Although I wasn’t there to see it, Dene Quest‘s gigantic MS-06S Zaku II won the Best Mecha award at BrickFair this past weekend, and rightfully so. A humble man, Dene has not shared much regarding the creation, but the pictures speak all about it.
Official word from LEGO states that new stores are opening soon. I hope you’re one of the lucky residents. If so, read on for opening details and promotional offers (I’m jealous).
King of Prussia Mall, King of Prussia, PA
· Store will officially open for business on Sept 18
· Grand Opening Celebration Weekend will be Oct 3 – 5
· Master Builder will be Dan
· Model being built will be Yoda
· Master Builder Event happens all 3 days in the JC Penney Court Friday 11 – 7, Saturday 10 – 6, Sunday 11 – 6
· AFOL Volunteers are needed, included at least 1 expert builder who can help Dan actually build the model!
Volunteers will get a special reward at the store!
· On Saturday, Oct 4, the first 300 customers in the store to spend $35 will get a FREE exclusive make & take set of the Liberty Bell, complete with crack and moving clapper! This set is not available for sale.
· On Sunday, Oct. 5, the first 300 customers in the store to spend $35 will get a FREE exclusive child’s size LEGO Store t-shirt, featuring the LEGO Minifigure holding the state flag! This shirt is not available for sale.
· Exclusive sets and t-shirts will also be given out as trivia question prizes by Dan throughout the event at the build site!
· Fans can also enter a raffle in the LEGO Store for a chance to win a $100 LEGO Store Gift Card!South Shore Plaza, Braintree, MA
· Store will officially open for business on Sept 12
· Grand Opening Celebration Weekend will be Oct 11 – 13
· Note: This event runs Saturday > Monday due to the Columbus Day holiday.
· Master Builder will be Dan
· Model being built will be Yoda
· Master Builder Event happens all 3 days in the Macy’s Court
Saturday 10 – 6, Sunday 11 – 6, Monday 11 – 7
· AFOL Volunteers are needed, included at least 1 expert builder who can help Dan actually build the model!
Volunteers will get a special reward at the store!
· On Sunday, Oct 12, the first 300 customers in the store to spend $35 will get a FREE exclusive make & take set of a Baseball Player, complete with bat, red hat and socks and home plate! This set is not available for sale.
· On Monday, Oct. 13, the first 300 customers in the store to spend $35 will get a FREE exclusive child’s size LEGO Store t-shirt, featuring the LEGO Minifigure holding the state flag! This shirt is not available for sale.
· Exclusive sets and t-shirts will also be given out as trivia question prizes by Dan throughout the event at the build site!
· Fans can also enter a raffle in the LEGO Store for a chance to win a $100 LEGO Store Gift Card!Arden Fair Mall, Sacramento, CA
· Store will officially open for business on Sept 25
· Grand Opening Celebration Weekend will be Oct 17 – 19
· Master Builder will be Dan
· Model being built will be R2-D2
· Master Builder Event happens all 3 days in the Center Court
Friday 11 – 7, Saturday 10 – 6, Sunday 11 – 6
· AFOL Volunteers are needed, included at least 1 expert builder who can help Dan actually build the model!
Volunteers will get a special reward at the store!
· On Saturday, Oct 18, the first 300 customers in the store to spend $35 will get a FREE exclusive make & take set of Sacramento’s Transcontinental Railroad Engine, the Gov. Stanford Steam Locomotive, complete with moving wheels and realistic details! This set is not available for sale.
· On Sunday, Oct. 19, the first 300 customers in the store to spend $35 will get a FREE exclusive child’s size LEGO Store t-shirt, featuring the LEGO Minifigure holding the state flag! This shirt is not available for sale.
· Exclusive sets and t-shirts will also be given out as trivia question prizes by Dan throughout the event at the build site!
· Fans can also enter a raffle in the LEGO Store for a chance to win a $100 LEGO Store Gift Card!
Justin Vaughn built his original Timberwolf three years ago which recently underwent some revising, resulting in this new model you see here. For those who have missed it the first time (including me) or are seeing this for the second time, it’s still a treat to drool over. Check out the concept art that inspired this great model.
Tom Snellan pulls out all the stops in this decidedly evil creation. Tons of awesomely detailed eye-candy in there! I’m impressed with the swirling orange panels behind the beast.
Thanks to Dano for pointing this one out.
Rong Yiren has quickly become known for his quirky Mechs and Primal Bots, but this is what happens when he gets bored…
I suspect that there isn’t a living person on the planet — whether they speak English as their native language or not and whether they even know who Kenny Rogers is — who doesn’t know the lyrics to “The Gambler.”
Nathan Proudlove certainly does:
(Now I have that song in my head for the rest of the evening. Better than the Chocobo’s Dungeon soundtrack, I guess…)
nnenn continues to astound and amaze with his unorthodox shapes (and techniques, on occasion). This dropship — with perfectly fitted rover, naturally — may be my favorite nnenn creation in a very long time:
Why, build miniland-ish figures of the Pet Shop Boys, of course! Click the photo to see two versions (1985 and 1994) of Ochre Jelly‘s figs:
Brenden Wilson of Masoko Tanga recently interviewed talented young builder Lukas Winklerprins.
Lukas talks about the difference between the hardcore adult fan community of a few years ago, discovering that world, and the much more diverse LEGO fan community today:
The starting group in toy chat rooms, LUGnet, and ultimately Classic-Space was started by men pretty much over the age of 30…. We weren’t aware of this more intense way of building until we were old enough to get on the internet and realize we could participate too….I realized how much people really cared and how much work other people put into the hobby
And on building microscale:
Once you toss the minifig out the window [*shock* -AB] really anything can be made…. it lets extraneous parts get unique uses and doesn’t destroy my collection. It also allows for a myriad of unique shapes unrestricted by gravity or that pesky thing known as “common sense.”
Read the full interview on Masoko Tanga.
As though we needed more proof (not that I’m arguing), the Gz-81 Naganata of Rob Dasnewten demonstrates yet again that he does a mean line in mean looking starfighters. His command of shape and texture is very unique and his models always pop out as both awesome and most definitely his.
Remember to check the two variants with different cockpit colours
Despite Lord of the Rings, despite the miserable prequels, and despite Battlestar Galactica, there’s still a part of me that still can’t get over Star Wars. I’ve joked that my Star Wars geek lives in my limbic system.
Apparently, Lino Martins‘ Star Wars geek is much more deeply embedded, in his medulla oblongata. With this fantastic large-scale A-wing, Lino lets his geek run wild:
The clean, rounded lines of the A-wing are notoriously difficult to replicate in LEGO, but at this scale, Lino has been able to include critical details like the angled tail fins and the gap in the nose.
If you’ve been wondering where all the Lego fans have gone, they’re at Brickfair! Here are a few galleries of pics, to satisfy your Lego craving. If, like me, you didn’t get to go….
There is also a Flickr Brickfair pool, if you need more…