If it was tricky enough to put together a shortlist of the best LEGO creations of 2020, but narrowing it down to a single “best model” proved even harder. Every model on the shortlist was excellent, and there was much debate amongst the team. However, after a great deal of discussion, The Brothers Brick is delighted to announce Koen Zwanenburg‘s Tutankhamun Mask as our LEGO Creation of the Year 2020. The mask is a beautiful piece of LEGO sculpture, employing a wide variety of parts to create all the shapes required — Bionicle and Hero Factory pieces used in the face, a bewildering range of bricks in Pearl Gold, a Technic frame within the stand, and stunning use of dinosaur tail parts to create the curved stripes of the headdress. The model shows staggering attention to detail, from the shaping of the face, the capture of the hieroglyph patterns on the...

As a child I literally dreamed of having a remote control LEGO car. I’m not an experienced Technic builder, though, and the LEGO electronics I had in the eighties weren’t up to the job. So actually making this happen took a long time. I had to combine different systems for adding electrical functions to LEGO models, but now I’ve finally done it. My new Dutch National Police Volkswagen Transporter drives and steers using IR remote control. It also has a working siren and lights. Nonetheless, it has opening doors and an interior, so it looks just like any of the other vehicles I’ve been building for years. LEGO released a its own RC car in 2001, but it was big and used a one-piece chassis that you could build your own body on top of. It was hideous. A few years later a few Technic sets had a motor that could...

The second season of The Mandalorian just wrapped up a couple weeks ago on Disney+, and LEGO continues to drip-feed LEGO Star Wars sets based on scenes from the show. Hitting stores on January 1st, 2021, 75299 Trouble on Tatooine provides a fairly low-cost (US $29.99 | CAN $39.99 | UK £27.99), spoiler-free way to pick up Mando and the Child in minifig form, with a few key pieces of equipment and scenery from season 2. 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. The box & packaging There’s nothing especially noteworthy about the box for 75299, which simply shows a non-spoiler action shot on the front of the box and an alternate view on the back. The front box art features Mando in minifig form. The build The parts for the...

There’s something just completely tranquil about the sight of koi carp. Location probably has something to do with it because they regularly are featured in serene garden landscapes. Ian Hou does these beautiful fish justice with this new LEGO creation. I can just hear the bubbling water and imagine these graceful koi feeding on fish pellets. The stylistic waves as a stand offer just enough visual cues to make this a truly lovely project. This is a welcome moment of zen to finish out a rather tumultuous year. If this is totally your jam then you should check out some other fish in our archives. The post Now you’re just being koi! appeared first on The Brothers Brick. Original linkOriginal author: Lino

We revealed earlier today the new Botanical Collection series from LEGO with in-depth reviews featuring the LEGO Creator 10280 Flower Bouquet and LEGO Creator 10281 LEGO Bonsai Tree. Behind each of these creations are the unique challenges for organic building, which can be a feat especially working with hard edges inherent from LEGO bricks. We take a look behind the scenes of both the sets from the LEGO designer’s lens with the video showcase. Anderson Grubb a Senior LEGO Designer and LEGO Apprentice Adstrid Sundorf Christensen share their inspiration and journey in creation for the LEGO Flower Bouquet. LEGO designer Nicolas Vás and Carl Merriam, Senior LEGO Designer speaks about their insights on the Bonsai Tree and thoughts around how the final evolution of the product came to be.   The post LEGO Designer Videos share insights into the new Botanical Collection series [News] appeared first on The Brothers Brick. Original...

Merry Christmas, everyone! Hopefully today is one of the best days of 2020 and that you unwrapped several LEGO sets from under the tree. We wanted to share a few more insights into this year’s LEGO advent calendars before the holiday season ended. These include leftover parts, minifigure collections and scenic displays that you can make with your advent calendar. Let’s jump in, shall we? The Harry Potter Advent Calendar was a huge success this year. With characters and individual builds being part of the Yule Ball segment from Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire, it stood out as LEGO taking a new direction for its advent calendars. As our esteemed panelists below can tell you, we hope to see more comprehensive advent calendars like this one in the future. Adam: I’d go to this party! But seriously, what a clever idea to make this year’s Harry Potter theme be...

The Temple of Twin Monkeys by Caleb Saw has nice part usage, but also a hefty dollop of mystery. For example, just what are these twin guardians protecting? (My guess is the legendary great lost shipment of Blue Food Dye #2.) The use of grill tiles for fingers works really well, and I like how their use as toes melds into the pedestals. The repeated use of 2×2 dome-bottom bricks for mouth adds uniformity and a touch of sculptural feel to idols, too, while the eyes are some excellently used train wheels. The temple itself has some great details in the curved stonework at the base, and the lines and leafy overgrowth give things a sense of age and neglect. If you came across this temple, would you explore it? Or would it be better not to monkey around? For what it’s worth, there is an animal called a blue monkey,...

For fifteen years The Brothers Brick has been highlighting the finest LEGO creations, and while 2020 hasn’t been the year any of us might have expected, it has still seen the global community of builders put together some amazing models. To celebrate ongoing creativity during a challenging period, The Brothers Brick team has taken a look back over the last 12 months and pulled together our selection of the best LEGO creations of 2020 for our fifth annual LEGO Creation of the Year award. Take a look at the fantastic models we’ve shortlisted, and stay tuned for the announcement of our LEGO Creation of the Year 2020 on New Year’s Eve! Be sure to check out the LEGO Creation of the Year 2019, 2018, 2017 and 2016 to see what honourable company this year’s nominations are keeping. We begin with the elements essential to any LEGO creation — a big pile...

Disney+ has done a phenomenal thing with Star Wars: The Mandalorian. They’ve satisfied seasoned fans while also bringing in younger viewers, a feat that the newest Skywalker saga movies struggled with. The driving force uniting viewers both young and old is sometimes called by the chronologically inaccurate moniker of “Baby Yoda”, though some go with “The Child”, and others go by his newly revealed and more spoiler-y name. Whatever you call him, Pascal Hetzel gives us what we’re all after with his latest LEGO creation. He’s taken the official set, 75318 The Child, and given it a Santa outfit. Add a festively ornamented Christmas tree with presents and you pretty much have the formula for success right there! From all of us at The Brothers Brick, here’s hoping your holiday season is as happy and bright as this little guy here. Before you go, be sure to check out Pascal’s other...

Happy holidays to all of our fellow LEGO builders! As is tradition, we at The Brothers Brick have been opening our advent calendars as we count down to Christmas, which is tomorrow! Today, we’re opening the final door, but we’ll be back once more when we’ll be showcasing a final roundup of the calendars tomorrow. Thank you to all those who have celebrated with us so far. Now, let’s open door 24! Drumroll, please! And now, the moment you’ve all been waiting for. From day 24 of the Harry Potter advent calendar, the Triwizard Cup! And from Star Wars, Santa Vader! Lino: Despite efforts to brighten his image, still no one is swiping right on Jeff’s Tinder profile photo. Bart: Ugly Christmas sweater!!! Benjamin: I always thought Sith holocrons were cooler than Jedi. CJ: So…I guess this last day’s item means something to Harry Potter fans. It looks cool, at least....