Category Archives: LEGO

You’d probably expect a lot of the posts on a LEGO website like The Brothers Brick to be about LEGO, and you’d be right. If you’re browsing this page, you might want to consider narrowing what you’re looking for by checking out categories like “Space” and “Castle.” We’re sure there’s something here that’ll fascinate and amaze you.

Celebrate Japanese culture with the Plum Blossom

In a LEGO world of castles, spaceships, and battle mechs it’s sometimes nice to enjoy something a little different. Kristel Whitaker presents us with a stunning piece of art inspired by Japanese art. She tells us that the plum blossoms in Japanese culture represent hope, renewal and vitality, being the first to flower in spring (before the more famous cherry blossoms).The background is based on shoji, the paper sliding doors and windows common in Japanese homes. With the bold red sun against the white background, this piece almost looks like the Japanese flag, a notion that was surely not lost on a talented artist such as Kristel. This wouldn’t be the first time we were totally delighted by her LEGO creations. Please click the little blue link to peruse our Kristel Whitaker archives to discover more.

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LEGO Marvel 76232 The Hoopty [Review]

Nowadays, with box office and sales numbers being such a huge part of how media gets reported on, it can be hard to be a fan of something without having to engage in a little bit of business discussion. For example, Marvel’s 2019 blockbuster Captain Marvel took in more than a billion dollars at the box office. But the follow-up movie is titled simply The Marvels and is bringing Brie Larson’s Carol Danvers together with Monica Rambeau (Teyonah Parris) and Kamala Khan (Iman Vellani) for an ensemble adventure. Naturally, movie websites and user forums across the internet are littered with opinion pieces as to whether this shift in the franchise is a smart business move or not. But the truth is, not a one of us knows right now how that decision will play out. And we shouldn’t care. All that should matter is “Do we like the movie?” Similarly, when The Marvels sole LEGO tie-in set was officially revealed, there was plenty of opining as to the business decision to sell the set at a cost of more than 20 cents a brick. (10 cents per brick is the usual average.) So, the question is, “Is the price of the set worth it to us?” We got our hands on an early copy and are here to help you make an informed decision before you buy. 76232 The Hoopty comes with 420 pieces and will be available on October 1st for US $89.99 | CAN $119.99 | UK £84.99

The LEGO Group provided The Brothers Brick with an early copy of this set for review. Providing TBB with products for review guarantees neither coverage nor positive reviews.

Read on for our full review

BrickCon 2023 Best in Show winner Kimberly Giffen talks about her LEGO rendition of the Silver Pavilion [Exclusive]

A little more than 11 months ago, I wrote up a beautiful LEGO tea house by my very talented LUG-mate Kimberly Giffen. That build, The Giffen Gardens, won Best in Show at BrickCon 2022. And here I am, after another BrickCon, pleased to say that Kimberly was able to repeat her achievement and win the Best in Show once again with a recreation of the Silver Pavilion (Ginkakuji) from Kyoto, Japan. I had a chance to talk with Kimberly after the convention about her work, and was able to learn a lot about the model and her process.

Read on about the Silver Pavilion below!

This striking LEGO Blacktron Striker strikes a chord

We here at TBB are no stranger to the space-tastic LEGO creations of Chris Perron. And his latest, featuring the canopy from Buzz Lightyear’s XL-15 is a spectacular representation of Blacktron building! The trans-red “wings” jutting out to the sides are wonderful, reminding me of an energy field kind of like that generated by NCC-1701’s warp nacelles. All of the sharp, cutting angles feel right at home with LEGO Space of the late 80’s, though the parts utilized include some more-recent offerings. For instance, there’s the 4-wide brick separator included in mosaic sets. I’ll give you a minute to spot where it’s hiding.

A peek behind the Wall: building a 200,000-piece LEGO Game of Thrones diorama [Guest Feature]

LEGO builder extraordinaire Anu Pehrson joins us to give an inside perspective on how she built this enormous 200,000-piece minifigure-scale diorama of the Wall from Game of Thrones. If you’re not familiar with Anu, she likes to build big. If you happen to be in Denmark soon, check out her huge model of the Greyjoy Stronghold, which has been showcased in the LEGO House for the past year. She previously gave us a behind-the-scenes look at her 20,000-piece rice plantation diorama from The LEGO Ninjago Movie, but now she’s gone ten times bigger. So read on as Anu walks us through the entire process of building the Wall from early concepts to finished model.

Building the Wall

As builders, most of us are inspired by things we encounter in our everyday lives, travels, and other interests such as books, music, etc. I immensely enjoyed reading Game of Thrones and was inspired with several ideas for building. The Wall was an obvious choice but a very daunting task and would require me to get several tens of thousands of white parts. I started the process of collecting parts specifically for this project in 2012. Nine years later, I finally started building in 2021, and it has taken me over two years to finish it. The model is 5 x 5 feet and approximately 4.5 feet tall, and in the end, I used close to 200,000 pieces.

My thought process here was that the Wall would be the central grounding factor, with several structures added to both the south side of the Wall and the area beyond the wall to the north as described in the books/show.

Click to read the full article

A peacock’s plume in bloom

LEGO builder Dad’s Bricks (Joe) clearly knows a thing or three about natural beauty. While females aren’t without their charm, in the birding world, it’s often the males that are known for their beauty regimen. And what a beauty this one is! Either this fellah is well integrated into the garden flora or he’s part of the lovely garden with flowers blooming from his plumage. Joe (can I call you Joe?) has demonstrated plenty of artistry and masterful build techniques. I can get lost in the intricate textures and colors on display here. As it turns out, this isn’t Dad’s (can I call you Dad or is that awkward?) first go at the beauty parlor. A leisurely perusal through our Dad’s Bricks (Joe) archives proves repeatedly that he can find stunning beauty in LEGO bricks.

How do you say awesome LEGO starship in Mando’a?

It’s a good job – and a happy coincidence – that the Star Wars universe has such a good proficiency in English (or Basic, as it’s known). Otherwise, we’d end up having to learn things like Binary or Huttese to have any idea of what’s going on. Thankfully, if you’ve watched The Mandalorian, you’ll know how to pronounce the name of Simon Wild‘s epic LEGO starfighter. Bo-Katan calls it a Kom’rk-class fighter transport, otherwise known as the Gauntlet. Simon’s model features a shade under 3,000 pieces and is apparently faithful to minifigure scale, putting it firmly in Ultimate Collector Series (UCS)-scale territory. The SNOT and wedge plates used to create the pattern on the wings look great. It’s all the more impressive when you consider how structurally awkward this ship is, with everything connected at one end only. Building it must have been nearly as hard as learning Shyriiwook!

A charming pair of scavengers

If you are stuck in a post-apocalyptic LEGO world scratching out a living recovering unusual salvage from the before-time, there can be no mode of travel more reliable than a beast of burden who can also defend your stash. This duo of ride and rider by Justus M. are ready for anything as they scour the landscape for supplies to trade. Built for the Iron Builder challenge, the golden handcuffs are used 40 times, most noticeably in the feet, and as a woven blanket under the beast’s saddle. One of my favorite details is the gas mask, made with only 6 parts, and that roller skate is the perfect part usage!

LEGO Star Wars 75367 UCS Venator-Class Republic Attack Cruiser officially revealed online

We’ve had quite the string of Ultimate Collector Series LEGO Star Wars sets that have pushed the limits of set size. First, we had both iterations of the UCS Millennium Falcon. That was followed with mega-sized versions of the Star Destroyer and AT-AT. And today, LEGO has officially revealed the next giga-UCS set: 75367 UCS Venator-Class Republic Attack Cruiser. Clocking in at 5,374 pieces, this massive spaceship from the prequel series is a titanic 12.5″ (32 cm) tall, 21″ (54 cm) wide, and 43″ (109 cm) long. With a plaque commemorating the 20th anniversary of the first Clone Wars TV show (Tartakovsky’s project, not the computer-animated series), the set also includes minifigure versions of Captain Rex and Admiral Yularen. Releasing from LEGO stores and their website on October 4th (October 1st for Insiders), 75367 UCS Venator-Class Republic Attack Cruiser will retail for US $649.99 | CAN $849.99 | UK £559.99

Check out more images of the new set below!

Dinner starts promptly at six. Bring handcuffs.

Sometimes it’s nice to dine in an exquisite setting decked out in a shirt, tie, jacket, nice shoes, and handcuffs. Wait, what? Let me explain. This opulent LEGO dining room was built by Joe (jnj_bricks) for the Iron Builder competition. The seed part this time is golden handcuffs, and Joe used twenty-eight of them here. So it’s not so much a Fifty Shades of Gray thing but more of a Fifty Shades of gold thing. Look at all that gold! I’ve spotted several pairs of handcuffs in the chandelier, the backs of the chairs, and even comprised of the curtain ties. Have I missed any? I particularly enjoy the very three-dimensional portraits along the walls. The older gent I presume is the patriarch of the household and a bit of a grouch who uses the word “indubitably” on occasion. Perhaps that’s a word I should try out at my next formal gathering. More butter, Lino? Indubitably!

A new take on a LEGO house boat

If you ever wondered what you would get if you crossed climate-change, Star Wars, and the legend of Baba Yaga (c’mon, we’ve all been there) then this wandering house on giant robot legs by Mountain Hobbit may just answer your question. The house itself may not be as terrifying as that chicken-legged shack, but it is certainly as visually interesting. There is everything you need in a post-apocalyptic setting where fetid swamps have covered the land, with great mechanical legs that would give an AT-AT a run for its money, a collection of radio dishes, a utility pole, not to mention a steady source of food from fishing. Even the swamp is wonderfully detailed with a variety of green plates, bricks, and slopes, with a few well-placed plants.

A LEGO city built on a foundation of Aquanauts

While it may not look like it at first, this microscale LEGO city by Casey McCoy owes its roots to the Aquazone theme, in a very literal way. Using a baseplate from 6195 Neptune Discovery Lab as the starting point, Casey assembled quite the futuristic metropolis. I love the multi-layered approach, with different levels of buildings built into the cliffside contrasting the towering skyscrapers above. The one stud-wide monorail track helps break up the levels, and appears to run through the baseplate at one point. And that pop of color from the trans-neon orange “river” running through the canyon just sets the whole build off!