Tag Archives: NPU

LEGO Godzilla Minus One is ready to rock your world

Godzilla, the OG kaiju, has been enjoying a resurgence of late in both Japan and Hollywood, but it’s the grounded back-to-basics take of Godzilla Minus One that most captured the hearts of fans and critics alike. It’s this version of Godzilla that inspired builder DeRa to bring the beast to life in LEGO and the results are as striking as an atomic blast. Once again, DeRa demonstrates an unmatched talent for blending LEGO sculpting, texturing, and articulation to create a model that pushes LEGO to its limits.

See more of DeRa’s impressive beast and learn about the build process below

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LEGO doodling – following unusual parts wherever they lead [Building Techniques]

Some LEGO builds are born from a clear vision of the final model. Others are more like doodles where you improvise as you go, finding joy in the parts you use along the way. Pan Noda provides little context for this latest bizarro creation, “Trioffic Lights,” but I’m guessing it falls in the doodle camp, an extension of the builder’s rescent fascination with DUPLO tubes. Aside from the star elements, DUPLO balls with faces, Pan Noda pulls in a mix of pleasing parts and techniques, like tank treads to wrap the faces, inverted rubber tires for the joints, corner window visors, Aquazone octagonal legs, and Belville perfume bottle fingers. Despite such an ecclectic set of elements, the build keeps coherent by sticking to the three primary colors. The results walk a fine line between nightmare and whimsy, a liminal space Pan Noda is qutie familiar with.

What’s the strangest place your LEGO doodling has taken you?

LEGO enters its oak tree era with 6440443 antlers in green [Building Techniques]

Today marks the roll-out of a little part that promises to have a bit impact on the future of LEGO trees – 6440443 antlers in green. The part first debuted in 2022 as an accessory to the Reindeer costume, but surely the designers at the time recognized the resemblance to a pair of oak leaves? So far the piece has only appeared in green in 2 sets, making the part fairly hard to come by. This is about to change as the part trickles out into Pick a Brick offerings from LEGO (currently available in Europe), making it easy to stock up. Builder Ryan McBryde has managed to amass quite a collection of the part already and demonstrates how effective these leaves can be when used as the primary foliage on a large tree.

It’s not an easy part to work with as the primary connection point is the small peg used for hair accessories, but Ryan found a few effective ways to integrate with branches. The workhorse partner in Ryan’s tree is the 1×1 round plate with shaft which conveniently has a hold in the shaft to match the antlers’ small peg. It looks like Ryan also relies on the tight squeeze between the inner prongs to chain together another pair of antlers.

Maybe it’s because I was such a fan of the Forestmen faction in my early building days, but I’ve always adored brick-built LEGO trees. Options for foliage elements have steadily increased over the years, even ignoring the unconventional parts used as plants in the Botanicals line. This part has me very excited for the creative solutions the community will find for working them into the next wave of trees. The era of oak trees has arrived!

Versteinert’s LEGO Campervan is packed with cozy comfort and clever LEGO tricks

Every new classic car design from Genman builder Versteinert is a masterclass in NPU (“Nice Parts Usage”), and this 7-stud wide Ford Transit Mk1 Campervan is no exception. Fitting for a vehicle ready for a summer beach picnic, hot dogs, forks, and a sizzling grille feature prominently in the build, but not where you might think. Using rollerskates for door handles is a tried-and-true technique, but I’ve never seen them used like Versteinert does on the grille, where stacks of skates wrapped in a rubber band fit so perfectly you won’t believe it’s not a pre-molded part.

This vacation wagon follows two utilitarian versions of the Transit Mk1 that Versteinert built last year, this repair service truck and a firetruck version.

Swim or float? That is the question. [Building Techniques]

These clever LEGO build techniques are brought to you by a ton of minifig heads. Cab ~ utilizes the aforementioned minifig heads as the yellow buoys denoting the lanes in the pool and also the floaties on that one swimmer’s (or floater’s) arms. Repetitive use of 1×2 trans-blue tiles comprizes the pool water nicely. They’re not bricked directly onto the pool floor but rather suspended above it to give the illusion of depth. As for the swim or float question, for me, it’s floaties all the way. I’ll also take some washboard abs to help offset the embarrassment of using floaties.

This tree is off the chain! [Building Techniques]

With LEGO, you can turn something as industrial and gray as chains into something organic like a tree. Fedde Barendrecht shows us how, and I believe it involved clicking chain parts together end-to-end, connecting each unclicked end to the barrel-made tree trunk, then twisting the chain into a roughly a tree-shaped mass. Top it off with a wiley raven and you have the makings for an epic neighborhood showdown. Raven:1, Lino:0.

The worm turns- terror, beauty, and reincarnation in LEGO

The twisting mass of teeth and bone called Yamikamikusari is the incarnation of a portable shrine that governs reincarnation. This incredible LEGO model also represents a reincarnation of sorts for its creator, Pan Noda, a builder of immense talent and steady reinvention. Pan seems to have found a new muse in the shape of the DUPLO ball tube, featured here in red and used in two other amazing builds late last year. It’s such an un-LEGO piece, curved and studless, defying connection to a bigger build. But Pan manages to tame the tubes, finding the perfect way to nest rings of 2×1 round plates inside to turn an innocent preschool toy into a nightmarish maw. Pan’s shrine construction is also beautiful, incorporating chains, nets, and Modulex elements to create a structure that seems carved from wood, not built of blocks.

With such talent and imagination, it’s no wonder Pan Noda made our shortlist for Builder of the Year.

A LEGO R-Type spaceship that warms my Metal Heart

Nick Trotta might not be the most prolific builder, but every one of his works is a masterpiece of color, geometry, and innovative use of LEGO elements. For style and technique, Nick sets the gold standard for LEGO spaceship design. Nick’s latest craft is the R-104 Metal Heart, a ship inspired by the classic R-Type shoot-em-up video games, characterized by the massive wave cannon and many fins for maneuverability. Clocking in at 4,021 pieces, the ship is one of Nick’s most elaborate builds to date.

The best LEGO ships take advantage of slopes and SNOT (short for “studs not on top”) parts to create shapes and angles that are plausible as aerospace engineering while keeping that “swooshable” fun form factor of a kid’s favorite toy. In Nick’s build, every seam enhances the ship’s smooth lines. Modules connect in ways that defy logic. To see how Nick pulled off this slick exterior, you really have to see the ship from the inside. Thankfully the builder provides a detailed video of the build process.

Click to see Nick’s build process on this amazing ship!

A golden build for those who still idolize Galidor

You know what they say — idle hands lead to LEGO idols. I’ve never heard of Pul’ Ohob before, but according to Mattia Careddu, if you offer this divine being an ounce of gold every day for a year, they will reward you with five years of abundance. Mattia’s idol and offerings are full of weird and wonderfully used parts, the centerpiece being the torso of Galidor alien Euripides. (Not the first Galidor-centric build from Mattia this year!) The cornecopia introduces a building technique rarely seen in LEGO: braiding! Pul ‘Ohob’s offer sounds like a pretty sweet deal, but my gold holdings are low. Does Pul’ Ohob take crypto?

Mattia has been anything but idle in 2024. Here’s a round-up of this year’s creations. No wonder Care Creations made our 2024 builder of the year shortlist!

Michael Jasper’s li’l choppers

The gearhead kid in Michael Jasper‘s latest vignette might not be ready for their first tattoo, but in every other way, they’re a chip off the old motor block. Dad’s ride is a masterpiece of minifig scale engineering, combining tools, droid arms, and precious chrome details to form a motorcycle of uncanny detail. Junior’s RC chopper, with its beanie propeller handlebars, is a six-element wonder. Of course, Michael’s minifig designs and expressions bring the scene to life.

While Michael Jasper hasn’t been as prolific of late, he was one of the most featured builders during the early years of this site and his skill at recreating furniture and objects at minifig scale continues to inspire builders to this day. He impressed us long ago with his mini motorcycles, like this sidecar duo from 2007 and this blinged-out chopper from 2009. A new Michael Jasper motorcycle build is a wonderful holiday gift indeed!

Tiny Badlands dragon has a four-foot high belly

How can an 8-inch dragon also be four feet high? When those feet are LEGO versions of Donkey Kong feet, cleverly worked into the dragon’s scaly belly. Nathan Don (Woomy World) designed this fellow at the Skærbæk Fan Weekend as part of New Elementary’s New Parts Workshop. As guest builder, Nathan guided fans in unlocking the creative potential of new elements. The seed part for the dragon, Donkey Kong’s foot, doesn’t feature easy connection points for such a small build, so the row of feet are rubber banded together, reducing the number of connections needed. Very clever! (Learn more about Nathan’s process at New Elementary).

Nathan has had an incredible year, both winning the Bio-Cup competition and being invited to contribute to the LEGO House Masterpiece Gallery. After so many epic creations, it’s a delight to see what a builder can do with just a few weird parts to spark the imagination!

A very hungry LEGO caterpillar

The Very Hungry Caterpillar is one of the most enduring and beloved works of childrens’ literature thanks to the distinctive style of creator Eric Carle. 55 years after eating its way through readers’ hearts, the Hungry Caterpillar is back in LEGO form courtesy of another distinctive artist, Pan Noda. A character build like this is a departure from the uncanny architecture and liminal spaces we’ve come to expect from the builder, but there’s something about the Hungry Caterpillar that makes it feel at home in Pan’s pantheon. Maybe it’s those haunting eyes of life preservers atop Scala foam? Or the dozens of cherries that turn eerily to fur along the caterpillar’s back. Or the existential question of whether a hole in a book is part of the book or the absence of book. In any case, it’s a brilliant build. Were it not for the apple leaf in the foreground, it would be easy to overlook that it’s a LEGO model all!