We continue TBB’s virtual LEGO Advent Calendar on Day 7 with more mini-kits from LEGO Star Wars and LEGO Friends.
We’ll be unveiling the mini-kits or minifigs from each Advent Calendar around this time every day, and we won’t ruin the surprise — you’ll need to click through to reveal the LEGO behind the tiny doors.
Click to see the Day 7 mini-kits!
For myself, the wonder of being a licensed theme builder is the fact that everything I create is not only something new, but never before possible. With the release of the LEGO Doctor Who set we finally have official minifigures of our favorite Doctors, and it’s now possible to build our own adventures for the famous time traveler.
Not only that, but with LEGO we can create cranium-exploding crossovers. So while the epic sight of the 11th Doctor marveling over the appearance of a Xenomorph may never happen on TV, it can surely happen in LEGO. And we’re all the better for it – well, until the Alien starts attacking that is.
While LEGO always offers a great selection of seasonal goodies (such as the Star Wars advent calendar and Winter toy shop) there are some choice holiday items to be had from other sources too, such as Chris McVeigh‘s extensive line of holiday ornament kits. New in Chris’s line-up for this Hanukwanzmas are these super-cute miniaturized versions of his popular arcade machines:
In addition to ornaments that we’ve featured here in previous years, Chris has also introduced some other new items for 2015, including a gingerbread tree (completing his gingerbread trio) and the new and improved Trident XL, shown below. As always, Chris offers online building guides for all of his products, in case you prefer to roll your own.
TBB has encountered a new species of alien thanks to Jake RF and they seem to come well equipped with breathing apparatuses, radios, weapons and leg pouches filled with…well, let’s just say that I don’t think it’s snacks and a can of soda…
Jake has maximised poseability by using Mixel ‘ball and socket’ components for the main body joints (shoulder, elbow, hip, knee). The Aliens’ feet are created using Star Wars Battle Droid heads and torsos. Their hands use the Battle Droid torso and arms while their head also utilise the droid’s head and torso. The side view shows the strange functionality of using droid heads to form feet — I bet they can scale walls better than Spiderman! I love the added breathing apparatus attached to the “mouth” area: it is clear that these aliens are not from our World.
Maybe they come in peace…
Root Canal by Lab Synth is a marvelous and thorough design down to the last detail. One can find such an architectural experiment chaotic, but I’d call it extravagant. In the description of his work Lab shared that he had started with that massive golden window, and I can clearly imagine how the whole diorama was growing section by section until such a bizzare interpretation of a Venetian canal was born.
Didn’t manage to get yourself a copy of this year’s LEGO Advent Calendars? We’ve got you covered with our virtual LEGO Advent Calendar series. Today’s installment, Day 6, brings us more new mini-kits from LEGO Star Wars and LEGO Friends.
We’ll be unveiling the mini-kits or minifigs from each Advent Calendar around this time every day, and we won’t ruin the surprise — you’ll need to click through to reveal the LEGO behind the tiny doors.
Click to see the Day 6 mini-kits!
I recently picked up a copy of 41066 Anna & Kristoff’s Sleigh Adventure. This new entry into the Disney Princess theme costs $29.99 for 174 pieces. The set features Anna, Kristoff, and Sven the reindeer.
This is the second Frozen set to feature Anna in her mountain-cold gear, and the only set currently with Kristoff and Sven. I have a conflicted relationship with this set. The parts-cost ratio is off (17 cents per part, well above the 10 cent average). My initial reaction was that the magenta on the sleigh was out of place and jarring. That said, the set grew on me as I built it. Also, I’m a big fan of Sven. The box comes with parts divided into two numbered bags. The first bag includes Oaken’s Trading Post and the hay bale/tree, along with Anna. Bag two includes the sleigh and Kristoff. The sled rails, in Dark Blue for the first time, are free-floating in the box along with Sven in his bag.
Read the full review after the jump!
Following on from Clinton’s recent post on the Mecha-Dinosaur, here’s some more Classic Space Dinosaur goodness in the form of David Alexander Smith‘s latest creation. The SpaceOSaurus-REX nails the nostalgic look with its spot-on color scheme and detailing. I’m loving the trans-yellow canopy and the radar antenna tail in particular.
This impressive beastie is just the latest in David’s series of space dinosaurs. I’d recommend you check out this excellent TrispaceOTops, along with a rather fetching SpaceODactyl.
It’s great when one of the classic LEGO themes is treated like this – inspiration rather than a slavish ruleset to follow. I really enjoy seeing the immediately identifiable and evocative Classic Space colors applied to imaginative creations beyond spaceships and moonbases. I cannot wait to see these models “in the brick” at BRICK2015 in London later this week.
Call of Duty: Black Ops 3 didn’t grab my interest as much as Halo 5 and Fallout 4 recently, but that doesn’t prevent this 3-foot, 1,200-piece Purifier replica by YouTuber ZaziNombies from being awesome. ZaziNombies takes his presentation style a step further by adding real fire (though it is not fired by pulling the LEGO trigger). Watch his demonstration with real flamethrowing in this two minute video, but please don’t try this at home!
This microscale spaceship by Emperor Lugdonious has a nice chunky retro feel to it. However, it was the composition of the photography which really caught my attention. The red and grey starship floats in the darkness of space, holding station above a distant blue planet as a shuttle craft prepares to dock.
The whole thing reminds me of classic sci-fi TV from the 70s and 80s – in a good way. The color choices are smart, and there’s a real sense of depth and scale. But overall I think it’s the tiny shuttle which makes the scene. I can’t help creating stories in my head when I look at it: Who’s on board the shuttle? Where did they come from? Where are they going?
There’s enough detail here to create a sense of reality, of activity both within and beyond the still image. For me, the prompting of these kinds of thoughts is the mark of a good model. I like this a lot.
We pick up our virtual LEGO Advent Calendar on Day 5 with more mini-kits from LEGO Star Wars and LEGO Friends.
We’ll be unveiling the mini-kits or minifigs from each Advent Calendar around this time every day, and we won’t ruin the surprise — you’ll need to click through to reveal the LEGO behind the tiny doors.
Click to see the Day 5 mini-kits!
This lava-tastic creation by Thorsten Bonsch is inspired by an online role-playing video game called The Elder Scrolls Online (“ESO”) and is the second ESO-inspired build we have showcased. The first was Thorsten’s mammoth 11,000-piece creation called The Dolmen.
The game landscape captured is called Stonefalls and is described by Thorsten as “…a mainly grey and barren region in Morrowind, dominated by giant mushrooms and streams of lava…“. I have not played the game, but Thorsten certainly captured my attention with those giant mushrooms and the beautifully depicted lava flow. The LEGO colour palate is utilised perfectly to show the ebbing heat of the lava flow. Note the minifigure standing centrally, helping to give a sense of scale to the gigantic fungi!
Hot stuff…