Round 2 of Bio-Cup has wrapped up and the competition this year may be some of the toughest ever. As expected, there are some hard hitters still in the competition even with many newer or more underdog builders that have really elevated their skills to the next level. As with every round in Bio-Cup, the quality of builds is off the charts. This round’s theme was the Nine Circles of Hell—which fit perfectly as a theme because there are nine brackets of competitors.

Let’s take a journey going in circles down, down , down…

Limbo - Gengo_Builds

Our first build is a more literal take on the theme which I think adds to the balance between the fun and seriousness of the entry. Gengo has created a great story in a great build. Seeing the expressions of each character as well as the dynamic motion really makes everything seem alive. On top of all that, the way part textures are used to convey clothing and skin on the devil is an amazing contrast.

Lust - Ivan Martynov

I think this build speaks for itself when it comes to lust. Once again, Ivan aces facial expressions with exaggerated “awooga” eyes. The entire build has a very cartoon feel which can be pretty tricky to translate into LEGO. As with the previous build, the storytelling in a single image is excellent, with the hand being summoned just to bring up the hot witch for the devil to look at.

Gluttony - The Maestro

This year’s Bio-Cup is the year of the skull, apparently, because so many new and different skull designs have shown up and each has its unique features. The Maestro has created an amazing creature with a mix of mechanical and natural features. There's lots to take in with this build, but lots of amazing detail tie it all together. I especially love the bright magenta pop in the stomach.

Greed - Benjamin Anderson

From what the judges stated, this bracket was the hardest to decide the winner of. All three builds are immaculate as you can probably imagine just from seeing this one. Benjamin has created some of the most fantastic shaping I've seen in a while with a color like pearl gold that's hard to work with too. The fact that this was built in only two weeks is baffling to me. This build has so much presence—the sense of scale is helped greatly by the two side characters.

Anger - pierthviv

Pierthviv once again has built a banger of a build with amazing sculpting. With such a unique style, his builds always stand out against the competition. The build captures the human figure perfectly with a great mix of Bionicle and System elements. The head in particular is something special, using hotdog buns, minifigure arms, whips, and an assortment of NPU in the hair tot really show a mastery of shaping and part knowledge.

Heresy - Ben

This round has been full of great storytelling in single images, and this build is no exception with an idol being struck down, a weeping follower, and the superior being reigning above. Ben created some great faces from very unique pieces, using Bohrok shields or Technic panels and even adding tears to really show emotion. The sense of scale is also well done with the camera angle and the placement of the larger build which gives it great presence.

Violence - Ryan Z.

Ryan has created a bomb entry for this category. It looks like a sci-fi killer robot, and the nuclear bomb as the head is the definition of violence. The contrast between the flesh arm and the rest of the build is unique and may tell of a time before the creature was transformed into a killer robot.

Fraud - eClair Builds

Next up is a quite unnerving build by eClair Builds. This build is an excellent argument for using inside-out tires in your builds—they have great textures and look great when used in large amounts like this. Other rubber parts used include bands used as laces on the shoes and dots bracelets used as the soles, revealing the true size of this build. And to add to that the cloth pieces that make up the diaper and neck covering and she really shows how much can be done with non-conventional and flexible pieces.

Treachery - Kat’s Koncepts

Finally on our last stop into the circles of hell, we have yet another story-telling moment full of motion. Katsu really nailed the fallen angel and made it look like it was actually falling—the limb placement to the actual position of the entire character helped achieve this look. In addition to the characters I am always impressed with unique and well-built clouds made in LEGO, and Katus really delivered with not one but three separate clouds.

As stated earlier, this round was one for the ages. There are so many amazing builds I couldn't cover but are worth checking out, so make sure to take a look at all the entries. (In fact, a total of nine builders moved on from this round, and only three of them were featured in this article—which should really drive home the quality of builds this round).

Round three is shaping up to be even more insane, so keep watch as the rounds narrow down the competitors until the winner is decided. The end is in sight and we are getting closer to crowning the next Bio-Cup champion!

Which LEGO circle would you least want to be in? Let us know in the comments below.

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