A Master Class in Mecha

I've been laid up at home with an awful illness for the past week and a half, and to pass the time outside of LEGO I've been working on something I've wanted to try my hand at for a long time - a Mobile Suit Gundam master grade model kit. Thus, it seems serendipitous that Chris Darmawan finishes and posts this beauty during the height of my new obsession.

Cosmic Booster Type

Inspired by a Mobile Suit named "Tief Strumer," this beast looks positively wicked. There's so many cool details all over this thing, and the expertly sculpted head gives it a wonderfully sinister demeanor.

Cosmic Booster Type

Thank you, Mr. Darmawan, for adding yet another project to my never ending list of MOCs I want to try my hand at.

Lifting Microscale to New Heights

As a predominantly microscale builder, I love the challenge of making something instantly recognizable with as few pieces as possible. Builder Kosmas Santosa will tell you himself that he doesn't build much in this scale - but after seeing this Gondola I'm certain he should continue to try his hand at it. I see a total of 11 pieces here, not counting the string and background. Masterful work.

Ski Lift Gondola


Where the Rubber Meets the (Brick) Road

I'll admit that LEGO cars aren't exactly my area of interest -- I'm more of a spaceship, spaceship, spaceship! kinda AFOL. But builders like Andrea Lattanzio, a.k.a. Norton74 on Flickr, make me embarrassed to completely overlook this theme. I mean, look at this scene, titled "'32 Ford 'Tow Rod' at the Garage" from the propped-up roadster to the superb mechanic's tool chest to the checkered tile wall pattern to the boombox on the shelf to the drill press to the "wood" pallet, the attention to detail and the craftsmanship here is simply exquisite. The only thing missing is grease stains on that lovely, 6x6 light gray tiled floor. And I'd bet Andrea will find a way to make those, too!  Ladies and gentlemen, start your engines... 

Far Out, MOC!

Sometimes, a good backstory along with a quality MOC from an established builder is just too hard to pass up.  Stephen Pakbaz -- who previously designed NASA's Curiosity rover for the LEGO Ideas line -- has come up with a great one here in Pieceout, "a civilian scientist researching alternative energy on the planet Cybertron."

Hippie Transformers out to make the world a better place? Love it! Transformer MOCs that actually transform?  Excellent!  Clever moniker playing on the themes of that era while simultaneously paying tribute to the very hobby we all love?  Just plain awesome.

Disc-overing "Discworld"

Honestly, I've never heard of Discworld, the late Terry Pratchett's imaginary world, set on a platter-shaped land set atop four elephants which, in turn, are riding the back of what must be a massive, massive turtle. (Tortoise?)  Just as much as I know about Star Wars and Star Trek and even Tolkien's The Lord of the Rings, it's exactly the opposite for Discworld.

So please don't ask me about the backstory of this group of fellows, termed "The Ones Who Meddle With the Fabric of Reality," by Finnish AFOL Eero Okkonen. There's something magical about this bunch, and not just because they're wizards (I think). 

It takes a particular skill to make MOCs look both stone-faced and alive at the same time, which Eero achieves by simultaneously using the traditional 1x1 headlight bricks for eyes and then other wildly disparate elements, such as Chima wings , to fluff out those lovingly-crafted beards.  The magicians' accoutrements are also perfectly color-coordinated, with their dark red / brown / red fabrics, Friends stars, X-Pod dishes, and, hey, does that gorilla have a banana that incorporates...  bananas? 

Discworld should really be called Discoworld.

V-Galactic Racing

I'm a sucker for a good MOC backstory. It adds that extra touch of flair to really understand the world in which a build exists. Builder Markus Rollbühler has not only knocked it out of the park with two awesome space builds, but has generated a wonderful context - they're selectable racers from a video game! He's even gone the extra mile to craft his own select menu, which looks fantastic. I hope we get to "unlock" the rest of the racers soon.

V-Galactic Racing: Scarlet Hare 20X
V-Galactic Racing: Crimson Hornet 3000

By the power of Grayskull!

Vitreolum is on an absolute roll - he's been blogged twice by BrickNerd in the past week, but that's not going to stop me from highlighting this amazing micro Grayskull. This combines my already overwhelming microscale obsession with a heart-string tugging blast from my childhood. Now to go find the correct parts so I can have my own!

Castle Grayskull


Size Matters Not!

Full disclosure: builder John Stephens is a contributor to this group blog of ours, but that alone doesn't disqualify him from having his always quality MOCs written up on this site. Using those 4x4 round plates as bases for his "Pocket Heroes" collection, John's latest creations are somewhat reminiscent of the forthcoming LEGO Dimensions series. And with creative use of smaller elements like t-nozzles, battle droid torsos, cheese slopes and round 1x1 tiles, these little bots prove that Yoda's old adage is true! 

Mini? On!

Great rent, but the rooms are a little small.

A while back -- ten years ago to be precise -- the short-lived Factory theme made its debut in the LEGO universe. And while it didn't last long, the mini-scale sets from that theme (three sets in all) seemingly continue to inspire AFOLs today, whether in the form of the successful Architecture line, or, as seen above, in the creations of brick artists like John Stephens, who takes this theme to new heights in his continuing Micropolis series. My favorite feature of the Riverstone Apartments is the clever and old-school use of the 1x1 headlight brick as windows, and the great design on the trees. The simplicity of it all, from the cheese slopes as awnings to the cars made of 1x2 "jumper" plates and 1x1 tiles, make John's set something special.  And the best part is, there's plenty more where this came from. The takeaway message? In a time of big $200 and $350 LEGO sets, sometimes smaller is better.

Bugatti Vendicatore

I'm a total sucker for small, compact spaceships that look functional. This Bugatti Vendicatore by David Hensel is an excellent example of how you don't have to build big to build beautiful. It incorporates a great mix of technic panels and constraction parts that offer up a great bulky shape, and create some really interesting front air intakes. It's easy to imagine a swarm of these offering forth from the bowels of a giant capital ship. Extra kudos on the sharp photography and edit.

Bugatti Vendicatore