Feeling crabby? Maybe this this cutie from Matt Goldberg can lift your mood. This creative crustacean has all the great organic shaping you’d want and is topped with a lovely bouquet of greenery. Is it the aquatic equivalent of an FTD delivery person? A decorator crab doing its best to camouflage itself? Perhaps this is prom night and the corsage was overzealous. Whatever the case, I adore this fun build.
If you’re still crabby, though, there are plenty more critters in our archives!
This is what happens in the Multiverse of Madness! Over ten years ago, the story of Bionicle was as convoluted as some of the Marvel comics – full of overlapping story threads and alternate dimension-hopping shenanigans. At one point, it is revealed that there exists a version of the Bionicle universe where Makuta – the franchise’s big bad – isn’t big bad, but big good. Matt Goldberg built this alternate version of Makuta, with a bright colour scheme and elegance that oozes raw not-evil power.
Matt combines elements of LEGO’s original Makuta set and a build by Yannick Godts that was inducted into official Bionicle canon. As both of those were over ten years ago, and recent innovations in building made it possible for this character to be refined. For instance, LEGO introduced most of the current “constraction” pieces after Bionicle’s ending, and Matt uses them to great effect. He also includes regular LEGO elements in gold which match golden armour pieces from Legend of Chima buildable figures. Despite Bionicle having an aesthetic of greebly details, the clean look gives this Makuta a slick yet ancient look. And this is why many Bionicle builders love revamping old sets and characters.
*title is in reference to an actual Bionicle commercial from 2003
Far away, on some advanced planet, there are probably cyborg animals. I mean, the likelihood of Earth-like creatures seems reasonably high. And cyborgs aren’t just made from our imagination. Look at prosthetics — medical advancements are headed there more and more. Matt Goldberg gives us a glimpse of that with his latest LEGO build. This bee has circuitry! While the trans-blue Insectoid wings call attention, there are other great features too, like the marbled Bionicle Mohtrek mask used in the abdomen. My favorites are on the head, where skates are used for mandibles and minifigure hands attached to sausages form the antennae. Also, let’s not forget that colorful flower, cleverly built with purple Bionicle Pakari masks.
We try to keep it light here at TBB. But on a somber note, did you know our bees are in trouble? Without bees and other pollinators, we’d starve. We’re not going to be able to develop cyborg bees anytime soon, and even if we could, the real thing deserves our help. Please take a moment to learn what you can do, and check out these sites for more information on bees and their impact. Every act helps – even small and easy ones like planting a little bee garden and providing a refreshing bee bath.
Matt Goldberg’s latest LEGO creation is challenging me to step out of my comfort zone. I am a fan of LEGO but bionicle and technic LEGO are just not my cup of tea. My knowledge of parts in these themes is very limited too. But Matt’s creation is so damn perfect that I just have to cover it! LEGO western was my favorite theme when I was a kid and the Tex Wrangler hits all the sweet spots for me. From the spurs to the big golden revolvers to the bullet belt. The Hero Factory Chest Badge makes him look like the town sheriff and the Ben 10 flexible shoulder neck piece partly turned inside out works perfectly as a cowboy hat.
