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.

And a-roving, a-roving, a-roving I’ll go

See Mars the scenic way! Take a ride in Guido Brandis‘ fabulous All-Terrain Mobile Laboratory Rover. Its big fat wheels will stop you sinking into the dust, and its large solar panels should provide more than enough power for your journey plus any little experiments you might want to complete on the way. For a one-colour model, this manages to have remarkable visual impact, and that’s down to the density of the detail applied to every surface. This thing is greeble-tastic, with functional-looking elements applied everywhere — piping, antennae, comms dishes, and paneling. The presentation of the model is also excellent (nice work on the shadows in particular), making the vehicle look properly embedded in its environment. I’d love to hit Valles Marineris in this bad boy–those Martians, they see me rollin’ and they be hatin’.

The Brothers Brick is funded by our readers and the community. Articles may include affiliate links, and when you purchase products from those links, TBB may earn a commission that helps support the site.

TBB Weekly Brick Report: LEGO news roundup for April 28, 2019 [News]

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 last week of April 2019.

More than 50 new LEGO sets have been revealed coming in Summer 2019. Read on to see each new product line announcement and even more LEGO news of the week.

TBB REVIEWS: We took a look at the most popular set from Bricklink’s ADP program, an Avengers: Endgame set, and peeked inside the most recent LEGO Star Wars promotional box.

Review of Löwenstein Castle set from BrickLink’s AFOL Designer Program – We take a look at Löwenstein Castle, the largest of BrickLink’s AFOL Designer Program sets.
Review of LEGO Avengers 76125 Iron Man Hall Of Armour – This set takes the record for most Iron Man suits in one LEGO set, but is it any good otherwise?
What’s in the box? Review of LEGO 5005704 Star Wars Mystery Box – LEGO’s promotional Star Wars Mystery Box has us all wondering: what’s in the box?

MORE TBB NEWS: From new sets on sale and two new exclusives, we have your other LEGO news of the week including the LEPIN raid and the change in regional exclusive set availability.

Your guide to the 21 new LEGO sets for mid-April 2019 including LEGO Movie 2, Toy Story 4, Spider-Man and Powered Up components – Here is your guide to all the new LEGO sets now available, including a whole new motorization system.
LEGO will make regional exclusive sets available worldwide starting next month – LEGO announced that future regional exclusives like the Chinese New Year sets and Darth Vader Bust will be available in LEGO Stores and online after a limited period of time.
LEGO 80103 Dragon Boat Race officially revealed with 15 minifigures, available May 1st – LEGO officially revealed the next regional exclusive set from Asia.
Arrests made in LEPIN raid over the continued manufacture of counterfeit LEGO products – LEPIN has now raided by Shanghai police which may be the end of the company.
LEGO Star Wars gift with purchase for May the Fourth revealed as 40333 Battle of Hoth – This exclusive LEGO Star Wars 20th Anniversary set will be available May 3-6.

LEGO SUMMER 2019 SETS: LEGO unleashed a torrent of new sets coming in summer 2019. Here is you summary of the first half from Hogwarts to the high heavens.

LEGO City is going to outer space with 6 new sets for summer 2019 – Check out these six brand new LEGO City sets, featuring a futuristic space shuttle, Mars rover and space station.
More LEGO City summer 2019 sets revealed including new Fairground People Pack and Donut Shop – Four more LEGO City sets are coming this summer, including a people pack to populate a carnival fairground.
LEGO Creator Summer 2019 wave features a new fairground ride, townhouse, helicopter and more – Four new LEGO 3 in 1 Creator sets have been revealed.
LEGO Harry Potter Summer 2019 partial wave revealed including Hogwarts Clock Tower, Hagrid’s Hut and more – LEGO Harry Potter returns with three new sets featuring Hogwarts, Hagrid’s Hut and more magical locations.

MORE LEGO SUMMER 2019 SETS: The fun in the sun continues with four more LEGO product lines revealed, from dinosaurs to the deep sea.

LEGO Architecture Summer 2019 wave features Trafalgar Square and a towering Empire State Building – This will be the the Empire State Building’s third (and by far largest) outing in LEGO form, along with the previously revealed Trafalgar Square.
LEGO Jurassic World sets from Legend of Isla Nublar animated mini-series – It’s time to return to Jurassic World with four new sets from the Legend of Isla Nublar. Check out the new dinos, characters, and more.
LEGO Friends Summer 2019 wave revealed with 8 sets including a fairground pier, carnival rides, restaurant and more – Here is your first look at the upcoming LEGO Friends sets. Take a close look, because these sets are packed with interesting detail and pieces.
More LEGO Friends Summer 2019 sets revealed featuring an ocean of new cute animals, a lighthouse and more – LEGO Friends is back with four more sets for the summer exploring the ocean for seahorses, baby turtles, fish and even a narwhal.

This guitar has a “brick” sound to it

This guitar can definitely bring on some sweet rhythms. Builder Letranger Absurde built this LEGO replica of a Collings AT-16 guitar for a LEGO club contest, and I have to say I just want to grab it out of the picture and play it. Look closely, and you can see the tuning pegs are created by spoon elements. I really dig the gaps in the guitar box, as well as the crutch element at the bottom for extra detail. Strum on, Letranger!

Chitty Chitty Bang Bang, our fine four-fendered friend!

One look at GunnBuilding‘s Chitty Chitty Bang Bang and you’ll be transported back to your childhood toot sweet! Many of us hold fond memories of the 1968 movie version (the Child Catcher notwithstanding) about a wacky inventor and his fantastic flying car. A bit of trivia for you: The original novel was written by Ian Fleming. Fleming is probably best known as the creator of James Bond, the owner of another iconic car, the Aston Martin DB5.

Almost all of Chitty’s details are represented here including the red spoked wheels, silver dash and boat-like passenger area. I love the inclusion of the old time bulb horn made from a potion bottle and of course, the red and yellow wings cleverly created from folded minifigure capes. It even includes a minifig version of the car’s fictional inventor, Caractacus Potts. The only things missing are the wing propellers and the front and back fins which GunnBuilding plans to add in the future. His original plan was to create the fins using minifig flippers, but since they don’t come in a red and yellow striped version, he is still searching for another solution. But even without them, this car is still perfect for flying away to Hushabye Mountain in style.

Any day is a good day in Paris

Here’s a building challenge for you: Build an image of Paris with LEGO bricks. What would you include in your version? The Eiffel tower? Or maybe the famous Louvre? And how about a small french bakery? There are so many icons of the capital of France to choose from, but Markus Rollbühler nail this challenge in the most elegant way. His Parisian corner has nothing to do with sightseeing or monuments, but its every little detail says Bonjour! It takes some time to spy all the awesome elements of the diorama, but my number one pick is Citroën 2CV, ça c’est magnifique!

Arrests made in LEPIN raid over the continued manufacture of counterfeit LEGO products [News]

Following the court case against LEPIN in November 2018, the Chinese counterfeiters are back in the news again and, this time, the police are involved. On Tuesday, April 23rd police raided the Shenzhen plant belonging to the notorious manufacturer of imitation LEGO products. Shanghai police orchestrated the raid, which led to four arrests including the leader of LEPIN’s parent company, Meizhi. According to a post on the Shanghai police’s Weibo account, over 200 million RMB (nearly 30 million USD) of LEPIN products were confiscated. This included more than 630,000 finished sets, 200,000 boxes, 200,000 instruction leaflets and manuals, and over 90 production molds.

Learn more about the LEPIN raid, including pictures from this breaking story

Hang in there, little plant.

We love progress. Our cities, our monuments, even our parking lots are all built for the betterment of mankind. But no matter how far we progress, how tall we make our buildings or how shiny a monument may be, one fact will always remain true. Someday Mother Nature will reclaim what was once hers. Builder Emil Lidé illustrates this notion with this creation he calls “Breaking Through”. No stranger to building beautiful flora and fauna, he clearly has a deep respect for nature. We’ve highlighted his Yin and Yang Panda House before and while this piece is less extravagant, its message conveys strength and endurance. It is important to remember that the balance between mankind and nature is precarious. Every skyscraper began with a plan and every mighty oak began as a humble acorn. I have never rooted for a plant to win more than this little guy here.

Tell Obi-Wan we found a more wretched hive of scum and villainy

Obi-Wan Kenobi once mused that you would “never find a more wretched hive of scum and villainy” than Mos Eisley Spaceport, but Ben Cossy’s Nar Shaddaa Cantina might give Mos Eisley a run for its money. A moon in the Hutt system, Nar Shaddaa is known for its underworld, bounty hunters, and Hutt cartels.

The structure itself is the perfect backdrop of a suspect cantina: the mixed texture of the floors make it look rough and the windows are reminiscent of concept art for Jabba the Hutt’s palace. The cargo piled up across from the bar is an ideal spot for illicit deals, and the expression on the Cerean bartenders face implies that he could handle his own with the most dangerous of the patrons. The characters are where this creation shines. While often minifigures are a nice highlight for a model, here they are the main focus and are almost form a landscape themselves. There are recognizable characters like Aurra Sing, Dengar, Bossk, IG-88 and Embo mixed in with unidentified Humans, Mandalorians, Rodians, Twi’leks, and a whole host of other species from a galaxy far, far away. Finally, I do love that Galidor is coming to the Star Wars universe – at least according to the poster on the wall.

This magical workshop holds a secret

Builder Brick Ninja brings us a terrific homage to the classic LEGO Castle set Majisto’s Magical Workshop. In this updated version, a lone wizard protects his cottage from a group of ghostly ninjas. Bright orange fire shoots from his hands, creating a formidable opponent against the glowing katanas.

The workshop seems to emerge from the landscape, utilizing a large rock formation as its foundation. The color scheme is striking with the combo of black, dark red and brown accented with gold, silver and a pair of earth blue window shutters. While stickers can often be hit or miss, the use of the runes sticker from 9473 The Mines of Moria over the balcony is perfect. The plant-covered roof with its heavy beams is a nice finisher for this sorcerous abode. Of additional note is the wonderful tree, which makes use of upside down spiky vines, giving the whole thing a pleasing shape.

Not only is this MOC impressive on the outside, it conceals a secret as well! As with its predecessor, the whole model opens to reveal a highly detailed interior featuring a library, bedroom, spiral staircase, sitting room and attic storage. I am particularly fond of the multiple fireplaces wending their way up the side of the building. Click to check out the full interior

One fancy bike for a fancy rider

It looks like the classic chopper is never going out of style, as demonstrated by this futuristic looking bike with swooping handlebars by Eero Okkonen. I love the way that the wings on the rider’s boots are picked up as a detail on the back of the bike. One missable detail is the red bumper part used to support the rider as he’s leaning into those sharp turns.

I don’t know about you, but I am also getting a definite Akira vibe with those big red angled parts at the front and back of the bike. And speaking of red parts, the macaroni pipes give those boots quite the look.

If you like this model, be sure to check out some other creations by Eero recently featured here on TBB.

Stop the traitor on Takodana

When recreating a movie scene, a LEGO creation done right will make you feel like you’re in the scene yourself. That’s exactly what Carter Witz has done with his Dual on Takodana. Star Wars fans will remember the moment when FN-2199 (nicknamed TR-8R by the fans) confronts Finn in the remains of Maz Kanata’s castle.

The mix of different dark grey pieces recall the look of the castle, both before it was destroyed – as seen in the structures left standing – and after. The destroyed stone of the castle is highlighted by fallen trees, bent metal, and small fires dotting the scene. One of the fires even features a trans-orange snake element to give it a unique shape. In addition to looking cool, there are even play features with the figures weapons clashing and rubble exploding.

Parts for 2019 offer a new twist on an old robot

Here’s an adorable figure seemingly pulled right out of the Jetson’s. This happy-looking LEGO robot was created by Sven Franic and featured by our friends at New Elementary. For me, the highlight of the build is the pair of axles with rotation clip used for the bot’s hands. These new pieces appear in the 2019 Ninjago sets and work wonderfully. You can almost hear a mechanical voice spouting off something along the lines of, “My photo-receptors selected these white organic growths for you!”