Chris Madison has put together a superb LEGO Viper — the classic Mark II from Battlestar Galactica. Don’t let initial appearances fool you — this model is enormous, over 100 studs long and weighing 10 kilos!
See more photos of this LEGO Colonial Viper
With global population growth is seems obvious that Santa Claus has had to introduce automated processes to the North Pole workshops. How else could he and his team cope with the sheer volume of gifts needing wrapped? However, at some point the Elves will surely begin to question the introduction of new machinery — it’s putting Elvish jobs at risk. What’s next in Santa’s never-ending quest for efficiency and cost-reduction? Outsourcing to cheap Penguin labour at the South Pole?
Every year I build a small LEGO display model as part of our decorations. This is 2016’s effort. I hope you enjoy it, and I hope you have a very happy Christmas.
This festive microscale build all came from finding a white LEGO lever loose in a drawer and thinking the round end would make a nice bobble on a Santa hat. It snowballed from there, so to speak — once I got Mr Claus built he really needed some Elves. And then they needed some surrounding scenery. Next year, I think there might be a whole North Pole village at this scale…
This is obviously a stripped-back, simple build, but I think it’s interesting that it would have been impossible to do until relatively recently without cutting bricks. The white lever sits inside Santa’s hat, but it would be too long to dangle fully in there if it weren’t for the availability of the “Apollo stud” (1×1 round plates with holes) in yellow and white which make up Santa’s head.
For over a decade the Brothers Brick has been bringing you the best LEGO creations, and 2016 has stood out as a bumper year. To celebrate 12 months of great models, the Brothers Brick team has looked back over everything we’ve featured and pulled out the best LEGO builds of 2016.
Take a look at these ten amazing shortlisted models, and stay tuned for the final announcement of our LEGO Creation Of The Year 2016 on New Year’s Eve!
LegoJalex‘s brilliant ET model wasn’t just a great bit of character building, the surrounding room was wonderfully done too…
Letranger Absurde‘s Room With A View sneaks into contention — although it was posted on NYE 2015, we didn’t blog it until a couple of days later!
Click here to see the rest of the Shortlist
I have no idea if Mitsuru Nikaido‘s mechanoid LEGO reindeer is really atomic-powered, but it would seem appropriate. How else would a robotic ungulate have the sort of power and endurance to traverse the world with heavy sacks of gifts in tow?
The posing of the reindeer robot (reinbot?) is excellent, as is the level of greebly detail suggesting working gubbins and machinery. Don’t miss the use of minifig gun parts to create the antlers. It’s easy to overlook the sleigh alongside the mechanical beast — but that would be a shame, as it’s a great little build, managing to look futuristic, functional, and festive all at the same time.
When the Christmas presents absolutely positively definitely need to get there on time, you need Chak hei Mok‘s Festive LEGO Tumbler. No blizzard or broken bridge, or Joker ambush or GCPD roadblock is going to stop Batman delivering the Yuletide cheer. However, I doubt DC’s greatest hero is going to be hugely impressed with whichever kid asked for a Captain America shield…
This sinister LEGO creation by timofey_tkachev is simply titled “Arms”, but I’m going to read it as an artistic commentary piece on how we’re all up to our elbows in blood and oil because we use ABS-based building bricks. Regardless of the motivation behind it, this is a cracking bit of LEGO building and a nice departure from the norm. It’s got excellent “posing” and shows particularly good use of the whip antennae pieces as long drips of paint/oil. Not to mention the decent photography of an all-black model — no mean feat (or hands, or whatever).
Jonas Kramm has built four fabulous microscale LEGO versions of iconic castles from the opening titles of Game Of Thrones. Winterfell, The Twins, Castle Black & The Wall, and King’s Landing all get the brick treatment, built into a set of smartly-panelled bases. The southern capital of Westoros is unmistakable — all blood red walls and gold detailing, exactly as it appears in the show’s opening…
Winterfell is also beautifully done, particularly the Weirwood tree in the castle’s Godswood…
Paul Trach takes inspiration from the World Of Warcraft movie for his latest LEGO creation — a scene depicting The Guardian Font. Here, Medivh, the titular Guardian, takes a break from creating a stone golem for a refreshing dip in the rejuvenating Mana Pool. Or at least that’s the story I’ve made up in my head around this fabulous model.
The tan and sand green colors work beautifully — a pleasant change from the traditional gray and brown of much Castle and Fantasy LEGO building. And the curved wall and double staircase are obvious highlights. But that backlit pool and the floor command all the attention. Normally I’m not a fan of the loose-brick “crazy paving” flooring style, but when it’s used like this, allowing the creation of an epic circle of runes, then I’m all in favour of it.
Justin Chua nails it with this minimalist LEGO depiction of Khal Drogo and Daenerys Targaryen from Game Of Thrones. The characters are immediately recognisable, despite the stripped-back simplicity of the models — from Drogo’s distinctive tattoos and beard, to Daenerys’ dress and hair.
I love the work on Drogo’s hair too — without his long braid (a record of victory in battle) he wouldn’t be able to command the respect of his riders.
This is an interesting scale and style for character building. I’d like to see more of the denizens of Westeros (and Easteros) rendered like this.
Charis Stella depicts the moment when two proud LEGO inventors introduce their latest steampunk automaton to a pair of potential inventors. The figure posing here is well done, with nice use of custom arms allowing one of the inventors to adopt an appropriate “Goodness Gracious” stance. But it’s the clanky contraption doffing his hat to the visitors which captures the eye — a lovely touch which adds a bunch of character.
Sci-fi master builder Tim Goddard‘s latest LEGO creation is a mean-looking mech with a cyclopean face. I can just imagine the noise that black iris makes — contracting into merciless focus when this bad boy spots his prey. The tan color scheme feels unusual for a mech — in my head this stuff is nearly always gray (apologies to colorful mech-builders out there). The black greebling is excellent, and the blue stripes and white highlights add a touch of glamour.
As well as the big four-legged critter, Tim has put together a range of mechanical drones in this livery. I’m a fan of this bipedal variant. Check out those toes! It took me a while to figure out the use of hot dog sausages to get the toe angles just right.
