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.

TBB Weekly Brick Report: LEGO news roundup for January 20, 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 third week of January 2019.

Eighteen builders spent more than 2,000 hours hand-selecting and placing each of the 334,544 pieces in this LEGO Chevy Silverado. Read on to find out more.

TBB NEWS & REVIEWS: The LEGO Movie 2 is storming into theaters soon, and we have some Star Wars and BrickLink news for you too.

Review of LEGO Star Wars 75225 Elite Praetorian Guard Battle Pack – Read to find out how these figures differ from their previous iterations and why is there a stormtrooper.
First eight finalists of LEGO and BrickLink’s AFOL Designer Program revealed – Which of these projects from the AFOL Designer Program are you most interested in?
The LEGO Movie 2 Collectible Minifigures series unveiled, available Feb. 1 – The collectible minifigure series from The LEGO Movie 2 has been unveiled in detail. including a trip down the yellow brick road.
70840 Welcome to Apocalypseburg from The LEGO Movie 2 is now available – This 3,000-piece post apocalyptic product is an impressive motion picture mammoth of a set, and is available for purchase today.

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:

Chevy uses 300,000 LEGO pieces to construct full-size pickup truck, GeekWire – What was the most common brick used in making this 3,307-pound vehicle? The red 2×8 brick.
The Hot New Asset Class Is LEGO Sets, Bloomberg – In a paper titled “LEGO — The Toy of Smart Investors,” 2,300 sets sold from 1987 to 2015 are analyzed to measure their price-return.
Ruth Bader Ginsburg makes star appearance in Lego Movie 2, USA Today – DC Super Heroes will be making cameos in the film, but now the US Supreme Court is in da’ house.
The People From The LEGO Movie 2 Really, Desperately Want You To Like Their New Song, Gizmodo – Good luck not getting this song stuck in your head.

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.

A spiny lizard beast

This green monster by Mitch Phillips look tough enough to tackle anything, thanks to a heavy layer of armor plating. It’s a fitting LEGO element to use as armor, since that was its original purpose. However, it was originally designed to clad two-legged characters rather than creatures like this. Look closely at the upper legs, too, for they’re actually sea monster heads from the oft-overlooked Alpha Agents theme.

Crazy city living

These two beautifully built urban houses appear unassuming at first glance, but don’t be fooled. Builder Koala Yummies has sprinkled them with all manner of imaginative ideas. Let’s take the tour and see what’s hidden behind the façade.

Around the back there are luscious climbing plants, bee’s nests and a birdhouse attached to the wall. Continue reading →

Worn with the sands of time

Builder W. Navarre takes us to a Middle Eastern-inspired fantasy world with this lovely vignette of a royal apartment. What’s striking as much as the excellent agglomeration of official LEGO stickers is the use of worn, dirty bricks to lend an ancient, chiseled look to the walls. Most builders eschew such bricks except as hidden filler, but scenes like this remind us that there’s a use for nearly anything if you’re clever enough.

Cubic LEGO creations squared

The cube is one of the most basic 3D shapes and the building block (pun intended) of many LEGO models. Two different creators have recently drawn inspiration from the cube with wonderfully diverse results. The first model is a plucky little robot by Markus Rollbühler which combines teal and dark red elements in stark contrast. There are two nice parts used in the arms: a minifig torso armor part, and the torso of a B1 battle droid for the hand. The new printed eye tile from the recent LEGO Harry Potter 75950 – Aragog’s Lair gives the eye an unexpected look.

The next model is this floating star-fighter (coincidentally, also with one eye) by Anthony Wilson and was created for a building competition called Space Jam. But there is more to this model than meets the eye. This star-fighter transforms with a flip of the black guns on either side of the ship.

A truck that puts the “up” in pickup

This fanciful LEGO creation by Martin Redfern was inspired by the concept art of Ian McQue. I like how the front hook seems to be holding the truck aloft (although the delightful greebles in the back are more likely culprits for the vehicle’s propulsion system). The grays and browns give this build a lived-in vibe, but they are nicely balanced by the vibrant red.

Originally built in 2016, this model was one of the inaugural models displayed in the Masterpiece Gallery of the LEGO House. We’re glad to see it back together again after a rough return flight.

First eight finalists of LEGO and BrickLink’s AFOL Designer Program revealed [News]

Back in September, LEGO launched a new initiative in cooperation with BrickLink called the AFOL Designer Program where fans could submit custom designs with the possibility of being produced and sold by BrickLink. Out of the 443 submissions received, 16 were selected as finalists and the first half of those have now been revealed.

The digital submissions were test-built for stability and reviewed by both BrickLink and LEGO designers to determine the finalists. Crowdfunding for each of the finalists will begin on February 1st, and if a set reaches its pre-sales goal, it will then be produced and shipped by BrickLink.

Without further ado, let’s take a look at the first eight finalists.

Click to see the AFOL Designer Program finalists

Emmet’s back in business

Are you ready for The LEGO Movie 2? We know builder yu chris is, because he’s already built an amazing spaceship for Emmet, and has captured the spirit of the master builder perfectly. Seriously, if someone had told me this model were actually the main spaceship in the movie, I’d believe it. It’s made of five smaller ships from their own themes which come together to form the letter E.

The smaller ships are, clockwise from the left, Metalbeard’s Seacow 2.0, Emmet’s Construction Ship, Unikitty & Lucy’s Aircraft, Benny’s Spaceship, and Batman’s Batwing. Each ship is invested with its pilot’s aesthetic, but can pull together like Voltron and form a super ship to fight the powers of Duplo. Side note: check out that awesome backdrop.

The art of winemaking in one scene

When we think of medieval LEGO creations, we most often see grand castles of all shapes and sizes. And I’m not complaining per se, but I do love it when someone brings us a more uncommon scene. Wine is a classic medieval beverage for kings, queens, and knights alike, and thanks to Guido Martin-Brandis we can see winemaking in the brick. The builder has incorporated almost every stage of winemaking into this single build. The process of planting and growing the grape vines, and the ripening of the grapes themselves is shown in full, with the grapes represented by different colored cherry pieces on the vines. Behind the vineyards you can spot a bare-legged peasent having a grand old time crushing the grapes with his feet, which I certainly hope he washed before he started.

Around the back of the aging house (with its thatched roof made with minifigure hands) we can see the bottles and barrels of aged wine being shipped off to market via horse carriage, the ending to the story depicted by this excellent diorama.

A castle’s a stronghold

Long before they became fashionable manors for showy wealth, a castle was a stronghold that needed to withstand sieges and bombardment. So it helps that this 21,000-piece LEGO castle by Corvus Auriac MOCs is located on an island and bespeckled with the hallmarks of defensive works. There’s a gatehouse over the entry that’s just perfect for pouring hot oil on unwanted guests, and tall towers with archery loopholes for snipers. And even though the castle is flecked with bricks of varying textures and colors, it comes together visually to give a unified appearance. The dark brick corners and black roofs lend an ominous air, and the smoke rising from the chimney makes me uneasy to learn who the inhabitants are of this seemingly deserted fortress.

LEGO Star Wars 75225 Elite Praetorian Guard Battle Pack [Review]

Battle packs are known for being sets with simple builds and greater emphasis on the number of minifigures. The 75225 Elite Praetorian Guard Battle Pack comes with three Praetorian Guards, a First Order stormtrooper, and a plethora of weapons. You can’t really go wrong with battle packs if you’re out to build an army, but this Elite Praetorian Guard Battle Pack 109 piece set is more than meets the eye. Since minifigures are the primary attraction when it comes to battle packs, the emphasis of this review will be on them.

Packaging & instructions

Box artwork portrays the Elite Praetorian Guards in what appears to be a training room. The set consists of two numberless bags and a set of instructions

Click to read the full review of the Elite Praetorian Guard Battle Pack

Glittering with gold, and a beastly shade of blue, Toa Gathu is comin’ for you

The other day I took a visit to LEGOLAND California, where they still have a Bionicle ride, along with statues of some of the Bionicles themselves, and got a pang of nostalgia for the days of old when Bionicle was still an official LEGO theme. Unfortunately, its unlikely the theme will ever be revived. Luckily, as long as the parts still exist, we will always get to enjoy fan made creations from the theme, case in point: Toa Gathu by Mitch Phillips.

I particularly like all of the small details on this figure, such as the brown minifigure backpack as a utility pouch, and the usage of lots of small pieces to achieve a trim, athletic shape for the Bionicles torso. This Bionicle has certainly been hitting the gym, unlike many of the official sets whose legs and arms were quite spindly and thin. Lastly don’t miss the nice usage of a gold LEGO Duplo door piece as the shield.