Thanks to an early fall release, Christmas comes a bit early each year when the new editions of the LEGO Advent Calendars start popping up on stores. But Santa must be being extra diligent this year, because the LEGO 2015 Advent Calendars are now up for order earlier than ever! These tend to sell out way before Christmas, so it’s best to take a good look at what’s available for this holiday season and start making your early shopping decisions now…

I was honored to get the chance to check out the trio of new Advent Calendars at the New York Toy Fair 2015 in February, where photos were allowed to be taken of the Star Wars, City and Friends Calendars for the very first time.

As a Christmas junkie, I’ve been waiting (im)patiently for the past six months after Toy Fair’s end, and the time has come at last (though earlier than expected): the 2015 LEGO Advent Calendars have now gone up for order online!

I wrote a full 500+ word article previewing the LEGO Star Wars 2015 Advent Calendar during the winter, so I won’t bore all of you by repeating all of my thoughts on the set again (though do check it out if you missed it the first time), but c’mon: Santa C-3PO and Reindeer R2-D2. Do you really need any other reason to be convinced to buy this year’s Star Wars calendar…?

Meanwhile, the LEGO City 2015 Advent Calendar is feeling a little bit, well… rehashed the year. Another crook, another cop, another Santa minifigure and some more kids. *yawn*

But hey–I do dig Santa’s brick-built Christmas train, as well as that adorable puppy. I sort of wish LEGO would change things up with a City Space or City Arctic Calendar next year (it would certainly be different), but there’s no way I’d skip out on one of my favorite annual traditions!

What I might be skipping, however, is the 41102 LEGO Friends 2015 Advent Calendar. Don’t get me wrong–it’s cute and all, but minidolls just aren’t my thing (unless they’re Disney Princesses, in which they totally are).

That said, the fairground games theme for this year’s Friends Calendar is really ingenious. It’s too bad that the City calendar wasn’t that clever! I haven’t pre-ordered the Friends holiday calendar just yet, but I’d be lying if I said I wasn’t thinking about it.

All three LEGO Advent Calendars are now available for pre-order online, and are scheduled to ship out on September 1st 2015. If you’re planning to pick one of these up, I highly advise doing so early, as the calendars (especially the Star Wars one) often become near-impossible to find after October in many areas.

I’ve already got two of the three Advent Calendars on order and ready to be safely tucked away until December–What about you, LEGO fans? Will you be ordering your calendars early this year, waiting until you spot them in stores, or skipping them altogether this holiday season?