Yearly Archives: 2017

A quiet corner of chaotic Hong Kong

An extremely neat piece of Hong Kong by Vincent Lai is actually much more sophisticated than it may seem at the first glance. Three different architectural styles — the “legged” version that stands on the pavement; cantilevered one at the corner; and the typical set-back type with smaller windows — represent the evolution of the city throughout the second half of the last century. Moreover, the diorama tells several stories of ordinary citizens. For instance, an old lady picks up unwanted paper boxes and cartons in exchange of little money, while one of thousands of light trucks, buzzing around the city, is parking outside for loading. And, of course, bonus points are for the retro road sign piece, which is out of production for 20 years already.

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I think this think tank’s pink is perfect

Since a spate of builds inspired by the live-action Ghost In The Shell earlier this year, things have felt relatively quiet on the LEGO Cyberpunk front. German builder Ordo aims to noise things up again with this fantastic pink-accented “Candykoma” Think Tank. This beastie is fun and super-cute, but also looks like it packs a punch. I particularly like the functional-looking greebles in and around the “shoulder” joints.

Preparing for an early departure

A LEGO scene or model doesn’t have to be massive or packed with unusual building techniques to be impressive. Sometimes all you need is a nice set-up and great photography. That’s certainly the case here, as Marco Zanconi brings us a beautifully composed image with lovely lighting. The old sea captain’s bedroom is a relatively-simple build, but the play of light through the window, and the focus employed, turn the image into something worthy of a Hollywood cinematographer.

Snowbound fortress offers small comfort

You don’t have to wait for winter to see a snow-covered fantasy castle. Isacc Snyder follows his microscale LEGO Rivendell model with this equally cool teeny-tiny fortress. There’s a nice selection of parts here, with Technic cogs providing excellent depth of texture on the towers. I also like the ice-clear frozen lake at the castle’s foot, and the white tooth plates suggesting a spill of snow over the edge of the base. Personally, I might have added black screwdrivers to the turrets on the topmost towers, increasing their “spindle-y-ness”, but that minor reservation aside, I love this model.

Cloud and Sephiroth from Final Fantasy as LEGO BrickHeadz

One of my favorite video games of all time is Final Fantasy VII, released more than 20 years ago on the Sony PlayStation console. Such iconic characters must inevitably undergo the BrickHeadz treatment, which works very well for the anime styling of character designer Tetsuya Nomura. LEGO builder Ben Fong has captured the look of the two antagonists Cloud Strife and Sephiroth as they’re depicted in the 2005 film Final Fantasy: Advent Children.

Cloud wields his enormous Buster Sword, and Ben has even included the stud in Cloud’s left ear.

LEGO Ninjago Movie 70615 Fire Mech [Review]

The LEGO Ninjago Movie hits theaters in a few weeks, on September 22, and we’re continuing our reviews of the LEGO sets released to support the movie. The movie tie-in line includes a number of mecha, with 70615 Fire Mech coming in at 944 pieces and 6 minifigs at $69.99.

Read the full review of 70615 Fire Mech after the jump

Like an angel hurtling through the heavens at mach 3

With its sleek fuselage and arrowhead profile, the Seraphim reconnaissance jet by Corvin Stichert seems to resemble the stepping stone between the SR-71 Blackbird and the SSV Normandy SR-1 from Mass Effect. Although the builder had more of the former in mind when building, surely it’s ultrafast aircraft like this that will eventually eliminate the boundary between sky and space. Corvin puts all the curved slopes and wedges to excellent use in shaping the body, resulting in a craft that seems primed for radar deflection rather than merely a little pixelated as a consequence of the bricks.

My favorite touch on this model is the realistic, working landing gear and ordnance bays on the underside.

Corvin has also created a full ground crew to accompany the aircraft. Now all it needs is an Area 51 hangar.

Welcome home to Bosco Verticale

Bosco Verticale is a skyscraper full of lush greenery in Milan, Italy . Built by TBB’s own Elspeth De Montes, this micro-version is a fantastic urban forest coupled with beautiful architectural details. There are a lot of things to love in this build. I particularly love the use of non-traditional green bits to bring diversity and life to this miniature forest: I spot cheese grater slopes, quarter-circle tiles, brushes, and combs. There are teeth pieces, taps, blades, and Medusa’s hair from Series 10 of the Collectible Minifigure line. Repurposing the Eye of Ender tiles from the Minecraft line as solar panels is a fantastic use of that piece.

Remember the Cant

Fans of the TV show The Expanse will recognize this sleek vessel. Named by James Holden after Don Quixote’s horse, described in the book as a “stubby black wedge of metal” and visualized in the show as a lean, mean fighting machine, the Rocinante is a former MCRN Corvette Class ship previously known as the Tachi. Julie vanderMeulen had been mulling over building a LEGO version since seeing the show earlier this year. She decided to go with 2/3 minifig-scale to make it a nice, even 100 studs long.

As a proof of concept, she built the drive cone and then shelved it for a while. When she finally decided to give it a go, it just so happened to be the same day SHIPtember 2017 was announced, so she ended up speed building the whole model — and it is gorgeous! Julie has captured the Roci in all her glory, heavily armored and heavily armed — every detail has been stunningly sculpted in LEGO.

In the words of James Holden, “As long as we’re living and breathing, there’s more we can do. We just have to be strong enough.”

University building constructed with a degree of accuracy

Current students at the University of Colorado in Boulder will not need an introduction to the Koelbel Building as it’s part of the Leeds School of Business. Older graduates may not immediately recognise the building as it reopened with a new name in the autumn of 2007 after renovation and expansion financed by the Koelbel family. Imagine Rigney’s LEGO version has accurately captured the contrasting brick building with its central curved balcony atop tall columns and the ribbed dome.

If you fancy seeing this build in person, then it will soon be installed at Old Main for the Hit the Bricks exhibit on campus at the University of Colorado Boulder.

Energized by the Light of the Traveler

Some gamers are celebrating the launch of action-adventure first person shooter Destiny 2 with all-nighter gaming sessions. Then there is BrickinNick, celebrating the second entry in the franchise with three LEGO Hunter-class Guardians unleashing their super abilities. Nick captured the iconic futuristic cloaked warriors well, recognizable with just a handful of pieces.

Ole!

Microscale LEGO building tends to focus on buildings and vehicles, but Teabox(henrik_zwomp) has taken up the challenge of depicting a figure and an animal at a tiny scale. There’s no doubt in my mind that he’s pulled it off admirably with this adorable little matador facing up to a bull. Immediately recognisable, the subject matter not be to everyone’s taste as a sporting spectacle, but there’s no doubting the building skill on display.