Rebels Have the Cooler Bases

This is truly a clean and pristine build!  Paul Trach hasn't added too much color, there aren't too many vines, and there aren't too many details on the floor.  Perfect, this build has become!  The walls are my favorite part, personally, due to the angling and the style of construction.  Other details that make this build great are the floor paint, the little cranes, and especially the sleek hangar transport device.  I would love to be based out of this outpost rather than a formal Imperial station.  How about you?!

"Begin Landing Your Troops"

I must admit, I have watched the new Rogue One trailer too many times already.  One thing that I have noticed in the trailer, along with many other Star Wars fans, is the new Imperial tank (for lack of a better title).  It can be seen in a few, quick shots within the two trailers for the film so far.  Along with the tank, it appears to have a new form of Stormtrooper, and I can only assume he is similar to a TIE pilot, only for this new craft.  Kevin Wollert (having now completed his Harry Potter vignette series) has designed a well-crafted replica of this new vehicle introduced in the Star Wars universe.  The is a phenomenal recreation of the new iconic vehicle, and it's going to be tough to beat!  Well done, Kevin!

Ford Bronco

You can practically hear inspirational music, smell the pine and see the magnificent vistas from some spectacular natural monument when you look at this adventure ready Ford Bronco from Lino M. It may be a bit dated, but it is no doubt classic American outdoors. Now for some reason I'm craving hot chocolate by a campfire while everyone else ruins marshmallows.

Hunting Equipment

If you're going to "catch 'em all" you're going to need some essential equipment. First, some comfortable shoes, because there's a lot of walking involved. Second, you need an outfit that says to the world "I wanna be the very best, like no one ever was". And third you're going to need a Pokedex and some Pokeballs, like this awesome brick-built set by Moko, because you need to keep track and get info, and despite their name, Pokemon don't fit in your pockets without a little help.

Cutting-Edge Mechnology

This mech by Gamabomb, who is quickly becoming one of my new favorite builders, is absolutely awesome. With its large head and spindly little legs, it's cartoony enough to have a lot of character, but still looks very realistic and menacing thanks to all the cool details it has. I particularly like the curved bit on the side of the mech's head, as well as the shaping of the angles on its chest.

Worms

I was just thinking about this game a couple days ago, and thinking "gee, that would make a cool set of MOCs". Well, builder SuckMyBrick clearly heard my wish and granted it (now I'm thinking about a Toyota Tacoma TRD in grey BTW, with the bed full of cash). I actually had a friend that worked on this game, the only thing more fun than playing it was hearing stories from the studio that made it.

Cheery Littlebottom

I've never read any of the Discworld books, but the more I learn about them, the more fascinated (and confused) I get. For instance, this figure by Pate-keetongu is Sergeant Cheery Littlebottom, a former forensic alchemist and the first openly female dwarf of Ankh-Morpork City. Yes, under the beard and all the armor and leather, that's a female. Apparently all dwarves are traditionally 'male', and bearded,  but there are both male and females of course, or how would they procreate? Another intriguing but baffling facet of this book series and universe.

Blacktron Kong

There's no description on this MOC by builder David_Alexander_Smith, so it's up to my imagination to figure out how this fits in the Blacktron universe (like that's a problem). Meet Blacktron Kong, the bipedal mech invented by Thaddeus Shvenkle of the 76th Space Division- Oracle Base Unit. Kong was built for remote exploration on the uneven and diverse terrain of Novus 6. His ape-like structure allows for high mobility in the jungle regions as well as the rocky plains. Kong has a crew of up to 4 explorers, but is capable of being driven by a single pilot. His total mission time is 76 hours under normal use and his energy source is classified at this time.

Regis Commdor Hyperion

Ancient shipbuilders sure knew how to make a statement. I can't speak to the accuracy of this ancient Greek galley, but it's impressive and absolutely beautiful. With a combination of wind and man power, these ships could transport soldiers quickly and quietly, and judging by the number of oars on this, it was pretty fast.

Buckbeak and Black Break Free

With Buckbeak and Sirius Black facing the end of their existence, Harry and Hermione race against time as they use a 'time-turner' to save the beloved Hippogriff and Harry casts a Patronus Charm to escape the Dementors. Kevin Wollert has perfectly captured the scene of Sirius riding Buckbeak to their safety using minifigscale, and microscale for Hogwarts as it disappears from sight. I'm sure there was no magic spell used to create this enchanting piece.

Classic Biplane

From the thumbnail I thought that this was a classic wooden toy, but as you can see it's all bricks, 1000 bricks to be exact. I don't read or speak German, so I haven't a clue why builder grubaluk received 1000 2x4 tan bricks from 1000stein, but he turned them into something wonderful. Keep in mind that only 2x4 bricks were used to build this, and if you've ever tried to build something with just those bricks you'll appreciate how difficult it can be,

MFS-04 Bison

If I had to pick one word to describe this new mech from Moko, it would have to be "beefy". Just look at the lines on this, the mass, the strength. This is the sort of machine you go into battle with, clomping headlong into the fray. And judging by the firepower on this, it's going to pack a wollup. The color scheme is also very nice, all that olive green gives this a definite military feel.

Shplat!

LEGO is a fantastic medium for activating imagination. Whenever I see a new build, it gets me thinking about a scene from a movie, or about the potential of a new technique or narrative. But this build by Letranger Absurde is the first LEGO build I've seen that makes me think of a specific sound. Every time I look at this picture, I hear a vivid "splat!" just like in Loony Tunes. That splatted bug makes fantastic use of that weird Toy Story octopus bottom, for a true NPU. Brilliant and hilarious work here, not to mention the on-point character building.

The Tick - Heroes And Villains

The 90's cartoon series The Tick was known for being quirky, funny and unorthodox, and these miniland scale figures by builder BenSpector42 can be described the exact same way. Sure super strength and invulnerability are nice, but 'drama power', now that's serious. Especially when you're up against a guy with a chair for a head.

Brickheadz In Disguise

In the wake of the new Brickheadz Super Heroes line announced at this weekend's San Diego Comic Con, it didn't take long for AFOLs to start making Brickheadz of other characters, such as these great Transformers by Tankm.

"There's A Pikachu Over There!"

Show of hands, who's been playing Pokemon GO? The game's been available nearly three weeks now and it's already cliché to ask that. I've been playing the game like mad lately and nothing's beaten the excitement when a Pikachu showed up nearby - a moment perfectly captured in this giant iPhone model built by Chris Madisson. For me the most impressive part is how cleanly he achieves the look of the Pokéball - round shapes aren't always easy in LEGO but all it took was a tire and some quick thinking to perfect one.

Cole Blaqtron

Neo-Classic Space is arguably the oldest theme in which AFOLs have been building for all these years, and in just one build Cole Blaq has both mastered it and wildly subverted it. "High Jack" is one of the most unique NCS models I've seen in a while in terms of shape, with some clever part uses thrown in for good measure.

Well, It Began As You Might Expect. . .

"In a whole in the ground, there lived...a Hobbit."

Balbo, a very popular Lord of the Rings LEGO builder, has created the iconic "Red Book of Westmarch."  You may recognize this book as the keeper of both Frodo and Bilbo's writings, containing their stories and their adventures of Middle-earth.  Just seeing this build come through my Flikr stream made me want to pull out a copy of the Lord of the Rings and start watching the trilogy again.  I also really want to open up this book and read the text within (even though I've read both stories multiple times).  If Tolkien was still alive, I believe he would be very pleased with this recreation, along with many other great LOTR creations.  Keep it up, Balbo!

Cha-ching!

I suppose today's kids learn about money handling with an app (between catching Pokemon) but when I was a kid, this was the apparatus of choice, the Fisher-Price cash register. Seeing this MOC by scottstaz brought a whole flood of nostalgia and happy coin-counting feels. It's a perfect 1:1 recreation, right down to the chute on the side.

Robot Hit Squad

I always love it when a sci-fi creation actually looks realistic and practical. This group of robot assassins by Devid VII is a great example of military sci-fi realism, with lots of functional-looking greebles and a very aggressive, utilitarian look. The drone in front makes great use of minifigure parts, such as using legs as a major part of the arms. Devid says that there are more robots coming in this series, and I can't wait to see them.