Building articulated mecha at a small scale can be a challenge. But it is a challenge that Dead Frog Inc has measured up to quite nicely with this flying mech. The gun arms made from just a few parts look deadly, and the angled panels used for wings have an angelic quality that looks graceful and strong. Another very nice part use is the bucket handle attached to the shins with simple tension.
A long time ago, in a toy box far, far away…there were Classic Space LEGO sets. Blacktron followed in 1987 and was characterized by its black, yellow, and transparent yellow color scheme. They were a thriving intergalactic crime syndicate until the Space Police tracked them down in 1989. Many LEGO fans have created custom Blacktron-themed models over the years, including Jme Wheeler, who built this imposing dropship as a tribute. The model does a great job of capturing Blacktron’s distinctive aesthetic.
The dropship features retractable landing gear, a bomb bay in the belly that drops, and a substantial missile rack that unfolds from the tail. I think it might even be packing more firepower than the U.S.S. Sulaco’s dropship from Aliens.
Batman fans have so much material to draw inspiration from these days, but when it comes to Batmobiles, a few sources stand out. The recent Christopher Nolan series introduced us to the military prototype “Tumbler” capable of short jumps. The 60’s two-seater convertible was the perfect ride for the dynamic duo. But for many fans, the finned, rocket-propelled beast from the Tim Burton films takes the lead. This model by Pat Lacroix does a fantastic job of capturing its iconic shape, including some great greebly details like stud-shooters along the side.
And speaking of rocket-propelled, here’s the view from the back, which also shows off the rear fins, made using a 1x3x2 arch.
One of the great things about building with LEGO, is the many different scales which are open to you. Your creations can be built for standard minifigs to live and work, or you can populate your building and vehicles with larger brick-built inhabitants. Or, you can build at a much smaller scale, where the people are only in your imagination. This microscale encourages builders to think about their collection in a different way. LEGO builder Christian Benito has been flexing his micoscale building muscles in a series of city blocks.
In this block, Christian is trying out a few techniques for trees, and I rather like the simple structure of those lime-green trees made from sandwiching 1×1 round plates between 2×2 round plates. The dormer windows are also a nice touch. For the backyard, Christion used a clever way to get more visual interest by alternating 1×1 tiles.
See more city blocks by Christian
When it comes to building minifig cars with minimal parts and maximum details, Calin stands out as one of the best craftsmen. Take his latest model of the Dark Knight’s Tumbler, which uses a number of wedge plates along with some mind-boggling construction techniques to create the very complex angled profile that makes this prototype vehicle from Wayne Industries R&D department so unique. And according to the builder, this model even opens up to fit the caped crusader.
If you noticed the triangle road signs and are wondering what set they come in, you are out of luck. These have been painted black (very well, by the way). The wheels come from a model kit but fit in very nicely. Another great and missable detail are the tiny struts for the rear spoilers, made from minifig hands.
The 1970s brought us so many great sci-fi television shows in the wake of the original Star Trek series, from Battlestar Galactica to Space 1999. There was even a reboot of Buck Rogers, which served as the inspiration for this classic starfighter by Luis Peña. Based upon designs from famous Star Wars concept artist Ralph McQuarrie, this model features some excellent sculpting and color striping which closely matches its on-screen counterpart.
Armored hardsuits are definitely a LEGO fan favorite subject, and this stocky fellow by Moko immediately caught my eye with some great details. First off, the shoulder guards, which use this unusual hockey helmet, are paired with the Bionicle mask to give the suit a bulky style. The elbow connection is also interesting, inserting clip bars into the underside of a 2×2 round brick. A small detail on either side of the pilot’s compartment is the printed construction tile from LEGO 30529 Mini Master-Building Emmet polybag. The overall effect reminds me of a goliath beetle.
The original Death Star was designed with a fatal flaw — that tiny exhaust port right below the main port. With the second Death Star, the Empire corrected this flaw by making the exhaust port…bigger? Indeed, it was big enough for Lando to fly the Millennium Falcon right to the main reactor, and this stunning re-creation of the second Death Star’s final moments from Return of the Jedi by Didier Burtin closely resembles its on-screen inspiration. From the varied shades of gray and splashes of red that pull off the partially constructed look, to those red scaffolding pipes circling the opening, this scene makes us want to fly into the Death Star ourselves!
This is the second in a series of models by Didier featuring a microscale version of the fastest hunk of junk in the galaxy, the first being a stunning shot of the Falcon attached to the back of a Star Destroyer from the Empire Strikes Back.
While many stories and characters passed into so-called “Legends” status when Disney acquired Lucasfilm, some fan-favorites have been incorporated into the new canon, and I can’t think of any character more deserving than Mitth’raw’nuruodo — or Thrawn, as he is more commonly known in Galactic Basic. The Chiss Grand Admiral had a more humble introduction to Imperial life as a cadet at the military academy on Coruscant in the first book of Timothy Zahn‘s new trilogy. In this jam-packed scene by CRCT Productions built as a RebelLUG collaboration, there are so many great details, not the least of which is the light gray angled walkway bordered by the two-color spring-loaded shooter brick.
See more of Thrawn’s early victory after the jump
When it comes to building a great LEGO model, one thing that really shows off a builder’s skill is the ability to create something that can easily be mistaken for something other than plastic interlocking bricks. This sci-fi racing car by Vince_Toulouse is a perfect blend of smoothly curved details and unique parts, like the troll arms used for the main engine exhaust ports, or the mermaid tails housing the headlights. But by far, my favorite feature is the two-color striping throughout the car, which provides the perfect polish.
The line of LEGO Star Wars constraction figures has unleashed a plethora of new sculpted parts to feed the Bionicle building frenzy. However, this delicious looking lobster by 楚 沐猴 puts some of the parts from LEGO 75529 Elite Praetorian guard to a very different use. The finished product is a crustacean that looks good enough to eat.
This McQue-inspired salvage tug by Martin Redfern is a plucky little workhorse on its way back to the yard with a fresh haul of parts. One of the reasons I find the floating boats and other vehicles from Ian McQue’s concept art so interesting is that they seemingly float out of the sea and defy gravity without any explanation. It’s as if these worlds simply don’t have the same laws of physics as our own.
If this theme looks familiar, we recently featured another of Martin’s floating vehicles inspired by the same source.