Tag Archives: Star Wars

LEGO Star Wars is one of the most popular LEGO themes of all time. Far beyond X-wings and TIE fighters, there’s a whole expanded universe of inspiration, and an army of LEGO fans ready to build whatever comes out of George Lucas’s head next.

Emperor Palpatine watches his plans fall into place.

Spoiler warning for a series of movies that came out between 1999 and 2005. The Star Wars Prequel Trilogy make it pretty clear that Senator, later Chancellor, Palpatine was the puppet master behind the Clone Wars, leading to his accession to Emperor and the formation of the Galactic Empire. ZiO Chao‘s latest creation captures this idea perfectly. The bust of the Emperor works well on its own, as does the vignette of Anakin and Obi-Wan dueling over the lava, but the hands really tie the whole thing together – they frame the fighting Jedi as something that Palpatine is playing with. The size of the three characters really emphasizes how big of an impact each character had on the war. Even as generals, Obi-Wan and Anakin were merely pawns in a larger game of chess they weren’t aware of. The expression on the Emperor’s face is priceless, as he subtly yet gleefully stares at the scene, grinning as the final pieces of his plan fall into place.

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Battlefront II comes to life with epic playset

“For the Chancellor!” This creation features the best of the 2006 video game Star Wars: Battlefront II. Built by Sebeus I, the scene illustrates an incredible canyon cliff, complete with weathered surfaces. The various tan slope elements are my favorite part, but I also like the laser fire, particularly the accurate in-game colors. To me, this model is so well done it bridges the line between realism and video game experience.

Aratech 105-K Lancer Bike from Star Wars: Clone Wars

The 2003 TV series Star Wars: Clone Wars has always been one of my favorite pieces of Star Wars filmography. As a child, I think it was the first Star Wars saga I had ever seen. Yes, some of the moments in the show were impractical and far-fetched compared to those depicted in the canonical movies, but I think that’s what made it so memorable. Lancer bikes were a prime example. Why one would need to fight with lances in a world of laser cannons and starfighters, I don’t know, but it made for an epic and memorable scene. I’ve been trying to recreate the lancer bikes in LEGO for some time now with the goal of making the definitive version. Originally I had one that could seat a full figure, but it didn’t look the greatest, so I opted to disassemble the legs of the figure and made a version that ended up looking much more accurate.

While the dark red pattern on the stand is likely blood from a recent battle, I placed it there as a sort of allusion to the frequent dark red explosions that occurred in the series.

Breaking News: deadbeat dad ruins kid’s life, hand

A Tatooine man known as Darth Vader has ruined his son Luke’s life and chopped off his hand, sources told our reporters last Monday. This creation by Joffre Zheng depicted the scene immediately after the lightsaber duel on Bespin where Vader and Skywalker took the kerfuffle onto a dangerous overhang. After slicing off Luke’s hand, a portion of guardrail and some other mechanical doodads, the two exchanged heated words. Vader had reportedly goaded Skywalker about the power of the Dark Side before revealing that he was his father.

Unbelieving that such a deadbeat could be his dad, Luke jumped hundreds of feet then slid down what might have been a garbage shoot. He later emerged, clinging to a radio antenna beneath Bespin’s superstructure. Skywalker was later rescued on board the Millennium Falcon by his friends Chewbacca, Princess Leia Organa, and Lando Calrissian. “The kid was bummed”, Calrissian told our reporters. “Like, totally bummed, man.” Authorities were not called to the scene of the incident, and it was reported that alcohol was not involved. At press time Skywalker had also learned that Leia Organa was his sister, making the passionate kiss they shared earlier quite awkward indeed.

Do all droids speak the same language?

Something I’ve always wondered is if both BB-8 and R2-D2 converse in the same droid language. As it turns out, based on the Data Files from Star Wars, it seems that BB-8 speaks a 27th-generation droidspeak — I assume a newer form of communication. This means that BB-8 could be spewing out vulgarities at poor old Artoo and he’d be none the wiser. These two builds by Rui Miguel Anacleto of the two famous droids are some of the best-looking LEGO-built droids that I’ve seen at this scale.

Granted, the dome of R2-D2’s headpiece isn’t quite round, but I like how the detailing is captured by utilising printed parts from the official versions in their individual polybags.

May the force be with you, Peter Mayhew

May the 4th can be an exciting time for Star Wars fans, thanks in part to sales and promotions going on. Unfortunately, this year’s festivities have taken on a somber note because, on April 30th, the 7’3″ (2.21m) Chewbacca actor Peter Mayhew died at age 74. With only barks, grunts and growls, the occasionally belligerent but always lovable Chewbacca became a pop culture icon. Kale Frost built this heartfelt tribute to Chewbacca and the towering British-born actor who donned the iconic fur costume to play him. With tools in hand, his back to the viewer and facing a bright light, this composition conveys the message nicely.

Peter Mayhew had a form of gigantism that can cause crippling joint pain and poor blood circulation. In 2011 he and his wife Angie started the Peter Mayhew Foundation, a nonprofit organization devoted to the alleviation of disease, pain, suffering, and the financial toll brought on by life’s traumatic events. Harrison Ford, who played Han Solo, said that Mr. Mayhew was “a kind and gentle man, possessed of great dignity and noble character.” In a statement, George Lucas said of him, “He was the closest any human being could be to a Wookiee: big heart, gentle nature.”

Hannes Tscharner’s quest for a movie-accurate LEGO Millennium Falcon results in a 12,000-piece upgrade

Swiss builder Hannes “Marshal Banana” Tscharner has been in pursuit of a movie-accurate Millennium Falcon ever since he first shared his 7,500-piece custom LEGO Millennium Falcon back at the end of 2015. He’s recently overhauled his 2015 model thanks to some new parts that were released in the official Ultimate Collectors Series (UCS) 75192 Millennium Falcon in 2017.

His journey started when he was inspired by images and teaser trailers from The Force Awakens in November 2014. Back then, the largest official Millennium Falcon available was the 10179 UCS version with a part count of 5179 pieces. We learned from our interview with Hannes that his 2015 version stood at 7,500 pieces and wasn’t built in reference to any existing LEGO sets and was scaled to the cockpit referenced from the System-scale 75105 released for The Force Awakens earlier in the fall of 2015.

Click to see more stunning details of the 12000 piece Millennium Falcon

TBB Weekly Brick Report: LEGO news roundup for May 5, 2019 [News]

In addition to the amazing LEGO models created by builders all over the world, The Brothers Brick brings you the best of LEGO news and reviews. This is our weekly Brick Report for the first week of May 2019.

Star Wars mania has been in full swing in the lead up to May 4th weekend. Read on to see some new product announcements and even more LEGO news of the week.

TBB REVIEWS & FEATURES: We dig deep for the new LEGO Collectible Minifigures 71024 Disney Series 2 and have a chat with our own Rod Gillies about his upcoming LEGO Star Wars Build Your Own Adventure book.

LEGO Collectible Minifigures 71024 Disney Series 2 Feel Guide – The new Disney Series 2 Minifigs have dropped and we have your feel guide to finding your favorite characters in the crowd.
New LEGO Star Wars Build Your Own Adventure book — exclusive first look and interview – We take an early peek at the New LEGO Star Wars Build Your Own Adventure book and talk with author, builder, and TBB Senior Contributor Rod Gillies.
Exclusive interview with LEGO Star Wars head of design Jens Kronveld Frederiksen – TBB Editor-in-Chief Andrew Becraft sits down with the head of design for the LEGO Star Wars theme.

MORE TBB NEWS: From the LEGO BOOST Droid Commander reveal to three new Summer 2019 Harry Potter sets, we have your other LEGO news of the week including a look behind the scenes of the new Tantive VI with its designers.

Build and program your own Star Wars droid with this LEGO BOOST Droid Commander set – LEGO announced a new Star Wars themed set for the BOOST that allows you to program one of three droids including R2-D2.
LEGO Star Wars Tantive IV now available with Battle of Hoth freebie, double VIP points and more – The Tantive IV arrives in stores in time for May 4th.
LEGO Star Wars set designers share some secrets of the upcoming 75244 Tantive IV – LEGO set designer César Soares and graphic designer Maddy O’Neil give us a look behind the scenes of the new Tantive VI.
Six LEGO Harry Potter sets officially revealed including Knight Bus, Triwizard Tournament and Advent Calendar – LEGO officially announces the remaining three Harry Potter sets for Summer 2019 along with a holiday Advent Calendar

Exclusive interview with LEGO Star Wars head of design Jens Kronveld Frederiksen [Feature]

To celebrate the 20th anniversary of LEGO Star Wars, I recently sat down with Jens Kronveld Frederiksen, the Director of Design for the LEGO Star Wars line. Jens has been with LEGO for more than 20 years, and shares his insights on how he joined the company, what lessons he’s learned over the years, and how LEGO balances input from both kids and adults. Read through to the end to learn a really cool detail about the movie Millennium Falcon Jens saw during a visit to Pinewood Studios during the filming of The Force Awakens!

The Brothers Brick: Just about every LEGO builder’s dream is to become a set designer. How did your career as a designer begin?

Jens Kronveld Frederiksen: A little bit of a weird story and coincidence. LEGO has been a great part of my life for as long as I remember. I really, really loved LEGO but I was never thinking of it as a profession or a career to be honest. In 1998 I was participating in a model building exhibition. I have a hobby building plastic model kits, which mainly is of World War II stuff. At that event in Copenhagen, there were some LEGO people there, and they were looking to hire designers not for model builders but for making new prototypes for new elements, and well I was of course interested in that. And then before I started on that, I saw a job application for a permanent position as model builder and I got the job. That’s how I got into it.

Read our exclusive interview with LEGO’s head of design for Star Wars

New LEGO Star Wars Build Your Own Adventure book — exclusive first look and interview [Feature]

May the 4th — Star Wars Day. Perfect timing to take an exclusive first look at the new LEGO Star Wars Build Your Own Adventure book. Galactic Missions comes with a new Cloud Car model and Bespin Guard minifigure, and the story is packed with new LEGO Star Wars models and building tips put together by The Brothers Brick’s very own Rod Gillies. The book will be available in August, and can be pre-ordered now from Amazon.

We caught up with Rod to find out more about the new book, and what it’s like for a ‘fan-builder’ to work on a project with the LEGO Star Wars team and book publisher Dorling Kindersley.

Click to read the interview and see more pictures of what’s inside the book

Duel of the Fates

Often considered one of the best lightsaber duels in the entire Star Wars Prequel Trilogy, the face-off between former-Jedi-master-turned-pincushion Qui-Gon Jin, Obi-Wan Kenobi, and Darth Maul has inspired many LEGO fan creations over the years. This tribute by LEGO 7 features sculpted figures on a simple base. Both Obi-Wan and Darth Maul are fully poseable and ready for action.

And after the director yells “cut!”…

Obi-wan: “Wow, those lights are hot. Hey Maul… wanna grab a drink at Dexter’s later?”
Darth Maul: “If You’re buying.”

Classic Maul.

The Encroaching Empire

Order 66 has been executed. The Clone Wars have ended. Sith Lord Darth Vader has become Emperor Sheev Palpatine’s trusted enforcer, bringing Imperial order to an unruly galaxy. Tim Lydy has put his stamp on this era of turmoil with his first-ever Star Wars creation, and it is most excellent.

I really love how cramped and chaotic the trench feels. However the highlight for me is the giant statue of Palpatine constructed out of Light Aqua which doesn’t really have a very extensive parts selection yet.

I also appreciate the effort Tim went to incorporating the writing on the side of the scene in Aurabesh, the Star Wars universe’s standard alphabet.

TBB alumnus Tim has been featured in the past for his work with superhero–themed models. I certainly wouldn’t mind if he dabbled in the Star Wars sandbox some more!