Designer insight: Carl Merriam
Posted by Huwbot,
Many LEGO set designers use our BrickLists feature to maintain a list of the sets they've worked on and often provide interesting insights about their involvement.
Once a week we publish an entry from one of their lists on the home page to increase awareness of this information and to encourage more designers to create them.
Carl Merriam wrote this about their work on 10273 Haunted House:
After the pipe organ was taken out of Barracuda Bay Carl set his sights on developing the very first attraction in the all new fairground series from the team formerly known as Creator Expert. Carl put all of his passion, dedication, talent, and humor into the pipe organ. That's why he ended up calling in a few 'friends favors' to help with what he referred to as 'some of the more minor details of the set'.
The debate still rages as to whether the haunted painting effect is a hologram, an illusion, or just plain magic.
The meaning behind the 'TC' inscribed on the gravestone in the front yard is a secret that its original designer intends to take to the grave, though a credible source speculates that is stands for... 'the company?'
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23 comments on this article
That's so ironic given the RPOTD is the ogive. We all know Carl loooooves the ogive, and to say, 'ogive.'
https://brickset.com/article/79280/the-mighty-bowser-revealed !
Great sets Carl.
Carl is the only Lego designer whom I've thought, 'It would be a good time having a beer with Carl.'
This man is just great at detail and easter-eggs. I still proudly have Barracuda Bay and the new Galaxy Explorer on display, and there've been several times when I was sorely tempted to bite the bullet on 10273. In the end, I helped a friend build it over at his place, and marveled at the details (I maaaay have Bricklinked the organ, because that thing is a work of art).
Carl Merriam seems to be a pretty big gun. If you want a large set that doesn't skimp on the details, bring out the Merriam.
"The meaning behind the 'TC' inscribed on the gravestone in the front yard is a secret that its original designer intends to take to the grave"
For me, TC will always stand for Theodore Calvin, especially now after Roger E. Mosley's death last year.
Feel like this is one set that’s super underrated. The drop tower function works so well.
Still not too sold on it, although I must say that CGI artwork is not doing the set any favors. I'd reckon it looks much more organic and attractive in the flesh (brick?).
For me the main thing is that the easter eggs are often not even accurate! And to me they come off as weak nostalgia baiting not very well integrated into the build. That said, it's a great drop tower beside that.
That said, I personally think the 'TC' probably stands for Tiago Catarino. Although we can't be sure on that.
Tiago Catarino has said multiple times that TC is a reference to him because he helped a bit with the design of the set. So I don’t think this is a huge secret, unless there’s some additional meaning.
@illennium said:
"Tiago Catarino has said multiple times that TC is a reference to him because he helped a bit with the design of the set. So I don’t think this is a huge secret, unless there’s some additional meaning."
And didn’t he leave before this set was released? Hence the memorial.
The TC is clearly for Tiago Catarino, former designer who retired from Lego but now runs his own Instagram/YouTube pages. He designed the Ship Ina Bottle and inscribed his initials in the same TC pattern in that set.
I didn't know Barracuda Bay was at one point going to have a pipe organ. That would have been awesome. I'm going to bricklink the pieces and add it back in!
This set looks awesome and I love lots Carl Merriam's sets. Great designer diary too.
Probably my favorite part of the LIT tour last year was spending time with Carl, Mike and James. So brilliant in their thinking about LEGO math, and so giving of their time.
@yo_dabrick said:
"So brilliant in their thinking about LEGO math, and so giving of their time."
Provided you paid thousands of dollars for the privilege ;-)
@CaptainRogers said:
"The TC is clearly for Tiago Catarino, former designer who retired from Lego but now runs his own Instagram/YouTube pages. He designed the Ship Ina Bottle and inscribed his initials in the same TC pattern in that set."
Tiago explains it in his video on the Titanic: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CBfhpMSH4ww
He retired before the haunted house, and he pitched the initial idea for the Titanic.
Proudly on display, and it has even been tolerated by my wife for quite some time already.
Love the set. My favourite set is another one Carl Merriam worked on:
https://brickset.com/sets/21309-1/NASA-Apollo-Saturn-V
I love to read this series of article! Thank you LEGO designers and Brickset to make it happen!
Some absolute stonkers in this list. Also very much looking forward to the Tranquil Garden 10315
A note to everyone that Carl doesn't post these, Mike Psiaki does.
"Compiled by pmiaki.
I'm making this list for Carl since he's not too good at internet."
@FuddRuckus: I was about to go look at the list to see if someone else had put it together, considering the description. Of referred to Carl in the third person. Of course, I'm still going to give it a look, just to see what other sets he did.
I think the other gravestone is meant to be for the Fabuland piece 4088, given the connections this set has with Barracuda Bay. The pieces were similarly brick built on the ship to replicate the original's decoration. Interestingly 4088 had been previously used as a gravestone in Graveyard Duel.
Argh I wish that lovely pipe organ had been included in POBB!! It's a shame this set is so expensive since I would love all the Adventurers builds and the organ as mentioned. I also liked how the Manor Von Barron was sort of like an English manor house rather than a stereotype unrealistic haunted house (in this case just remove the tower and it's a normal house).
@FuddRuckus said:
"A note to everyone that Carl doesn't post these, Mike Psiaki does.
"Compiled by pmiaki.
I'm making this list for Carl since he's not too good at internet.""
That's why he's got style!
I never really found any appeal for this and placing within fairground theme seemed odd. However, may still pick up as used prices not bad for the number of pieces and build my own haunted house moc as 10288 has ridiculous used price.
@ambr said:
"I never really found any appeal for this and placing within fairground theme seemed odd. However, may still pick up as used prices not bad for the number of pieces and build my own haunted house moc as 10288 has ridiculous used price."
I presume you mean 10228 which is, indeed, right up there with the earliest modulars....
@rslotb said:
"
Tiago explains it in his video on the Titanic: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CBfhpMSH4ww
He retired before the haunted house, and he pitched the initial idea for the Titanic.
"
Yeah. The TC was used in the Ship in the Bottle set initially.
However, his claim about the Titanic is a bit self-aggrandising. LEGO has had pitches for a LEGO Titanic for decades. Many designers before him have pitched the idea. Specially since the 90's when the James Cameron film came out. He was probably simply the last one to pitch it. While he did help with the organ in the Haunted House, I don't think he has any valid claim in regards to the Titanic. The brick is there probably only because his friends still at LEGO found it funny to put it there (I personally took it out of my set. I'm not interested in inside-jokes from LEGO designers on my sets).