Posts by Kyle Keller

LEGO Icons 10325 Alpine Lodge – On holiday for the holidays [Review]

Here we are at the end of September, about to dive head-first into the holiday blitz that happens at the end of every year. And LEGO has already started to prepare by releasing some of their new Christmas-themed sets for 2023. But of course the one we all hold our breath for is their annual addition to the Winter Village Collection, a tradition since 2009. This year, we’re treated to something with a bit more of a scenic feel: 10325 Alpine Lodge. But will this cozy B&B make for a dream vacation, or will it get absolutely roasted on TripAdvisor? You’ll have to read on to find out! Made of 1,517 pieces, and available on October 4 from LEGO stores and their website, the lodge will retail for US $99.99 | CAN $129.99 | UK £89.99.

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

Click to read our full review!

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A LEGO character creation with explosive potential

Ever since a History of Science class my freshman year of college, I’ve read so many books on the history and discovery of radiation. But nowhere in those pages covering everything from the Curies to Chernobyl did I ever come across a scientist like the one depicted in this LEGO bust by Steven Wayne Howard. With the clever implementation of the Ninjago Spinjitzu canopy, we’re able to see all the nuclear reactors sticking out of this mad scientist’s cranium. An array of creature wings make up his wild facial hair, and his sinister visage is driven home with that skeletal bowtie. And the whole thing sits on a plinth that is, quite frankly, the bomb. The whole thing is downright maniacal, and gives me the chills!

LEGO Star Wars 75367 Venator-Class Republic Attack Cruiser – A gigantic plate sandwich! [Review]

Let’s take a trip back in time. No, we’re not going to head all the way back to 2005 when the Venator-Class Republic Attack Cruiser first made its appearance on screen in Revenge of the Sith, but it’s close. The year is 2007, and I’ve just begun my junior year of college at the University of Minnesota (Go Gophers!). I go with some friends to IKEA for dorm room accoutrements, and we stop at the Mall of America on the way back. It’s at that mall’s LEGO store that I, irrational college student that I am at the time, purchase 10143 Death Star II. It was epic! I sat in my room watching Episodes I through VI while I assembled the great ball of bricks, feeling my love of the SW Universe course through my fingers and into this mammoth set I could barely afford. To this day, it’s the only LEGO Star Wars UCS set I’ve ever purchased. I thought back on this time quite a bit as I tackled the construction of the latest offering in the Ultimate Collector Series: 75367 Venator-Class Republic Attack Cruiser. Star Wars certainly has come a long way since then, as has LEGO. You’ll have to read on to uncover my nostalgia-laden build of this new model. Constructed of 5,374 pieces, and available from LEGO stores and their website on October 4 (October 1 for Insiders), 75367 Venator-Class Republic Attack Cruiser retails for US $649.99 | CAN $849.99 | UK £559.99.

Read on for the full review

Dark master and apprentice from Ahsoka strike a LEGO pose

I can guarantee a spoiler-free take on this LEGO version of the antagonists from the new Ahsoka series on Disney+, mostly because I haven’t had time to watch it yet. So forgive me if I don’t yet know the significance of Baylan Skoll and Shin Hati yet, built here by Chi Hsin Wei. The capes on these two are brilliant, using curved slopes and technic panels to convey the proper cloth-like “flow.” Add to that their built-in poseability (made possible through tow ball joints, bars, and clips) and this duo is certainly ready for action! Perhaps we’ll be treated to the duo on the other side of this Force in a future build, and hopefully by then I’ll be all caught up on episodes.

BrickCon 2023 Best in Show winner Kimberly Giffen talks about her LEGO rendition of the Silver Pavilion [Exclusive]

A little more than 11 months ago, I wrote up a beautiful LEGO tea house by my very talented LUG-mate Kimberly Giffen. That build, The Giffen Gardens, won Best in Show at BrickCon 2022. And here I am, after another BrickCon, pleased to say that Kimberly was able to repeat her achievement and win the Best in Show once again with a recreation of the Silver Pavilion (Ginkakuji) from Kyoto, Japan. I had a chance to talk with Kimberly after the convention about her work, and was able to learn a lot about the model and her process.

Read on about the Silver Pavilion below!

This striking LEGO Blacktron Striker strikes a chord

We here at TBB are no stranger to the space-tastic LEGO creations of Chris Perron. And his latest, featuring the canopy from Buzz Lightyear’s XL-15 is a spectacular representation of Blacktron building! The trans-red “wings” jutting out to the sides are wonderful, reminding me of an energy field kind of like that generated by NCC-1701’s warp nacelles. All of the sharp, cutting angles feel right at home with LEGO Space of the late 80’s, though the parts utilized include some more-recent offerings. For instance, there’s the 4-wide brick separator included in mosaic sets. I’ll give you a minute to spot where it’s hiding.

LEGO Star Wars 75367 UCS Venator-Class Republic Attack Cruiser officially revealed online

We’ve had quite the string of Ultimate Collector Series LEGO Star Wars sets that have pushed the limits of set size. First, we had both iterations of the UCS Millennium Falcon. That was followed with mega-sized versions of the Star Destroyer and AT-AT. And today, LEGO has officially revealed the next giga-UCS set: 75367 UCS Venator-Class Republic Attack Cruiser. Clocking in at 5,374 pieces, this massive spaceship from the prequel series is a titanic 12.5″ (32 cm) tall, 21″ (54 cm) wide, and 43″ (109 cm) long. With a plaque commemorating the 20th anniversary of the first Clone Wars TV show (Tartakovsky’s project, not the computer-animated series), the set also includes minifigure versions of Captain Rex and Admiral Yularen. Releasing from LEGO stores and their website on October 4th (October 1st for Insiders), 75367 UCS Venator-Class Republic Attack Cruiser will retail for US $649.99 | CAN $849.99 | UK £559.99

Check out more images of the new set below!

A LEGO city built on a foundation of Aquanauts

While it may not look like it at first, this microscale LEGO city by Casey McCoy owes its roots to the Aquazone theme, in a very literal way. Using a baseplate from 6195 Neptune Discovery Lab as the starting point, Casey assembled quite the futuristic metropolis. I love the multi-layered approach, with different levels of buildings built into the cliffside contrasting the towering skyscrapers above. The one stud-wide monorail track helps break up the levels, and appears to run through the baseplate at one point. And that pop of color from the trans-neon orange “river” running through the canyon just sets the whole build off!

A Pikachu’s thunderbolt, recreated in LEGO

From my childhood days spent playing Pokémon Red and my countless hours in front of the TV watching Ash Ketchum fulfill his quest to be a Pokémon master, there has been nothing more indicative of that great video game franchise than the electric-type pocket monster known as Pikachu. And here LEGO builder Zane Houston has captured the little, yellow ‘mon using its signature move, thunderbolt. The powerful blast of electricity emitting from Pikachu’s red cheeks is captured with an interesting studs-out technique, layering white plates vertically on a column of medium azure bricks. Pikachu’s body is similarly built with studs facing outward, away from the center of the character. It helps to give the Pokémon almost a fuzzy, static-y kind of look, quite befitting given its current attack.

Enter the LEGO D&D dungeon at BrickCon, if you dare!

One of the things I enjoy most about this wonderful LEGO hobby is the people I get to collaborate with on projects. And this year at BrickCon, I have the good fortune to participate in a massive Dungeons & Dragons project with so many talented builders. For the last 5 months, all 24 of us have been working independently on our own rooms for a mega-dungeon, both large and small ones. And I guess builder Doug Hughes stopped reading after “large.” In his intricately-designed room, he’s housed a fearsome lava centipede being controlled by a group of dark elves. The lighting is splendid, the design appropriately ornate, and the technique on the monster gets Volothamp’s seal of approval for sure! Let’s hope our band of adventurers can get past before it escapes its bonds.

And in case you’re wondering what I contributed, I guess I can give you a peek at that below. I wanted to go for something that felt a bit more like a “finale.” Anyone care to roll for initiative? And as for the rest of the dungeon, you’ll have to head to BrickCon or look out for pics from the convention after next weekend of the whole thing assembled and on display.

Kraków, Poland in microscale LEGO

When tackling a subject as large as a city in LEGO, it’s best to bring things down to microscale. While you’re not able to capture every inhabitant, many of the metropolitan details can be preserved with clever part choices. That’s exactly what builder Toltomeja has done with the city of Kraków. Let’s take a tour of their tiny city, and explore all the sights within.

Take a tour tour of a big Polish city below!

The LEGO Group announces slowdown in growth for the first half of 2023

According to their most recent press release, the LEGO Group’s revenue for the first half of 2023 is up only 1% over the same period in 2022. Similarly, consumer sales grew by 3% compared to that same period last year. And while a positive number is definitely better than a negative one, this rate of expansion pales in comparison to the stats thrown up over the last three years by TLG (revenue was up 17% for the first half of 2022, for example). However, amid a shrinking toy market, these numbers are outstanding when compared to their peers. And in that hostile environment, TLG managed to further grow its market share over this period.

CEO Niels B Christiansen remains undeterred by the slowdown: “Our strong financial position allows us to invest for the long term, particularly in areas such as digital, sustainability and manufacturing. Overall, our performance is in line with expectations, after three consecutive years of extraordinary growth and we are grateful for our great colleagues who work each day to inspire children through play.” In that vein, work continues on new factory construction in the US and Vietnam, as well as expanding facilities in Mexico, the Czech Republic, Hungary, and China.

If you’d like to read the press release in full, it’s available via the LEGO Newsroom page.