LEGO's Ben 10: the next Galidor?

[Daz Hoo]

I was at my local Toys R Us this weekend, and browsing through the LEGO aisle, I nociced that the Ben 10's sets seem to be collecting dust more than anything. Same thing at my local Wal Mart.

Although I do not have any info on this, my personal feeling is that this series is turning out to be a big flop for LEGO. Possibly as big as the Galidor series.

What do you guys think? Do you see or have kids that are into Ben 10 sets? Or do you, like me, see the boxes still piled up nicely at your local retail store?

[GIR3691]

I haven't even really seen this series, not that I've been looking. I can't remember seeing too many of these sets, maybe two or three on shelves. Either they are selling well or stores aren't stocking them much around here. The Ben 10 license makes absolutely no sense to me, since that show is not nearly as popular as Spongebob was. I think it's a cross between Avatar the Last Airbender and Galidor- a lackluster theme with lots of large useless parts (like Galidor) based on a cartoon I'd never really heard much about (like Avatar).

I hope the line fails. It's just lame.

[UOldPirate]

TRU, Wal-mart, you name it, there's loads of Ben 10 in my area. The sets are fully stocked and usually in their neat, untouched-by-kid-hands stacks. I hope Lego didn't pay too much for this license, because it doesn't look like this one is doing so well.

[atxdad]

Regardless of whether the line is a success for Lego, I can attest that my five-year-olds love them, so that makes them a winner from this parent's point of view.

While it is hard for this adult buyer to overlook price-per-piece ratios, I recognize that I am buying an action figure for my kids, and a good one at that. The models are sturdy for rugged play and my kids like the characters. Construction is easy for little hands, and they frequently mix and match parts to make new monsters. Unbound by preconceptions, the boy has shown some really creative parts usage for those 'useless' parts that I would never have considered.

[Daz Hoo]

Thanks for posting atxdad! Atlhough you might seem like the voice of a minority, I'm really glad that we got the opinion of a parent who actually bought some of those sets. It gives us another perspective.

[Draykov]

Possibly as big as the Galidor series.

I think it may be a bit soon to go that far. There are only 6 sets so far in the Ben 10 line, none of them over $15. Galidor had about 3 times as many sets/figures and a few of those were pretty pricey. To boot, many of the new elements in the Ben 10 line are common to all 6 sets in various colors. By comparison, Galidor parts were much more exclusive. I wouldn't be surprised if these sets aren't doing as well as traditional play-theme sets...however, it seems to me that LEGO planned more cautiously for this line and hedged their bets more than they did with Galidor.

[infallible]

I think Draykov is right. LEGO didn't sink nearly as much in to Ben 10 as they did into Galidor. Galidor was supposed to be a big multimedia event with the toys and a cartoon, and whatever else.

I haven't seen a ton of excitement for Ben 10, but I can't imagine that LEGO spent that much to bring these to market. If we get another wave, then I guess that means the line did well enough. (But even over the busy opening weekend, they seemed to sit untouched at our new LEGO store.)

[Jabba the Taff]

Ben 10 seems to be permanently on sale here in the UK. Argos have had them on offer since a month after they came out. Admittedly it's only £3 off, but that brings it to under a tenner. So Lego's original pricing does seem to have had an detrimental effect. That said, maybe at £10 they're selling like hot cakes.

[Daz Hoo]

Same here in Canada. TRU and Zeller both held numerous sales on this line, yet the box still sit on the shelves untouched. Hence why I think this line in sinking...