Yearly Archives: 2008

Anatomy of a minifig

Jason Freeny, a talented artist and designer, rendered the anatomy of a minifig in stunning detail. Wait, I never knew our minifigs had so much guts, and pretty much everything else is included as well, down to the family jewels.

Check out Jason’s website for more interesting works and deviant art that showcases the artist’s amazing creativity.

Minifig Anatomy

Found by Chuck Citrin (and several other readers who sent us e-mail), via Geekologie.

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NoVVember

NoVVember

Nnenn and Peter Morris present a challenge for those of you that love Gradius and LEGO, or who just like pointy two pronged starships.

To quote them:

Novvember is Vic Viper month! nnenn and peterlmorris invite you to try your hand at building a MOC based on the classic starfighter from the Gradius series of video games.

Join the Flickr group to check out previous MOCs and concept art. There are a few guidelines, but they’re very loose. Creativity is king. Help us make Novvember the month of the Viper!

As a longtime lover of variations-on-a-theme I’m more than happy to support them in this quest. Go build a Vic Viper!

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The Brothers Brick gets their own van!

Nathan Proudlove presents a great green van featuring the Brothers Brick. I wonder if it can fit 7 minifig Brothers ;)

 

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More BrickArms Prototypes: Longsword, Rapier, Paintball Marker and More! [Preview]

Here is our final installment of the incredible prototypes that we drooled over at BrickCon.

Being primarily a Castle fan, I was most excited by the Long Sword and Rapier:

Another historical weapon that should be popular with the Pirate fans is the bayonet, attached via an extremely versatile U-clip:

I also fell in love with the Sawed-Off Shotgun and the miniscule Derringer:

I know Andrew has already shown off the Derringer. But it’s so darn cute, I had to do it again!

Last, but not least, is another weapon that is close to my heart. The long-awaited Paintbal Marker:

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The deadliest catch

Not content with the sharks with frickin’ laser beams in 8633 Speedboat Rescue, Hobo4Evar attaches a number of other potentially deadly accessories to the new shark:

If he doesn’t get you with the missile pod or gatling gun, that second-hand smoke is sure to kill.

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SlyOwl’s Spanish Armada ranges slightly off course

SlyOwl‘s entry for the Forbidden Cove Castaway Contest uses so many interesting techniques it’s hard to pick just a few to highlight:

The skeleton parts evoke a truly ragged sail. The narwhale in the water takes a moment to recognize, but once identified, SlyOwl’s brilliance is unquestionable. The reindeer head on a stick is, well, interesting.

Oh, and the goats are adorable.

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To boldly go...

Dan Rubins Emissary

Dan Rubin has taken a novel approach to spacecraft and produced a spaceship which is neither armed, nor human. His Emissary’s Ship uses unusual shapes and an atypical colour pallette to give an alien feel to this alien vessel. I’m particularly partial to the seamless change of symmetry from the tri-fold nose to the bi-fold rear.

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And this concludes our broadcast day...

“Big Daddy” Nelson Yrizarry has this to say about his latest sculpture, Off the Air:

This MOC reflects one interpretation of the nature of television as it is today. Simply stated, you are controlled, and what you want to see is moot. 

You control what you want to see and what you want to hear on TV. You control the action. You control your life. 

Don’t let anyone else (especially anyone on TV) tell you otherwise.

 

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New BrickArms prototypes: Bazooka, MGL, MG42, Colt, and more [Preview]

Will Chapman from BrickArms took the summer off from work to try focusing exclusively on custom minifig accessories.

Starting with BrickWorld 2008 in June, each LEGO convention has revealed more and more new products and prototypes.

Thanks to the extra time he has now, Will has been churning out more prototypes in his garage than we can count — particularly for those of you eager for World War II accessories.

For your Allied minifigs, the Bazooka M9 (with M6 rocket) will pack a serious punch:

On the Axis side, the German Panzerfaust 30 anti-tank weapon and MG42 machine gun will complement the MP40 SMG and C96 Mauser:

One of the most intriguing new prototypes is the U-clip (“U” for universal). The U-clip can connect any two objects that can fit into a minifig hand.

The potential applications seem infinite, such as attaching a bayonet (also a new BrickArms prototype) to your Lee-Enfield SMLE, a Combat Knife (again, new) to your M4 Carbine, or simulating an M203 grenade launcher with a black LEGO lightsaber handle:

Between our earlier coverage and the Zombie Apocafest, readers should already be familiar with the Lewis gun and Combat Shotgun:

The current Lewis gun prototype solves a minor issue with the earlier version (the drum tended to pop off fairly easily) by attaching the drum to the gun with a clip-like stud. This does make the drum more secure, but it resembles T-21 blaster from Star Wars a bit less with the drum removed.

A couple of the more unique new weapons include a game-inspired gunblade and a Derringer:

The MGL (multiple grenade launcher) will enable your minifigs to take on Decepticons and Predators alike with ease:

Finally, fans of Western movies get two iconic pistols — the Colt Navy 1861 revolver and the M1917 revolver (which looks a lot like the Colt Single Action Army “Peacemaker”):

For those of you wondering when we’ll see all this great stuff in production, here’s the final word from Will:

The next mold (in black and/or bley) will include the Combat Knife and Combat Shotgun for sure, and most likely the MGL, Lewis Gun, and Paintball Gun, but the lineup is still being decided. Look for that mold in early 2009, perhaps even by BrickFest 2009 in Portland!

The swords and Colt Navy will most likely be added to a silver mold, sometime soon as well. I’m still coordinating the layout for it. The other items may be limited-edition “garage releases”, as time permits. All will eventually see production.

Did he just say swords and paintball guns? Yes indeed. Look for a preview of those in the next few days from Josh. ;-)

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Paul Lee’s Cthulhu Terrain – Pumpkin Transport, aka CT-PT

Paul Lee steps into the Reasonably Clever Spooky Star Wars contest with this orange beast — the Cthulhu Terrain – Pumpkin Transport:

From concept through execution, Paul’s walker has “Winner” written all over it.

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Michael Jasper snaps a photo of Ansel Adams

The latest minifig character by Michael Jasper is photographer and conservationist Ansel Adams:

As with so many of Michael’s great brick-built accessories, the tripod itself is wonderful:

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New BrickArms M21 Sniper Rifle, Lee-Enfield SMLE, and Baseball Bat [Review]

We mentioned the new accessories from BrickArms during BrickCon, and picked them up at their booth the moment they opened.

The newly released M21 Sniper Rifle isn’t substantially different from the hand-molded prototype we previewed a few months ago, but it’s great to see the final version in production.

My M21 is being put to good use against zombies by Sgt. Doyle from 28 Weeks Later:

BrickArms M21 Sniper Rifle

What came as a bit more of a surprise for me at BrickCon, though, was the new Lee-Enfield SMLE rifle. The Lee-Enfield was the official rifle of British Commonwealth forces from 1895 to 1957, seeing action in both world wars.

I’d been making soldiers with BrickArms prototypes all day, so I gave my shiny new SMLE to a member of the British Home Guard:

BrickArms Lee-Enfield SMLE

I’d also used prototypes of the new BrickArms Baseball Bat in the hands of my zombie-hunters, so I forgot to take pictures of the production version. Thankfully, Zack Newright saves the day:

BrickArms Baseball Bat

Speaking of prototypes, in the next couple of days we’ll have a full preview of the cool stuff Will’s been cooking up in his garage. Stay tuned…

The Brothers Brick is funded by our readers and the community. Articles may include affiliate links, and when you purchase products from those links, TBB may earn a commission that helps support the site.