Category Archives: News

Stay current on the latest news and information about LEGO, from sales & deals to new set announcements. We also cover LEGO events and conventions all over the world.

Issue 16 of Blocks Magazine now available [News]

Valentine’s Day is on the horizon, and what better way to declare your love than with LEGO? From hearts to brick bouquets, this month’s issue of Blocks Magazine is packed with outside-the-box ideas to make this year’s celebration a little more special. Meanwhile in the ‘Build It’ section learn how to construct your own transforming Optimus Prime, with step-by-step instructions and a guide to sourcing all the necessary parts.

Also in this issue, Daniel Konstanski takes us through the history of “ramp and pit” baseplates, Simon Pickard investigates how LEGO can save a national heritage site from ruin, and there’s an exclusive interview with Matt De Lanoy, the man behind one of LEGO Ideas’ fastest-growing projects: Johnny Five.

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.

LEGO Digital Designer officially defunded and unsupported [News]

LEGO has announced that LEGO Digital Designer (LDD), the company’s proprietary virtual building program, will no longer be updated. New parts may occasionally be added, but LEGO is officially defunding the platform.

LEGO sales & deals for mid-January 2016 [News]

Many of the LEGO sets that never actually showed up on January 1st are finally starting to show up online and in stores, including Collectible Minifigures Series 15, NEXO Knights, and others. At the same time, Amazon and the LEGO Shop have discounted many earlier sets.

First off, nearly all LEGO Dimensions Fun Packs remain 50% off at $7.49 from Amazon.com, including the brand new ones released this week.

The LEGO Chima set 70146 Flying Phoenix Fire Temple is $36 or 30% off at $83.98 from both the LEGO Shop and Amazon.com.

Click through for more January LEGO sales & deals

LEGO Concorde cuts away from the runway as 65,000 bricks take flight

LEGO Certified Professional Ryan McNaught has been busy unveiling some fantastic new creations at Brickvention Australia. We showcased his incredible LEGO minifig-scale 120,000-brick sinking Titanic, and now we take to the skies with LEGO Concorde.

Ryan has chosen to build the iconic supersonic aircraft Concorde in miniland-scale. Building Concorde in LEGO is cool, but it’s only when you see the other side of the build that the really impressive details emerge.

While one side shows the complete aircraft, the other is an ingenious cutaway view that shows a slice through Concorde.

Click through for more photos of this huge airplane!

You can now follow TBB on Google+ and Pinterest [News]

With a couple hundred thousand regular readers here on TBB each month, we do our best to get great LEGO content to you wherever you are, whether it’s links to posts on Facebook and Twitter, photos on Flickr, or the occasional video on YouTube. To help you get your LEGO fix in even more places, we’ve just enabled posts on Google+, and we’re curating a couple of boards on Pinterest.

Are there other places you’d like to see posts from TBB? Let us know in the comments.

60115 4×4 Off Roader [Review]

We’re taking a break from reviewing all those Star Wars sets to catch a look at something a little closer to home: a good old fashioned racing truck. 60115 4×4 Off Roader hit stores in December, and is currently available for $19.99. It has 176 pieces.

Click through for the full review

Creations for Charity donates over $18,600 of Lego this holiday season [News]

This year’s Creations for Charity fundraiser concluded with over $18,600 worth of Lego products donated to children around the world from USA, Canada, Brazil, Hungary and Australia. As the founder, I am grateful for community’s support in giving back and I’d like to give a huge shout out to everyone who contributed to this record-setting year of donations. You can see the results of this year’s fundraiser and the smiling faces of the kids on creationsforcharity.org.

LEGO Brickstory 2016 contest now open [News]

Croatian LEGO fansite Kockice.hr has announced their annual Brickstory contest, and they’re throwing it open to everyone. The four themes this year are Greatest Inventions, Ancient Civilizations, The History of Art, and One Moment in Time. Those are pretty broad categories, and they’re looking for a lot of different interpretations. There are also some nice prizes on the line, with 9 total winners.

Incredible LEGO model of the Titanic breaking in half

Ryan McNaught is a professional LEGO model builder, and there’s absolutely no question about his building skills when he produces models like this or a life-sized Tardis. The breathtaking scene of the final moments of the Titantic show its stern lifted high in the air, the vessel splitting under its own weight before sinking over two miles to the sea floor. Supporting the significant weight of the ship’s stern through the thin connection in the ship’s keel is an incredible feat of LEGO engineering.

Click to see more photos of the sinking LEGO Titanic

Registration open for Japan Brickfest 2016, June 4-5 in Kobe [News]

KLUG, the LEGO Users Group (LUG) based in Osaka, Japan, is putting on the largest LEGO event in Japan this June called Japan Brickfest.

The event will be held June 4-5, 2016 at the Canadian Academy international school on Rokko Island in Kobe. (I went to second grade in Kobe, and it’s a lovely city.) Registration for builders is now open, but closes at the end of February.

KLUG itself includes a number of names that should be familiar to both LEGO builders on sites like Flickr and MOCPages as well as readers of TBB. KLUG seems to be a bilingual LUG with both Japanese and English-speaking members, so if you’re a gaijin AFOL in the Kansai area who misses your LUG back home, KLUG and Japan Brickfest sound like a great way to get involved with LEGO in Japan.

Attendee pricing is based on requested table space. For more details, see the builder page (in both Japanese and English) on the event website.

LEGO Star Wars Microfighters 75127 The Ghost [Review]

I’ve never watched either Star Wars Rebels or The Clone Wars animated TV shows, but I’ve appreciated some of the minifigs and bought a few of the sets on discount for parts. I regret not picking up 75053 The Ghost when it went on pretty deep discount late last year, given the ship’s great design, reminiscent of bombers and naval patrol aircraft from World War II like the B-17 or PBY Catalina. I’m mildly consoled by the release of 75127 The Ghost, part of the latest wave of LEGO Star Wars Microfighters. 75127 The Ghost includes 104 parts and 1 minifig, and retails for $9.99.

Click through for the full review

LEGO SW Microfighters 75125 Resistance X-wing Fighter [Review]

LEGO continues its Star Wars “Microfighter” series with Wave 3, released in January. With new sets from The Force Awakens, 75125 Resistance X-wing Fighter is the first Microfighter we’re reviewing here on The Brothers Brick. This set includes 83 pieces and the usual solo minifig, and retails for $9.99.

Click through for the full review