@Ridgeheart said:
"Meanwhile, Dreadflipper has awoken and evolved into Frostflipper. This is good. This is as it must be. Behold, blessed perfection!"

You just know that Grumpy Cat is working for him.

And secretly planning to betray him at a plot-critical moment.

I know these are mostly minifigure driven, but I feel like the Star Wars builds look like they enhance the set for once.

Love the Hogsmeade theme on the Potter calendar! Fits the season perfectly.

SW one is cute...too expensive,but definitely like it

The set detail pages’ tabs are missing the numbers which showed how many pieces and images there are.
I found these very handy. Will they return? Or is it a problem in my browser?

The SW set is easily my favorite because of all of the microbuilds, and that Emperor is just great. But I don't like it nearly enough to spend so much on it. All of the other ones look rather meh to me.

Regarding the Avengers one: why is Cap using Mjolnir to attack that bunny? Joking aside, I like that one. Actually, I like all of them. If I had the space and the money,, I'd be tempted to get all five. And considering I'm saving last year's Friends one (which I bought on clearance after Advent had already started) for this year, I'd need even more space. As it is, I'll probably just get the City one, as I haven't gotten one of those in a few years, and it's got some pieces I want.

Spidey spinning golden Christmas trees with his webbing is actually pretty clever.

I hope there's more in them than what's on the artwork. Looks very minimal with the contents.

@ResIpsaLoquitur said:
"The eternal struggle: buy them this year or wait for 2024 clearance. (The 2022 Potter calendar has been on Amazon discount forever.)"

They always get 30% off on Black Friday, at least in Canada. You can also get some for 20% or so few days into December.

Looks like the game aspect is gone, and HPAC is back to full scenes, with Hogsmeade as the focus this year. Six unique minifigs, and while the Bertie Bott’s Beans brick has been used four times before, the wanted poster brick and the Hogwarts sign tile I’m assuming to be unique prints.

I’m a bit disappointed that they finally did an Emperor minifig, only to give him an Ugly Sweater outfit instead of a Santa suit, but I do like that they finally worked a mini speederbike in for once.

Avengers…didn’t learn a single thing from GotG, judging by the half-full look of the image.

City looks like they _did_ learn from past lessons.

And Friends can say, “At least we’re not the Avengers AC.” Also, not sure I’d consider a bong to be Christmas decor.

Is Harry Potter's hood a new piece? I don't think I've seen it before.

@WilsonPark said:
"Is Harry Potter's hood a new piece? I don't think I've seen it before."

No. It was first used in 76171, and has appeared a few times since. It's pretty neat regardless.

@elangab said:
" @ResIpsaLoquitur said:
"The eternal struggle: buy them this year or wait for 2024 clearance. (The 2022 Potter calendar has been on Amazon discount forever.)"

They always get 30% off on Black Friday, at least in Canada. You can also get some for 20% or so few days into December."

My brain still has lingering trauma from the early 2010s, where Advent Calendars tended to be sold out by Black Friday. That era seems to be long past, but I always end up worrying anyway. (I do miss the era where Walmart had them by August and was already selling them at 20 percent off.)

I like the builds in the SW one, but it seems that there are too few minifigs this time.

@RaiderOfTheLostBrick said:
" @WilsonPark said:
"Is Harry Potter's hood a new piece? I don't think I've seen it before."

No. It was first used in 76171, and has appeared a few times since. It's pretty neat regardless."

Thanks. Looks like it's only appeared in Marvel sets so far, which explains why I haven't seen it yet. I agree, it's a good looking piece.

Is there a reason why Mrs. Claus is wearing black boots? Seems strange. SW and City are pretty lack luster IMO and continue a downward trend...not interested in the others.

Is that a new skirt/short legs piece for the girl on the back of the City calendar? I know it's all just CG, but it looks more substantial than those awful cloth skirts we've had for years!

When you look at the parts count of these and the pricing, the 'Disney Tax' is becoming ridiculous. I know Harry Potter is Warner Brothers, but its still shocking that sets with similar parts counts can have such a gulf of pricing between them, simply because of a licence fee.

I like the artwork on the HP Wizarding World one.

38€? AHAHAHAHAHAHAHAH

These were already a MASSIVE FLOP at 34€, and LEGO really thinks people will pay even more for them? Last year's calendars are going for as low as 22€ for the IP ones because stores can't get rid of the stock...

Who's the idiot in charge of pricing at TLG, and who are the idiots enabling him/her? Seriously. I want to know. I want to put a name and a face to these really really really stupid business decisions.

Oh and no, I'm not getting any of these. Not at full price. I'll wait for stores to slash the price to 20-25€. Shouldn't be long after release when they see no one's buying them at full price.

@ResIpsaLoquitur said:
"My brain still has lingering trauma from the early 2010s, where Advent Calendars tended to be sold out by Black Friday. That era seems to be long past…"

@GrizBe said:
"When you look at the parts count of these and the pricing, the 'Disney Tax' is becoming ridiculous."

Chocolate? Peanut butter. Peanut butter? Chocolate.

Love the figs in the Harry Potter one but the builds aren't great. Not really interested in the others except for the prospect of getting my hands on an Omega fig for cheaper.

@naranek said:
"Is that a new skirt/short legs piece for the girl on the back of the City calendar? I know it's all just CG, but it looks more substantial than those awful cloth skirts we've had for years!"

Looks like the skirt that started showing up in Harry Potter sets last year. I think 76399 was its first appearance.

The Marvel one looks a little scant.
Are half of the doors not been opened for the official pic? Are they being kept hidden to avoid spoilers?

Or is that it?

If that's all thats in the AC, then no thanks to that one.

I like the HP and SW ones though... just not at that price. Will wait for sale.

Clearly I will wait for a sale at those prices. I will definitely pick up HP sometime. I always end up getting it before Christmas even though I don't actually care to partake in opening it daily. I usually forget multiple days, so I just open it like a normal set and part it out as needed. So I can wait for a sale/clearance if I can be so lucky. I know some are on Amazon still for a bit, but I guess I'll see what I'm comfortable spending. But thankfully the Marvel and SW aren't jumping out at me this year like in the past.

I know DC is the Cinderella of the Lego Group, but in view of this year's Batcave Shadow Box release, surely this Christmas would have been the perfect time to do a DC-orientated advent calendar based on Batman Returns, complete with Organ Grinder and giant gift box.

Maybe next year Lego, please...

I will consider picking these up on heavy discount. The two that interest me are Star Wars and Harry Potter for the minifigs. Star Wars also has some really good mini builds. I don't think I'll ever get the AT-TE so having a 212th will be nice. I would probably also keep the droid, ewok, Omega, and possibly Leia. I'm for sure ditching Sidious though. I can't really stomach paying $30 or more for these, so I probably will end up skipping.

@legoguy said:
"The Marvel one looks a little scant.
Are half of the doors not been opened for the official pic? Are they being kept hidden to avoid spoilers?

Or is that it?

If that's all thats in the AC, then no thanks to that one.

I like the HP and SW ones though... just not at that price. Will wait for sale."

Marvel has two more figures and more builds not shown. For once, they are actually not showing everything on the box.

@PhantomBricks said:
" @legoguy said:
"The Marvel one looks a little scant.
Are half of the doors not been opened for the official pic? Are they being kept hidden to avoid spoilers?

Or is that it?

If that's all thats in the AC, then no thanks to that one.

I like the HP and SW ones though... just not at that price. Will wait for sale."

Marvel has two more figures and more builds not shown. For once, they are actually not showing everything on the box."

Looks like seven minifigures total in the images with the table.

@PurpleDave said:
"Looks like the game aspect is gone, and HPAC is back to full scenes, with Hogsmeade as the focus this year. Six unique minifigs, and while the Bertie Bott’s Beans brick has been used four times before, the wanted poster brick and the Hogwarts sign tile I’m assuming to be unique prints.

I’m a bit disappointed that they finally did an Emperor minifig, only to give him an Ugly Sweater outfit instead of a Santa suit, but I do like that they finally worked a mini speederbike in for once.

Avengers…didn’t learn a single thing from GotG, judging by the half-full look of the image.

City looks like they _did_ learn from past lessons.

And Friends can say, “At least we’re not the Avengers AC.” Also, not sure I’d consider a bong to be Christmas decor."An evil Santa minifig? I like it!

So expensive now...

@WilsonPark said:
" @PhantomBricks said:
" @legoguy said:
"The Marvel one looks a little scant.
Are half of the doors not been opened for the official pic? Are they being kept hidden to avoid spoilers?

Or is that it?

If that's all thats in the AC, then no thanks to that one.

I like the HP and SW ones though... just not at that price. Will wait for sale."

Marvel has two more figures and more builds not shown. For once, they are actually not showing everything on the box."

Looks like seven minifigures total in the images with the table. "

You're right! I remembered seeing the two that made up the 6 from leaks. I ignored the 7th during the leak phase because I already have two of him.

@TheOtherMike said:
"Regarding the Avengers one: why is Cap using Mjolnir to attack that bunny? Joking aside, I like that one. Actually, I like all of them. If I had the space and the money,, I'd be tempted to get all five. And considering I'm saving last year's Friends one (which I bought on clearance after Advent had already started) for this year, I'd need even more space. As it is, I'll probably just get the City one, as I haven't gotten one of those in a few years, and it's got some pieces I want."

Bunnies aren’t just cute like everyone supposes.
They got them hoppy legs and twitchy little noses,
and what’s withall the carrots!?
What do they need such good eyesight for anyway!?
Bunnies, bunnies, it must be bunnies!!

@AliveAndBricking said:
" @TheEpicLuke said:
" @mafon2 said:
"The holiday Emperor is funny and extremely creepy at the same time."

"Your journey to the naughty list is almost complete"""Your pitiful little band won't be giving out any presents this year. Oh, I'm afraid the fireplace will be quite operational when Santa arrives.""
The Emperor wishes you a scary Sithmas and a hateful new year!

A bit annoying that they don't actually show the full line-up of the Marvel Calendar contents the way they do with all the other Calendars. I can almost make out everything in the lifestyle shots but the white background shots only show 4 of the figs and maybe half the total contents of the set. Maybe they think we can't tell they are spreading out some of the builds over several days so don't think we'll notice the contents are much less than some of the others.
After Jumping on them when Costco first got them in last year and then seeing every other retailer undercut their originally decent price I'll be waiting for the inevitable markdowns from Amazon, Target & Walmart before buying. Don't want to be running around doing returns again this year.
Not sure if I'll be getting all 5 but I probably will. City, SW & HP are definites and Friends is most likely. Marvel is still a big maybe but looks to have some interesting parts. HP may even be a 2 copy purchase if the price gets low enough. Glad they ditched the gameboard gimmick.

@Zander said:
" @AliveAndBricking said:
" @TheEpicLuke said:
" @mafon2 said:
"The holiday Emperor is funny and extremely creepy at the same time."

"Your journey to the naughty list is almost complete"""Your pitiful little band won't be giving out any presents this year. Oh, I'm afraid the fireplace will be quite operational when Santa arrives.""
The Emperor wishes you a scary Sithmas and a hateful new year! "

It's Lord Krampious!

The Golden Rap Battle Trio

@EvilTwin said:
"Why does the Friends calendar always have so few minidolls compared to the minifigures in the other calendars? Even the licensed calendars have four or five figures in them compared to the two in the Friends one."

It's got a bunch of animals instead, and a few with exclusive holiday printing. You can get pretty much every friends character in like 4 sets, but Marvel & Star Wars have characters people actually care about & want every variation. I've *never* heard of someone collecting every minidoll.

What's up with the big, stinking pile of shite in the Friends AC?! Too funny!

It's even creepier that they put green antlers on a handi-dog. I can vouch that dogs HATE fake antlers. My dogs viewed it as a personal betrayal when I did that to them for a photo many years ago. To do that to such a dog as this, speaks to some freaky, mighty-dark sensibilities over there at Friends. Yeesh!

City AC is meh. Granny claus is only spark.

HP AC is good with Abe, prints, and new kid outfits. Overpriced (as they all are). Will be great around $25 (see ya at Costco).

SW is ok. The Gonk and Pit Droids are inspired. Leia is good and the builds look nice. But, the sweaters have been overdone. Bring back some better Xmas ideas. It's not hard- Santa, snow, reindeer, trees. Poorly printed trooper and Omega are ok, I suppose. I absolutely refuse to even mention the pathetic battle droid.... (damn!)

Marvel is such a snooze I'll probably skip it (maybe a June, 2024, buy?). The reindeer is fun.

I think I'll get out one (or more) of my ACs from previous years. Despite the holiday-themed animals from Friends and a few cute printed signs and sweaters from the others on offer, none of these really sparks a Christmas feeling. At least I'm prepared to dive forward into the past....

@WilsonPark:
First appearance for the hard skirt was in 7 of the 9 Trolls World Tour sets in 2020. It works fine with the short legs that don’t bend, but with regular or mid legs, it looks very much like the sort of thing Luna might wear over jeans, or that would get many teenage girls grounded until they’re 30.

@PhantomBricks:
“Wow. MAC looks pathetic this year.”
“I know! Let’s hide some of the contents, so it doesn’t seem as bad!”

@AliveAndBricking:
They’ve done Santa Maul, Santa Vader, Santa Jango…

The Emperor looks like that Robot Chicken bit where he loses his luggage and has to throw on a sweater from the gift shop lmao

@BrickInTheEye said:
"In the Marvel one the minifigures all turn out to be Skrulls when you open their windows..."

This is the only Secret Invasion reference I've seen on the internet after (to say nothing of during) the show's run.

Would love to see a medieval one again.

Or perhaps a Classic Themes one--out of the 24 builds, 8 for Castle, 8 for Pirates, 8 for Classic Space!

@Ridgeheart said:
" @Trigger_ said:
" @BrickInTheEye said:
"In the Marvel one the minifigures all turn out to be Skrulls when you open their windows..."

This is the only Secret Invasion reference I've seen on the internet after (to say nothing of during) the show's run."

I enjoyed that show. The first ep did break my heart, but you know, in a good way. And all other episodes featured the delightful Emilia Clarke and her magnificent eyebrows so, yeah, I'm easily placated.

Plus, I kind of like imagining Quentin Tarantino, sat at home, seething with rage. "*I* could have done this! I SHOULD have done this! *I* could have made THREE CINEMA-LENGTH MOVIES about Old Man Sam L. Jackson shooting aliens and calling each and everyone 'motherfornicator'! AND WHY DIDN'T ANYBODY TELL ME THERE WAS A FEMALE, WHITE SAM L. JACKSON ALL ALONG? WHERE THE HELL HAS THIS OLIVIA COLMAN-WOMAN BEEN HIDING ALL THIS TIME and I wonder what her feet look like?"

I mean, Colman's just a treasure."

Yep. She was badass. I enjoyed the series, too. I felt the ending could used an additional twist or two.

Of course, the only logical result of your comment is: we need Mace Windu back!!!

Its hilarious how bad these are. Only good one is a Friends one with 5 unique animals (new prints) and one new character.
WHat a shame. Previous year city one was so good I bought 3. It had unique HORSE.

@Ridgeheart:
Look, do we need to sit down and talk about your weird obsession with bushy eyebrows?

@EvilTwin said:
"Why does the Friends calendar always have so few minidolls compared to the minifigures in the other calendars? Even the licensed calendars have four or five figures in them compared to the two in the Friends one."

Firends is one of my favourite themes, but I dislike the dolls, I just put them in a bin. To me the colours, the builds and the cute animals are the selling points. Maybe others are like me?? I think you should at least count the animals too.