Malaysian Sit Tat Wai is a newcomer to the pages of The Brothers Brick, with a debut that’s equally inspiring by day or night.
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Tag Archives: City
Really, it’s just a classic invasion scenario
It seems like the old ways aren’t quite forgotten yet, and they’re not about to go quietly, either. In this diorama by Carter Witz, an alliance of Lion Knights, Royal Knights, and Forestmen are invading a modern City hamlet. It looks like the classic army has embraced some new tech, though, as one of the Forestmen rides a new-style horse, and both sides of the clash are built with excellent modern techniques.
In fact, don’t let the amusing storyline cause you to overlook the details in this build, which is rife with complex approaches to achieve its polished look. From the carrot tops embedded in the building’s wall to the upside-down teeth above the windows, Carter spared no expense to make the scene come to life.
LEGO Masters: Tyler and Amy reach for the sky
I was really iffy on the whole LEGO Masters thing at first. Mostly this was fueled by a stubborn reaction to every single one of my friends and coworkers asking if I had heard about “that new LEGO show,” mixed with a just a touch of envy at not being on the show myself. After getting caught up on the episodes, though, I have different opinions. First, I now think it’s a really entertaining bit of fun. Second, I thank my lucky stars that I wasn’t a contestant. I would have washed out in the first fifteen minutes in weepy humiliation. Instead, I get to enjoy some amazing builds by actual masters of the craft like Amy and Tyler Clites. Last week, the challenge was mega city builds, and Amy and Tyler were up for it. Their building featured an interesting spiral of triangular levels, each housing a different City sub-theme.
After each episode airs, Tyler shares a cool micro-scale version of their larger creation. This week’s scaled-down build has the same twists as the original, including the “twist” of an attack by a fire-breathing monster.
Bookmark this Bookshop
LEGO recently added a bookshop to their line of modular buildings. That’s a fun set, but if you’re like me, you’d never be satisfied with just one corporate Birch Books bookstore in your town. You also need the sweet goodness of an indie store – they always stock the more interesting volumes. Happily, builder Maxim Baybakov has created a masterful bit of competition with Once Upon A Book. This modular-style building is full of fun details and avid readers.
Click here to learn more about Once Upon A Book bookshop…
LEGO wins three Toy of the Year awards at Toy Fair New York 2020 [News]
Yesterday at Toy Fair New York, the prestigious Toy of the Year (TOTY) awards were handed out, and LEGO took away a total of three coveted prizes including Construction Toy of the Year, Specialty Toy of the Year, and STEM/STEAM Toy of the Year. The Brothers Brick wishes a heartfelt congratulations to The LEGO Group and especially to the designers, creative team and unsung heroes behind these sets.
The Toy of the Year (TOTY) Awards (also known as the “Oscars” of the toy industry) are presented annually to the top toys, games, and properties of the year. Administered by The Toy Association, the awards program supports the philanthropic work of The Toy Foundation, which delivers new toys to children in need.
Click to see each LEGO set that won a 2020 Toy of the Year award
New LEGO gear and books revealed at Toy Fair New York 2020 [News]
Toy Fair New York is in full swing, and that means more than just sweet new LEGO sets. It also means cool new LEGO merchandise like books, plushies, luggage, and clothing to accessorize your real-world life. LEGO and their partners have revealed a slew of new products that you’re going to want to check out.
Click to check out the new LEGO-themed books, plushies, luggage, stationery and more.
Keep your LEGO city clean with 60249 Street Sweeper [Review]
Year after year, the LEGO city keeps expanding with plenty of houses, modular buildings, vehicles and, of course, fire & police stations. All that development is bound to attract legions of minifigures — it’s only a matter of days before the plastic trash begins to pile up. To keep up with this issue, LEGO has released several garbage trucks over the years, but what happens when baseplate streets become filthy? You need a good street sweeper, but the last street sweeper to appear in LEGO City was carted around by a minifig 12 years ago. That’s a long time for discarded 1×1 plates to accumulate alongside the curb. The wait is over because LEGO is back to keep the brick-built highways clean with set 60249 Street Sweeper. The set consists of 89 pieces and is available now via the online LEGO shop for $9.99 USD | $13.99 CAD | £8.99 GBP
Does the LEGO Street Sweeper clean up well? Find out in our in-depth review!
A painted city is worth a hundred thousand bricks
When talented stars collide, masterpieces arise. I hate to be so cliche, but it is what it is. This artwork is the result of a collaborative effort between Grant Davis, Eli Willsea, and Micah Biedeman. It was the product of hanging out in Grant’s home last year, 3 weeks worth of cumulative effort, and somewhere between 50,000 to 100,000 LEGO bricks (who’s got time to count when you’re oozing with inspiration and art?). Both Grant and Eli should need no introduction, as neither are new to the world of making large scale builds and focusing on a single aspect of wonder. In 2018, they walked away with The Brothers Brick Creation of the Year award, and now they’re back with another stunning creation.
Hong Kong – Beneath the shell, it’s a pearl of a city.
Nearly ten years ago, working in China allowed me the opportunity to visit Hong Kong for the very first time. The primary focus of my trip was to visit LEGO fan event Bricks Adventure 2011 at City University, and I was floored by both the hospitality and building skills of the city’s LEGO enthusiasts. I was equally impressed by the beauty of the city itself, so much so that I made two more trips to Hong Kong in the coming months. Therefore, when I saw this artful LEGO depiction of the city built by Hong Kong native Eric Mok, it triggered a wave of happy memories. Eric captures a view of Hong Kong Island from Kowloon, set inside a gold-trimmed sea scallop — it’s a lovely nod to Hong Kong’s nickname as the “Pearl of the Orient.”
See this microscale version of Hong Kong in closer detail.
Imaginary islands, real LEGO bricks
When looking for unique builds to showcase here at The Brothers Brick, we see a lot of digital creations. There’s nothing wrong with that; virtual bricks can let a builder explore color combinations that LEGO has yet to produce, or to forgo the limitations that gravity would put on a delicate creation. But when you see something that you’re pretty sure is a render, only to discover it’s real? That’s something special. Oh, sure, Eli Willsea tried to throw me off by titling their creation The Imaginary Islands. But considering this was part of a real-world collaboration for BrickWorld, I think I spotted the clues that this is, indeed, a physical model. And what a model it is! A futuristic city floats above a lush landscape, which sits amid a calm sea.
I really like the use of carrot tops in the vegetation and the inverted Queen Watevra’s crown atop one of the buildings. What does puzzle me, though, is just how those waterfalls work. Is the city pumping up a ton of extra water from the sea? Is it the result of some sort of extra-dimensional gate gone wrong? Gasp! Is all that water around the base not a sea at all, but rather a giant lake of city-generated sewage? Is this actually a dystopian nightmare after all? I….I think I need to go lie down now.
Your guide to 153 new LEGO sets now available for 2020, including City, Technic, Star Wars, Architecture and more [News]
2020 has arrived and the floodgates of LEGO have opened with 153 new sets available today. Fans of Star Wars, Technic, Ninjago, City, Architecture, Creator 3-in-1 and even the new Trolls product line have a lot to choose from. The new modular Bookstore is available today as is a new white baseplate. Nearly every LEGO theme has some new sets–it can be a lot to process!– so we have your complete guide right here detailing each and every new set and item.
Some regions have seen these sets on shelves already, but now they are all available online. There are a few sets that really stand out to us, and you can see the complete list of all 153 sets and items after the jump.
See the entire January 2020 wave of new LEGO sets now available
The Brothers Brick’s top 10 LEGO news articles of 2019 [News]
2019 was a big year for LEGO with an incredible amount of new sets, business changes and announcements. The Brothers Brick has brought you the LEGO news in our in-depth style, sharing interesting stories that we’ve all read, shared, liked, and chatted about around the water cooler or LUG meetings. Here are the ten most popular LEGO news articles of the year.
Click to see the top 10 news articles for 2019