Yearly Archives: 2022

Celebrating a 20-year-old LEGO robot theme (no, not that one)

Everyone remembers Bionicle, right? It was one of the themes that is credited with saving the LEGO company from ruin at the turn of the century. Six builders have recently decided to pay tribute to the Bohrok-Kal by reimagining these fearsome creatures. Redverse is one of those builders, and has combined the Bionicle villains with a much more obscure theme from around the same time: Spybotics. This theme was a subset of Mindstorms, and each came with a large cockpit piece which doubled as the programmable brick. 3807 Snaptrax S45 forms the inspiration for this creature, with the red cockpit being an obvious inclusion. The mirroring of the cockpit shape with the trans-red covers on the guns is a nice touch.

Swarm Sentinel: Tahnox S45

The tracks on the legs are also an homage to the 2002 set, but they aren’t just there to look cool! As well as its intimidating walking stance, this mech can transform into a slightly less aggressive form.

Swarm Sentinel: Tahnox S45

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Classic Space isn’t just for, well, space, anymore!

LEGO’s iconic Classic Space style has been reinterpreted in many forms over the years, typically rounded up in what fans call Neo-Classic Space (NCS) and we’ve seen everything from spaceships to tanks wearing that beloved blue, grey, and transparent-yellow color scheme. But there’s always room for breaking the mold a bit more while still adhering to the basic style. Enter Rubblemaker and the Manta Ray, an NCS vessel that can go places no Classic Spaceship has gone before: underwater! Bearing a strikingly unique shape and just the perfect amount of greebles, this cool design now has me wanting to do a crossover mashup with Aquazone.

Classic Space - The Manta Ray

Of course, it can’t really be Classic “Space” unless there’s some space involved, and the Manta Ray is only too happy to oblige, as it’s versatile enough to traverse the cold depths of outer space as easily as the ocean.

Classic Space - The Manta Ray

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Straight from the Boonta Eve Classic, it’s Anakin Skywalker and his custom podracer!

This dynamic vehicle is lovingly crafted from LEGO by Matt in excellent detail! I’ve always loved this podracer, and this build reminds me why. The engines are slick, and the cockpit is stylish. Of course, it doesn’t hurt it’s the fastest racer ever! Can you hear those engines purring, the energy binder humming? Some cool parts usage at work in those racing engines, like the yellow helmets from the LEGO Space theme. Another nice callback, this time to the Arctic theme, are the yellow snowshoes on the engines’ midsection. They have the waffle cutouts perfect for those vent covers! Something I appreciate is the use of transparent cones for that undulating effect of the active energy binder.

Anakin’s Podracer

Check out the rest of this podracer

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LEGO Classic 11021 90 Years of Play: a blast from the past [Review]

While we don’t typically cover new sets in the Classic parts pack theme, when we saw LEGO Classic 11021 90 Years of Play announced, the nostalgia factor caught our eye. Meant to celebrate the company’s 90th anniversary this year, the set includes lots of nods to iconic themes and sets from throughout LEGO’s history. Personally, having grown up with some of the early themes like Castle, Town, and of course, Space, this set held a certain charm for me, and I’m sure many of you will feel the same. The set includes 1,100 pieces and is available now on LEGO’s website for US $49.99 | CAN $64.99 | UK £44.99.

The LEGO Group provided The Brothers Brick with an early copy of this set for review. Providing TBB with products for review guarantees neither coverage nor positive reviews.


Read on to see the full review

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Destination Moon in this massive LEGO Tintin rocket that’s almost 5 feet tall

I was in Brussels Zaventem airport the other day, where I came across an enormous red and white rocket in the departure lounge, standing an impressive 6 metres tall. Stefan Johansson must have been through the same airport, as he has built the very same spaceship at an equally impressive scale! Of course, this isn’t just any old rocket. This is the craft that Belgium’s most famous son — at least in comic book form — used to travel to and explore the moon. The rocket is one of the most recognisable pieces of Tintin iconography, and as such has seen a fair few LEGO versions, but at 1.4m (4 feet, 7 inches) tall, Stefan’s is easily the biggest brick-built one I’ve seen!

Click here to see the details of this colossal build!

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Picture perfect fairytale furniture

These delightful LEGO furniture pieces from Brickdesigned bring charm to the cottage in which they reside. No one knows who lives in the cottage, but who wouldn’t want to live in such a cute environment? Perhaps if we take a closer look at the items we can discern some things about the owner… The clock is built into a felled tree with accompanying wildlife, while the hat indicates they enjoy frolicking in the woods, too. The tree’s wide base is cleverly achieved with a brown minifig torso! Moving on to the bed, we see they like to keep things tidy with a made bed. The checkered pattern is lovely, and I particularly like the tree branches for the bedposts. The standout pieces here are the red minifig hands making up the frill of the throw rug.

The snacks on the table suggest the owner likes sweets balanced with just a touch of health! The table and chair speak of comfort without too much fuss. Honestly, that chair looks more comfortable than many wooden chairs I’ve used myself. Finally, there’s the fireplace. The mantle is chock full of cool items: a message in a bottle, books galore, a tea set, some coins, and a cool hourglass. I love how the mantle and the fireplace are constructed! The studs-not-on-top (SNOT) approach for the logs supporting the mantle is charming. The cauldron cooking over the fire is a nice touch, too. We may not know who lives in this space, but we do know one thing–they live happily ever after.

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.

Classical Prussian splendour, realised in Lego

Builder Christian Rau has recreated in LEGO the famous Sanssouci Palace in Germany.
Built to the style of the Architecture line, Christian has captured the opulent villa and its magnificent Gardens.  The terraced walkways are recreated well with a half stud offset allowing a shallower curve to the hedges and pathways. Atop the hill, we find the Sanssouci Palace. To capture the facade of the building at this scale, Christian has employed brackets to allow building in multiple directions which has allowed him to add the narrow yet grand windows.

Sanssouci - Potsdam

Moving to the Gardens at the foot of the build, Christian has captured the marble statues at this scale via two nipple pieces using the flower as a decorative flourish before we reach the pool of water with a trans blue candle flame utilised to add an impressive display without distracting from the magnificence of the Palace above.

I’m enjoying studying this build as the smallest detail is realised in LEGO form here, effortlessly looking the part.

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.

LEGO Creator 3-in-1 31131 Downtown Noodle Shop – more options for your city layout [Review]

If you’re looking for more bang for your buck, LEGO Creator 3-in-1 sets are one of the best options out there. Fun techniques and pieces coupled with three different instruction manuals provides loads of playability, and the ones that feature small buildings make for good additions to any city layout. The latest, LEGO Creator 3-in-1 31131 Downtown Noodle Shop, is no exception to that. While it may not be the most exciting set out there, particularly in a summer wave full of awesome sets, it’s both practical and cute. Join us as we take a brief look into the details of this 569-piece kit, which will be available August 1st and retail for US $44.99 | CAN $59.99 | UK £39.99.

Continue reading

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This 9,500+ piece LEGO Cobra Terror Drome will have G.I. Joe running for cover.

The new partnership between LEGO and Hasbro has prompted plenty of discussion about what the future could hold. Builder Big Easy Bricks has crafted my dream new set with this incredible take on the Cobra Terror Drome playset from the original G.I. Joe toy line. While the military theme of G.I. Joe might conflict with some of LEGO’s brand philosophy, some of the line’s more fantastical hardware isn’t too dissimilar from the likes of Ninjago or Nexo Knights, and the Cobra Terror Drome is a perfect example. It’s a high-tech, octagonal remote headquarters unlike anything that exists in real life. So, let’s knock out a couple of Cobra Troopers, slip on their uniforms, and infiltrate the interior of this Cobra headquarters for a full tour.

Cobra Terror Drome 01

Click here to continue reading

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.

Beware the rings of Llyria Y9

Few LEGO builders do other-worldly creations quite like Bart de Dobbelear. His latest creation is a super bit of sci-fi workmanship, inspired by a digital piece from another artist. At first glance, I wondered if there had been some photoshop trickery at play to achieve the repetition of the rings, but on closer inspection, they are indeed four distinct rings. (I really should know better than not to expect such attention to detail from Mr de Dobbelaer!) The greebling is superb, but the real skill lies in the restrained use of pieces. In doing so, the build can show off its tremendous physical depth while keeping the look of the rings consistent. Moreover, they look simultaneously ancient and futuristic. Quite what the rings are for is unclear, and Bart says as much in his description. However, he does mention a few “mysterious disappearances”, with caution being warranted at night…

Llyria rings - day

… So you’d better have your wits about you, as he has treated us to a night-time version of the build as well! The blue light wire is something Bart has used to great effect before, and understandably so – it really elevates the build to something truly alien. If we don’t hear from this TBB favourite for a while, it may well be because he got too close to the rings on Llyria Y9…

Llyria rings - night

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Get some high fidelity from this tubular amp

Prepare yourself for the high quality sound coming from this valve amplifier by LEGO LowNotes. While built from LEGO, I have no doubt in the capabilities of this amp with a little imagination! The first thing that strikes me are the large tubes with those warm filaments. Red and orange transparent studs give the filaments that glowing look. Bars comprise the input/output needles in the center of the control panel with transparent doors for the glass. Valve amps are favored for their warm tones, higher fidelity, and softer clipping thresholds, and everything about this build is just as smooth and crisp. This build could easily blend in with any audio setup–the only thing to give it away is the lack of cords coming out the back.

LEGO Amp

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LEGO Ninjago 71768: Jay’s Golden Dragon Motorcycle – Putting the Dragon into drag racing [Review]

We recently took a look at 71775 Nya’s Samurai X Mech, one of the larger sets in the new Summer 2022 wave of Ninjago sets based on the upcoming Season 15 of the tv show. Next, we swing to the other end of the spectrum and explore one of the more compact offerings. Ninjago 71768 Jay’s Golden Dragon Motorbike will available June 1st in the UK, and August 1st worldwide, from the LEGO Shop Online for US $19.99 | CAN $24.99 | UK £17.99. This 137 piece set comes with the Golden Dragon Motorbike, as you’d expect, as well as a Crystal Spider, Vengestone warrior, and a very impressive Golden Dragon Jay minifigure. Ride along as we take this set for an early spin!

The LEGO Group provided The Brothers Brick with an early copy of this set for review. Providing TBB with products for review guarantees neither coverage nor positive reviews.

Vroom Vroom awaits

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.