I couldn’t get that phrase out of my head when I saw this cut-scene of a large bearded brick monster having a go at the castle themed minifigures fighting for their lives. Gotta hand it to Paddy Bricksplitter not just for the overall action-filled scene, but my favourite is the weaponry — the catapult built with a bent hose for its bow arm. The details of the still-protruding shaft sticking out of the giant’s arm while bleeding is simply ingenious and well thought out.
One great thing about Paddy Bricksplitter’s LEGO creations is that they always have a lot of character. Take Hobson, here, for example. Described as a faithful robotic butler to the idle rich, you still get the feeling that maybe this servant is a little disdainful of the beverage choices being made. Or maybe it’s just Hobson’s choice. Regardless of any pompous attitude, Hobson is all class, though. Check out the gold chain, pneumatic T cufflinks, and bucket handles as both eyebrows and shoe accents. Hobson’s outfit is also stylishly constructed, creatively using parts like the 4x4x16 tapered curve, Hero Factory armor, and vehicle tires.
Kids, always wear protective gear when skating or cycling – unless you take part in a wild futuristic survival race, and your life depends on your score. Paddy Bricksplitter reveals a roller skater of the future: a courageous racer running in a pair of very high-tech roller-skates. The dynamics of the scene and posture of the figure tell a story of some death-or-glory showdown. Besides the excellent composition, the build is remarkable for its scale, which perfectly suits Rey’s head. Finishing everything off is spot-on use of multiple stickers from various LEGO themes.
Some things run like clockwork, and sometimes the clockwork is what makes you run. Taking inspiration from Dishonored 2, Return to Oz and D&D characters, Paddy Bricksplitter brings us a Clockwork Golem that is both elegant and menacing. This streamlined build demonstrates that you don’t always need a ton of parts to make an exceptional LEGO model. The black and gold of the main body are accented by splashes of white and grey. Gold plant stems are used for both shoulder ornaments and decoration on the checkerboard base.
A bit of dark pink ties the central clock into the piercing eyes. At first, I thought those eyes were made from Friends lipstick with the ends cut off, but Paddy assures me that that’s just how the bottom of that piece looks due to the dual molding. And that they would never cut any pieces. We’ll have to look elsewhere for the inspiration behind the giant scissors for hands. Although… maybe we’re better off just not knowing.
DUPLO is an excellent way to engage the minds of 2-5 year olds and to introduce them to “regular” LEGO, which they would likely play with once they get a little older. The larger pieces, simple construction, and cute scenarios are ideal for little hands and developing minds. But leave a youngin’ watching a certain…animal-named news station unsupervised for fifteen minutes, and they may raid the stash of smaller bricks to build adorable DUPLO riot gear to keep the adorable DUPLO zebras from playing with the adorable DUPLO giraffes. A builder who goes by the dubious name of Paddy Bricksplitter shows us the way with this DUPLO riot frame.
Plenty of LEGO System, Bionicle, and Duplo parts are mixed (you can do that, you know!) to construct this admittedly coherent mech suit armed with a high powered water cannon, tear gas launcher and a heavy duty shield. When your DUPLO denizens get too rowdy, you can bop them on their adorable DUPLO noggins with the baton. Justice is served, poopy-heads!
The year is 1859, and the British Navy is looking for Atlantis! Builder Paddy Bricksplitter has captured this historic moment of discovery in a detail-rich LEGO scene. Based on the columns and statue, our diver may have indeed found Atlantis. Let’s hope he’s also enjoying the rest of the view while he’s down there.
The Octonaut delivers a solid steampunk aesthetic without resorting to unnecessary embellishments. The tubing along the suit’s arms suggests a very real-world pneumatic solution for grip-strength at the ocean floor. Providing a nice contrast to the gold and brown, black rubber tires do double duty as weights and gaskets.
As cool as the diver is, the real highlight of this build for me is the innovative part usage on the sea floor. Not content with just the LEGO-standard fish and crab, Paddy has brought in Friends Accessories, Technic gears, a street-sweeper brush, and at least three types of minifigure hair. LEGO food items also feature prominently, with cupcakes galore, upward pointing carrots and lime ice cream scoops. And just look at that jellyfish!
That famous opening line from Charles Dicken’s A Tale of Two Cities is as good an introduction as any to Paddy Bricksplitter’s microscale diorama of the same name. The juxtaposition of the glistening white utopian towers and the smoke belching grime of the dystopian factory below creates some wonderful drama. There are nods, as he acknowledges, to the cyberpunk anime Battle of Alita as well as science fiction classics such as Things to Come and Metropolis. In the end, its Paddy’s own style that steals the show, relying on clever repeats of simple LEGO elements and atmospheric lighting to show the contradicting sides of his future city.
If you will insist on picking flowers on alien worlds, at the very least you should check they’re not the offspring of some larger carnivorous plant. That’s Paddy Bricksplitter‘s advice — as depicted in this great little scene. An unsuspecting pink-clad astronaut skips through an excellent alien landscape, seemingly oblivious to the floral horror her pruning has awakened. The giant flower beastie is a cracker — all spikes and teeth and sinister tongue-stamen thing. I love the use of balloon panels as petals, and the ring of teeth at the top is nicely done. The purple rocks add a wonderful splash of otherworldly colour to the backdrop.
