Tag Archives: Robots

Solarpunk BOTanist spreads saplings and smiles

Between OpenAI and Tesla bots, I’m not feeling so rosy about the automated future promised by Silicon Valley these days. I’d much prefer autonomous machines of the Wild Robot variety, decoupled from capitalism and just out to help. Like this LEGO fella from Maxx Davidson! Inspired by the art of Victoria Orolfo, this BOTanist is programmed to help its precious plant cargo find the perfect place to take root. Maxx’s robot design is a spot-on tribute to his inspiration but it’s the little patch of terrain that hints at a bigger story. Maybe this little bot could help WALL-E with repairing a neglected future Earth.

Solarpunk BOTanist

The Brothers Brick is funded by our readers and the community. Articles may include affiliate links, and when you purchase products from those links, TBB may earn a commission that helps support the site.

Ever wondered what happens to all your junk when you’re not looking?

We all have ‘The Drawer’. You know the one – the place where everything from keyrings and screwdrivers to LEGO bricks and old batteries go to be forgotten about. Well, Maxx Davidson hasn’t forgotten them… Or rather, he hasn’t been allowed to forget them. His odds and sods have assembled themselves into a robot! There’s quite the collection of brick-built bits here, including a bobbin of thread and an air freshener. A bit more out there – but still technically LEGO – is the Bionicle Barraki key ring. Let this be your reminder to clean out your junk drawer!

Junk Drawer Mech

The Brothers Brick is funded by our readers and the community. Articles may include affiliate links, and when you purchase products from those links, TBB may earn a commission that helps support the site.

Devastatingly good G2 Constructicons merge for the thrill

As an 80s kid brainwashed enriched by cartoons and Toys R Us commercials, of course I went through a Transformers obsession, and there was no toy I craved more than Devastator. The OG Combiner, he was like evil Voltron. LegoGuy31 is also a fan of Megatron’s metal muscle, having created an impressive LEGO Devastator sporting his G2 yellow colors. This scale strikes a perfect balance between detail and play functions without requiring a massive investment in parts.

IMG-2048

LegoGuy31’s model can unmerge into the full crew of Scavenger, Scrapper, Longhaul, Hook, Mixmaster, and Bonecrusher. While the Constructicons of my childhood will always be fluorescent green, there’s no denying that they look great in yellow, especially in vehicle form. LegoGuy31 shared a video showing how each part combines to form Devastator.

If you miss Devastator in classic G1 colors, legendary builder Alex Jones has you covered with perhaps the greatest LEGO x Transformers project ever assembled.

The Brothers Brick is funded by our readers and the community. Articles may include affiliate links, and when you purchase products from those links, TBB may earn a commission that helps support the site.

Robot dogs are man(agement)’s best friend

They say that the dog is man’s best friend, right? So here’s a question, prompted by Devid VII‘s excellent LEGO hardsuit-and-robot combo. Do robot dogs still count as being your best friend? Surely there’s no reason why not. Even if it’s your colleague? Well, that might depend on its purpose. With a hardsuit such as this it’s fairly obvious: it makes lifting stuff easier, travelling faster, and gives a bit of extra protection. But what is this dog here for? Quality control? Worse still, could it be this guy’s manager? Don’t get me wrong, I have a good relationship with my superiors. But I’m not sure I’d be taking them for walks or playing fetch with them…

YWBS - Yellow Work Bunny Suit and TaKo

The Brothers Brick is funded by our readers and the community. Articles may include affiliate links, and when you purchase products from those links, TBB may earn a commission that helps support the site.

FrogNation lands at BrickCon 2024

I write this from my hotel room, having just packed up all my LEGO builds at BrickCon 2024 this past weekend. Of the many highlights this year was the headlining presence of longtime attendee and TBB alum Simon Liu. As per usual, a contingent of plastic frogs tend to follow Simon wherever he travels. And this year, an army of his robotic hoppers arrived in this beautiful carrier on the convention floor. There were so many that a miniature version of this robo-amphibian jumped right into my crate as I was packing up my creations (as also happened to may other BrickCon attendees). Thank you very much, Simon!

FrogNation Carrier

The Brothers Brick is funded by our readers and the community. Articles may include affiliate links, and when you purchase products from those links, TBB may earn a commission that helps support the site.

A pair of experts in LEGO bot-jitsu

It’s not every day we get to see a pair of pugilist automatons like in the “RoboDojo” by LEGO builder Rubblemaker. As Light Gray lands a powerful flywheel kick, we can see the sparks shoot out of Dark Gray’s noggin. Each bot looks wonderfully posable, capable of all kinds of bashes and blocks. But my favorite bit has got to be the pair of gold wheels in the back wall. It feels like such an appropriate fusion between martial arts decor and machinery.

RoboDojo

The Brothers Brick is funded by our readers and the community. Articles may include affiliate links, and when you purchase products from those links, TBB may earn a commission that helps support the site.

Always the optimist, Apex Legends’ Pathfinder is psyched to exist in LEGO form

Featuring a sweet Dick Tracy-style noir outfit, Pathfinder from Apex Legends comes to life in LEGO thanks to the work of Eric Tsai. There’s quite a bit of expert character craft here, especially in the recreation of this MRVN unit’s signature abilities: a sweet grappling hook on the left arm and a zipline gun on the right. I adore how the bot’s myopic noggin is put together, as well as the smiley face on his chest replaced with a mustachioed 1×1 tile.

LEGO Pathfinder [Apex Legends]

The Brothers Brick is funded by our readers and the community. Articles may include affiliate links, and when you purchase products from those links, TBB may earn a commission that helps support the site.

A triple transformer that’s too tiny to transform? Try again...

In his review of 10338 Transformers Bumblebee, Kyle mentioned that the yellow Autobot’s large size was likely down to the transformation requirement in LEGO form. Clearly, Grant Masters read this and took it as a challenge. He, too, has created a LEGO Transformer. And this one is tiny! It depicts Blitzwing, a Decepticon with as many personalities as he has transformations (three). He is depicted the way he appeared in the animated series rather than in the 2018 Bumblebee film, which results in a snazzy purple-and-tan colour scheme.

Blitzwing

But is he too tiny to transform? No! Now he can’t do all three transformations – even for a builder of Grant’s skill, that’s almost attempting the impossible. But still, being able to transition Blitzwing between his jet and robot forms is seriously impressive at this small scale!

Blitzwing

The Brothers Brick is funded by our readers and the community. Articles may include affiliate links, and when you purchase products from those links, TBB may earn a commission that helps support the site.

Can’t find a good LEGO connection? Just add more!

I get a real kick out of seeing parts from the old Star Wars Planets line used in LEGO creations. I’m not sure why that is – perhaps it’s the round features juxtaposed with the often angular lines of other bricks, or the challenge of having only two connection points. Well, I say only two… Nuhvok_mok has come up with an inventive way to add more! In this somewhat sinister droid, the Death Star is used for the top portion, with the photoreceptors attached to it using LEGO magnets. Ingenious! Appropriately enough, the whole things reminds me of the Death Star interrogation droids from Star Wars: A New Hope. I wonder if there’s a tiny interrogation droid floating around in there…

Codsworth

The Brothers Brick is funded by our readers and the community. Articles may include affiliate links, and when you purchase products from those links, TBB may earn a commission that helps support the site.

LEGO Icons 10338 Transformers Bumblebee – Does this Beetle-bot beat all bots? [Review]

LEGO has once again dipped its toe into the world of Transformers action figures. And while Optimus Prime and Megatron are likely the two most well-known of the Hasbro toy line, the Autobot Bumblebee has definitely got the number three slot locked down. First released in Japan in 1983 as Microchange Wagen, this scout-bot wins the hearts and minds of children everywhere with his “never say die” attitude that always looms much larger than his stature. While recent theatrical appearances have popularized a Chevy Camaro-version of this Transformer, LEGO has opted to return to the roots of the robot with the original Volkswagen Beetle design in LEGO Icons 10338 Transformers Bumblebee. The set clocks in at 950 pieces and hits store shelves on July 4th (July 1st for LEGO Insiders), retailing for US $89.99 | CAN $119.99 | UK £79.99. But after the success of LEGO Transformers 10302 Optimus Prime back in 2022, will B-127 measure up to his leader? Read on to find out!

The LEGO Group sent The Brothers Brick an early copy of this set for review. Providing TBB with products for review guarantees neither coverage nor positive reviews.

Read more on this transformative building process below!

The Brothers Brick is funded by our readers and the community. Articles may include affiliate links, and when you purchase products from those links, TBB may earn a commission that helps support the site.

Smile for the camer-androids!

A few days ago, Joey Klusnick staked his claim for NPU of the year with his LEGO camera robot. It’s certainly earned my vote, not least because now, it’s got a little sibling! Rather than a functional camera, the head of this one is a Duplo accessory. In fact that camera throws off the scale slightly – it’s not until you look at some of the parts used elsewhere, like the windscreen in the body, that you realise that this droid is actually pretty small.

Thumbnail

This next shot gives you a better idea of that! The consistent colours make them both feel like part of the same family. There’s some more clever parts use in the tyre and rubber band for the camera lens, too. But the cleverest detail might be the names. The bigger bot is called Megapixel; so what’s the smaller version called? Why, Thumbnail, of course!

Megapixel and Thumbnail

The Brothers Brick is funded by our readers and the community. Articles may include affiliate links, and when you purchase products from those links, TBB may earn a commission that helps support the site.

A robot that’s a few bricks short of a load

The word “LEGO” tends to inspire thoughts of the traditional bricks that have been a staple of playtime for generations. But this spindly bubble-bot by Djokson is here to remind us of just how far the LEGO system has come. With nary a traditional brick to be found, this collection of gears and tubes is assembled into a robot that’s teaming with personality while being short on traditional studs.

Bubbleboy

The Brothers Brick is funded by our readers and the community. Articles may include affiliate links, and when you purchase products from those links, TBB may earn a commission that helps support the site.