Though the inspiration for this little mecha by Chris (Ironsniper) may appear to be tachikoma from Ghost in the Shell,
Posts by Andrew Becraft (TBB Editor-in-Chief)
LEGO drops paper from Indonesian rainforests, reduces box sizes [News]
As LEGO spreads various parts of its supply chain and manufacturing process beyond Billund, Denmark and Enfield, Connecticut, the number of countries listed on the box after “Components made in…” has increased dramatically, making it unclear exactly where specific LEGO elements and aspects of the product packaging come from. Some LEGO fans have been concerned about the fact that the country list now includes China. After all, the PRC is not particularly well known for its positive environmental record, nor for hitting the high quality bar set traditionally by LEGO.
Although LEGO has not yet confirmed — despite general consensus among fans — that products like the Collectible Minifigures and magnet sets are manufactured in China, LEGO has recently come clean about its packaging.
Environmental advocacy group Greenpeace reports that LEGO has agreed to stop sourcing paper and pulp products from Asia Pulp & Paper (APP), a company based in Singapore notorious for harvesting Indonesian rainforests in an unsustainable manner. LEGO packaging I’ve reviewed does not list either Singapore or Indonesia — though APP does operate plants in China. LEGO’s original response to Greenpeace identifies the offending item as a licensed product actually manufactured by Dorling Kindersley (most likely a book) and therefore not part of LEGO’s core product lines. Nevertheless, Greenpeace has complimented LEGO on its responsiveness to the issue and leadership among toy companies. (Packaging news via Environmental Leader.)
Meanwhile, LEGO is further improving its environmental record by making its boxes smaller. Astute readers will already have noticed that the latest line of LEGO Star Wars battle packs are in smaller boxes, reducing the amount of paper needed to produce the packaging. This is apparently a general trend across all product lines.
Our sources tell us that the move toward smaller packaging was entirely business-driven — that the smaller boxes allow more product to be placed on shelves, while simultaneously giving consumers the impression that they’re getting more LEGO by increasing the “perceived density” of the product (a counter-intuitive result from consumer research). Whatever the reasons, LEGO will be using less paper in its packaging going forward, and that’s a good thing.
Next time you call LEGO, let them know that you’re thankful that they’ve taken these steps to improve sustainability and environmental stewardship.
Mac & cheese
Phall has named his latest spaceship after his favorite LEGO element, the “macaroni” brick, but enough cheese slopes are in evidence that my post title seems warranted. The chunky Macaroni is a hearty delight.
Thanks for the tip, Jamie!
Summer 2011 Star Wars sets out now [News]
The LEGO Star Wars sets for Summer 2011 have just been released on the LEGO Shop online. For those of you who’ve been buying LEGO Star Wars since day 1 back in 1999, you’ll mostly find redesigns of existing vehicles in the non-Clone Wars section, but I have to admit after building 8097 Slave I that 7144 Slave I just can’t compare.
The centerpiece of the summer collection is 7965 Millenium Falcon, which at 1254 pieces and six minifigs is the largest short of the UCS version I still have in its shipping box downstairs. (No, you can’t have it.)
There are also a bunch of Clone Wars sets based on characters and vehicles I know nothing about, even though they appear to have some cool parts and minifigs. See all of the sets by clicking the banner below:
となりのトトロ
Our final Hayao Miyazaki tribute for the evening — and last post title in Japanese, for now — is this scene from My Neighbor Totoro
The sleeping Totoro in the second scene underneath the main one is well worth a closer look:
ハウルの動く城
Leo Chu (Bad Leo) takes a bunch of angular bricks and creates one of the most irregularly shaped entities in Hayao Miyazaki’s universe — the castle in Howl’s Moving Castle.
Unlike builders of previous LEGO versions of this castle, Leo places his in a lovely scene, complete with laundry drying in the wind. Like the other Hayao Miyazaki LEGO models I’ve posted today, Leo’s build is one of the top 12 LEGO creations in the Hong Kong contest.
天空の城ラピュタ
Ericmok delivers even more Miyazaki goodness with his microscale rendition of Laputa from Castle in the Sky.
My favorite visuals in many Miyazaki films are the clouds, and Eric’s LEGO version of Laputa is one of the few to include this key element of the movie.
青き衣をまといて、金色の野に降り立つべし...
One of my favorite moments in Nausicaä of the Valley of the Wind
But the scene at the end of the movie is no less moving, built here in LEGO by Alex Hui, another top-12 entry for the Ani-Com Hong Kong LEGO contest.
I’m less convinced by the chunky Mehve, but the lit Ohmu tendrils and historical scenes on the side of the display more than make up for it.
UPDATE: Alex has posted a video showcasing his LEGO model:
Space Battleship Yamato by Mark Rodrigues
I grew up watching bits and pieces of 「宇宙戦艦ヤマト」(Space Battleship Yamato) at friends’ houses back in Japan, but I have to admit that my fascination with the series today is largely due to the fleet of ships rather than for any sense of personal nostalgia. I’m a sucker for LEGO renditions of the titular ship, and this version by Mark Rodrigues doesn’t disappoint.
Mark’s 1/250 scale Yamato took 4 months to build and represents his return to the LEGO hobby after a 4-year hiatus. I’d say the result was well worth the wait. The vessel is 45″ long and includes rotating turrets and opening wings.
Via Legobloggen.
Smoke signals
Croatian LEGO fan Matija Grguric has been on a Wild West building spree lately. His most recent diorama captured the look of the American West better than any American builder has (to my knowledge), complete with the banded colors of the Badlands.
Matija is building all of his Western creations — from the Black Cat Saloon to Market Street — for an upcoming Club Kockice exhibit.
That little mesa is worth a closer look:
Petra’s Al Khazneh in LEGO
One of my dearest memories of the summer in 1994 that I spent working on an archaeological dig in Jordan was a weekend trip to Petra. We arrived from Amman late in the evening, but several of my fellow archaeology students couldn’t wait until morning to see the amazing structures carved from the sandstone 2000 years ago, so we snuck across wadi after wadi, avoiding the main paths. Once past the guard posts, we walked through the narrow gorge known as al-Siq — pitch black at night — until the passage opened in front of us to reveal Al Kazhneh, lit only by starlight.
ArzLan built his LEGO version of the Treasury for the Hong Kong Animation Festival, and features Indiana Jones in his Last Crusade visit to this UNESCO Heritage site.
Time-lapse video of LEGO mosaic building at LEGOLAND
LEGOLAND California Master Model Maker Ryan Ziegelbauer built a mosaic of a Junior Model Maker contest winner, which he captured in this time-lapse video.
Now that you’ve watched it once, watch the video again for all the funny animations in the background, including an homage to a recent blastoff into space.