Posts by Kyle Keller

Not just any Mega Man knockoff...

Folks, we here at TBB have got to admit that LEGO builder Sandro Quattrini is a character-creating machine. He churns out constructed personas so fast that it’s hard to keep up! The latest one is this spaceman-looking chum with a blaster for an arm (no relation to a certain Capcom hero). The contrasts at work here are wonderful. Smooth, sleek white casing with the occasional exposure of rough, mechanical interior channels both Eve and Wall-E at the same time. And the posable hinges developed here are absolute magic! Amid all that, my favorite part has got to be Robo-Kid’s robo-kicks. I mean, it’s not every day you see such splendid use of the minifig Scout Trooper helmet!

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Verdant dragon may cause a brushfire

Mythical dragons are no stranger to the LEGO medium, especially those of the elemental variety. But BobDeQuatre has provided us a nature-themed version as rare as a four-leafed clover. Two gorgeous, leafy wings spring up from the dragon’s wooden back, adorned with the occasional pink flower. A line of vines lead up to the beast’s rooted face, providing the same angular features as its scaled, traditional brethren. But the real success here is the design of the dragon’s arms and legs. Formed of rock, they blend into the build’s setting, leaving me to wonder where the landscape ends and the mythical wonder’s body begins.

Giant LEGO monastery inspired by a Classic Castle faction

Debuting at Brickworld Chicago back in June, builder Casey McCoy represents LEGO’s Black Falcons well with this epic monastery. And this creation is jam-packed with awesome details! Let’s start with the exterior walls, which alternate between gentle curves and harsher slopes. All of this on top of a beautiful smattering of textured brick that draws the eye to key points: the ornate stonework around the entrance, the elegantly simple bell tower, or those stunning stained glass windows. I appreciate the common architectural themes between the upper and lower structures. However, with the addition of beveled corners and more intricate stone work on level #2, the build tells a story of the later addition of the upper section, perhaps after the monastery was established.

Explore more of the monastery below!

Flayed mind with a side of rice pilaf

When it comes to roast owlbear in goodberry sauce or poached cockatrice eggs, this LEGO illithid cuisinier by mkjosha knows all the recipes! There are some excellent details in this build: the garlands of herbs and bulbs hung on the wall, the captured fairies about to be fricasseed, and the caged rat hoping to escape the fate of the oven. The mind flayer has some great shaping, with extensive use of tendril parts around the mouth, some excellent grasping claws gripping a salt shaker, and those big-like yellow eyes made from lever bottoms. One can only imagine the horrors it’s concocted with its infamous Demonomicon Cookbook! But by far, my favorite part of this build is the chipped stone bits on the walls. Using just a few tiles, Josh is able to create a repeatable dungeon-esque pattern that somehow feels a little Martha Stewart.

The bridge between two sides

It’s good versus evil in this LEGO ninja encounter by prolific builder Andreas Lenander. The rock work and attached vegetation has so much of that craggily goodness, setting an excellent scene for this showdown. The spindly trees, shaped primarily by flexible brown tubing is quite excellent! I appreciate the structural similarities of the large and small saplings; not an easy feat with these plastic bricks. But the star of this build is that awesome bridge technique. Relying heavily on connections not sanctioned by LEGO, the clips and bars forming this simple arch provide an even, repeatable texture that feels unique and yet still at home with the torii and the shrine at opposite ends.

The city on a floating rock that’s off the chain!

We here at TBB generally try not to cover LEGO builds that are still works-in-progress. But that can be hard when the WIP pictures look as good as this one taken by First Order Lego back in May. As we round the corner into August, we’re at last able to see FOL’s build in its entirety. And Rory can finally figure out what those chains are connected to: a big honkin’ sky rock!

This gigantic LEGO Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry is made of 100,000 bricks

LEGO builder Michał Kaźmierczak just earned 1,000 points for his house with this astounding model of Hogwarts, the famed school from the Wizarding World of Harry Potter. Taking around 9 months of planning and building, Michał’s construction displays so much prowess with the architectural and natural forms required to bring it to life. The exterior shows the docks, a Quidditch pitch, and Professor Sprout’s greenhouses. Some of the exterior buildings like the Great Hall and the Astronomy Tower are instantly recognizable, even to a fair-weather HP fan such as myself.

<em>Accio</em> interior castle pics!

A castle fortified with texture

This beautiful castle build by Margrabia Mokotowski brings all manner of LEGO texturing to bear. The walls of this fortress evoke so much tantalizing topography that I keep reaching into my computer screen to feel the stony stronghold. It gives the stone a worn, cobbled look, while still communicating the craftsmanship that went into the mason work. Moving down to the yard, it’s a slew of pine trees, flowers, and high grass. While properly giving off a proper “wilderness” vibe, the verdant patch still possesses some of the order we would see in nature: blotches of the same plants together, careful application of moss over the occasional crag, and climbing vines ascending the walls of the building. The wooden structure rising up from one of the ramparts has some brilliantly fashioned shingles on its roof, and I love the use of color to signify the slats comprising its walls. And the splash of blue and white striping along the hoarding is an excellent pop of color in a very green and gray scene.

Taking a look at the interior, there has been clear attention paid to keeping the wild brush out. The blues and whites continue to shine, especially at the main entrance marked with the classic shield and crossed spears. From this vantage, my favorite detail is visible: the giant chunk of wall missing on one of the tower’s corners. Such a fascinating addition that adds so much character to an already impressive build.

The final fate of a doomed son of Gondor

Nobody sets a LEGO scene quite like Jesse van den Oetelaar. Just take a look at some of these past builds, and you can find some common themes showcased in this gorgeous vignette of Boromir making his last stand against the Uruk-hai. For example, Jesse’s vegetation is top notch, not to splashy such as to draw the eye away, but definitely providing a closeness to the scene. The twisted tree trunks and overgrown patches of dark green and olive contrast the occasional pile of rocks or red-capped mushroom. And the use of lighting is exquisite! The surrounding forest feels dark and eerie, with the foreground even slightly out-of-focus. Everything about this build pushes the eye to the center of the picture, all to behold Boromir’s final redemption: sacrificing himself so Frodo (and The Ring) can escape.

One mech, two mech, tan mech, blue mech

It’s not everyday that you can trace the evolution of a LEGO design by a builder through their photos. But Bartosz Sasiński has the development of his four M-Series mechs well-documented. Their first addition, the M-1, was posted over a year ago. And it features chunky armor and stable click-joints. As a result, the build looks sturdy, with some interesting textures running up the torso and around the cockpit’s exterior. But more than anything, that striking color scheme of greens, white, and dark gray make this chunky boi pop.

See the evolution through version 4 below

Four new LEGO Avatar sets revealed at San Diego Comic Con [News]

Pandora is calling in these four new LEGO sets based on the Avatar franchise. Debuting today at San Diego Comic-Con, we see an expansion of the toy line from the previously-announced 75574: Toruk Makto & Tree of Souls. Much like the set revealed during LEGO Con 2022, three of these models depict scenes from the first Avatar movie. But we also get 40554: Jake Sully & his Avatar in BrickHeadz form. Who knows what other new sets the upcoming movie, Avatar: The Way of Water, will bring! All the sets here will be released on October 1st, with 75572: Jake & Neytiri’s First Banshee Flight available for pre-order on July 21st through the LEGO website. And the BrickHeadz set will be a LEGO-exclusive, available only through their brick-and-mortar stores or LEGO.com.

Bricks aren’t supposed to bend that way!

Master of the geometric LEGO construct, Zachary Steinman has produced another marvelous sculpture. The three coordinate planes (xy, yz, and xz) all head toward a singular intersection at a central point. But instead of meeting, they bend into one another, creating this star-like shape. The bend is created in our favorite plastic medium by placing 1×2 rectangular bricks next to 1×1 round bricks, allowing for a curve without sacrificing stability. While this technique is no stranger to many a LEGO Castle builder, it’s nice to see it in a simple and artistic application such as this one.