You are currently browsing the The Brothers Brick weblog archives for November, 2009.
Moritz Nolting (nolnet) beat me to it, but I don’t begrudge him this awesome Unimog.
What makes Moritz’s Unimog extra-cool is the extra ground clearance he achieved by building the chassis studs-down.
We weren’t especially impressed with the selection of Black Friday deals on LEGO last week, but Amazon.com is making up for it a bit with some pretty good deals on LEGO today, “Cyber Monday” (when many people buy online for the holidays).
Overall, there’s 20% off select LEGO
Head on over to Amazon.com
I believe that the best builders are always trying out new techniques and new styles. For my latest creation, I tried to really push myself to do something new, and ended up well outside of my comfort zone.
I’ve never really worked with orange before building this mecha. I’d also never used multiple ball joints to create a spine in a mecha before this attempt. In addition, this was an attempt at a style of mecha, based on existing art, that I’d never attempted before.
I haven’t made up my mind yet as to whether this was really a successful build, but I do know that it’s done. I’m really curious as to what people will think of it.
[Edit] I got some great suggestions to improve the Dragon Unit from a variety of sources. Thanks to an ample dosage of peer pressure from Andrew Lee, here’s the MK II version.
Martin is giving us a nice taste of micro scale space. His new Halog frigate has some cool features. I especially like the use of hinge bricks to create a surface texture, a technique I hadn’t seen before. I’m also keen on the launch bay (or whatever it is) on the front of the ship. The photos are are on Flickr, but there’s more description here.
I know I’m a pathetic sucker for any creations based on Terry Pratchett’s Discworld, but it’s impossible to resist another of Sylvain’s (captainsmog) dioramas. Aside from the tie-in with my favorite author, this uses a variety of both sophisticated and simple techniques to create a detail rich scene. Plus, it has a wizard’s bad ass (not a town near Lancre) wheelchair almost running over a watchman.
Windle Poons isn’t my favorite character, but this is just a good all around medieval city scene. I especially like the weeds growing through the textured cobbles, the drain pipe on the left, and the wooden roof.
One thing I really like about the Homeworld universe is that it inspires a lot of great LEGO creations, all with a unifying aesthetic (stripes!), but that also provides builders with enough flexibility to add their unique touches of their own. Kurt Vinnedge (vìnn) gives the Taiidan his own spin, resulting in the Vinnidan Interceptor:
Felix Greco (gipmetro) is excited about the upcoming release of the LEGO Atlantis sets, as am I. As sets trickle into stores, Felix may be the first to build a creation of his own design — this lovely submersible:
The submersible is accompanied in its undersea endeavors by a certain Artimus Rhodes:
Tomorrow is Black Friday, which means we Americans head out with our bellies still bloated from Thanksgiving dinner and stand in line to buy things. If that’s not really your thing (or if you just want to double up on LEGO shopping fun), here are a few deals from the Web.
The Official LEGO Shop $10 off purchases over $100, $20 off $200, and $30 off $300, plus free shipping on any order over $99. LEGO tells us that the Sales and Deals
page will also be updated with several items on Friday.
Toys R Us is offering Up to 60% off on over 100 online-only Cyber Deals from November 26 through November 28.
For a complete rundown of brick-and-mortar deals, head on over to FBTB. We’ll also update this post as we run across other deals.
My wife and I are dreading the inevitable death of Stormtrooper, our ’93 Honda Accord with 220K miles on it. She hates all post 1993 cars and she squeals with delight every time she sees any classic cars with fins, flames or hydraulics. Appropriate that some exceptionally good models have turned up as part of the I Wanna Be Like You challenge at LUGnuts. The first is Lino M’s 1960 Ford Starliner complete with thoroughly cool interior.
Not coincidentally, the second model is Ralph Savelsberg’s (Mad Physicist) because he is the honoree of the I Wanna Be Like You challenge. This 1951 Mercury, which uses some phenomenal techniques to create the green flames is quite striking.
Because I live in Southern California, I’ve been looking for a hot rod with a Virgin of Guadalupe on the hood, but have failed so far. If you know of one or built one, drop me a line.
Happy Thanksgiving to all y’all in the US. Go eat some pie! Mmmmm, pie.
No other title better describes what’s going on in this diorama by David Simmons. This is what happens when you’re out in a remote part of the galaxy and “a godless shape appears out of the blood red darkness, lurching with a sickening, yet inexorable slither towards our brave spacemen who stage a desperate but futile battle.” Check out the details shots in the gallery and scroll down to see a frightening ending.
Registration is now open for Brickvention 2010, the Australian LEGO convention put on by Brickventures. I attended last year’s Brickvention and it was an impressive display. The public crowd on the Sunday was ridiculously huge. I’ll be there and I hope more of our readers can attend.
Brickvention is an annual convention and exhibition of LEGO® brand building bricks presented by adult hobbyists from around the Australia.
Brickvention 2010 will be held over the weekend just prior to the Australia Day Holiday (January 23rd – 24th) in Melbourne, Australia and promises to be an exciting event.
- Join us to view hundreds of models created by LEGO® Builders from around the nation.
- Build with LEGO® parts at our Building Zone.
- Purchase LEGO® sets, parts and minifigs.
- Win Prizes!
Similar to previous Brickventions, this year’s event will feature presentations, games, competitions, trading, and of course models by LEGO® fans from all over Australia. With much so more space available, the 2010 Brickvention promises to be even bigger and better than previous years!
While this clone shock trooper maxifig by Olivier may look like another solid LEGO sculpture, it’s actually quite different because you can make something happen by sticking a pin into it. Check out the video to see what I mean.
Via Eurobricks
Since I wasn’t around when the mid-80′s cartoon Rainbow Brite debuted, I’ll assume the ignorant blogger in writing this post. For those who are old enough to have watched the show back in the day, these figures by Dave Sterling should evoke a pleasant trip down memory lane, one which you can relive over and over by purchasing these figures from Creations for Charity.
Thank you Dave Shaddix for the reminder to blog this :)
LEGO has just announced that 2010 will be the last year for new Bionicle sets; starting summer 2010 a new line of similar buildable figures will be released. This will mark the end of nine years since the arrival of the first Toa in 2001. Below is the official announcement from LEGO:
Dear BIONICLE Fans,
In reviewing the business across all of its play patterns and properties, the LEGO Group faced a tough question: should we take on a new creative challenge in the world of buildable figures that we pioneered in 2001?
BIONICLE re-invented the way consumers think of and play with the LEGO system. Through many chapters of compelling story and innovative product development, BIONICLE became a very strong property and an important part of The LEGO Group’s business. We think there is a significant opportunity to grow the buildable figure category, but it will take a more flexible platform that appeals to a wider range of ages through a variety of different entry points than BIONICLE has proven to deliver.
The easy decision would be to stick with a known entity in BIONICLE; but as history has proven, The LEGO Group achieves its greatest success by embracing the uncertainty that innovation brings. After all, BIONICLE almost never launched because it was such a big risk to the company’s way of doing business.
Because you have been such an important part of building the BIONICLE franchise and have been among its most valued fans, we are writing to tell you that the six BIONICLE Stars launching in January will be the last BIONICLE sets for the foreseeable future. Beginning in summer 2010, The LEGO Group will debut a new, more flexible buildable figure property created by the same people who brought you BIONICLE. At the same time, we are also expanding the category to appeal to a younger audience through an established third-party property, starting in January.
Since its beginning, BIONICLE has reflected the union of great product and a compelling story. Although there presently are no plans for more sets, the BIONICLE story is not ending. BIONICLEstory.com will remain an active site, with new story content updated by long-time BIONICLE writer Greg Farshtey. In addition, LEGO Group hopes to work with you, the fans, to continue to grow and expand the BIONICLE story universe.
This was an extremely difficult decision for all involved. But as seen in the tales of the Toa, striving for success in any mission requires imagination, new ways of thinking, and the willingness to take risks. We hope you will share the same level of enthusiasm we have for our plans for the buildable figure category.
We invite you to remain a part of the BIONICLE universe—a universe you have helped to build, and that we are confident that you will continue to build—in the future. Thank you for your continued support and dedication to the BIONICLE and LEGO brands.
With our very best regards,
Jan Faltum, Global BIONICLE Director
Lincoln Armstrong, Senior Brand Manager, BIONICLE Team Member since 2002
