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.

A long time ago in a galaxy far, far away...

This holiday season, Star Wars fans are flocking to movie theaters to see the final installment in the Skywalker saga. Since Star Wars came out in 1977, we’ve grown older, some of us have had kids of our own, some have bought homes, held more than a few jobs, some of us may even be looking as old and grizzled as Luke Skywalker himself. No matter how we turned out in life, Star Wars fans who were children or young adults in 1977 recall the year that changed their lives immesuably. An entity named NS Brick Designs has sparked a sense of wonder and nostalgia for older Star Wars fans with a LEGO rendition of the original Tom Jung pulp poster that started it all.

Luke’s robe billows open revealing his massively muscled chest while a subservient, sultry Leia slinks at his feet holding a blaster. This wasn’t the reality of the movie; Luke wasn’t all that ripped and it turns out Princess Leia could hold her own and wasn’t going to play second fiddle to a farm boy from Tatooine. But pulp images, especially this one inspired by the fantasy art of Frank Frazetta, have a way of capturing the imagination and bending perceptions a bit. Now in modern times, we are calling the newest movie the last of the Skywalker saga, but we have new heroes to look up to such as Finn, Rey and Poe. Thanks to a dedicated fan base and thanks, in part, to images like this one, the magic and lore of Star Wars has persisted with us most of our lives and will likely remain with us for generations to come.

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LEGO Ninjago Avatar Arcade Pods: 71714 Kai, 71715 Jay, and 71716 Lloyd [Review]

Each year LEGO’s homebrewed Ninjago theme finds a new setting for its cast of pseudo-ninja heroes, ranging from sky pirates to medieval fantasy. The theme has always reveled in a no-holds-barred approach to mixing and matching ancient bladed weapons, advanced technology, and outrageous antagonists. The 2020 lineup’s twist is a cyberpunk aesthetic set in a digital world via a videogame. All of the Ninjago heroes find themselves dueling in the cyber realms via their avatars, bringing a Ready Player One-like plotline to LEGO’s most successful in-house theme. Today we’re looking at a trio of small sets that serve as the entry points to theme both for the consumers and the characters in the world. These arcade cabinet boxes are the transformation portals wherein Kai, Jay, and Lloyd are transformed into their digital avatars. 71714 Kai Avatar – Arcade Pod (US $9.99 | CAN $13.99 | UK £8.99), 71715 Jay Avatar – Arcade Pod (US $9.99 | CAN $13.99 | UK £8.99), and 71716 Lloyd Avatar – Arcade Pod (US $9.99 | CAN $13.99 | UK £8.99) will be available starting January 1. They contain about 50 pieces each.

Click to read the full review

The story behind LEGO’s 1981 Classic Space Christmas card [Feature]

Last year, we shared an article on vintage LEGO holiday greeting cards. The LEGO Group has established a tradition of giving their employees exclusive Christmas themed sets like the X-Mas X-Wing for the holiday season. Even longer than that, since at least the 1970s, the LEGO Group has produced special Christmas cards for employees (and, occasionally, the UK LEGO Club). Each year brings a new card, with artwork ranging from carefully staged minifigures to elaborate brick-built designs. You can find blank examples that were used to send personalized messages, as well as cards with printed holiday greetings from LEGO’s leadership, such as owner Kjeld Kirk Kristiansen.

Continue reading for the story behind LEGO’s spacey 1981 Christmas card.

Showdown with the Mandalorian

Do not self destruct! This diorama featuring the climactic battle from Chapter 1 of The Mandalorian deserves never to be taken apart. “Outpost on Arvala-7” is built by none other than KevFett2011 — one of the most accomplished LEGO builders in the world, who has returned with this stunning model of The Mandalorian and IG-11 closing in on their bounty.

In a way, this build is incredibly simple: There are only four colors used in the hut, well and landscape. Deciding what color palette to use in a highly-detailed scene can be frustrating, but here KevFett utilizes the saying “less is more”.

Another aspect of the build that I like is the roughness of everything. There are hardly any smooth surfaces, which makes sense on a harsh desert world like Arvala-7. Slopes, studs, and angular pieces help illustrate the idea that the pair of bounty hunters are not welcome here, and that they’ll have to fight their way to their goal.

Only 2 weeks to Bricks LA 2020, Southern California’s premier LEGO convention, Jan 11-12 [News]

Bricks LA is Southern California’s premier LEGO convention, open to the public January 11-12. Builders from around the country will gather at the Pasadena Convention Center to showcase more than 13,000 square feet of amazing creations to eager LEGO fans of all ages. Vendors will be selling vintage LEGO sets, LEGO-themed jewelry, custom gifts, and more. Tickets are only $5, with kids under 5 free, and are available online.

Bricks LA also offers a special experience for adult LEGO fans, beginning January 10. Participants will enjoy LEGO-related games, panels, prizes, and more, as well as be able to display their custom creations for the public. For more information, click here.

The Brothers Brick is proud to be a sponsor of Bricks LA.

Not your usual Star Wars build

Lately, between The Mandalorian and The Rise of Skywalker, the LEGO building community has seen a great wealth of fan creations based on all things Star Wars. This is not, in itself, a bad thing. I mean, Baby Yoda is indeed very cute. But it’s still nice when a builder will take things in a very unexpected direction. Let’s say you have a 75117 Kylo Ren set on hand. Sure, you could build it according to the directions and act out your favorite Dark Side moments. But Letranger Absurde decided to take those parts and present a very different Dark Side vision. The Blood Countess takes key parts from that set and turns them into a vision of malice that is, to me anyway, just a bit scarier.

The most obvious part is Kylo’s torso, inverted and used for the Countess’ abdomen. Less easy to identify are the shoulder guards now forming her bodice. Of the non-kit parts in use, I like the Ninjago influence in the hat for the belt buckle and spinner ring in the sash detailing. Beyond the Countess herself, check out the build on the heart (or other glob of flesh) in her hand. There’s a telephone receiver in there. Is the secret message of this build “reach out and touch someone?” Gosh, I hope not.

Build and own the Tesla Cybertruck right now [Instructions]

Why wait for Elon Musk to release the Cybertruck when you can own your very own right now? No deposit required! We know it’s not going to have the autopilot feature, but it’s not really going to be a big deal-breaker here thanks to Hachiroku24. If it comes apart in any unfortunate accidents, it’s going to be 100% rebuildable right back to the condition that it came in. How does that work?

Click to see full video instructions

Completing a lap around the test track in LEGO Technic 42109 App-Controlled Top Gear Rally Car [Review]

Some say that LEGO is only meant for kids and season 3 of Top Gear was the best one. All we know is LEGO and the BBC are bringing a very special LEGO Technic set, 42109 App-Controlled Top Gear Rally Car, and it is powered by a couple of new Powered Up motors. Thanks to Bluetooth connectivity, the car can be controlled via an app installed on a smartphone or a tablet. Despite the smart elements under the bonnet, the model consists of just 463 pieces, which makes it one of the smallest LEGO remote-controlled cars ever released. The set comes with a price tag of US $129.99 | CAN $179.99 | UK £124.99 and is already available in stores.

Click here to continue reading…

Set sail through the ruins of Valyria

Some really great large Game of Thrones LEGO creations have been built in the last few years (if I don’t say so myself). Ekjohnson1 has built a number of amazing smaller Game of Thrones models, including this masterful vignette of Tyrion Lannister and Jorah Mormont sailing through Valyria. The amount of detail jam-packed into this small scene is amazing.

Right off the bat, I have to recognize the parts chosen for the custom minifigs. There is no question which characters are represented. Beyond that, there is so much to be in awe of here, such as the wands and claws as reeds. Two techniques stand out as most impressive to me both being held together by gravity and balance. First, the upside-down green hats being used as a plant – amazing. Second, and fittingly described at the bottom of the paragraph, is the use of 1×1 round tiles at the bottom of the model to represent the water simply but effectively.

This LEGO Baby Yoda sips and silently judges you

With so much new Star Wars content coming at us this holiday season, it’s easy to lose sight of what’s really important in life. Thankfully Caleb Watson is here to remind us life is good, because Baby Yoda is here.

Maybe you think I’m joking, but then you take a look at that cute little 50-year-old baby drinking his cuppa soup and you’ll see what I mean. Memes are one thing – and I’m not complaining, I am here for Baby Yoda memes – but LEGO models take this to the next level. And then Caleb took it to a whole other level by giving his model of the tiny Force user movement. Now let’s all sit back, and watch LEGO Baby Yoda drink all our troubles away.

For more of how Caleb’s mechanical mind thinks, check out his in-depth article on constructing a LEGO representation of a genetic disease.

Home for the holidays

LEGO builder Deborah Higdon brings us this cheery home vignette to wish us a merry Christmas. Like all the best things about the holidays, it’s simple yet crafted with great thoughtfulness and care. From the shingled tile roof to the clean siding, working porch lights, and the delicate railings wrapped in garland, each aspect of this house is a masterwork of details working together to create a realistic house.

But Deborah didn’t just stop at the outside; after all, what’s Christmas without a comfy interior? The tree has been removed in this photo so that we can see extra interior details, but don’t worry, it’s definitely there. Check out Deborah’s album for more details.

Christmas X-Wing: the Lego 2019 employee exclusive set [Review]

Each Christmas, the LEGO Group gives their employees a special gift in the form of an exclusive holiday-themed LEGO set. These sets often celebrate the company’s milestones, such as the home of LEGO’s founder with Ole Kirk’s House in 2012 and the 50th anniversary of LEGO trains with 50 Years on Track in 2016. This year, LEGO delivered a special present from a galaxy far, far away with set 4002019 Christmas X-Wing, designed to commemorate the 20th anniversary of the LEGO Star Wars license. Set 4002019 consists of 1,038 pieces and has been distributed to LEGO’s employees worldwide. Since this was given as a free gift, there isn’t any official retail pricing – Based on recent eBay completed listings, you can currently expect to pay anywhere from $200 to $300 USD. While not available in stores, you can purchase it via other avenues like eBay.

Read on for our in-depth review of this festive LEGO Star Wars set.