J6Crash has created this entry for this year’s Bio-cup LEGO building competition that looks straight out of a sci-fi movie or video game. The variety of LEGO elements used is fantastic – the use of the Toa Phantoka ball-shooters at the base being of particular note. But it’s the questions that this build asks which elevate it beyond an ordinary Contraction contest entry. Clearly this is some sort of synthetic hand, but why does it need to be supercharged with electricity like this? Is it completely synthetic? Is it – or was it – a human hand? And, er, where’s the rest of it? Surely there’s an equally cool-looking arm and body lying just out of shot. But its purpose is anyone’s guess….
Posts by Theo Spencer
Pushing the boundaries in the Bio-cup
There’s nothing better than being surprised by a LEGO builder, is there? We’ve featured Eero Okkonen many a time on this here blog, and you might be familiar with his fantastic character builds in our archives. Personally, I was so familiar with them that I was pleasantly surprised to find out that he also built this awesome “Reactorback Strider”! It was built for the on-going Bio-cup competition, and it’s quite unlike anything he (or anyone else, for that matter) has built before. To my eyes it has one foot in the Horizon video game series, with the other firmly in Dieselpunk or retro-futurism. In reality it seems it’ll soon have both of them in that brutalist-looking microscale town, though. I love the way it looks, but even more than that, I love seeing a builder push their boundaries!
Another LEGO xenomorph? Keep ’em coming!
I don’t think I’ll ever get bored of seeing LEGO models of the Xenomorph from Alien. For one, it’s a design that’s as iconic as it is innovative. And when you get builders like Łukasz Alagierski flexing their creative muscles, the result is truly epic! It’s actually not his first time building this extraterrestrial, but it’s undoubtedly the one that captures its skeletal, bio-mechanical nature the best. Even the stand has a touch of HR Giger about it!
“All I am surrounded by is fear... And LEGO bricks”
Evil though he is, Darth Vader is a bit of a badass. That’s sort of evident from the films, but it’s laid out in full, merciless glory in the Darth Vader: Imperial Machine comic series. Flickr builder h2brick is paying tribute to this run of comics in the best way they know — with some fab LEGO vignettes! We’ve got three to look at so far — there will be nine in total, which we’ll surely come back to. Might as well start at the beginning, right? In this one, half a Technic click hinge is used as the medical seat/bed legs, to great effect.
Have a look at numbers two and three after the jump!
Think wasps are only good for being a nuisance at picnics? Think again
Wasps are something of a bête noire when it comes to animals – they’re probably the least liked of all the insects. Having been stung by a fair few in my time, I’d have to agree; but if anything is going to change my mind, it’s Shamisenfred‘s innovative LEGO interceptor. Christened the GUÊPE (French for wasp, or more literally, WASP), it’s said to be a craft with “erratic, unpredictable movements”. Yep, sounds very on brand. And speaking of which, I love the use of the chevron-shaped wedge pieces to create the ship’s body, as it mimics the hexagonal nature of wasp or bees’ nests. I bet it still packs a sting, though…
Guess what I did, Batman? I built a mask out of LEGO, Batman.
Much like cartoons, LEGO themes, and pop-tart flavours, every generation will have its own favourite Joker from the Batman series. If they’ve seen the Batman movies, that is. Or the TV series. Or read the comi- you know what, maybe that’s a bad comparison. But my point stands: every Joker is memorable in their own way. Heath Ledger’s take on the character stuck in TBB alum Nick Jensen’s mind. The opening scene of Christopher Nolan’s Dark Knight had the villain of the piece robbing a bank in a clown mask, faithfully recreated here. It’s extremely accurate, and very artfully shaped, and the Joker’s calling card is a great touch, too.
As for Nick’s calling card, that’s undoubtedly his myriad collection of 1:1 scale LEGO builds. Our archives are full of loads of great examples of his work.
A shell for protection – just like the Koopas
You may remember gGh0st‘s first build in his Iron Builder duel with Sandro Quattrini: a katana. Here’s a refresher, if you need – it’s worth seeing again. Well, he’s come full circle with his ninth and final build. And just as the shell seed part protects a Koopa, the shells protect this samurai warrior, making up the armor and helmet. But I’m liking some of the other building choices too! In particular, the tile pieces for the plating around the waist, and the Bionicle mask make a great men-yoroi (the face protection that samurai wore). Only time will tell whether it’s enough to win this battle – but it’s been fantastic watching these two builders face off!
Taking Bionicle to the red planet
The Bio-Cup is underway, a contest utilizing the sometimes-awkward parts of the Bionicle theme! And it’s kicking off in a big way – the theme for the first round of this annual LEGO contest is “Space”. With such a broad topic, some builders have gone to some really far-flung galaxies, but Mohamed Marei has elected to hop over to our neighbouring planet in his Mars rover. I’m seeing a lot of call-backs to previous LEGO themes here. Of course, that includes some of the older Bionicle pieces used here, or the Technic figure and helmet. But that space-suit reminds me of some of the minifigure space-suits from the 1990s, and the rover is decked out in a similar livery to the Mars Mission sets from the mid-2000s. To be fair, orange is very on-brand for Mars!
Stitch together your very own lovable LEGO alien [Instructions]
Season 1 LEGO Masters US winner Tyler Clites is nothing if not persistent. A few years ago, he uploaded a LEGO model of everyone’s favourite havoc-wreaking extraterrestrial, Stitch, to the crowd-sourcing Ideas platform. We covered the first iteration way back in 2016, and it was subsequently re-worked twice before hitting the magical 10,000 supporters mark. Neither model was approved, but Tyler is not content to let this little blue alien be a footnote in LEGO Ideas history! He’s now released instructions over on his website for you to download and build your own. And the best part? They’re free! All you need to do is source the bricks.
And why not get creative with it? Tyler has shown that Stitch can be rebuilt in a variety of forms, so have a go at customising one of your own! My personal favourite is this Elvis Stitch-ley. Look at that immaculate quiff.
Pigs! In! Briiiiiiiiiicks!
Perhaps it’s the mysterious Algorithm™ at work, but my social feeds lately have been on something of a Muppets revival, and I am so here for it. If you feel the same, I defy you to look at Jon-Paul Hansen, AKA j-p-30‘s, LEGO depiction of the Pigs in Space skit without saying the tagline. The set is very well recreated, with – among others – letter tiles used to represent some of the buttons and controls. The crew of Captain Link Hogthrob, First Mate Piggy and Dr Julius Strangepork look as good as their names sound ridiculous.
And if the interior wasn’t enough, j-p-30 has gone the whole hog (geddit? OK, I can hear Statler and Waldorf telling me to leave) and modelled the exterior of the USS Swinetrek too! If I’m not mistaken, this does make use of some light bluish grey paint on the big cone pieces, but the end result is a dead ringer for the show model.
This isn’t the first time we’ve seen this builder tackle Jim Henson’s lovable characters, either – have a look in our archives to see some of the others.
Who needs garden shears when you have a lightsaber?
Being a Jedi seems swell and all, but all we ever see them do is fight, train, or fly around causing havoc. We never see them doing anything mundane, like the housework or taking the younglings to school. Josh (Sergeant Chipmunk)’s LEGO Jedi is partaking in that favourite pastime of the space-wizard: meditating. But instead of pondering the state of the cosmic Force, he should ponder the state of that floor! Those houseplants have gone completely out of control. You can’t take a step without tripping over one of the roots! Admittedly, the effect is incredibly cool when made out of LEGO bricks. But with this many trip-hazards in the Jedi Temple, OSHA would have a field day. Maybe best we keep the lightsabers hidden on their next visit…
LEGO unveils 2-in-1 Legend of Zelda set; pre-orders open now [News]
Following in the footsteps of Animal Crossing and Super Mario, LEGO has today announced another tie-in with video game company Nintendo. Much requested and long awaited, the Legend of Zelda series sees its first incarnation in brick form in the shape of 77092 Great Deku Tree 2-in-1 Set. As the name suggests, two versions of this venerable tree can be created using the 2,500 included pieces — one from Ocarina of Time and the other from Breath of the Wild. No fewer than three Link minifigures are included, as well as the titular Princess Zelda. General availability starts from September 1st, or you can pre-order the set now for US $299.99 | CAN $389.99 | UK £259.99.
Click here for more pictures and LEGO’s press release!