Posts by Daniel

Get ready to rumble with this riot control mech. Or get ready to run

If you are planning on making trouble for the government in Marco Marozzi‘s world, you better be prepared to face the music. And by the music, I mean this manacing crowd control mech, who if you are unlucky and he runs out of ammo, will instead stomp you to paste without breaking a sweat.

Marco is a mech builder who uses lots of amazing mechanical details in his models that root them in the practical world, with joints that feel like they actually work, and this mech is no exception. The back of the legs use the helicopter ski element to anchor several greebly bits to maximize stompiness.

Another highly detailed section is the head and chest, which use the main torso part from many Nexo Knights power mechs to provide a richly textured look. But one of my favorite parts is half of an old hinged claw used as the back part of the foot.

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In space, no one can hear you scream, unless you are in a TIE fighter

Nyeeeeyaw! C’mon, you know what I mean. Any Star Wars fan will have to admit to swooshing their TIE Fighter toy through the living room making that signature screaming sound of the Empire’s mass-produced cheap and disposable one-man flying coffin. This midi-scale replica by Pascal Hetzel has a ton of great parts usage packed into a compact design.

Pascal uses some of the newer curved wedges to sculpt the cockpit, and the two solar panels manage to capture the look of its on-screen inspiration without being too bulky for its scale. I have to admit that I would love to see the entire line-up of TIE Fighters in this same scale…

The future of space travel is looking good

We have already seen one Tesla launched into space last February when the SpaceX Falcon Heavy blasted off, but it looks like this super-sleek personal spaceship by GolPlaysWithLego just might be a Tesla from the future, that has traveled across time and space from a human colony on Mars. This stylish ship is the perfect blend of form and fashion and is full of great details. One of my favorites is the revolver between the two rounded white accents on the front.

The model makes excellent use of one of the windscreen parts from the Speed Champions theme. I honestly can’t decide whether I like the slim contours of the body more or the fin-riddled engine assembly. In any case, this is one sleek spaceship.

Have a drink on me, fellows, for tomorrow, we fight.

Scenes from Star Wars movies and television have been a major source of inspiration for LEGO builders since the first time we were transported to that galaxy far, far away. Some builders take more subtle inspiration from the Star Wars universe to create scenes that we never saw but were there all along, like this model of barracks for Rebel troopers on Hoth by Gabe F, a charming view into the day-to-day life of the brave men and women who put their lives on the line to fight the tyranny of the Galactic Empire.

The carved organic snow landscaping is great, and there are lots of little details like portable bunks complete with temperature gauge and power cords, pin-ups on the wall, and cups of caf littered throughout. There’s even a lost sock. Hopefully, the owner has a spare pair to keep their toes warm.

TBB Weekly Brick Report: LEGO news roundup for July 01, 2019 [News]

In addition to the amazing LEGO models created by builders all over the world, The Brothers Brick brings you the best of LEGO news and reviews. This is our weekly Brick Report for the last week of June.

TBB News and reviews:

Spiderman Advanced Suit | Marvel Avengers set brings fantastic minifigures of Hulk and Pepper Potts: LEGO announced 2 more exclusive San Diego Comin-Con sets and minifigures
LEGO Overwatch gets two new sets: Junkrat and Roadhog plus Hammond in his Wrecking Ball
Löwenstein Castle | Revisiting the LEGO Wild West Saloon set from Bricklink’s AFOL Designer Program: We revisited 2 sets from BrickLink’s AFOL Designer Program, including unboxing details.
LEGO 75253 Boost Droid Commander now available for purchase in US and Canada: Star Wars fans can now build and program three droids from a galaxy far, far away.
LEGO Speed Champions reissues the classic 911 with 75895 1974 Porsche 911 Turbo 3.0: Classic car fans can now own this new model.
LEGO City 60230 People Pack – Space Research And Development: We reviewed the latest LEGO people pack, which features NASA employees who work hard, and play hard.
A look at The LEGO Movie 2: The Second Part Blu-ray set: We re-watched the second part and gave you the breakdown.

In other LEGO news:

LEGO to buy LEGOLAND theme park operator Merlin Entertainments in $7.6 billion deal: LEGO Group’s parent company is re-investing in the LEGOLAND theme parks.

This monochrome medieval city is anything but bleak

While many LEGO castle builders use at least some shade of gray somewhere in their medieval fortifications, many try to push themselves outside this monochrome palette if possible. On the other hand, sometimes using self-imposed constraints can unlock new levels of creativity. In the case of this microscale village by Aaron Newman, complete with cathedral and an impressive keep, the inspiration came from the task of building a prize for a castle building contest where the use of gray is prohibited. So, whoever wins this prize will still get the benefit of a little gray in an otherwise colorful world.

One of my favorite details about this model are the many angled walls, which reflect a great many real-life castles and ruins around the world. One more missable detail is the sideways bricks that flank the entrance to the cathedral. For the round towers, Aaron borrowed a technique from a previous microscale castle of his featured here on TBB.

TBB Weekly Brick Report: LEGO news roundup for June 23, 2019 [News]

TBB News and reviews:

Explore where paved road ends with the new LEGO Technic 42110 Land Rover Defender set– We brought you the latest Technic vehicle for rugged offroad adventure, LEGO style.
LEGO 75936 Jurassic Park: T. rex Rampage, the biggest LEGO dino ever– We went beyond just a review of the new Jurrasic World set with excerpts from an exclusive TBB interview with the set designer Mark Stafford.

The Brothers Brick Readers’ Survey 2019 – win 10266 Apollo Lunar Lander– We’ve opened our latest reader poll, and we want to hear from you. And in case providing your valued opinions about how we can improve the TBB experience isn’t enough, we’re giving away a copy of the latest addition to the stellar LEGO space collection, 10266 Apollo Lunar Lander. The survey will be open until June 30th.
LEGO 77903 The Dark Knight of Gotham City revealed as San Diego Comic-con 2019 LEGO Exclusive– The second exclusive LEGO set for San Diego Comic-Con 2019 includes the Dark Detective, a couple of brooding gargoyles and a neat Gotham City skyline complete with bat-signal.
LEGO 77902 Captain Marvel and the Asis revealed as San Diego Comic-Con 2019 LEGO exclusive– The first exclusive LEGO set for San Diego Comic-Con includes Captain Marvel, a SHIELD jet, and the universe’s most terrifying feline.

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Nothing square about this slim spaceship

LEGO Spaceships come in all shapes and sizes. Sometimes delicate, sometimes brutal, sometimes massive, sometimes tiny. Frequently featured spaceship builder Shannon Sproule often surprises us with his unique style, and this search and rescue vessel does it again. Most of the repair ship is barely wider than a standard 2 stud brick, but the slender and tall profile is bristling with grappling arms, hangar bays, and lots of sloped parts to add a little flair. One of my favorite parts is the game die used along the underside. If you are a purist though, don’t look too closely at that bent antenna on the top (wink).

A hull of a pair of pleasure boats

At first glance, it is easy to mistake these two boats by ER0L as wooden or plastic models, rather than LEGO creations. In part, this is due to the impressively constructed curved hulls, which is not the easiest thing to do. However, building a memorable LEGO boat is about more than just smooth curves. The smallest detail can make a big impact. One such detail on the larger Sirius is the white rubber band used as a hatch seal. With the smaller Mona, the use of some older hinge plates to line the inside of the rear compartment is genius.

TBB Weekly Brick Report: LEGO news roundup for June 16, 2019 [News]

This past week’s news was dominated by Star Wars and dinosaurs, from video game announcements to large collectible sets depicting major movie moments. Go back to a galaxy far, far away, hold on to your butts, and read on for more information!

TBB NEWS AND REVIEWS:

LEGO reveals 75936 Jurassic Park T-Rex Rampage featuring the largest dinosaur ever in an official set — LEGO fans are finally getting an amazing brick-built T-Rex, and new minifigs from Jurassic Park.
LEGO 75936 Jurassic Park: T-Rex Rampage designer video — Watch Mark Stafford, the designer behind the newest exclusive LEGO set, sharing more details about the product and design process.
LEGO Star Wars 75244 Tantive IV [Review] – We reviewed the latest addition to the large scale Star Wars vehicle collection.
New Lego Star Wars video game: The Skywalker Saga revealed at E3 – The upcoming LEGO Star Wars game will cover the entire 9 movie Skywalker Saga.
LEGO reveals 12 new sets from Speed Champions, The LEGO Movie 2, and Technic – Keep your shopping list updated as more excellent LEGO sets are coming this summer and fall.

OTHER LEGO NEWS: There were quite a few other interesting LEGO news articles from around the web this week. Here are the best of the rest:
Click to read even more LEGO news

Your lightsabers will make a fine addition to my collection

Each installment in the Star Wars cinematic saga has introduced new villains for audiences to obsess over, from Darth Vader’s first rasping breath in A New Hope to Darth Maul’s devil-like countenance in The Phantom Menace. Revenge of the Sith was no exception, although General Grievous first appeared in the 2004 animated series, Star Wars: The Clone Wars. Dissatisfied with the official 75112 General Grievous LEGO set, Marcin Otreba has built a stunningly detailed model of the wheezy cyborg commander of the Separatists’ droid army with some truly inspired designs.

By far, my favorite features are the arms which, like his on-screen counterpart, can separate into two slender but no less nimble and deadly appendages. I also love the translucent body cavity housing his vital organs. You’ll also want to take a closer look at the fingers, which are built using B-1 battle droid heads, of course.

Industrial salvage vessel has been through hell and back

When it comes to building grimy-looking industrial salvage spaceships inspired by Weiland-Yutani, the company from the Alien franchise, I can think of nothing better than to re-use elements from previous spaceship models. Frequently featured builder Shannon Sproule demonstrates this salvage technique beautifully, along with some post-production effects, to create a working ship that has clearly seen a lot of action. One of my favorite details is the use of similar circular elements and tiles along the side. Large slopes and pipes sticking out on all sides, and very few well-placed studs complete the look.