Best-in-Class: A Vic Viper Valedictorian
/Some LEGO creations are brilliant replicas—smaller models of things we’ve seen (or wish we’ve seen, like a castle) filled with lovely colors and clever parts uses. Other builds are insanely creative—wild spaceships or fantasy creatures pushing the envelope. And then there is this creation from Maxx Davidson (Flickr), that has combined both of these worlds together.
This creation is not just ready to slice through space but is also eager to attack the school year with a full supply of highlighters, lined paper, and a pair of rulers! The spaceship is pretty much a pun made into a 3D reality, so it seems fitting for it to be named The Bic Viper.
“Some young explorers doodle when they daydream, some go a step above,” Maxx said in the description. It’s safe to say that he certainly went a step above. There is so much to love about this build, from the use of actual LEGO pens to roller blades for a zipper, that we decided to ask Maxx a few questions about it!
Note: If you are unfamiliar with what a “Vic Viper” is, it is a type of starfighter from the classic video game series Gradius. The design has a distinct characteristics; two forward prongs, a single dorsal tail, and two rear wing projections. They are popular to build at all times of the year, but especially during every NoVVember. This is when the community builds the Vic Viper style starfighters that fit this format. As has been shown with its longevity, the varieties can be endless.
Geneva: So Maxx, where did you get such a fun, wacky concept?
Maxx: I got the idea thinking back to elementary school when I solved classroom boredom by making characters and vehicles from the items in my desk.
Geneva: Once you had the concept idea in mind, where did you start first?
Maxx: The first things I put to bricks were the rulers used on the front of the ship. After that, I knew I wanted the base to look like ruled paper, and the rest filled in from there!
Geneva: There are a lot of brilliant features to love about this—the use of official LEGO pens, the zipper made out of roller blades—which part is your favorite?
Maxx: My favorite part of the build is actually one of the smallest. I love the shape I was able to get on the red and black push pins on the fronts of the rulers. They went through quite a few iterations before I found something simple yet quite effective.
Geneva: Those are so perfect. I have to call out one of my favorite details too, the pencil stubs for armrests inside the cockpit. Thanks for telling us more about this build!
Maxx: Thanks for reaching out!
Which of the “objects” built into this spaceship is your favorite? Let us know in the comments below!
Do you want to help BrickNerd continue publishing articles like this one? Become a top patron like Charlie Stephens, Marc & Liz Puleo, Paige Mueller, Rob Klingberg from Brickstuff, John & Joshua Hanlon from Beyond the Brick, Megan Lum, Andy Price, Lukas Kurth from StoneWars, Wayne Tyler, Monica Innis, Dan Church, and Roxanne Baxter to show your support, get early access, exclusive swag and more.
