Once you’ve flicked through Arjan Oude Kotte’s photo stream, be sure: You’ve seen the best of brick-built vessels. But every ship needs a harbor to tie up in, and where there’s a harbor, there are huge dock cranes. Arjan has just finished one, and this is not an ordinary crane. This one is a beautiful copy of a vintage iron giant from the 1900s. It is extremely realistic, including an amazing lighting system, which looks utterly charming.
While it’s not the first time an astronaut has flown with LEGO into space, it’s always exciting to LEGO and space travel make the news for the same reason. Back in September, we reported that Denmark’s first astronaut, Andres Mogensen, flew with LEGO up to the International Space Station as part of Expedition 44.
It’s been exciting first week of March for space travel as American Astronaut Scott Kelly and Russian Cosmonaut Mikhail Kornienko returned to Earth after 340 days in orbit as part of ongoing scientific studies for long-term spaceflight. They left behind minifig doppelgangers of themselves, courtesy of Tim Peak from the European Space Agency.
Picture courtesy of ESA/Tim Peake
Click for more spacey goodness!
The notion of zombies walking the earth strikes me as completely ridiculous and I never got into the whole ApocaLEGO theme either, but yet, somehow, I am completely hooked on The Walking Dead. I first saw an episode about two years ago and since have binge-watched the first four seasons and am camped in front of the TV for every new episode. I can’t really explain why. Perhaps it’s because some of the characters are so unsympathetic that the thought of a half-rotted zombie tearing their guts out is something to look forward to. Nobody seems safe, however, and whenever the more likeable characters are killed off, such as Dale Horvath in the 2nd season, I feel pretty much gutted myself (pun intended). A lot of fan-built LEGO models based on The Walking Dead are focussed on customized minifigures, but I wanted to have a vehicle from the show as part of my movie car collection. My choice: Dale’s Winnebago Chieftain RV.
Click through to learn more about this LEGO Walking Dead RV
While LEGO have just released the official 76052 Classic TV Series Batcave, Marcin Guzicki has his own take on a vintage-style batcave. Marcin’s batcave has a well-supplied equipment area with batarangs and a great retro “recording device”. The clever use of sloped dark bluish grey LEGO parts gives the impression of an underground cave within a beautifully compact diorama.
An equally vintage Batmobile at the other end of the sloped walkway means that Batman just needs to run uphill into action.
Talented builder Brian Kescenovitz comes back with another mecha after a very long break since his last creation. Once again, he perfects the art of LEGO and builds a very slick creation making it look like a model. This strong mecha may function like the tank of the future but still preserves a high level of agility. Make sure you see it from the back.
Many of the LEGO spaceships inspired by Homeworld are huge carriers and cruisers, but this Vaygr minelayer corvette and escort ships are no less excellent in their striped glory. Damien Labrousse has captured the classic Homeworld aesthetic of bold colors, harsh angles, and exposed machinery in a wonderfully compact scale. The red brick-built V shape on the side of the corvette is a particularly nice touch.
Hot on the heels of Jonas’s pinball machine comes another amazing Lord of the Rings themed game. But this time it’s tabletop football! (Or as we call it in my house, foosball). Balbo, a long-time builder of Lord of the Rings themed LEGO creations, says that he was inspired by the Iron Builder to make a tabletop game of his own. If you look closely, you’ll see that each player is a different character from the film and that the “turf” has mosaics of Bag End, the Black Gate, and the Eye of Sauron.
My only concerns with this awesome build would be its durability (foosball games can get pretty heated and I’d hate to see LEGO pieces flying across the room) and the amount of space between characters (especially over the Eye) which could lead to frequent dead balls. But still, I’d love nothing more than seeing Lord Elrond slip a soccer ball past Saruman to end the War of the Ring.
You can check out the rest of Balbo’s awesome LEGO creations on Flickr.
To be a memorable villain, you must have an undeniable sense of style. Jonas Obermaier knows this well, and has built a slick Art Deco roadster for a spooky 20s fiend. With curves, chrome, and a crow hood ornament, this devilish car would no doubt strike terror into anyone it stalks from a paranoid-inducing distance.
Builder Marcel V. is on a mission to picture Harry Potter’s life one little slice at a time. These terrific vignettes take us from 4 Privet Drive, to Platform 9 and 3/4, Ollivander’s, and right on to Hogwarts’ Sorting Hat and the Gryffindor Common Room. Marcel tells us he’s planning a rather lengthy series, so we’ll check back in as he continues to create these brick snapshots. For now, though, check out the first five scenes in Harry’s life:
Click to see the other 4 scenes
Andrew JN shows us that just a few parts on a motorcycle chassis can make a lot of difference. He also adds a few stickers and the work is done! The futuristic cowboy gangster is just as attractive. Be like Andrew! He knows how to build.
Matthew Hocker drew the “Steampunk-ify any Fiat 500 or VW Microbus” category in the LUGNuts 100th Challenge that we’re sponsoring, and the results are spectacular. I first clicked on the photo because I was intrigued by the VW bus, with a certain time traveling mad scientist building new toys, but what ultimately impressed me most is the desert landscaping, with cactuses in full bloom.
The van itself falls into the classic steampunk color scheme of mostly brown and metallic, but is delightfully executed, with ornate gold smokestacks.
Alexey Chukin, a talented young Russian builder, proudly presents the final result of a two month project – a stunning scale copy of Mack B75.
Extremely precise and well-balanced, the model is fully remotely controlled with Power Functions elements. While some truck builders might prefer placing the battery box right behind the cabin, Alexey has left it inside, just where the passenger’s seat is. It might be not the most elegant solution, but the smooth exterior of the cabin looks pretty neat as a result.
I’m not normally a big fan of non-original chrome parts, but in this case a gentle amount of chrome gives the truck a dazzling appearance. The whole album contains many more close-up details including the awesome custom Mack logo stickers on the rear splash guards.