Lego Indiana Jones

Lego Indiana Jones is based on the Indiana Jones film franchise. The product line focuses on Indiana Jones (Ford), a globe-trotting archaeologist, vying with Nazi forces in 1936, to recover the long-lost Ark of the Covenant, a relic said to make an army invincible. Teaming up with his tough former lover Marion Ravenwood (Allen), Jones races to stop rival archaeologist Dr. René Belloq (Freeman) from guiding the Nazis to the Ark and its power.

The development of the Indiana Jones Lego theme followed a similar process to other Lego themes, with sets being designed by Lego's team of designers in Billund, in consultation with franchise owner Lucasfilm. The inclusion of guns within the sets (including machine guns) was a cause of some internal controversy.[4]

• Indiana Jones: An archaeology professor and adventurer.[5]
• Marion Ravenwood: A spirited, tough bar owner and Jones' former lover.[5]
• René Belloq: A rival archaeologist to Jones, in the employ of the Nazis.[5]
• Willie Scott: An American nightclub singer working in Shanghai. In a nod to the Star Wars franchise, the nightclub is called Club Obi Wan. Willie is unprepared for her adventure with Indy and Short Round, and appears to be a damsel in distress. She also forms a romantic relationship with Indy.
• Mola Ram: A Thuggee priest who performs rites of human sacrifices. The character is named after a 17th-century Indian painter.
• Short Round: Indy's 11-year-old Chinese sidekick, who drives the 1936 Auburn Boat Tail Speedster which allows Indy to escape during the opening sequence.
• Henry Jones, Sr.: Indiana's father, a professor of Medieval literature who cared more about looking for the Grail than raising his son.[5]
• Elsa Schneider: An Austrian art professor who is in league with the Nazis. She seduces the Joneses to trick them but seems to be in love with Indy.
• Irina Spalko: A villainous Soviet agent.[5]
• Mutt Williams: a young, motorcycle-riding greaser and Indiana's sidekick and son.[5]

According to Bricklink, The Lego Group released a total of 22 Lego sets and promotional polybags as part of Lego Indiana Jones theme.[6] The product line was eventually discontinued by the end of 2009.[7][8]

The initial wave of sets was released in 2008, Temple Escape (set number: 7623) was one of the biggest, and features the famous boulder chase scene from the opening sequence of Raiders of the Lost Ark. Measuring 53 cm long, the set included numerous 'booby traps' from the film, including shooting spears and tumbling rocks. As well as Indiana Jones himself, the set included minifigs of René Belloq and Satipo. Pilot Jock and his seaplane were also included as a late addition, with the Lego designer and Lucasfilm agreeing that they were an important addition to complete the scene (allowing Indy to escape).[9]

Two other medium-size sets released at the same time also featured scenes from the Lost Ark film. The Lost Tomb (set number: 7621) depicted a snake-filled tomb, which Indy must escape from, and Race for the Stolen Treasure (set number: 7622) depicted the chase scene from the film, with Indy riding a horse in pursuit of a truck.

Later in 2008, four sets were released featuring scenes from the new film. The biggest of these was Kingdom of the Crystal Skull (7627), which focused on the final scene of the movie, and included a rotating circle of 'crystal skeletons', as well as the falling obelisk tower. The characters Mutt Williams, Irina Spalko and two Ugha Warriors were all included in minifig form, as well as Indy and an unnamed Russian soldier.

In 2009, the 'gap' of having no sets from The Temple of Doom was filled with two new sets featuring scenes from the film. The biggest of the two, The Temple of Doom (set number: 7199), included new narrower gauge (4-studs wide rather than the usual 6 studs) Lego train tracks in order to re-create the mine cart chase scene from the second half of the film. Six track piece were included in two shapes, four as curves and two as slopes. Straight track pieces for this new type of train track have not yet been released in any set.

The second-biggest set released in 2009 was Venice Canal Chase (set number: 7197), which depicts the boat chase scene from Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade. The set includes two boats, one driven by Indy and Elsa Schneider, and the other driven by two Grail Guardians. The boats appear largely identical bar a few colour differences, but contain different button-activated actions - one boats splits in two when a button is pressed, the other one features an 'exploding' motor. The two Grail Guardian minifigs are notable for their dark red Fez hats, which is a new Lego element. The set also features a Venetian style bridge and an exploding pier.[10]

In March 2023, three sets were announced to be released on 1 April 2023. The three sets are Fighter Plane Chase (set number: 77012), Escape from the Lost Tomb (set number: 77013) and Temple of the Golden Idol (set number: 77015).[2][11][12][13] A fourth set, The Temple of Doom (set number: 77014) has been cancelled.[14][15] It is speculated that the set isn't being released due to depicting the religious deity Kali or because the original film's racial depictions towards Asians and Indians.

In common with some of the other movie franchise Lego themes, Lego Indiana Jones also features spin-off video games. These combine scenes from the films with the graphic style of the Lego pieces and minifigures.

A computer-animated short film, Lego Indiana Jones and the Raiders of the Lost Brick, directed by Peder Pedersen, was also released on the official Lego site. It combines details from the first four Indiana Jones films in one adventure.[27][28]

The Indiana Jones sets proved to be one of the most popular Lego themes, and by the end of 2008 were credited, along with Lego Star Wars, of boosting the Lego Group's profits within a stagnant toy market. The product line was said to have "sold extremely well - especially on the North American market."[31] The sets were occasionally compared to those of the discontinued Lego Adventurers label (which was strongly influenced in its own right by the Indiana Jones franchise), which ran from 1998 to 2003.

• Lego Star Wars
• Lego Adventurers
• Lego Pharaoh's Quest
• Lego Studios

• Official site Archived 2011-10-08 at the Wayback Machine
• Lucasarts Page
• Lego Indiana Jones on Cartoon Network website
• Official Lego Indiana Jones site