I have been thinking about why I was shocked. Perhaps it's because I grow up on Enid Blyton's Secret Seven, of good versus bad but with 7 brothers I equally loved their comic stories and heroes. After all said and done I do have three children ( all now in their 40s) who loved and still love playing with the fantasy toys of their childhood. Yes, there were lots of pirates and star wars, fairies and goblins, one son even worked in the Games Workshop, full of strange figures.
So why the concern you may say. The difference here is that those themes were just that fantasy, they were not representing real life.
The Lego theme of robbing an ATM is not fantasy. It really does happen in real life, and the results has been seen so many times not just on the TV news but at local supermarkets and town centres and that is my true objection.
Are we really telling children that is is ok to steal, cause harm and distress to anyone. My daughter thinks Lego has run out of ideas but I feel that is a very poor excuse and if true then maybe its time for Lego to move on to something else more positive and educational.