What is your favourite set of 2025?
Posted by CapnRex101,
2025 might be over, but we still have unfinished business to complete regarding the best sets of the year!
Nearly 300 nominations narrowed a field of 828 sets to twelve finalists. These are all exceptional sets, so you can vote for two options, which should make the decision easier. Vote for your favourite set of 2025 after the break...
A number of sets only narrowly missed out on the final poll, such as 71846 The Fire Knight Mech, 71848 The Temple Bounty, 76300 Arkham Asylum and 910049 Adventure in Transylvania.
You can participate in our other 2025 polls here:
- What is your favourite gift-with-purchase set of 2025?
- What is your favourite set of 2025, costing less than $50?
- What is your favourite minifigure of 2025?
Which set(s) received your vote(s)? Let us know in the comments.
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89 comments on this article
I think that Tudor Corner is the set of the year, but I also think 42379 and 10355 are really close, and seeing as though I own both of them, I voted for the two. Pretty good options, though I’m disappointed that no BDP sets made it.
IMO Tudor Corner and Jango's Slave.
I went for the only one I have (21358) and the one I most wish I had the space for (10356). That said, 10350, 10355, 10358, 43279, and 72046 were also tempting to vote for.
72046 Game Boy is not only my set of the year, but probably one of my favourite sets ever... and I've never even owned a game boy myself, that's how great the set it.
Sure it doesn't come with minifigures, but there has been so much love and care put into it. It's definitely one of the most ingenious building experiences I've ever seen (only the Saturn V comes to mind in terms of unique techniques), but it's also a really enjoyable product once assembled thanks to how "natural" it feels in hands with all of its functionalities (power on switch, volume dial, D-pad, buttons... they all feel real to interact with). And on top of that, it comes with printed parts safe for what ARE supposed to be stickers in the cartridge. Really a one-of-a-kind set.
I have no illusion unfortunately, since bigger sets with stronger licenses will probably come on top as always... but the Game Boy really is worthy of praise IMO among that selection.
@Wallace_Brick_Designs said:
", though I’m disappointed that no BDP sets made it."
Are those counted among official Lego sets?! I personally do not at least, they are made by fans not by Lego themself after all..
Gameboy, affordable, and a build that is second to none.
I’m surprised that the Shire made it on the list. It’s a decent set but it doesn’t meet the standard of the previous two LotR sets in my opinion.
The only one I have from this list is 10358 - Soundwave.
But have been eyeing off 72046 Game Boy and 76968 Dinosaur Fossils Tyranasaurus Rex.
While I prefered Tudor Corner and Arkham Asylum, while having wild dreams about Vending Machine, I think that Gameboy deserves the set of the year. It looks amazing, and was a huge hit in all stores. I don't think we've ever seen a set this popular with the masses in a long time.
@Roebuck said:
" @Wallace_Brick_Designs said:
", though I’m disappointed that no BDP sets made it."
Are those counted among official Lego sets?! I personally do not at least, they are made by fans not by Lego themself after all..
"
Well, as you can see, 910049 “barely missed.” I nominated a different BDP set. I’m not saying I’m surprised none made it, but I am disappointed. They are very well designed builds touched up by designers under TLG’s portfolio, and are in packaging very near Lego’s own. They are sold (albeit for a short time) on Lego.com. Yes, they are genuine Lego sets in my eyes.
72046 Game Boy really is a brilliant set, and I love the fact that there are some $60 sets with a genuine chance at winning this year. From memory, modulars and massive Icons sets are the usual candidates for this category.
Medieval dragon, possibly the smallest set on the list, but considering how much the difference in pieces with a lot of the other sets, it is amazing.
@Oeuf0platieN said:
" 72046 Game Boy is not only my set of the year, but probably one of my favourite sets ever... and I've never even owned a game boy myself, that's how great the set it."
I was wondering how much nostalgia plays a role in the success of the Game Boy - it seems it is not required!
Not to sound too obtuse, but I have never understood the allure of sets like the GameBoy or the Kodak camera. For the money, isn’t it possible to buy the real and functional thing?
I’m happy to see that all my nominations made it to their respective final votes :-) Now let’s see how they fared in voting….
I thought this would be a tricky choice, and it was! Even with two votes. The first was nostalgic and aspirational (seeing as I don't own it yet). 10356 The USS Enterprise-D is the set I have longed for Lego to produce, and the crew included are fantastic. It will (eventually) sit alongside my MB TOS Enterprise and I will be content.
The second option had to be a set I already owned, so that narrowed it down to Soundwave, Medieval Dragon or Blacktron Renegade. I ruled out Soundwave because it's licensed, and I'd like one of my choices to be a purely Lego product. But that still made it tough, as both those sets are excellent. I eventually went with the Renegade, because it just delighted me from the first time I saw it revealed, until it ended up on my shelf.
Enterprise, Game Boy, Soundwave. So many great options to choose from, but those three really hit me in the nostalgia.
Tudor corner and black pearl for me, though blacktron renegade and the shire are both also amazing
It’s a shame that no Ninjago sets made the list, they were truly outstanding this year. My votes went to the vending machine and the medieval dragon.
Tudor Corner and Vending Machine.
But the most important thing is that Space doesn't win.
@tomthepirate said:
"Not to sound too obtuse, but I have never understood the allure of sets like the GameBoy or the Kodak camera. For the money, isn’t it possible to buy the real and functional thing?"
It would cost $70 to $150 dollars to buy a game boy in the USA. That is not including games and some of the best ones are quite expensive. The Lego Game Boy was a good option for me until I fix my GBA and GBC. I need to buy new screwdrivers. I don’t know about the Polaroids but they are not my thing.
Only the Black Pearl deserves the title.
@MusiMus said:
"IMO Tudor Corner and Jango's Slave."
I think you wanted to say Jango Fett's Boba Fett's Starship.
I wanted to vote for Soundwave, but I've wanted the Renegade since the day I found out 6954 existed, and that desire was only sated the day I built the upgrade. I've also wanted Soundwave for years, but I have a G1 reissue, a G2 reissue, Masterpiece versions of both Soundwave and Soundblaster, and some other variations that turn into cassette players. 10358 will be fun to build, but it won't have the same emotional impact as building 10355.
@tomthepirate said:
"Not to sound too obtuse, but I have never understood the allure of sets like the GameBoy or the Kodak camera. For the money, isn’t it possible to buy the real and functional thing?"
A member of my LUG just told me she got the Gameboy set. She also has a Gameboy purse. I'm sure she also has an actual Gameboy.
Oh no I needed three.
Tudor Corner manages to stand out and impress despite being part of a long established and formulaic line of excellent models. Quite a feat.
Medieval Dragon is a striking sculpt that's pleasing to the AFOL eye despite being a play thing made of simple bricks. It stands out among all the dragons that LEGO has ever made.
Game Boy has a level of detail and finish that feels impossible for bricks to pull off at this size, and at reasonable price too.
I love a lot of these, but I have to vote for Medieval Dragon cuz that's the only one I actually bothered to purchase!
@Gataka said:
"Oh no I needed three.
Tudor Corner manages to stand out and impress despite being part of a long established and formulaic line of excellent models. Quite a feat.
Medieval Dragon is a striking sculpt that's pleasing to the AFOL eye despite being a play thing made of simple bricks. It stands out among all the dragons that LEGO has ever made.
Game Boy has a level of detail and finish that feels impossible for bricks to pull off at this size, and at reasonable price too."
I would have picked the same three though I have to admit that the Enterprise is very impressive, too.
Of all the sets, I went with Medieval Dragon. It certainly isn’t the largest and may not be the most sophisticated technically, but aesthetically it’s the most accomplished. It’s more than a feat of engineering; it’s a work of art.
Gameboy and it's not even close. As a Blacktron addict, I should have voted for the Renegade but 72406 has set a new bar for what can be achieved in a Lego set. One of the top five ever made.
Tudor and Gameboy. Wall-E and Eve if I had a third vote.
First choice for me is pretty easy: 10354. I love the look of it (except for the Party Tree), the minifigure selection is pretty much perfect, and it’s a vast improvement over the build from 79003.
For my second choice, I’ll have to go with 43279. All three robots included look very nice, and for a licensed set, the price is very good.
Gameboy and Soundwave for me. Both awesome builds and incredible when related to the source material. Both friends and relatives are in awe of those sets too, moreso than any other sets we have on display.
I finally got to build the shire this holliday. I think it is wonderful, I don’t get the hate at all. It is beautiful and diverse. And the inside looks superb. Especially Bilbos little desk for writing. Sure there are alot of little side builds that makes it all a bit busy to look at. But I will just use most of the sitebuild with another medieval display making the shire more clean.
Uh and the Gandalf and zfrodo wagon is great too!
My two nominations are represented here:
-minifigure vending machine
-Soundwave
So of course they get my votes
Honorable mention: Blacktron renegade
21358 was my choice. Thanks for the great functionality!
The winner of these polls is always the giant expensive set
Baratie!
@Crasha said:
" @MusiMus said:
"IMO Tudor Corner and Jango's Slave."
I think you wanted to say Jango Fett's Boba Fett's Starship."
Yeah, I mean the ship which must not be named. I thought the starship belongs to Benny.
@tomthepirate said:
"Not to sound too obtuse, but I have never understood the allure of sets like the GameBoy or the Kodak camera. For the money, isn’t it possible to buy the real and functional thing?"
Would you hand over someone a real Game Boy and ask them to take a closer look and try out the buttons? There is nothing special about the real things. There is something wonderous about seeing things being translated into a different medium. In this case it's very blocky toy blocks, which have an aesthetic of their own and elicit a sense of surprise: how (and why) did they do this? Build it to find out.
The LEGO story arc starts with the challenge of the build, the pride of pulling it off, the sharing of the results, and then there's the display of it.
Display is really the point of contention, because the functionality of a LEGO model versus real things are otherwise obviously different. Why get the more expensive display option when a cheaper option that displays just as well exists?
The key thing about displayed items like these is that it's less about the object in and off itself and more about what it refers to. There is indeed overlap here, both real Game Boy and LEGO Game Boy will tie into wtv emotional bagage you have associated with the Game Boy. However a LEGO set carries and broadcasts an additional story, an additional meaning, on top of that, because it also carries wtv emotions you have associated with this LEGO set in particular, the whole arc I have mentioned, plus wtv associations you have with LEGO in general.
I think these kinds of sets appeal to non-LEGO fans in particular, which means they can be someone's first LEGO set in a while, if not their first ever, which makes the LEGO factor extra strong. If you've built hundreds of sets maybe somehow building something lifelike doesn't feel as special but if you haven't it's a different story. I built a little thing for people I know the other day. They've had their first baby recently, so I made something pertinent to that. They were amazed that LEGO babies exist now.
Anyway, while unfortunately for a lot of people collecting dust is where things end, for others they take the bricks appart and the journey continues. Then they benefit from taking those things they have emotional attachements too into wtv their imagination takes them next.
There is a lot of value to be found in LEGO if you look beyond what the "end" result looks like. You've got to look at all the feelings and emotions that they make you go through.
None of the above. None of my four nominations made the cut.
My favourite set is 71848 The Temple Bounty, but I voted for Jango's Slave 1, which is also a great set in itself.
@Roebuck said:
" @Wallace_Brick_Designs said:
", though I’m disappointed that no BDP sets made it."
Are those counted among official Lego sets?! I personally do not at least, they are made by fans not by Lego themself after all..
"
Exactly. When I was nominating sets I excluded the BDP range as they are not LEGO branded products. If the rules had made clear they can be included then I would have nominated Adventures in Transylvania. I would say the only reason it isn't in the list above is due to this ambiguity. It is hands down the best set of the year (one of the best sets in the history of LEGO), even better than Tudor Corner.
sounds like one of my favourite, beauty and the beast castle wasn't close to making it in. There are still 2-3 that seem good candidates for me. also the game boy, I dunno, it seems great but also as a display piece it may look a bit dull. I never thought real gameboys looked particularly good.
I voted for Blacktron since it’s the only set from the list I own. But I think we will all look back on the Gameboy as one of the greatest sets ever made, especially under $100.
Then it's a good thing the Death Star didn't pass the nomination stage.
The Enterprise could win due to people having wanted a Star Trek set for so long, regardless of the woeful inaccuracies in the shaping of the final set. I was all set to buy this after it was first rumoured but the final product is simply not good enough. That's also true of the Death Star, the Shire, and the Black Pearl. This has been the biggest year of disappointments that I can recall.
I fear the winner will be the Gameboy. It's undeniably accurate, it's just such a boring object to make into a LEGO set.
"There is nothing special about the real things. There is something wonderous about seeing things being translated into a different medium"
Lego set that can run Doom
This is a good year - Tudor Corner, Gameboy, and Wall-E are the top 3 on that list of the ones I own. The T-Rex is solid and the Renegade pales compared to the Galaxy Explorer. The rest I don’t own, but saw in stores. As good as Tudor Corner is, I think the GB and Wall-E, “pound for pound” have more to them.
Lots of excellent releases last year, but the only 2 that made me think 'WOW' the second they were first shown were 'Tudor Corner' and 'Game Boy'.
Gameboy! Superb set
This was a tough one but I have to give it to the Renegade. My other vote went to the Enterprise, not so much for the model itself but for the potential Lego and Star Trek has.
Medieval Dragon. Easy!
I thought the Black Pearl was the best licensed set and the Tudor Corner was the best non-licensed set but of course I vote for the Enterprise. An IP I didn't think we would ever see and to start with TNG was immense.
It may not be the best set but Blacktron Renegade for me every time. Like everything about it and to me it’s what Lego should be all about. Bought two so I can display the fantastic alternate build as well. I gather sales weren’t spectacular but I really hope Lego continues to remake space classics. A remake of a classic space ground vehicle would be very welcome.
The arcade machine and Upscaled Santa Claus were great as well. I haven’t yet bought Soundwave or Tudor Corner so can’t comment on those.
Enterprise, it was the most surprising build of the year for me in just how smooth it was, how sturdy it is, and with a fantastic displayable end result.
Question: when do we see the results of all the voting? I’m sure I missed that info a while back.
The Shire with that awful party tree made it the final list and Italian Riviera was shut out? Go figure, but from the qualifiers I'll take Tudor Corner just edging out Jango Fett's starship.
@tomthepirate said:
"Not to sound too obtuse, but I have never understood the allure of sets like the GameBoy or the Kodak camera. For the money, isn’t it possible to buy the real and functional thing?"
Yeah, pretty much. IIRC, I said something similar when it was reviewed and considering the number of complaints I've seen of the panel part used for the screen being scratched straight out of the box, I'm not sure if I see the appeal compared to just displaying a real one.
I think the popularity of such sets really just comes down to nostalgia and bandwagon fandom. To proclaim it's set of the year is honestly pretty silly. The Gameboy relies on specialized pieces, can't really be built into much else and does little to nothing to inspire creativity or the imagination.
I think for a set to realistically be set of the year it should be something you can modify, display and play with. I mean, Lego does mean "play well," after all.
The only one I have is the Tudor Corner so I guess that's my vote. It would be the vending machine but that was horribly overpriced and put a great minifigures series behind a huge additional paywall so no thanks.
I'm apparently part of the so-called "Space Mafia". One would think that I voted for the Vending Machine 21358 (which I do not own) and the Blacktron Renegade 10355. Nope, I like my multi-coloured spacemen just like any other "space-mafia" guy/gal but my vote went for Tudor Corner 10350 and Jack Sparrow Pirate Ship 10365. I also own Wall-E and Eve 43279 and while it is a great set, it is not comparable to the above two. That's just the thing: there would need to be so many categories - either by price or parts count that it would become unmanageable. Some fantastic sets slip in the cracks because they are a bit above the low threshold but not comparable the big high-end sets.
@tomthepirate said:
"Not to sound too obtuse, but I have never understood the allure of sets like the GameBoy or the Kodak camera. For the money, isn’t it possible to buy the real and functional thing?"
@Gataka already has a detailed explanation, so all I'm going to say is that 21345 is a Polaroid, not a Kodak.
@Fauch said:""There is nothing special about the real things. There is something wonderous about seeing things being translated into a different medium"
Lego set that can run Doom"
Quick, get on those 71374 mods!
@Vesperas said:
"The Gameboy relies on specialized pieces, can't really be built into much else and does little to nothing to inspire creativity or the imagination.
I think for a set to realistically be set of the year it should be something you can modify, display and play with. I mean, Lego does mean "play well," after all."
Safe for the printed parts, there are only six parts that are exclusive to that set : 2 pink hats used as A and B buttons, a 3M technic connector and the 3 lenticular sheets. The hats and the connectors even are recoloured variants of already existing parts. Most of the inventory is composed of good old bricks and plates, with a few arched bricks for the exterior... admittedly the fanciest, least "Lego-like" parts are a Technic damper and a rubber band.
And they did an incredible job building that Game Boy with such an inventory. To each their own I guess when it comes to what to do with the final product, the inspiration or the creativity, but even before playing with a set you have to build it first - and the Game Boy is by far the most sophisticated building experience on the list here, which is a pretty big thing to say since it's also the smallest, least expensive set here.
And I've personnally had more people interact with it since I built it, out of curiosity, than with any other set I have.
@Fauch said:
""There is nothing special about the real things. There is something wonderous about seeing things being translated into a different medium"
Lego set that can run Doom"
In other words, there's nothing special at all about the real Eiffel Tower in France. However, 10307 is an amazing and wondrous thing--just look at how well it translated to Lego!
Is that what you're attempting to say? Because that's what it sounds like.
Man that’s lot of great sets.
I gotta go with Jango’s Slave-1, though. It was a fun build experience, and it looks great next to Boba’s Slave-1.
But the Gameboy was also an excellent build experience, and of course I love the Renegade. And I wanted Wall-E and Eve and the vending machine, but I ran out of money!
But, where is 21359 Italian Riviera?????
It is the best set of the year!!
I voted for Blacktron.
@Vesperas said:
" @tomthepirate said:
"Not to sound too obtuse, but I have never understood the allure of sets like the GameBoy or the Kodak camera. For the money, isn’t it possible to buy the real and functional thing?"
Yeah, pretty much. IIRC, I said something similar when it was reviewed and considering the number of complaints I've seen of the panel part used for the screen being scratched straight out of the box, I'm not sure if I see the appeal compared to just displaying a real one.
I think the popularity of such sets really just comes down to nostalgia and bandwagon fandom. To proclaim it's set of the year is honestly pretty silly. The Gameboy relies on specialized pieces, can't really be built into much else and does little to nothing to inspire creativity or the imagination.
I think for a set to realistically be set of the year it should be something you can modify, display and play with. I mean, Lego does mean "play well," after all."
This poll is for people's FAVOURITE set of the year, not the 'set of the year' or 'best of the year'. Someone's own favourite is indisputable!
Tudor Corner takes my pick!
Second is The Shire which was a surprise Christmas gift from my girlfriend. Leaving the Party Tree aside, the landscaping in that set is incredible!
@Murdoch17 said:
"I voted for Blacktron."
That's because you're correct.
@GirlWoman said:
"The winner of these polls is always the giant expensive set"
Frequently, yes, the winning set is upwards of $250. Not always. In 2021, 21325 won. Yes, it's not cheap, but at $180, it's quite a bit less expensive than the $800 UCS AT-AT or $680 Titanic that also made it into the poll. In fact, you have to go down to 7th place to find a set that cost less than the Blacksmith.
@peterlmorris said:
"But the Gameboy was also an excellent build experience, and of course I love the Renegade. And I wanted Wall-E and Eve and the vending machine, but I ran out of money!"
I haven't gotten around to picking up 43279, but I fully intend to once I work through some backlog. As for 21358, I had the money, but I also had a lot of Insiders points left over from when I was saving up for 40786 and 40789 (I knew that they were coming long before I knew how many points they'd cost, so I made sure to keep a lot on hand, just in case), so I spent points to get a discount for the first time in a long while.
Of these, I'd say the Vending Machine is my top choice. I threw in Soundwave as my second choice.
So many of these sets are beautifully designed, but if we’re honest, people voting for the vending machine are surely doing that just for the minifigs? (Although I will admit the actual function of getting the balls out is cleverly integrated).
I voted for the Slave I (sorry Lego & Disney’s naming department) and Blacktron Renegade. The Slave I is purely for the magnificent design of the shaping - the figs didn’t really factor in that decision at all. The Blacktron one can’t be a nostalgia thing for me because I wasn’t around (or in the US) when the original Renegade was released - I just thought the new version is a fab playset and the rebuildability is cool too.
@The_Rancor:
While I wouldn't turn one down if I got offered it for free or amazingly cheap, the new Renegade is so awesome that I no longer care about not owning the original. It's like the difference between the Masterpiece Soundwave and a G1 version.
@The_Rancor said:
"So many of these sets are beautifully designed, but if we’re honest, people voting for the vending machine are surely doing that just for the minifigs? (Although I will admit the actual function of getting the balls out is cleverly integrated)."
While I'll freely admit that the minifigs are a huge part of why I bought it, so far I've only actually put one of them together, https://brickset.com/minifigs/idea226/rob-the-fan-designer-red-plaid-flannel-shirt-light-bluish-gray-legs. I've been having a lot of fun playing with and admiring the mechanism though. Admittedly, part of the reason I haven't put more together is because packing those balls and getting them closed is a pain when you only have full use of one arm and hand. But as I said, part of it is because the mechanism is just a lot of fun to play with, especially since the designer was able to improve on the original design by making it require a coin to be inserted to activate it.
@TheOtherMike said:
" @The_Rancor said:
"So many of these sets are beautifully designed, but if we’re honest, people voting for the vending machine are surely doing that just for the minifigs? (Although I will admit the actual function of getting the balls out is cleverly integrated)."
While I'll freely admit that the minifigs are a huge part of why I bought it, so far I've only actually put one of them together, https://brickset.com/minifigs/idea226/rob-the-fan-designer-red-plaid-flannel-shirt-light-bluish-gray-legs. I've been having a lot of fun playing with and admiring the mechanism though. Admittedly, part of the reason I haven't put more together is because packing those balls and getting them closed is a pain when you only have full use of one arm and hand. But as I said, part of it is because the mechanism is just a lot of fun to play with, especially since the designer was able to improve on the original design by making it require a coin to be inserted to activate it."
So, one option would be to put a minifig skull, two white hands, and a couple of short bones in with a few trans-red 1x1 round plates and tiles, and call it good. Keep the minifigs on display.
I would be happy if almost any of these sets won Brickset Set of the Year.
Many are still in my wanted list and of those, I’m probably most excited to get Soundwave.
Tudor was a Day 1 purchase for me but I feel that modulars by nature start with a silver spoon in their mouths so I want to look elsewhere.
I desperately wanted to love the Enterprise but I’m not sure that the final design choices work for me. Throw in the Gilligan shuttle fiasco and I guess I’m out, at least for this accolade.
That dragon and gameboy are fantastic and I’m now wondering if I should reconsider the T-Rex.
I guess it’s the exciting, nostalgic, modular, and affordable Blacktron Renegade for me.
I’ll then go with the dragon as my 2nd.
@Vesperas said:
" @Fauch said:
""There is nothing special about the real things. There is something wonderous about seeing things being translated into a different medium"
Lego set that can run Doom"
In other words, there's nothing special at all about the real Eiffel Tower in France. However, 10307 is an amazing and wondrous thing--just look at how well it translated to Lego!
Is that what you're attempting to say? Because that's what it sounds like."
It almost seems like you're purposely being dense at this point. They were obviously talking about everyday objects that we're used to, not a massive landmark.
@The_Rancor said:
"So many of these sets are beautifully designed, but if we’re honest, people voting for the vending machine are surely doing that just for the minifigs? (Although I will admit the actual function of getting the balls out is cleverly integrated).
"
How do you know they are not voting for the fun or challenge of the build, or understanding the interesting mechanism, or the fun of playing with it, or the nostalgia of getting a random toy from a vending machine.
@MusiMus said:
"IMO Tudor Corner and Jango's Slave."
Same here.
@The_Rancor said:
"So many of these sets are beautifully designed, but if we’re honest, people voting for the vending machine are surely doing that just for the minifigs? (Although I will admit the actual function of getting the balls out is cleverly integrated)."
While the minifigs are surely part of any assessment of a kit with minifigs in, that it becomes solely about the minifigs is no more going to be true than it was of the Plo Koon Microfighter. A Lego gumball machine is just really cool in its own right - the minifigs are nice but the build itself is fascinating and clever. And we’ve all been having lots of fun in previous articles brainstorming other things to put in the balls, thus rendering the build entirely independent of the minifigs it comes with, too.
@Vesperas said:
" @Fauch said:
""There is nothing special about the real things. There is something wonderous about seeing things being translated into a different medium"
Lego set that can run Doom"
In other words, there's nothing special at all about the real Eiffel Tower in France. However, 10307 is an amazing and wondrous thing--just look at how well it translated to Lego!
Is that what you're attempting to say? Because that's what it sounds like."
Are you familiar with the old Pancakes/Waffles tweet?
@CommanderR3x said:
"I’m surprised that the Shire made it on the list. It’s a decent set but it doesn’t meet the standard of the previous two LotR sets in my opinion."
I do not find it surprising. The question asked is not ''what is the best set of 2025'' but ''what is your favorite set of 2025''. The Shire is my favorite set of 2025 (just like Rivendell was for 2023 and Barad Dur for 2024) , and I am sure it is the same for many of the LOTR fans (and there are a lot out there!).
@Altair1970 said:
" @CommanderR3x said:
"I’m surprised that the Shire made it on the list. It’s a decent set but it doesn’t meet the standard of the previous two LotR sets in my opinion."
I do not find it surprising. The question asked is not ''what is the best set of 2025'' but ''what is your favorite set of 2025''. The Shire is my favorite set of 2025 (just like Rivendell was for 2023 and Barad Dur for 2024) , and I am sure it is the same for many of the LOTR fans (and there are a lot out there!)."
Yes, exactly, although there were a handful of sets I consider just as much my favourites. Honestly, aside from the party tree, it’s a wonderful set. It might not have the drama of its predecessors but it shouldn’t: it’s the Shire. And it does very well at being exactly as it should be. Why shouldn’t people love it?
(I’m going to see if I can mod that tree though because… how did that even get approved. It’s even outmatched by a tree in the *same set*! I very much do not understand.)
@Hiratha said:
" @The_Rancor said:
"So many of these sets are beautifully designed, but if we’re honest, people voting for the vending machine are surely doing that just for the minifigs? (Although I will admit the actual function of getting the balls out is cleverly integrated)."
While the minifigs are surely part of any assessment of a kit with minifigs in, that it becomes solely about the minifigs is no more going to be true than it was of the Plo Koon Microfighter. A Lego gumball machine is just really cool in its own right - the minifigs are nice but the build itself is fascinating and clever. And we’ve all been having lots of fun in previous articles brainstorming other things to put in the balls, thus rendering the build entirely independent of the minifigs it comes with, too."
Or even coming up with other uses for the ball pieces. If Lego ever makes them in the right colors, I still say they'd be great for a large Dalek model.
So long as the designers keep doing what they've been doing, its hard for me to imagine that the set of the year for me will ever not be that year's "black box" Nintendo/Mario set. Game Boy for 2025!
And we actually got two black box Nintendo sets this year, with the Game Boy and the Mario and Standard Kart or whatever they called that I've. I'd love to see multiple releases every year, especially if one is more affordable and one is a higher price point.
@CCC said:
" @The_Rancor said:
"So many of these sets are beautifully designed, but if we’re honest, people voting for the vending machine are surely doing that just for the minifigs? (Although I will admit the actual function of getting the balls out is cleverly integrated).
"
How do you know they are not voting for the fun or challenge of the build, or understanding the interesting mechanism, or the fun of playing with it, or the nostalgia of getting a random toy from a vending machine. "
I really like the mechanism, but that and some of the figs alone weren’t enough to actually make me want to buy it at the price point it ended up at. I understand some of the other reasons you mentioned for people liking the machine, but I also think some of the other shortlisted sets are better, including other ones I don’t own.
@The_Rancor said:
" @CCC said:
" @The_Rancor said:
"So many of these sets are beautifully designed, but if we’re honest, people voting for the vending machine are surely doing that just for the minifigs? (Although I will admit the actual function of getting the balls out is cleverly integrated).
"
How do you know they are not voting for the fun or challenge of the build, or understanding the interesting mechanism, or the fun of playing with it, or the nostalgia of getting a random toy from a vending machine. "
I really like the mechanism, but that and some of the figs alone weren’t enough to actually make me want to buy it at the price point it ended up at. I understand some of the other reasons you mentioned for people liking the machine, but I also think some of the other shortlisted sets are better, including other ones I don’t own."
That’s perfectly fine! It’s also perfectly fine that other people disagree and rank it more highly in their personal favourites.
The comments on the nomination post are very interesting actually: It can be easy to perceive a… consensus of opinion amongst Lego fans, and while of course it is true that some sets are more widely liked than others such that a shortlist is even possible, there were people in that thread nominating kits that were not particularly well-received. Favourite is such a subjective choice.
@Vesperas said:
" @Fauch said:
""There is nothing special about the real things. There is something wonderous about seeing things being translated into a different medium"
Lego set that can run Doom"
In other words, there's nothing special at all about the real Eiffel Tower in France. However, 10307 is an amazing and wondrous thing--just look at how well it translated to Lego!
Is that what you're attempting to say? Because that's what it sounds like."
The "real" equivalent to 10307 would be a cheap miniature Eiffel Tower you pick up at the gift shop.
But you knew that, of course. It simply doesn't suit the narrative that a type of set you aren't personally interested in must be objectively bad and people only want them because "bandwagon fandom."
@Vesperas said:
" @tomthepirate said:
"Not to sound too obtuse, but I have never understood the allure of sets like the GameBoy or the Kodak camera. For the money, isn’t it possible to buy the real and functional thing?"
Yeah, pretty much. IIRC, I said something similar when it was reviewed and considering the number of complaints I've seen of the panel part used for the screen being scratched straight out of the box, I'm not sure if I see the appeal compared to just displaying a real one.
I think the popularity of such sets really just comes down to nostalgia and bandwagon fandom. To proclaim it's set of the year is honestly pretty silly. The Gameboy relies on specialized pieces, can't really be built into much else and does little to nothing to inspire creativity or the imagination.
I think for a set to realistically be set of the year it should be something you can modify, display and play with. I mean, Lego does mean "play well," after all."
Then you clearly haven’t built the LEGO Gameboy set.
If you had, you would know it’s one of the best, most clever builds of ALL-TIME!
It’s amazing what they packed into such a little set!
And I never owned the original Gameboy, so I don’t have great nostalgia for it.
@besch64 said:
"So long as the designers keep doing what they've been doing, its hard for me to imagine that the set of the year for me will ever not be that year's "black box" Nintendo/Mario set. Game Boy for 2025!
And we actually got two black box Nintendo sets this year, with the Game Boy and the Mario and Standard Kart or whatever they called that I've. I'd love to see multiple releases every year, especially if one is more affordable and one is a higher price point."
It took me a bit to realize what you meant by "black box," because I'd sort of forgotten about 18+ packaging, despite having finished building the Vending Machine very recently. I was thinking about "black box" as something that isn't fully revealed for a while, something like the physics meaning of "black box." https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Black_box
@lemish34 said:
"Then you clearly haven’t built the LEGO Gameboy set.
If you had, you would know it’s one of the best, most clever builds of ALL-TIME!
It’s amazing what they packed into such a little set!
And I never owned the original Gameboy, so I don’t have great nostalgia for it."
Dammit, you just reminded me that the Pixar Luxo Jr. lamp didn’t make the cut. That has references to at least 75% of their film library!