The Hobbit sets now at TRU

[BuckeyeFanDan]

Some of The Hobbit sets were at my local TRU today (the 26th). I was surprised to see them because I thought tomorrow was the official first day for them. They had An Unexpected Gathering (79003)($79.99); Attack of the Wargs (79002)($59.99); and The Goblin King Battle (79010)($119.99). Even though the prices were above MSRP they were having a BOGO 50% on most LEGO and I believe these were included. They also had Gandalf the Grey polybags for $3.99.

[Ed Mack]

Thanks for the info. If these sets are anything like the LOTR sets, patience is a virtue. The LOTR sets underwhelmed me and I think there is a lack of interest in the sets from most LEGO fans. If you look at the theme CAGR, these sets are near the bottom. Wait for the discounts on these sets.

[Formula]

Thanks for the info. If these sets are anything like the LOTR sets, patience is a virtue. The LOTR sets underwhelmed me and I think there is a lack of interest in the sets from most LEGO fans. If you look at the theme CAGR, these sets are near the bottom. Wait for the discounts on these sets.

Correct me if I'm wrong, but seeing as there hasn't yet been a single set discontinued would you really expect the growth to be very high?

[Talon]

I got 3 $5 TRU coupons in the mail yesterday, got one stackable 10% off coupon in an email. Bought one groupon TRU $20 coupon online for $10. I then went back to TRU today and repurchased all the Hobbit sets I bought yesterday (and more as they now had two more sets) and returned the ones I bought yesterday! It was the last day of their buy one get one 50% off sale. So, with all that I almost got a good deal from TRU! LOL Now I can't wait to see the movie!

[Ed Mack]

Correct me if I'm wrong, but seeing as there hasn't yet been a single set discontinued would you really expect the growth to be very high? LOL...Logic says LEGO sets still available at retail should still sell at retail, if not below from discounts. Well, for some themes like Monster Hunters, Ninjago and Friends, non-EOL sets are selling for more than retail on EBAY...some by quite a bit.

I am not saying the LOTR sets will be awful investments, just that the current data shows a lack of interest and the deep and constant discounts on those sets kind of back my point. I expect growth in these sets, but there is not one set I just gotta have...not one. Believe me, I have all the LOTR sets and would like to see it do well, I just don't know if they will. The sets are rather uninteresting to me.

[TheOrcKing]

I think all of the LORD OF THE RINGS and THE HOBBIT sets will be worth something down the road.

There is a lot more going for these sets than what PIRATES OF THE CARIBBEAN had.

Just wait a few years, you'll see.

On a related note, yesterday I found that my nearby Walmart had all sets but "The Goblin King Battle" & "The Barrel Escape" on some end cap in the middle of an aisle quite a distance from their LEGO aisle. (Who's the dummy that thought this was actually a good idea?) I snagged the smallest "Riddles for the Ring" set for now. I'm not sure if someone messed with the price for "An Unexpected Gathering" (Bag's End) cause it was marked up to $70 instead of the original retail of $60. I am really starting to notice more & more that Walmart and Target are marking up the price on certain sets here & there above the MSRP very similiar to Toys R Us.

[Talon]

That's one of the things I love about Legos, if there are sets you don't like, don't worry because there are thousands of other sets you might like! I don't own many LOTR or Pirate sets, but I do own a few. I purchase sets I like knowing full well that my collection is eclectic. I don't own everything in any theme, not even close! I do like the Hobbit sets better than the LOTR sets and I'm not sure I could explain why without spending a great deal of time to think it through. I really like the LOTR movies, haven't seen the Hobbit movie. But I don't think much of the books and I am a voracious reader. I think Tolkein is overrated. Wouldn't it be awful if we all liked the same things and thought alike? What a boring world!

[TheOrcKing]

Wouldn't it be awful if we all liked the same things and thought alike? What a boring world!

Exactly.

There are plenty of options that LEGO offers that gives something for everyone.

Unfortunately for someone like me, I pretty much like just about everything LEGO does.

(Which my wallet hates!)

[Ed Mack]

I think all of the LORD OF THE RINGS and THE HOBBIT sets will be worth something down the road.

There is a lot more going for these sets than what PIRATES OF THE CARIBBEAN had.

Just wait a few years, you'll see.

On a related note, yesterday I found that my nearby Walmart had all sets but "The Goblin King Battle" & "The Barrel Escape" on some end cap in the middle of an aisle quite a distance from their LEGO aisle. (Who's the dummy that thought this was actually a good idea?) I snagged the smallest "Riddles for the Ring" set for now. I'm not sure if someone messed with the price for "An Unexpected Gathering" (Bag's End) cause it was marked up to $70 instead of the original retail of $60. I am really starting to notice more & more that Walmart and Target are marking up the price on certain sets here & there above the MSRP very similiar to Toys R Us.

It's quite possible the LOTR sets and Hobbit sets will be great investments in the secondary market, but the LOTR sure hasn't shown to be a popular theme so far when compared to newer LEGO themes that are still in retail stores. Overall, there are some sets, such as the 70093, An Unexpected Gathering, that might be a very popular set among JRR Tolkien fans, but I can't see the overall LOTR/Hobbit theme doing as well as a Harry Potter theme. It is harder to translate a movie theme like the LOTR into LEGO sets and I always noticed vehicles do well in any theme. The LOTR & Hobbit lack vehicles and this hurts the theme as an investment. Even the POTC have the Black Pearl and Queen Anne's Revenge as potential solid investments.

I will buy all the Hobbit sets and maybe even multiples of the 70093 and hope for the best...

[TheOrcKing]

I can't see the overall LOTR/Hobbit theme doing as well as a Harry Potter theme.

Certainly not. I believe only a select few from each run will be 'winners' ("The Battle at Helm's Deep" or "Attack of the Wargs") while others will be complete duds ("Shelob Attacks"). The LORD OF THE RINGS/THE HOBBIT sets have that medieval/fantasy feel going for them, which will be what ultimately helps in the end I think.

(That's probably more of my own reason for collecting them really. Love the elves & all the baddies!)

The film property helps somewhat, but I think people who like all the castle stuff will be the main market for these sets really.

I see what you mean about the value of vehicles, but what the heck could there be in this series?

The closest thing to any kind of 'vehicle' is from "Gandalf Arrives".

And I think that "The Black Pearl" and "Queen Anne's Revenge" will take turns in a 'neck-to-neck' race for being the most valuable. (My money's more on "Queen Anne's Revenge" to be honest.)

[Ed Mack]

Certainly not. I believe only a select few from each run will be 'winners' ("The Battle at Helm's Deep" or "Attack of the Wargs") while others will be complete duds ("Shelob Attacks"). The LORD OF THE RINGS/THE HOBBIT sets have that medieval/fantasy feel going for them, which will be what ultimately helps in the end I think.

(That's probably more of my own reason for collecting them really. Love the elves & all the baddies!)

The film property helps somewhat, but I think people who like all the castle stuff will be the main market for these sets really.

I see what you mean about the value of vehicles, but what the heck could there be in this series?

The closest thing to any kind of 'vehicle' is from "Gandalf Arrives".

And I think that "The Black Pearl" and "Queen Anne's Revenge" will take turns in a 'neck-to-neck' race for being the most valuable. (My money's more on "Queen Anne's Revenge" to be honest.)

I think there is an underlying problem with a lot of these "movie" themed sets. They try and recreate a scene from a movie and most of the time the set looks incomplete and lacking. POTC, Prince of Persia, LOTR, Indiana Jones,etc...have un unfinished look to a lot of sets.

If you think of popular and quality sets, you think of sets that looks complete...Harry Potter Castles & Diagon Alley, STAR WARS sets(even scenes from movies in the Death Star), Black Pearl & Queen Anne's Revenge, etc... Even non-movie sets that are complete are very popular...Taj Mahal, Eifel Tower, Modular buildings, Haunted House and Vampyre's Castle, etc...I mean the Taj Mahal doesn't have only 2 sides. it is a complete replica.

I might be a bit anal, but until the LOTR sets give me an Elf ship or Isengard replica, I won't be happy.

[TheOrcKing]

I think there is an underlying problem with a lot of these "movie" themed sets. They try and recreate a scene from a movie and most of the time the set looks incomplete and lacking. POTC, Prince of Persia, LOTR, Indiana Jones,etc...have un unfinished look to a lot of sets.

If you think of popular and quality sets, you think of sets that looks complete...Harry Potter Castles & Diagon Alley, STAR WARS sets(even scenes from movies in the Death Star), Black Pearl & Queen Anne's Revenge, etc... Even non-movie sets that are complete are very popular...Taj Mahal, Eifel Tower, Modular buildings, Haunted House and Vampyre's Castle, etc...I mean the Taj Mahal doesn't have only 2 sides. it is a complete replica.

I might be a bit anal, but until the LOTR sets give me an Elf ship or Isengard replica, I won't be happy.

I see what you mean about 'incomplete' sets. In a way, it's as though you have to buy every single set in the series (like LORD OF THE RINGS) to get the whole image, and even then you would still have to 'build in' the rest to complete the image. Look at how you have to buy all of the current THE HOBBIT sets to get every single character.

Let's face it, pretty much every movie set is considered 'incomplete' just by itself. Some are certainly better than others by being a more 'complete' set (like "Hogwart's Castle" or "The Death Star"), but for the most part you need to buy each one to complete all the different scenes. And I am sure that LEGO intended it to be this way. Gotta admit, it's a pretty good business strategy.

I think sets that are 'vehicle centered' seem more complete because they are meant to simply be the vehicle(s). Nothing more. Like the "TIE Fighter" or "Recycling Truck".

[Ed Mack]

I see what you mean about 'incomplete' sets. In a way, it's as though you have to buy every single set in the series (like LORD OF THE RINGS) to get the whole image, and even then you would still have to 'build in' the rest to complete the image. Look at how you have to buy all of the current THE HOBBIT sets to get every single character.

Let's face it, pretty much every movie set is considered 'incomplete' just by itself. Some are certainly better than others by being a more 'complete' set (like "Hogwart's Castle" or "The Death Star"), but for the most part you need to buy each one to complete all the different scenes. And I am sure that LEGO intended it to be this way. Gotta admit, it's a pretty good business strategy.

I think sets that are 'vehicle centered' seem more complete because they are meant to simply be the vehicle(s). Nothing more. Like the "TIE Fighter" or "Recycling Truck".

Excellent point about the movie sets being "incomplete." I guess it's just my "completionist" nature that is causing me to feel this way. I think a lot of other LEGO fans have the same quirky personality feature of having to complete things. It's part of the LEGO culture and maybe a reason why some of these sort of themes and sets just are not as popular as other more "complete" themes.

The LOTR/Hobbit is more of a character based movie, with some extraordinary scenery and grand architecture that is hard to translate to a LEGO set, so minifigures are probably the strong point of the theme. I hope it does well, because I'm already heavily invested. ;-)

[TheOrcKing]

I guess it's just my "completionist" nature that is causing me to feel this way. I think a lot of other LEGO fans have the same quirky personality feature of having to complete things.

Well, if it makes you feel any better, I most certainly am a 'completionist' myself. For example, I didn't really care for the "Sebulba's Podracer/Tatooine" set in the "Planets" series. Not really a favorite character of mine. But since I had ALL five of the other "Planets", I figured "what the heck" and picked up one anyway. So now I have a complete collection of "Planets" until next year. The detail on the "Sebulba" minifig is really good, I'll admit.

While I do like all the LORD OF THE RINGS sets, I was looking more forward to in the first place before everything THE HOBBIT sets actually. You could say that's mostly because of how much I enjoyed the original animated Rankin/Bass feature "The Hobbit". Then I remember the animated one Ralph Bakshi directed, "Lord of the Rings", and finally back to Rankin/Bass for "The Return of the King". Loved each one of them, and they hold up pretty well even today. I guess that's what you get when people put everything into a project.