Two pieces of information to note today, and which have absolutely nothing to do with each other:

- The appearance of this LEGO Star Wars keychain in a bag in the colors of the board game 3866 Battle of Hoth released in 2012 (LEGO reference 6012306). Not the collector's item of the century, but a cool bag that will appeal to collectors.

- Announcement by Kevin Hinkle on the Community Team blog that the next exclusive set (UCS or not for that matter) will be unveiled OUTSIDE the USA. You will tell me that we don't care to know that it will be in another country around the world until we know what it is or when this official presentation will take place ... You are right.

But it does not prevent the Lego world 2013 will be held from February 14 to 17 in Copenhagen and that on this occasion LEGO could well pull us out of the hat one of the sets which are currently rumored: 10240 X-Wing? Ewok Village? The bets are open...

In the middle of all these superb minifigs from the Lord of the Rings range presented on the LEGO stand during the New York Toy Fair, there is still a little disappointment for me when I discover the eagle that LEGO offers us in the set 79007 Battle at The Black Gate. 

Admittedly, it is a pretty figurine, well molded, perfectly decorated but it remains a figurine, a little undersized besides, and the four studs will not change anything. 

This is the opportunity to talk to you about the set again LEGO Creator 31004 Fierce Flyer (less than 9 € at amazon.it) that LegoLegu has already sent to the rescue of Frodo and Sam who find themselves in bad shape after destroying the Ring (The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King).
We must admit that it has a little more pep ... We also wonder how the LEGO eagle of set 79007 can hold something in its talons ...

Other photos of this nice MOC which allows us to see the Eagle Creator in situation are visible on LegoLegu blog.

We all know these cases covered with studs sold in particular on eBay or amazon under various brands. It's cool, it looks like LEGO, but it's not really LEGO ...

But a good surprise arrives from the New York Toy Fair 2013 with the announcement by the accessories manufacturer Belkin from a range of officially licensed LEGO cases. In fact, these cases had already been presented on the Belkin booth at CES in Las Vegas in early January, but had more or less gone unnoticed.

The first models marketed will be intended for Apple products with an iPhone version and a model for iPod Touch. Belkin will consider extending this range to other models if it is successful.

Below is the official visual of the manufacturer which presents the different models that will be marketed soon.

The official press release can be found at this address.

It is on reading an article, interesting moreover, published on thebrickblogger.com (Part one here et second part there) that the idea occurred to me to approach the subject of "LEGO fetishism" here: A TFOL (Teenage fan of the brand) tells about his passion for LEGO and in particular for the "collection" of digital files of all kinds relating to the LEGO universe.
Instructions in PDF format or various and varied videos uploaded by the manufacturer (advertisements, animated series), this TFOL accumulates on its hard drive everything that LEGO can offer digitally.

Where does the collection end and where does the obsession begin? I know that some AFOLs even keep the transparent bags (numbered or not) that contain the parts. Does a yellow bag stamped with the brand obtained in a LEGO store deserve to be carefully kept between two pages of a LEGO magazine, wisely stored in its original blister pack?

Among LEGO fans, there are therefore those who do not hesitate to part with too bulky boxes and keep only the bare minimum. They do not devote any particular cult to the red and yellow logo and their priority is often to reduce the inconvenience associated with the storage of their sets.

Others, on the contrary, strive to conserve as much packaging as possible, or even waste (sheets of used stickers, empty bags, various flyers) only because they are LEGO stamped products.

I don't judge either one or the other, situating myself somewhere in the middle of these two extremes: I carefully keep the boxes and the instructions for the sets in my collection. I carefully open the polybags, and pile the copies of the LEGO Club Magazine in a corner, as if the presence of the LEGO logo gives them some value to me.

And you, where are you in this space between collection and obsession? If you are concerned, how do you justify the need to keep all these objects, packaging, sachets, etc ...? I'm curious to have your feedback on this topic in the comments.

FBTB uploaded his photo galleries taken at the LEGO stand during the New York Toy Fair, and I take this opportunity to offer you a selection here with the most interesting minifigs from the LEGO Lord of the Rings range from mid-2013.

You can discover all of FBTB's photo galleries on their flickr space.