One of the three final evolutions of the original Red and Blue game’s starter Pokémon, Venusaur is an iconic part of the franchise’s history. The seed originally found on its primary Bulbasuar form has blossomed into a radiant rafflesia-like flower, which is also the focus of Dae Vead’s beautiful LEGO version. Utilising clear building contrasts between the modelled reptilian body and the organic pieces used to form the plant elements results in a satisfying model of the beast. Standing tall against an appropriately sized tree further helps realise the monster’s epic scale and acts as a great framing device for a wonderful creation
Tag Archives: Creatures
Weird Galidor bugs lurk in the dark
Psst–Hello? Are you awake? So, I don’t want to alarm you or anything but Ben Tritschler just built this creepy crawler he calls Beast of the Dark 2. It has wings, antennae, crazy spines, and teeth like from one of those alien predator movies. Ben says it is venomous and hungry. Oh, and it totally makes use of a Galidor Ooni head, so…yeah. Make use of that information however you see fit. Like, who knows what other forms of weirdness lurks around here in the dark, right? The title “Beast of the Dark 2” implies there might be more than one of them. Like maybe a whole swarm? Well, anyway, I’m sure it’s no big deal. Forget I mentioned it. Go back to sleep. Good night.
This jelly is totally my jam
I have two things to brighten your day. One is a recipe for jelly cookies. The other is this creation by Djokson called Umi the Jelly. Her hobbies include drifting aimlessly and tending to her coral garden which, truth be told, would reduce stress if most of us spent our days doing the same. She seems quite at peace drifting among the colorful reef. Her tendrils, translucent flowing limbs, even the choice of background color all comprise a rather tranquil composition. This jelly creature is totally my jam or um…jelly, as it were. See, I told you this would brighten your day!
A collection of Cambrian creatures
The Cambrian Period was the first geological period of the Paleozoic era, lasting from 541 million to 485.4 million years ago. This time in earth’s history witnessed an explosion in the appearance of multicellular organisms like those represented by these LEGO sea creatures built by Luis Peña. Each one is a prehistoric work of art worthy of display in a museum.
Have a closer look at these sea creature’s from earth’s distant past.
Slyme wins the internet
The internet is a fun, stress-free place to live, work, and play where everyone is civil to one another. Why just today I received a courteous email from a Canadian pharmaceutical company who would like to help me gain valuable length and girth (whatever that means) and another email from a super-polite Nigerian prince who offered to share his fortune with me. Do I want to click to see a photo of the fattest pussycat I would ever see? You bet I do! I literally can’t think of any way that could go horribly wrong. Among all of this internet surfing, I had stumbled upon this charming creation by Fedde Barendrecht.
It is most parts LEGO, some parts painted Blu-tac, and all parts slimy goodness. Andrew says this could go viral, which is The Brothers-Brick technical internet speak for-its super cool. You should click on all of Fedde’s content because he is no stranger to building a menagerie of little weirdos just like this one. Later today I might get into a dignified political debate with someone Josh says is probably a Russian troll. I’d sure like to meet a Russian troll! I bet they’re as cute as this little guy here. What a delightful day on the internet this has been!
Whale watching without getting wet
Creating organic natural shapes using plastic bricks is not a simple thing, and making those shapes fit together into something simple and beautiful is truly an art form. Despite being monochromatic, this sculpture of a Humpback whale by Anthony Séjourné does an amazing job of capturing the majestic grace of one of the world’s largest marine mammals. I especially liked the use of so many hollow studs to represent barnacles. And the fluke is quite nice as well (that’s the whale’s tail, for those less well versed in whale biology).
Bionicle dragon rises from the water
It’s amazing what a talented LEGO builder can achieve when they step outside their comfort zone. Andreas Lenander was inspired to build something “Bionicle-ish” and I think he nailed it. The contrast in building styles between the complex dragon and the studs-up base is the perfect way to make the dragon stand out.
The dragon’s neck is particularly well done, being constructed mainly out of robot arms to resemble scales. Robot arms are actually used throughout, also being used for teeth and the tips of the black horns. The Piraka leg pieces are the ideal choice for the ridge of the dragon’s face: they give it that undeniably rigid-skinned lacertilian look.
LEGO Build-a-Bulbasaur [Instructions]
Nintendo’s Pokemon series boasts a bestiary of over 800 colorful creatures, coming in all shapes and sizes. Even with such variety, there will always be fan favorites like Pikachu, Charmander, and Jigglypuff. Bulbasaur is another beloved pocket monster, and this LEGO version built by hachiroku24 is spot-on in terms of appearance and spirit. I’m particularly impressed by the expressiveness of Bulbasaur’s brick-built eyes. The model looks especially nice when placed alongside the little Pokeball, which was originally designed by Chris Maddison.
If you find yourself longing for your own LEGO Bulbasaur, you’re in luck! The builder has been kind enough to share a video illustrating how the model is pieced together.
Brick-built seahorse has legs where you wouldn’t expect them
Part horse, part fish, part dragon, part saxophone — the seahorse is one of the weirdest-looking creatures you’ll find under the water. However this aquatic oddity’s peculiar appearance hasn’t put Brother Steven off creating a LEGO version, and the result is lovely. The orange works well, with restrained use of pearl gold and some exposed studs adding some welcome texture and scale-like details, and the spines along the back are excellent. The sandy base is nicely done — adding a coral reef context without distracting from the central model, but the overall shaping is the main attraction here. Don’t miss the use of minifigure legs to create the final curl of the seahorse’s tail — an inspired parts use.
Smoothly keeping dissidents at bay
This slick robotic four-legged police unit, dubbed KA-9 by LEGO builder Red Spacecat, has such a polished aesthetic to it that I could almost see it called the “iProtect” in our dystopian future. The ultra-grippy toes made of rubber Technic axle connectors is a genius design, and the subtle detail of eschewing larger tiles for a series of 1×1 tiles on the upper legs gives the perfect impression of heavy armor plates.
This kitty is no matoran’s pet
A small group of Bionicle builders have been reworking sets and themes from the early years of the Bionicle theme. They have just recently released pictures of another collaboration in my favourite Bionicle subtheme – Rahi (basically “animals”) from 2001. This build is Muaka from the 8538-1 Muaka & Kane-Ra set, reimagined by Red.
There is so much to love in the set’s reinterpretation. The builder stays faithful to the original with hoses on front legs and treads on the hind ones, but integrates them perfectly to achieve a smooth flow. And speaking of smooth flow, the tail is quite organic, made out of a 3mm flex tube element going through yellow 2×2 dish pieces and small tyres. My favourite part is the use of giant arms on the mouth, giving it the feline look that the original set lacked (which always looked more like two T-rexes…).
This Bioni-frog is one wild amphibian
LEGO constraction (construction action figure) themes like Bionicle have introduced a broad range of parts, which many builders have leveraged to create organic-looking creatures. Such is the case with this lovely Ghekula Frog built by Djokson, which they describe as “an amphibious swamp-dwelling Rahi.” I suspect the red-eyed tree frog inspired the build, as is evident in the lime green body, white underbelly, and red eyes. Of particular interest are the feet, which utilize blue robot arms and minifigure arms as toes. The end result is one lively amphibian.