I don’t know how many sleepless nights I’ve had while anxiously wishing someone would build a LEGO Mecha Heterocephalus-glaber. I know what you’re thinking; we’ve all been there, right? Thankfully, Mitsuru Nikaido answered our prayers and maybe now we can get some sleep for once. For those uninitiated with this creature’s scientific name, it is commonly called a naked mole-rat. (Tee-hee!) Mitsuru is no stranger to building weird mecha creatures of all kinds. Of all of youse, he’s probably the most qualified to build an awesome mech mole-rat, to be honest. Now, if I can’t sleep, it’ll be for other worrisome reasons like; do algorithms dream of electric murder? Why is my mom using the eggplant emoji? Is that Matt Gaetz behind the hamper?
Category Archives: LEGO
LEGO 71030 Looney Tunes Collectible Minifigures [Review]
In its unstoppable quest to bring every piece of your childhood memories under its umbrella, LEGO has added another venerable IP to its stable with the 71030 Looney Tunes Collectible Minifigures. Although LEGO has collaborated with Warner Brothers many times previously (The LEGO Movie was a WB production, after all, to say nothing of DC) Warner Brothers’ famous cartoon characters had not yet graced the LEGO aisle of your local toy store. The new series of 12 unique figures targets some of the best-known characters from the animated shorts with Bugs Bunny, Daffy Duck, Roadrunner, and others. And although the series is not explicitly marketed as such (there’s no reference on the packaging) it’s conveniently timed to coincide with this summer’s upcoming movie Space Jam: A New Legacy with LeBron James, and Lola Bunny with a basketball is included in the series. The new minifigures will be available for US $4.99 | CAN $4.99 | UK £3.49 starting April 26, although some readers report already seeing them pop up in stores now.
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.
A picture perfect LEGO camera
When it comes to recreating real-world objects out of LEGO, cameras are a popular subject. Ben Tritschler has created a great example that would feel at home at any high-end photography shop. There are plenty of clever part choices here including red rubber-band accents and a spider as a knob. But the thing that really “sells” this illusion for me is the string attaching the lens cap to the camera body.
This build also looks incredible from the back. Ben used a lot of printed elements from the 71374 Nintendo Entertainment System (NES) set to add plenty of realistic details.
Ben’s first version of this camera was self-limited to 101 parts as part of the RogueOlympics. If you’re interested in some great minimal-part-count creations, you should check out some of the other featured builds from that competition.
I bet it’s as slimy as it looks
I’ve always thought sand green is the perfect LEGO colour to capture the feeling of being sea sick, and what better subject for “seasick” than Davy Jones’ decapitated head? Well, maybe Rickard Stensby agrees with me, because he’s so greatly captured what I just described.
This trophy just oozes with character too. The tail pieces as facial tentacles blowing in the wind seem very deliberately selected and placed, while the square corners around his mouth perfectly represent the character from the films. The eyes and eyebrows convey so much with so little. My favourite little touch are the 1×1 round plates with holes used a barnacles on his hat – making it truly appear that he was fished out of the ocean.
Spider-bots of the apocalypse!
“Not much still stands of the dead cities, but the twisted ruins make for good cover and even better hunting grounds.” That is the tagline provided for this LEGO render by _Regn. There’s a lot to love here. The dilapidated arching structure is particularly striking and there’s the post-apocalyptic guy doing post-apocalyptic stuff in the background there. The mech-tank-spider though…that’s going to haunt my dreams for a while. It’s just your typical stuff that goes on in the mind of this particular builder. Upon further inspection, there is really nothing typical about this builder at all. They’re new to us here at The Brothers Brick but with creations this imaginative we’ll surely keep all eight eyes in their direction; poised and ready to pounce on what they may do next.
LEGO officially reveals the Looney Tunes collectible minifigures [News]
Without a dedicated press release, LEGO routinely shares an official product picture for the new collectible minifigure series. 71030 The Looney Tunes series includes 12 characters. Prices and availability are yet to be confirmed.
TBB Weekly Brick Report: LEGO news roundup for April 10, 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 second week of April 2021.
We get our hands on the latest symbiote from the Marvel bust series, Carnage! Keep reading our Brick Report for all the details.
TBB NEWS & REVIEWS: This week we saw the availability of several new superhero sets and the new Space Shuttle Discovery model, got cheeky with April Fool’s Day, dug in deep with a list of top excavator sets and more!
- What’s black and white and red all over? – LEGO Marvel 76199 Carnage [Review] – Building on the success of their Star Wars helmets, LEGO has been producing more mini-busts based on other pop culture licenses. First out of the gate in 2021 is Marvel 76199 Carnage
- LEGO reveals exclusive golden figures celebrating 20 years of LEGO Harry Potter – LEGO reveals 6 golden minifigures to celebrate 20 Years of LEGO Harry Potter. Will you add them all to your collection?
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:
- Lego enthusiast explains why the black market for the toy bricks is so lucrative, CBC – The Brothers Brick’s very own Chris Malloy weighs in on the LEGO black market.
- Tierra Whack Partners With Lego for Whimsical ‘Link’ Music Video, Rolling Stone – Whack’s creative vision for the clip came from a group of Philadelphia school children
Looney Tunes voice actor Eric Bauza teases the new LEGO Collectible Minifigures on his Twitter [News]
While LEGO’s official social feeds are busy revealing the new Looney Tunes collectible minifigures one by one, Canadian voice actor Eric Bauza doesn’t shy away from bragging a couple of boxes full of yet to be revealed Looney Tunes minifigures on his Twitter account. Last December, Eric was put in charge of voicing Bugs Bunny, so he doesn’t miss a chance to bring some of the new LEGO minifigures to life while unpacking them.
https://twitter.com/bauzilla/status/1380776280778362880
Back at the base for repairs
Sam Malmberg‘s “Nebula 47 Hangar” is a feat of LEGO engineering. Let’s take a look at why this Federation scout ship is one of the best builds I’ve seen today.
Take your eyes past the Nebula 47 itself and gaze upon the beauty that is the pipework! The twisting tubes are fantastic, implying a network of vast support systems that are behind the bulkhead. Additionally, the arrow on the hangar deck is made from bricks in a pattern that isn’t common in sci-fi builds.
When I look at the Nebula 47, I see a little bit of the Ghost from Star Wars: Rebels. However, Sam has utilized his skill in creating a ship of his own. I dig the minifigure ski poles used as blasters on the wings. I also like the use of the color tan along the main body. Tan isn’t a color I often see on a spaceship, but this more than works. It’s out of this world!
I’ll huff and I’ll puff!
As a kid, I always loved Disney’s version of the three little pigs. Alego alego managed to capture the big bad wolf in all its wickedness. I am always a fan of a creation that looks as if it is in motion. This LEGO creation is a wonderful example of one that evokes movement. A couple of things attributed to the idea of motion in this creation. Let’s start with the Wolf. His pose is very dynamic as if we caught him mid-action. The builder use of the boulder bottom for inflated cheeks is quite clever. The rock fingers and the polygon wedge top mimic fur brilliantly.
But not just the pose of the wolf evokes movement. We’re at the first little pig’s home. The one who has built his house with straws. The wolf just delivered his iconic lines about huffing and puffing and blowing houses away and he is now in the middle of the process. The straw flying everywhere sure looks amazing! All of the vegetation is bending in the same direction as the straw is flying. Even the books pages are moving along with the huffing and the puffing of the wolf.
Would you like to take it for a spin?
The Sci-fi masterpiece Bladerunner brought us the original Spinner, and the 2017 follow-up film, Blade Runner: 2049 featured a few new versions. Marius Herrmann treats us to the one driven by the main character, A replicant named K. The model itself is stunning in its attention to detail, and the dramatic image of the desolate landscape makes the perfect backdrop.
The spinner doesn’t just look good on the outside. Like the on-screen inspiration, the doors swing up from the front, and Marius included a fully detailed interior.
What’s black and white and red all over? – LEGO Marvel 76199 Carnage [Review]
Building on the success of their Star Wars helmets, LEGO has been producing more mini-busts based on other pop culture licenses. In 2020 an Iron Man helmet joined the ranks, and in 2021 we’re getting even more comic-book related heads. First out of the gate is Marvel 76199 Carnage, a Target retailer exclusive that can also be obtained directly from LEGO for US $59.99 | CAN $79.99 | UK £54.99 starting April 11th in the US and Canada, and in the UK on May 1st. This 546 piece set depicts the Spider-Man arch-foe with plenty of creepy detail, but does it have larger appeal beyond a villainous dust catcher? Read on and see!
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