About Chris

Chris Malloy (porschecm2) has been a LEGO fan nearly all his life, having started with System bricks at age 3. He is the co-author of Ultimate LEGO Star Wars, and his creations have been featured in several books and The LEGO Movie. He also helped develop the first LEGO Minecraft set, 21102 Minecraft Micro World: The Forest, which has gone on to inspire a whole theme of sets. He's been active in the online community since 2002, and regularly attends LEGO fan conventions such as BrickCon and BrickCan. He enjoys building in a wide range of themes, but keeps returning to Castle, Space, and Pirates. Check out his LEGO creations and photography here.

Posts by Chris

Additional LEGO Star Wars 2018 sets revealed, including Hoth Medical Chamber [News]

Earlier we brought you a first look at four new LEGO Star Wars sets, including the super cool Snoke’s Throne Room. But today LEGO is revealing their whole lineup for this fall, so we’ll be going through each theme and bringing you all the latest news, including hands-on photos of many of these sets from LEGO’s special Fall 2018 Preview event. Let’s start off with 3 more LEGO Star Wars sets.

75203 Hoth Medical Chamber, 255 pieces | Age 7+ 29.99 (USD) 39.99 (CAD)

Available in August

Click to see the rest of the new Star Wars sets

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LEGO reveals four new Star Wars sets coming this fall, including Snoke’s Throne Room from The Last Jedi [News]

LEGO has just revealed four new Star Wars sets, available starting August 1. They include a new Sandcrawler, X-Wing, and Anakin’s Jedi Starfighter, along with a playset of Snoke’s Throne Room from The Last Jedi. Check out the images below, and check back later today as we’ll be bringing you a hands-on look at these sets (and much more!) from LEGO’s Fall 2018 Preview event this afternoon.

[Update: Don’t miss our in-person coverage of these sets]

And don’t miss the rest of the new Star Wars sets, including the Hoth Medical Chamber.

75216 Snoke’s Throne Room, 492 pieces

Click to check out the rest of the new Star Wars sets

LEGO announces programmable Batmobile that’s controlled with an app [News]

LEGO is expanding on its hit line of Boost programmable motorized kits. While the initial set was called Boost, the system it’s inspired will be called Powered Up. We got our first look at one of these back in February at Toy Fair with the Ninjago dragon Stormbringer, but today LEGO has announced that your favorite black-caped crusader, Batman, is getting some upgrades to his ride in the form of a programmable Batmobile. All of the Powered Up sets can be controlled via a smartphone or tablet app (on both iOS and Android), and some — like the Batmobile — will include motors while others need to be paired with the Boost set for full functionality. The LEGO Batman 76112 App-Controlled Batmobile will be available August 1 for $99.99. It includes 321 pieces.

Also check out our hands-on demo of the App-Controlled Batmobile.

Click to read the full press release and see more images

LEGO reveals full pictures of the Unikitty theme and Collectible Unikitty Series 1 [News]

While we got a look at the box art for the six sets a few weeks ago, today LEGO’s given us full images of all the sets, including the Unikitty Collectible character line. Like the Powerpuff Girls that LEGO also announced today, these sets will be available beginning August 1. As befits Unikitty and her zany band, the sets are filled with bright colors and play features. Because they’re primarily targeted at the young demographic of fans of the Unikitty television show, the sets themselves may not be the most exciting for adult fans, but look closely and you’ll spot some new elements that will certainly be useful.

Click to see all the Unikitty Sets

LEGO’s Powerpuff Girls theme has finally been revealed [News]

After teasing the minifigures way back in February, LEGO has finally revealed two sets from the Powerpuff Girls theme. Both are small playsets, and the highlights for fans will definitely be the minifigures. They will be available August 1.

Click to see all of the Powerpuff Girls sets

LEGO’s massive 4,000-piece Creator Expert Roller Coaster is now available [News]

One of the most anticipated sets in recent memory, the huge Creator Expert 10261 Roller Coaster is now available to LEGO VIP members — you must be logged in for it to appear available. It will be available June 1 for non-members. The coaster puts to full use LEGO brand new roller coaster system of pieces that was first revealed in The Joker Manor last year, and it includes several new elements for the first time. The coaster can be hand-cranked or combined with Power Functions for a fully automated track. The set includes 4,124 pieces and 11 minifigures for $379.99 USD.

If you’re not already a LEGO VIP member, signing up is free and nets you rewards on every purchase from LEGO, both online and in LEGO Brand Retail stores.

Check out more pictures of the Roller Coaster in our announcement article, and watch for our hands-on review coming soon!

[Update] Some of our readers are also reporting that LEGO has acknowledged a glitch in the ordering system for some users, causing it to appear unavailable, despite being available.

When you need a lot of power, a locomotive is like no other

This classic diesel-electric locomotive dates to the 1940s, and generates a whopping 1,600 horsepower. The ALCO RS-2 seen here, #2099, was operated by the Sante Fe railway, and this model by Beat Felber is the spitting image on the real deal, right down the bold stripes, thanks to some careful decal application. It’s powered with Power Functions motors, and also has working headlights.

The engine is a switcher, meant for shuffling cars around rather than taking cargo on long hauls across the country, and the builder has paired it with some lovely cars to show it off.

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Gigantic LEGO diorama of Disney on Ice is over 16 square feet and has all your favorite characters

The tickets are nearly sold out to this amazing attraction, and all the minifigs want to go. Disney on Ice has come to LEGO City! This incredible diorama by Brick Knight not only contains the show itself, but also the venue and even the surrounding city blocks, all packed with such an astonishing level of detail and realism that I almost dread looking for parking already.

Click to see more, including the interior

LEGO Ninjago summer wave revealed; features ninjas fighting post-apocalyptic raiders [News]

The new summer wave of 2018 Ninjago sets has been revealed, and the ninjas this time have moved to what appears to be a post-apocalyptic wasteland. Their foes are a band of raiders, and we can’t help but think that the designers over in LEGO HQ in Billund might have had Mad Max: Fury Road playing in the background while working on these sets (a quite different vibe than the designers of the new City Hospital were channeling).

The lineup also includes some more traditional Ninjago fare as well, such as flying spinners and of course several dragons. The blue dragon, 70652 Stormbringer, can be paired with LEGO Boost, as we saw in our hands-on demo at the New York Toy Fair back in February. And of course, the biggest set out of Ninjago’s summer wave is the new Ninjago City Docks which we revealed a few weeks ago. We’ll be bringing you a review of that set next week, along with some of the sets below.

Even though we’re getting a look at 11 sets today, we know LEGO still has at least a few more summer Ninjago sets to announce. We’ll be covering those as soon as they’re revealed, so be sure to check back.

70654 Dieselnaut

Click to see the rest of the LEGO Ninjago 2018 summer sets

Does this LEGO Loot Llama from Fortnite bring bricks?

You know you’re in for a lucky run if you encounter the magical Loot Llama in Fortnite. Stocked with all sorts of useful materials and items, this wandering rainbow beast adds yet another zany element to the hit battle royale-style game, and it was begging to be turned into a LEGO model. Mike Nieves has done an excellent job of just that, capturing its many hues and even the wild-eyed expression and untamable tail. The studs-out technique works especially well here, adding fluff to the wool.

Standing against the inky blackness of space

You’ve heard of Blacktron, those scoundrels who scoured the LEGO universe mercilessly in the 80s and early 90s. But the universe is nothing if not balanced, and so a few fans have banded together to bring us Whitetron. I can’t tell if they’re any more peaceful than their darkly clad counterparts, but they sure would be a lot easier to see against a starry backdrop. This little fighter craft by Tim Goddard has a great mix of clean lines and aggressive detailing, with lots of minifigure blasters and binoculars used to greeble out the engine compartment.

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Incredible sprawling Victorian-age LEGO city has a railroad, a church, docks, factories and more

Built by the members of SwissLUG as a collaborative build, this amazing Victorian-age city has details everywhere you look. Unlike many LEGO cities, the properly scaled tall ship at the docks doesn’t dwarf the rest of the layout, fitting right in while also serving as a beautiful anchor in the center of the scene.

Click to see more pictures of this amazing LEGO port