The summer 2020 Ninjago line contains a lot of big sets, but what if you’re on a budget? Coming in at 401 pieces, 71717 Journey to the Skull Dungeons is currently available, and pretty affordable at US $29.99 | CAN $39.99 | UK £24.99. Can it keep up with the excitement present in the rest this wave? Read on and see! Set Contents The box for this set fits in with the over-saturated and busy images shown on the rest of the main 2020 Ninjago line. Inside are three numbered part bags, a 92-page instruction booklet, and a sticker sheet. This set is part of the “Game Experience” group, so there’s also a flier to get you started playing. (For a more in-depth discussion of the game, check out our Skull Sorcerer’s Dungeons review.) The set itself consists of four minifigures and two pieces of “adventure path”. Each section of the...

No, this isn’t a product shot out of an IKEA catalog. This is a LEGO creation by Heikki M. If you’re like me, though, you had to look twice to be sure. The construction may be straight forward, but there are lots of details that really sell this as a human-scale object. The variation on the heights of the candlesticks, the well-chosen seams on the metal shelving, and even the hand-hold of the storage crate match what the eye expects to see. My particular favorite is the potted plant. Those are nested Technic wheels and 3-leaf plants. Recognizing those elements made me realize the smaller-than-actual-size scale of this build, which was a moment of mental adjustment. And let’s not neglect that abstract-art print. Ribbed 1×2 bricks create interesting textures, but still “read” as a flat image thanks to that tiled frame. It’s really clever building all around. This isn’t the first...

The nautilus is one of those amazing creatures both strange and beautiful. With a spiral shell that seems to be a natural manifestation of the golden mean. And when interpreted by Mitsuru Nikaido, this cephalopod takes on an even more usual form, as Mitsuru builds mechanical versions of living creatures. Aside from the many curved sections, and the sprouting tentacles, my favorite detail would have to be the Hero Factory chest piece for eyes. The post A most mysterious mechanical mollusc appeared first on The Brothers Brick. Original linkOriginal author: Daniel

Master of brick-built characters Eero Okkonen has shaped this fanciful LEGO samurai, and true to his typical style, has kitted it out with splendid parts usages from top to bottom. While there are many clever building techniques that are worth highlighting, such as the lever bases around the flag on his chest, or the offset cascade of car slopes for the front of the red kusazuri (or skirt armor), in my opinion, the best technique is a very simple one that serves both form and function. The front of the Samurai’s feet are made with two red cheese slopes around a black lamp holder, and the color different would be a problem in most applications. But here it perfectly mimics the split-toed tabi (or socks) of traditional Japanese garb. You can read more about the samurai and how Eero designed it on his website, Cyclopic Bricks. The post The blood moon...

We all know how this ends. I believe Jaws was the first movie I saw in the theater. Since I was a small child at the time, that speaks of how relaxed they were about letting kids into the theater and…could also explain a lot about how I turned out. The 45th anniversary of this pivotal movie just passed and Arco Noide celebrates with this LEGO version of Quint’s boat. Although Quint is a tough as nails old salt with one of the most memorable intros in movie history, (spoiler alert!) things eventually don’t go well for Quint and his little boat. Still, this is a stunning tribute to the craft. I like how two sets of cattle horns create shark jaws just forward of the ship’s wheel. Judging by the four yellow barrels still present, we have about an hour before things go really sour for Quint. We’re gonna need...