LEGO Adventurers was my absolute favourite theme as a kid. Especially the desert theme. Seeing the Jungle Explorer Collectable Minifigure got my hopes up for the theme to be renewed. This might also explain my soft spot for LEGO Adventurer fan creations. This build by Kevin Wanner really hits the soft spot. We get very well put together fleshy minifigure renditions of all the familiar faces. Two very well designed vehicles. However the absolute highlight of this creation has to be the beautiful palm trees. There are dark tan eggshells used to create the trunk of the palm tree. The crown of the tree uses dark tan, green and bright green plant leaves to indicate the lifespan of a palm tree leaf. It looks stunning!
Tag Archives: Brick Ninja
Dia de los Muertos; the Halloween after Halloween
LEGO builder Kevin Wanner made a trip to San Diego recently, took a few photos, and treated us all to something amazing. In his words; “Día de los Muertos or Day of the Dead is traditionally celebrated on November 1 and 2. It is a holiday of joyful celebration involving family and friends gathering to pay respects to those who have died. Traditions connected with the holiday include honoring the deceased using calaveras and Aztec marigold flowers known as cempazúchitl, it is also common to give gifts to friends such as candy sugar skulls.” I love the colors and festivity of it all. The flowers, painted cobblestone tiles, sugar skulls, and various cactus plants are all fun details. Even the photography, with its depth of field, is expertly done. It gives us a reason to celebrate the loved ones who have passed on.
How about a slice of 1994 nostalgia with extra cheese?
Fresh out of the oven, we have this nostalgia-laden creation by Kevin Wanner, revamping the classic LEGO set 6350: Pizza To Go. The added textures to the white walls of the kitchen feels like something from modern set design, as does the use of dark green in the color palette for the roof. The giant palm and expanded outdoor eating area are both welcome additions here. And I adore the choice to place this vignette on a circular cutout of street and sidewalk, as opposed to your typical, boxy baseplates. But by far, my favorite touch in this restoration is the adept use of the set’s original “Pizzeria” sticker, with part of it remaining as the shop’s sign, and the top slice circling the table’s umbrella. What an excellent idea!
The shadows of Shadar Logoth
The eerie city of Shadar Logoth stands in magnificent ruin in this large diorama by Brick Ninja. They’ve been slowly working their way through scenes from Robert Jordan’s monumental Wheel of Time series, presenting each snapshot completely immersively. Brick Ninja doesn’t show us the full build–or even if the structure is more than a facade. Instead, it’s built for the camera, to be seen from this angle, and it’s beautiful, with architectural details sculpted throughout. The detailing at the top of the large central doorway is especially nice, as is the huge domed roof.
Like a bridge over troubled waters
One thing better than a model by a super-skilled LEGO builder is a model by two super skilled LEGO builders. Joe (jnj_bricks) and Brick Ninja teamed up to create the Temple of the Rising Sun, a moment of battle captured for RebelLUG’s Kingdoms at War II contest. Brick Ninja handled the foreground’s battle scene, fortress, and bridge. Joe created the temple and background landscapes. The cool thing to me is how integrated both builds are. The repeated motifs of circular gold rings, wall textures, vegetation style, and red accents unify the two creations into a seamless whole.
Brick Ninja’s fortress is alive with interesting shapes and creative part usage in the torches. The bridge is elegant and action-packed. And be sure to spend some time zooming in on the background to appreciate the great forced perspective building from Joe. And when you’ve soaked up all you can from this image, go look in our archives for more great temple builds!
Full-size LEGO Buster Sword from Final Fantasy VII is six feet of awesome
I’m not much of a modern gamer. Somewhere around the release of the Playstation 2, I stopped trying to keep up with the latest video games. Nowadays, Dr. Mario on my NES Classic is all the virtual thrill I need. But one of the last major video game phenomenons before I bowed out was Final Fantasy VII, and I have an intense love of it. Not as intense a love as Brick Ninja, as evidenced by the fact that he built a life-sized replica of Cloud Strife’s Buster Sword and I didn’t.
Six feet long and over a foot wide, this majestic build floods me with some late 90s nostalgia. (Even though it’s technically based on the sword’s appearance in the recent FF7 Remake.) Brick Ninja has done an amazing job getting the angles of the blade just right. Check out the video below of the builder himself wielding the sword to get a better sense of its weight and stability. It’s such an impractical weapon, but that’s part of what makes it so cool. And when your name is as awesome as “Cloud Strife,” your weapons need to be cool.
Final Fantasy VII scenes recreated in LEGO
My wife and I played and replayed Final Fantasy VII on the original PlayStation, grinding character levels and farming materia so we could survive the insane boss battles like the Ruby Weapon. It’s incredibly disappointing that Square isn’t releasing Final Fantasy VII Remake on any platform but the PS4 any time soon. Nostalgia and minor rant aside, I love this chocobo and carriage by Kevin Waner (Brick Ninja), depicting the scene in which Cloud rescues Tifa Lockhart from Don Corneo, the mafioso of Wall Market. The detailed chocobo and colorful carriage take center stage in the scene, with Cloud and Aeris simply providing a bit of narrative context on the side — Cloud is of course instantly recognizable from his enormous Buster Sword.
Wheel need some bigger tires
I love vehicles with big, knobby tires. Just love ’em. My dream ride is a tricked out, super-lifted Jeep Rubicon, ready to crawl the ruggedest rocks on the planet. But that’s not all big wheels are good for. They are also useful for getting your massive military machine from point A to point B, through all weather and terrain. Brick Ninja demonstrates this ably with this LEGO artillery truck. The olive green looks appropriately military, and the splash of orange gives a nice pop of contrast, adding some sci-fi flair. It says, “Camouflage? We don’t need no stinking camouflage!” The greebles are not overdone, which makes sense since it is an armored vehicle (who would leave a bunch of important stuff on the outside to get blasted off?). And I love the crew, complementing the colors of the vehicle while giving life to the scene.
