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.

Behold the purposeful lines of the pugnacious Prowler

For decades, the Long Island-based Grumman Corporation was the US Navy’s primary aircraft supplier. They built a range of now-famous aircraft, including the Wildcat, Avenger, Hellcat, Cougar and, of course, the Tomcat. Starting in the early seventies, they also built the EA-6B Prowler; a four-seat electronic warfare aircraft for jamming enemy air defenses. I’ve had a model of one of these since 2007. In recent days I rebuilt it using new parts and techniques. Thanks to curved slopes and a lot more sideways building, I’ve been able to improve the shape.

Prowlers entered US Navy service in 1971 and, after a career of more than 40 years, the US Marines have only just retired their last examples. Their longevity is a testament to the quality of the design. Because its products were famously well engineered, Grumman was also known as the “Iron Works”. Their aircraft, however, aren’t exactly famous for their elegant looks. Even the Tomcat, arguably one of the prettiest fighters ever to grace an aircraft carrier’s deck and certainly one of the company’s prettier products, looks quite ungainly from some angles. Also known as the “flying drumstick”, the Prowler is no exception. It has a fairly large front end, which houses two separate cockpits, each with side-by-side seating for two crewmen. The large “football” on top of the vertical fin contains jamming equipment, as do wing-mounted pods. The wings fold up for use aboard aircraft carriers. For air-to-air refuelling, it has an oddly-cranked probe just in front of the windscreen. It all makes sense, but it’s not pretty. I think “purposeful” is more appropriate.

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The greatest brick hits from the ’80s

There was nothing quite like living in the 1980s. Back then, having a single cassette tape on-hand meant being forced to listen to a full album of music and nothing else. It was just one of many technological shortcomings we had to deal with. These two nostalgic builds by Ralf Langer certainly bring back some of those memories. At first glance, the headphones look so realistic. Ralf used LEGO rubber tires to form the ear cushions, and I’m still puzzled by how he incorporated them into the build.

The compact cassette tape is also shaped perfectly, right down to the placement of the capstan and pinch roller openings. My favorite parts are the chain links used for the magnetic tape supply reels. While writing this article, I was inspired to play music from the ’80s over my 21st Century Bluetooth headset; talk about instant gratification!

TBB Weekly Brick Report: LEGO news roundup for January 27, 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 fourth week of January 2019.

Is it possible to make a LEGO set actually fly? Read on to find out more.

TBB NEWS & REVIEWS: The LEGO Movie 2 rules the week with a new blue set, minifigure reviews, and more. Only two more weeks until it hits theaters!

Review of The LEGO Movie 2 70840 Welcome To Apocalypseburg – The biggest set from The LEGO Movie 2 has over 3,000 pieces and is a dystopian future we enjoyed building.
Review of 71023 The LEGO Movie 2 Collectible Minifigures – The LEGO Movie 2’s Collectible Minifigures are here, and we’re opening all 20 for an in-depth review.
Review of The LEGO Movie 2 – No spoilers here, but what did we think of the highly anticipated sequel, new characters and sets?
70839 The Rexcelsior revealed as 21st set from The LEGO Movie 2 – The set has 1,826 pieces, micro-raptors, rapid-fire missiles and “Stubble Trouble Emmet” for $149.99.
Last eight finalists of LEGO and BrickLink’s AFOL Designer Program revealed – Crowdfunding begins February 1st, so which projects will you support?

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:

Everyone’s childhood dream, flying their LEGO, YouTube – FliteTest pushes the boundaries of the LEGO 60193 City Arctic Air Transport set, but does it get airborne?
Full-scale LEGO Renault F1 car to be auctioned for charity, Motorsport Week – A full-scale Renault Formula 1 constructed from LEGO bricks will be auctioned in Paris next month with all proceeds going to charity UNICEF.
Ed Sheeran surprises Laxfield school Lego club with donation, BBC – A surprise gift from the singer means kids will be able to build their own LEGO House, inspired by the star’s hit.
A Look Inside Lego: How They Utilize Storytelling and The Power Of Play, Customer Think – Listen to this hour-long interview with LEGO Chief People Officer Loren Shuster about building the right culture and leadership st the company to reach more kids around the world.

The LEGO Movie 2 is a fun, familiar celebration of play [Spoiler-free Review]

As the fourth entry in the LEGO cinematic universe, The LEGO Movie 2: The Second Part has the tricky task of following the established formula for LEGO movies while also trying to stand apart as a unique experience. It passes the first test with flying colors. The movie is full of the requisite witty gags, clever animation, unexpected cameos, heartwarming lessons about family, and those awe-inspiring builds that translate into wallet-draining products. However, the film strains under the weight of expectations and an abundance of characters that doesn’t quite reach the heights of The LEGO Movie.

If you’ve enjoyed previous installments in this franchise, I definitely recommend seeing this movie without reading any further. The less you know, the more delightful and unexpected this movie will be. But if you want to know more, then read on, my friend.

Click to continue reading our review of The LEGO Movie 2

The LEGO Movie 2 Collectible Minifigures 71023 [Review]

With LEGO having just announced its 21st set for The LEGO Movie 2: The Second Part, it’s safe to say they’re betting big on the film franchise. And just like the first movie in the series, that means there’s also a tie-in wave of the infinitely popular Minifigures theme (commonly called Collectible Minifigures, or CMFs). 71023 LEGO Minifigures – The LEGO Movie 2: The Second Part will be officially available beginning Feb. 1, though they’re already beginning to pop up in retail stores. They’ll be priced at US $3.99 | CAN $4.99. Remember to check out our Feel Guide if you’re on the hunt for these figures.

This series features the main movie crew of Emmet, Lucy, Benny, and Unikitty, along with newcomers like Rex and a newly happy President Business. There’s also a contingent of characters from Apocalypseburg and The Wizard of Oz, plus Lucy’s all-girl band is ready to rock with all four members in the series. Finally, a sprinkling of the ever-popular costume characters is present with a giraffe and crayon. Let’s take a look at these figures one by one.

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The crystal Vulptex from Star Wars comes to life in LEGO bricks

The crystal fox-like Vulptices from Star Wars: The Last Jedi are something that I never thought would be able to be represented well in LEGO form. But builder Runa Lindblom (legovalkyrja) has pulled it off quite nicely indeed with this large-scale version. The red elements on the ground depicting the exposed salty mineral beds of the planet Crait is a nice touch and just enough to bring a little contrast and realism to the whole sculpture.

Using an array of both white and transparent bricks is all that was needed, though knowing where exactly to place them for maximum effect is always the secret. The amount of painstaking work to angle the various transparent elements is key to getting the intended effect.

The drinks are on us

When you think of Star Wars, the first things that come to mind are likely spaceships and laser swords. But cantinas occupy an only slightly less iconic place in the lore of that galaxy far, far away. One of those seedy, backwater bars is the Half-Pint Cantina, proprietor Hass Mavoc, brought to us in LEGO form by bcinman6. A character from the builder’s own imagination, Hass is a Sarian barkeep with some excellent shaping to achieve his alien features. Most notable are the red Hulk arms used behind the eyes and the space armor for the mouth.

The spectacular, marvellous and wonderful Incredibles

We’ve seen great builds of the Parr family before, but these Incredibles by Philippe Moisan take them to a whole new scale. Despite the somewhat minimalist styyle, they subtly yet splendidly capture the essence of each of the characters in their animated form. One can tell how each LEGO part was specially chosen for a particular reason. For instance, Mr. Incredible’s mask looks perfect made with only the 1×2 rounded plate with open studs. And you have to love the creative simplification of the insignia on his chest, which is simply an incredible work of art!

We’re off to the races on this rad bike

If you ask me, cafe racers are about the coolest style of motorcycle out there. And you can’t get much better than a BMW motorcycle, so this sweet LEGO build by George Panteleon of a BMW R100 Cafe Racer is about as good as it gets. George’s bike-building skills are on full display here, with a perfect frame made of Technic elements combined with a motor and tank of regular System bits. It’s scaled to match the official LEGO BMW R 1200 GS bike, sharing tires with the roadster. Now if only LEGO would make this their next motorcycle kit…

The classic ‘ol Radio Flyer Wagon is still alive!

Scroll fast enough and you’d probably think this version by 1ssac W. is the real deal, not a LEGO build. I have to admit, though I never owned one of these pull wagons they certainly are recognizable as ever! They’re so classically embedded into pop-culture, and I’m pleasantly surprised to learn that the Radio Flyer company is still well and alive till today after a century. Every kid needs one of these at some point in their childhood. I really like the finer details of how the builder thought outside the box to use a trimmed part of red flex hose for the center caps of the wheels, and more for the handle.

A sturdy pair of heavy-hitting hardsuits

Sometimes a particular LEGO part can define a model in a way that no other part can. This pair of Maschinen Krieger or Ma.K hardsuits by Marco Marozzi uses a very obscure, and very interesting part from the Scala theme, a saddle to form the torso and primary focal point. But that is not the only fun part use. The sniper uses the head of a LEGO Porg on its chest plate.

While the heavy Gatlin gunner is sporting what looks like an Endor rebel helmet.

One fun detail about these squat and sturdy hardsuits is that they were built to fit an equally squat Duplo pilot

His mission: to build what no man has built before.

The title doesn’t lie, because although this vessel by the name of USS Fontana may look like it flew straight out of one of the many Star Trek screenplays, Ben Smith has built what no man has built before, because this ship is actually of his own design. Complete with working lights and custom stickers, the builder has done an excellent job capturing the Star Trek aesthetic. The signature round body of the ship is expertly built; take note of the beautiful tan and sand green stripe around the bridge, which I imagine wasn’t easy to accomplish.

The back of the ship is fully detailed as well, with a hanger bay for research shuttles to launch from and explore the unknown planets below.