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.

Seaside fort has every angle covered

The nature of our favourite modelling medium sees many creations which sit on a “grid” of perpendicular lines. Sometimes all a great LEGO model needs to do is break free of those right-angled rules. That’s exactly what Kai/Geneva has done with this neat little Imperial Fort. It’s a small model, but it’s packed with good technique and interesting lines. Check out the angled bastion walls of the fort’s base and its rounded turret. When you combine that shaping with the weathering effects on the main building, the subtle waves breaking up the expanse of water, and the smart use of brick separators for the roof, you’ve got a lovely little seaside scene.

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Smartphones are just monkey business

I’m something of a Luddite. For example, I am one of the five remaining persons on the planet older than five years of age who does not own a smartphone. Perhaps among the five remaining creatures. I mean, heck, even the monkeys have them these days. Check out this LEGO build of Rafiki snapping a selfie by alego alego; the Lion King mandrill has expertly posed for a silly picture, squinting one eye. I didn’t know that you were allowed to do that; I thought it was all duck lips, all the time. The shaping on the face is brilliant, making good use of some blue horns for the signature mandrill stripes and lots of car wheel wells around the eyes. But my favorite detail is definitely on the back of the phone. Appropriate for a monkey, the fruit branding is not an apple but a banana. Or maybe some tech company has re-branded and I, living in my stone-age hut, have yet to learn that.

Hover car racer crosses the line

This was one of those LEGO models which seemingly popped out of nowhere during the creative process. I started off fiddling around with the new mudguard pieces, thinking they might make for interesting detailing, and almost before I knew it, I had something reminiscent of a muscle car engine grille. At that point, the retro racing vibe kicked in and the rest of the model came together in a couple of hours. I think asymmetry always adds an interesting spark to a model, and so the off-centre elements — the stripe and the protruding engine — were in the plan from an early stage. The domed cockpit came late to the party, but it’s the part of the model I’m most pleased with. I feel it adds a Jetsons-esque touch of the retro-ridiculous, and makes the model more fun than it might have been otherwise. Similarly, the addition of the Friends sticker on the front wing fitted with a racing theme, but represented a change from the usual livery applied to futuristic LEGO vehicles.

Once the model was complete I obviously had to build some kind of backdrop for it. The panel-based scenery is plain and simple, but that’s okay as I’d always planned to motion-blur the hell out of it! I know some people prefer to see their LEGO models in plain and unfiltered images, but for me this one demanded some oomph. I’ve been watching a lot of the Netflix F1 documentary recently, and I was trying to capture something of the same feel, conveying the dynamic nature of the hover car racing competition I had in my head.

Say, “Cheese slope!”

It is an almost surreal experience for me to see a picture of a camera. My brain thinks, “But how did they take the picture if the camera is in the picture?” Of course, I eventually realize there is more than one camera in the world, but it takes my brain longer than it should to get to that conclusion. It’s a bit slow. To make matters worse, sometimes talented builders like Sheo. craft a detailed camera lookalike out of LEGO bricks. Then my brain has the extra step of realizing that it is not even a picture of a camera taken with another camera and that only one camera was involved in the production of the image. It’s hard being a brain sometimes. This Canon EOS 5D is a spot-on replica, lovingly crafted in 1:1 scale, complete with the image of the LEGO build that the camera just photographed on the screen on the back.

It’s got everything a camera could need, from a removable battery to the various SD cards, as well as the ports for your remote and the cable to upload pictures to your computer (it doesn’t include the remote or cables, sadly, but you can get those on Amazon, I’m sure). The only thing that is not LEGO is the strap, and I’m not sure how that could have been done in purist LEGO style short of braiding countless official strings together. And who has time for that? Custom stickers do wonders here, giving it the authentic Canon feel. Don’t miss the tire embedded in the back for some controls, and some rubber bits for tracks are perfect buttons. All things considered, it’s an amazing reproduction of a camera. Now I want to see a full-size picture of the MOC on the camera’s screen. I bet it’s cool, too. And less confusing for my brain.

The beauty that lies beneath the plank

This gorgeous LEGO diorama by Stephan Gofers shows us the ocean’s full depth, from the vivid coral reefs below the waves, to the sleek 3-master sailing on its surface. The pirate crew has captured a hapless guard, forcing him to walk the plank. In no short order, he’ll be admiring the fantastic marine life from a much closer vantage point, and since he’s not wearing handcuffs, we can assume he’ll swim safely to shore to become a new castaway.

While the colorful reef draws the eye first, the ship itself is a lovely model, eschewing LEGO’s pre-made ship hull elements and instead opting for a planked-look made of brown tiles and curved slopes. The furled sails made of curved white slopes also look excellent. Continue reading →

The S-37 “Berkut” is big, bad and black

The Sukhoi S-37/ Su-47, also known as the “Berkut” (“Беркут” or “Golden Eagle”), may look like something from Japanese anime or Ace Combat, but it was very much a real-world aircraft. A little less than twenty years ago, the Sukhoi design bureau (ОКБ Сухого) proposed this sinister-looking jet as the next-generation air superiority fighter for the Russian Air Force. It was a big black beast, with forward-swept wings for added agility and an internal weapons bay. Sukhoi also planned to add thrust-vectoring engines and an aft-looking radar. Although the design seemed promising, eventually things didn’t quite work out. The advanced features were never finished and only a single prototype ever flew.

In 2018 and 2019 I was part of a group of LEGO builders in Vietnam War and Cold War collaborations, for BrickFair Virginia. For the 2020 event, we’re planning another collaboration. We’ve themed it: “eXperimental Military”. It’s all about X-planes, prototypes and technology demonstrators. S-37 is my first contribution. To fit the styles of the other builders involved, I’ve once again adopted a slightly different aesthetic from my usual studded look. The model is almost completely studless. Rather than using plates and wedge plates for the wings, I built them using bricks mounted on their sides. Hinged sections at the leading and trailing edges hold slopes, to make them less blunt. Minifig scale is quite small and minifigs are a bit awkward. Nonetheless and despite the undercarriage bay underneath, the cockpit can house a minifig pilot, with the canopy closed. The real aircraft was not a success, but it sure makes for a badass looking LEGO model.

Wheel need some bigger tires

I love vehicles with big, knobby tires. Just love ’em. My dream ride is a tricked out, super-lifted Jeep Rubicon, ready to crawl the ruggedest rocks on the planet. But that’s not all big wheels are good for. They are also useful for getting your massive military machine from point A to point B, through all weather and terrain. Brick Ninja demonstrates this ably with this LEGO artillery truck. The olive green looks appropriately military, and the splash of orange gives a nice pop of contrast, adding some sci-fi flair. It says, “Camouflage? We don’t need no stinking camouflage!” The greebles are not overdone, which makes sense since it is an armored vehicle (who would leave a bunch of important stuff on the outside to get blasted off?). And I love the crew, complementing the colors of the vehicle while giving life to the scene.

New LEGO Star Wars busts revealed: 75276 Stormtrooper and 75277 Boba Fett [News]

LEGO continues to pursue the adult market with its range of Star Wars sets, and today we’re getting a look at two more unique display pieces, 75276 Stormtrooper and 75277 Boba Fett. The pair of busts was revealed by retailer Toysanta earlier today, and each features upscale box art in a style that’s new to the LEGO Star Wars lineup, with the character’s name displayed prominently across the top. Both sets celebrate the 40th anniversary of The Empire Strikes Back, which was released in 1980, and feature the anniversary logo on the box.

There’s no word yet on when to expect these to hit stores or their official pricing, though Toysanta’s prices seem to indicate they’ll retail for around $70-$80 USD. Of course, this isn’t the first time LEGO has produced character busts from Star Wars. Recently the company has launched two similar (though smaller) sets, each available in a limited market. The 75227 Darth Vader Bust was available only to Target Red Card holders, while 77901 Sith Trooper Bust was only given away to randomly selected attendees at San Diego Comic-Con in 2019. We don’t know yet what the availability for these sets will be, but we hope that LEGO does the right thing and makes them widely available. Going way back, the much larger 10018 Darth Maul bust from 2001 was among the first LEGO Star Wars sets targeted at adult fans.

Continue reading →

The Good, the Lad, and the Ugly

Amidst all the detailed and complex LEGO models of our lord and savior Baby Yoda, it’s easy to overlook some of the more subtle renditions of our yiddle messiah. In these trying times though, we still have much to be thankful for, as JS_Ninjnerd has made sure to depict all 8 pounds, 6 ounces of our dear baby Yoda with only a handful of pieces. And though it’s easy to hone in on him, the Child isn’t really the focus of this model. While yes, the scene playing out does depict the good Mandalorian protecting the wee lad baby Yoda from the ugly Trandoshans, the setting built up around them is breathtakingly sculpted. I’m a sucker for good rock work, and this one sucked me right in. While the technique isn’t anything new, it’s executed well here, and the colour combination of dark tan and medium nougat is refreshing.

Can a sparkly vampire also be a brooding billionaire Batman?

We’ve seen Robert Pattinson nail his role as a glittery vampire in the Twilight series. But will a sparkly vampire who is perpetually in high school and whose true love appears to be just one Jell-O Shooter away from vomiting translate well for the role of a brooding, emotionally-stunted billionaire orphan with bat issues? No matter where you stand on that debate you have to admit that the new Batmobile for the upcoming The Batman movie looks intriguing. Builder u/ZeRadman is probably the first to render up a LEGO version and it looks like good old Detroit muscle with a few Mad Max-style customizations. This might have been the first but if I know LEGO builders (and it seems I do) this won’t be the last. As for Pattinson as Batman I say give him a chance. All the fanboys were up in arms over Affleck and look how…um…yeah. Anyway, cool Batmobile!

TBB Weekly Brick Report: LEGO news roundup for March 7, 2020

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 January 2020.

March Madness is here and we have all the new LEGO sets for you to peruse. Keep reading our Brick Report to get all the details.

TBB NEWS, REVIEWS AND INSTRUCTIONS: This week we learned that you can’t keep a good giraffe down, watched the making of a life-size LEGO model of Iron Man, and reviewed two sets: a Technic Car Transporter and Jurassic World T. Rex vs Dino-Mech Battle. Meanwhile, our mind flaying Stranger Things contest continues gathering strength and entries.

LEGO Designer Pierre Normandin talks about his inspirations for the new LEGO Creator Expert 10271 Fiat 500 set [Video] – Watch LEGO designer Pierre Normandin sharing secrets of his latest creation, Fiat 500 set.
Build your own microscale Phoenix from Gatchaman [Instructions] – This microscale Phoenix from builder len_d69 is 51 pieces of Gatchaman greatness.
The LEGO Creator Expert 10271 Fiat 500 is like cool, Daddy-O! [Review] – We reviewed the new LEGO Creator Expert 10271 Fiat 500 set. Will the end result be “La Dulce Vita” or “La Acida Vita”?
Leaving LEGO Masters: An interview with the third team to leave [Feature] – We sat down with the team of LEGO Masters contestants eliminated last week during the Movie Mashup episode to chat about their experience.
LEGO Speed Champions 76899 Lamborghini Urus ST-X & Huracán Super Trofeo EVO [Review] – We’re revisiting the new eight-wide LEGO Speed Champions released in January.
Your guide to the 23 new LEGO sets for March 2020, including Dots, Fiat, Marvel and more [News] – We have your guide to all the new LEGO sets available now, including the Fiat 500 and the entire new Dots line!

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:

Seeing A Void In Retail, Lego Will Open 150 Stores This Year, Forbes – If you’re going to sell bricks—even toy ones—what better place to do so than in brick-and-mortar stores?
Lego is the world’s most reputable company as tech giants lag, survey says, CNBC – Lego has topped a list of the world’s most reputable companies for the fourth year in a row.
The 10 Best LEGO Video Games of All Time, Ranked, Esquire – It’s impossible to do better than the masterpiece that is LEGO Star Wars.

This knight shines on

Knights in shining armour are rarely as shiny as this LEGO creation. Moko’s knight mech is the shiniest knight I’ve seen. On top of the pure shiny factor, this guy is incredibly ornate to boot. The elegance is easily noticed in the halberd; the axe head and spike are eye catching focal points. The helmet is also distinct: while it might look a little large for the dwarf it’s intended for, it fits appropriately here. What’s truly amazing is how well the builder was able to sculpt the form using the limited palette of silver and gold pieces. The cleverest parts usage are the Hero Factory masks as thighs and knees.