Has anyone tried to build this?

Astrobricks

I guess this could be an ongoing thread, but I am asking about this particular building that Lego shows in City images. It doesn’t look like it’s made of Lego, which seems sad, although it does look Lego-y.

560Heliport

The dish on top looks a lot like the one on #493/#926.
The dome could be made using the dome parts from #60351.
A circular floor plan would be tricky- maybe a lot of hinge plates or Mixel joints.

Astrobricks

I do see a few versions of the Capitol Records building on places like Rebrickable. That’s similar.

WesterBricks

For 35 years it has bothered me that the buildings in the background art are not made of Lego.

Lo1sJess

If a far of skyline could use flat and curved discs to get close but I’m with @WesterBricks the art on the box placing the set for play  should be Lego/buildable.

Modeltrainman

I think it's very buildable. We just need transparent blue macaroni bricks.

Modeltrainman

WesterBricks said:

For 35 years it has bothered me that the buildings in the background art are not made of Lego.

Yes. Well, 29 for me, but yes. Everything in a LEGO set's art should be made of LEGO. Same with the games...

Speedman29

Perhaps not in minifig scale, but the amazing JeffWorks does similar in microscale city scapes

Modeltrainman

Speedman29 said:

Perhaps not in minifig scale, but the amazing JeffWorks does similar in microscale city scapes

There is a similar one in his city book, now that you mention it.

Bumblepants

WesterBricks said:

For 35 years it has bothered me that the buildings in the background art are not made of Lego.

They probably don't do that deliberately so Karen customers can't claim the box doesn't contain everything pictured.

Modeltrainman

Bumblepants said:

WesterBricks said:

For 35 years it has bothered me that the buildings in the background art are not made of Lego.

They probably don't do that deliberately so Karen customers can't claim the box doesn't contain everything pictured.

True. Sad, though.

MaffyD

^ This - it is absolutely so they can't say they were confused by the box art as to what is inside. I think it's ridiculous for things that are in the far distance, but for objects that are closer I think it's a valid concern. If the grass and rocks around the vehicle were brick-built, it could cause genuine confusion. So they just decided: everything on the front of the box is built from bricks if those bricks come in the box. Everything else is not. Doesn't matter how close or far, it just means one less choice to worry about.

MrJackson

Yep. Having worked at an LBR store I will second this. 

Lo1sJess

Thanks for all the additional info and context.  I changed my opinion and agree that it is clearer to buyers what they are getting if the Lego on the front of the box is what is in the set.

Keilup

I had never thought about this before.  Makes perfect sense about contents of box vs. not.  I wonder if Lego ever did put brick built looking things on the box art that weren't part of the box contents and got sued for it?  Wouldn't surprise me.

Switchfoot55

The very first set I purchased after coming out of my DA was at a LEGO store. A smaller Star Wars set for my son. I vividly remember asking the employee if all the minifigs pictured on the front of the box came with the set. 

They stated very clearly that anything "LEGO" pictured on the box would be inside the box. 

So, the idea that it is to reduce/eliminate confusion as well as just protect LEGO from people trying to get one over on them seems to track with me. 

560Heliport

I know of one set that's an exception: #400 #910 Building Set. Lower left corner of the box front, there's a truck and two non-poseable minifigures. There are four minifig heads in this photo- two on top of the truck, one for each minifigure... but only three in the set. The set also includes four yellow 1x1 round bricks, two of which are on the front of the truck. The other two could have been put on top, but instead they used minifigure heads... It was a little disappointing to me on Christmas 1977 to be unable to build that truck exactly as pictured... but only a little, as it was still a nice set.

Cymbeline

When the first images of #60271 appeared I remember that there was speculation by optimistic AFOLs that the mono rail was back...if not in that particular set then perhaps in a separate City set that year.

Astrobricks

Cymbeline said:

When the first images of #60271 appeared I remember that there was speculation by optimistic AFOLs that the mono rail was back...if not in that particular set then perhaps in a separate City set that year.

The illustration on that box does seem to skirt the edge, given how the tram is sitting right on an elevated track. And there’s that same tower again, but a little different.

Russell844

I remember it being said that they made it a point that everything in The LEGO Movie could be built at home. I think that was a great move.

Lo1sJess

Agree @Russell844 caught part of the movie last night on HBO.  

Astrobricks

Wha? A Brickset member who doesn't own The Lego Movie on Blu Ray? ;-)

560Heliport

Uh... Mine's just DVD, because I didn't have a Blu-ray player then...

I remember going to see it, opening weekend I think, with my cousin, her two teenagers, and her boyfriend. We all loved it. My cousin thought it was really neat that the lasers, explosions, etc. were all made of Lego pieces.

Lo1sJess

@Astrobricks pretty sure we have the original somewhere in the house on dvd as it was prime time for my son and I think,it is also in our prime library.  Just was channel surfing in bed and landed on it on HBO last night😁

Istokg

Buildings on the box top that cannot be built with the contents?  Welcome to the first LEGO years 1949-65... where on the basic set box tops NOTHING can be built with the contents of the set that is showing on the box top.... example... 700/1 basic set...



This 700/1 (1960-65 version) set came with 1 gray 10x20 thick baseplate, mostly just red and white bricks (with just 2 trans-clear bricks), and no macaroni bricks.  So none of this shown could be built with the set contents.

The bottom of the box shows what can actually be built from this 700/1 basic set (individually)...



Then in late 1964 TLG finally came out with basic set boxes that actually showed (on the box top what you cold build with the contents.

Modeltrainman

Astrobricks said:

Wha? A Brickset member who doesn't own The Lego Movie on Blu Ray? ;-)

I have a digital copy for some reason, No disc,

Oldfan

Astrobricks said:

Wha? A Brickset member who doesn't own The Lego Movie on Blu Ray? ;-)

Not just that, but the deluxe copy that comes with the Vitruvius minifigure!

Astrobricks

Lo1sJess said:

@Astrobricks pretty sure we have the original somewhere in the house on dvd as it was prime time for my son and I think,it is also in our prime library.  Just was channel surfing in bed and landed on it on HBO last night😁

Whew! My brain jumped to the conclusion that you'd only ever seen part of it by accident :-)

LusiferSam

WesterBricks said:

For 35 years it has bothered me that the buildings in the background art are not made of Lego.

I'm sure it has not.  Show me a box from 1988 (35 years ago) that has a building in the background.  Unless it's on the back of a box there aren't any.

WesterBricks

I was merely making an observation relating the amount of time that I have been playing with Lego, rather than referring to specific sets.

However upon research…

#6394 from 1988 had a skyline in the background on some boxes. I’ve seen other copies of this set that have rolling hills instead, maybe a regional difference.



My comment was more directly referring to sets like #6398, which is itself 30 years old, so I was not far off.