The LEGO UCS Christmas Tree: A Holiday Build Journal

The LEGO UCS Christmas Tree: A Holiday Build Journal

LEGO announced the 10,001-piece 10307 UCS Christmas Tree, and BrickNerd was lucky enough to be sent an early copy ahead of the holidays. What follows is an epic stream-of-consciousness build journal of the set while lighting and decorating it for Christmas.

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An Ode to Elves: Remaking Rivendell in the Style of LEGO Elves

An Ode to Elves: Remaking Rivendell in the Style of LEGO Elves

LEGO’s massive 10316 Rivendell set is a love letter to The Lord of the Rings fans and a stunning model showcasing the splendor of the elves of Middle Earth, but can we make it a mashup with LEGO’s other colorful elves? Join us as we celebrate the legacy of the LEGO Elves theme through a bit of creative modding.

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ARMY and AFOL: The Dynamite Combo of BTS and LEGO

ARMY and AFOL: The Dynamite Combo of BTS and LEGO

The LEGO Ideas BTS Dynamite set lit up the internet when it was revealed last week, but many AFOLs wondered, “Who is BTS!?” Today we introduce you to the popular boyband, evaluate why the partnership is a perfect fit, and take a hands-on look at the model from the perspective of a fan of both BTS and LEGO.

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Review: LEGO Star Wars 75244 Tantive IV

Review: LEGO Star Wars 75244 Tantive IV

It was the first ship ever seen in the Star Wars universe, it carried the droids to Tattooine, the ship that Princess Leia was captured on. It’s the Tantive IV, AKA the Rebel Blockade Runner, and it’s the newest large LEGO Star Wars ship. LEGO was kind enough to send one our way and here’s our review of one of the most iconic science fiction ships to ever burst onto the silver screen.

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Review: LEGO XTRA Sea Accessories

Review: LEGO XTRA Sea Accessories

LEGO recently launched the XTRA line, set of polybags catered more to places and accessories than specific themes. It’s a great way to add life and detail to a larger MOC or just stock up on otherwise harder to find parts. There’s sets with plants, traffic lights, bikes and more. LEGO was kind enough to send us the Sea Accessories set to share with you so let’s dig in shall we?

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Building The Falcon With Adam Savage And The Tested Team

This week I had the distinct pleasure of building the most awesome LEGO set of all time with the most awesome group of people of all time, Tested.com. We spent two days building, shooting, sharing stories and having a load of fun geeking out on this spectacular set. 

We also had the classic UCS Falcon on hand for a direct comparison during the build. We were continually surprised and delighted at not only the upgrades from the original, but how vastly different they were. Besides being the same size and of the same ship, they're two very different builds.

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We worked out a great system of teams of sorters, knollers, feeders and builders. While it did necessitate the dismantling of the instructions, it made the build quite a bit quicker, resulting in a build time somewhere around 12 hours. And that includes time that the team needed to break away and do their normal Tested.com content, like podcasts. 

Tested.com is one of my favorite websites and YouTube channels, and of course Adam is the protonerd, so just spending time with the team was an absolute pleasure. Combine that with pretty much the greatest LEGO set of all time, and it was a memorable two days I will never forget. Check out the video on YouTube and for the extended editions consider becoming a Tested.com premium member (I am). I'd like to thank Adam, Norm, Sean and the rest of the Tested crew for welcoming me into their domain. And of course a huge thank you to LEGO for providing this review copy of what is sure to be a legendary set.

Review: Brick Warriors German Flametrooper

Review: Brick Warriors German Flametrooper

The fine folks at Brick Warriors were kind enough to send over one of their latest releases, the German Flametrooper. While I'm not a military builder, we have had military scenes in a couple animations done here over the last few years, so we do keep an assortment of military accessories on hand. And now we have a particularly badass set.

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Review: The LEGO Batman Movie - The Making Of The Movie

Review: The LEGO Batman Movie - The Making Of The Movie

We've all seen it, The LEGO Batman Movie, but how much do you know about how it was made? Well luckily those fine folks at DK have published a book that goes pretty deep into the process, and gives a behind the scenes peek into the massive undertaking it was. From the script to the screen, and everywhere in between, you'll get to see the inner workings and many, many steps it takes to go from concept to the theater.So grab some lobster thermidor, put on your best smoking jacket and settle in for a good read.

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Review - 75165 Imperial Trooper Battle Pack

Review - 75165 Imperial Trooper Battle Pack

Our second review for March, we're looking at one of the two winter battle packs.  If you like stormtroopers, this is the pack for you!  Even better, it features the new Imperial Death Troopers.  Retailing for $15.00 in the US, this set packs a punch with its 4 figures and 112 pieces!  I believe a closer look is in order. . .

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Review - 75170 The Phantom

Review - 75170 The Phantom

It's been a while since we've reviewed a set here on BrickNerd. . .  Let's change that!

Today we're looking at a 2017 Star Wars release, the second version of the Phantom seen on Star Wars Rebels.  This set features 3 minifigures (or 2 plus a droid character), 269 pieces, and is priced for $30.00 in the US.  Let's take a closer look!

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Review - Geeky LEGO Crafts

Review - Geeky LEGO Crafts

Geek culture is a little hard to define. Does that mean Star Wars and Doctor Who fans? Magic the Gathering players? Cosplayers and prop builders? It's sort of all those things, and a million more. It falls under my mantra of "fearless passion", or celebrating and sharing love for something without caring what others think. Sometimes it takes us a while to embrace our own geekdom, but when you really decide you're a nerd, and seek out other like-minded nerds, you'll be so much happier. So what does this have to do with this book?

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Review - LEGO Architecture United States Capitol Building

Review - LEGO Architecture United States Capitol Building

I've never been to Washington DC, but it's always been some place I'd like to see someday. Among all the structures in the heart of the US political center the Capitol Building is among the most impressive. It's gleaming white columns, overall size and magnificent dome evoke classic roman architecture, and it stands to this day as a symbol of American democracy. Now LEGO has an Architecture version of this iconic building, and it's a very impressive set. 

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Review: The LEGO Christmas Ornaments Book

Review: The LEGO Christmas Ornaments Book

I love the holidays. Christmas carols, yummy treats, time with family and friends, practically daily viewings of A Christmas Story and of course LEGO under (and on) the tree. I don't know about you, but there's always several LEGO Christmas ornaments on our tree, and this year there's going to be a few more thanks to this new book from No Starch Press and author Chris McVeigh

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