Where are the 2009 castle sets?

[Brik Masta]

not to mention an appearence from the elves finally!

Yeah, that'd be awesome!

[The Crusader]

The Crusader says that 09 will be a fine year in the world of Castle lego.

[Foamrider]

not to mention an appearance from the elves finally!

Keep in mind a LEGO rep said there wouldn't be elves this year, when asked at BrickCon. Though I would suggest taking that with a grain of salt, as when the first pictures of Pirate minifigs came out, LEGO denied the return of the pirate line. At this point in time though, I wouldn't mind if they didn't come. The elves I make myself are fine for me.

[MoonCheese]

The Crusader says that 09 will be a fine year in the world of Castle lego.

Whew! For a moment, I thought that said "final"! I was getting worried that Castle might end so soon...

I want elves too!

[the enigma that is badger]

Keep in mind a LEGO rep said there wouldn't be elves this year, when asked at BrickCon.

Heck, he was more than a rep; he was the Creative Director for Castle, Agents, and a bunch of other lines (Pirates included)! That's pretty darn high up the TLG totem pole, especially in terms of the folks who are actively designing new sets and lines.

In terms of TLG confirming/denying future plans, the issue with the Pirate line seemed to be that Ambassadors and some community rep folks weren't in on the loop on that line yet, hence the mixed signals we were getting depending on who was asked what. I suppose there could have been some intentional misdirection going on as well, but then it seems more like genuine confusion.

As for the "No Elves in '09", that was said pretty directly and with the same tone that other slightly "spoilerish" info was given as well (direct confirmation of Pirates, hints of Hoth-based SW sets, and a future mystery line that will feature one of the female figs from the Beauty Contest). It was also slightly apologetic which left me feeling more than they had something fun planned, but didn't want to raise expectations.

All in all, the Castle line has been great so far, and regardless of what's exactly in store for 2009, I think we can look forward to some more great sets in the Castle theme.

badger

[Crusader]

As cool as Elves would and hopefully will be, waiting another year for them is not all bad. Dwarves and trolls are still under-represented among my Castle citizenry. Another year to thicken their ranks will be a good thing.

[Sir Kohran]

As cool as Elves would and hopefully will be, waiting another year for them is not all bad. Dwarves and trolls are still under-represented among my Castle citizenry. Another year to thicken their ranks will be a good thing.

Yes, catch-up time will be good. As great as they are the volume of new sets coming out is a bit overwhelming.

[DaleDVM]

I am not in a hurry to get to the elves either. I want them to stretch this current subtheme out for a few years. I also want a couple of decent sized dwarf and troll sets and I expect I am going to get them this year. With the new market set coming out I am willing to put a little faith in the lego group right now. They seem to be listening to the AFOL's. This fantasy theme seems to be very popular and I'm sure they are looking to stretch it out a bit.

[Mog]

It's weird how it's November (yay!) and Brickset has no info on any 2009 Castle set, other than the Market. Even with random sets that they don't even have pictures or piece counts for yet, they'll usually put in a placeholder listing.

You might guess where I'm going with this, but...what if the Market is the only set this year? What if 2009 is an "off year" for Castle, so they can focus on Pirates or whatever, and then they'll introduce Elves and whatever in 2010? Has Lego ever done anything like that before?

I don't know. Just random things - the teasers for the elves, and then admitting that we wouldn't see them this year - make me think that they might take a year off with Castle. Like, it'd be weird for them to make a $200 Chess Set, only for it to be "made obsolete" a few months later with the addition of Elves (and whatever it is that they're fighting). And there is a lot of Pirate sets coming out...

I'm not trying to be stupid (or jinx us ) but I honestly wonder. I'd be okay with it - I'm sort of a year behind on my Castle collecting, anyway. And with all the other mega-buck sets that are coming out...it'd be sort of nice to have a reprieve.

Hmm. Maybe we'll see Market in January, and then that much-dreamed-about super-huge $300 Castle in the fall, and then that will be it.

[Heir of Black Falcon]

From what I have gathered about brickset is they do not put anything up without having a firm release. So if TLC is still keeping stuff up their sleeve then brickset will not have it up.

Also this has been brought up quite often in this and other threads on similar topics. TLC releases themes at different times during the year so it may be Castle 2009 does not come out at Jan. 2009.

I think everyone just needs to step back and be a bit more patient. Brickset or any other place online does not know everything TLC is up to so we should not expect them to.

R

[DaleDVM]

Lego castle will continue. They made new minifigs this year and a few that don't even have a set yet. Lego doesn't produce stuff just for fun so I expect sometime this winter we will be notified of the new sets.

I think lego is just riding the current line for a while as they seem to be selling quite well. On the website all of the troll sets are still considered to be new. They just became available in the summer in the USA after all. If that trend continues we may have a long wait until the majority of the new sets are available.

[LordZode]

I think it's just an exciting time to be a LEGO castle fan.

LEGO Castle appears to be in a renaissance, and I respect those who may have been more interested in the historical than the fantasy elements of the 2007-2008 line; but even they appear to be very pleased with the Market Village

[Formendacil]

Also this has been brought up quite often in this and other threads on similar topics. TLC releases themes at different times during the year so it may be Castle 2009 does not come out at Jan. 2009.

This is an excellent point. This year, the bulk of the new Castle sets came during the summer. Admittedly, there were a few earlier ones (Dwarf mine, impulse sets), but the main thrust seems to have been a mid-year release. If the same were to be the pattern this year, then we've probably used up our "allotment" with the Market.

Oh, and this really should be in Dear LEGO, since it speculates about future sets, so I s'pose I'll move it there...

~Michael A. Joosten - Moderator~

[Sir Kohran]

What if 2009 is an "off year" for Castle, so they can focus on Pirates or whatever, and then they'll introduce Elves and whatever in 2010? Has Lego ever done anything like that before?

Yes. Look at 1991 - apart from one tiny 'Variety Pack' set, there were no new Castle sets released that year.

[Mog]

LEGO Castle appears to be in a renaissance, and I respect those who may have been more interested in the historical than the fantasy elements of the 2007-2008 line; but even they appear to be very pleased with the Market Village

I know it's sacrilege to some but I don't care about any pre-2007 Castle sets at all. I guess part of it is that I'm kind of OC about buying used things but the other part is that as a new LEGO collector I have to draw the line somewhere, and "Castle II" seems to make the most sense. And I'll be lucky if I can afford all of the Castle II sets, to be honest. Part of me is still shocked at how fast all those little plastic bricks add up. But they're quality stuff.

Plus, it sort of makes sense to keep everything in the same "fantasy" world, rather than having some "fantasy" sets and some "realistic" sets. Idunno. It makes sense to me.