When I looked over the new 2020 wave of LEGO Ninjago sets, one immediately stuck out among the dragons, mechs, and other usual Ninjago fare. 71708 Gamer’s Market is a small set crammed with nine minifigures, along with three small booths. Other themes have long had people packs and army builders, with City and Star Wars providing the most well-known recent examples, but apart from blister packs of figures, Ninjago has always balanced minifigures with the brick-built parts of the set. With 218 pieces and nine minifigures, 71708 Gamer’s Market retails for US $29.99 | CAN $39.99 | UK £29.99 and is available now. As any modern video gamer knows, microtransactions are where game publishers make the big bucks these days, and it’s no different for the new Tron-like digital world in which the latest season of Ninjago is set, so the Gamer’s Market is where you can outfit your character with all the latest...

LEGO builder Jack Carleson is back with yet another model that shows why he goes by the screen name “Big Planes.” Following up on his incredible minifigure-scale Air Force One, Jack brings us a huge model of the Convair B-36D “Peacemaker” from the early cold war era. Entering service in 1949 with a profile that fits right between the B-29 that preceded it and the B-52 that replaced it (which is still in service), the B-36 is nonetheless distinct with its six push-prop engines augmented with four jet engine nacelles. Jack’s model is massive with a wingspan of 6 feet. That’s all the more impressive when you look at how rigid the self-supporting wings are, which is an amazing feat of LEGO engineering. The LEGO B-36 is equipped with a full crew of 15. While the interior is naturally a bit cramped, it does have a full cockpit and bomb bay....

The art of bonsai, or tray planting, much like LEGO building can be a very meditative process. Hours and hours can go into the finished product, and meticulous study and practice can lead to a true masterpiece of patience and careful work. In this wonderfully detailed tree by Know Your Pieces that combines both, there are some small details worth pointing out. I love the use of tiny cherries as small berries under some of the leaves. The twisted brown whip wrapped around the middle is also a nice choice. And the bowl and stand work very well together to provide the perfect display. Altogether, it’s just how a beautiful bonsai should be. The post A LEGO bonsai to admire appeared first on The Brothers Brick. Original linkOriginal author: Daniel

When looking for unique builds to showcase here at The Brothers Brick, we see a lot of digital creations. There’s nothing wrong with that; virtual bricks can let a builder explore color combinations that LEGO has yet to produce, or to forgo the limitations that gravity would put on a delicate creation. But when you see something that you’re pretty sure is a render, only to discover it’s real? That’s something special. Oh, sure, Eli Willsea tried to throw me off by titling their creation The Imaginary Islands. But considering this was part of a real-world collaboration for BrickWorld, I think I spotted the clues that this is, indeed, a physical model. And what a model it is! A futuristic city floats above a lush landscape, which sits amid a calm sea. I really like the use of carrot tops in the vegetation and the inverted Queen Watevra’s crown atop one...

The premiere season of the Disney+ Star Wars television series, The Mandalorian, has ended, and as with any Star Wars product, it has inspired many, many LEGO fans to create custom models based on the shows vehicles and characters. While I would never admit being tired of seeing more models of the baby who is not Yoda or the Razoecrest, the unsung hero of the show, in my opinion, is the Ugnaught Quiil, and his herd of female blurrgs. It looks like Letranger Absurde agrees, as evidenced by this scene showing Quiil spouting wisdom from his lofty perch. The post Nothing is impassable with a blurrg mount – I have spoken appeared first on The Brothers Brick. Original linkOriginal author: Daniel

There’s something about a 50s era car that gives me a deep sense of longing for a time and a place that I was never a part of. Well, it turns out so many others share in this notion. The term for that is not nostalgia but rather… anemoia. Versteinert likely knows what I mean as evidenced by this fabulously 50s convertible. The good news for anyone not a sexagenarian but still in love with that 50s style is this ride was the grand prize winner in the LEGO Ideas contest and will soon be an official Gift with Purchase set. Details as to exactly when and which sets you’d need to purchase haven’t been released yet, but our not-too-distant future is looking bright! Contest rules state that any entry would need to be a generic design. I say “generic” meaning no particular model or brand, but I’m seeing a little...

I was recently challenged to recreate Notre Dame Cathedral in microscale and it sounded like a fun challenge. From the start, I knew I wanted to incorporate an Arkenstone and 2×2 Tie Fighter windscreen dish, so that gave me a specific scale. Then I looked online to see what others had done. From there, I just started test building different portions of the cathedral. Half an hour later, I came up with this. The idea to use droid arms as flying buttresses came from someone else’s build and I was impressed at how well they tie the whole thing together. I’m quite pleased with how it all came together so quickly, and especially proud of how well the Tie Fighter pieces work as rose windows, as well as the pentagonal jumper plates as arches. The post Notre Dame before the fire. appeared first on The Brothers Brick. Original linkOriginal author: David...

There is something beautiful in simplicity. How few parts can be used to still capture the essence of a thing? For Grant Masters, the answer is approximately twelve. It is an eclectic collection, from Belville doll feet to a white phone receiver, to a bandana and scarf. Capping it all off is the face from the new Chinese New Year set printed on the BB-8/porg head piece. The bamboo in the background, the dynamic pose, and the hat perfect it, making it a true work of art. The post A bear that barely uses any parts appeared first on The Brothers Brick. Original linkOriginal author: Benjamin Stenlund

Yeah, yeah, we’re featuring another Star Wars build. Or….are we? Builder Alan Yap has gone beyond the slew of Razor Crests and Baby Yodi (If that’s not the plural, it should be) by taking a RZ2 A-wing interceptor from Star Wars The Last Jedi and mashing it into the Transformers universe. This cool creation doesn’t require any rebuilding to switch between robot and vehicle modes, and it looks sweet as both. In vehicle mode, Alan gives us the shape and styling we’d expect from any stock A-wing creation. There are great part choices, like the use of life rings in the engines, and the 1×1 round tile with a star decoration near the cockpit. there are no unusual seams or weird blockiness that would suggest there was more to this build than meets the eye. The robot mode is equally impressive, with superb articulation that allows for great poses. I like...

Because I grew up during the time of M:Tron and Blacktron, I tend to think of fantastical fictional ships when I think of LEGO space creations. Of course, this totally neglects all the models built of real world spacecraft. Luckily, LEGO fans like Cyndi Bourne produce amazing space creations like her NASA Mars InSight Lander to remind me that space is a real place. This detailed model was originally commissioned by an employee at NASA Jet Propulsion Lab, but it was Cyndi’s idea to add the landscaped base. Her landscaping always impresses me and clearly she can build the surface of any planet! While it might seem simple, as the whole landscape is built from various sizes of dark orange plate, achieving this look requires both patience and creativity. You have to know just where to put each plate, and Cyndi clearly knows. The post InSight has landed appeared first on...