2019 Modular Rumours

ReesesPieces

WhiteDove said:

Some other keen eyed fans have pointed out that those leaked minifigures are wearing traditional Chinese clothing, not Japanese. This is even more reason to think they won’t be Ninjago related. If they are from the next modular, what could it be, apart from a Chinese restaurant? I can’t imagine two eating establishments being released one after the other. 

I would normally agree with you but Ninjago has been a hadgepodge of Japanese/Chinese designs so I wouldn't completely rule it out.  The ninjas even had outfits based on Chinese king fu outfits.  Many of the characters also have more Chinese last names.

Brickchap

@SumoLego

Technically no one would care. I personally wouldn't mind more restaurants. Myself and whitedove were merely pointing out that Lego has a pattern for these things and its also just common sense as a company to 'diversify' the 'themes' of modulars.

Three restaurants in a row (or two) would, to some degree, seem just a tad repetitive and predictable. The whole point of this forum discussion originally was to speculate at what the 2019 modular might be and discuss rumors. Its like the CMFs, we don't know what we will get. It could be a Chinese restaurant, but that's unlikely. It could be a 1950s hotel or a 'Ritz/Savoy' style one, or a museum or 50s police station.  Lego likes to surprise us.

Also, just one other point on a Chinese/Japanese restaurant; I think Lego would want to wait a few more years so that Ninjago and modulars don't clash. What I mean is, while the D2C Ninjago City sets are available, which are at a 'modular standard', a Creator Expert modular Asian restaurant would seem a bit too much 'Oriental theme' and most people would probably chose the Ninjago city sets over a single Asian modular.

As for the mysterious Chinese minfigs, maybe there will be a more traditional Oriental theme released, like the old 90s Ninja sets (except not Ninjas)?

SumoLego

I'm predicting some Asian-Market Exclusive Set not available in the European or North American Markets.  

Woo-hoo!

Aanchir

Brickchap said:

@Aanchir

While your theory with the minifgs is well thought out and argued, I have to disagree. After all, everyone thought the next modular would be a police station due to the Classic Policeman CMF and that didn't happen.

I feel like this is a very different scenario in that there's at least 6 discernable outfits appearing as factory leaks alongside other late 2018/early 2019 releases, with no obvious association with other known upcoming sets/themes, particularly ones we've seen other leaks from. That's a lot different from a single fig. If it were just one fig then the idea of it being for a Creator Expert set wouldn't have even occurred to me with so many other more likely possibility (regional/seasonal/event-exclusive promo set, collectible minifigure, TBA Ninjago or LEGO Movie 2 set, etc).

Brickchap said:

However my main argument against your theory is that the only real 'Asian' building that would make sense would be a restaurant of some kind (possibly incorporating a martial arts studio of some sort upstairs) and since we had a 'food related modular' this year (Downtown Diner) and there definitely is some sort of a pattern with what 'theme' the modular is based around each year, another restaurant is extremely unlikely.

Sure, there are Asian style houses, libraries, museums or even police stations, but again, that seems practically impossible. Plus, having Streamline Moderne in 1950s era, then an Oriental building is also extremely unlikely.

I'm not sure I'd agree, because the idea of the Modular Buildings all belonging to the same real-world place and time has been defied far more routinely than it's been reinforced, and as such I don't agree with the idea that the Downtown Diner would hint at future buildings in a 1950s American setting — if anything, it would be more likely to hint at the next building drawing inspiration from any setting BUT that specific sort of 1950s American neighborhood.

What's more, Palace Cinema retired last year. While inspired by an American-built movie theater in California, it was the closest thing to an Asian-inspired set that the Creator Expert theme has had. This, as LEGO is rapidly expanding in East Asia, having recently opened their second flagship store in China and planning to have dozens of LEGO Flagship Stores, LEGO Brand Stores, and/or LEGO Certified Stores open in China by the end of the year. By contrast, Creator Expert has had THREE London-inspired sets.

I don't understand any reason that a Chinese building less typical in Western countries than a Chinese restaurant or martial arts dojo would be "practically impossible", either. After all, plenty of Ninjago sets — including the Ninjago City expansions, which target the same age range as the Modular Buildings — have demonstrated that Western buyers can appreciate sets inspired by non-Western settings and cultural backgrounds.

And if the average modular building buyer were as persnickety about the modular buildings maintaining a consistent style/setting as so many AFOLs, then we wouldn't have seen the Fire Brigade, one of the first to be emphatically decried for "not fitting in", outselling all three of its predecessors, let alone the Pet Shop, another building critiqued by AFOLs for being too American-inspired, becoming so many buyers' first modular building.

I believe the "pattern" of the Modular Buildings used to be understood roughly as "residential, civic, commercial, repeat". That pattern, if it ever existed in any strict form, certainly didn't remain consistent. Not only do the many buildings with both residential and commercial use challenge the validity of the idea, but after Town Hall (the last unambiguously civic building) came Palace Cinema (commercial), followed by Parisian Restaurant (residential/commercial), Detective's Office (residential/commercial), Brick Bank (commercial/civic), Assembly Square (residential/commercial), and Downtown Diner (commercial). In the very least, another commercial building is certainly not out of the question.

If there is any pattern to the type of building for each modular building, it's probably no more elaborate than with architectural styles: "every modular building has to feel different enough from what preceded it that it doesn't feel redundant". I see no reason some of the popular ideas for future buildings (like, say, hotel, train station, museum, or transportation center) would not fit that bill and also be compatible with an assortment of figures in Asian dress who don't immediately call to mind any specific profession.

For that matter, what about a teahouse, Chinese market or Chinese embassy? Plenty of cities all over the world have those, and the embassy in particular would help amend the current dearth of civic/government buildings!

Brickchap said:

I thought the introduction of the hotel porter print in Capital City was good proof of the next modular being a hotel. (I doubt they would create a whole new print for one city set). It will be interesting to see which of us is right, if not in 2019 but with later modulars. I'm still waiting for an Italian restaurant myself. (for the 'food' category)

The teal brick separator sounds cool but I've always found orange to be fine as a colour (easy to find and orange works with the whole 'construction/demolition' idea)

LEGO has DEFINITELY created new minifigure prints for single City sets before (or at least, ones that they took more than a year to reuse). The same Capital set that you mention has a Caveman, and it's not like that is an obvious fit for any presently anticipated sets or themes (besides, perhaps, The LEGO Movie 2, which based on how little we know currently could accommodate figures relating to any number of themes). There is also 1 head print still unique to #60204, 10 torso prints and 8 head prints still unique to #60202, 2 torso prints still unique to #60183, a torso print and legs print still unique to #60173, 3 torso prints still unique to #60153, 1 torso print still unique to #60151, 1 torso print still unique to #60145, etc. Whether or not we see the bellhop torso again in the next year, it remains in good company.

And honestly, "hotel", like "embassy", is one of the building types that could fit with many of those leaked minifigures regardless of where/when it's inspired by. It's hardly unheard of for a hotel to have a family of guests from overseas!

Orange brick separators are certainly not a bad thing, but I definitely feel as though the many people who are overloaded with orange brick separators by now will appreciate the variety. :P And teal should stand out from other parts even better at least as long as orange parts remain more common in sets than teal ones…

Baby_Yoda

I agree with @Aanchir and I think the Modular Buildings line is trying to broaden its appeal by having a more diverse range of architectural styles. I think there's a perfectly good chance of an Asian-inspired building that isn't a restaurant. I really like the idea of a teahouse.

DadsAFOL

Lego Chinatown Street, credit to Ben Rose.

WhiteDove

Well I certainly wouldn’t mind!! I would absolutely love for it to be a Chinese restaurant!!

WhiteDove

...or teahouse, or market or embassy, or in fact whatever it is, I am fairly certain that I will buy and enjoy it. 

Brickchap

How broad can the modulars get? Lets face it, apart from Oriental and possibly streamline moderne, all the worlds architecture is European or European based.

Basically every city in the world has quite a few 'European' buildings such as those in South America, India and even China (especially in Shanghai and Hong Kong). In Australia, while we are most recognized for the 'old tin roof shack' buildings like Victoria Station and the Queen Victoria Building would fit quite happily into a UK or European setting.

The point is that 'Western' architecture, mainly that of Europe/UK has a very broad appeal anyway. Town Hall could easily serve as a government building in a Beijing Lego city. On the other hand, 'Oriental' architecture, except when in a restaurant setting is quite limited. Yes, one could argue that point specifically about Parisian restaurant which is obviously VERY French, but it is less out of place then a Ninjago building. Besides, all the things that everyone has suggested for 'Asian buildings' would undoubted be included in one restaurant model. Both a Chinese or Japanese restaurant would probably have a tea room upstairs and for the latter a sushi train and both could have some sort of martial arts.

@Aanchir, I don't see how a market of any culture would be made into a modular unless it was some sort of walk thru arcade thing like Paddy's Market in Sydney. And a Chinese embassy is never going to happen. Nor would an embassy of any other  country for that matter ever happen. Lego always tries to leave out the 'real world' as much as possible and never goes near politics/governments. But I cannot believe you would suggest such a silly idea as a Chinese government building. You really must be a devout Orientalist desperate for something Chinese. That would never happen (and again nor would a French or German or Australian government building happen either for the same reasons) due to the political ties and its just so geographically, culturally and politically specific.

As for Downtown Diner. Yes, it is very probable that Lego will move away from a 50s American setting but they do have enough common sense to put something next to the diner that, while different, would not be too overall contrasting, such as a Asian building. And its the same with PR and DD put side by side, the two styles just clash too much to work. Perhaps they will make something similar to DO and then an Asian building just to have a nice transition from one to the other.

twoeyesgirl

Baby_Yoda said:

I think there's a perfectly good chance of an Asian-inspired building that isn't a restaurant.

Me too. But also I’d love to see Asian faces in a non stereotypical Asian building.
At the same time, if that would happen, I wonder if modulars would eventually include different skin colors too?

Brickchap

@DadsAFOL That's a really well done MOC. Not sure what the British RAF roundels are doing in Chinatown though...

CCC

twoeyesgirl said: ft

Baby_Yoda said:

I think there's a perfectly good chance of an Asian-inspired building that isn't a restaurant.

Me too. But also I’d love to see Asian faces in a non stereotypical Asian building.
At the same time, if that would happen, I wonder if modulars would eventually include different skin colors too?

I doubt it. As the minifigures in modulars are not meant to depict specific people or cultures, but often job roles. Are only Asians allowed in an Asian building? Are only Caucasians allowed in Western style buildings? LEGO would be accused of racism if they used the wrong* skin colour for a less skilled job such as a janitor. * with wrong defined by the person taking offense.

ReesesPieces

A hotel such as the mandarin oriental might be a good fusion of the east and west.

Brickchap

@ReesesPieces

That's an interesting idea. I hope it doesn't happen though. I really want a Ritz inspired one with architecture like the Paris and/or London Ritz hotel which would look good next to Parisian restaurant.

Brainslugged

Seeing as Lego got rid of the Mandalay Bay hotel from the Vegas Architecture set, I'd have thought it would steer well clear of embassies for a while. Unless it's planning on including a dismemberment and dissolving room.

Baby_Yoda

@Brickchap Australia definitely has its own distinct architectural style in some parts, but I think a Modular Corrugated Tin Shack would be more expensive than an actual corrugated tin shack.

twoeyesgirl said:

Baby_Yoda said:

I think there's a perfectly good chance of an Asian-inspired building that isn't a restaurant.

Me too. But also I’d love to see Asian faces in a non stereotypical Asian building.

Dude. It's two dots for eyes and a curved line for a mouth. You can't get much more unspecific than that.

DadsAFOL

Baby_Yoda said:

@Brickchap Australia definitely has its own distinct architectural style in some parts, but I think a Modular Corrugated Tin Shack would be more expensive than an actual corrugated tin shack.

Lego Outback was a neat little sub theme in the late 90's.

BM51

Aanchir said:

The same Capital set that you mention has a Caveman, and it's not like that is an obvious fit for any presently anticipated sets or themes (besides, perhaps, The LEGO Movie 2, which based on how little we know currently could accommodate figures relating to any number of themes)

The Caveman is a part of city theme „Arctic” - he has a plate with mammoth and sabertooth next to him.

Personally, as someone claimed that Asians are a part of City theme, I hope for „day at Chinatown” people pack.
But rumor has it that those comes from promo sets sadly... They are to be too happy looking for regular set. :(

Aanchir

Brickchap said:

How broad can the modulars get? Lets face it, apart from Oriental and possibly streamline moderne, all the worlds architecture is European or European based.

Basically every city in the world has quite a few 'European' buildings such as those in South America, India and even China (especially in Shanghai and Hong Kong). In Australia, while we are most recognized for the 'old tin roof shack' buildings like Victoria Station and the Queen Victoria Building would fit quite happily into a UK or European setting.

The point is that 'Western' architecture, mainly that of Europe/UK has a very broad appeal anyway. Town Hall could easily serve as a government building in a Beijing Lego city. On the other hand, 'Oriental' architecture, except when in a restaurant setting is quite limited. Yes, one could argue that point specifically about Parisian restaurant which is obviously VERY French, but it is less out of place then a Ninjago building. Besides, all the things that everyone has suggested for 'Asian buildings' would undoubted be included in one restaurant model. Both a Chinese or Japanese restaurant would probably have a tea room upstairs and for the latter a sushi train and both could have some sort of martial arts.

@Aanchir, I don't see how a market of any culture would be made into a modular unless it was some sort of walk thru arcade thing like Paddy's Market in Sydney. And a Chinese embassy is never going to happen. Nor would an embassy of any other  country for that matter ever happen. Lego always tries to leave out the 'real world' as much as possible and never goes near politics/governments. But I cannot believe you would suggest such a silly idea as a Chinese government building. You really must be a devout Orientalist desperate for something Chinese. That would never happen (and again nor would a French or German or Australian government building happen either for the same reasons) due to the political ties and its just so geographically, culturally and politically specific.

…lolwut? "devout orientalist"? You're jumping to some wild conclusions there. I honestly don't care what style/inspiration the next building has because I'm pretty confident the quality will be great no matter what it is. I'm just brainstorming sets those leaked figures MIGHT belong to, which as I see it are much more varied than just the "Chinese restaurant" example you seem to think is the be-all and end-all of possibilities within a modular street.

What's more, I don't know where you get the idea that LEGO wouldn't make government buildings of real-world countries, considering that Architecture sets #21006 and #21030 depict the White House and the United States Capitol Building (which house the Executive and Legislative branches of the United States federal government, respectively). In fact, one of the specific examples you cited that LEGO would never do (a German government building) is something they included in a set just two years ago — the Reichstag in #21207 Berlin. The promotional set https://brickset.com/sets/COWHK-4/ also depicts the building that houses Hong Kong's Court of Final Appeal. Not to mention #21018 United Nations Headquarters, which is about as tied to international politics as a building can be.

As far as markets go, we've already seen one in a modular building — the Market Street set. I don't see why there wouldn't be room for another with a much different style so many years later.

There's no reason that a building that includes a family of Chinese minifigures would need to have distinctively Asian architecture. But if it did, I don't really feel like the "it doesn't fit in" argument really flies, considering AFOLs have been complaining about that sort of thing in the modular buildings series for nearly a decade at this point, and it doesn't seem to have been nearly as disastrous to overall interest in the series as any of us have made it out to be.

And the idea that "apart from Oriental and possibly streamline moderne, all the worlds architecture is European or European based" is incredibly misleading, considering that it implies "Oriental" is some narrow, niche style and not a category that's easily as broad if not broader than "European". China has many architectural styles, as do Japan, India, Korea, Pakistan, and probably just about any other Asian country you could name. Many of these styles certainly include European or American influences, particularly in places like Hong Kong, Vietnam, and Cambodia which were once occupied by European imperialist powers, but that does not mean that the architecture in Asian countries can be neatly sorted into "European" or "Asian" boxes, when even many buildings by Western or Western-trained Asian architects draw influence from their country's local character.

The most baffling part of this idea that Chinese architecture would seem out-of-place or undesirable to Western audiences is that it suggests a Western pastiche of Chinese architecture like Graumann's Chinese Theater is somehow a more valid source of inspiration for the modular buildings than any form of actual Asian architecture. What's more, it makes huge assumptions of the tastes of modular building buyers from Western countries that don't even seem to apply within the AFOL community! When the Temple of Airjitzu and Ninjago City were released, do you have any idea how many AFOLs who previously didn't give a flying flip about Ninjago immediately started working on modifications or transitional MOCs that would let them incorporate those buildings into their modular streets? Even right here on Brickset! So sure, maybe SOME Western buyers might be alienated by a modular building that seemed "too Asian", but I don't see any reason that would be a bigger concern than the MANY modular buildings that European AFOLs have rejected for being "too American."

Astrobricks

Baby_Yoda said:

@Brickchap Australia definitely has its own distinct architectural style in some parts, but I think a Modular Corrugated Tin Shack would be more expensive than an actual corrugated tin shack.

twoeyesgirl said:

Baby_Yoda said:

I think there's a perfectly good chance of an Asian-inspired building that isn't a restaurant.

Me too. But also I’d love to see Asian faces in a non stereotypical Asian building.

Dude. It's two dots for eyes and a curved line for a mouth. You can't get much more unspecific than that.

You seem to have forgotten that the modulars no longer come with smileys.

Aanchir

Astrobricks said:

Baby_Yoda said:

@Brickchap Australia definitely has its own distinct architectural style in some parts, but I think a Modular Corrugated Tin Shack would be more expensive than an actual corrugated tin shack.

twoeyesgirl said:

Baby_Yoda said:

I think there's a perfectly good chance of an Asian-inspired building that isn't a restaurant.

Me too. But also I’d love to see Asian faces in a non stereotypical Asian building.

Dude. It's two dots for eyes and a curved line for a mouth. You can't get much more unspecific than that.

You seem to have forgotten that the modulars no longer come with smileys.

Even so, since 2010 or so, minifigures have avoided the kind of exaggeratedly racialized facial features we saw in 90s and early 2000s themes like Western, Ninja, and Orient Expedition (for the better, IMO). Compare the facial features of the Series 1 Tribal Hunter, Series 3 Tribal Chief, Series 3 Samurai Warrior, and Series 13 Samurai with the 90s Indian, Indian Chief, Samurai, and White Ninja Princess.

On a practical level, sticking more closely to this sort of standardization can help bear credence to the LEGO Group's position that yellow skinned minifigures are meant to be racially non-specific. While there are definitely aspects of this policy that are perhaps owed greater scrutiny, like how many more City minifigures have straight or wavy blond hair that buyers of Northern European descent can identify with than dark curly hair that buyers of African or Middle Eastern descent can identify with, in the very least most LEGO City head pieces can't be immediately assumed to represent a different race than more overtly Native American or Asian inspired figs from themes like Minifigures or Ninjago.

So far, the leaked figures in question remain fairly generic as far as their faces go. Some of the faces have already been used extensively in other themes, while others could be just as easily reused for generic figures in the future, even ones that aren't as conspicuously coded as Asian.

HugeYellowBrick

I think it's time we had a completely different sort of building, such as the curved glass roof found in many UK railway stations, or the dome of the Reichstag. I'm not fussed about what is inside.

Lyichir

SumoLego said:

If they're sufficiently different - I don't think anyone cares if there are three restaurants in a row...

Well said. Restaurants are one of the main types of businesses that benefits most from variety.

Baby_Yoda

Astrobricks said:

Baby_Yoda said:

@Brickchap Australia definitely has its own distinct architectural style in some parts, but I think a Modular Corrugated Tin Shack would be more expensive than an actual corrugated tin shack.

twoeyesgirl said:

Baby_Yoda said:

I think there's a perfectly good chance of an Asian-inspired building that isn't a restaurant.

Me too. But also I’d love to see Asian faces in a non stereotypical Asian building.

Dude. It's two dots for eyes and a curved line for a mouth. You can't get much more unspecific than that.

You seem to have forgotten that the modulars no longer come with smileys.

Indeed I did, and now I won't be able to sleep at night. However, what I was getting at, on a broader level, was explained pretty well by @Aanchir. Nobody's going to be seeing Lego Asian faces anywhere when Lego don't produce distinctly Asian faces. The same can be said of any race. 

Bosstone100

So, I have to ask. The modulars started in 2007 and last year was their ten year anniversary. Any chance Lego is ending the concept?

SumoLego

Bosstone100 said:

So, I have to ask. The modulars started in 2007 and last year was their ten year anniversary. Any chance Lego is ending the concept?

What would be have to speculate and banter about?  Surely, you jest.

Astrobricks

Bosstone100 said:

So, I have to ask. The modulars started in 2007 and last year was their ten year anniversary. Any chance Lego is ending the concept?

Wasn’t Assembly Square the tenth anniversary set? Then DD came out in 2017, so this theory seems flimsy.

stlux

Assembly Square was was available from 01 Jan 2017, and celebrated the 10th anniversary of the modular building series.

Downtown Diner is the 2018 modular, released on 01 Jan 2018.

CCC

BM51 said:

Personally, as someone claimed that Asians are a part of City theme, I hope for „day at Chinatown” people pack.

Asians aren't part of City, just as Europeans, Americans, Africans, etc are not. They are not real world minifigures, they are part of LEGO City. Or alternatively they are, in that they can be anyone you like.

Bumblepants

Bosstone100 said:

So, I have to ask. The modulars started in 2007 and last year was their ten year anniversary. Any chance Lego is ending the concept?

I recall an interview where Jamie Berard or someone like him said they considered it around the time of Assembly Square but decided it was still very popular and sold well so they opted with continuing to innovate and expand the line.

Aanchir

CCC said:

BM51 said:

Personally, as someone claimed that Asians are a part of City theme, I hope for „day at Chinatown” people pack.

Asians aren't part of City, just as Europeans, Americans, Africans, etc are not. They are not real world minifigures, they are part of LEGO City. Or alternatively they are, in that they can be anyone you like.

I think that's pretty debatable. After all, the game "LEGO City Undercover" has a Chinatown, and while not a lot from LEGO City Undercover appears in the sets it at least shows that LEGO isn't afraid to have City-related stuff representing particular world cultures. Not to mention how saying there can't be Italian, Chinese, or Mexican people in LEGO City would rule out the possibility of future sets inspired by those particular cultures — like Italian, Chinese, or Mexican restaurants.

The important thing is that the LEGO City setting itself should not represent any one country or continent, nor should its inhabitants appear to skew toward any one real-world demographic. But ruling out culturally specific representation of any kind just puts arbitrary limits on the variety of subject matter the theme is able to cover.

CCC

Aanchir said:

CCC said:

BM51 said:

Personally, as someone claimed that Asians are a part of City theme, I hope for „day at Chinatown” people pack.

Asians aren't part of City, just as Europeans, Americans, Africans, etc are not. They are not real world minifigures, they are part of LEGO City. Or alternatively they are, in that they can be anyone you like.

I think that's pretty debatable. After all, the game "LEGO City Undercover" has a Chinatown, and while not a lot from LEGO City Undercover appears in the sets it at least shows that LEGO isn't afraid to have City-related stuff representing particular world cultures.

I didn't mention architecture at all, only people / minifigures. Location / architecture is different to race. However, the boundaries are blurred in games, as they introduce characters from, for example, the CMF range where some are based on specific cultures (eg a pharaoh). Chinatown in the game is open to all sorts of characters and very few of them are stereotypical Chinese. And in real City sets, the race is not stated or even implied.

I did notice some of the bad guys in the game are Chinese looking, or at least have Fu Manchu moustaches. I'm not so sure LEGO would go back to making such racial stereotypes for real minifigures, especially in real City sets.

iwakurakaitou

Astrobricks said:

Baby_Yoda said:

@Brickchap Australia definitely has its own distinct architectural style in some parts, but I think a Modular Corrugated Tin Shack would be more expensive than an actual corrugated tin shack.

twoeyesgirl said:

Baby_Yoda said:

I think there's a perfectly good chance of an Asian-inspired building that isn't a restaurant.

Me too. But also I’d love to see Asian faces in a non stereotypical Asian building.

Dude. It's two dots for eyes and a curved line for a mouth. You can't get much more unspecific than that.

You seem to have forgotten that the modulars no longer come with smileys.

Uhm... what? Because a single one didn't that's suddenly a hard-and-fast rule now? Every single Modular Building release from Cafe Corner to Assembly Square contained standard smiley heads for all their figures, with Downtown Diner being the first and only one to deviate from that standard. Now, I can understand how one might assume that means they will ALL deviate from now on, and they will ALL include more unique facial prints, but to state that as if it is a fact is a bit silly. For all we know, that was something they were trying out with DD and decided to go back to the older standard heads. ONE of THIRTEEN releases not coming with "smileys" hardly tells us what they will include moving forward. Now if the next one is released with unique heads like DD, your assumption becomes more logical, but until we have some confirmation of that you're really just making a leap with very little basis behind it.

Now personally, I actually prefer the newer style in DD over the older ones. I'm actually in the process now of buying replacement heads for all my modular minifigs specifically to replace those standard smiles with some more detailed faces, so I would be quite pleased if the new modulars all go the DD route from now on, but even wishful thinking aside I'm not ASSUMING that's going to be the new trend just because a single one of thirteen modular buildings did it. O-o

Bumblepants

^the lead designer of Creator Expert said that the move away from plain faces was going to continue into future product. It is not an assumption. It is a fact.

CCC

Yep, it's science. LEGO modular figures have evolved. 

And proof that the next one will be a DNA testing facility.

iwakurakaitou

Bumblepants said:

^the lead designer of Creator Expert said that the move away from plain faces was going to continue into future product. It is not an assumption. It is a fact.

Yes and no - we got some vague marketing speak about how nostalgia is a nice value but they're "excited to explore the new possibilities" of "expressive faces." I can't find ANY confirmation of who at lego actually made that statement, let alone that it was the "lead designer" - and even that doesn't confirm it will be the standard moving forward. That is a very common business tactic of acknowledging complaints, not committing to any one specific course of action, and leaving the options open for the future. You can find that same type of flowery marketing language regarding everything from shoes to sports cars, and they are rarely set-in-stone kinds of statements. Especially given how many fans complained about the move away from the old faces vs how many absolutely loved the change, it's hard to know where they'll go from here. That statement was made before the Diner was even released in response to feedback from images... a lot can change in that time. That's something their own internal customer feedback department(s) will assess; they're not going to do things to hurt their sales simply because someone made a statement about it online. They're not bound by that if they change their minds or if sales data shows the Diner was significantly less popular for that reason. That's usually why companies try to stay silent on stuff like that so they don't box themselves in or anger large groups of their customers.

Like I said, I personally hope they DO continue the trend of "expressive faces" as they're calling them, and I don't think it's WRONG to assume/hope they'll do so moving forward, but I do not by any stretch consider some wishy-washy marketing statement like this as "fact." Apple said they'd never made tablet computers because they're stupid; Starbucks said they would continue to support Teavana stores; Hasbro stated they would never do detailed "battle damage" paint on their toys; Google said they had no plans to retire Google Reader; heck, Lego themselves said they didn't want to direct themes or sets to specific genders and then turned around and made Friends and Elves and Disney Princesses; they also said they didn't want to make sets based on any types of violent or war-related franchises, and we've gotten quite a few in different themes with realistic guns and so on.... 

Sometimes the plans of a company change, and trusting their marketing dpt to actually deliver 100% FACT is going to leave you high and dry half the time. The people making those types of statements are rarely the ones actually making the decisions, and even when they are those decisions are not set in stone and can change for any number of reasons based on data NEITHER of us have any access or insight into. No designer at lego is just making off-the-cuff statements that aren't run through 400 marketing committees and filters before being released to the public. "Reliable assumption" is still not FACT; we'll know for sure when we see a reveal of the next Modular whether they're going to stick with that or revert back. I see no benefit or value to assuming one way or the other until we have some actual evidence to go on. If the whole point of the discussion is to speculate, and we're speculating on whether or not some leaked Asian-themed minifigures are for a new modular, it's equally valid speculation that they might NOT stick with that very recent change in design if it proved unpopular or doesn't fit with the new release the way it did for the Diner. These are all creative choices based on who is working on that modular, and the sales/marketing data they have for prior modulars. It's as much up in the air now as it ever was, until it's actually shown off to us it's impossible to know what the "facts" actually are.

https://www.thebrickfan.com/lego-releases-statement-regarding-downtown-diner-10260-minifigure-faces/

Boardshorts85

^For your reading pleasure, Jamie Berard confirming that they wanted to move to expressive faces with Assembly Square, but didn't want to conflict with the new baby piece, so they held off until Downtown Diner.

http://brickarchitect.com/2018/interview-modular-building-series-jamie-berard/

I'm not saying they will never go back to the simple smileys, but its pretty clear from the lead designer of the Creator Expert line that they consider the new faces to be a step forward and they have no intention of going back.

HugeYellowBrick

A Modular with some 'classic smileys' and some 'expressives'?

RogerKirk

Maybe they could do two sided heads - classic on one side, expressive on the other, letting people choose.

SumoLego

Why do I think this is the start of a minidolls vs. minifigures rift...

SMC

RogerKirk said:

Maybe they could do two sided heads - classic on one side, expressive on the other, letting people choose.

Because this would mean that Lego would need to make all new head prints just for the modulars maybe it would be cheaper just to add some classic heads as well as the newer ones. But its not a bad idea.

Boardshorts85

Classic heads are also very very easily sourced for anyone that's not a fan of the new designs.

RogerKirk

SMC said:

RogerKirk said:

Maybe they could do two sided heads - classic on one side, expressive on the other, letting people choose.

Because this would mean that Lego would need to make all new head prints just for the modulars maybe it would be cheaper just to add some classic heads as well as the newer ones. But its not a bad idea.

I haven't seen how they print double sided heads and just assumed they would print one side (which I've seen videos of), then flip things around and print the other side. If that's how they did it, I can't see my idea being problematic.

oldtodd33

Boardshorts85 said:

Classic heads are also very very easily sourced for anyone that's not a fan of the new designs.

   So are more expressive faces. 

Astrobricks

I didn’t come here to read novels :)

FollowsClosely

Astrobricks said:

I didn’t come here to read novels :)

I came for pictures...

560Heliport

I came here to kill time while at work... SCORE!

Bosstone100

Astrobricks said:

Bosstone100 said:

So, I have to ask. The modulars started in 2007 and last year was their ten year anniversary. Any chance Lego is ending the concept?

Wasn’t Assembly Square the tenth anniversary set? Then DD came out in 2017, so this theory seems flimsy.

I said ten year anniversary not tenth year set. 

Astrobricks

Bosstone100 said:

Astrobricks said:

Bosstone100 said:

So, I have to ask. The modulars started in 2007 and last year was their ten year anniversary. Any chance Lego is ending the concept?

Wasn’t Assembly Square the tenth anniversary set? Then DD came out in 2017, so this theory seems flimsy.

I said ten year anniversary not tenth year set. 

I thought Assembly Square was promoted by TLG as celebrating the tenth anniversary of the modulars.

Aanchir

Astrobricks said:

Bosstone100 said:

Astrobricks said:

Bosstone100 said:

So, I have to ask. The modulars started in 2007 and last year was their ten year anniversary. Any chance Lego is ending the concept?

Wasn’t Assembly Square the tenth anniversary set? Then DD came out in 2017, so this theory seems flimsy.

I said ten year anniversary not tenth year set. 

I thought Assembly Square was promoted by TLG as celebrating the tenth anniversary of the modulars.

It was. And anyhow, the tenth year of modular buildings would have been 2016, not 2017:

1. 2007
2. 2008
3. 2009
4. 2010
5. 2011
6. 2012
7. 2013
8. 2014
9. 2015
10. 2016