Tag: 9516 (Page 1 of 2)

BrickPicker Announces LEGO Set Review Contest

April 23, 2013 / Allen "Tormentalous" Tran / 0 Comments

Our friends over at BrickPicker has announced a LEGO set review contest over on their site with a chance to win some great prizes. All you have to do is write some quality reviews of LEGO sets. The contests starts today and ends on July 3rd, 2013 at 11:59pm (Eastern Time). There are some guidelines that are required for you to be entered in the contest. The reviews have to be a total of 1000 characters combined in the following categories:

First Impression(WOW Factor) & Introduction
Unique Parts/Minifigures
Playability/Build Experience
Value for money(new)
Theme Popularity
Exclusivity
Packaging
Growth Potential
Display Attributes
Final Analysis & Conclusion

The Brickpoints system has also been overhauled for this contest. A normal 1000 character review will get you 10 Brickpoints but you can earn 500 points for more in-depth, detailed reviews. All reviews will be approved or disapproved by Ed or Jeff and you will be able to revise and resubmit them if they are disapproved.

Now to the goodies! There are some really nice prizes for the winners of the contest.

1st Place: Monster Fighters Haunted House (10228) or $200 LEGO Gift Card
2nd Place: Creator Expert Palace Cinema (10232) or $150 LEGO Gift Card
Star Wars Jabba’s Palace (9516) or $100 LEGO Gift Card

There are also four (4) $25 LEGO Gift Cards given to exceptional reviews which are then converted for the Evaluation Corner. For these special reviews, a single person can win them all so there’s more incentive to write quality reviews. To read more about the … Continue

LEGO’s Official Press Release on Jabba’s Palace Criticism

April 2, 2013 / Allen "Tormentalous" Tran / 0 Comments

Today, LEGO has released their press release on what happened with the Jabba’s Palace criticism. We reported yesterday that LEGO will stop production in 2014 but not because of the issue at hand but because of the normal shelf life of different LEGO sets. LEGO has clarified that in their press release seen below.

The LEGO Group’s reaction to criticism of LEGO Star Wars product: “Jabba´s Palace”

The Austrian Turkish Cultural Community has criticized a LEGO Star Wars product for looking similar to a mosque in Istanbul. The product is however not based on any real building but on a fictional building from a scene in the movie Star Wars Episode VI.

All LEGO Star Wars products are based on the movies of the Star Wars saga created by Lucasfilm. Jabba’s Palace appears in Star Wars Episode VI and appears in a famous scene on the planet Tatooine. The building is the palace of Jabba – a fictional movie character.

The picture shown above depicts the building from the movie scene. The LEGO designers try to reproduce all buildings, space ships and characters from the movies as close as possible when creating a new LEGO Star Wars product.

This is done to allow both young and old Star Wars fans to act out the scenes from the movies at home. The LEGO Star Wars product Jabba´s palace does not reflect any non-fictional buildings, people, or the mentioned mosque.

The LEGO minifigures shown on the box and found inside the box (Jabba, Salacious Crumb, Bib Fortuna, Gamorreanic

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LEGO To Cease Production of Star Wars Jabba’s Palace

April 1, 2013 / Allen "Tormentalous" Tran / 5 Comments

Back in January, we reported that LEGO was being accused of being racist by the Turkish Cultural Community of Austria because the Jabba’s Palace (9616) looked too similar to the Hagia Sophia mosque. The group also claimed that the set’s Asian and Oriental characters had “deceitful and criminal personalities” and the minifigures were portrayed as terrorists, criminals, and murderers.” This comes from a Muslim man’s son receiving the set as a present.

In response to these allegations, The LEGO Group as agreed to cease production of the Jabba’s Palace set from 2014 forward. This decision came between LEGO executives and the Turkish community leaders in Munich, Germany. Birol Killic, president of the TCA, states that “We are very grateful and congratulate Lego on the decision to take Jabba’s Palace out of production.”

As a result of this decision by LEGO, the Jabba’s Palace set may have just became an instant collector’s set because of this blemish. By the time 2014 rolls by, the set will already be at the end of it’s shelf life so this is really doesn’t hurt LEGO that much and they would rather concede this moral victory to the Turkish Community. Buyers and sellers on the secondary market can expect prices of the set to rise as they are being taken off the shelves. You can still pick up the set right now on Amazon for $87.99, a 27% savings, or you can pick it up at Shop@Home with double VIP points.

Today is April Fool’s Day and I wish this was … Continue

LEGO Accused of Being Racist and Responds

January 24, 2013 / Allen "Tormentalous" Tran / 2 Comments

This news has made the rounds on the internet that The LEGO Group has been accused of being racist by the Turkish Cultural Community of Austria. They claim that the Jabba’s Palace set from the Star Wars line is similar to the Hagia Sophia mosque in Istanbul and demands an apology because it offends the Muslim community. This all started because a Turkish man was offended after the set was purchased for his son by another family member. The Turkish Cultural Community also claim the scene to be “racial prejudice and vulgar insinuations against Asians and Orientals as people with deceitful and criminal personalities” and the minfigures “resemble ‘terrorists, criminals and murderers.'”

Honestly, this is about as funny as a screen door on a submarine. I’m from Asian descent and have absolutely no issues with the set at all. I actually like how the set looks overall and gave it high praise in my review. Obviously, the accusers haven’t seen any of the Star Wars movies to see what’s going on or what the set mirrored after.

LEGO has responded with a statement that the set is solely based on Jabba’s Palace from Episode VI and no reference to any real buildings, including the Hagia Sophia. See LEGO’s official response below:

All LEGO Star Wars products are based on the movies of the Star Wars saga created by Lucasfilm. Jabba’s Palace appears in Star Wars Episode VI and appears in a famous scene on the planet Tatooine. The building is the palace of Jabba – a

… Continue

LEGO Star Wars Jabba’s Palace (9516) Review

January 5, 2013 / Allen "Tormentalous" Tran / 0 Comments

In Summer 2012, LEGO released an updated version of the Jabba’s Palace (9516). This set is a more bigger and detailed version of the 2003 Jabba’s Palace (4480). The set contains 717 pieces and retails for $119.99, about $0.17/piece. The box contains seven numbered bags, one bag containing only Jabba, and two instruction booklets with a cardboard backing.

Allen "Tormentalous" Tran

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LEGO Star Wars Summer Sets Now Available at Shop@Home

July 23, 2012 / Allen "Tormentalous" Tran / 0 Comments

If you have been waiting for the new Star Wars Summer sets at LEGO Shop@Home, then your wait is over. All the new sets are now available for sale today. You can now get your hands on the new Jabba minifigure, Queen Amidala, or Darth Malgus. Which LEGO Star Wars set(s) are you most excited for?

Desert Skiff (9496)

Republic Striker-class Starfighter (9497)

Saesee Tiin’s Jedi Starfighter (9498)

Gungan Sub (9499)

Sith Fury-class Interceptor (9500)

The Malevolence (9515)

Jabba’s Palace (9516)

Pre Vizsla’s Mandalorian Fighter (9525)

Palpatine’s Arrest (9526)

X-wing Starfighter & Yavin 4 (9677)

Twin-Pod Cloud Car & Bespin (9678)

AT-ST & Endor (9679)

Allen "Tormentalous" Tran

When you make a purchase or, sometimes, carry out some other action as direct result of clicking on a link at The Brick Fan, we will receive a small commission.

www.thebrickfan.com/

… Continue

LEGO Star Wars Summer 2012 Sets Now Available on Amazon.com

July 6, 2012 / Allen "Tormentalous" Tran / 1 Comment

The new LEGO Star Wars Summer 2012 sets are now available on Amazon.com. Be one of the first to get your hands on the highly anticipated Summer 2012 sets.

LEGO Star Wars X-wing Starfighter and Yavin 4 (9677)

Lead the attack on the Death Star with the X-wing! Jungle planet Yavin 4 is home to the secret base of the Rebel Alliance. In Star Wars: Episode IV A New Hope, X-wing starfighters lead the attack against the Empire’s Death Star superweapon, signalling the end of the Empire’s evil rule! Set includes an accurate model of Yavin 4, an X-wing pilot minifigure, an X-wing starfighter mini-model, a weapon, and a display stand with name plaque. Collect the other Series 2 sets: 9678 Twin-pod Cloud Car & Bespin and 9679 AT-ST & Endor!

LEGO Star Wars Twin-Pod Cloud Car and Bespin (9678)

Defend planet Bespin with the twin-pod cloud car! Gas planet Bespin plays a key role in Star Wars: Episode V The Empire Strikes Back when Luke Skywalker travels to Cloud City to rescue his friends. However, it’s a trap and he is forced to battle evil Darth Vader. This set includes an accurate model of Bespin, a Lobot minifigure, a twin-pod cloud car mini-model, a weapon, and a display stand with name plaque. Collect the other Series 2 sets: 9677 X-wing Starfighter & Yavin 4 and 9679 AT-ST & Endor!