About Lino

Lino is an artist, humorist, and occasional responsible adult. He is the co-founder of a challenge-based LEGO car club called LUGNuts which boasts over 1100 members worldwide. He proposed automotive building challenges every month for ten years (120 challenges!) which he and the other members built accordingly. LUGNuts has retired its challenges on its 10th anniversary but still remains a cornerstone for LEGO automotive builders. Between his artistic work and LEGO builds, Lino has been published in several books, including Beautiful LEGO, Beautiful LEGO: Dark, and Beautiful LEGO: Wild. He lives in Washington with his girlfriend and dogs.

Posts by Lino

Just another thing to give you the heebie-jeebies

How’s your day going? Nevermind, don’t answer that because it’s about to become a bit more creepy-crawly thanks to this LEGO centipede from Mitsuru Nikaido. “Regular” centipedes are creepy enough, but this one is a mech because apparently this is what the world needs now. I kid because I am as fascinated by real-life centipedes as I am this mecha one, but with that said, I still don’t want either one turning up in my sock drawer. Perhaps it can find a home in a very distant mecha woodpile somewhere. Be sure to also check out Mitsuru’s other awesome mechs.

But before you go, this photo demonstrates that this mecha centipede is just as flexible as the real thing. Sleep tight, readers. Sleep tight.

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Can a sparkly vampire also be a brooding billionaire Batman?

We’ve seen Robert Pattinson nail his role as a glittery vampire in the Twilight series. But will a sparkly vampire who is perpetually in high school and whose true love appears to be just one Jell-O Shooter away from vomiting translate well for the role of a brooding, emotionally-stunted billionaire orphan with bat issues? No matter where you stand on that debate you have to admit that the new Batmobile for the upcoming The Batman movie looks intriguing. Builder u/ZeRadman is probably the first to render up a LEGO version and it looks like good old Detroit muscle with a few Mad Max-style customizations. This might have been the first but if I know LEGO builders (and it seems I do) this won’t be the last. As for Pattinson as Batman I say give him a chance. All the fanboys were up in arms over Affleck and look how…um…yeah. Anyway, cool Batmobile!

Waterlogged and battle-ready

Have you ever had that dream where you’re a shirtless ginger merman riding a seahorse into Atlantean battle? You haven’t? Then I feel sorry for you because you have not lived. That is probably my second most recurring dream beside the one where I’m thrown out a casino for winning too much…and for also being a shirtless merman. Builder MS Industries surely knows what I’m talking about as they have recreated my dream in LEGO. I’m seeing some excellent use of Samurai swords in the seahorse’s fins and lime green flippers gives a bright little fish some great personality. Your inciteful interpretations of my dreams are most welcome in the comments.

YEEEEHAAAAW!

Boy, LEGO builder Yuri Badiner sure makes lunar exploration look like fun, doesn’t he? I was under the impression that space travel involves following strict procedures and abiding by careful measures and counter-measures. But this photo makes me want to switch careers to become an astronaut. These two are having a blast on their Apollo rover. While the build techniques are fairly basic you’ve got to give props to his excellent photography. In fact, excellent LEGO photography seems to be Yuri’s thing. With photos this engaging, we’ll be sure to be on the lookout for whatever other hijinks he gets his LEGO minifigs into.

The LEGO Creator Expert 10271 Fiat 500 is like cool, Daddy-O! [Review]

You may have seen our recent news announcement for the LEGO 10271 Creator Expert Fiat 500 set. Now we have a chance to build and review the iconic little car. The set consists of 960 pieces and is rated for ages 16+. It retails for the price of US $89.99 | CAN $129.99 | UK £74.99; and is available directly from LEGO Stores & LEGO.com as of March 1, 2020.

Click to read our full review.

LEGO Masters presents: Superbaby and the hairball heist

This week LEGO Masters contestants and newlyweds Tyler Clites and his wife Amy may have predicted their future. It entails a huge baby demanding all their time/energy/milk and attention and a few cats who might like equal billing. But a ferocious monster cat emerges from beneath the floor tiles and is hellbent on defeating Superbaby and…whatever else monster cats are into. This mini version of their real-life entry demonstrates why parents and pet owners can’t have nice things. If it sounds like the makings of a comedy-monster movie that’s because it is. Last week’s challenge was about movie genre mash-ups and all the entries were just as wild and unpredictable. The show has been a madcap rollercoaster ride so far so be sure to catch LEGO Masters tonight at 9pm on FOX to see what trouble Tyler, Amy, and the other contestants will get into next.

Be sure to also check out our extensive coverage of LEGO Masters and the show’s contestants, celebrity host, and judges.

Take the twins on a nine-second road trip

There’s nothing like taking the family and the pets on a scenic road trip. On second thought, leave them at home, there is no room for them in a Tommy Ivo dragster anyway. And if you’re soaking in the beautiful sights along the way, then boy are you doing it wrong! Ian Ying has built a LEGO version of TV Tommy’s legendary Twin Buick AA Dragster and the result is…well, legendary. The real thing has broken several world records including being the first gasoline-powered dragster to break the nine-second barrier. I’m sure this LEGO version must break a few records like…um…best use of custom chromed-out motorcycle rims or something. Whether it be the copious amounts of chrome or its aggressive stance, I’m pretty smitten with the whole kit and kaboodle. But then again, I would be. It would seem Ian is an up-and-coming builder to watch out for because here are the other times his stunning creations has made our hearts flutter.

Yes, you CAN take it all with you!

We would have been totally impressed with just a LEGO Ford pickup. Really, we would have. But colognebrick went the extra mile and added a stunning fifth-wheel camper and now we’re in awe. This is what the world could be like if we had a wide-open road and unlimited time and gas money. The possibilities are endless! It makes your heart go pitter-patter, doesn’t it? I should get on the horn with Brothers Brick brass to see if we have it in our budget to get a real truck and camper like this one. We could use it as a mobile headquarters for…you know…article writing and stuff. I really like the gray and blue stripe along the side. The trailer’s color scheme and the “Wildlife Caravans” stickers comes from this set. But if that wasn’t impressive enough, the sides expand out, and the camper has a fully detailed interior.

Here’s some of the inside.

Guys, come on. Seriously, do we have the budget for this? It’ll be like the Batmobile except for less crime-fighting and more sightseeing. Andrew? Chris? Brothers Brick road trip? Anyone?

The pitfalls of realistic building

There’s a danger to building realistic LEGO creations in that there is a chance writers like us could pass it up. While seeking out inspiration for articles, my thought process went as follows, LEGO build; cool. Another LEGO build, our readers will like that one; cool. Someone selling their old Atari, maybe? Pffft, whatever, move on. LEGO creation; cool. Wait, go back. Was that? Holy shnikies, that’s LEGO! That reaction is courtesy of Joe Klang and every bit of this stellar Atari 2600 is genuine LEGO. The Atari logo is comprised of 1×2 curved slopes, the chrome jack is a harpoon piece and even the rubber bands are LEGO. Notoriously spotty quality control with brown works in Joe’s favor here as it replicates woodgrain nicely. Even the Pitfall box art with its 8-bit graphics are well played indeed!

All the shinies, my precious!

Here at The Brothers Brick we are like raccoons in the sense that we love shiny things and have short attention spans. Apparently there is also a lemur within our ranks but I have not seen the critter around the headquarters since my inception here. But that is a matter for another day; as for now, we will deal with the only thing that matters, which is this stunning LEGO Confederate R131 Fighter Motorcycle by Ian Ying. There was a time when LEGO was on board with our obsession for shiny things but that is in the past and what bit of precious chrome is left has become increasingly rare and costly. Custom chrome parts can be had but you’d have to spend a pretty penny (a shiny penny!) to build something as gloriously chrome-plated as Ian had.

There was apparently a time when other things mattered. But our reason for publishing, our reason for our very existence has all led up to this. As a raccoon with a short attention span who loves shiny things, I declare this to be the best LEGO creation in the history of the world ever and will be until the end of time! Or until a few hours from now when something else captures our attention, whichever comes first.

LEGO Masters Tyler and Amy see the world through the Imagiscope

This is becoming a thing for us. Tyler Clites and his wife Amy are contestants on LEGO Masters; they build a mini version of their real-life challenge entry and post it around the same time every week. We, in turn, use it to remind you to watch LEGO Masters on FOX Wednesdays at 9pm. They get kudos, we get job security and the world turns. You can discover much of that turning world with this entry. Last week’s challenge was a doozie, they cut real objects in half (like a clock or a guitar) and the contestants had to build imaginative creations using the half-cut item. Tyler and Amy chose the half-telescope and from it spawned the Imagiscope where pirates plunder and rockets soar.

Be sure to check out our extensive LEGO Masters coverage and tune in again tonight to see what hijinks Tyler, Amy, and the other contestants are up to.

This Dieselpunk Dragonfly takes to the skies

Imagine a world, an alternate reality wedged somewhere between the 1920s and 1950s. It’s a little gritter and not as optimistic as say Steampunk but everyone wears a cool uniform, the radio shows are campy and the password to get into all the best speakeasies is; Dieselpunk. That is the world this LEGO creation by Asgardian Studio lives in. The builder tells us it was fun to render the red color scheme with a black and white checkered pattern and a smattering of orange highlights. This massive model has a 75cm (29.52in) wingspan, rotating propellers, retractable landing gear, and a fully detailed interior. I love the twin-fuselage, tri-propeller design, but the bubble eyes and dragonfly wings make this one awesome Dieselpunk model! We will surely look to the skies for more great works by Asgardian Studio.