Tag Archives: Shannon Sproule

The Shipbreaker CALYPSO is clearly not from around here

For it is written, twas the Triassic Era LEGO Gods of Legend who sayeth unto he “go forth and buildeth a SHIP, a Significantly Huge Investment in Parts. It shall be no less than one hundred studs on one side. Thou shalt hence forth do it every September and thou shalt call it SHIPtember for that will be totally bitchin’.”

Like Noah, so many faithful disciples and space nerds had heeded the words of the legendary LEGO gods every September and has been building SHIPs for as long as we can remember. One such faithful disciple and space nerd is Shannon Sproule and this uncanny “Shipbreaker CALYPSO”.

Shipbreaker CALYPSO final

Click here to learn more about this alien ship.

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Nothing square about this slim spaceship

LEGO Spaceships come in all shapes and sizes. Sometimes delicate, sometimes brutal, sometimes massive, sometimes tiny. Frequently featured spaceship builder Shannon Sproule often surprises us with his unique style, and this search and rescue vessel does it again. Most of the repair ship is barely wider than a standard 2 stud brick, but the slender and tall profile is bristling with grappling arms, hangar bays, and lots of sloped parts to add a little flair. One of my favorite parts is the game die used along the underside. If you are a purist though, don’t look too closely at that bent antenna on the top (wink).

Search and Rescue boat

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Industrial salvage vessel has been through hell and back

When it comes to building grimy-looking industrial salvage spaceships inspired by Weiland-Yutani, the company from the Alien franchise, I can think of nothing better than to re-use elements from previous spaceship models. Frequently featured builder Shannon Sproule demonstrates this salvage technique beautifully, along with some post-production effects, to create a working ship that has clearly seen a lot of action. One of my favorite details is the use of similar circular elements and tiles along the side. Large slopes and pipes sticking out on all sides, and very few well-placed studs complete the look.

Commercial salvage vessel USS Imprimata

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Along the pink stream of sinkers and floaters

“Do the black units house digital essences? Is the pink fluid some sort of coolant? Do they clump together and need to be separated? Do the spiders drink the coolant and keep the ducts clean? Is working at this Stasis Temple considered a great honor?” These are numerous questions that builder Shannon Sproule asks but doesn’t have the answers to. However, this does reflect a freeing way of stream of consciousness in building by experimenting with neat colors and textures without regard for their purpose.

Stasis Temple

He tells us, “If I was the other Shannon (Young), you would’ve gotten a beautifully-written backstory, but since it’s me you only get a few brain farts and a hand wave to pseudo-religious-technology.” That’s OK, Shannon. If I were any other Brothers Brick contributor, I would have thought up a more high-brow title. Good thing we’re all friends here.

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3D-printing Martian habitats with a NASA drone

Like many sci-fi, science, and space geeks, the exploration and colonization of Mars has always held a special fascination for me. Shannon Sproule has created a LEGO version of a novel idea — sending a drone to 3D print habitats on Mars. With a realistic color scheme and extensive use of round bricks, including a pair of round 7×7 domes, Shannon has created a plausible construction robot. Here’s hoping NASA is paying attention to innovative ideas like this!

NASA 3D printing robot

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“Yes, we are an effective team...”

While the story line and characters of TRON: Legacy may have left you flat, it was hard not to be impressed by visual design of the movie’s vehicles and environments, which were almost certainly down to director Joseph Kosinski’s extensive background in architecture.

Kosinksi delivered a similar visual treat in the Tom Cruise vehicle Oblivion, which featured some equally eye-catching designs such as the Bubbleship, recreated here in LEGO by Shannon Sproule:

As an added treat for Kosinksi fans, builder Irwan Prabowo has also recreated the sky tower from the same movie, complete with an even tinier version of the Bubbleship:

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A lamp alight in the darkness of space

I’m apparently in quite a spacey mood today, since this is the second microscale space LEGO model that caught my eye. This one is by Shannon Sproule, a med-station orbiting Saturn named Nightingale. The gold is a beautiful touch.

Med-Station Nightingale

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M-Tron M.U.L.E (personal portage bot)

Shannon Sproule (Shannon Ocean) says he was inspired by Petman and other mildly cute, yet creepy bipedal robots. Normally you would see this sort of build with a near-future military vibe, and that just makes me appreciate the M-Tron theme all the more.

M-Tron M.U.L.E. (personal portage bot)

…because even the most adventurous space explorer deserves to have his hands free to enjoy an official M-Tron icy pole.

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NASA Recovery Drone

I’ve made no secret of the fact that Shannon Sproule at his best is one of my favourite builders. And in his Mars Mission Recovery Drone he is definitely at his best. This LEGO model shows off Shannon’s mastery of beautiful and original designs constructed from primary shapes and blocky colours.

Mars Mission Recovery Drone

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US Battle Mech – Micro goes Macro

Shannon Sproule continues his ongoing storyline of Battle for the Moon with this gloriously fun Battle Mech for the US forces. Last year Shannon had used the retro robot collecti-figs as large mecha within’ his A.T.L.A.S. Death Ray Complex micro-space build. You will often see builders expand upon a previous model, but seeing micro builds go minifig scale is such a treat. Well done Shanno!

Battle for the Moon: US Battle Mech assembly line

EDIT:
Missed this on the first pass, but I had to point out the wind-up key…fabulous detail!

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Shannon Ocean speaks on LEGO gun control

Now that I’ve caught your attention with the title, you can take some time to look at Shannon Sproule’s (Ocean) latest real-life size rayguns. Because they’re beautiful. I love it when Shannon takes his Battle for the Moon asthetic to human scale.

Smith and Wesson A80 Stechkin Laser pistol, circa 1956

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Rayguns on the moon

The only thing I can fault Shannon Sproule (Shannon Ocean) for lately is his tardiness. Had he built all his wonderful new toys before Brickvention I could have seen them all in ABS. I guess his amazing photos suffice.

Russian Tokarev TT-34 Atomiser

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