As we discussed at the beginning of the month (see: December 2017 – New LEGO Sets & Promotions), between December 15 and January 14, 2018, we supposed to be getting a free LEGO Star Wars Darth Vader Pod with purchases of $60 or more. Many LEGO fans were really looking forward to this promotion, as the pods are popular collectibles (see: LEGO Promotional Pods Polybag Collection). Unfortunately, LEGO had to cancel the offer due to quality issues, and they are replacing it with some other promotions in different regions. Details below…
The #5005376 LEGO Star Wars Darth Vader Pod would have been the fifth in the LEGO promotional pods collection, along with the #5004914 LEGO Nexo Knights Pod, the #5004916 LEGO Ninjago Movie Pod, the #5004920 LEGO Friends Pod, and the #5004929 LEGO Batman Movie Pod. It is still possible that LEGO will release the LEGO Star Wars Pod at a later date, after correcting whatever quality issues they were dealing with, but for now, this is what they say:
“We have to inform that as part of our internal quality screening process, we have found that the #5005376 LEGO Star Wars Metalized Pod does not meet our strict standards. As you know, we take the quality and safety of our products extremely seriously, and so out of an abundance of caution we have decided not to launch the Star Wars Pod. We are committed to continuing support for our Star Wars promotion, and will offer consumers 10% off across all LEGO Star Wars products from 18th – 24th December 2017, excluding the #75192 LEGO Star Wars Millennium Falcon product.”
Please note, however, that this response from customer service is for LEGO fans in Europe and the UK. Instead of getting a discount, LEGO fans in the US and Canada will be receiving 100 bonus LEGO VIP Points on all LEGO Star Wars purchases (excludes LEGO Star Wars key chains, magnets, clocks, watches, books, and video games). This offer is valid at official LEGO stores and the Online LEGO Shop December 15th-24th.
So, if you are in North America, instead of getting the LEGO Star Wars Pod, you are basically receiving enough bonus points for a $5 discount on a future purchase. Not as good as the pod, but fair enough. You might even consider just getting one of the smallest LEGO Star Wars sets to get the points. In the UK and Europe, the 10% off promotion is proportionate to the size of the purchase, so it works best on larger sets (although for really large sets it’s best to wait until a Double VIP Points period).
With Star Wars: Episode VIII – The Last Jedi released this weekend, this is a perfect time to play with your LEGO Star Wars sets, or even get a little something new. A few days ago, I re-watched Star Wars: Episode VII – The Force Awakens in preparation to see The Last Jedi. I got a much greater appreciation for the latest LEGO Star Wars sets, especially the #75187 LEGO Star Wars BB-8 model. Such a perfect representation of the feisty little droid! If you want to check out the LEGO Star Wars: The Force Awakens, and the LEGO Star Wars: The Last Jedi sets, visit the LEGO Star Wars section of the Online LEGO Shop.
What do you think? Are you excited about the new movie? Have you seen it yet? What do you think of the LEGO Star Wars sets related to the film? Were you hoping to be able to get the LEGO Star Wars Pod? Do you collect the LEGO Promotional Pods? Feel free to share your thoughts and discuss in the comment section below! 😉
And you might also like to check out the following related posts:
The UK statement says 10% off except for the Millenium Falcon set. It’s unavailble anyway so why add the disclaimer? Does that mean there might be some coming up for sale during that window???
Jason, I was reading recently that official LEGO stores in Europe, the UK and Australia did get some Falcons in. So while it is not available at the online shop, some of the physical stores did get some new stock. And because the online discounts and the in-store discounts are the same, the restrictions are the same as well.
Thanks for letting us know! Too bad about the SW pod, but the alternatives seem okay too.
What’s the best way to get these pods? I would like to collect them.
They are promotional items, so unless you catch them during the promotional period, your next best option is eBay or BrickLink. I also just read a couple of days ago that there are two more Ninjago Movie pods that are sold at LEGOLAND Parks.
Yeah. This was surprising. It seems likely the problem would be the pod itself, but I don’t think any previous pods have been recalled.
From LEGO’s description it seems that it may have something to do with the metallic nature of the pod. I don’t know for sure though. And you are right, none of the previous pods have been recalled.
Wonder if it could be replaced with a later, plastic version…
I’m actually not sure what part is metallic, but yeah, I guess that’s possible.
DId you guys see the movie yet? Are we going to talk about it?
I’m going to see it tomorrow. Can’t wait! Yes, we will very likely talk about it, but as the movie just came out, I don’t want to spoil the experience for anyone. So, I’, thinking of waiting for a couple of weeks before we will compare the sets to the movie versions of the vehicles/scenes, etc.
why would you say wait for double vip points on the large sets?
when I went to school….vip points accumlate normally @ 5% of purchase price in Australia
so double vip points is equal to 10% anyway….
but if you buy a “big set” now, you get a clean 10% off, and then you still get the 5% accumulation of vip points on top….
don’t understand your logic…
TTE, by really big set I was particularly thinking of the Falcon, as the promotion doesn’t apply. Otherwise, yes, for other sets, this is a great promotion, particularly outside of North America. 🙂