Mosquitos aren’t good for much, if you ask me. Except, perhaps, one thing–being turned into excellent LEGO models, like this one by Omar Ovalle. A rework of an old model, Omar has given it new life with giant ant wings and a proboscis fittingly made of a harpoon. The creature’s silver sheen makes me wonder if this is, in fact, a creature at all, or if it’s perhaps a drone-squito, AKA my newest nightmare.
One of the best things about highlighting the best fan-built LEGO creations is the numerous occasions to watch and re-watch the most spectacular movie scenes. Star Wars: Episode VIII – The Last Jedi treated us to a whole bunch of fascinating battle scenes and visual effects, but I’ve totally forgotten how good the opening scene is. A great thank you to Mirko Soppelsa for giving us an unscheduled reason to enjoy the heroic deeds of Poe and Rose with this jaw-dropping model of an MG-100 StarFortress bomber. The build counts almost 5200 LEGO pieces and stands over 25 in/64 cm high. What a monster!
See more details of this amazing LEGO Star Wars masterpiece
While many stories and characters passed into so-called “Legends” status when Disney acquired Lucasfilm, some fan-favorites have been incorporated into the new canon, and I can’t think of any character more deserving than Mitth’raw’nuruodo — or Thrawn, as he is more commonly known in Galactic Basic. The Chiss Grand Admiral had a more humble introduction to Imperial life as a cadet at the military academy on Coruscant in the first book of Timothy Zahn‘s new trilogy. In this jam-packed scene by CRCT Productions built as a RebelLUG collaboration, there are so many great details, not the least of which is the light gray angled walkway bordered by the two-color spring-loaded shooter brick.
See more of Thrawn’s early victory after the jump
The LEGO Movie 2: The Second Part officially opens today (be sure to read our LEGO Movie 2 review), and to mark the occasion, “Big Daddy” Nelson has taken a few of the movie’s smallest characters and given them a huge makeover. Built in the style of the classic 3723 Creator Minifigure set, these giant sewer babies look just like their miniature counterparts from the TLM2 Accessory Set.
They have even more range than the toddler elements they’re based on, featuring double-sided heads and movable hands. They’re also more complex than you might think, with some clever mosaic work needed to translate the prints on the torsos and heads into bricks.
Fantasy castle building often leans towards the creation of dark, gloomy and foreboding places in which one would not lightly tread. Master castle builder Jonas Wide usually takes a different route, however, using cheerful splashes of color to create incredibly warm and welcoming scenes. This style is definitely evident in his latest creation, the Houses of Barqa:
The buildings are elegantly designed and laid out, but the real star of this show is the use of color. If there’s been a better use of sand red, I haven’t seen it. The pastel palette blends so well with the more subtle tan/dark tan foundations and street. Taken together, it’s a gorgeous and eye-catching scene. Clever use of lighting also makes for some atmospheric and quite realistic looking images.
If Jonas’ city leaves you wishing for more, definitely check out his amazing Streets of Barqa from several years ago or last year’s Aslanic Temple in Barqa.
When it comes to building a great LEGO model, one thing that really shows off a builder’s skill is the ability to create something that can easily be mistaken for something other than plastic interlocking bricks. This sci-fi racing car by Vince_Toulouse is a perfect blend of smoothly curved details and unique parts, like the troll arms used for the main engine exhaust ports, or the mermaid tails housing the headlights. But by far, my favorite feature is the two-color striping throughout the car, which provides the perfect polish.
Whilst the spacecraft of the classic LEGO space theme seem to grab the nostalgic limelight, for some of us the lunar rovers were the real stars. Maybe Andreas Lenander is trying to make this point, and if he is what better way than through this magnificent Neo-Classic Space Drilling Rover. It’s certainly got my classic space pulse racing. Although it sticks faithfully to the grey and blue colour scheme, its forms and shape speak to a more realistic post-NASA near future. There’s phenomenal part usage too, just look at the way the old rails form the drill casing, and the Jurassic World gyrosphere looks as if it were designed to be a moon buggy cab. To complete the scene Andrea signs off with a troop of new pink astronauts, from Benny’s Space Squad, scouring the variegated planet surface for its precious mineral reserves.
Years after being discontiniued, Bionicle remains a strong and very much autonomous theme in LEGO fan builds. Unique pieces and almost complete freedom of angles set it apart from most other styles, but was it always so? Jayfa and Andrew Steele bring us back to 2002, a time when Bionicle was still searching for an identity and was for the most part a sub-theme to Technic. The glorious titan set Cahdok and Gahdok was a load of gears, rubber bands, liftarms and most importantly, play features. I do not think this re-imagining has much of those, but it does capture the spirit of the Bohrok queens.
Click to see Cahdok and Gahdok compared to the original set
Once gain I have the pleasure of highlighting Alanboar Cheung‘s amazing work for TBB, previously sharing his butterfly mimicry and cloud car models. Never predictable, his newest build, a quirky dream treehouse, is inspired by The LEGO Movie 2.
Built for the movie’s unique cast of characters, it incorporates a rainbow, clouds, piano room, and even a Unikitty slide — although I’m little worried as to where you’d end up if you actually tried to ride it. Simply exploding with colourful charm and cute details, it’s one of those creations that is going to be just as much fun to play with as is to marvel at. It’s also another reason – as if I needed one – to get excited about seeing the film, which comes out later this week.
When the body of Sir Charles Murgatroyd is discovered in his library, the local Constabulary are immediately called for. Foul play is suspected, and an investigation begins. Despite their best efforts, the police remain baffled as to motive or culprit. Only one hope remains, to summon the consulting detective Sherlock Holmes and his friend Dr John Watson…
Since reading The Hound of the Baskervilles as a child, I’ve always been a huge fan of Arthur Conan Doyle’s Sherlock Holmes stories. I’ve often pondered the idea of building scenes from some of his most famous adventures, and this little model was something of a trial. The library-based murder depicted is not based on any particular story, but I’m quite pleased with how it turned out. The trickiest bit of the whole model was the window — it took my ages to get the curtain to look right, and to get the leaded windows to fill the space without gaps.
Those of us in the northwestern hemisphere have had a tough time lately, what with the polar vortex, record-shattering temperatures (as low as -63 degrees Celsius at my mom’s house in Winnipeg, Canada) and unrelenting snow and ice. Even here in southwestern Arkansas, where winter generally just means anything below 10 degrees Celsius, we were racing to buy wintry garments normally only seen in movies about Alaska. On the flip side, the nasty weather meant more time shamelessly spent in the LEGO room. I built this tropical scene while daydreaming about places where I don’t have to leave faucets running for fear of water pipes bursting inside my home.
This was a simple but fun build to throw together. There are no crazy techniques or excessively nice parts usages (NPU) to highlight here. But a dash of color, proper composition and a bit of photography know-how can just about always turn a bland build into something that really catches the eye. If you like the trees, they are easily recreated using the 4mm pneumatic hose and cylinder bricks. They can be twisted around each other and held in that position with the leaf elements. Simple and easy jungle tree!
Guardian of the Hyrule Forest. Giver of Quests. Insides infested with Skulltula Spiders.
The Great Deku Tree from Nintendo classic Zelda: The Ocarina of Time is given the LEGO treatment by Julius von Brunk. The microscale model is nicely-done, perfectly capturing the tree’s sleepy-looking face. But it’s the amazing photography which sets this creation apart — Julius has combined three images into one to create this stunning look, which manages to make a small model appear much larger. I love how the low angle and out-of-focus foreground foliage gives the tree such physical presence. Excellent stuff.
