Tag Archives: Neo-Classic Space

Driving the wedge into Classic Space

Classic Space and flying grey wedge shapes—name a more iconic duo! This LEGO ship by Sylvain Daunais may be pretty small as far as spaceships going, being just a single-seater, but it’s got all the right stuff for a Neo-Classic Space look, with clean lines, a transparent yellow cockpit, cool engine intakes, and red/green lights on the wingtips.

Team Explorer ( classe 910) LL918 intercepteur

My favorite bit can only be seen from the back, though, where Sylvain has use the macaroni pieces to make some intertwined piping around the thruster. It’s a super simple bit of detailing that takes this ship up a few notches.

Team Explorer ( classe 910) LL918 intercepteur

Terraforming has never been so terrifying... Trust me

Pascal has created a vision of a truly terrifying dystopia. This may look like some neo-classic space robots helpfully planning the terraforming of a new, distant world, but look closer! This is a world devoid of mere mortals like minifigures. In this darkest of timelines, our new robot overlords spend their days playing God with the very Earth that sustains us. Rivers bend to their will. They literally move mountains. And we must acquiesce, as tiny figurines moved around on a Warhammer board, powerless to stop them. If only someone had a brick separator… Then we may be free of this torment that the machines call a game…

Terraforming Planning

Crane your necks to get a good look at this MOC

I love spaceships with unusual shapes, and Pascal has come up with a doozy in this regard. He has dubbed it the Sky Crane; presumably to reflect its role as a cargo-carrying craft, but perhaps also because the cockpit shape is reminiscent of a crane bird. The unique cockpit is a wonderful concept neatly executed, using the transparent yellow windshields from 10497 Galaxy Explorer. Speaking of which, this set didn’t include the moonbase that the original in 1979 had. If it had done, it could well have looked like the mobile habitat slung underneath the Sky Crane here!

NCS Sky Crane

A spaceship in the mech-ing

Imagining what kind of cool new ships can be added to the classic LEGO Space theme is always fun. This spaceship from Shiu makes for an awesome addition to those imaginings! The shaping of the ship has a lot of fun lines and angles to catch the eye. There’s some excellent greebling going on throughout, including the evergreen minifig roller skate. Personally, I appreciate the texture the jet engine insert provides to the laser cannons. Another fine detail is the pilot’s harness. Usually builds don’t have the room for something like that. Now, something you might be wondering is why so much bulk in the wings? There could no doubt be a variety of answers to that question, but for this build the answer is transformational!

LL-505 Galaxy Fighter

The star-fighter converts into a mech-fighter! The wings split into the arms and legs of a stylish, and spacefaring, mech. The nose of the ship swings down to allow for forward clearance, something it can do after the beast of a blaster is in the mech’s grip. Usually a space explorer has to leave their ship to adventure planet-side, but not with this ship! The whole thing can help scout out new locations and set up base camps. Truly an all-in-one spaceship.

LL-505 Galaxy Fighter

A spaceship build that lifts our spirits.

Can’t you just hear the engines in action when you look at this build by OA KD? This unconventional quadruped cargo ship is a seriously cool take on the Classic Space theme. The exhaust coming out of the four landing pods definitely elevates this build to a new level, but we also have to give bonus points for the wonderfully integrated Duplo windscreen that looks right at home with the regular system bricks.

Aaaand liftoff!

The ship is the knife and outer space is the butter

I always knew LEGO could be sharp (underfoot), but this ship from Tim Goddard really shows off how sharp! There’s not a curve to be seen, outside of the canopy, on this interceptor, giving it the intended sharp-edged appearance. The ship looks like to could cut through anything as it speeds along on its mission. It possesses the style choices of the classic LEGO Space theme–always a welcome sight! Even the canopy is in the color scheme of the theme, but that’s not where it comes from… The canopy is the only curve in the build, and it comes from that most excellent Lightyear 76832 XL-15 Spaceship set. It’s the perfect canopy for this build, lending itself well to that tapering wedge of the nose. I also really appreciate the sloping where the wings join the body. The use of wedge slopes with hinges isn’t a new technique, but it’s one that works really well for filling and adding definition.

TheMpemba Effect

Taking a look beneath the ship reveals the full arrowhead-like shape of the interceptor. It also reveals some cool detailing, like the laser cannons mounted under the wings, done with brackets, round plates, and lightsaber hilts. However, my favorite detail on the underside are those brackets running down the midsection of the nose. They create a neat effect I just can’t get over, especially when paired with the other textures around them. Not to mention, these no doubt add some dynamism and choice when it comes to a display stand. They offer plenty of connection points for an angled display scene.

The Mpemba Effect

This one-man ship can transport us all back in time.

LEGO’s 90th anniversary sets have pushed the fandom’s collective nostalgia into hyperspace, prompting all kinds of throwback builds. This tiny spacecraft by Pascal is a perfect example of old-school styling and modern construction. The blue and gray color scheme recalls the classic sets of yesteryear, but the studless construction and greebling details put this squarely in the “modern marvel” category.

ASRV-17 Borealis

Who needs a sleek starship when you have an enormous engine?

Everyone builds at their own pace. Some builders crank out builds every day, others will go months or sometimes years between creations – which, to be clear, is completely fine! In the case of Drew Hamilton (Wami Delthorn), it’s been over a year since he last posted one of his spectacular spaceship designs. It’s been worth the wait though, as he has reinvented one of his older Classic Space designs into this LL-528 Rapier MkII. It has all the hallmarks of what is now known as Neo Classic Space: clean lines of blue and light grey, with plenty of texturing and the signature black-and-yellow bumblebee stripes.

LL-528 Rapier (MkII)

The design itself is very cool. With starships, it’s often tempting to make them sleek, speedy-looking machines. And with a name like Rapier, you’d be forgiven for thinking this would look the same. But I love how bulky it is! The rear of the vessel is dominated by that great hulking thruster, which blends nicely into the stubby wings thanks to some neat use of angles. It’s all broken up with subtle asymmetric panel detailing to give it quite a realistic feel.

LL-528 Rapier (MkII)

The only thing I would question is the choice of co-pilot. Surely a control panel full of flashing lights is a poor mix with a space-going cat…

A blockbuster Classic Space ship

It all comes full circle. Builder Dana Knudson pays homage to the Classic Space theme with this recolored adaptation of the XL-15 Spaceship from Disney-Pixar’s Lightyear. Director Angus MacLane is an ecstatic fan of LEGO and, like many AFOLs, falls into the space-nerd camp. In fact while working on the designs and story of Lightyear he frequently turned to his bricks to sketch out the concepts, even choosing to make the canopies for all the ships yellow just so LEGO would be forced to make a new yellow canopy again. So it was destined that we would eventually see the ships from that film adapted with Classic Space regalia as Dana Knudson has done here. Much of the ship is practically the same as the XL-15 but Dana did have to come up with a SNOT brick and cheese slope solution near the pilot’s seat. Since the roof tiles used in the original design aren’t (yet) available in blue, Dana had to come up with a different way to mimic their structure.

XL-15-CS

Not a technically new design but a satisfying homage worth celebrating none the less, I know we can expect more space-themed redesigns of this iconic ship.

Classic Space isn’t just for, well, space, anymore!

LEGO’s iconic Classic Space style has been reinterpreted in many forms over the years, typically rounded up in what fans call Neo-Classic Space (NCS) and we’ve seen everything from spaceships to tanks wearing that beloved blue, grey, and transparent-yellow color scheme. But there’s always room for breaking the mold a bit more while still adhering to the basic style. Enter Rubblemaker and the Manta Ray, an NCS vessel that can go places no Classic Spaceship has gone before: underwater! Bearing a strikingly unique shape and just the perfect amount of greebles, this cool design now has me wanting to do a crossover mashup with Aquazone.

Classic Space - The Manta Ray

Of course, it can’t really be Classic “Space” unless there’s some space involved, and the Manta Ray is only too happy to oblige, as it’s versatile enough to traverse the cold depths of outer space as easily as the ocean.

Classic Space - The Manta Ray

Big blue Ant

Community space vehicle building challenge FebRovery 2022 has come and gone but that doesn’t mean we can’t continue to celebrate rovers. Inspired by the Classic Space color scheme and utilizing the seemingly popular Vidiyo cubes, LEGO builder Jan Woznica added a flair of futuristic character to this cargo carrier. Each wheel has working independent suspension, something Jan was rather proud of since he doesn’t really consider himself a “Technic guy.” Each of the cargo pods is also detachable so keep an eye out for any variants he might come up with in the future.

The rover is called the Ant because of the rigging around the drivers’ pod, which resembles the eyes and mouth of the little worker insect. Loaded as it is, there’s still room behind the Ant’s head to hold all the driver might need while out amongst the alien dunes and deserts. I could just see them strumming the guitar atop the blue cargo pod, night stars overhead while the greenhouse pod casts a dull glow on the sand and rock below.

Last year we awarded Jan Woznica with LEGO Creation of the Year for his Tales of the Space Age model series. Here he reminds us that he can build more than just eye-catching microscale displays. I can’t wait to see what else this year holds for him.

Let your inner child explore the galaxy in this Neo-Classic Space pod

If you’re a LEGO fan of a certain age, it’s impossible not to love a sci-fi vehicle built in blue and gray. That old school color combo will transport you back to the 80s as effectively as a slingshot around the sun. The Galaxy Explorer Ground Station is no exception to this rule. Sure, its round shape and detailed greebling might set it apart from the simpler sets of yesteryear, but there’s no denying where LEGO builder The Brick Artisan draws his inspiration from. This one-man landing pod not only looks great, but it’s also packed with all the play features our inner children are looking for, like a spinning radar dish and opening door. Remove the roof, and you’ll find lots of cool computer details. It’s everything a young (or old) explorer needs on a hostile and unexplored alien planet.

Galaxy Explorer Ground Station