Category Archives: News

Stay current on the latest news and information about LEGO, from sales & deals to new set announcements. We also cover LEGO events and conventions all over the world.

Registration now open for Brick Fiesta 2017

Brick Fiesta is an annual Lego convention taking place in cities throughout Texas since 2010. This year’s event is happening in the Dallas-Ft. Worth metroplex from June 29 – July 2 at the Mesquite Convention Center. The theme is Automation, featuring Great Ball Contraptions and motorized gizmos at the center of display amidst over 35,000 sq. ft. of convention floor space. Register early by May 31 for $55 or thereafter for $65. Visit the convention’s website for more info.

If this is your first time attending a fan event, please check out our Attending LEGO fan conventions series!

The Brothers Brick is funded by our readers and the community. Articles may include affiliate links, and when you purchase products from those links, TBB may earn a commission that helps support the site.

May the 4th 2017 sales & deals from the LEGO Shop [News]

The LEGO Shop is holding its annual May the 4th “Star Wars Day” sales event, starting at midnight EDT Thursday, May the 4th (9 PM PDT Wednesday, May the 3rd) through Sunday, May 7th. Several LEGO Star Wars sets are on sale, with a free R2-D2 mini-set (on orders over $50), and double VIP points to maximize your savings. The R2-D2 figure is larger than the standard minifig, with a number of unique printed elements.

See all of the May the 4th deals for the US, UK, and Canada after the jump

LEGO typography contest – design a new typeface [News]

Our friends over at the LEGO elements and colours obsessed blog, New Elementary, are running a Typography Competition from now until 31 May, 2017. To enter you just have to design a typeface for the phrase LEGO DNA with only one rule that is explained in detail below.

You can use whichever LEGO elements you like in your typeface design, but the only rule is that you must utilise at least one of the following new pieces pictured here. They are:

24246 – see BrickLink
25269 – see BrickLink
27263 – see BrickLink
27925 – see BrickLink
27507 – see BrickLink

That’s it for constraints. Digital entries are not only welcome, but recommended given that at least one of the new parts listed must be included and you may not have many in your collection! The colours don’t matter, and you may use whichever you like, whether or not the pieces exist in those colours in current LEGO sets. The pieces in your design don’t even need to connect in reality – this task is more about design than modeling.

There will be three 1st prizes in this competition (and no other prizes). The three winners will each receive a package consisting of 50 of each of these new tiles, meaning there will be 250 LEGO elements per winner, courtesy of the LEGO Group. A magnificent prize!

Entries close at the end of 31 May, 2017 (in your local timezone).

To enter, head over to the competition post on New Elementary where an entry form awaits.

LEGO Nexo Knights 70349 Ruina’s Lock & Roller [Review]

If you’re in the market for a small LEGO set with fun colors and minifigures that look as equally at home in space as they do in a medieval castle, look no further than Ruina’s Lock & Roller [70349]. This set retails for $19.99 USD, but is currently on sale on Amazon for $15.99. It has 208 pieces, with the primary feature being a substantially sized vehicle called Ruina’s Lock & Roller (hence, the name of the set). The roller is essentially castle dungeon on wheels drawn by a GargoBike rather than a team of horses. Along with the gargoyle-inspired carriage, this set also includes three minifigures and two NEXO Power Shields (Gorilla Roar and Forbidden Power Wrecking Wrath) which are scannable and provide power-ups in the LEGO NEXO KNIGHTS game.

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Summer 2017 Thor: Ragnarok LEGO sets revealed [News]

We’re getting our first high-quality look at two LEGO sets from Marvel’s Thor: Ragnarok. We don’t yet have information regarding price, part counts, or exact release dates of these sets, but we’ll be sure to bring you that info as soon as it’s available.

76084 The Ultimate Battle for Asgard

76088 Thor vs. Hulk: Arena Clash

TBB Weekly Brick Report: LEGO news roundup for April 30, 2017 [News]

We’ve featured some pretty big news here at The Brothers Brick this week, along with our usual fare of LEGO models, reviews, and more. In case you’ve missed any of it, here’s your weekly Brick Report for the last week of May 2017.

TBB NEWS, REVIEWS & INSTRUCTIONS: LEGO news this week was dominated by back-to-back announcements of two upcoming LEGO sets.

LEGO unveils largest Ideas set yet: 21309 NASA Apollo Saturn V [News] – One of the most popular set announcements ever featured here on TBB, this upcoming LEGO set will include 1,969 pieces, retail for $119.99, and hit store shelves on June 1st.
New LEGO Creator Expert set 10257 Carousel announced [News] – Somewhat overshadowed by the Saturn V reveal a day later, this set will be available on June 1st as well, with $199.99 for 2,670 pieces.
LEGO Star Wars Rebels 75170 The Phantom II + TBB chats with Thrawn author Timothy Zahn [Review] – TBB talked to Grand Admiral Thrawn creator Timothy Zahn and got his first impressions of the new minifigure.
BrickCon 2017 registration is now open [News] – Registration for TBB’s “home convention” is now open. Join us the first weekend in October here in Seattle for a friendly, casual party with 500 of our closest friends.
Build your own LEGO Citroën DS and then drive your minifig self through the Vézère Valley [Instructions] – Drive around the French countryside in this adorable early 1970’s Citroën DS you can build with bricks in your own collection.
Make your own LEGO magic folding cube with just a few pieces [Instructions] – Are you one of those people who thinks best when they’re fidgeting or fiddling with something in their hands? Then follow these instructions to make your own little folding cube.

OTHER LEGO NEWS: The new Saturn V set is a hard act to follow, and the rest of the web was buzzing with that news this week as well. We’re also starting to see rumors and leaks of summer LEGO sets for products that weren’t unveiled at Toy Fair in February, but we’ll hold off covering those until we have more reliable, higher-quality information — our readers rely on us for trustworthy LEGO news, and we’ll bring that to you as soon as we have it.

BrickCon 2017 registration is now open [News]

Registration is now open for BrickCon 2017. This longest-running of LEGO fan conventions takes place in Seattle, Washington from Thursday October 5th thru Sunday October 8th. Early Bird registration is available until August 1st and costs $65. This will be the 16th BrickCon event, and the theme this year is “Brick to Old School”!

Like last year, there will be an exclusive “friends and family” night on the Friday from 8:30pm to 10pm. And new for this year, Thursday is now a full convention day! Table space, badges and goody bags will be available from 8am that day. Opening ceremonies have been moved to Thursday and there is also a “surprise game” on that day.

As a reminder, you must be registered in order to display your creations, and attendees ages 14-17 must be accompanied and supervised by a registered adult.

For those coming from out of town, the main hotel is the Maxell, located one block across from the Exhibition Hall. Special room rates have been arranged for convention attendees at both the Maxwell and nearby Hampton Suites.

BrickCon is the “home” convention of The Brothers Brick and we’re excited to see faces both old and new there this October!

LEGO Star Wars Rebels 75170 The Phantom II + TBB chats with Thrawn author Timothy Zahn [Review]

For long-time Star Wars fans, perhaps the most exciting thing to emerge from the current batch of LEGO Star Wars sets inspired by the Rebels animated TV series is the new Grand Admiral Thrawn minifigure, released as part of the 75170 The Phantom set, which depicts the modified Trade Federation shuttle that replaces the first Phantom part way through season 3.

Grand Admiral Thrawn himself was created by sci-fi author Timothy Zahn in Heir to the Empire, the first book in Zahn’s epic Thrawn Trilogy. TBB spoke with Timothy Zahn at Emerald City Comicon recently, and got his first impressions of the Thrawn minifig, which we’ll share later in our review.

Read the full review after the jump!

LEGO unveils largest Ideas set yet: 21309 NASA Apollo Saturn V [News]

After an early tease of 21309 NASA Apollo Saturn V last month, today LEGO has officially taken the wraps off this massive 1:110 scale rocket. First announced last June, the Saturn V will be the largest ever fan-designed LEGO Ideas set with 1,969 pieces, giving even the part count a nod to the year of mankind’s first steps on the moon. The rocket itself stands 39 in. tall (100cm), and consists of all three stages with a full complement of the lunar orbiter, lunar lander, command module with flotation devices, and three astronaut microfigures. The Saturn V will retail for $119.99 USD beginning June 1, the same day as the just-announced 10257 Carousel.

The Saturn V is the first of two upcoming LEGO Ideas sets based on NASA, with a Women of NASA LEGO set coming later this year or early in 2018.

Click to see all the images of the Saturn V

New LEGO Creator Expert set 10257 Carousel announced [News]

Today LEGO announced its latest Creator Expert set, 10257 Carousel. The 2,670 piece set is the latest entry to the popular carnival theme of sets that includes 10247 Ferris Wheel, 10244 Fairground Mixer, and of course, 10196 Grand Carousel from 2009. The new Carousel has five brick-built animals galloping around its platform, which spins with a hand crank and comes ready for Power Functions integration. The set includes seven minifigures, and will retail for $199.99 USD. It will be available June 1, 2017.

The original carousel from 8 years ago is greatly loved, but the fact that LEGO is circling back to the same carnival ride after only two intervening sets is sure to raise some eyebrows. However, the old 10196 Carousel is so highly desired by fans that it’s currently selling for around $1,700 for an unopened copy, and over $1,100 for a used version, a rare figure outside the Star Wars and Modular themes. Certainly, many fans who can’t afford to spend over $1k on a single set will be glad to see this version. Although slightly smaller than the original, the new set carries a $50 lower MSRP, likely due to the Power Functions being an optional extra this time. Although we spy plenty of elements in new colors, however, we haven’t spotted any completely new elements apart from the cloth roof panels. Let us know in the comments if you see anything we’ve missed, though!

We’ve got the full press release, designer video, and all the images below.

Continue reading →

TBB Weekly Brick Report: LEGO news roundup for April 23, 2017 [News]

In addition to the best LEGO models created by builders from everywhere on the planet, The Brothers Brick also keeps you up to date with the most timely and relevant LEGO news and reviews. This is our weekly Brick Report for the third week of April 2017.

TBB NEWS, REVIEWS & INSTRUCTIONS: It’s been a bit of a slower news week here at The Brothers Brick, with a flurry of last-minute building by several of our team members heading north to attend BrickCan. Nevertheless, the rest of the team has been busy bringing all our readers up to date LEGO news and reviews, as well as the best LEGO models we can find.

Happy 20th birthday, Brickset’s database! – Our friends over at Brickset.com celebrated 20 years of providing a comprehensive reference for the LEGO fan community.
LEGO 71018 Collectible Minifigures Series 17 Feel Guide – Following up on last week’s hands-on review of Series 17, check out how to tell blind bags apart with your own hands.
LEGO set review archive – Speaking of reviews, we’ve created a reference page where you can see all of the 2017 LEGO sets we’ve reviewed so far. We’re working on adding links to the rest of our reviews from the past 12 years.
Free instructions for custom LEGO models – Not content with the new reviews page or our history of LEGO, we’ve also created a page where you can see all of the LEGO instructions we’ve featured. Happy building!

OTHER LEGO NEWS: There’s a lot of news out there we choose not to bring you as it happens, but that doesn’t mean that it didn’t happen. Here’s the rest of what happened in the LEGO world this week.

HIspaBrick Magazine 027 available for download now, HispaBrick Magazine – Our good friends in Spain have published the latest English and Spanish editions of their free online magazine, with features on the 40th anniversary of LEGO Technic, interviews with several LEGO employees, a review of the new UCS Snowspeeder, and more.
Grown-up LEGO fans blocked from playground in Melbourne, The Guardian – The first LEGOLAND Discovery Centre opened in Australia, and AFOLs are raising a hue and cry that they can’t go in when not accompanying a child. (This is in fact normal practice, and other Discovery Centers in the rest of the world hold after-hours “adults only” events just for local AFOLs.)
The LEGO Movie sequel rumors & spoilers have begun, Gizmodo – The guys at Giz talked to Chris Pratt about the new Guardians of the Galaxy movie, and asked a few questions about the sequel to 2014’s The LEGO Movie.
How to become a LEGO Master Builder, Popular Science – Erik Varszegi shares four simple steps on how to get the dream job he has designing monumental LEGO creations seen by millions around the world.
Brick Fest Live in Philadelphia, CBS Philly – BrickCan wasn’t the only LEGO event that happened this weekend. Check out this news coverage of Brick Fest Live.

Battle of the Bricks showcasing live LEGO building challenges launches on Twitch [News]

Have you ever wanted to experience the thrill of playing LEGO games at a fan convention, perhaps trying out your hand at a Master Build? That LEGO fun is coming straight to your computer through a new live-streaming Twitch show, Battle of the Bricks.

Nick Della Mora, aka BrickinNick, will host the live brick-building competition show, highlighting some of the talented builders in the AFOL community. Each show will feature a head to head battle where two builders using the same LEGO sets will build something new using the same pieces, based on a chosen theme. When the time runs out, viewers will become the judge, choosing whose scene reigns supreme.

The show will air on Friday, April 21st through Friday, June 2nd at 9 PM EST/6 PM PST on Twitch. Shows will be posted on YouTube the following day. Tomorrow’s show will pit Dan (DR.Church) against Caleb Wagoner (Masked Builder), so we look forward to seeing any fun builds stemming from the show.