Tag Archives: Minifigs

Everybody loves LEGO minifigures — well, almost everybody. Minifigs are often the stars of the LEGO models we feature here on The Brothers Brick, but we also feature some amazing custom minifigs you’d never expect to see in an official LEGO set.

Exclusive LEGO Star Wars Rogue One preview, thanks to a bed sheet and a broken lamp

Rogue One: A Star Wars Story releases later this week, but Ian MacDonald has built a special preview shot in LEGO with help from a bed sheet and some extreme forced perspective in his basement. Rogue One takes place just before 1977’s A New Hope, when the Death Star was being built. Ian’s scene depicts Jyn Erso walking out of the hanger on Yavin IV, where the Rebellion is based. His scene matches a shot seen 44 seconds into the second official trailer, and 2000 bricks went into just making the huge hanger, let alone our view into the distance.

I just had to quote Ian’s description of putting this scene together, as I’m sure many builders will recognise their own experiences in these words: So many things had to go just right to make this image. There’s 3 layers of background, a bed sheet for a sky, and a couple lamps, one of which is broken. All shot in my basement.

As you can see, the end result is fantastic, but I really enjoy seeing ‘behind the scenes’ photographs that show the work and thought that goes into this kind of cinematic LEGO shot. The forced perspective of the layers of background gives the impression of differing size and scale with huge mountains at a distance, a tall pyramid-like structure and then the expansive hanger itself. A lot of effort for one shot but the finished shot is awesome.

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Do you have a reservation?

This hotel lobby, built as a 16×16 stud vignette by Sven Franic, is all ready for guests. You will be able to check in on arrival and have your suitcase taken up to your room by the smartly dressed porter pulling the luggage rack. There is everything a hotel lobby requires: tasteful wallpaper, a local map, comfy leather couch and a reception desk complete with bell to gain attention. I particularly like the wooden display behind the reception desk with pigeon holes for guests’ room keys or messages.

If you fancy trying out some of these builds as inspiration for your own creations, Sven has even supplied an exploded view:

A perilous jump into the LEGO fish market

If you have seen the 2010 movie The Tourist with Angelina Jolie and Johnny Depp, you may have already recognised this scene. This LEGO version by LEGO Fjotten depicts the fish market scene, but can be enjoyed as a vignette without any knowledge of the movie. It is set in Venice and there are definitely Venetian vibes coming through with the gondola, some impeccably dressed minifigures, and the mix of Gothic windows and stone archways. This is a lovely vignette that all comes together nicely with the checked canopy over the fish market making for an eye-catching central focal point.

Going where Star Trek tends to go, into Space

The television series Star Trek: Deep Space 9 actually went where no Star Trek series had gone before – it was the first series that took place on a starbase rather than a starship. Clearly vehicles were still required as no one would want to be stuck on a starbase without the opportunity to encounter some new species or tackle some intergalactic crisis. Larsvader has built this huge minifig scale LEGO version of the USS Yukon (NCC-74602), which was a Danube-class runabout used extensively in the series.

The builder has managed to ensure that his Star Trek minifigure personnel are as comfortable as possible. The interior includes a large crew cabin complete with sleeping and dining areas for extended travel. There is also a compact personnel transporter to ensure there can be a dramatic transportation just in the nick of time. Of course the cockpit comes complete with beeping screen, tactical stations and an escape hatch. But where is the toilet?!

The Birth of Apple

Ohio-based builder JD Keller has built this great minifigure scale vignette that depicts Steve Jobs in Steve ‘Woz’ Wozniak’s garage back in the mid 1970s. Amazingly, the billion dollar company Apple Computing started out as Woz’s garage-based hobby so we are witnessing the ‘Birth of Apple’. I love the panelled garage walls and the various electronic bits and pieces on the shelves. Don’t miss the classic large red toolbox with sliding drawers, the Apple colours on the shelves, and the original wooden Apple I computer in the background.

Cornering the market in grand style

Mark Erickson is well known for his castle and medieval-themed builds and his latest creation is a grand one. Entitled ‘The Grand Bazaar’, Mark has created a beautiful, bustling, colourful market scene packed with details and nice techniques. This bazaar has an exotic feel of the east with a camel, trees from warmer climes and a rare sighting of a yellow parrot. The architectural details are lovely, with arches constructed from bricks and slopes and a great combination of colours.

There are a great many details that require a closer look, but for me the combination of colours is the highlight of this build. I love the blue tiled roof with hints of sand and olive green on the more official ‘town hall’ looking building on the right. The use of the Belville oriental carpet as a canopy adds a lovely flash of bright red, while sand red makes a rare appearance on the sloped roof of the building to the left. A really captivating scene.

What’s this? What’s this?! There’s color everywhere!

Are you ready for a trip to Halloween Town? We posted a fantastic minifig-scale scene with Jack Skellington and the Mayor earlier, and have more to show you from The Nightmare Before Christmas. Let’s get this party started!

First up is a great pair of custom minifigs from Yong Hoon Yoon. His minifig scale Jack and Sally are just wonderful; Sally is spot on.

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Darkness falls across the land – the midnight hour is close at hand

“Creatures crawl in search of blood, to terrorize Nick Sweetman‘s neighborhood. And whosoever shall be found without the soul for getting down must stand and face the hounds of hell and rot inside a corpse’s shell. The foulest stench is in the air. The funk of forty thousand years. And grizzly ghouls from every tomb are closing in to seal your doom. And though you fight to stay alive, your body starts to shiver. For no mere mortal can resist, the evil of the thriller…”

Spider-Man distracts Venom from beautiful building

Thorsten Bonsch has nailed this scene from Marvel’s Ultimate Universe. Not long after 13 year old Miles Morales takes over as Spider-Man, he has one of his most important early fights with Venom. This build really grabbed my attention but it had nothing to do with the minifigures initially, or even the Venom creature… it was the fantastic building in the background. Thorsten’s brickwork is really special here, especially the window lintels and decorative roof. Lovely use of LEGO’s colour palate with dark orange, dark tan and black all coming together beautifully.

Thorsten tells us that the Ultimate Universe Venom is much, much bigger than the 616 one, with no white spider symbol on his chest. I can’t say that I know a lot about Venom but I love his shaping and the ingenious use of white minifigure hands to create his sharp teeth.

This castle stands out from the bunch

Castles are a popular type of creation in the LEGO fan world so it takes something special to really stand out from the crowd. Christope has certainly managed this in his latest build, Laslan Castle. I’m used to the muted tones of medieval life but orange, yellow, lime?? The use of such bright colours is very refreshing and actually works incredibly well for a this castle scene. As well as the great use of colour, there is also some lovely LEGO stonework to admire with the castle walls and the angled stone steps to the front entrance.

Don’t miss the details around the dock and the little merchant stall in the right-hand corner. This closer view also reveals the amount of work that has gone into creating the lovely textured stonework.

Kaneda’s bike from Akira in LEGO

Korean builder Haeundaddy has designed and built probably the best LEGO version of Shotaro Kaneda’s bike from Akira that I have seen. This larger scale bike is shapely, detailed and full of the smooth lines that characterise this famous red bike. The specially designed base is a nice touch as a model of this calibre needs something a little special to rest upon.

The details are fantastic, from the sports seat to the handlebar area, and Haeundaddy has taken the time to capture his work with some excellent photography.

Click through to see more of this excellent anime bike

Mr T and his fab Model T Ford

Mr T is looking suitably pleased with himself in this great little scene by Calin. I’m not surprised that he has caught the eye of a fair lady who happens to be strolling nearby. His shiny Model T Ford is a lovely build with some fab parts usage.

I love the little details that Calin always brings to his builds, in this case, the rubber band across the windscreen is a lovely touch. Also, in case you haven’t realised, the wheel base is the Fabuland car chasis. What a great way to turn a comedy Fabuland car into a classy classic car.