October 2023 Haul

October has been a great month for collectors of LEGO® sets. We’ve seen sales galore, new gifts-with-purchase (GWPs), and even double points. One GWP even tipped the scales enough for me to come out of my large set hibernation. I have not purchased any big sets in months. However, I’ve maintained my wish list while waiting for the stars to align. That finally happened this week. Amazon offered their second Prime Days event of the year, and no one else wanted to be left in the dust. Toys R Us had some good discounts on one of my favourite themes, Jurassic World (among others). The LEGO® Store launched a double points event and a new PIRATES GWP. Those pull on my heartstrings and strike all the nostalgia chords for me. So, I shopped, and what follows is my October 2023 LEGO® haul.

The October 2023 GWPs

I got three GWPs this week. Two were expected, one was a surprise. My Jurassic World shopping at Toys R Us got me the Mini Music GWP, which I could not care less about. I guess it is free bricks. My LEGO® Store purchase got me the early October GWP, which I was not expecting. However, I skipped that offer for a reason… it’s just not that great a GWP in my mind. But again, free bricks, not complaining. What really got me shopping was the offer of double points AND the Scary Pirate Island set. I’ve probably shared this a million times on this blog already, but I grew up loving the Pirates theme. Consequently, this set intrigued me enough to hit the LEGO® Store. And one good Pirates set deserves another, so…

The October 2023 Big Purchase

Eldorado was one of my dream sets as a kid. However, it was also one of the largest and most expensive sets… thus out of my reach. I was thrilled earlier this year when the LEGO® Group remade the set for nostalgic AFOLs, such as myself. With that said, I decided not to just snatch it up. I wanted points and I wanted a decent GWP. This year’s opportunities for both have been a little scant. Finally, my moment arrived. I am going to relish this build, just like Barracuda Bay a few years back. But first, I have to take something else apart and sort the parts to make room for it, which is less relishable.

You can never have enough dinosaurs

I bought two and half Jurassic Park sets at Toys R Us as well. 20% off is a good deal for theme. It doesn’t go on sale that often in my experience. I have long dreamed of building my own LEGO® Jurassic Park, and I am leaning ever closer to actually committing and building it. Naturally, I can’t have just one brachiosaurus in the park… this is my third. I also can’t have just one Jeep or Ford Explorer. Now, I’ll have three Explorers and four Jeeps. What is the other half set? I split the Visitor Center with a friend. My good buddy, Frank, wanted the dinosaurs and minifigs. I wanted the bricks and stickers to combine with my existing Visitors Center set. The set kind of sucks… but I can combine two (plus a few bricks from my collection) into a custom Visitor Center. I won’t miss the figs since I already have one Visitor Center set.

And finally…

The last part of my October 2023 haul was not purchased at a major retailer. Instead, I ordered Marvel Minifigures Series 2 from another friend of mine. Since the LEGO® Group decided to forever destroy the feel culture that developed around collectible Minifigures, I decided not to buy them in store anymore. I don’t want to waste money on duplicates or have to deal with trades to get the characters I want. My friend, Alex, runs an awesome online shop called Emmett’s Toy Chest. I order a full set of Marvel Series 2 from him. He did all the legwork for me, and even resealed the minifigs back in their boxes so I could have the joy of opening them myself.

Next up, November!

There you have it, my October 2023 haul. It’s more than likely that I’ll have another haul next month. We all know November is typically a huge month for LEGO® shopping. We usually see a VIP weekend in addition to Black Friday sales. I will buy at least one set. The Viking Village remains on my wish list. I’m saving that one for the VIP weekend double points event and GWPs. Though, I suppose it will be an Insiders weekend this year… if it happens at all… but I’m keeping my fingers crossed that it will. Did you do any double points shopping this time around? Are you holding out? Let me know in the comments or on social media.

Until next time,

-Tom

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