Tag Archives: Mech

Beep and Sweep: A robot’s guide to mopping floors

Looks like there is a lot of cleaning to do for this poor robot, as Benjamin Stenlund astounds us again with another encapsulating scene. It’s great to see a fully enclosed build, like this, with atmospheric lighting, which suggests that this display has a story to tell. The model is an entry in the Iron Builder contest with the current challenge being to build a model featuring sand blue spoilers. These spoiler pieces appear not only on the robot but also in the fans and the lights on the walls.

Ursula’s tentacles have been cleverly used as the mop head with the handle made out of candlestick pieces. I love the idea that even in a futuristic hangar, they still require a mop and bucket to clean the floors. Check out more articles on Benjamin’s stunning builds.

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This little light of mine... is locking on target

I’ve been following Goth Bricks 2000 for some time, and the LEGO mechs they create are nothing short of stunning, both in size and in posture. Recently they started to add lights into their mech models, and the effect is fantastic, adding the perfect touch of menace to take these mechanical monsters to the next level. This latest pair look like they could put the hurt on just about any foe.

Say Hello to the Hygogg

From the anime, Mobile Suit Gundam 0080: War in the Pocket, comes the weird humanoid octopus that is the Hygogg. Though it might not look like it, the Hygogg is an actually aquatic mech, used in special operations. Tino Poutiainen has captured the alien look of the original design while also adding his own unique style to the build. A variation of slope pieces have been used to great effect to create the wide shoulders and bulky wrists. The small pink eye in the centre of the torso could be the tip of a lipstick piece and the stickers used on the head are also accurate to the original design. Tino has done an excellent job of creating this oddly proportioned mech in LEGO form.

Mech behemoth towers over all

From the classic mecha anime, Mobile Suit Zeta Gundam, Moko’s model of the Rick Dias comes loaded with weaponry. This red giant supports a long bazooka and also has a pair of beam pistols attached to its massive backpack. A variety of slope pieces have been used throughout the design, the most prominent being the slope 2 x 2 x 3 part. The unusual circular section in the chest has been created by using round corner 4 x 4 x 2 pieces.

The model packs a punch with its articulated hands and can pull off some impressive poses even with a hulking frame.

By building in this scale the model has enough detail to make it near identical to its anime counterpart. This is one for Gundam and mecha fans alike while also demonstrating an impressive show of Lego engineering.

Forget about cicadas! Watch out for the Wasps!

Builders love to show off their anime-inspired robots, mech-suits, and vehicles. Who can blame them? They’re just so cool! The classic Cyberpunk anime Ghost in the Shell sports tons of futuristic designs for inspiration. Last year, Marius Hermann showed off his model of the anime’s popular spider-bot, the Tachikoma. This year, he decided to bring us the wasp-inspired Jigabachi.

As always, Marius was quite selective with his parts to remain faithful to the original design. A white Bionicle mask is used to model a specific version of the Jigabachi’s cockpit. Minifigure hands in yellow and black provide detail on the tail as well as on the rotor mast. The color choices really pop! I mean, sand green is always a personal favorite but seeing the surfboard smoothing out the main body of the model is a treat! Printed 1×1 tiles add extra detail to the wing sections while bars and rubber bands come together as the Jigabachi’s turret gun.

Feeling itchy? Check for Riot Fleas!

A bit ago a group of friends coordinated in posting a slew of Riot Fleas onto the interwebs. What’s a Riot Flea? You know, we’re still not sure. Maybe they’re like regular fleas but more…you know…riotous. This one by LEGO builder Johann Dakitsch is particularly good with its red armor and tools for hands. Unlike the other Riot Fleas, Johann tells us this one is good for assessment, maintenance and the occasional intruder disposal. This still doesn’t help in ascertaining exactly what a Riot Flea is but we like it anyway. Check out the other time we were impressed albeit flummoxed by Riot Fleas and be sure to check out the rest of them in the builder’s links.

The rare and majestic shoebill mech

I’ve been fascinated by the shoebill lately. I mean, that’s not unusual, I’ve always had a love for animals both odd and familiar but there has been an uptick in my shoebill YouTube searches lately. They’re such weird and majestic creatures who seem to know things beyond our understanding. Do you agree? I guess you just need to see the same YouTube videos I’ve been watching to know what I mean. So with that said, you can imagine my delight to see that Mitsuru Nikaido has built a lovely LEGO shoebill mech. Of course he has! With his distinct style and love for animals, he has consistently been among my favorite builders. Here’s why.

A case of the cat mech zoomies

If you have a pet cat or if you’re like me and watch cat videos in your spare time you’ve definitely seen the well-documented phenomena of the “cat zoomies” – basically when indoor cats release pent-up energy and zoom around. Aido’s LEGO zoid-like cat mech also appears to be experiencing the zoomies and wow look at that powerful gait.

Aido constructs this cat mech using a sleek black and red color scheme and overall the build makes use of a number of interesting elements including a black baseball diamond tile, an armor piece used above for the shoulder area – this looks like it is from a buildable figure model, and then the tail is interestingly constructed out of pneumatic T pieces clipped together using 1×1 modified plates. This robotic creature also is displayed running through a mystical patch of grass with bioluminescent-looking plants or creatures utilizing trans-clear green elements. Ultimately, this build is a very captivating and futuristic jungle scene and quite timely for late spring.

A peacekeeping mech that makes us smile

Usually when we show you a mech we go on to talk about the guns and other armament the mech has. But today we have a LEGO creation by Abraham Calderon called S.M.I.L.E. which stands for Strategic Machine Intelligence Loaded Exosuit. While well-built mechs can often make us smile it is a rare occasion when a mech smiles back. But here we are. Abraham tells us this is an AI assisted piloted mech designed for peacekeeping operations. Being former military myself I know that “peacekeeping operations” can sometimes be a euphemism for “lots of guns”. Funny how that works out! Still, I like to presume that this is a cuddly, fun-loving mech who just wants to hang out and maybe have some pizza. If you care to hang out for awhile, check out some of these other awesome mechs we’ve featured lately.

Getting a leg up on the enemy

LEGO builder Marius Herrmann has been on a quest to design what he calls “Fashion Robots,” that is, cool LEGO mechs and robots that employ some of LEGO’s most unusual elements, the cloth apparel items that show up from time to time in official sets, most prominently the Scala and Belville themes from the 90s and early 2000s. We’ve covered quite a few of these excellent Fashion Robots already, and this one marks Marius’ ninth with a cool dark tan color scheme. It employs Scala pants as the coverings for its four legs, but it’s actually the rest of the design that has me interested.

The silver ingots make great durable armor cladding on the legs, while the molded-in speakers from the boomboxes are perfect grilled covers for a missile launcher. A variety of dark tan curved slopes and arches make an interesting body, while the mech is topped with a three-barrel Gatling that’s strapped together with stretched rubber tires and a set of Tauntaun reins.

An unusual way to take your first steps into a larger world

The world feels like a dangerous place sometimes, and it’s only logical that parents would want to keep their babies safe when they venture out. That said, this solution from Andreas Lenander seems just a little bit extreme. The Baby Bubble Mech sure is a work of art, though. There’s just enough bulk to the mech’s arms and legs to suggest a light and strong exo-suit, and that bubble cockpit does give a wide field of view. And speaking of that view, does the part selection there suggest a lunar landscape fit for Wallace and Gromit? After all, “everyone knows the moon is made of cheese“…

If you enjoyed this odd walkabout, you’ll definitely want to check out our other “baby build” featured creations. They’re all cute and only mildly creepy.

Honest.

An (eight) arms race – Marvel 76198 Spider-Man & Doctor Octopus Mech Battle [Review]

The latest wave of LEGO superhero sets will be released soon, and we’ve been sharing an early look at them. The final set, Marvel 76198-Spider-Man & Doctor Octopus Mech Battle, will be available April 26th from the LEGO Shop Online for US $19.99 | CAN $24.99 | UK £17.99. Doc Ock and Spidey have battled many times in the past, and it’s usually a sight to see. Does this latest mechanical knuckle-buster live up to that grand tradition? Come along as we take a close look!

The LEGO Group provided The Brothers Brick with an early copy of this set for review. Providing TBB with products for review guarantees neither coverage nor positive reviews.

Click to read the full hands-on review