Sand Trooper

I remember as a young fan of Star Wars, upon probably the 40th or so viewing, thinking to myself "those backpacks must be their environmental packs". You know, keeping them cool in such a hot climate. In reality it added an additional 45 pounds of weight to an already heavy and hot costume, those actors and extras suffered for our entertainment. Still, Sandtroopers were badass, and this figure by LEGO 7 is no less impressive.

Graveyard Shift

Isn't it fascinating how fast computers developed and continue to advance? The acceleration curve of progress is almost as steep as the one tracking people's tendency to use them for nefarious purposes. This scene by builder Profound Whatever was inspired by a time before Nigerian princes and keyboard cat, when all the computing had to be done in large rooms. Your smart watch likely has more computing power than this room, let that sink in.

Afternoon Tea

I really wish tea was more popular in America. I know there's plenty of tea drinkers here, but nothing compared to the UK. And afternoon tea is just not a thing here (well, it is for me). I would love to see more scenes like this one from MinifigNick in real life, adults taking a break from a busy day to enjoy a delicious beverage and some conversation. Although these days I'm pretty certain it would just look like a Starbucks, with everyone on their phone or laptop. I'll just have to content myself with occasional afternoon tea at Steakhouse 55 at Disneyland (which, by the way, is delightful)

Chocobo & Cloud

I'm not totally up to date with the Final Fantasy series I'm afraid. The last time I played I'm pretty sure it was monochrome on an original Gameboy, so I'm a bit out of the loop. But that doesn't diminish my appreciation for this build by vincentkiew. I don't know who these characters are, but I want to see them in action.

Tatra T2-603

It's a Tatra, one of the oldest car companies you've maybe never heard of. One of, if not the, first car companies to consider aerodynamics in design, influencing countless cars and manufacturers to come. This beautiful streamlined beauty is from Horcik Designs, and features opening doors, hood and trunk (bonnet and boot) and a detailed engine compartment.

Just When You Thought It Was Safe To Go Into Space

As if the massive fluctuations in temperature, radiation, micro meteorites, space junk and the relentless vacuum of space wasn't enough, now there's another reason not to venture outside our atmosphere and gravitational pull...space sharks. Of course if they're as eye catching and awesome as this one from David_Alexander_Smith, at least you'll have a few seconds of sincere appreciation and awe, before you're devoured.

Major Solo Spoiler Revealed

We have a pretty strict no leak policy here at BrickNerd, as well as spoilers. But you know what a Star Wars fan I am, and I've tried to remain cautiously optimistic about the upcoming Solo movie, but what the heck is this? Lucasfilm (and LEGO) are totally jumping the shark on this one, how can young Luke possibly be in this movie?

UPDATE: Yes of course this is an April fools joke! That is of course unless young Luke actually ends up in the movie, then the joke is on all of us.

Happy Easter!

Peter Cottontail made the rounds last night, and while I haven't found it yet, I'm pretty sure there's a basket around here somewhere for me. Hopefully yours is filled with all your favorite treats and plastic bricks, not unlike this one from builder cmaddison. Happy Easter everybody!

Audiophile

Builder helensham shows us the intersection of audiophile and LEGO with this brilliant reproduction of the legendary McIntosh 275 tube amplifier, the MAC7200 and what appears to be a turntable/CD hybrid that actually plays! The build and illumination are fantastic, but to see it spin and actually play (I'm assuming, watch the video) is pretty mind-blowing.

Boldly Going

While on your five year mission to explore strange new worlds and seek out new life and new civilizations, occasionally you're going to have to make an away trip. The shuttle, like this one from builder stephann001, is the perfect craft for this. It's your transportation, your shelter and your communications center all in one. We must caution you on jersey color selection though, we highly recommend NOT wearing red.

Egg Pooping Bunny

Easter is right around the corner, and to celebrate, JK Brickworks has made another fantastic MOC: a motorized Easter Bunny that hops and poops real chocolate eggs. As a rabbit owner myself, I can vouch for this MOC's accuracy (although, sadly, my rabbits do not poop chocolate). JK made a video showing off "Winston" in action here.

Violin

I don't think many would dispute that the violin is one of the most beautiful instruments on earth. It's feminine, flowing lines and graceful, delicate appearance is the result of hundreds of years of refinement. And properly built in bricks, like this gorgeous MOC by Yo-Sub Joo, it's still absolutely breathtaking.

Alien Nerve Center

I love it when a builder revisits a MOC. I don't mean dust it off and maybe swap out a few pieces, I mean when they take the original concept and totally revamp it, taking advantage of new parts and colors. Builder mihaimariusmihu has done just that with this disturbingly beautiful alien apparatus. Not only did the MOC get revamped, but there's an elaborate back story as well, click through to read.

The Tale of the Three Brothers

The Tales of Beedle the Bard is a compilation of children's stories from the wizarding world of Harry Potter. One of the most recognized stories in this book is the Tale of the Three Brothers. Aaron Newman has created this awesome representation of the three brothers meeting the incarnation of death itself, as told in the story (and read by Hermione in the films). This is the second recreation of this scene, the first being made in vignette form for the Harry's Magical Journey Project back in 2017. The image of death's looming presence in this scene really attracted me to the build, despite how scary its appearance is in this form. I really appreciate how this scene came together, with some excellent photography and positioning. 

Win The Ultimate LEGO Travel Contest!

Our pals over at Beyond the Brick are hosting a contest that pretty much every AFOL wants to win, a trip to Billund to see the LEGO house, and attend Skærbæk Fan Weekend! They want you to get creative and reimagine a LEGO set, big or small, and post pictures to the official Flickr group. Watch the video and read all about it here, then get building!

Blade Runner 2049 Spinner

Blade Runner 2049 is one of those love it or hate it kind of movies it seems. I personally loved it, it's a slow burn, but so rich in style and visuals. The new Spinner is a very cool vehicle, not quite as cool as it's predecessor, but still pretty awesome, and this version by vaionaut not only depicts it really well, it's fantastically presented.

Terror From The Depths

For as long as humans have been traveling by sea we've been afraid if it. Something about those mysterious depths, unseen creatures and the inability to breath underwater has kept us just a little on edge. And while there's no documented proof of creatures like this one by W. Navarre, stories have been shared for centuries, making you wonder.

A Place to Get All You Need

Portuguese builder Cesbrick is back presenting another fantastic scene for us! A general store is something I always enjoy seeing recreated in LEGO form in different scales. Every time, I see brand new techniques for creating that rustic and vintage appearance one would expect from one of these stops on an old road. This model is, of course, no exception. Not only does it feature an awesome car, but the detailing is out of this world (an interesting word choice, I know, considering the classic vibe this scene gives off). Make sure to take a closer look, because I am still noticing little techniques included!

Light Cycle

With the upcoming LEGO Ideas Tron set everyone's got the classic 80's movie (and it's somewhat recent sequel) on the mind. Builder JoePerez_Lego_Artist was so inspired he built this amazing Light Cycle and rider. This shot looks like a pretty good image for the poster of the movie, ready for some 80's action.

The NerdFlex Motion Control System

I've gotten a lot of questions about my custom motion control system I built for stop motion animation, from the LEGO community and beyond. So I decided to put together a video to share what it is and how it came about.