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.

Sumo is the greatest sport on earth

I’ve explained elsewhere why sumo (traditional Japanese wrestling) is the greatest sport on earth — it’s fast, complex, and incredibly exciting. I won an apple in my first sumo bout at age three, and I’ve been hooked ever since. Cindy Su apparently agrees with me, because she built this wonderful rikishi (or wrestler — sumo is the name of the sport, not the name of the wrestlers). She layers various round tiles to bulk up the underlying BrickHeadz form, and gives this mountain of a man a stand complete with a Japanese flag to pose on. He has huge arms to shove opponents out of the ring, with an expressive face that seems to say he’s relieved to have just finished a winning bout.

Interestingly, many of the top wrestlers these days are foreign-born, from countries like Mongolia and Georgia. As someone who spent 15 years getting called gaijin (foreigner, with connotations of “outsider”) in my own home country, I’ve taken a perverse pleasure in rooting for the foreigners in recent sumo tournaments. Of course, sumo wrestlers aren’t born quite so big. They bulk up by eating a special stew called chankonabe, which Cindy has also faithfully created for this rikishi to enjoy.

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Green colossus can stand the heat

Is it getting hot in here? Or is it just the sizzle coming off this lovely green mech standing astride a stream of lava? Chris Perron is a designer at LEGO, and says he was inspired to create this model whilst working with the new yellowish-green parts found in the BrickHeadz Little Mermaid set. It’s nice to see LEGO designers continuing to “play” on their own time with the plastic bricks they work with every day! Even better when the results are as good as this. The striking colour scheme might capture first looks, but don’t miss the shaping of the face, the wrist-mounted sword, and the excellent rifle. And as for the colourful swirls within that stream of magma? Simply brilliant.

The best carpenters make the fewest chips

The way the sunlight streams through the wooden slats of Simon NH’s carpenter’s workshop shows not only exemplary building skill, but also quite the talent with the camera. This idyllic scene of a bygone age of craftsmanship matches nifty piece uses, such as the minifigure hair wasp’s nest in the rafters, and the subtly positioned gear rack saw blade, against an eye for pictorial representation. Using the lines of the beams and rafters to exaggerate the perspective in the photograph, Simon pulls the viewer’s eye into this little world, able to linger over every detail of the carpenter’s life; and be rest assured those minifigure hands on the floor are wood chips and not the result of a grisly accident.

LEGO BrickHeadz 41622 Peter Venkman and Slimer from Ghostbusters [Review]

Ghostbusters kicked off as a LEGO theme in 2014 with the LEGO Ideas 21108 ECTO-1, which unleashed nostalgia for those of us who grew up in the 80s. Since then, with the licensing deal already in place, LEGO has released quite a few follow-ups, including the splendid 75827 Firehouse Headquarters and several LEGO Dimensions releases of small Ghostbusters builds with minifigures. LEGO Ghostbusters has now found a new lease of life with the introduction of the BrickHeadz format with 41622 Peter Venkman and Slimer, numbered 62 and 63 respectively in the series. The two-pack release costs $19.99 for 228 pieces.

LEGO Ghostbusters from 2014 to 2018

Before we dive into the review, let’s take a look at an infographic that illustrates the sets released in this theme to date. This Ghostbuster lineup spans the past 4 years from the LEGO Ideas theme to regular sets and LEGO Dimensions game packs. The real favourites of mine are actually the minifigures — especially the Stay Puft minifigure from the LEGO Dimensions Fun Pack.

Click to read the full review

Stug mkIII, a mech for the mean streets

Singapore-based Benjamin Cheh Ming Hann is no stranger to The Brothers Brick, with a huge array of top-tier, futuristic mecha and starships to his name (oh, and bugs). His latest creation continues to wow us as he presents a meaty mech that is bristling with weaponry and optional armor. The Stug mkIII features a colorful blend of chunky slopes and joints that I found really exciting as someone who has struggled to complete substantial mech models in the past. I also appreciate the nearly studless look, which is typical for Benjamin. This model would fit right at home with his prior work KURA IAM model.

Click through for more views of the back of the model and the bonus armor skirting!

Making a pig of himself

Zhu Bajie is one of the Monkey God’s fellow travellers in the classic tale Journey To The West. Western TV viewers might know him better as ‘Pigsy’ from the late-70s adaptation. However, familiarity with the source material isn’t required to appreciate this amazing LEGO version of the porcine hero by Kingmarshy. Wonderfully sculpted from a mix of Technic, Bionicle, and regular system bricks, this is a masterpiece of character building. The face is excellent, as is the headdress, but it’s the lines of the robe, with its white trim gaping around the bulging stomach, which really caught my eye. It’s also nice to see this sort of character engaged in a peaceful activity like feasting rather than set up in a more martial pose. The accompanying furniture is perfect — helping create the period feel, but not distracting attention from the main character himself.

TBB Weekly Brick Report: LEGO news roundup for August 5, 2018 [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 first week of August 2018.

TBB REVIEWS: A brand new wave of sets means a deluge of set reviews. Here are our initial thoughts about all things Wizarding World, Disney, and Batman-related.

Feel Guide for LEGO Harry Potter and Fantastic Beasts Collectible Minifigures – We’ve got your cheat sheet to finding every magical character you could ever want.
Review of LEGO Fantastic Beasts 75952 Newt’s Case of Magical Creatures – Step aside, LEGO Dimensions. The real Fantastic Beasts sets have arrived at a fantastic price point.
Review of LEGO Disney BrickHeadz 41624 and 41625 Mickey and Minnie Mouse – Available for $9.99 each, the real question here is why this wasn’t a double pack.
Review of LEGO 76112 App-Controlled Batmobile – We took the new Batmobile for a spin and put it through its paces to see if the long-awaited set lives up to the hype.

MORE TBB REVIEWS: There were even more reviews this week, including the largest ever Technic set and four new Star Wars sets.

Review of LEGO Technic 42082 Rough Terrain Crane – This gigantic model comes with 4,057 pieces for $299.99, but does the largest Technic set ever really reach new heights?
Review of LEGO 75215 Cloud-Rider Swoop Bikes – This new set based on Solo: A Star Wars Story, comes with 355 pieces, three minifigures, two bikes and is available now.
Review of LEGO Star Wars 75203 Hoth Medical Chamber – Bacta Tank “near naked” Luke is back in this charming set that packs in many different scenes from Empire Strikes Back.
Video Review of LEGO Star Wars 75218 X-wing Starfighter – Take a look at our hands on review as we explore the set’s play features and compare it to previous X-wing sets.
Review of LEGO Star Wars 75219 Imperial AT-Hauler from Solo – How does the LEGO version of this complicated new cargo vehicle stack up to the real thing?

TBB NEWS: Are you ready for a brand new wave of sets coming in August? We have your early reviews right here to get you ready.

Redesigned LEGO Architecture 21047 Las Vegas revealed – The Vegas Strip is back, redesigned after the shooting tragedy last year to include the Bellagio rather than Mandalay Bay.
Instructions to build your own magic wand from Harry Potter – Check out these simple instructions to build a wand, including a very special core.
Your guide to the 58 new LEGO sets now available – LEGO launched a legion of its latest sets, and this is your guide to every last one, from the new City sets and trains to Unikitty!

https://youtu.be/C2hCN6cVuqM
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:
Check out the other LEGO news of the week

Looks like someone forgot to turn off their studio lights

If you have the LEGO set 41597 Go Brick Me, which we reviewed in-depth, you’re probably familiar with the generic white BrickHeadz model included in that set’s instruction booklet. Well, LEGO builder Pascal Hetzel has created this tragically “melting” creation of that generic BrickHeadz model. Be sure to take a closer look at the creation, which is actually built at double size.

One of the most distinct details of this model is the re-creation of the 1×1 printed tile used for the eyes, which thanks to some clever part uses is remarkably accurate despite the scale increase. I also really like the smooth curves used to make the spreading pools of melted plastic.

LEGO 75219 Imperial AT-Hauler from Solo: A Star Wars Story [Review]

While the first wave of LEGO Star Wars sets from Solo: A Star Wars Story largely focused on iconic standalone vehicles that, in hindsight, had less impact on the movie itself, the three sets together in the second wave released after the movie’s debut depicts a single key scene in the movie. Disguised as Imperial mud-troopers, Tobias Beckett’s gang requisitions an Imperial AT-Hauler on Mimban for a daring coaxium heist on Vandor. LEGO Star Wars set 75219 features this unique vehicle, built from 829 pieces with 5 minifigures, retailing for $99.99 in the US ($129.99 in Canada | £89.99 in the UK).

Read our hands-on review of LEGO 75219 Imperial AT-Hauler from Solo: A Star Wars Story

Cooking up a chemically pure Breaking Bad scene with LEGO

The TV show Breaking Bad showed us chemistry-teacher-turned-drug-kingpin Walter White’s descent from sympathetic protagonist to monstrous antagonist over its run, and the ever-talented LEGO 7 has rendered the self-styled Heisenberg in brick form here at the peak of his meth-cooking days. Like the famously blue 99.1% chemically pure meth, this model has all the right ingredients to be a hit.

I absolutely love the use of the trans-clear Bionicle tooth for the chemical pouring into the pot, although I think the standout parts usage here is the trans-black windscreen 3x4x3 which expertly replicates the protective face mask of Walt’s meth-cookin’ outfit. Enjoy a bonus shot of this brilliant model with the facemask up to appreciate the work recreating Walt’s distinct glasses, goatee, and shaved head.

This LEGO AT-ACT from Rogue One: A Star Wars Story strides through the palm trees

Builder Ben Cossy intended to make a small scene set on the planet Scarif from Rogue One: A Star Wars Story, but ended up with an imperial sized project, creating this stunning AT-ACT Walker. The bulkier sister to the standard AT-AT, this walker has a heavier animalistic design, consistent with its construction site deployment. Ben taps right into this aesthetic, imbuing his model with a weighty sense of gravitas, doubling the hinged knee joint on its longer legs, as well as triple plating the armoured body. Yet, it’s that first decision to situate the composition on the planet surface, where the AT-ACT can tower over the tiny palm trees, that truly captures its ominous sense of scale.

A nemesis worthy of the Midnight Ranger

Every good hero needs a villain, and this is even more true for mecha. Marco De Bon has built many mecha over the years, many of which we’ve featured on the Brothers Brick, including the Midnight Ranger, whose nemesis we see here, called the Renegade.

While it has all the bread and butter of mecha like chunky armored legs and rocket betteries in his shoulders, there is so much more to see. First thing that you might notice is the tentacle arms emerging from its back and the lime green area on the chest, which is just as likely to be an air intake or a death laser. My favourite part is its waist though – maybe it is my personal affinity for hoses, but the skeleton construction is just awesome.

Click and see how the Renegade compares to his mortal enemy