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.

TBB Weekly Brick Report: LEGO news roundup for April 17, 2021

In addition to the amazing LEGO models created by builders all over the world, The Brothers Brick brings you the best of LEGO news and reviews. This is our weekly Brick Report for the third week of April 2021.

The Batmobile is back in classic ’66 style and we’ve got a hands on review! Keep reading our Brick Report for all the details

TBB NEWS & REVIEWS: This week we saw the reveal of the 20th Anniversary of Harry Potter sets, reviewed two new LEGO busts, witnessed a battle between Spider-Man and Doc Ock and more!

LEGO 71030 Looney Tunes Collectible Minifigures [Review] – Looney Tunes are here, and we’ve got a full breakdown of them in our in-depth review.
Holy Headgear, Batman! – LEGO DC 76182 Batman Cowl [Review] – LEGO continues to tempt adult collectors with sets that are more about a displayable model than the more traditional brick-based play experience.
No, it hasn’t lost a wheel. LEGO DC 76188 – Batman Classic TV Series Batmobile [Review] – Holy classic car, Batman! We return to the 60’s in style with an updated take on the Adam West era Batmobile. Check out our full Bat-Review!

LEGO Harry Potter reveals 8 new sets for Summer 2021, available to pre-order now – LEGO has just revealed the whole summer wave of Harry Potter sets, and to celebrate the 20th Anniversary of the theme they’ve got exclusive golden minifigures, collectible Wizard Cards, and more.
An (eight) arms race – Marvel 76198 Spider-Man & Doctor Octopus Mech Battle [Review] – Come along as we take an early look at an upcoming mech battle between Spider-Man and Doc Ock!
LEGO Marvel 76187 Venom: when you have an ugly face but a great smile [Review] – Venom, the toothy-grinned anti-hero foe of Spider-Man, now in convenient mini-sculpture form for all your collecting needs!
The Minions have arrived! LEGO Minions: The Rise of Gru 75546, 75547, and 75550 [Review] – After much delay, the rest of the LEGO Minions sets have finally landed. Today we’re taking a quick look at 3 new sets, so get your Gru-ve on!

OTHER NEWS: There were quite a few other interesting LEGO news articles from around the web this week. Here are the best of the rest:

Legoland New York Construction Tour, Theme Park Insider – Aerial overview of Legoland New York in April 2021
The Biggest Gameplay Additions to the LEGO Franchise Over the Years, GameRant – The LEGO franchise has been around for a long time now, and part of that is due to major gameplay additions that keep the series fresh
The Lego Group Recreates Famous “Pillars of Creation” Image From the NASA/Esa Hubble Space Telescope in Lego Form, WebWire – Inspirational 3D models to be displayed in over 150 LEGO Stores worldwide

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Na-na na-na na-na na-na na-na na-na na-na na-na Batman!

Batman wasn’t always the dark, grunting, brooding anti-hero we’ve come to know. In the ’60s the Adam West-era Batman was wholesome, a bit sillier, and definitely into go-go dancing. Along with all that campiness came the most iconic Batmobile of all time and Alex “Orion Pax” Jones does it justice in LEGO. Not only was it the most iconic Batmobile ever, but one of the most iconic cars ever. Period. The original was designed by George Barris and was based on the 1955 Lincoln Futura. Even more than a decade later the mid-century Lincoln was futuristic beyond compare and thus a perfect basis for the ’66 Batmobile. Alex has a knack for hitting us right in the nostalgic feels. He cranks out pop culture icons like no one else as evidenced by this previous spotlight feature here on Brothers Brick. If you lack talent and imagination, LEGO recently released the ’66 Batmobile set. Still, I prefer Alex’s version though.

Whether they be official LEGO sets or creations from other builders, check out several other Batmobiles in our archives.

Skull Kid and the stolen mask

Even if you haven’t played The Legend of Zelda: Majora’s Mask, you may recognize it. It’s the symbol of one of the most popular games of its time. Expert LEGO character sculptor Joss Woodyard has graced us with this colorful and fun recreation of the evil Skull Kid. He does a great job of making the actual mask look like the original, but the rest of the body shouldn’t be overlooked. The bushes for arms and flippers for the pants really set it off.

While you’re here, check out more of Joss’s (AKA Jayfa’s) work. And if you’re into Link and the Legend of Zelda, we have that too, including another version of Majora’s Mask!

Space goat from coast to coast

We all know the drill by now. Build a cool Classic Space-inspired LEGO rover, set it in a semi-realistic moonscape of barren rocks. That’s all good and well, because honestly who doesn’t love that? But what I love most about this rover by OA KD is that instead of a moon crater, there’s an adorable space goat munching on some space flowers. But let’s not forget the rover itself, which is a beautiful example of Neo-Classic Space–the modern interpretation of the classic theme from the ’70s and ’80s. While the eggbeater antenna and the little jarred plant are awesome, the detail I love most is those antique grey rubber tires on modern rims, because it looks so perfect for spacey applications like this. I’ve actually tried this on a build a few years ago and found it works great in the short term, but the rims were just a tiny bit tight causing the fragile old rubber to crack after a while, so caution is advised.

But OA KD didn’t just build a space goat and a little day-trip rover. They also built an awesome big rover with treads. It’s loaded with a few canisters for carrying moon plants, and has a cool trans-yellow cockpit courtesy of the old-school angular windows. Continue reading →

LEGO Harry Potter reveals 8 new sets for Summer 2021, available to pre-order now [News]

The core Harry Potter books and movies may be wrapped up now, but the merchandising is still chugging along at top speed. Today, LEGO has unveiled the summer 2021 wave of Harry Potter sets, which brings new additions to the modular Hogwarts castle series, a chess set, and even a totally new series: giant brick-built minifigures. LEGO says that a selection of the sets is available for pre-order starting today, though at the time of writing they haven’t clarified specifically which sets will be available. With prices ranging from $20 to $130 USD, all of the sets will be released on June 1, though most of them are exclusive to specific retailers until August 1.

Click to see all the details on the Summer 2021 Harry Potter sets

An (eight) arms race – Marvel 76198 Spider-Man & Doctor Octopus Mech Battle [Review]

The latest wave of LEGO superhero sets will be released soon, and we’ve been sharing an early look at them. The final set, Marvel 76198-Spider-Man & Doctor Octopus Mech Battle, will be available April 26th from the LEGO Shop Online for US $19.99 | CAN $24.99 | UK £17.99. Doc Ock and Spidey have battled many times in the past, and it’s usually a sight to see. Does this latest mechanical knuckle-buster live up to that grand tradition? Come along as we take a close look!

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.

Click to read the full hands-on review

Whisk us away to the world of Malay

Sometimes a builder waits years for just the right LEGO pieces and colors to come out. That’s exactly what Vincent Kiew did in planning this lovely Kampung House. It took a while for LEGO to produce just the right pieces in dark brown and reddish-brown. The colors are alternated nicely here to replicate the indigenous craftsmanship used in these traditional dwellings. The stilts, shutters, even the intricate roof are all spot on. The chickens, the cat, the cow, even the cart full of vegetables help convey a feeling of relaxation and tranquility. I imagine the home would offer a cool reprise from the Malaysian heat. Vincent tells us this creation was based on a particular village house on Penang island. He also states that being a city-dweller growing up in Kuala Lumpur, he has not had the chance to stay in a Kampung House but his wife had when she was a child. She shared stories of her childhood with him as he worked on this project.

This photo gives us a better glimpse of Vincent’s attention to detail. I’m loving the shutters, woodpile, as well as chickens languishing in the shade.

Vincent closes out his write-up with a question; “does this creation remind you of your sweet childhood, too?” I imagine for our readers from the Malay Peninsula it might. As I was born in Woonsocket, Rhode Island, it doesn’t. In order to envision my childhood, you’d have to imagine cramped three-story walk-up apartments and simple Shaker-style New England homes. But still, we deeply appreciate you sharing your architectural sentiments from your part of the world.

The rise of the DUPLO bunnies

LEGO DUPLO animals might not seem the most approachable for a model. To start with, there’s the challenge of working around the scale and system differences. Also personally, it’s slightly unnerving to see googly-eyed, toddler-friendly counterparts of some of my favorite brick animals, e.g. the DUPLO goat. But Simon Liu presents a clear solution— just suit them up! Add some expert greebling, equip them with some blasters and now these giant bunnies are capable of doing a whole lot more.

Got a soft spot for adorable animals in mech suits? Simon has also created a fluffier variation of the bunny mechs above, the DUPLO bunny plush mech.

Size matters not. Look at me. Judge me by my size, do you?

Amazing LEGO creations aren’t about showing off how many pieces you have. They’re about creativity and using what you’ve got in just the right ways. This tiny motorcycle by RGB900 is roughly minifigure scale, but packs in way more detail than LEGO’s official bikes, since it’s made of a lot more pieces. Of course, this one can’t actually fit a minifigure on it, but I’ll give it a pass on that front. Using robot arms for the frame, this slick ride has handlebars made from revolvers and an exhaust made with binoculars. Even the tires are non-traditional, since the rubber has been turned inside out to make smooth road tires.

Motorcycles aren’t all RGB900 builds, though. Here’s the bike with a sweet-looking Corvette C1 that looks ready to cruise down your LEGO town’s main drag. And don’t miss the super-cool Countach we featured back in February.

Holy Headgear, Batman! – LEGO DC 76182 Batman Cowl [Review]

LEGO continues to tempt adult collectors with sets that are more about a displayable model than the more traditional brick-based play experience. Of note are mini-statues featuring helmets from Star Wars and Marvel properties, a theme that has seen some recent expansions. There are even more on the way, including Marvel villains Venom and Carnage. But DC Comics properties have been strangely absent from the mix…until now. 76182 Batman Cowl was revealed last month and will be available on April 26th and can be pre-ordered now from the LEGO Shop Online for US $59.99 | CAN $79.99 | UK £54.99. This 410-piece set features the caped crusader’s signature headgear, but is it something you’d want to display? Come along as we take a close look at just what this set has to offer, both to the Bat-Fan and the wider LEGO audience.

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.

Click to read the full hands-on review

Two new LEGO Harry Potter sets revealed by online retailer [News]

Pictures of two upcoming LEGO Harry Potter sets were published today on Amazon’s Spanish webpage. 76388 Hogsmeade Village Visit and 76389 Hogwarts Chamber of Secrets seem to be two of the largest sets of the summer wave. The product pictures give a great overview of the models and the minifigures included, but we still have to wait for the official reveal to learn about the prices and availability.

Continue reading →

The ragtag bounty hunters of The Mandalorian

If you grew up watching Star Wars, chances are good you had a favorite bounty hunter. Maybe that was Boba Fett, or maybe it was Greedo (just kidding) but there’s no denying that one stood out from the pack: IG-88. We haven’t gotten to see IG-88 on-screen since The Empire Strikes Back, but fellow assassin droid IG-11 played a fan-favorite role in The Mandalorian, and this LEGO version by NS Brick Designs is perfect. Complete with a speeder bike, this IG-11 is in a large scale that allows it to have plenty of details, including a baby Grogu strapped to the front.

Of course, you can’t make awesome characters from The Mandalorian and not make the titular character, so NS Brick Designs has also built the intrepid hero along with another version of Grogu with his pod. There are lots of nifty designs here, but I particularly like the touch of the cloth capes around the Mandalorian’s neck, which originally hail from Harry Potter Dementors.