It is the comeback of the end of the year, the big comeback of a set considered as "cult" by some fans which was negotiated so far at indecent prices on the secondary market and which emerges in a version identical to the original model of the set 10189 Taj Mahal marketed in 2008.

The new benchmark LEGO Creator Expert 10256 Taj Mahal will allow those who have long regretted not being able to add this box to their collection to eliminate the price excuse once and for all. This new set is sold € 329.99, i.e. an identical price (including inflation) to that of set 10189 sold at the time at the public price of € 299.99.

As of this writing, the set is out of stock on the LEGO Shop but LEGO promises shipping by December 21 to all those who place their order.

In the box, an additional brick separator and a few axes that change color. Everything else is identical to the 2008 model. However, LEGO claims to have it "brought up to date"in the official product description. It must be the box ...

It therefore remains to judge the interest of this Taj Mahal, both in terms of the pleasure of construction and that of the space needed to exhibit this bulky model. And don't count on me to go into ecstasies all the time on these two criteria.

I am not one of those who until now idealized this set which has become overpriced on the secondary market and its surprise reissue is therefore no relief to me. The Taj Mahal, even made from LEGO bricks, is not a monument for which I am willing to sacrifice a significant chunk of my living space (and my LEGO budget).

Let's be honest, and those who have been able to put this set together will have a hard time contradicting me, the feeling that dominates throughout the assembly phase is ... boredom. We stack, we do four, eight, sixteen or thirty two times the same thing, and we finally decide to put the set aside to space the repetitions.

We come back to it later and start over. At first, I sometimes felt like I was putting together a dummy wedding cake, but I also said to myself that this monument is above all a geometric structure and that LEGO should not be blamed for trying to reproduce it as best as possible.

This set is an identical reissue of a 2008 model, so we find the same parts, the same construction techniques and the same somewhat outdated look. Some will consider that this is what makes the charm of this reissue.

In the product description, LEGO refers to "the intricate tiling around the base". It is in fact to place more than 200 copies of the lower part of a Turn Plate 2x2 ...

However, from time to time we think that with the new parts produced by LEGO since then, the end result could probably be better. But we also understand why this box contains more than 5900 pieces. We stack hundreds of 1x1 pieces over and over again. Walls, windows, towers, etc ...

The domes with exposed studs have a vintage look and a rough finish. The nostalgic LEGO fan too happy to finally be able to afford this box will be satisfied. Those who expect a more complete finish from a model on this scale marketed in 2017 will no doubt be a little disappointed by the final rendering.

The real Taj Mahal is a monument covered with engravings, textures, decorations. On the LEGO version, the walls are hopelessly empty and smooth. The four minarets are a little too bare for my taste, in the end we can only see the joints and the notches of the parts that make up the walls. So much the better for the "immaculate" look of the thing, so much the worse for the architectural richness of this monument which is somewhat by the way here.

The LEGO Creator Expert version Taj Mahal is also modular. And that's good for transport and storage. It is in any case impossible to move it in a single block. The minarets sway dangerously, the base platform made up of six sections only holds in place via a few Technic pins and the central mausoleum is right in the heart of the construction.

This modularity is therefore welcome and LEGO has thought of everything. The assembly can be broken down without having to dismantle everything. the minarets are only fixed on a few studs, as are the five domes of the mausoleum.

Was it absolutely necessary to reissue this set identically? I am not sure. The 2008 (cardboard) box will remain the 2008 one for collectors. Those who had not bought this set a few years ago might have appreciated some improvements on this new version with for example parts in Pearl Gold instead of the garish yellow, smoother domes, a mosaic around the base, some pad printed elements, etc ... The impact on the price of the 2008 set on the aftermarket would have been the same: a more modern version of the Taj Mahal would have made the previous model obsolete anyway.

This set LEGO Creator Expert 10256 Taj Mahal will therefore have finally left me unmoved (!). I will long remember having worked on the line to simultaneously assemble the many sections to be reproduced in multiple copies, pushing aside repetitive assembly sessions every day, and I will wait patiently for LEGO to come up with a more compact version of this monument in the Architecture range. The latter will better suit my budget and the space I have to display a few sets.

Note: The set presented here, supplied by LEGO, is put into play. To participate in the raffle, all you need to do is post a (constructive) comment on this article before the December 22 at 23:59 p.m.. The "I participate", "For my little loulous", "For my grandson" and other things of the same style will be automatically disqualified.

Update : The winner was drawn and was notified by email, his nickname is indicated below. Without a response from him to my request for contact details within 5 days, a new winner will be drawn.

Another evolution of the platform bricklink which will generate a lot of ink (for not much): The marketplace specializing in LEGO products is opening its catalog to products of the BrickArms brand.

For those who don't know BrickArms, it is a manufacturer of LEGO compatible accessories that produces contemporary military weapons and equipment for minifigs, a niche left vacant by LEGO for philosophical and moral reasons.

BrickArms products are very popular. They meet growing demand and the manufacturing quality is at the rendezvous. These products are not counterfeits, nothing prohibits the manufacture of accessories compatible with LEGO products and the current market is flooded with various and varied accessories intended to extend the "LEGO experience".

In addition, the sale of custom products on Bricklink is not new, it has long been possible to sell unofficial products on the platform, including custom minifigs, as long as they remain in the ecosystem. LEGO.

Some are already crying scandal, pretending to pack their bags and invoke, as with each evolution of the platform, the betrayal of the memory of Daniel Jezek, the founder of Bricklink now deceased whose mother sold the concept to Nexon, a southern company - Korean specializing in online video games.

Over the years, many have "appropriated" the Bricklink platform, as if it belonged to them when it is neither more nor less than a market place, certainly specialized, as there are hundreds of. 'others on the internet.

To blame Bricklink for evolving in order to survive and develop is nonsense. Bricklink has never been a public service, sellers have always paid a commission on their sales to the owner, whether at the time of its founder or since the acquisition of the structure by Nexon ... nostalgic and followers of "It was better before"some of which are already" predicting "the arrival of LEPIN and other Playmobil to the platform's catalog.

The decision made by Bricklink is interesting, however, for both buyers and sellers. It expands the available offer with the arrival of new, very popular products and will ultimately increase the visibility of this space with the (a little less) austere interface and (still) obsolete ordering processes. If Bricklink is to become a hub for the wider (legal) brick market, in my opinion that's good news for everyone.

Those who saw Bricklink as a bastion reserved for official LEGO products will be able to continue to buy their bricks there, Nexon intends to maintain the BrickArms catalog as a separate and identifiable entity.

Fundamentalists who see the arrival of BrickArms as a betrayal of the platform's original spirit will be able to turn to other marketplaces that remain (for now) specializing in official LEGO products, but they will have to accept losing at increase in visibility and turnover to satisfy their convictions.

The market for LEGO and compatible products is changing and Bricklink, which only belongs to its owner, is adapting. Nothing more.

Another box that probably arrives too late but still deserves our attention on what it has to offer: The The LEGO Batman Movie set 70922 The Joker Manor with its 3444 pieces, its 10 minifigs and its public price set at 279.99 €. This box will be available from November 24 on the LEGO Shop and in the LEGO Stores.

The pitch of the set is as ambitious as its public price: it is about building the Jokerized mansion of the film, which includes "memorable details"and"super cool functions". Why not.

As usual, no guided tour here, just a personal opinion on this set.

Let's start by evacuating the usual remarks for this type of set. This Joker manor only remotely resembles the version seen in The LEGO Batman Movie. From far away.

This is a simplified version, or rather a reinterpretation, of the building revamped by the Joker and transformed in the film into a gigantic amusement park dressed in multicolored garlands. But since everyone has already forgotten the film ...

Those who hoped that this Joker manor could occasionally be reworked Wayne manor by removing the burlesque attributes set up by the Joker will be at their expense. This is not planned by LEGO, it would be necessary to redesign a large part of the center of the building which should not frighten some MOCeurs.

A two-in-one version could have been interesting. The playability would have been increased tenfold and everyone would have enjoyed it. It is now almost certain that the Wayne manor of the film will never be available in a LEGO set, even in a simplified version.

We can blame the set for the same flaws as all the LEGO "dollhouses" of the same barrel. Everything is crammed there and most of the spaces are difficult to access, but it is also this exaggeration of details that generally makes all the charm of this type of set.

I often regret the lack of depth of these half LEGO buildings. Here, the effect is blurred by the rollercoaster that encircles the mansion. The impression of a structure cut in two is less present and this is a good thing.

Finally, 25 stickers are needed, including the 4 mirrors in the "gallery", to dress up the different elements of the set. Some integrate rather well but those of the light panel on the front are catastrophic. The Joker's face is broken into three parts and it's ugly.

The LEGO logic that a sticker does not overlap two pieces applies here, but I think there should be some exceptions for aesthetic reasons ... Bonus: the word THE is also a sticker .

Exit the Ferris wheel from the film, the Luna Park spirit of the building is here mainly embodied by the few rails that go around the building with a very slight drop. The supports which hold each of the pieces of the circuit are also more or less well integrated. On one side two beams protrude nicely from the walls of the Wayne manor, on the other a large block of Technic parts that protrude does the job.

Visually, the superposition of the festive elements brought back by the Joker and the austerity of the original building works quite well. The contrast is successful, even if this set is sorely lacking a few light bricks judiciously hidden to recreate (at least partially) the psychedelic atmosphere of the film. I note the coin based HA HA is placed on the wrong side of the building, it is on the left in the movie.

A note concerning the assembly phase: This set is very quickly assembled, thanks in particular to the many pieces of different colors distributed in the bags. Sorting is done quickly and the instructions are even more readable.

Contrary to what one might suppose, this set is not very generous in functionality despite its opulent appearance. We will be satisfied with a hatch which opens onto a small slide and the mechanism which allows to remove the two fists dressed in boxing gloves present on the front.

The gallery of mirrors based on stickers located on the ground floor is of little interest, its access is in any case hampered by the rails of the rollercoaster. For the rest, your imagination will do the work.

Each interior space is a (compressed) homage to a scene from the movie, which fans will appreciate if they actually remember the movie ...

Special mention for the microwave oven and the piano, two very successful elements just waiting to be reused in another context.

No fun for hours: pretending to play the piano, watch a DVD, or play at the dinette in the kitchen has no interest, but this patchwork of furnished rooms nevertheless offers the possibility of recreating scenes from the movie if you want to expose the model on this side.

Obviously, all eyes are here on the assortment of purple tracks and the little green wagons provided to create the circuit around the mansion. As it is, the train cannot make a complete turn. We place the wagons on the highest part of the circuit, and the whole goes down once in three to the lowest point, if it does not stop at the first turn. That's all.

Since the announcement of this box, many fans are already imagining what could be the next LEGO Creator Expert set on the theme of the fairground: A rollercoaster, which would join the sets 10257 Carousel  (2017) 10247 Ferris Wheel  (2015) et 10244 Fairground Mixer (2014)

Why not, provided that LEGO invents us a way to make the wagons rise high enough to then take advantage of the inertia and make a complete turn of the merry-go-round. The friction between the rails and the wheels of the wagons is low, but the wagons are very light even when ballasted with a minifig.

A ramp with a motorized rack to take the train to the highest point of the circuit via the pines located under the wagons should do the trick.

This climax will have to be high enough so that the wagon train can then complete a complete circuit, if the latter has the true attributes of a rollercoaster (a looping!) And is not content to be in the style of the one supplied with the Joker Manor.

As for the minifigs, of the 10 characters provided, 4 are in the outfit seen in the end of the film clip (Friends are Family). Batman, the Joker, Robin and Batgirl will be joined in early 2018 by two other characters in the same very disco outfit via the second series of collectable minifigs based on the film: Harley Quinn and Alfred Pennyworth.

I will buy this set for these minifigs that I find particularly successful even if they are ultimately only versions from a clip itself from a movie ...

Nightwing is a bit loaded, but the minifigure is really original. Alfred is disguised as Adam West aka Batman in the 60s TV series. Nice wink. It also uses the legs of the minifigure seen in the set 76052 Classic TV Series Batcave (2016). The torso is minimalist but it is also the proof that a simple line is enough to give allure (and belly) to a minifigure.

For the rest, it's already seen in the range The LEGO Batman Movie, almost to the point of overdose.

Special mention all the same for the minifig of Nightwing, or rather Dick Grayson disguised as Nightwing in an outfit obviously a little too tight for him especially at the level of the crotch ...

In the tradition of the character attributes in this line, the glasses are molded onto the mask as they usually are with the hair. The armor of the minfig is unique, with two notches to insert the wings.

In conclusion, this Joker Manor is not a playset even if it incorporates an ersatz rollercoaster. The concept is certainly promising, but it needs to be developed. The other features of the set are really limited, and we will quickly tire of pushing the wagons harder and harder to derail them.

In the best case, this set offers a set to display with a nice rendering from a certain distance. Those who embarked on the diorama adventure The LEGO Batman Movie will find here the centerpiece of their creation. To be placed on a pretty rocky outcrop made from bricks for an optimal effect.

The assortment of minifigs will help some of us decide to spend 280 € in this box, with characters in new and exclusive outfits. I probably could have been a little more enthusiastic if this set had been marketed around the film's release. It's too late, the soufflé The LEGO Batman Movie has long since faded.

Note: The set provided by LEGO which was used for this test is put into play. A random draw among the comments posted on this article will determine the winner. You have until November 23, 2017 at 23:59 p.m. to manifest yourself.

Update : The winner was drawn and notified by email, his nickname is indicated below.
Without a response from him to my request for contact details within 5 days, a new winner will be drawn.

If two sets are enough to confirm a trend, then we can consider that LEGO has decided to take matters into its own hands and reshuffle the cards to satisfy the fans and fight against speculation with in turn the implementation of a strategy to limit the impact of counterfeiting.

I deliberately leave aside the sets which are more reinterpretations than reissues like the references 10240 Red Five X-Wing Starfighter (2013) 75144 Snowspeeder (2017) or 75192 Millennium Falcon (2017), and I keep the few sets that are similar enough to the previous models to consider them as re-releases: 75159 Death Star (2016) et 10256 Taj Mahal. We will also remember the set 10249 Winter Toy Shop released in 2015, which was a reissue of the set of the same name (LEGO ref. 10199) released in 2009.

Obviously, anyone who arrived too late in the LEGO hobby to purchase the set 10189 Taj Mahal (2008) are now delighted to be able to afford this emblematic box at a reasonable price. LEGO makes new fans happy and shows them that their interest in this set has been taken into account.

The and 10188 Death Star will not have been absent from the shelves for long before the 75159 set replaced it: less than a year. Speculators did not have time to take advantage of the void left by the original box in the manufacturer's catalog.

By republishing a set that has become very popular with "investors", LEGO is also sending a strong signal and confirms that it is the manufacturer who controls the market and not the dealers. Today's surprise announcement is, in my opinion, the result of a carefully considered strategy. LEGO kept this set a secret until the end. No teasing, no communication, not even to fan sites or LUGs who are usually the first to know about an imminent new product announcement.

In my opinion, this is no coincidence, it was the most skilful method of catching the secondary market by surprise, without giving dealers time to lower their prices to sell their stocks. This secondary market with its hallucinating prices also maintains the "LEGO legend" and the collector's side of these high-end toys, but LEGO probably also wants to exploit the popularity of certain references and make a more ... financial profit.

If we can legitimately think that LEGO decides to put back on the market some very popular products to cut the grass under the foot to an aftermarket which has taken off in recent years and which provides good margins to the most patient resellers, However, I can't help but think that these re-releases are also a very effective strategy against counterfeiting LEGO products.

The secret behind the announcement of the set 10256 Taj Mahal has no direct impact on the counterfeit market: LEPIN is already copying the Taj Mahal from 2008 and this new official version is perfectly identical to the previous one. There was no risk here that LEPIN would take LEGO by surprise and offer a copy of the set before the official version was actually available.

But the Taj Mahal in LEPIN version is selling well, just look at the number of sales made by the different merchants who offer this copy on Aliexpress to realize it. It takes 200 € to afford a copy of the thing, delivered without box and with instructions in digital format.

By adding € 130, we will therefore be able to obtain an original and official version from November 1, with a beautiful box, a nice instruction booklet and parts made by LEGO ... The difference is almost reasonable, many customers potentials will probably agree to pay the difference to add a "real" Taj Mahal to their collection and not just a copy.

Anyone who turned out of spite to copies of sets whose official versions have become overpriced in the secondary market will now think maybe twice before doing the same for a future purchase.

More than the announcement of the set 10256 Taj Mahal, it is this trend that everyone suspects and hopes that should logically help curb the purchase of counterfeits. Many fans might be willing to wait a few more months to afford a counterfeit set, hoping they don't have to because LEGO is finally offering a reissue at an acceptable price.

If the trend is confirmed, LEGO will find its account in all sectors: fans will be in heaven, the secondary market will emerge from the current speculative bubble which only asks to explode to return to a more reasonable offer and the business of counterfeiting will also be gradually (and perhaps lastingly) affected.

You don't change a winning team and Megan Rothrock understood that. So here is a new book in the series "Lego workshop"translated into French by the publisher Huginn & Muninn: Brick adventures (27.00 € at amazon).

As with the previous two volumes from the same collection, this book is a mix of minifig-based comics, instructions and ideas around the LEGO product. The concept is enticing, we are promised "150 creative ideas and 40 models to build", but the realization is less and less convincing.

This series of books is in fact only a compilation of different models proposed by several creators and here vaguely united by a red thread without great effort on the layout and the readability which has further deteriorated since the first volumes.

It is on the side of the instructions provided that I criticize this work for its real lack of homogeneity. There are indeed about forty models to assemble, but the level of readability of the instructions provided now turns from (often) fair to (sometimes) indecipherable. The inventories of the parts required for each model do not always include any numerical reference allowing them to be quickly located on Bricklink or at LEGO.

Good luck, if you plan to replicate some of the models on offer while relying on your bulk of LEGO. You may not have some very specific parts and you will have to search for them on the internet based on the simple visual provided.

The book is ultimately more a compilation of good ideas than a collection of models, the layout of the assembly instructions really lacks consistency.

As with the previous volumes, you often have to be content with photos of the different assembly steps and deduce the positioning of the parts to be added. Some of the instructions offered in this third volume, especially those using white pieces, are almost incomprehensible.

Several of the models presented are only digital versions of each of the creations in question. A bit of a shame for a book that claims to be part of the collection "The LEGO Workshop".

We really have the impression that Megan Rothrock no longer makes an effort to offer real decomposed models and is now content with a few screenshots. Its name is undoubtedly enough to motivate certain MOCeurs who see in these books an opportunity to make themselves known a little more.

Yet today there are many tools that allow you to generate readable instructions, but maybe it was too much work ...

The few comics on offer struggle to hide the impression of shoddy work that emerges from this new volume. It's uninteresting filler, just to create a semblance of interactivity. We are very far from the promised "Adventure".

Since the proposed creations do not meet the most demanding creative challenge, this book is aimed primarily at young audiences. Unfortunately, the completion of this third volume is so poor that young LEGO fans should quickly tire of trying to decipher the instructions on offer.

I say no, at € 27 for 150 pages of passable photos and muddled instructions, this LEGO Workshop is not up to what the first volume of this series released in 2014 offered (LEGO Workshop 1: Ideas to build).

Megan Rothrock continues to exploit her juicy vein, some MOCeurs probably find there a forum to publicize their art and pocket some royalties in the process and sales are clearly sufficient to justify the publication of new volumes, but she does so less and less good.

LEGO Workshop 3: Brick Adventures - 192 pages - 27.00 €

Note: we do as usual, you have until October 15, 2017 at 23:59 p.m. to manifest yourself in the comments.

Update : The winner was drawn and was notified by email, his nickname is indicated below. Without a response from him to my request for contact details within 5 days, a new winner will be drawn.