Santa!

Christmas is less than two weeks away! I'm eagerly awaiting this guy's visit, although I have no idea how he's going to get my new Toyota Tacoma 4-door into his sleigh. Builder DOGOD Brick Design brings us this wonderful rendition of the world's jolliest old elf, and it's frankly one of the best brick-built Santas I've ever seen.

UPDATE: Not only is this a fantastic rendition of Santa, he's also got a little surprise in the back. He opens up to reveal a charming little scene of Santa enjoying some hot cocoa by the fireplace, brilliant!

It's All An Illusion (Or A Sham)

Towering over the city of Pyongyang in North Korea, the Ryugyong Hotel is a testament to ill-conceived ideas (that's a pun, trust me). While started in 1987, it was never finished. And despite the shiny glass exterior, it's basically just a glorified telecommunications tower. In fact, it's only shiny on one side, the side that faces their mortal enemies, South Korea. The other side is indicative to it's true nature, an abandoned building. Ryan McNaught built this as part of his Brickman Wonders of the World exhibit.

Expecto Patronum!

I'm still in this Harry Potter craze this month so of course when I saw Magma Guy's beautiful Stag, what did you think I thought of?? Patronuses of course! Pottermore told me my patronus is a Shark, but in the real life my patronus is a pterodactyl, I feel it bound to my soul. 

Draco Dormiens Nunquam Titillandus

I've been in a very Harry Potter mood lately, perhaps because I recently watched Fantastic Beasts & Where to Find Them? So when I stumbled upon these creations of the four Hogwarts Common Rooms by Potter Brick I gushed at all the details! Check them out!

Warcraft-Mana Pool

How awesome is this?!?  The curves, the colors, the glowing liquid at the center...  Paul Trach has really outdone himself here, from the overall structural design to the multitude of intricate details.  There's lots to enjoy in this moc, so check out the close-up shots. 

"Diabolically Simple!"

Captainsmog has begun what looks like a fantastic new series of MOCs based on a cartoon classic - the Wacky Races! Sure, every episode had the same basic premise, but this show still holds a place in my heart, full of memories of Boomerang re-runs from the mid-2000s. His series starts with a great rendition of the most famous car of the series, the Mean Machine - and he's already posted the second MOC, which you can check out on his Flickr page.

Gladiatorial Combat

When I look at the state of the world these days and wonder if we've lost our collective minds, it's easy to forget we were never terribly bright to begin with. Tossing some guys in the middle of an arena and making them fight to death was considered rather good entertainment once. Or just a single guy, and maybe a tiger (who just wants to be left alone), that's some good fun right there. Well, it makes for a jaw-dropping MOC, that's for sure. This stunning scene was done for the MOCOlympics by W. Navarre.

The Southern Air Temple

I've never watched The Last Airbender, so I'm unfamiliar with the source for this model by Hacim Bricks. But I can still appreciate a great build without knowing the inspiration. The forced perspective going on here is extremely cool. I really like how the structures in the front are fully 3-D, but the ones towards the back are a lot flatter. This gives the whole build a real sense of depth, even though the builder says it's only 26 studs deep.

Piranha Plant

That mechanical mad genius JK Brickworks is back with another cool creation, and this one's from a video game classic, Mario Bros. Anyone that's played the game (and pretty much everyone else as well) is familiar with the Piranha Plant, those tube-dwelling, perpetually hungry pains in the butt. We've seen these before in LEGO, but this one's mechanical. Check out the video to see it in action and learn how it's done.

Winter Wonderland Bookends

Deborah Higdon is back with another lovely Christmas bookend collection.  You may recall last year's Twelve Days of Christmas build.  She's crafted all sorts of clever details throughout, and a special surprise within the books.  Although, personally, I might have gone with a Hoth scene instead...  Nicely done Deborah!

But Where's the Ninja?

The Classic Castle Contest is currently under way, and I'm loving it. Every couple days, there are several absolute gems that pop up in my feed. This peaceful Oriental bridge scene by 'LL' is one of my favorites so far. The bridge perfectly evokes classic Eastern architecture, and very cleverly uses the old rope bridge pieces for the arch. But what I like best about this build are those trees. The grey trunks compliment the fall leaves very nicely, and the addition of some roots really makes them look accurate.

Fence Designs

Legopard has shared three wonderful techniques for creating intricate fences around your MOC's.  These techniques were created for "The New Black" parts challenge, a contest featured on New Elementary.  I believe each design is self explanatory, including fairly common parts to create iron fences.  The first model he features I could see surrounding a manor, perhaps in London.  His second technique would fit well for a prison gate or an entrance into a graveyard.  Third and lastly (and my personal favorite), the builder uses Ninjago helmet ornaments to create complex shaping to the bars.  What fences can you create?  A special thanks to the builder for sharing these techniques on his Flikr page!

Fall in Winter

Though the actual season may be winter, that doesn't change the fact that this is a beautiful autumn tree.  The trunk is my favorite part, which has been created very well using some new common elements.  I find that LEGO string really adds a nice bark texture to tree trunks (assuming it's the same color as the "wood.")   It's rare for such a small landscape scene to be this detailed, but Legopard has done just that with this little creation.

Mettaton

This is Mettaton by Alexander Blais, he's a robot with a soul from the game Undertale. I've never heard of him, or the game of course (nerd cred -6) but I found him instantly engaging. From the little research I did I found the game pretty awesomely retro as well, right down to the sound design. This guy seems to be the real stand out character, and with his appealing design and quirky ways, I understand why.

Festive Holiday Scene

Santa! It's Christmas everywhere you look these days, and I love it. This cheerful little scene by builder HCK_1974 has it all, a stunning tree adorned with festive decorations, a snowy lot where all the action is taking place, children and elves having a good time and a couple of adorable oversized reindeer. And of course santa flying by, spreading holiday cheer.

The Bullet-Proof Bomb

Builder redfern1950s continues his quest to build all the vehicles from Wacky Races. This one is another childhood favorite of mine, the Bullet-Proof Bomb, AKA The Roaring Plenty. It was driven by the Ant Hill Mob, seven inept but strangely lovable mobsters. One of their secret tactics was the ability to lift the car and simply run across the finish line (I'm pretty sure they stole that trick from Fred Flintstone).

Gas Mask

This new character from builder nobu_tary looks right off the post apocalyptic battlefield. Or possibly right off the pages of some dystopian graphic novel. Or maybe just ready to clean the cat box in my house (dumb, stinky cats). This is a seriously cool combination of parts all coming together to great effect. 

Dash Baron

I've never been good at sports, in fact I consider myself athletically retarded. In my youth I once played baseball for a single season, I was left field (left out) and I was the worse player on the team. We came in last place that year, so for one shining season I was the single worse baseball player here in Lompoc, CA. So the concept Mech racing has a natural appeal to me. First, it's pretty nerdy, and second, with a properly calibrated mech I might actually be kinda good. OK, I wouldn't, but if my mech looked half as cool as this one from Lu Sim, at least I'd look pretty spiffy doing it.

A Full Month Of Half-Blood Prince

BrickNerd's own Mel Finelli has taken on the admirable (if not slightly bonkers) task of building a MOC a day for this entire month inspired by Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince. So far she's right on point, and the wonderful little vignettes are a daily delight. Here's just a few of those done so far, and we have plenty more to look forward to.