Created by a small team led by designer Niels Milan Pedersen, Lego Pirates was the company's fourth theme (after Space, Castle, Town) and it was more complex.[2][3] Numerous new pieces were also created including firearms, wildlife (parrots, sharks, monkeys), and cloth sails.[4][3] Lego Pirates minifigures were the first to go beyond the traditional head with simply two dots for eyes and a smile, as many of them had a variety of different printed features including eyepatches, facial hair, and feminine makeup. Only a few minifigures in Lego Pirates used the traditional face of two eyes and a smile; the soldier/trooper of the Imperial Soldiers and Imperial Guards, the Imperial Soldiers sailor/marine (only found in 6274 Caribbean Clipper), and young pirate Bo'Sun Will.[5] Prior to the launch of Lego Pirates, minifigures were distinguished in function and organization by their torso, headgear (either a helmet or hair), and accessories, being generic roles without any specified character.
In Lego's first attempt to establish a narrative and encourage role-playing, personalities were created for several of these minifigures of Lego Pirates. Stories were printed on boxes, particularly for the USA market where the larger sets had a flap that opened up to display the contents. In a first for Lego, television ads used stop-motion animation.[3] A comic book entitled "The Gold Medallion" was also released in that year, as well as a Ladybird Book series. The storyline takes place in the 18th century, where pirates had been searching for buried treasure as the doubloons (Spanish gold coins) belonged to their ancestors, however a colony of settlers discovered the treasure first and claimed it, leading to conflict. The Governor of the colony was forced to fortify the settlements and attempted to hide the treasure in his main fortress.[5]
The Pirates were led by Captain Redbeard (called Captain Roger in some markets), distinguished by his black bicorne hat, left eye patch, peg leg on the right and a hook where his left hand was; his crew included First Mate Rummy and the young Bo'Sun Will. Another pirate leader was Captain Ironhook who has been suggested as a rival to Redbeard; both minifigures were similar except that Ironhook had a tattered shirt (some releases of Ironhook have a peg leg).[6] Their emblem was the Jolly Roger, a black flag featuring the skull and crossbones. 6285 Black Seas Barracuda was their first pirate ship while 6270 Forbidden Island was their original hideout, both released in 1989.[7] The catalogue releases for the Pirates expanded considerably with a larger base, 6273 Rock Island Refuge (1991), and then a pair of pirate ships in 1993 (the large 6286 Skull's Eye Schooner and small 6268 Renegade Runner).
Opposing the Pirates were the Imperial Soldiers led by Governor Broadside and his second-in-command Lieutenant de Martinet. These blue-coated forces were based upon the French navy and marines of the colonial era and Napoleonic Wars, being known Imperial Soldiers in certain catalogues worldwide, though explicitly identified as "Governors" on page 16 of the 1990 American catalog. From 1992 to 1993, the Imperial Soldiers were gradually replaced by the red-coated Imperial Guards led by Admiral Woodside (with 6274 Caribbean Clipper and 6276 Eldorado Fortress being replaced by 6271 Imperial Flagship and 6277 Imperial Trading Post, respectively, as the Imperials' sailing ship and main base).[8] The smaller Imperial Soldiers sets that continued on sale until the end of 1993 were considered part of the Guards, in part as placeholders since only two more catalogue sets were released for the Guards after 1992. The Soldiers and Guards minifigures were very similar save for a Palette swap of uniforms and facial expressions. Both the Imperial Soldiers and the Imperial Guards used two crossed cannons under a crown as their emblem, though the Soldiers' blue flag was similar to the Flag of Quebec while the Guards had three thick red horizontal stripes.[9] The Imperial Guards were reintroduced in 2009–10, and the Imperial Soldiers were reintroduced in 2015; the Guards and Soldiers were the respective government opponents of the Pirates during the brief periods of Lego Pirates revival.
A new faction loosely based on a Polynesian concept, the Islanders, was released for 1994. This resulted in Lego having three factions in 1994 and 1995, with the Pirates battling the Imperial Guard on the high seas and disturbing the Islanders while seeking treasure. However, in 1995 Lego discontinued all of the previously released Imperial Guards sets from 1992 to 1993 (particularly their larger sets, the 6271 Imperial Flagship and 6277 Imperial Trading Post), making the new release 6263 Imperial Outpost the sole Imperial Guards set, which essentially made the year a Pirates versus Islanders conflict.
For 1996 Lego changed the entire "feel" of the Pirates line, giving the Pirates minifigs new faces, and made it Spanish-influenced. The Imperial Guards were replaced by the Imperial Armada (heavily influenced by the Spanish Armada), though the Guards' 6263 Imperial Outpost remained available in 1996 as a medium land base for Imperial side, as ending up only two sets were released for the Armada including the 6280 Armada Flagship (although Armada minifigures were guests in new sets of the Pirates faction). 1996 was also the last year for the Islanders who had not seen any new releases since 1994 nor had their minifigures featured as guests in other factions' sets. 1997 featured just the Pirates versus the Imperial Armada; however some of the new releases like 6250 Cross Bone Clipper and 6281 Pirates Perilous Pitfalls were not well received and this turned out to be the final year of the original Lego Pirates run.
After 1997, Lego discontinued the Pirates theme to the shock of fans, because the Pirates line had always been a big seller.[citation needed] The original releases (1989–91) retrospectively were most nostalgic among Lego Pirates fans due to the sets' design and meticulous detail, which was sacrificed in subsequent releases for increased playability, which drew a mixed reception. For instance the 6286 Skull's Eye Schooner (1993), which succeeded 6285 Black Seas Barracuda (1989) as the main Pirates ship set, implemented a mechanism for the ship's wheel to control the rudder which necessitated a smaller and less detailed aft cabin, plus the Skull's Eye Schooner's cannons are attached to rotating turntables on sliders instead of the more realistic placement of cannons upon wheeled naval carriages like earlier Lego Pirates ship sets.[10][11] 6289 Red Beard Runner (1996), which replaced 6286, drew criticism for "battle damage" features like the tumbling forward mast and collapsing quarterdeck as these made the assembled set unstable.[12] The changes to Lego's set design direction, not just in Lego Pirates but also across their other product lines, have been attributed to the Lego Group's retiring of many LEGO Designers who had created the sets from the late 1970s to the early 1990s, replacing them with 30 'innovators' who graduated from the European design colleges around Europe who knew "little specifically about toy design and less about LEGO building".
The Pirates theme was brought to 4+ for 2004 and Duplo for 2006.
Lego reintroduced Pirates and Imperial Guards in minifigure scale for 2009, including the pirate ship 6243 Brickbeard's Bounty, just in time for the theme's 20th anniversary. 6243 Brickbeard's Bounty uses identical bow pieces for the front and rear of the ship's hull, in contrast to earlier Lego Pirates ships which each had unique bow and stern hull pieces.[13] However, there was only one more set released the following year, the 10210 Imperial Flagship (2010) which was the largest vessel in Lego Pirates ever released. After 2010, the revived Lego Pirates theme was discontinued in order to make room for a series of licensed products, Lego Pirates of the Caribbean, based on the film series of the same name.
In 2015, Lego again briefly reintroduced the theme with Pirates and Imperial Soldiers, including the pirate ship 70413 The Brick Bounty (inspired by the earlier 6243 Brickbeard's Bounty and 6285 Black Seas Barracuda). The 70413 The Brick Bounty has a rear cabin built directly onto the rearmost hull piece which is a middle hull piece section (there is no longer unique stern hull piece).[13]
2020 saw the release of the 30th Lego Ideas set 21322 Pirates of Barracuda Bay, which can be built either as a pirate shipwreck on an island or the pirate ship (inspired by 6285 Black Seas Barracuda) due to its modular design.[13]
2023 saw the release of a new Lego ICONS set 10320 Eldorado Fortress, which is a brick built redesign of the 1989 set (6276) and due to its modular design can be reconfigured for maximum play value.[14]
Set list
Diorama from a 1989 LEGO catalog depicting a battle between the Pirates and Imperial Soldiers, featuring the 6285 Black Seas Barracuda (left) and 6276 Eldorado Fortress
Two 1996 Pirate sets, "Red Beard Runner" and "Armada Flagship", and one 1994 Islanders set, "Enchanted Island", were re-released for 2001.
6276 Eldorado Fortress remains a classic for its design and innovation[3] was re-released as 10320 Eldorado Fortress (2023) as part of the Lego Icons series.[15] Being considered the benchmark for Lego pirate ships, the 6285 Black Seas Barracuda (1989) was re-released as 10040 Black Seas Barracuda (2002) as part of the Lego Legends series. The Black Seas Barracuda was also the inspiration for the 30th Lego Ideas set 21322 Pirates of Barracuda Bay, released in 2020, which can be built either as a pirate shipwreck on an island or the pirate ship due to its modular design.[13]
The 10210 Imperial Flagship (2010) of the Imperial Guards faction is the largest ship in Lego Pirates ever released, exceeding that of the 6286 Skull's Eye Schooner (1993). This ended a long running gag in Lego Pirates where the previous three Imperials' flagships were smaller than contemporary pirate ships; traditionally the pirate ship was also the largest and most expensive set of its era in Lego Pirates.[13]
Official merchandise
Lego Group has also released a variety of official Pirate Lego merchandise ranging from clothing to stick-on tattoos to board games.
Ladybird Books series
An official series of children's books based on the Pirate Lego theme was published by Ladybird Books in 1990.[citation needed]
Titles
Will and the Gold Chase
Captain Roger's Birthday
Adventure on Shark Island
The Royal Visit
Theme park attraction
In 1999, a Lego Pirates-themed land was introduced to Legoland California, based on the Lego Pirates toy theme. The area featuring Pirate Shores is a splash park with water-oriented rides and attractions.[16] This area was added in 2006, and Captain Cranky's Challenge was added in May 2007.[17] Also included Pirate Reef,[18] Soak n' Sail,[19][20] Splash Battle[19] and Swabbie's Deck.[20]
In 2002, a Lego Pirates-themed land was introduced to Legoland Deutschland Resort, based on the Lego Pirates toy theme. The area features Captain Nick's Splash Battle,[21] Pirates School[22] and Pirates’ Playground.[22]
In 2011, a Lego Pirates-themed land was introduced to Legoland Florida, based on the Lego Pirates toy theme. The area featured Pirates' Cove and also included The Battle For Brickbeard's Bounty.[23]
In 2021, a Lego Pirates-themed land was introduced to Legoland New York, based on the Lego Pirates toy theme.[24] The area features Anchors Away,[25][26] Rogue Riders[27][28] and Splash Battle.[29]
In 2022, a Lego Pirates-themed land was introduced to Legoland Discovery Centre in Birmingham and Manchester, based on the Lego Pirates toy theme.[30][31] Legoland Florida also included Pirate River Quest, a new pirate-themed ride.[32]
This article lists notable events and releases in the history of the Lego Group.
The history of Lego began in 1932 in the carpentry workshop of Ole Kirk Christiansen, a Danish carpenter who initially produced furniture but later started making wooden toys. The company was named "Lego" in 1934, a contraction from the Danish phrase "leg godt", meaning "play well".
Lego Adventurers was a Lego theme based on an early 20th century 'explorer' concept. It centred around the main character named Johnny Thunder and a team of explorers who go on adventures. Unlike other Lego themes, which take place in a fictional "Lego Universe", most of the Adventurers sets took places in real-world locations, such as Egypt, the Amazon rainforest, the Himalayas, India, and China. The only fictional sub-theme took place on an island where prehistoric creatures still lived. The theme was first introduced in 1998. The product line was discontinued in 2003 and replaced with the Lego Pharaoh's Quest theme in 2011.
Lego Space is a Lego theme, which includes astronauts, space colonization, spaceships and extraterrestrial life. It was originally introduced in 1978. It stands as one of the oldest and most extensive themes in Lego history, consisting of over 200 individual sets. Lego Space has been marketed and sold under the Legoland and Lego System banners.
The Lego Castle theme, part of the Lego product line, was conceptualized around a medieval world motif featuring knights and castles. This theme was first introduced in Europe in 1978, followed by its North American release in 1981. It remained a continuously supported Lego theme until 1999. The 'Lego Castle' name was subsequently reused for two distinct single-theme series: one running from 2007 to 2009 and another in 2013. This theme is distinct yet related to other medieval-inspired Lego themes, including Knights Kingdom, Knights Kingdom II, and Kingdoms. Initially, Lego Castle sets were marketed under the 'Legoland' brand, which persisted until 1991. In 1992, Lego rebranded these sets under the 'Lego System' banner, reflecting changes in the product line.
Lego City is a theme under which Lego building sets are released based on city life, with the models depicting city and emergency services, airport, train, construction, and civilian services. Legoland Town is one of the three original themes that Lego produced upon its launch of the Lego minifigure in 1978 along with Castle and Space. The Town brand was briefly replaced with Lego World City in 2003 and 2004 before it was simply rebranded as Lego City in 2005.
Lego Wild West was a Lego theme based on the Old West period of the United States. It was in production for only two years, from 1996 to 1997.
Lego Star Wars is a Lego theme and multimedia franchise revolving around the Star Wars media franchise created by George Lucas. Part of the theme are, next to, over 910 Lego building toy sets 1328 Lego minifigures, an eponymous video game series, containing six games, multiple animated short films and Television series.
Lego Atlantis was a product range of the construction toy Lego, themed around the underwater world of Atlantis. The range was launched in early 2010 and discontinued by the end of 2011. The toy sets included models of buildable underwater vehicles, as well as "heroic diver" and "shark warrior" minifigures. A ride based on the range was operated at Legoland Windsor Resort.
Lego Prince of Persia was a Lego theme based on the 2010 film Prince of Persia: The Sands of Time. It was licensed from Walt Disney Pictures and Jerry Bruckheimer Films. The theme was introduced in 2010 and was discontinued by the end of 2011.
Lego Avatar: The Last Airbender was a Lego theme based on the Nickelodeon television show Avatar: The Last Airbender created by Michael Dante DiMartino and Bryan Konietzko. It is licensed from Nickelodeon. The theme was first introduced in June 2006. It was eventually discontinued by the end of 2007.
Lego Ninjago is a Lego theme that was created in 2011 and a flagship brand of The Lego Group. It is the first theme to be based on ninja since the discontinuation of the Lego Ninja theme in 2000. It was produced to coincide with the animated television series Ninjago, which was superseded in 2023 by a new series titled Ninjago: Dragons Rising.
Lego Pirates of the Caribbean is a discontinued Lego theme that is based on the film series of the same name. It is licensed from Walt Disney Pictures and Jerry Bruckheimer Films. There are nine known sets. The first wave was released in May 2011 with the second wave coming out in November 2011. In November 2010, it was officially announced by Lego that the video game Lego Pirates of the Caribbean: The Video Game was in production. It was released on May 10, 2011, in North America. The series acts as a thematic replacement for the popular Lego Pirates theme, featuring many of the same elements. Most of the sets are similar to the Lego Pirates theme. The theme was first introduced in 2011 and discontinued in 2017.
Lego Pharaoh's Quest was a Lego theme that was first introduced in 2011. It uses elements from the previous Lego Adventurers theme. The Lego Pharaoh's Quest theme was discontinued by the end of 2012.
Lego Friends are a product range of Lego construction toys designed primarily for girls that was launched in 2012. It introduced "mini-doll" figures, which are about the same size as traditional Lego minifigures but are more detailed and realistic. The original cast consisted of Andrea, Olivia, Stephanie, Mia and Emma. The theme was rebooted and relaunched in January 2023 to focus on a more diverse cast of characters, the main cast now consisting of Aliya, Nova, Zac, Liann, Paisley, Leo, Autumn and Olly.
Lego Legends of Chima was a Lego theme that was introduced in 2013 and discontinued in 2015. The product line was based on the storyline of Legends of Chima, a 3D animated television series, which was produced to coincide with the Lego theme. The storyline was set in the fictional realm of "Chima", a fantasy world inhabited by various warring tribes of anthropomorphic animals that battle to collect a substance called "Chi". Alongside the television series and several shorts based on Lego Legends of Chima. The theme also produced a range of associated media, including theme park attractions, video games, and publications.
Lego 4+ also known as Lego 4 Juniors was a Lego theme that was first introduced in 2003, designed for children aged 4+. It is the successor of the Lego Jack Stone theme released in 2001. The 4+ theme consisted of Pirates, City and Spider-Man sub-themes. It was eventually discontinued by the end of December 2005.
Lego The Angry Birds Movie was a Lego theme based on Rovio Entertainment's video game series of the same name and the same of the film. It was licensed from Columbia Pictures and Rovio Animation. The theme was first introduced in April 2016. The product line was discontinued by the end of 2017.
Lego Vidiyo was a Lego theme that allows children to create their own music videos and dance clips using a range of Lego toy sets and an associated app. It is licensed from Universal Music Group. The theme was first introduced in March 2021, before being discontinued by the end of January 2022 after being deemed a commercial disaster.
Lego Monster Fighters was a Lego theme based on Universal Studios Monsters from the horror fiction genre. The Monster Fighters fight against the Lord Vampyre's monsters while collecting the moonstones. The story takes place in the Monster Realm and it's similar to The Monster Squad film. The theme was first introduced in May 2012. It was eventually discontinued by the end of December 2014. The theme also produced a range of associated media, including theme park attractions, several shorts, video game, app and publications.
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