Tag Archives: Mech

Minifigures and Mechs – More LEGO Marvel Armor arrives in January [Review]

LEGO recently announced a slew of new Marvel sets that will be available January 1, 2021. Among them are three Mech Armors – smaller sets that feature a minifigure of a popular character and a minimalistic suit of power armor they can stomp around in. This wave includes 76168 Captain America Mech Armor (US $9.99 | CAN $13.99 | UK £8.99), 76169 Thor Mech Armor (US $9.99 | CAN $13.99 | UK £8.99), and 76171 Miles Morales Mech Armor (US $9.99 | CAN $13.99 | UK £8.99). At first glance, these sets look a little spindly and low-quality, but is that actually the case? Could these be tiny toys be big wins for LEGO and Marvel fans? We’ll walk through the highs and lows of each set, so you can judge for yourself!

The LEGO Group provided The Brothers Brick with early copies of these sets for review. Providing TBB with products for review guarantees neither coverage nor positive reviews.

Click to read the full hands-on review

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A mech in desolation

Roaming around in desolation, a well-armed mech makes its way. This detailed mech model built by Carter, showcases how LEGO is the perfect medium for mech building.

Firstly the parts usage exhibited in this build is fantastic, my favorites being the brown minifigure backpacks used as ammo storage and the roller skate pieces rendering shoulder artillery. Out of some common black elements including the whip piece, 1×2 grill, and 1×4 wing piece – just to name a few, Carter fashions a distinguished arm-gun. A piece of shoulder armor usually found in buildable figure sets, is utilized as a cockpit of sorts. While the mech build is certainly the centerpiece of this model, the ground it walks on is also interestingly put together – comprised of a mosaic of 1×2 brown slopes. Overall this build is definitely and inspiration for imaginations everywhere.

A bug that keeps changing with the times

It’s always fun when LEGO builders… well… build on each other. CB Phase 4, Marin Stipkovic‘s latest entry for Mech Monday, is a new “final form” for the evolving Cobalt Bug concept created by Markus Rollbühler almost exactly a year ago. Times, they are a changin’. There are a lot of great details in this latest evolution to enjoy. Those basketball netting engine cowlings are a lot of fun, as are the ski pole feet. The orange spike proboscis is smile-worthy, too.

If you want even more juicy views of this mech, check out the 360 degree rotation Marin shared on Flickr. I can’t wait to see if we get a ultimate-final form version next year!

The legend of Bubba Yaga

Forget the folklore from the Slavic steppes, this walking house comes straight from the bayou. Built by Letranger Absurde, the shanty is piloted by two women and decked out with all sorts of odds and ends that they’ve picked up in their travels. Giving off a distinct sense of post-apocalyptic salvage, the four-legged mech looks like it was cobbled together from the remains of an industrial platform and an old shed. And as good as the mech is, the base it sits on is also worth noting, with a great layered effect from the trans light blue tiles placed over what’s probably lime green or yellow plates, interspersed with olive and medium nougat for the muddy land.

Does this mech make my butt look big?

Intricate details are a hallmark of Marco Marozzi LEGO mech builds. This often leads to a feeling that the builds are super-huge in scale, even though they’re usually miracles of compact design. The MT3 Heavy Mech gives us a clue, though, with the quickly recognizable inclusion of a Star Wars 41st Elite Corps Trooper minifigure as the pilot. There are also hints if you happen to know how big those hockey masks are. Or maybe you spotted those minifigure hands for fingers.

From the rear, you can see more of the custom sticker work that set Marco’s builds apart from the crowd. There are also some alternate-brand part selections here and there. LEGO purists may complain about that, but you can’t argue that the results are really stunning.

This isn’t the first mech of Marco’s that we’ve spotlighted, and it’s unlikely to be the last. My hope is that others are inspired by these tiny(?) beauties, and we’ll see even more Mechs on the horizon.

News Flash: Michael Bay to reboot Sesame Street franchise

Hi-ho, Kermit the Frog here! Today on Sesame Street news we’re sharing the latest Hollywood Leak! The monster on the street is telling us that none other than Michael Bay of Transformers fame has been tapped to relaunch the Sesame Street franchise for, and I’m quoting here, “a million kajillion dollars.” The source of the leak, a Mister “I.M. Lying” provided an image of a LEGO toy prototype reportedly designed by Simon Liu. Using the new Oscar the Grouch head from the Sesame Street Ideas set, Simon has given our resident Grouch the ability to take out his own trash. Additional sponsorship from the letter “G” for “Greeble” and the numbers 1, 2, and 3 are also reported. I, personally, think this is a terrible…hold on. I’m now getting word that our source may have been making all of this up. So nevermind. Sheesh.

(Well, even if the movie rumors are fake, this Oscar Mech is very real. Check out the 360 degree spin on Simon’s Instagram if you don’t believe me. Then check out some of the other creations of Simon’s we’ve featured.)

Robots with heads of rubber

Just when you think you’ve seen nearly every incarnation of LEGO robot to pass your computer screen, another master builder like Andreas Lenander shows up.

While we’ve seen mechs before here on The Brothers Brick, we’ve never seen tires turned inside out to create a robot head. It took a few minutes staring at this build to realize that the head wasn’t a plastic brick, but was actually rubber. Everything about this scene here is fantastic, but I’m still in awe of the idea of using inside-out tires. Mind-boggling, you might say!

Silly rabbit, Trix are for...no, actually, go ahead and take them...

It always seems cruel to me that the kids in those breakfast cereal commercials wouldn’t just share. Thanks to Moko they might not have a choice anymore: this fearsome Rabbit Mech isn’t about to take “no” for an answer. The white armor plating is a great mix of Technic, Bionicle, and Hero Factory elements. The claws are particularly cool – made from Bionicle minifigure heads and Ben-10 spikes.

The mech is also has a lot of articulation, letting it bend into a more animalistic crouch. It looks even more sinister when it’s ready to pounce.

There are a lot more images and build commentary for this mech at Moko’s blog. It’s in Japanese, though, so be ready to run it through a translator. Alternately, check out our archives for more Brothers Brick coverage of Moko’s creations.

Who needs a hand when a gun will do

Mobile hardsuits are very popular with LEGO builders, especially during the month of October, which for many fans around the world, means Ma.Ktober, the month-long building challenge inspired by the Maschinen Kreiger sub-cultural phenomenon. This mech-armored model by Faber Mandragore has plenty of charm; from a distinctly insect-like body, stompy feet, and a gun-hand connected to its back, this hardsuit looks ready to take on an entire squad of enemies. The new lantern part found in many Harry Potter sets gives the face an extra menacing look.

Big machines for little critters

Did you ever feel bad for the cute baby dragons that kept being harassed by Ragana back in the LEGO Elves theme? I did. So I built some mechs to let them defend themselves, and then (since I only had three dragons) I built an evil cat mech in the same style (I know, I know, “evil cat” is redundant…). I’ve already written about one of these mechs, but I think they look even better all together. When I started building for the fan challenge Mechtober, I half-heartedly built the small black mech. But then, as usual for me, I got excited and invested and built a larger dark grey one, followed by an equally large light grey one, and finally a white one. I have a hard time going halfway on projects, it seems.

The minimalist style I started with, relying on lots of bar-and-clip connections, was carried throughout, but it was interesting to find what parts were color-limited for me. For example, I do not have any bars with clip in white, which was one of the key connection points on the black and grey mechs; that meant I needed to get creative, and ended up using most of my white skeleton arms to compensate. I was especially happy with the light grey one’s cockpit, since I have always wanted to use that canopy for something besides a Ninjago spinner. Will they keep the dragons safe? I don’t know, but they’ve at least got a fighting chance now.

Something strange in your neighborhood

Maybe it’s not the most stealthy LEGO mech ever built, but Marin Stipković has created a truly spooky machine, none the less. Ghostlord’s Ghoul Mech and Minions adds a new element to the mix: Glow in the dark parts. You may see it coming, but it may still be the last thing you’ll ever see. Marin has also shared a cool 3-D view with the lights on. You know, for comparison’s sake.

This is Marin’s latest entry for Mech Monday. If you’ve been inspired to get involved, there’s a Flickr group with more information.

The beauty and the beasts

Last week, we took a look at Andreas Lenander‘s recent mech in the style of Maschinen Krieger. It turns out, at home, Andreas has a small hangar of these ghastly war machines. Last week’s Ma.K SAFS Raketenwerfer seems to be somewhat cute compared to the new massive two-legged Ma.K Strauß. Looking straight into the darkness of its spherical cockpit gives me shivers. Fortunately, the build is accompanied by a wonderful autumn tree. Bonus points for the striking contrast between black and yellow; this is how you create a great composition using colors.

In case your daily dose of terrifying war machines is at least two, here’s something more bizarre — a four-legged Ma.K Käfer. You know, I’m happy to see more pretty trees balancing out the mech’s gloominess.