Tag Archives: Mohamed Marei

Taking Bionicle to the red planet

The Bio-Cup is underway, a contest utilizing the sometimes-awkward parts of the Bionicle theme! And it’s kicking off in a big way – the theme for the first round of this annual LEGO contest is “Space”. With such a broad topic, some builders have gone to some really far-flung galaxies, but Mohamed Marei has elected to hop over to our neighbouring planet in his Mars rover. I’m seeing a lot of call-backs to previous LEGO themes here. Of course, that includes some of the older Bionicle pieces used here, or the Technic figure and helmet. But that space-suit reminds me of some of the minifigure space-suits from the 1990s, and the rover is decked out in a similar livery to the Mars Mission sets from the mid-2000s. To be fair, orange is very on-brand for Mars!

Journey to Mars

A fin-tastic knight of the sea

Take a trip with us down into the sea where we find a noble seahorse on a knightly quest in this wonderful LEGO scene by Mohamed Marei. Built for the Bio-Cup saltwater biome theme, the scene shows off the creativity of a great builder. The bright colors contrast nicely against the bronze look of the seahorse knight, bringing our attention to the central figure. Floating above the knight is an exquisite jellyfish, using an array of transparent pieces well. The framing of the scene is fluid and I can’t stop looking at it! As is intended in the Bio-Cup, this is one of those builds that pushes the use of LEGO as a medium to new levels. Also, can we acknowledge how nice the use of the stud shooter is for the mouth of the seahorse? It’s like it was meant for such a use all along.

Don Quixote, El Caballero Andante

This Mech means business

There are MOC builders, and then there are Mech builders and their knowledge of crafting exquisite robots from the humble LEGO brick is worth praising often. Here, delights with his latest offering. Blending system bricks with constraction figures isn’t always a straight forward task but Mohamed often does so with ease. I love the colour palette of this Mech with the Sand Blue pieces serving as armour, overlaying the various greys of the mechanical parts. They perfectly compliment each other here with the trans pink pieces adding suggestion that this fella isn’t afraid to defend itself. My favourite detail has to be the Bionicle mask serving as chest armour, and whilst we’re calling that out, the use of the armour piece from the Jango Fett buildable figure adds the suggestion that this mech means business too.

Tachyon Thrasher

 

Dress to impress with this LEGO shogun armor

The balance of LEGO Technic and System parts in this ornate shogun design by Mohamed Marei shows some excellent prowess with the brick. Each piece seems to be specifically chosen to replicate the plated nature of ancient Japanese armor. The use of tread pieces here (large and small) is divine, both around the arms above the elbows and as the base of the warrior’s kusazuri (the plates draping over his thighs). And Mohamed has used nearly every type of gold 1×1 round plate in this build. There’s even one that isn’t actually a part, but a sprue for Ninjago weapons. It’s an ingenious choice, adding even more variety to the fairly monochromatic armor.

The Great Shogun (Samurai MOC 2022)

And I haven’t even started talking about my favorite part of the build: the kabuto, or helmet. If you haven’t been able to tell from my previous posts on here, I’m a sucker for a great brick-built face. And this mask, with the intricate details around the eyes and mouth, is truly exceptional! On the sides of the kabuto, you’ll find what has to be the best parts usage in the whole build. Those curves are made by an upside-down fairing from this Chima Speedorz set. You can better see how the part’s used in the side-view below.

The Great Shogun (Samurai MOC 2022)