Since it’s just the two of us, constant reader, let’s jump into the way-back machine again and set the dial for 2011. Even though the build can’t be considered new, the builder (LEGO Suzuki) is new to me and perhaps to many of you too. The reason for all this fussy time-travel is to show you Suzuki’s outstanding Samurai battle gear display set, which is detailed enough to make Miyamoto Musashi proud.
This incredible layout, by OliveSeon, shows Mothra, sometime ally/sometime enemy of Godzilla, involved in an epic battle. I love Mothra herself and her silken spray entangling all the buildings around her. The builder did a good job of seamlessly incorporating actual modular building sets in the layout as well. But I’m also partial to well-built battle scenes, and this fits the bill. For the record, I’m rooting for Mothra…
Katie Walker (eilonwy77) pushes the definition of LEGO building yet again with this thoroughly accessorized version of Hello Kitty. We’ve seen mosaics made like this before, but never one this colorful. Also, in what is surely a first for Katie, I don’t think I spy a single cheese slope in there.
A temple in clouds of steam and smoke, that is. This Japanese shrine reminds me more than a bit of the great wizard Howl’s Moving Castle, though Jimmy’s (6kyubi6) version has some different styling cues. It’s gorgeous all the same, and sure to instill a healthy respect for religion in anyone who comes across its path.
Flickr user legorobo:waka has posted his wa F8 Lanius, a truly sweet mecha that hits all the right notes. It has classic anime styling, great details, articulation and best of all, houses a minfig pilot. In particular, the details I like best are the feet/ landing gear, the hands and guns, and the classic Japanese style mecha head with the Uruk-Hai sword on the back. The way he was able to tuck the pilot into the chest cavity without it looking too bulky, or sacrificing the styling detail is pretty sweet too.
Schfio made them and they are too adorable for words.
Tama and Friends is Japanese Anime series that originally ran in 1994.
Japanese builders make mecha like Canadians make maple syrup. Now I don’t think mecha would taste nearly as good on my waffles, but that doesn’t mean that I can’t love them equally.
Flickr user Dak Yuki proves my point with his Armored Core:
Be sure to browse through the full photoset for all the cool poses & other goodies
NOW the question is whether mecha would taste good with maple syrup???
Cheers to Stijn & Peter for the heads up
This latest Iron Builder contest has provided an incredible slew of fascinating models from the uuber talented contestants. Sean and Steph Mayo pull out all the stops with this monstrous sushi roll fit for a giant.
And Bart De Dobbelaer fires back with this super cool Monolith. I don’t even pretend to know what’s going on here, but I’m imagining some sort of robot sentience emergence, ala 2001.
Pictures of an upcoming Lego Architecture has surfaced for 21017 Imperial Hotel. There’s no word on the price or release date, but you can find more pictures on Eurobricks.
Edit (AB): A few notes about the real-world building: Frank Lloyd Wright designed the Imperial Hotel in Tokyo, and construction was finished on the Maya Revival-style complex in 1923, just in time for the Great Kanto Earthquake that same year. The structure survived, though with some damage, ultimately having to be torn down several decades later. This will be the first LEGO Architecture set inspired by a building in Japan.
Japanese artist Azuma Makoto usually creates his botanically themed pieces from real plants, but occasionally dabbles with materials as diverse as Astroturf and LEGO. One of his latest pieces is a gorgeous recreation of a bonsai pine tree built from bricks.
Click the pic to see more photos on the artist’s Facebook page.
Via MAKE, a text message from my mom, and the rest of the Internet (we’re a little behind on this particular item)…
Back in 2009, the Internet marveled at Japanese builder talapz‘s mind-boggling pop-up Kinkaku-ji pavilion. Now, he’s at it again! This time, he’s built Todai-ji, a temple in Nara, Japan that houses the world’s largest bronze statue of Buddha.
Nara was one of Japan’s first capitol cities, before Kyoto and Tokyo. Todai-ji and the Giant Buddha (Daibutsu) are part of a UNESCO World Heritage site, encompassing treasures from the period of ancient Japan (AD 710-794) that shares the city’s name.
For those of you inclined to try building your own pop-up Todai-ji, there is hope! In the second half of the video, talapz provides step-by-step instructions (449 steps) to build your own pop-up Todai-ji temple from a parts list — complete with Bricklink IDs — of 8816 LEGO elements. Good luck!
