Tag Archives: Mitsuru Nikaido

This mechanical squid appears to be a fan of skiing

It might be difficult to add this one to a calamari dish. Mitsuru Nikaido has constructed an impressive version of a robotic squid in a black and white colour scheme. Flexible tubes and whip pieces represent cables along the outstretched limbs, adding to the mechanical aesthetic of the design. The squid’s tentacles are covered in a large amount of ski pieces which act as armor plating and are attached via droid bodies. The blank eyes of the creature are portrayed by tires and wheel rims. Being quite a large build, the model requires a stand which assists in conveying a sense that the creature is floating or is ready to glide through the water.

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You wouldn’t want to be this fish’s dentist!

Mitsuru Nikaido has constructed this haunting model, taking inspiration from aquatic creatures found in the depths of the ocean. Specifically, this build is based on the strangely named footballfish, from the same family as the anglerfish. The body is covered in armour like plates, providing the model with a robotic aesthetic, until you get to the mouth. The twisted, organic looking teeth, recreate the horrifying appearance of the fish, along with the round gleaming eyes. Beware dear readers, I’ve heard that this model uses a golden bionicle orb to lure in unsuspecting LEGO fans…

My thoughts on unconnected tiger art? They’re grrrrrrrreat!

Who says you have to lock the bricks together to make something beautiful out of LEGO? Mitsuru Nikaido knows just how to pile up pieces to take things in a very different direction. Better still, they show you just how it was done with a great time lapse video! (Seriously. Go watch.)

If you’re looking for more creative inspiration, be sure to take a stroll through our Art tag!

I bet the enemy is glad it’s an herbivore

Mitsuru Nikaido has been busy creating quite a mechanical menagerie. The latest member of his mecha-petting zoo is a triceratops like you’ve never seen before. I normally find the triceratops to be an adorable, huggable creature. But Mitsuru’s trademark white armor-plating style makes him look like a machine ready for war. I imagine there’s not much the enemy could throw at this beast to slow it down. (But, I’ll be honest, I kinda still want to give him a hug.)

Surely this water flea just wants a hug

Mitsuru Nikaido has created this enlarged version of a Daphnia pulex which is a type of water flea. The odd-looking outstretched arms are actually antennae used by the creature to move through the water. Actuator parts form sections of the antennae providing the model with a mechanical aesthetic which is also emphasized by the use of wires and tubes across the build. There is also some great curvature at the stomach, with angled plates creating interesting segmented areas throughout the model. It’s hard to imagine that the real-life animal is tiny compared to this intrinsically detailed creation.

The mechanical Huntsman never stops its search for prey

In usual fashion, builder Mitsuru Nikaido is back with another Mechanical Creature. This time it’s a Huntsman spider with some heavy Matrix vibes. This builder always has clever parts usage paired with an iconic color scheme that is simple but recognizable.

This model’s feature part would probably be the skis used in each of the spindly legs. But if you look closely, they’re also in the mouth of this creepy guy. Runner-up for parts usage would be the hinged bar holder, which is used to add some rigidity to the legs as well as to emulate the spider’s eight eyes. That Sentinel-style cephalothorax is a tight build that uses a Hero factory chest plate and hinged panels to hide its inner workings.

The abdomen continues the trend of the hinged panels to capture its curves. I always love how Mitsuru uses hoses and angled tiles in his models.

Hopefully, we never have these running around like the Boston Dynamic Spot bots showing up more prevalently nowadays. I will have no defenses against their terror.

Imagine how a mechanical cicada would sound...

As you may already know, cicadas are the loudest insect on the planet. When they “sing” together (more like radio static, clicking, and rattling) they are one of the most deafening animals in the world in general. Pretty cool for such a small creature! But what would a giant mecha cicada, like this LEGO one by Mitsuru Nikaido, sound like? I’m guessing a helicopter mixed with a chainsaw. But enough about that. Just look at this awesome build!

It’s all sorts of awesome in terms of techniques and body shaping. The segmentation is excellent, and I’m particularly fond of the batarang shields on the abdomen. The eyes, wings, and legs are spot-on too!

Fun fact: cicadas are basically living musical instruments (even if we don’t think of it the same way). Yep, that’s right! They use muscles in their sides to squeeze and accordion “ribs” surrounding two membranes known as tymbals to create different chirps. And their abdomens are hollow so that they can amplify those sounds. Why? That’s how they find a lady-friend! Ahhh, the song of love.

Another fun fact: Mitsuru Nikaido is the epic master of mecha animals. You’re not going to want to miss some of his other incredible works of art. My favorite might be the mecha snail!

Efforts continue in cataloging the mechanical tree of life

The fantastic mechanical creatures of Mitsuru Nikaido have long fascinated me. As I was emerging from the dark ages of my LEGO obsession, the robotic structures of Mitsuru’s models opened my eyes to just what was possible within the LEGO system. While each creature is a dead ringer for their biological inspirations, they also stand separately from them. Their form and selective color-blocking create eye-catching robotic designs. Mitsuru mostly sticks to a light or dark bluish grey contrasting with white and a pop of bright light orange. This simple palette gives a builder plenty of parts to play with though and Mitsuru certainly takes advantage of his options. Let’s take a moment to check out his latest models of a Water bear and a Snail.

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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.

The naked mole-rat of your dreams

I don’t know how many sleepless nights I’ve had while anxiously wishing someone would build a LEGO Mecha Heterocephalus-glaber. I know what you’re thinking; we’ve all been there, right? Thankfully, Mitsuru Nikaido answered our prayers and maybe now we can get some sleep for once. For those uninitiated with this creature’s scientific name, it is commonly called a naked mole-rat. (Tee-hee!) Mitsuru is no stranger to building weird mecha creatures of all kinds. Of all of youse, he’s probably the most qualified to build an awesome mech mole-rat, to be honest. Now, if I can’t sleep, it’ll be for other worrisome reasons like; do algorithms dream of electric murder? Why is my mom using the eggplant emoji? Is that Matt Gaetz behind the hamper?

I am the robot walrus

When I first heard about Mitsuru Nikaido‘s LEGO mecha walrus, I pictured a cyberpunk Beatles nightmare. But when I looked at how well-built and detailed it was, I was only impressed.

What really sells this as a mecha walrus are the green eyes. They give off a ghostly computer-like glow that is creepy and makes the rest of the build look metallic. The tubing also helps, but without the eyes, I would have thought it was just a LEGO Technic-style sea mammal.

The skin even looks like armor plating! Well done, Mitsuru!

This lander is out of this world, and I hope it stays there

Some spacecraft are friendly, full of friendly space explorers and friendly scientists. And then there’s this craft by Mitsuru Nikaido, which might be friendly, but I don’t trust it. Anything with more than 2 arms can’t be trusted. But I do like a good set of organic-looking lander arms. And that twisted central structure is pretty sweet.