Odin

To the vikings he was the god of war, to nerds he's Thor's dad, and to LEGO fans he's fantastic relief sculpture by 2nd Life Bricks. It's Odin, and no matter who is is to you, you have to agree this is a fine bit of building.

Ivysaur

Congratulations, you've just evolved your Bulbasaur into Ivysaur, what are you going to do now? Well, you're not done if you want to get to Venusaur, so time to get training! Make your way to the nearest gym and prepare for battle if you want to be the best there ever was. You can be sure builder lisqr will be there.

Steampunk Samurai Iron Man

My old pal Kevin Ryhal, aka M<O><O>DSWIM, has come up with a truly unique mash-up!  He's been creating all sorts of cool combos over the years, from Steampunk Gundams, to Darth Skeletor.   But I just looked through his photostream to make sure.  This is the first time he's gone for three genres in one.  "Jarvis-san, bring the boilers to full power!"

Roll A D20 To See If You Spring The Trap...

I didn't play much D&D when I was a teen, our preference was Aftermath and Traveller, but I played enough for this MOC by Galaktek to get me right in the nostalgia feels. Join the adventure of a party of four as they descend deeper and deeper on the search for treasure. Click through for a full room by room quest, it's pretty epic.

Orca

Here's some fun facts about Killer Whales:

1. They're not whales at all, they're actually the largest dolphin.
2. They'll stay with their mother their entire life.
3. They use echolocation, a form of undersea "radar" to navigate and find food.
4. They are an apex predator, top of the food chain baby!
5. They look awesome when built in bricks, like this one by timofey_tkachev.

Brick Bank Is On The Money!

As a huge fan of the wild west as a setting and LEGO theme I was delighted to find the "Brick Bank" by builder Paul Trach. It looks as though Paul has decided to upgrade the Creator set 10251 and repurpose it for the Wild West Theme. Paul explains he has built this for a competition over at his LUG Rogue Bricks. I've seen some other really strong entries already and the Lug seems full of great builders, but this is so far the standout for me!

The builder has gone to great lengths to ensure a level of quality that runs all the way through the MOC from top to bottom. The roof has a super water barrel and that funky little winch (was it used to install a small safe in the managers office upstairs?) and the brick built signs show a dedication to doing things right - no easy way out with a sticker here! Did I mention the use of the flat silver ice cream tops for the railings -  tekkers!

Let's also take a moment to admire the 45 degree angle of the build itself. There is some serious SNOT work going on here and I love it. The façade of the building has some fine decorative adornments and a delicate clock (don't be late to deposit your money).

Possibly my favourite detail on the build is the way in which the lattice work on the windows has been crafted using whips, these are highlighted by contrast to the trans green stained glass window panes constructed behind it.

As if those details aren't enough Paul has thrown in some authentic looking swing doors,  a beautiful pair of flowering cacti, fantastic use of the light grey ingots on the snot work base of the building and a delightful selection of dapper looking minifigs.

Paul's stream is full of great builds in a variety of themes - head over and take a look!

Vietnam Rocky Highland

I've never been to Vietnam, but I hope if I ever get to visit it's as vibrant and charming as this little MOC by builder Know Your Pieces. There's an interesting mix of traditional and modern aesthetics, with the waterwheel giving a timeless touch, but the power poles letting us know this is contemporary.

Sky Pirates Dragon Attack

This is one of those MOCs that's just hard to take in as a photo, or series of photos for that matter. There's so much going on and so many complex angles that pictures just don't do it justice. But one thing is clear from this single picture, that builder LEGO 7 put some serious time and effort into it. Do yourself a favor and click through for more pics.

Your Friendly Neighborhood Web-Head

I've never been too much into comics, they just weren't available in the little town I grew up in. But I did manage to get my grubby little paws on some occasionally, and my two favorites were Iron-Man and this guy, brilliantly built by umamen. I remember having several action figures of Spidey as a kid too, and none of them had the poseability of this brick-built one, making it even more impressive.

BY THE POWER OF GRAYSKULL!

Builder Alex Jones aka Orion Pax is back and seemingly on a one man crusade to recreate the toys of my (and many other fella's of a certain age) childhood in LEGO form. His latest build is what looks like an almost 1:1 scale recreation of HE-MAN and his best pal and trusty steed BATTLE-CAT stars of the "HE-MAN and the Masters of the Universe" cartoon.  Alex has faithfully recreated the furry pant wearing hero of the 80's - The recent release of the Batman - Clayface playset making the tanned complexion of HE-MAN possible. The detail on Battle Cats armoured mask in particular makes it almost indistinguishable from the rigid plastic version many of us owned way back then. Although I'm personally not a fan of sculpting, he's done a fantastic job of recreating HE-MAN's face using a Buzz Lightyear head as a base.

As a kid I loved Tuesday afternoons at 4 o'clock for my taste of Eternian action with a dose of morality at the end for good measure. I hope Alex gets round to giving Skeletor and Panthor the same treatment soon!

Motorized BB-8

BB-8 is pretty much universally adored, and since the release of The Force Awakens we've seen thousands of iterations of this little guy. He's on everything from sports bottles to hats. Being nothing but round makes him naturally difficult to build in bricks, but our love for him means that builders keep doing it. Check out this version by Takamichi Irie, not only does it look great, the motorized functions really bring him to life.

M8A1

Weapon builder extraordinaire Nick Brick is back with another stunning rifle. This is the M8A1 from the game Call of Duty Black Ops II, and it's pretty badass. It features a moving trigger, removable magazine, sliding ambidextrous charging handle with centering tab, and detachable working reflex sight. I can't help but think that somewhere in Nick's house there's a room that's starting to look like Big Daddy's in Kick Ass.

Chicken Run

If you haven't seen Chicken Run you need to give it a chance. For one, it's by Aardman, the Wallace and Grommet people, so you know it's funny. And it's heavily inspired by Stalag 17, and The Great Escape, so it's a good story. And of course it's stop-motion animated, a subject close to my heart. Builders SuckMyBrick liked it so much they were inspired to build. And this is the result, pure enchantment and fun, just like the movie,

Lumiére

Humans have always been captivated by fire, from our very early days it has been a central feature of our lives. It cooks our food, it keeps us warm and it wards off danger. Of course we think we've mastered this element, but that is only by the good grace of Lumiére, the goddess of fire, depicted here by builder Pate-keetongu. So next time you turn that dial of the stove top or click that lighter, remind yourself to be thankful.

The Battle of Maerwynn Creek

What is it with humans? We've been squabbling over everything for as long as we've been walking upright (and probably before). We're just not wired for cooperation or coexistence it seems, or maybe not. It's kinda ironic that this depiction of man's tendency to bonk each other on the head and not work together is the product of two builders collaborating. Nice work SirWilsonBricks and The Maestro, you give me hope in humanity.

World Map

When faced with what to put on the wall of his living room, builder Dirkb86 (with the encouragement of his wife) decided on a world map. And not just any world map, but this majestic relief map of our tiny blue marble. These few pictures really don't do the project justice, you can see tons more pictures and read the story of it's creation over on MOCpages.

Evening in the Living Room

Heikki M. has created another stunning interior that you might see featured on one of those high-end HGTV shows.  But what's interesting, beyond all the stylish designs and artistic details, of course, is the fact that we've got a little forced perspective built into the scene.  The fireplace in the foreground is actually out of proportion to the furniture and the TV to create the illusion of a much larger room.  Pretty crafty, there, Heikki! 

Doc Brown's Time Traveling Train

Who can forget the moment Doc Brown and his beloved Clara appeared in this stunning steampunk time traveling train at the end of Back to the Future III? And of course the absolutely mind-blowing surprise of when it lifted off and flew away (uh, spoilers I guess?). It's a movie vehicle classic, and this version by Mister Bricks does it justice. For a detailed breakdown check out the video from our pals at Beyond the Brick.

Ascension of the Flood

M.C. Escher has always been one of my favorite artists. AFOLs have been recreating his work for a long time, but I don't think I've ever seen a motorized Escher MOC until now: Jarren Harkema has assembled a beautiful display inspired by Escher's Waterfall which must look remarkable in person. You can see it in motion in this video.

Granny Weatherwax & Nanny Ogg

Builder Pate-keetongu is back with some more characters from his ever-expanding cast of characters from the venerable Discworld. This time around it's Granny Weatherwax & Nanny Ogg, and of course I still haven't read the books yet so I have no idea who they are. But as every character is added to his collection, I become more and more fascinated and curious.