest % gainers. The trajectory of the Sea Cow and the Tumbler are good, but not worrisome as far as the rise of the proverbial bubble. (Does anyone remember pogs or those worthless Billy Ripken f*ck face cards doubling and redoubling in value so quickly?)
It will be interesting to see in a couple months what the largest increases are. I'd also love to see what the biggest losers for the same timeframe is. I bet it would be the newest things released.
Issue 18 of Blocks Magazine is now with subscribers and on shelves nationwide in the UK. This month, we celebrate all things Batman v Superman, with an exclusive series of builds, reviews of the new sets and the lowdown on how to create the perfect Dark Knight Tumbler.
Elsewhere, MOD Squad member Daniel Konstanski shows us how you can improve your Carbon Freezing Chamber, while we catch up with the Brick to the Past team and find out whether TT Games’ latest effort is worth your time.
There’s much more besides, including reviews of the latest Frozen sets and a behind-the-scenes look at David Pickard’s Blacktron project. It’s all topped off with an exclusive interview with LEGO artist Nathan Sawaya on his DC Comics exhibition.
Get your copy now in the UK, and why not subscribe to get future copies early and enter monthly free prize draws? See www.blocksmag.com for more details.

I read Captain America comics for at least 20 years. Crossbones was an interesting character to me, a nutcase that idolized Red Skull. With the small number of villains that are not related to Spider-Man in some way, I doubted I'd see him anytime soon. LEGO threw me a curveball with Crossbones Hazard Heist and delivered Crossbones. I felt a lack when LEGO did nothing for Captain America: the Winter Soldier. We didn't get movie Falcon or Winter Soldier 2 years ago. They've made up for that somewhat with other releases. I'm excited to review 76050. I'm excited to get some much needed characters not named Iron-Man, Captain America or Spider-Man.

REVIEW: SET DETAILS
Set #: 76050
Name: Crossbones' Hazard Heist
Theme: Marvel Super Heroes
Parts: 179
Price: $19.99
Before we get to the build, let’s talk value. At 19.99 the price per piece works out to more than $.11 each. I'm really beginning to suspect that I should not focus on the 3P equation. They're pretty much always between $.09 and $.12. There are 3 minifigures. The minifigures are MCU Falcon, Black Widow and Crossbones. Widow Black Widow is the same one used in 2 other sets, the others are unique.
BOX CONTENTS
Some people may wind up picking up a set that is open box or, want to verify the box contents before beginning a build. For this set, there are 2 numbered baggies, a sticker sheet, a comic book, and an instruction book.

BUILD AND EXECUTION:
BAG 1: Apart from the minifigures, the first thing that you build is a little Drone that you can attach to Falcon's back. The drone is most likely the MCU version of Falcon's pet/partner Redbird. It makes sense to have a robotic version instead of having Falcon develop some kind of bird telepathy. But, I digress, that's movie talk, not LEGO talk. As you can see, the drone is enormous compared to the minifigure. It's got a "foot" to prevent Falcon from being overbalanced.

Next, we build a motorcycle. If you've ever built a LEGO motorcycle, then you know what it's like. If memory serves, Nightwing's motorcycle in 7785 Arkham Asylum had slots for both sticks. Too bad Black Widow's motorcycle doesn't. So she'll have to drive with one in her hand. I'm sure that's safe.

Uhm, random rocket launcher turret thingy? It's got 2 stud shooters that point way off to the side. It seems entirely inefficient. It's more a fixed gun emplacement.

To round out bag one, we've got a couple hazardous material boxes. This is the strangest cross section of stuff. There's not a lot of cohesion, just a handful of minibuilds.

BAG 2: I opened this bag with some trepidation. The previous bag was a strange enough conglomeration that this truck would almost have to be better. So, you start with a sort of boat looking base and add wheel mountings.

Obviously, something is either going to be flung from or blown off the back of the truck. That's an old standby for Super Hero sets.

The color choices are interesting to me. I would have expected all black or something to look industrial. The various browns and greens look organic. Sort of woody or dirty. I don't know how to describe it.

Ah, the first of many stickers for the truck. Most of the stickers show various damage. The random colors might make sense from a ramshackle junk pile that's more damage than truck.

More stickers including the crossbones. The shape is coming together. It looks terrible. Can I say that at this point of the build? I'm not done yet, and I'm making a judgement? Well, we'll see.

Strange choice to use the railing instead of a larger windshield. The top of this thing has some modular technique. Plus, there's a random gun.

Mismatched wheels finalize the build. There's a green suitcase with a hazard logo and transparent tile.

Crossbones has a flame thrower and a gas mask. The truck looks ugly, but I think it is supposed to.

REACTION:
So, the random junk in bag 1 snaps onto the truck. The boxes are what blows off the back of the truck. Put the suitcase inside of them. As much as I like having the minifigures, I dislike the set that they came with. I'm disappointed that Falcon is light grey instead of black. Maybe I wasn't paying attention and he wears a light outfit in the upcoming movie.

The new figures have no leg printing or arm printing. Widow has plenty of printing, but all of the paint apps were already programmed a year ago. The deco that does exist on Falcon and Crossbones looks pretty good. The use of the new hairpiece from Finn is cool. This is the cheapest set to get that part in. Also interesting use of Batman's Grapple gun. 


FINAL THOUGHTS:
The first thing to note is that this is the cheapest set with a Black Widow minifigure. Collectors might already have her, but future collectors might flock to a set with a cheaper Widow and 2 unique minifigures. No one is coming after the build. Minifigures drive Super Hero sets, and this is no different. If these minifigures show up in other sets, kiss the future value goodbye. If LEGO dumps a ton of them on the retailers, forget it. Neither Falcon or Crossbones is incredibly popular like Deadpool, but hopefully it has some cache due to the unlikeliness of this set existing in the first place. I would hope for it to be another Ant-Man instead of a Arctic Batman Vs. Mr Freeze or Superman Vs. Power Armor Lex.
Keep an eye peeled for an early, quiet exit for this set. I don't think it will have mass appeal, so it might be one of those sets that LEGO just "forgets" to refresh. I don't think a lot of investors pay attention to the cheap sets. Speculators hope for another Deadpool set, but there's too many sets to buy all the cheap ones that might do well.
EXTRA PIECES:
You get an extra gas mask as well as grey lightsaber handle. A handful of studs make up the majority of spare parts.

If you read my Rebel Alliance Battle pack review, then you know I was relentlessly negative and joyless from the outset. I am going to try to make the Galactic Empire Battle Pack review a little more entertaining. So, hopefully, even if this set is a disappointment, at least the review won't be. Besides, how disappointing can a LEGO set be? Welcome to LEGO STAR WARS 75134: THE EMPIRE STRIKES NEXT

REVIEW: SET DETAILS
Set #: 75134
Name: Galactic Empire Battle Pack
Theme: Star Wars
Parts: 109
Price: $12.99
Before we get to the build, let’s talk value. At 12.99 the price per piece works out to almost $.12 each. This is on the high side of pricing for a licensed set. There are 4 minifigures. The minifigures are 2 Jetpack Stormtroopers (with enough blaster marks that they must actually be dead), 1 Imperial Technician, and a Shocktrooper Stormtrooper. All 4 are unique to this set (except the jumptrooper who is not unique by the virtue of there being 2.)
BOX CONTENTS
Some people may wind up picking up a set that is open box or, want to verify the box contents before beginning a build. For this set, there are 2 unnumbered baggies and an instruction book.

BUILD AND EXECUTION:
The Empire wants to hold this dismal corner of this dismal planet, so they have sent 4 of their best and brightest unnamed troopers. Yup, these 4 unsung heroes of the Empire are definitely on the fast track, as soon as they pull themselves together.

The Empire is all about organization and working efficiently. Apparently these fellows didn't get the memo, so their work area is a disaster. At least they are working together.

On over a thousand planets, a similar scene is taking place today. The Empire is going to protect your home from the Rebels, even if it kills you.

Social programs and welfare can wait until the Empire crushes the insurgents. These dedicated soldiers will make sure that their weapons are ready to defend your freedom to starve for the glorious  Empire.

Don't get to close, this equipment is heavy and dangerous, especially to potential Rebel spies. Which you probably are.

Who said that Stormtroopers couldn't build anything? They are very efficient at building their equipment.

The technician makes sure that his control area is set up correctly.

Just wait right there, we'll have the weapon up and running shortly, and we'll give you a firsthand demonstration.

Now, just hold it right there. If you move even a little, we might miss.

REACTION:
Well, a Battle Pack is a Battle Pack. These things are never terribly interesting. It's a small build with a lot of pieces used for the minifigures and their accessories themselves. out of 109 pieces, we use 24 for the 4 minifigures, 8 for the guns and 12 for their ammo. This leaves just over 60 pieces for a mediocre gun platform. I'd probably be more enthusiastic if I liked the minifigures, but I'm not really a fan of EU. The Shocktrooper stinks of pandering, and the Jumptroopers would have been nicer if there weren't multiple holes in their torsos, making them dead jumptroopers.


FINAL THOUGHTS:
People like Stormtroopers. I like Stormtroopers too. I just don't like non-movie Stormtroopers. I don't think that they do well in the aftermarket unless they are incredibly limited. These guys are everywhere and will continue to be for the next year. I expect to find these on clearance and debate picking any up. Battle Packs don't excite me, EU Battlepacks even less so. Maybe they're your bread and butter, maybe you make a good return on them, but I see the margins on these not being wirth the time or effort.
EXTRA PIECES:
As you can see, lots of extra studs for the stud shooters. Also an extra printed piece for the jetpack and a spring missile.

 
The Rebel Alliance Battle Pack is not based on anything in the Star Wars films. It's a set of expanded universe figures based upon the game Battlefront. I'm generally hesitant about battle packs, the builds are an after thought to the minifigures. The builds are forgettable and look generally like nothing you'd like to have as part of your display. I'm even more hesitant to build a Star Wars set without anything canon. LEGO has given us more of the same. In my review of 75133, we'll see if it's not just that. Hopefully it's something truly interesting.

REVIEW: SET DETAILS
Set #: 75133
Name: Rebel Alliance battle Pack
Theme: Star Wars
Parts: 101
Price: $12.99
Before we get to the build, let’s talk value. At 12.99 the price per piece works out to more than $.12 each. This is on the higher side of pricing for a licensed set. There are 4 minifigures in this set, all unique.
BOX CONTENTS
Some people may wind up picking up a set that is open box or, want to verify the box contents before beginning a build. For this set, there are 2 unnumbered baggies and an instruction book.

Speaking of boxes, did you know that these glue sealed boxes have a date stamp on the bottom? This set has a stamp of 50R5. It's strange to me that it took so long for me to realize it.

BUILD AND EXECUTION
I hope that people are amused enough by watching minifigures building sets that they like these pictures. My 6 year old thinks that this type of stuff is really funny.

It's been years since I built a speederbike, but it turns out, it's kind of exactly like I remember.

These guys work well together and don't separate by species, so yay for the Rebellion. We're all inclusive here.

Let me take a moment as an aside about the number of parts in this set. 101 parts sounds like an adequate size for a small vehicle, right? Well, 101 pieces includes the 4 minifigures and all of their accessories. Between the minifigures, jetpacks, stud shooters and ammo, we subtract 37 pieces. More than 1/3 of the set is already X'ed off.

Several 2x4 tile pieces are a welcome addition for folks who part these things out.

The body of the speeder is really coming together. Goggle helmet is checking the underside.

I was curious about the plate with the axle pieces.

I like the flat silver lances. They're in a lot of fairly new sets, but I think Castle fans will want them. 

You build some controller rods out of battle droid arms, they actually look nice. Another stud shooter on the back. I really don't like stud shooters.

All done, time to ride.

REACTION
I got this set hoping that the novelty of unnamed alien Rebel troopers would be enough to make me interested. Unfortunately it really wasn't. The printing is well done, but dull to look at. It's basically just the Endor trooper print done on tan. Ugh, tan does nothing to make people interested. The mix and match torsos and legs give the illusion of uniqueness. The 2 person speeder was uninteresting. I could see it showing up in the background of someone's display. It would be more of an afterthought I think. I did like the use of the A-Wing pilot helmet. I just wish that I could have liked this more. As far as it goes, I'm just going to dump all of these guys on ebay and get my money back. The speeder's not even worth throwing on ebay so will be disassembled for parts. I should know by now that battle packs are great for cheap gifts, not for collecting. If they wanted some species diversity, they could have thrown in a Twi'Lek or a mon calamari. Maybe a future battle pack will have those.


FINAL THOUGHTS
Battle Packs have their place in the universe of Star Wars LEGO sets. They're cheap, you get a bunch of minifigures, and they are easily found. Grandparents, parents, and friends love giving these little sets as presents. 4 army builders usually work well for collectors. The big problem is that unlike 75131 and 75132, this set is not full of characters from a movie or even from a cartoon. These are Expanded Universe figures and that means that they are going to be lowest rung of the collector's ladder.
I expect to see a good number of these on clearance when the time comes. I do not anticipate them to become very sought after long term. If they double in value before they get to 3 years post EOL, I'd be surprised.
Pick up one on Amazon
EXTRA PIECES
You get an extra 1x1 printed tile from the back of the jetpack. The extra studs from the stud shooters belong here, even though they are a part of the official piece count. Extra goggles and a black mechanical arm are the only other pieces of real note.

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