Now that we’re closing in on December, it’s time to release the Christmas builds! I’ve been anxiously anticipating another seasonal kinetic sculpture by Jason Allemann, and he hasn’t disappointed.
These elves at their workbench are cute enough alone, but of course, there’s more! Jason’s latest creation uses a nifty mechanism to give it an assembly line feel.
Ever wondered how some of the classic magic tricks are done? Teun de Wijs might have some answers for you! This LEGO version of the “floating woman” illusion is a little technical marvel, and when seen from multiple angles, gives an idea of how such a trick might be done.
Coming on the heels of the nineteen new sets based on The Lego Movie 2 revealed today, the full trailer for the film has now been released. We are getting a good look at the mess that Bricksburg has become in the five years since the first movie premiered, and it seems that the Duplo invaders have left the city in ruins, only to be invaded again by strange creatures from the Systar system. “The LEGO Movie 2: The Second Part” opens nationwide on Friday, February 8, 2019.
The film’s voice talents feature the original cast including Chris Pratt as Emmet (and the new Rex Dangervest), Elizabeth Banks as Lucy (aka Wyldstyle), Will Arnett as Batman, Nick Offerman as Metal Beard, and Alison Brie as Unikitty. They are joined by Tiffany Haddish, Stephanie Beatriz, and Arturo Castro as new characters Queen Watevra Wa-Nabi, Sweet Mayhem and Ice Cream Cone.
We also have descriptions for two new characters seen in the trailer:
REX DANGERVEST
Rex is an ultra-cool, tough-guy hero, flying through space in his own over-the-top battle ship, the Rexcelsior, with his raptor crew. Rex is everything Emmet is not: confident, brash and experienced in the ways of the world. He claims to have invented the phrase “no regrets,” though his only regret is not trademarking it. Also the inventor of the deconstructionator punch, Rex is a Master Breaker.
QUEEN WATEVRA WA’NABI
As queen of the faraway Systar System, Whatevra Wa’Nabi is a strategic, shape-shifting ruler with a secret plan that could change the lives of Emmet, Lucy and all their friends. When things don’t go her way, she’s not averse to breaking into a catchy song and dance number to get her point across.
A little over a year ago, Hurricane Maria devastated the island of Puerto Rico, killing thousands of residents and leaving many more without power, water, and basic necessities for many months afterward. Contrary to the words and actions of some American politicians, Puerto Rico is no less a part of the United States than Washington, D.C. itself is, but recovery efforts have been hampered by racism, callous politics, and name-calling. LEGO builder Nathan C. lived through Hurrican Maria, and recently created a LEGO model that illustrates the fear, terror, and destruction he experienced as the storm passed over him.
Not only does his detailed LEGO diorama capture the destruction that Hurricane Maria caused on the island, Nathan has animated his model with LEGO Power Functions — the tree and satellite TV dish sway in the wind, roof boards flap, and more. Also be sure to click through to the photo above to read Nathan’s detailed notes about the specific ways in which Maria affected the people and buildings of Puerto Rico, ranging from the implosion of concrete walls to broken water mains.
This isn’t the first time that we’ve featured a strong political statement in LEGO about a terrible storm. Back in September 2005, I commented on the Federal government’s poor reaction to Hurricane Katrina in New Orleans with a much smaller LEGO vignette.
Hearkening back to the 80s LEGO Monorail with its centre-engine car and retro look, Jason Allemann has come up with another fantastic kinetic powered creation. This time he has built a motorised train for the new LEGO rollercoaster system.
Jason is using an ingenious design with Technic half bushes and rubber tyres to attach and propel the mini monorail. Watch the video to find out more about the challenges he faced and overcame to create this cute little piece of LEGO nostalgia.
If you’re any kind of self-respecting Harry Potter fan, you know about the Mirror of Erised. Even more importantly, you know one of the most famous quotes of the entire series. As Dumbledore says, “It does not do to dwell on dreams, and forget to live.” These noble words that resonate with us all come at a pivotal point in the storyline.
Now that scene has been masterfully re-created in LEGO stop-motion by Geertos13 who also voices the young wizard.
It’s been four years since LEGO released the last Star Wars Sandcrawler, the massive Ultimate Collector Series Sandcrawler. Now LEGO has returned with a set that’s a bit smaller, but still has 1,239 pieces, 75220 Sandcrawler. It’s available now, and retails for $139.99 USD. Today we’re building the set in this video review to see exactly how this giant mobile Jawa fortress stacks up.
75220 Sandcrawler includes 1,239 pieces with 6 minifigs. The set is available now from the LEGO Shop (USD 139.99 | CDN 159.99 | GBP 109.99), Amazon.com, eBay, BrickLink, and elsewhere.
The LEGO Group sent The Brothers Brick a copy of this set for review. Providing TBB with products for review guarantees neither coverage nor positive reviews.
When the Porsche 917K hit the racing circuit, it made waves with victories at Le Mans in 1970 and 1971. This historic race car achieved further fame when it was driven by actor Steve McQueen in the classic film Le Mans (1971). McQueen’s 917K sported the Gulf racing team’s bold but beautiful light blue and orange livery. This particular version of the car holds a special place in Pawel Kmieć’s heart, so he painstakingly scaled it down into a terrific remote-controlled Technic model.
See more photos and a video of this LEGO Technic Porsche in action
In our review of 75218 X-wing Starfighter last week, we covered the build process, minifigures, and the finished model, but we wanted to take another look at this new LEGO Star Wars set and show off some of the play features, as well as comparisons to previous incarnations of this iconic Rebel Alliance fighter.
Watch the video and see more details about this new LEGO Star Wars set after the jump
LEGO’s largest mech ever has landed, bringing with it a wave of 1980s nostalgia. Based on the cartoon TV series that began airing in 1984, Voltron: Defender of the Universe, this huge robot has taken a long, winding route through LEGO’s product development, arriving more than two years after the project surpassed the 10k-vote mark needed for LEGO to assess the project. With 2,321 pieces, 21311 Voltron is the largest Ideas set to date. It will be available to LEGO VIP members beginning July 23, with full availability Aug. 1, and it will be priced $179.99 USD.
Watch our video review here, and read the in-depth full review below:
LEGO Ideas has quickly become one of the most exciting and progressive product lines of the company, and the latest set, 21311 Voltron: Defender of the Universe is no different. From the designer video included below, we learn from LEGO designer Niek van Slagmaat and graphic designer Mark Tranter that the leg and arm connections on Voltron were the most challenging part of creating the functional set (and we get to see Niek being particularly fly with some beautiful drum-lacquered silver elements).
The set will be available July 23rd for LEGO VIPs and August 1st for everyone else for $179.99 USD. Look out for our thorough review coming later this week.
Sheep by Maxime Marion is a cute brickfilm about being true to yourself instead of following the flock. It is also a joyous celebration of the 1×1 round eye tile and its siblings the eyelash tile and the stink eye tile. Maxime creates a wide variety of emotions and expressions using various combinations of these three simple pieces.
I would argue that these eye tiles are some of the most important parts added to the LEGO palette in the last decade. Just as the introduction of the minifigure led to a major shift in the scale of vehicles and buildings, the introduction of the eye tile has led to a huge increase in character-focused creations, both in official sets and in fan creations. I hope more brickfilmers follow Maxime’s award-winning example and start incorporating brick-built characters into their films. Watch Sheep below.