Arrived in New York around 12:00, a visit to Times Square and therefore the Toys R Us of the district was essential before going for a walk to the LEGO Store in Rockefeller Plaza.

Not enough to whip a cat, the shelves are filled with sets that we already know and sold at the US public price, which is the equivalent in $ of our public prices in €, and we must also add the tax of 8% ...

Except for the exclusive sets that are difficult to find elsewhere than at LEGO, it is therefore often cheaper with us, on Amazon for example. An example: the LEGO The Hobbit board game is sold here for 34.99 $ excluding tax, or 29.50 € all taxes included. It is available on amazon.it for 27.45 €.

The official LEGO store is not as big as I thought, no special events, a clientele mainly made up of tourists looking for a souvenir and not much local to eat. I left with these pretty cool key chains (853309 - $ 5.49 each) and the two (awful) exclusive sets from the Store: 40025 New York Taxi ($ 5.49) and 40026 Statue Of Liberty ($ 5.49). 

The collection of access badges to NYCC 2012 is scheduled for Thursday morning, and the opening of the convention Thursday afternoon.

After the official visuals, which have the merit of always highlighting the sets presented, here is the video filmed by BrickSpy during the BrickCon 2012 convention. We discover the set as it really is when it is mounted and placed on a table, a bit like at home in fact ...

And the more I watch this demi set, the more I tell myself that LEGO may have planned its business with the Technic parts located at the base of the building, as I could read it here or on various other forums, with future additional modules which would come to flesh out this asylum from Arkham.

The upcoming release of Rancor Pit in the Star Wars range planned to connect to the Jabba's Palace from set 9512 prompts me to think that LEGO wants to exploit the concept of products broken down into several modules: To have the most successful product it will be necessary to invest in two or three boxes which will complement each other and form a coherent whole.

Wait and see, I think we'll find out sooner, especially at New York Comic Con which starts Thursday. Anyway, I'll ask the question at the LEGO stand. Not sure I get an answer ...

Un another interesting article must read for those who master the English language: The Long Tail of LEGO which is actually an excerpt from the book written by Chris Anderson: "Makers". The author discusses the phenomenon of" Long Tail "or" Long Train ", a term used in various fields such as trade or referencing and which also defines (among others) also the products whose marketing in small series has been made. possible through the Internet and to which traditional channels have offered little visibility until now. It presents an example around the company LEGO, the giant which has always refused to produce so-called contemporary weapons and Brickarms, the small manufacturer of ABS plastic weapons of war.

He develops the idea that finally Brickarms does LEGO a service by providing customers of old age with accessories that allow them to extend their passion for LEGO and combine it with their attraction to the things of war. A 10 or 11 year old kid who might get tired of plastic ninjas or fire trucks would find it Brickarms enough to satisfy his desires for soldiers, special forces and warlike action. Brickarms, Brickforge and all the other manufacturers of this template would thus offer an additional chance for LEGO to see fans arriving who have escaped the "Dark Age"and ready to invest even more in their passion that has become a collection.

LEGO would have understood the interest of letting these third-party manufacturers produce accessories that are not in its catalog for ethical reasons and would implicitly support them by providing them with recommendations as to the plastics and techniques to be implemented to comply with the spirit of the brand. These small manufacturers have a more flexible structure than that of the giant Billund which plans its products well in advance and validates them through a complex commercial and industrial process.

Brickarms therefore takes advantage of this "Long Tail" by being in the wake of the manufacturer whose inventory it enhances with its creations which ultimately do not compete with existing products. All of these small manufacturers are indirectly part of the LEGO trade galaxy and fill in the manufacturer's gaps by meeting the expectations of customers looking for specific products. The Internet allows them to occupy these commercial niches, to communicate effectively and to market their small series of products to fans.

If you have time, go take a look this very interesting article, which almost makes you want to read the book in question.

Un interesting article on the npr.org site (National public radio) brings some clues and allows us to try to understand how the younger generations find affinities with a 35-year-old cinematographic saga.

Among all the Star Wars fans, there are many who have never known the Original Trilogy than through multiple DVD releases or TV broadcasts. Me, the first, I was much too young in 1977 to attend the release of theEpisode IV: A New Hope At the movie theater.

How does a universe like that of Star Wars succeed in staying in fashion all the time and attracting new generations where other so-called cult universes are struggling to survive technological developments and changes in mentality? It's very simple: A universe filled with action, spaceships, lightsaber battles, various and varied creatures, a basic scenario with the story of a family fighting for control of the universe, endearing (sometimes annoying) heroes who allow everyone to identify with the one with whom they have the most affinities, emblematic villains (really very bad), cubs, a kid who drives a racing machine and the cause is heard.

Star Wars becomes for the youngest the equivalent of the cowboy against the Indians, of the knight who fights against the dragon to save the princess, etc ... the projection in a technologically exciting future in addition. The Star Wars universe has grown so much that it's impossible to know every nook and cranny. It is possible to spend a lifetime learning about characters or planets, learning about technologies, following spin-offs and other parallel stories out of the imagination of third-party authors ....

Derivatives obviously play an important role in the survival of this universe among the youngest. How many children play with LEGOs from the Star Wars range without ever having seen the movies? Their parents buy these toys because they deal with a universe they themselves are nostalgic for and thus convey their own interest in the saga.

I prefer, but it's very personal, to give my son an X-Wing than a garbage truck, or a Tie Fighter rather than a backhoe loader. I prefer to hear him reproduce a space battle in his room than to see him go around an imaginary city to empty the garbage ... The part of my dream that I have left of Star Wars, I transmit it through these toys and I thus have the impression of perpetuating it in my own daily life.

The animated series currently broadcast like The Clone Wars obviously help to snatch the youngest in the Star Wars spiral. They discover the characters that we adults already know and I can speak with my son of Anakin or Obiwan as a common acquaintance. He tells me about their animated adventures, I tell him what I saw in the movies. The bridge is there, the link is made and we each have our bearings but in the same universe.

And it is this common universe that drives us to still consume Star Wars in all its flavors today: T-shirts, LEGOs, DVDs, etc ... Star Wars has this ability to resist all the fads and to all age groups. A kid with a Star Wars t-shirt stays in the game, just like a teenager or an adult. It's less obvious with the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles, Ben 10 or the Power Rangers ...

And you, if you are a fan, how did you discover this universe? At what age ? You can give your impressions in the comments.

This group of LEGO fans from the merger of two LUGs (Long Island LUG and New York Brick Artists) will be present at New York Comic Con 2012 and will present numerous dioramas, covering all of the current licensed themes marketed by LEGO .

The few information received by email that I have (thank you sanders) mention DC Super Heroes creations (Hall of Doom, Hall of Justice, Metropolis ...), some Marvel creations (Portal to Chitauri World, Sentinel, X-Mansion ...) as well as Star Wars and Lord of the dioramas Rings (Bag End ...).

We are also talking about the exclusive minifigs planned for the show and it seems that this year it is the turn of ... Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles.

Obviously, I would not fail to post pictures to you, here, on Brick Heroes and Lord of the Brick, of these different dioramas and to keep you informed about the exclusive minifigs. I will be at the show when it opens Thursday afternoon.

Below is a video of the members of I LUG NY in full preparations.