Posts by Norm Harper

LEGO Marvel Superheroes 76209 Thor’s Hammer [Review]

Whosoever holds this hammer, if he be worthy, shall possess the power of Thor. That’s the inscription on Mjolnir, the powerful hammer that belongs to the Norse God of Thunder. Thor carried the weapon through almost every major conflict in the Marvel Cinematic Universe before its destruction in Thor: Ragnarok. But Mjolnir is set to return in a big way in the upcoming Thor: Love and Thunder, and LEGO is giving the hammer it’s due with set 76209 Thor’s Hammer. This 979-piece set will be available March 1st for US $99.99 | CAN $129.99 | UK £104.99. But is this set worthy? There’s only one way to find out. Like the Dwarves of Nidavellir, we have forged our own Mjolnir to carry into battle, and we’re going to tell you all about it.

The LEGO Group provided The Brothers Brick with early copies of these sets for review. Providing TBB with products for review guarantees neither coverage nor positive reviews.

Click here to ride the Bifrost and learn the secrets of Asgard

The Brothers Brick is funded by our readers and the community. Articles may include affiliate links, and when you purchase products from those links, TBB may earn a commission that helps support the site.

The Star Wars starfighter everyone’s clamoring for.

As soon as we saw Din Djarin replace his Razorcrest with a modded N1 Starfighter, we knew an official LEGO model couldn’t be far behind. But some of us, like Markus Aspacher, weren’t content to wait. Markus is no stranger to building old spaceships, and his version of the ship captures the piecemeal nature of the engines excellently. And Markus has done some excellent shaping in the astromech-port-turned-Grogu-seat. The tapered curved slopes do a wonderful job of translating the curves of the ship while still sealing the main cockpit off from the vacuum of space (something that I’m not sure gets achieved on the official set). It should be noted that this isn’t the first N1 we’ve covered, Mandolorian or otherwise. Dig into the history of N1 starfighter builds right here.

This LEGO crane machine is a clear winner.

Builder alego alego has constructed an ode to my childhood nemesis – the crane machine. Billed as a game of skill, these nefarious scam contraptions have parted many a quarter from my hands. The main focus of the build is obviously the repurposing of the Vidiyo box element, but it’s all the little details that bring back the painful memories of so many futile win attempts. The coin slot and return, the arrows indicating which direction the joysticks go, the opening where the lucky few can retrieve their prize. And the repurposing of a minifigure whisk as the claw element deserves a chef’s kiss. Now, does anybody have change for a five? I’m gonna get me one of those rubber ducks.

Someone wished upon a star for a more accurate LEGO Mickey Mouse figure

The standard LEGO minifigure design has worked as the foundation for countless characters since its introduction in 1978. But, every so often, LEGO needs a little help from builders like Japanese genius Moko to truly capture a character. Moko has crafted a brick-built body that brings the iconic Mickey Mouse design to life, using a head available in the LEGO Ideas 21317 Steamboat Willie set. From the double-buttoned red shorts to the giant white gloves, this is the Mickey that’s been charming audiences for decades. And, hey, the LEGO minifigures shouldn’t feel completely left out. Mickey’s shoes are made from a pair of minifig legs!

//embedr.flickr.com/assets/client-code.js

This realistic flora build is making us go nuts.

One of the downsides to collecting LEGO’s Collectible Minifigure line is ending up with rampant duplicates, thanks to their blind bag packaging. Mellegobuilder must have run into this problem, as she’s got at least 8 of the acorn caps from Series 22’s Forest Elf figure. But, when life give you lemons, you make lemonade. So, when life gives you acorn caps, make oak tree branches. With just a few radar dishes, 1×1 round plates, and some flex tubing, Mel turned the accessories from some extra Forest Elves into a branch so realistic that it made the Brothers Brick bullpen do a double take. If you’re still looking to cut down on your duplicates, remember that you can always rely on our handy feel guides. But Mel has me thinking the duplicate figures might be worth it.

Jet pack jumps perplex jealous Pykes.

Jonas Kramm has been doing a series of vignette builds to commemorate the induvial episodes of The Book of Boba Fett. His latest features Boba Fett and Din Djarin teaming up in the final episode’s climatic end battle. Rocketing upwards in their jetpacks, Boba and Din have gained the high ground in their battle against the Pyke Syndicate. Jonas’s vignette perfectly captures the feel of the architecture in the city of Mos Espa, from the arched doorway to the well-greebled moisture vaporator. And the angle of the photo makes it feel like the two Mandalorians are hanging in the air like magic. But, if this build is for the last episode, does it mean no more vignettes are coming our way? Fear not. You can relive the best parts of the show through builds from Jonas and more right here.

A tiny tyrannosaur terrorizes these tourists in a fan’s recreation of Jurassic World 76956 T-Rex Breakout

Just yesterday, LEGO released news of some new sets based on the Jurassic Park/World franchise. Inspired by the largest of the new sets, 76956 T-Rex Breakout, Nick Sweetman gave himself just 30 minutes to recreate it as best he could with the parts he had on hand, complete with a tiny T. rex. The result is a fabulous microscale recreation of a scene that should be recognizable to any fan of the original Jurassic Park film. Do you remember that scene where Hammond and Dr. Sattler are eating ice cream, and he talks about that flea circus he opened? That probably resulted in a similar scene about this size. Seriously, I bet everything that guy touches ends up in chaos…

Grogu’s Force lessons

I don’t think it’s any secret that most people’s favorite The Book of Boba Fett episodes were largely Fett-less. Jonas Kramm has paid tribute to the show’s identity crisis with his latest build based on Episode 6. In this scene, the child Grogu faces off against a Jedi Training Droid on the planet where Luke is establishing his new school. Jonas has packed a lot of accurate detail into this 14×14 vignette, from the bamboo forest to the flintlock weapons used as twigs in the water. I appreciate the round quarter 1×1 tile in Ahsoka’s hand, acting as the small package that the Mandalorian left for his foundling. But, perhaps the most accurate detail of all is that this scene also contains an entirely artificial recreation of Mark Hamill. Special effects jokes aside, if you dig this build, make sure to check out Jonas’s other vignettes of the show here and here.

This 5,000+ piece, 6+ pound Slave-1 is worth risking a disintegration for.

As Disney+’s The Book of Boba Fett comes to a close, it’s a fitting time to stop and take a look back to our first introduction of the bounty hunter who began our love affair with the Mandalorians – The Empire Strikes Back*. And who better to be our guide than Hannes “Marshal Banana” Tscharner? Hannes has previously brought us amazing renditions of other Star Wars vehicles like the Millennium Falcon and the Jawa Sandcrawler. But this time, Hannes teamed up with builder Kevin J. Walter aka Skywalter with the goal of creating the most accurate Slave-1 model ever built in LEGO. Kevin is no stranger to IP spaceship builds himself, and has previously wowed us with his Stargate and Star Trek work. The Slave 1 took the pair a year and a half to complete. But, like any bounty hunter worth the price, they delivered on their goal with stunning results. So, without further ado, let’s take a tour of this Empire-era Firespray-31.

*Yes, I know that Boba technically first appeared in the Holiday Special. But that’s not canon. Just click here to see the ship. Geez.

A space rover that really pops.

You’ll feel like you’re floating on air as you traverse the harshest alien landscapes in this bubble-based rover by Andreas Lenander. With Febrovery upon us, your social media feed is probably filled with new builds that pay tribute to classic space rovers. One way for a rover creation to stand out from the pack is an unconventional wheel. These giant trans-clear half spheres are a perfect candidate for that. Not only do they give the rover a lift up, but they let us see through, so we can admire the detail of the cracked landscape, made from slopes laid on their sides. One has to wonder though, with such a bubbly ride in such a fascinating landscape, what’s got that spaceman looking so angry?

Enjoy high-stakes dining at the High-Rock Café.

If you’re a weary ocean traveler in need of food and refreshment, the High-Rock Café is to place to go. Stephan Gofers has crafted a cozy seaside eatery and balanced it precariously on a twisted hunk of rock, rising from the sea like something Dr. Seuss has drawn. While this makes for a great ocean view, we imagine the motorized windmill can cause the place to shake a bit on the edge of that crag. But, hey, you’re an experienced sailor. You’ve got your sea legs. And if you drink a little too much and can’t make it back down the rickety steps on your own, the staff will be happy to lower you to your boat in the crane.

If Bionicle had looked this good, I probably would have bought more of it

Bionicle was a LEGO theme from the early 2000s that mostly escaped my attention. But, if the entire line had been done in the style of Redverse’s Kane-Ra re-imagining, I might have taken a little more notice. In Bionicle lore, the Kane-Ra were buffalo-like biomechanical creatures with two front legs and a single tank-tread in place of any back feet. The biomechanical aspect of the creature is still obvious in the details of Redverse’s update. But the more naturally shaped body and details like four legs with hooves (cleverly made from Technic figure helmet visors) immediately call to mind an organic member of the Bovidae family.

But Redverse hasn’t completely abandoned what made the Rahi unique. The rear legs of this new Kane-Ra can transform into a set of tank treads to speed it across the Mata Nui landscape, just like its predecessor. It’s a marriage of function and style that has me wishing for Bionicle to make an official return.