The Brothers Brick

I would pay to see a movie with special effects by Mike Yoder.

If you think Bionicle creations are all about Toa and Rahi and other things the average SYSTEM builder would never care about, you’re not a reader of Arpy’s BioniBlog, where I ran across this excellent rose by MuffinToa — an entry in the latest Bionicle Building Contest BZPower.

Karwik (aka Noddy on Brickshelf) created a peaceful and heartwarming scene of a campsite called Holiday Time. Personally, I’ve missed my camping days as a boy scout, so this little creation brings back many good memories.

Particular to note is the use of wedge plates to create the contours of the campsite. Not only does this technique create a non-square baseplate, it also imitates the landscape well. You can find more pictures of the cool bike in the background here.

Brickshelfer Mahjqa recently won the Lowlug Mini MOC Madness contest with the highway pileup pictured above. (Via MicroBricks.)

…equals the VX-999 – Space Pirate Lair! Dennis Coh emerges out of his year-long building hiatus and presents an innovative cross-genre creation depicting a pirate’s hideout.

Note the ship near the docking port – it is a micro version of Dennis’ Izanami’s Revenge pirate ship. We look forward to more great works from you!

Amazing how certain creations evolve.  First there was the minifig-scale Patrol Boat by Soren Roberts:

That inspired Chuck C. to make Chibi Patrol Boat:

That resulted in a recoloring by Chuck C. called the Iron Minnow:

Well, I do. I love 7036 Dwarves’ Mine! It may in fact be my favorite LEGO set in several years.

It’s got great play features that had me running over and showing my wife as I built the set, and as I discovered each new piece, I kept thinking about how I could use them in my own creations. I spent some time a couple weekends ago seeing what hats would fit with each of the new beards. Click the naked bearded guys (I used “blank” minifigs as mannequins) to see the results of my experiment:

This past weekend, I finally got around to taking pictures of the minifigs that use the new beards and helmets.

Valkyries and Yosemite Sam:

A marooned explorer and a biker (I really need to make one of Noddy’s bikes):

Finally, a pair of fearsome fictional pirates I’m too tired to name amusingly at the moment:

And if you want to see for yourself (and support The Brothers Brick while you’re at it), you can buy your own Dwarves’ Mine from the LEGO Store online.

(See what I did there boys and girls? That’s called “product placement.”)

Now here’s a cool collaboration story. According to this post on Klocki, dmac designed this AT-ST in MLCad, and then MisterZumbi built and photographed it:

I really like the new AT-ST from LEGO, but this one is awesome! Note the samurai armor under the walker’s “chin.”

For those of you not privileged to live through the 1980s in Japan, SD Gundam was a series of toys, TV shows, and movies spun off from Gundam, featuring squashed, itty bitty (“super-deformed”) versions of the venerable Mobile Suits.

Mumu‘s recreation of the main Mobile Suits includes Gundam, Guntank, and several more. Click the image above to check out mumu’s blog post, or see full-size pictures in his Brickshelf gallery.

Azumu presents a batch of micro-military vehicles inspired by the Japan Self Defense Forces, including a Type-90 tank, Cobra helicopters, and Huey. (Via MicroBricks.)

Andrew Lee‘s pair of mecha are conveniently numbered for your enjoyment.

Jonathan Watts (Flickr) presents a scene inspired by the cover art for Terry Pratchett’s The Night Watch, which was naturally inspired by the book itself, as well as by Rembrandt’s painting of the same name. Take that, Plato!

If you thought Arvo’s Chestburster sculpture was awesome, their newest work is just stunningly amazing. The Arvo brothers have created HR Giger’s Alien in its frightening entirety. This magnificent horror sends shivers even down my spine.

We hope Arvo will have more pictures uploaded soon.

EDIT (AB): And thanks to reader Carlos for sending us a link to the Hispalug thread announcing this fantastic new creation! Nannan just got to it before I did. ;-)

Mike van Leeuwen (aka skywalker01 on Brickshelf) completed a 104 stud long SHIP called the ITS (Interstellar Transport SHIP). Mike described that the ship “transports people and cargo from the Lunar Space Station to Alpha Centauri Space Station. The people will be in a state of hybernation when they make the journey. The SHIP will fly for several months to reach Alpha Centauri.”

Check out the intricate and detailed engine. The yellow curved slopes and the gray shovels form such perfect circular shapes and complement each other well.

Known as Noddy on Brickshelf, Karwik is synonymizing his name with realistic and stylish minifig bikes. His recent designs only reinforce his mastery of the subject. Check out Noddy’s Silver Shark and M72 Bobber backdropped by a well built gas station.