LEGO’s Western theme may have only lasted a couple of years, but the sets available in that short span could build you a pretty comprehensive Wild West. In the spirit of that, Evan Crouch has collaborated with fellow builders Matt Hudson and Donnie Greenfield to bring us this huge diorama! It’s all there, laid out down one main street in typical spaghetti-western style (among some stunning landscape, I might add). There’s a bank, a sheriff’s office, a Native American camp, settlers, a train station – pretty much the only thing missing is Fort Legoredo itself!
Category Archives: LEGO
It’s more of a defensive structure than a Hutt
LEGO builder WG Productions takes us down to the surface of Teth for this elite Clone Trooper raid on a Hutt ion cannon guarded by battle droids. The clouds above a black surface give a foreboding sense of the pinnacle the defensive structure is perched upon, and the posing of the figures lets you feel the action frozen during this tense aerial combat mission.
Midnight in the Garden of Lothlorien
My apologies go out to John Berendt as I came dangerously close to the title of his famous novel with my title. LEGO builder Ralf Langer tells us this latest creation is called Lothlorien Riverside, which makes it a Lord of the Rings sort of thing. But he also says it’s not of a specific landscape so you can forgive me if I imagine this as a setting for an atmospheric Southern Gothic tale of murder and deceit. It is a setting of breathtaking beauty juxtaposed against an unsettling eerieness. Ralf truly understands the reflective properties of LEGO as you can see in our Ralf Langer archives. Black works particularly well here but he has done this with other colors in the past. The angle of the photography is also an effect he thinks about a lot. Shot at a high angle the green algae on the water would seem more blocky. But at this angle, it’s perfection! mastery of brick and photography like this is why Ralf is consistently among our favorite builders.
Guilds of Heroica City
Ever wondered what Ninjago City would look like if LEGO decided to use the same format on a medieval-themed build? Wonder no more and just take a look at Benjamin Stenlund latest creation. This amazingly detailed build celebrates the 10 years of existence of The Guilds of Historica. It features an Elven tea pavilion, a tavern, a tights shop, and a cartographer’s shop. On the street level, we find a candle maker, a bookstore, a jeweler, and a room for rent. On the second level, there is a moneylender, an apartment, and a shield shop. Benjamin didn’t stop when he filled up a 32×32 base plate so he had to expand the city to add a Chapel, a bakery, and a barbershop. I know for sure I would love to get lost in this amazing Medieval city. Can you spot all the little shops/businesses included in this massive build?
Exploring strange new worlds
The universe, much like LEGO, is full of possibilities for all sorts of amazing and mind-bending wonders. Bart De Dobbelaer captures this well in this alien landscape build. The strange new world is full of bright and bizarre plant life growing up wherever. Using bright pink and green pieces, the alien plants come to life and stand out against the white and greys prevalent in the build. Technic, Bionicle, and Hero Factory pieces give the large formations on the planet’s surface an otherworldly appearance, twisting and turning every which way. Who knows what other wonders these explorers will find on their adventures!
Back to Svalg Keep
With spring around the corner, Louis of Nutwood presents to us the amazing Svalg Keep, a very wintery LEGO build that features a Castle covered in a blanket of snow. Even though the entire castle wall is built with light blueish-grey brick, Louis managed to avoid the dreaded “big grey wall effect.” The highly textured wall creates gaps and casts shadows which makes the walls look intricate and interesting. This is one of those creations that I would love to see on the inside. Is it just impressive on the outside or is it possible to build something that looks this good on the outside and still has enough room on the inside to build a functioning interior?
Harboring good builds
Last month I wrote about Andreas Lenander’s desert port, and now he’s already back with another waterfront LEGO medieval build. This one seems to be more inspired by Venice, but it’s every bit as wonderful, absolutely chock full of great techniques and little details. For instance, don’t miss the black wands, still attached to their sprue, that are used as the bars on the top windows, or the dark tan skates that are used as details throughout, from the roofline to the inside of the main arches.
This builder prefers to do his own Stuntz
This wacky LEGO cottage built by Thomas Jenkins takes inspiration from an unlikely source. The City Stuntz sets have been entirely passed over by me but in looking over the neat build techniques used in this whimsical cabin, I may have to rethink that short-sighted strategy. He’s used the motorcycle ramps to shape the roof. What a neat use that part! I prefer to leave stunts (or stuntz) to the pros. Why the first time I try skateboarding I’m liable to credit card my gooch or land a gnarly face plant and, at my age, I ain’t about to get in on all that drama. But if you’re braver than I am, then check out our totally dope Stuntz archives.
LEGO reveals next UCS set: 75355 Ultimate Collector Series X-wing Starfighter [News]
Today LEGO has taken the wraps off the latest Ultimate Collector Series (UCS) set, returning to its roots with 75355 X-wing Starfighter. This set marks the third iteration of the X-wing as a UCS set, with an X-wing being one of the original two UCS sets, and the most recent version having been discontinued in 2015. The new set takes advantage of more recently released elements (including at least one previously unseen) to give more details to the starfighter model. It’s also the largest version with 1,949 pieces. The set includes Luke and R2-D2 minifigures. It will be available starting May 1 for US $239.99 | CAN $319.99 | UK £209.99.
Signing off from the internet!
There’s an appeal to signing off of all social media and the internet for a weekend or maybe even a month. Some people sign off and never look back. The rest of us might miss their intriguing content or hilarious memes but, in logging off, they find peace of mind for themselves. That’s exactly what is going on with this LEGO creation by Markus Rollbühler. Look how happy that little minifigure feller is; just throwing out that phone like he hasn’t a care in the world! He’s about to go do something totally analog, I can tell. Maybe he’ll fly a kite, pet a dog, listen to some records or even…build some LEGO. Can you name all the websites he has just said goodbye to?
Never have the Middle Ages been so colorful
The city of Cedrica welcomes you with a veritable rainbow of LEGO color, all thanks to builder Dan O’Connor. Amid a central tower sporting some excellent stonework, we have a bustling block of the Medieval metropolis. Minifigures are hard at work under awnings of red, against a background of blue, or proximate to a purple roof. Each construction has its own style here, not only showcasing a full palette of color, but also one brimming with different parts. Even the gold trim in the canoe, while not a route I would typically go, looks brilliant in this vibrant setting.
Spinning the model 180 degrees shows off even more action. The construction of the violet-topped Tudor can be fully appreciated from this vantage, those small patches of tan breaking up the white of the wattle and daub. And the small tree next to it fits into the scene perfectly without drawing the eye away from all the bustling action nearby. And don’t miss that nefarious-looking fellow tucked back in the alleyway.
This LEGO Wednesday Addams doesn’t care what day of the week it is!
Thanks to her recent series, Wednesday Addams has become the latest “It Girl” – or rather “Itt Girl.” And her gothic style is perfectly captured here in LEGO by builder Saird15. The character design is immediately recognizable, with brilliant shaping of the uniform. The pair of wedge plates for the lapels makes for quite the nice touch. Dark gray stripes help to break up Wednesday’s dress, as do the hints of white poking through her uniform. I absolutely love the technique used here for her braids – a simple solution to a complex problem in character emulation. But her parasol absolutely takes the cake! Utilizing a network of cloth bat wings, Saird15 is able to create a proper umbrella in the right scale for their brick-build Addams. Such an impressive design!