I love people’s enthusiasm for the Rivendell set, I’m just not one of them who dig it. Maybe I’m struggling with the whole idea of giant sets. Yes, they cater to the well-heeled enthusiast, and expensive sets made of inexpensive plastic are great for LEGO’s bottom line.

Maybe it just reminds me of when my brothers and I had a hand-me-down set of basic LEGO bricks that we enjoyed very much, but my cousins had all of the town sets and other specialized sets that lessened our enjoyment.

I love the idea of neat bigger sets. I tend to buy the buildings today, probably in compensation for feelings from those earlier days where I couldn’t have them. I just don’t want anybody to feel second-tier or somehow less because they can’t afford these giant sets. LEGO can make you feel like a kid again, but I don’t want people to feel like a kid that way again.