Category Archives: Models

This is what we’re all about. We scour the web for the best custom LEGO models to share with you. From castles and spaceships to planes, trains, and automobiles, you’ll find the best LEGO creations from builders all over the world right here on The Brothers Brick.

Lego Ninjago Thunder Raider 70723 [Review]

The Thunder Raider is one of the 2014 Ninjago sets released in January. It contains 334 pieces and retails for $29.99. You can purchase the set on Amazon. You can also see a previous review of this set by Chris.

Pros:

The mech is a great complement to Kai’s Fire Mech and is well designed
Better than average price-per-part ratio and interesting new elements

Cons:

The blue vehicle, while designed for function, doesn’t look very appealing

This is a solid set both for parts and playability. The mech is the best feature of this set, having a simple and elegant design. The vehicle on the other hand looks a bit messy with the haphazard array of blue plates, but it plays well and features a transforming attack mode and the ability to carry the mech. Parts-wise, there’s a wide selection of elements including new ones like the black vehicle spoiler and A-frame wedges. Even though I recommend buying individual parts on Bricklink, sometimes it’s good to buy sets when you there’s not a specific piece you’re looking for and just want to expand the variety of your collection. This is a great set for that purpose.

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Lego Star Wars Z-95 Headhunter 75004 [Review]

Lego Star Wars Z-95 Headhunter was released in August 2013 and contains 373 pieces. It retails for $49.99 and is available on Amazon. Below is a video review and my remarks regarding the set.

Pros:

Includes the 4-armed Pong Krell minifig
Features a concealed spring-loaded cannon

Cons:

Very high price tag for a set with low part count
Unremarkable selection of parts

This is a typical Star Wars set that exemplifies the continued price-spike on Lego products from this licensed franchise. Like most other Star Wars sets today, this set is priced high, short on new elements, and relies on exclusive Star Wars minifigs to enhance its appeal. It’s long since 2005-2006 when Star Wars sets hovered around the $0.1 price-per-part ratio. The reason I purchased this set was because it was on sale during the holidays for half off, and even then I wasn’t excited about parting out the set because of its bland pieces. I can’t justify spending $50 on this set unless there’s a compelling need to have Lego’s version of the Headhunter.

Friday Night Fight – Super Simpsons Spectacular

Welcome back fight fans, to Springfield, USA for another round of Friday Night Fight-Fight-Fight! Tonight we’re ushering in the most anticipated collectible minifigure series with the duel of the best Simpsons Fig mash ups!

Straight from our favorite morning cartoon, in the green corner we have Mike M. with Itchy And Scratchy:

In the very dark bley corner we have Black Zack with the dynamic duo:

As usual, constant reader, you are tasked with deciding the outcome of this bout by way of comment. On the last edition of Friday Night Fights, Koma Combat, Blaq barely beats out his long time foe Cole 7-5. Tune in next week for another action packed edition of Friday Night Fights!

Dining in style on the Orient Express

Henrik Hoexbroe tends to build highly detailed minifig scale models. His latest model is a dining coach as used in 1919 as part of the famous Orient Express, which used to connect Paris with Istanbul.

A single train coach may not sound like a particularly interesting subject, but this one is a bit special. For understandable reasons, most train builders build to minifig scale and guys such as Carl Greatrix and Andrew Harvey (to name just two examples) manage to pack a surprising amount of exterior detail into fairly small train models.

Henrik has built his coach to a much larger scale, however, and this allowed him to go a step further. This is visible in the detail on the outside, but it really shows in the interior.

Bionicle Gundam Mark IV

I think that Gundams are probably by far our most blogged mechs, but I don’t think I can ever recall ever seeing a Bionicle/Hero-factory/System Gundam, let alone one that looks as amazing as the one Micah B (Arkov) just built:

Dark Wings, Dark Words

Aaron Dayman gives us a glimpse into the abyss with his wickedly asymmetric Doom Blade heavy assault fighter. While the overall shape is that of your standard starfighter, the details are where it counts and Aaron shakes it up in all the right ways.

Deadlier Than Thou: Miss Ruby Rose

Anime-style figure sculptures have become something of a trend these days, and Ruby Rose by Mike Dung is exemplary among them. The key to good figure sculpting in this scale is to balance creating details with merely evoking them. Ruby’s face, for instance, is nearly as simplistic as possible, while the bodice is quite intricate; both, however, meld to create a fantastic sculpture.

Mike’s not a one-hit wonder, though. Check out his other sculptures, such as Snow Miku.

Life on Pumpkonia

The look of the gas mining equipment and settlement drew me in to this display by Joshua Morris (I Scream Clone). The details, and interesting part usages (I’m digging the dome especially) kept me looking at it long enough to notice the figs. The jack-o-lantern people added a nice little twist that I had to share.

Viking Short House

I’m not sure of the historical authenticity of the build, but I can tell you for sure that Dwalin Forkbeard built a cute little viking house:

He’s done a great job with shaping the roof and adding the right amount of details on the side of the building. But what what really makes this moc great for me is the little landscaping – the irregular shape, the carefully placed plates and tiles, and the fantastically balanced fence.

Hauling a million tons of toxic sludge in style

Maelven (Sydag) brings us this gorgeous vision of the future of shipping with the Brynhildr tanker. The clean lines and vivid colors make this industrial ship look as good as any luxury space-yacht. If this is the future of long-distance trucking, then sign me up.

Lego Star Wars Jabba’s Sail Barge 75020 [Review]

Lego Star Wars Jabba’s Sail Barge was released in August 2013 and contains 850 pieces. It retails for $119.99 and is available on Amazon. Below is a video review and my remarks regarding the set.

Pros:

Overall sleek design of the sail barge makes it a great display model
Includes iconic and unique minifigs such as Max Reebo and Ree-Yees

Cons:

Model is very small for the price
The jagged slopes on the front of the barge looks weird, may be better if plates were used instead.

LEGO’s second version of Jabba’s Sail Barge is a neat little model that carries a big price tag. It’s an iconic Star Wars vehicle well deserving of some shelf space. I wouldn’t pay the full price on this model, and luckily Amazon currently has it on sale, and 26% off is a good enough deal. The model’s interior can be fully exposed to allow easy access, but there’s not much room after accounting for Jabba’s presence. The barge rolls on inconspicuous wheels underneath and also features a concealed cannon in the front that’s a hassle to fire. Overall, I recommend this model at a price tag less than $100.

The Great Stone Dragon Awakes

Mushu is almost certainly my favorite Disney character, and this hilarious sculpture by Mike Nieves (Retinence) is perfect. I’m amazed that Mike was able to effectively pull off such a spindly creature while maintaining enough structural integrity for it stand.