Yes. Also I doubt Lego would do scale models of any Nazi vehicles - if they wanted to be accurate, they'd have to have the Iron/Black Cross as well - not very suitable for what is, at its core, a toy.
I mean, Poland (Cobi) does not really gives a shit, and I believe they would have far more to say about how the nazis treated them.
I don't remember Lego ever saying "it depends." So... those symbols on the Red Baron's wings are what then, exactly?
Again, it depends on context. The Nazis adopted the cross in WWII and became synonymous with their particular war effort. I don't expect Lego to do any more in the future. There's a reason Steve Trevor's plane from the recent Wonder Woman set did not have any cross symbols. I think you're misrepresenting Lego vs Cobi. One is a much bigger company with international reach that has to cater to consumers of all ages. Obviously Lego has made sets with realistic guns (UCS Batmobile for example) but I think they're more stringent on war vehicles. Not just because they're war vehicles, but because of what they represent. I think there was enough of a gap between WW1 and the Sopwith Camel's release that made it ok. Or, the Sopwith Camel was taken as a "history of flight" set than a military vehicle (The original Sopwith was released with the Red Baron and the Wright Flyer). I'm not entirely sure, Lego's written policy on violence is very vague. But I don't think they'd make realistic tanks, and certainly nothing with symbolism that could be tied to any oppressive regimes.
So they change the rules depending on what they want to do, then. Got it. I mean, again, Lego has apparently a staunch "no military" policy but, well, that's a military plane you got there. Designed after a WWII fighter, no less. Seems there's a lot of exceptions and "depends" for such a supposed "rule." I mean, let's not beat around the bush: Lego's original no military thing was part of their general anti-violence message. But that's always been shaky and is flat out ridiculous now. There's no actual reason for them to maintain the ban beyond their ego of being a "family brand" that's as cold and corporate as they come. They're hypocrites.
WW1 fighter, and I think Lego took the time to make sure it didn't look too much like the Eindecker in the movie.
It's still meant to represent the plane from the movie, though. And regardless, it's still in-context of the set a military fighter plane.
I agree, but Lego intentionally took steps to make it look different enough. Here's Lego Ideas' policies - I think it's safe to assume that similar guidelines are in place for Lego designers: Politics and political symbols, campaigns, or movements Religious references including symbols, buildings, or people Sex, nudity, drugs, or smoking Alcohol in any present day situation Swearing or profanity Death, killing, blood, terrorism, horror, or torture First-person shooter video games Warfare or war vehicles in any modern or present-day situation, or national war memorials Large or human-scale weapons or weapon replicas of any kind, including swords, knives, guns, sci-fi or fantasy blasters, etc. Racism, bullying, or cruelty to real life animals "No racism, political symbols, campaigns" - so I think we're not going to get any Nazi sets. "Warfare or war vehicles in any modern...situation" - so that means nothing in the last 20-odd years. Again, it's all left intentionally vague since Lego has produced war vehicles - again though, I think the larger Creator sets are meant to commemorate the history of flight rather than war. Here's a great post on Eurobricks about it: Should lego make army theme or not?
Most vets that I come across love Cobi for those exacts reasons. There´s a reason why it´s popular and its growing in the US. Military veterans love the brand.
They never released any tank sets. Trucks were generic and unmarked, not replicas of any particular vehicles, but rather, "Lego-ified" versions. I believe the plane chase set had iron crosses, but they were on the older biplane and not the Pilatus (there were swastikas on the on-screen vehicle). EDIT: Forgot about the Flying Wing. Also lacked swastikas.
I agree completely. The "no alcohol" rule is interesting as well, considering how much rum was in the Pirates of the Caribbean sets.
Fast & Furious was not even allowed on LEGO Ideas before The LEGO Group obtained the license for it! LEGO Ideas also won’t allow product ideas based on Courage the Cowardly Dog, in which I found that out the hard way. This is an absurd decision by LEGO Ideas since Courage the Cowardly Dog is rated TV-Y7 and supposed to be mostly family-friendly for kids 7 and up. Oh, well. In addition to this, LEGO seems to have a very good licensing partnership with WarnerMedia, which owns Cartoon Network and the kid-friendly Boomerang. Other than my complaint, I’m currently in the process of designing a D2C-style set concept of the Bagge Farmhouse on Stud.io 2.0 from BrickLink!
If LEGO ever did make official military-based builds I would hope they would be limited to collector type sets. I’m not one for stringent morals, but I’ve never cared for military-inspired toys aimed for children.