Yearly Archives: 2019

Along the pink stream of sinkers and floaters

“Do the black units house digital essences? Is the pink fluid some sort of coolant? Do they clump together and need to be separated? Do the spiders drink the coolant and keep the ducts clean? Is working at this Stasis Temple considered a great honor?” These are numerous questions that builder Shannon Sproule asks but doesn’t have the answers to. However, this does reflect a freeing way of stream of consciousness in building by experimenting with neat colors and textures without regard for their purpose.

He tells us, “If I was the other Shannon (Young), you would’ve gotten a beautifully-written backstory, but since it’s me you only get a few brain farts and a hand wave to pseudo-religious-technology.” That’s OK, Shannon. If I were any other Brothers Brick contributor, I would have thought up a more high-brow title. Good thing we’re all friends here.

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Hey pal, where ya going?

Next to towering skyscrapers and the Statue of Liberty, New York City has also long been identified with streets full of yellow taxicabs. LEGO car builder Pixeljunkie chose to represent a classic Checker cab, complete with its characteristic black and white checkerboard-style trim. While the car itself looks great, it is further enhanced by the gritty scenery which includes a knocked over trash can. Meanwhile, the irritated-looking minifig driver sitting cross-legged adds an extra dash of personality.

If you love the Checker cab, you will probably also enjoy Pixeljunkie’s chopped Model A Ford hot rod. It packs some serious muscle in the engine and behind the wheel, and the whitewall tires give it a strong sense of style.

LEGO Hidden Side Diner Shrimp Shack Attack 70422 set is unveiled [News]

The summer wave of LEGO Hidden Side, a new series designed with augmented reality, will include 8 sets. Seven of them were revealed earlier this month, and the last one, 70422 Diner Shrimp Shack Attack, was announced today. The set will come with 579 pieces and will retail at 49,99 Euro in Europe, which converts to about $50 US. More details on availability will come at a future date.

via Zusammengebaut

A tank head full of ideas

Kelvin Low’s latest LEGO creation brings to life a turret-headed mech based on original artwork by Emerson Tung. Taking inspiration from a number of classic tank elements, the Kaiserian Grunt Tankhead has a tough militaristic feel. It manages to achieve this aesthetic by balancing its heavy cannon-toting head and meaty body on top of substantial spread-toed feet.

To fully appreciate this type of build, you need to get under the skin of the mechanical beast. Luckily, Kelvin has supplied us with a video showing off his ingenious construction techniques. In it, he records in detail how the various components of the mech’s armoured body are applied to its Technic skeleton.

Planting LEGO bricks leads to flowers that will forever bloom

We have featured plenty of beautifully built LEGO floral arrangements, but this unique interpretation by Jarekwally may be the most literal interpretation of LEGO flowers so far. Each of the flowers are upscaled versions of the 1×1 modified brick with stud on 1 side. The inclusion of the actual brick as a smaller bud is pure genius.

Schroeder loves Beethoven

Sometimes one doesn’t need a proliferation of parts to make something fun and recognizable as Michael Jasper proves with this clever Peanuts scene. Building small can be tricky, especially when trying to represent characters as iconic as these, but Jasper does an admirable job by employing a variety of clever part combinations.

The Schroeder minifig features his classic striped shirt, and his blonde hair is perfectly coiffed. His beloved tiny piano is a simple but effective little build that pairs nicely with the bust of Beethoven. Snoopy is on hand with his best buddy, the enigmatic Woodstock (represented here with just five parts). The Snoopy build deserves closer inspection with its inspired use of a white saucepan to create the body, and the skeleton legs work great as dog paws. A small but mighty build!

LEGO unveils Creator Expert 10266 NASA Apollo 11 Lunar Lander to celebrate 50th anniversary of the Moon landing [News]

To celebrate the 50th anniversary of the Moon landing, LEGO today unveiled the Creator Expert 10266 NASA Apollo 11 Lunar Lander. The set features a highly detailed replica of Apollo 11’s Eagle lunar module along with a brick-built lunar surface and crater, minifigure footprints and a U.S. flag.

The set was developed in partnership with NASA and contains 1,087 pieces with two astronaut minifigures, and launches this weekend starting June 1st for US $99.99 | CAN 139.99 | UK £84.99.

Continue reading →

An overgrown temple on Yavin 4

Many LEGO Star Wars fans have long hoped for a set depicting the Rebel base on Yavin 4. Some fans have taken matters into their own hands and built their own rendition, like this scene by Legomania. Though only a small chunk of the Great Temple that housed the Rebel Alliance, this diorama accurately portrays the spirit of the activity we see in A New Hope and Rogue One. Pilots are milling about while Rebel Troopers run off to their assignments.

Remove the Star Wars characters and accessories, and this could very well represent an ancient jungle temple here on Earth. I’m particularly drawn to the use of largely solid colours for different aspects of the diorama. And rather than use colour to break up the monotony of a pathway, brick wall, or stone steps, everything looks gritty through the use of different shapes, sizes and textures of LEGO pieces.

Final images of LEGO Star Wars Boost 75253 Droid Commander set revealed [News]

Earlier this month LEGO unveiled 75253 Droid Commander, an all-new Star Wars-themed set for the new Boost system of motorized elements. Reminiscent of the Mindstorms-branded Droid Developer Kit from 1999, the Droid Commander set has instructions to build a variety of droids and program them to accomplish tasks via an app. Unlike previous some previous Boost sets for Ninjago and LEGO City, the Star Wars set is a stand-alone product that will not require users to already own any Boost products. The initial press release only included a handful of images of the set in use, but today LEGO is giving us our first look at the set’s final packaging and product images. Droid Commander has 1,177 pieces and is expected to retail for US $199.99 | CAN $249.99 | UK £179.99 starting September 1.

Click to check out all the images

Charming beach house with a modern flair

Just one look at any of Sarah Beyer‘s wonderful LEGO house models and it is crystal clear that she has a passion for modern architecture, from the use of large window panels to the delightfully detailed interiors found on every house she builds. This latest warm and inviting beach house is full of interesting part usages, as well as a thoughtful eye toward creating flowing spaces that don’t feel cramped, despite their minimal size. Just one of the details that I love about this house is the use of the textured brick, both inside and outside, to bring visual interest to an otherwise plain white wall.

Check out some interior photos

LEGO Ideas 40335 Space Rocket Ride gift with purchase [Review]

Back in January 2018, the LEGO Ideas team held a competition themed around LEGO moments in space open to all builders, to unleash their creative talent. The winner of the contest would have his or her set made into a gift with purchase set. Nearly a year and a half later, we get to see the official set in its final form, with touchups from the LEGO design team, all packaged up and ready to be enjoyed by fans all over the world. The inspiration behind the design is the old-school rocket rides that one would find in storefronts and malls in just about every country.

Click to read the full review of the LEGO Ideas Cosmic Rocket Ride

Samurai mech: The ultimate upgrade

There are a handful of builders who consistently produce spectacular creations; Eero Okkonen is one of them. This time out he’s turned his attention to a reimagining of the classic 2012 Ninjago set 9448 Samurai Mech. It’s quite the upgrade! The official LEGO set is a little clunky and disproportioned, but in contrast Eero has designed a tough giant of a mech, which cleverly integrates the key aesthetic elements of the original, such as the gold stomach ring and katana blade. It’s however in the detailed building of the mech’s head, which utilises an array of black macaroni tubes and specialised elements to create its demonic features, that we see a master-builder lift his model out of the ordinary.