LEGO releases one new modular set a year, but every so often there’s a set that is modular-adjacent that fans of the line wish could better integrate with their collection. The Chinese New Year restaurant, French Cafe, and especially 2023’s lovely Friends Botanical Garden  (which predated the minifig scale Botanical Garden which is even more modular-adjacent). Modular builder Melanie found a solution to integrate the Friends garden into her city by turning the conservatory a two-story corner unit using a design by MingBrick. I adore the park bench and cherry blossom tree at the base of the stairs adding a parklet at street level that fits perfectly with the sidewalk aesthetic of other modulars. The post The Botanical Garden gets a modular makeover with charm to spare appeared first on The Brothers Brick. Original linkOriginal author: Jake Forbes

I don’t know if they have heirlooms in Star Wars, but if they do, the Slave I is surely one of the bounty-hunting Fett family’s. It made its first appearance in the Empire Strikes Back as Boba Fett’s ship, but Attack of the Clones revealed that it had once belonged to his father, Jango, albeit in a different paint scheme. The former has made up the bulk of the ship’s LEGO appearances, including a much-loved Ultimate Collector Series edition released in 2015. Ten years on, it’s the Episode II version that is getting the same treatment, in the form of 75409 Jango Fett’s Firespray-Class Starship, containing 2,970 pieces. Release is slated for this Star Wars day (May 4th), with a retail price of US $299.99 | CAN $379.99 | UK £259.99. Is it worth a detour to Kamino? Strap in, let’s find out! The LEGO Group provided The Brothers Brick with...

On May the Fourth, aka Star Wars Day, LEGO is releasing an eclectic mix of sets and exclusives from across the franchise. Jango Fett is the MVP of this wave, with 75409 UCS Jango Fett’s Starship and his headpiece joining past Mandalorian designs in the Helmet Collection. Celebrating 10 years since his angsty debut, Kylo Ren also features with a buildable helmet and 75606 Kylo Ren’s Command Shuttle at midi-scale. Andor is back with 75399 Rebel U-Wing Starfighter, and rans of Rebels and Ahsoka will be thrilled to see 75416 Chopper (c1-10P) at a scale to match the latest R2D2 set. A mix of Gifts with Purchase will accompany the sets.  Look for our reviews coming soon. LEGO Star Wars 75409 UCS Jango Fett’s Starship | 2970 Pieces | Available May 4 | US $299.99 | CAN $379 | UK £239.99 LEGO Star Wars 75399 Rebel U-Wing Starfighter | 1039 Pieces...

Each year, we get to see some amazing LEGO building techniques on display during the part count-restricted Rogue Olympics. Mark van der Maarel keeps it well under 100 with this great magic lamp. And if you’re like me, your first wish will be figuring out how those white disks fit together to make such a great puff of smoke! The post How to summon a LEGO genie [Building Technique] appeared first on The Brothers Brick. Original linkOriginal author: Kyle Keller (TBB Managing Editor)

Do you know what greebling is? I’ll tell you: it’s a mish-mash of tiny mechanical details that serve little-to-no purpose other than making something look suitably futuristic. It’s a favourite technique of LEGO sci-fi builders, particularly in Star Wars-adjacent or -inspired builds. And these mechanical mounts from Red Impala and Zakarion are masterclasses in the technique! First, we have K-Drak and his steed Zeet, as built by Red Impala. You may have seen his work before – he’s a frequent fixture in our Minifigure Monday round-ups. The figure here is suitably attired, which, together with its ostrich-looking mount, really drives home the fact these guys live in the desert. As for Zak, he made Oros and Gazelle here – and this thing seems to be made almost entirely of greebles! I’m a sucker for sand-red, so that’s what I’m drawn to here. Of course it would be a sand-based colour, being...

Ever since Spider-Man appeared in minifig form as part of the LEGO Studios line, superheroes have been a staple of the toymaker’s catalog, in official sets and collectible minifig series, with minifig spins on iconic characters even getting their own films and video games. LEGO has released some pretty deep-cut heroes (especially those controversial Comic-Con exclusives), but no amount of official sets can keep up with all the characters that have ever appeared in print. This week we’ll take a look at some creative spins on comic characters from the big two of DC and Marvel and beyond. Our first character is The Batman Who Laughs, the evil universe jokerfied version of Bruce Wayne, courtesy of piotrbricks. Piotr first shared this a few years back, but it remains one of the sickest superhero designs using all official parts that I’ve ever seen. The cartoony grin of Joker from The LEGO Batman Movie...

I don’t really know why broccoli gets so much shade. Its cousin cauliflower would be more deserving: it doesn’t really taste of anything, it’s easy to overcook and it disintegrates when you try and eat it. I much prefer LEGO pun-meister Maxx Davidson‘s take on it. Cauliflower? No, collie-flower! This adorable collie looks delighted to be sporting a sunflower on its head. I love the inquisitive nature of those tooth-element ears. What a good dog. And I will begrudgingly admit that the brick-built vegetable next to it is very nicely done, too. I still wouldn’t eat it though. The post A good dog, a not-so-good vegetable, and some great LEGO word-play appeared first on The Brothers Brick. Original linkOriginal author: Theo Spencer

Jeff Chapman has carved out a place in the LEGO builder scene with a bloody knife, specializing in  the macabre with a historical twist. While most of his creations so far have centered around Salem, for his latest build, Jeff travels south to New Orleans, another American city brimming with haunted history. Like his New England builds, Jeff bases his model on a real-world location, in this case an iconic corner building on Royal Street that was home to the legendary Jacques St Germain, the French Quarter vampire! Jeff’s models are always best experienced via narrated tour of history and build process on his Spooky Brixx YouTube channel, which you can watch here. Or skip down to a photo gallery for more pics of this haunted masterpiece. In past builds, Jeff has stuck to exteriors only because those buildings had few and tiny windows, often obscured by stained glass lighting effects....

Star Wars fans may have scratched their heads at Disney+’s choice of names for a show about one of the galaxy’s most notorious bounty hunters, but Les Foutch took it as a challenge and built a LEGO book to capture iconic moments from the show in miniature vignettes. With so many action-packed scenes from the show to choose from, it took two volumes to fit it all. The results are a cool tribute to the show and must have been a lot of fun to build as well! Chapters 1, 2, and 3 show how Fett survived the Sarlacc, made new friends, and brought order to Mos Espa. Chapters 4, 5, and 6 are effectively The  Mandalorian season 2.5, which is certainly a choice that Disney made.  Chapter 7 gets a whole page to itself and a deeper box to allow room for Boba’s rancor rampage. Now it’s time to close...

While LEGO Star Wars may have brought me back to buying LEGO sets regularly, the Atlantis theme from 2010-2011 was one of the first themes where I bought every set that came out. It was a perfect mix of submarines and sci-fi. By the look of this awesome homage to one of the most memorable sets in the theme, by Edge of Bricks is as big a fan as I am. This reboot of LEGO Atlantis 8061 Gateway of the Squid is a substantial upgrade of the original but retains all of the classic elements, including a cage made of squid bones (which is cool, even if squids don’t have any bones). The base is packed with great undersea flora and fauna, including a garden of green hot dog elements and glow-in-the-dark crowns as anemones. The post A worthy watery tribute to a great LEGO theme appeared first on The Brothers...