Nerdy About The Bricks
On land we have rough, zig-zag, jagged rooftops of buildings all huddled together on a tight patch of rock. Beyond that, calm, blue seas. The colors are striking, the photography is clean, and I'm beginning to wonder why Oliver Lego doesn't work as an Apple photographer! And for a "first try at miniscale format", I'd say that Oliver has hit a homerun!
How cool is this?! A miniature version of what was arguably the weirdest-looking Jaeger from Pacific Rim! A NPU build by the very talented Grantmasters, the Crimson Typhoon features a clever use for a minifig boxer's protective headgear on its shoulder and some red knight armor on the other shoulder. With three arms and an all-seeing eye in the middle, the Crimson Typhoon is ready to kick some mini-scale butt or perhaps any regular-sized minifig unfortunate enough to cross its path. I'm looking at you Series 5 Lizard Man.
When we were seeing the first photos of the cast of characters for The Force Awakens, I remember that there were some articles online about Poe Dameron and what the Aurebesh text on his flight vest said. It translated to "PULL TO INFLATE". Oh man was I excited. Don't get me wrong and I'm not being sarcastic. It's the little details like this that make the movies immersive to me.
Takamichi Irie has made one of his coolest models yet. This 1:1 scale Resistance pilot's helmet and life support unit belong to Poe Dameron, but the 1:1 scale LEGO Poe is nowhere to be found! The details on the helmet are spectacular. The Rebel logo is integrated into the spherical brickwork at an angle, the visor curves all the way around and looks like it actually protects the eyes, and the simple box shaped life support unit is just so smooth. I'm a sucker for smooth things made out of LEGO.
Hulk, have you been juicing? Hitting the bricks lately? Don't get me wrong, you look good. In fact, I prefer a brick-built look to the standard bigfig. He's mean, he's green, he's got motion, he's got personality, and wow is he big! And just look at those pecs and abs. LEGO bricks seems to be the way to go for that summer body.
If you think this Hulk is incredible, then you definitely have to check out Flickr user Nicolas PICOT's other brick-built figures.
Admittedly it's been a while since I've last seen this lamp in action (Toy Story 3 might've been it). But who can deny that the sound effects, the rhythm, and the actions of this little lamp hasn't been burned into our memory?
The lamp, or Luxo Jr., is cleverly recreated by Flickr user yu chris out of a combination of LEGO System and Technic parts. I could be wrong, but it really does look functional and bendy. You stomp that letter I till it's gone!
Around this time last year Japan was experiencing Mad Max: Fury Road for the first time. It was released about a month later than everywhere else in the world (as most movies are) but once we got it, we went mad over it. And to tell you the truth, I'm still not over it. Fury Road was a perfect movie. That's what this MOC by Kirill Mazurov has in common with the movie. It's PERFECT! We've seen a ton of brick-built cars from and inspired by the movie, but Technic Mad Max cars are still few and far between.
One of the advantages to this Technic model is its inherit robustness. It looks ready to kick ass and take a beating like a champ. From the dual V8s, the tanker, and to the fuel pod, every detail seems to be recreated with an amazing balance of functionality and fashion. Be sure to check out all the other cool shots in his album.
Okay guys, let's be serious for a minute. Grease fires are no joke. Never ever throw water onto a grease fire because water and oil don't mix and it'll just splash burning hot oil everywhere and spread the fire. The only time I've seen a real grease fire was at a fire department demonstration during elementary school and I'm still not sure if the firemen's multiple failed attempts to extinguish the flames and the projected sense of urgency was genuine or not.
When it comes to LEGO grease fires, they are fantastically fun. As you can see from jarekwally's vignette, the kitchen is packed with action and detail. Stone island counters, wooden walls, plenty of places to hang things and shelf space, a huge fridge, and a chef with personality!
My only memory of Mad Magazine as a kid is that my dad was not too thrilled that I was reading it in the supermarket magazine aisle. There have been plenty of imitators and comic strips alike, but Spy vs Spy's completely nihilistic tone made it unique and my favorite. Conversely, I also enjoyed me some Goofus and Gallant. This MOC by grubaluk seems to have come straight outta one of the panels of the comic strip with its simple color scheme, harsh angles, and lettering. And what I like most about it is that you can tell what's going to happen already just by looking at the brick separator and tank on opposite corners.
A very long time ago in junior high school I dabbled in the school band. The tuba and the flute were my instruments but I got very familiar and friendly with the neighboring brass and reed sections. Once I finished junior high, I never touched an instrument again and forgot most of what I learned. I was lucky enough to catch these excellent MOCs in person earlier last May during Golden Week (Japan's version of Spring Break) while they were on display at Osaka University. Needless to say but I was hit by a wave of childhood nostalgia. Built by Japanese builder Ryo Arai (AKA -Grie- on Flickr), I was impressed by the attention to detail to all the rods and levers that connect the valves and also how smooth the curves are. Curves aren't an easy thing to pull off with LEGO bricks, especially those that mimic their real life counterparts. Be sure to take a look at all the other angles on his Flickr photostream.
Takamichi Irie clearly is a fan of Star Wars and its minor characters and creatures. Remember the Nexu from Attack of the Clones? I didn't at first. I theorize that Taka's inspiration for building the Nexu has to do with the fact that this ferocious space cat nearly devoured actress Natalie Portman (whom Taka has proclaimed his fondness of on numerous occasions.)
Pay particular attention to the Nexu's head. The intricate teeth assembly is clearly held together by either magic or a rubber band (my money's on magic) and the regular lever handles are used for the eyes. You can see more shots of Taka's Nexu here.
And Spider-Man quite literally did just that very thing.
What we have here is one of my favorite scenes of all the superhero movies recreated by mike m. It also just happens to be a huge model made of LEGO bricks. The brick-built Spidey's posing adds the weight of the train and situation and another clever detail you might not have thought about consciously is how front and center the train really is. I mean, it's just really close. Hang in there, Spidey! We're all rooting for you!
Ordo makes a good photo and a good point about where the relationship between technology and social interaction has gone. My dad calls smartphones "the electric bellybutton" because everywhere you go you see people looking down and constantly fiddling with their fingers. The smartphone really is a double-edged sword.
The brick-built phone isn't the only impressive model here--it's an ensemble. The tiled wall, the electrical socket, and the phone's charger look real to me and sell this photo.
For those who don't know, Sadako and Kayako come from Japan's two most famous horror movie series, Ringu and Ju-on respectively. What's the significance you may ask? Well, Japan has seen two "Versus" movies so far this year and there is yet one more to come. In March there was Batman v. Superman, in April there was Civil War, and in mid-June there will be Sadako vs. Kayako. At first I thought it was a joke when I saw the teaser poster at the conbini (convenience store) around the corner from my workplace as it was nearly identical to the BvS poster, but apparently this movie is really happening. I'm not sure if I'll go see it but I can guarantee these two ghostly ladies won't be as cute as builder delayice makes them.
This build by Simon Schweyer is inspired by Into the Wild, a film I have never seen and a book I have never read. Maybe I don't need to have seen/read the source material to appreciate the craftsmanship in this diorama. The emotion translates very well in the lady's pose, her bare feet on soft grass, the apparent height of the cliff, and the coloring of the sky and water. Coloring a sunset with LEGO bricks is tricky business, especially for someone as severely colorblind as I am, but not as tricky as pulling off such a moody scene and making it look so effortless.
Just kidding. You're not bugging me at all!
From what I can tell from being an English teacher for nine years, Japanese boys and girls have a unique fascination with insects and even have a knack for collecting them. They're not all just creepy crawly critters! This makes me wonder if Takamichi Irie collected insects as a child. He recently spent a year studying abroad and time to time expressed his feelings of being homesick, which might explain where his LEGO insect series came from. It's amazing what you can do with just a few tiny parts (and especially with those that seem to have only a single use). NPU, dude! You can see the rest of the his "Small Animals" series on his Flickr.
2001: A Space Odyssey is one of the rare movies that I actually enjoyed more than its over-explanatory book. Every visual is burned into my memory. Every sound. Every bit of dialogue. Every beat. I even put that creepy Monolith/Star Gate music on in the summer just to give myself some much-needed chills. The Excavation Site built by James May (AKA poshhammer) is craftily recreated in minor to major decorative features from the wall textures to the overall symmetrical proportions. I can almost hear the high pitch screeching.
As a child I often browsed through the sci-fi section at used book stores just to see the amazing cover art. There's just something about seeing a bit of sci-fi art completely out of context that stimulates my imagination. Sometimes I could come up with a story or a single scene to accompany the picture and other times I was just left thinking about what was actually going on in the story. "The Journey" by SweStar looks like something straight from an obscure sci-fi novella and does not offer a description for why the traveller is approaching a metal-and-icicle tree, and perhaps that is for the best.
If there's one thing I get a kick out of seeing every time, it's gotta be 1:1 scale movie props recreated in LEGO bricks. This skin-tight Iron Man gauntlet by Milan Sekiz features plenty of detail crammed in a very limited space that also accommodates flexibility. Having said that, I now have two serious questions: May I please wear it for Halloween and does it run on a miniature arc reactor or simple CR1025 batteries?
Pacific Rim was full of giant monsters, giant robots, and giant sharp things to poke your eye out with. Sounds awesome, right? Well you know what's even more awesome? Super giant things in micro LEGO scale! Grantmasters shrunk everything down to perfect proportions and managed to include an amazing amount of detail in the motion, texture, and coloring in this MOC. I mean, come on! Just look those yellow stripes on Knifehead!
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