Blocks Magazine (February 2020)

BLOCKSTALGIA


i Aftermarket price: £228 new, £104 used / Miniigures: 6 / Pieces: 1,019
7019 VIKING FORTRESS



AGAINST THE FAFNIR


DRAGON




THE VIKINGS THEME’S largest set rang in at package, though, and small cracks start to most playable sets. The Fafnir Dragon
just £49.99, and for your money offered a fully- appear. The modular system of the fortress’s is impressively menacing, proportions
enclosed structure packed with details and walls make it easy to transport, but the hook notwithstanding; the huge prison can it the
play features, six miniigures, two dragons, and and coupling plates used to connect them smaller red and black dragon inside, making
more catapults than you can ire a boulder at. are frustrating to keep together. The largest, it far more appropriate than the miniigure
A bounty of palisade bricks in reddish brown – eponymous dragon also doesn’t hold up to jail included in 7018; and it’s a real treasure
62 1x2s and 50 1x4s – give it an aesthetic that scrutiny: its proportions are off, with oddly trove of cool parts, from swathes of miniigure
would make Fort Legoredo fans smile, while diminutive legs and a neck that can’t quite accessories to huge boulders, many of which
a bevy of shields, horns and torches place it support the head at every angle. are inished in a beautiful lacquered silver.
squarely in the world of the Vikings. Thankfully, those feel like minor quibbles Best of all, it’s not incredibly expensive to
Dig deeper into this seemingly perfect for what was still one of the 2000s’ pick up on the aftermarket if you buy used.





























































www.blocksmag.com February 2020 Blocks 101

BLOCKSTALGIA









FENRIS




WOLF





Words and Pics: Daniel Konstanski

VIKINGS EXISTED AT an odd time in the
LEGO Group’s history. Released in 2005,
less than a year after the company nearly
went bankrupt, it leaned heavily on one of
the only product lines making money at that
time: BIONICLE. The monsters that igured
prominently in each set looked far more like
something the Toa should be ighting than
the brick-built or moulded creatures we are
used to now. What would it look like if one of
those predators, the Fenris Wolf, was released
today?


H I N D L E G S
The legs are
mirror images The hind legs
of each other. are composed
of three parts.
1















2










3


Studs on the
side need to
be placed
in multiple
directions.






102 Blocks February 2020 www.blocksmag.com

BLOCKSTALGIA



F R O N T L E G S

The front leg
is also three
parts. 2
1



The upper
front leg is
slimmer than
the hind leg.






3 4



The front leg
has texture on
multiple sides.




B O D Y



2
1



Use two of the
same type of
brackets to lip
the studs.


The body
uses a special
technique to
lip the studs.

3
4




Secure with a
curved slope
brick.

H E A D


1
The head is
built around
bricks with
studs on the
sides.

2




www.blocksmag.com February 2020 Blocks 103

LEGO EVENTS
















LEGO EVENTS



Do you run an event that should be listed here? Get in touch with us
via [email protected] and we'll add it to the list



JANUARY 2020 Where: Oregon Convention Center, 777 NE at this show full of LEGO fun.
Calder Valley Brick Show (UK) Martin Luther King Jr Blvd, Portland, OR 97232 Visit: brightonbricks.com/brighton-bricks-
When: January 26 What's on: LEGO builds will be on display events
Where: Mytholmroyd Community & Leisure and a DUPLO build area will allow young
Centre, Mytholmroyd, HX7 5AF guests to play. Shopping opportunities St Philip’s Brick Show (UK)
What's on: Displays of professional built including LEGO sets, books, t-shirts, and When: April 25
models, hands-on activities and competitions. jewellery stalls will be available. Where: St. Philip's Church, Cosham,
Visit: www.facebook.com/bricktopiaevents Visit: www.brickscascade.com Portsmouth, PO6 2TL
What's on: LEGO displays and family-friendly
FEBRUARY 2020 National Space Centre Brickish Weekend activities.
Chico Brick Builders Show (USA) When: March 14 – 15
When: February 8 – 9 What's on: It's the 40th anniversary of Star BrickFest Live
Where: 1184 East Ave, Chico, California, 95926 Wars: The Empire Strikes Back, so expect When: April 25 – 26
What's on: Great displays, lots of activities some fan models to celebrate the iconic Where: The Greater Philadelphia Expo Center,
and LEGO bricks for everyone to play with. movie. There will be lots of other space and Oaks, PA 19456
non-space LEGO exhibits, a huge mosaic and What's on: Activities include a speedway,
Thirsk Brick Show (UK) plenty of inspiration for budding LEGO fans. gaming area, mosaic building, mini golf and
When: February 15 There will also be the Fairy Bricks tombola, plenty of building opportunities. There will also
Where: Thirsk Town Hall, Westgate, Thirsk, play areas and vendors. be photo ops and model displays.
YO7 1QR Visit: brickish.org/event/nsc-brickish- Visit: www.brickfestlive.com
What's on: The show features exhibits, traders weekend-2020
and activities for LEGO fans of all ages. MAY 2020
Visit: www.brickalley.co.uk/thirsk Brick Days Ohama (USA) Discovery Brick Show (UK)
When: March 27 – 29 When: May 2 – 3
Thin Blue Bricks (UK) Where: Mid-America Center, Council Bluffs, Where: Discovery Museum, Newcastle upon
When: February 22 IA 51501 Tyne, NE1 4JA
Where: Lochinch, Pollock National Park, What's on: A family friendly event with 15,000 What's on: Held by the Brick Alley LEGO User
Glasgow square feet of LEGO builds – including all-new Group, the event takes place at the Discovery
What’s on: A charity event in aid of Care of creations – as well as games, activities and Museum. It offers displays of LEGO models,
Police Survivors featuring LEGO displays. vendors selling the latest swag. sellers and activities, as well as the opportunity
Visit: facebook.com/ Visit: brickdays.com/brick-days-Omaha-2020/ to enjoy the museum.
events/834861953595835/ Visit: www.brickalley.co.uk/discovery
Cobblers Brick Show (UK)
Ely Brick Show (UK) When: March 28 OCTOBER 2020
When: February 29 Where: Caroline Chisholm School, Wooldale Great Western Brick Show (UK)
Where: The Countess Free Church, 10 Chapel Road, Northampton, NN4 6TP When: October 3 – 4
Street, Ely, Cambridgeshire, CB6 1AD What’s on: LEGO displays and traders will Where: STEAM, The Museum of GWR,
What's on: The event will showcase LEGO feature at the third edition of the Cobblers Swindon, SN2 2TA
models from around the UK, including a mind- Brick Show, held in aid of charity. What's on: At the Brickish Association’s long-
boggling great ball contraption. There will also Visit: facebook.com/CobblersBrickShow/ running show, the LUG presents one of the
be a LEGO play area, activities, retailers and largest displays of LEGO models in the UK.
refreshments. APRIL 2020 As well as admire the builds, guests can help
Visit: brickish.org/event/ely-brick-show-2020 The Brighton Bricks Show (UK) create an all-new giant LEGO mosaic, visit the
When: April 11 LEGO Shop and other independent traders,
MARCH 2020 Where: Brighton Unitarian Church, New Road, and get building in the brick pits.
BricksCascade (USA) Brighton, BN1 1UF Visit: www.greatwesternbrickshow.com
When: February 27 – March 1 What's on: There will be displays and traders



104 Blocks February 2020 www.blocksmag.com

MAGAZINE BINDERS











High quality binders

embossed with the
Blocks logo in gold.

Each binder stores 12

issues. £15.99 plus
postage.






















































VISIT WWW.BLOCKSMAG.COM


CALL 07841 412199

BRICTIONARY










BRICTIONARY




The language of LEGO has a wide, varied and ever-growing vocabulary.
Blocks magazine helps you decode it




A life when they set aside LEGO in favour K
ABS: Acrylonitrile butadiene styrene. of other, non-LEGO pursuits. KFOL: Kid Fan of LEGO. The LEGO
The plastic most LEGO parts are made Diorama: Usually a large build/scene Group’s primary target demographic of
from. with a base. between 5-12 years.
AFOL: Adult Fan of LEGO. Draft: An activity common at LEGO
club meetings in which fans each bring L
B a LEGO set, sort out all the elements LDD: LEGO Digital Designer. Free
Billund: Town in Denmark where the and then take turns in picking out the software for PC and Mac that lets you
headquarters and primary design type of part they want. An easy way build LEGO models virtually.
centre of the LEGO Group is situated. to obtain parts in large quantities Legal: LEGO building techniques that
Bley: Bluish grey. Refers to the current without buying multiple parts of the set follow guidelines for official LEGO set
LEGO grey, compared to the old yourself. designers.
version (known as... old grey). LEGOs: Incorrect plural of LEGO.
BOLOCS: Build containing many E LUG: LEGO User Group. Local or
different colours, often uncoordinated. Erling: A 1x1 brick with one stud on its regional LEGO clubs that meet and
Brick-built: A build composed of basic recessed side, named after its designer. interact primarily in an offline ‘real-
LEGO elements rather than specialised world’ context. This is changing as the
elements, i.e. brick-built figures. G number of online LUGs grows.
Brickset: An online database of LEGO Greeble: Pseudo-technical detail
sets. added to a LEGO creation to enhance M
BURP: Big Ugly Rock Piece. Moulded its appearance, often seen in LEGO MF: Minifigure.
piece five bricks high with jagged edges. Space and Mecha creations. Microfig: Small figures, like those in
GWP: Gift with purchase. A the LEGO Games series.
C promotional item or set obtained by Midi Scale: Refers to sets that are
CC: Classic Castle, a LEGO castle fan spending a minimum amount at LEGO between minature and minifigure scale.
site. Stores or LEGO.com. They do not include minifigures but are
Cheese Slope: A sloping LEGO part, more detailed than mini sets. So far
named after the fact yellow pieces look H only Star Wars sets have midi versions.
like a wedge of cheese. Half-Stud Offset: A building technique Minifigure Scale: A LEGO creation
Clone Brands: Construction toys that allows building without regards to built for the scale of standard LEGO
similar and often compatible with standard alignment of studs on a plate, minifigures.
LEGO, but cheaper and lower quality. usually achieved with a jumper plate. MOC: My Own Creation. A model
Usually despised by LEGO fans. designed and built by a LEGO fan
Custom: A LEGO creation or individual I without instructions. Often used as a
element that uses non-LEGO parts, Illegal: LEGO building techniques verb, 'MOCing'.
modified parts or accessories from that break the ‘rules’ for connections Mod: A modification of an official
third party vendors like BrickArms or between LEGO elements used by LEGO set, usually changing part
BrickForge. official LEGO set designers, particulary colours or adding to original designs.
Customiser: A LEGO fan who’s connections that stress the LEGO
not afraid to modify LEGO parts. elements. P
Customising may include painting, Inventory: The list of LEGO elements PAB: Pick-A-Brick. Buying individual
cutting, drilling, melting or adding non- included in an official LEGO set. bricks in the quantities needed from
LEGO parts to a creation. Considered Several LEGO fan sites host set the LEGO Group’s online or physical
heresy to the purist LEGO fan. inventories including Peeron, Brickset stores.
and BrickLink.
D PAB Wall: The Pick-A-Brick wall found
D2C: Direct to Consumer sets. J at official LEGO stores.
Generally exclusive to LEGO stores, Jumper Plate: A 1x2 or 2x2 LEGO POOP: Parts Out Of Other Parts. Huge,
with high piece counts. plate with only one stud in the centre. ugly pieces that could (and should)
Dark Ages: The period in a LEGO fan’s Useful for half-stud offset building. have been made from existing smaller



106 Blocks February 2020 www.blocksmag.com

BRICTIONARY



















































parts rather than moulded in one T rocks, hills and other landscaping.
massive lump of plastic. TBB: The Brothers Brick, an online Bricks: At the core of LEGO is the
Purist: A LEGO fan who only uses LEGO fan site. basic brick. They come in a wide range
official LEGO elements. Can be TFOL: Teen Fan of LEGO. of sizes, usually denoted by their stud
applied to LEGO creations that only TLG: The LEGO Group, the privately pattern – i.e. 2x2, 2x6 – and in a huge
contain official LEGO elements with no held parent company for all LEGO- colour palette.
modifications or custom parts. related brands and companies Measurements: LEGO fans usually
worldwide. refer to parts by the number of studs
S TRU: Toys R Us. they have. For example, a brick that
S@H or SAH: The LEGO Group’s online has two studs on the short side and
store, shop.LEGO.com. Used to be U four studs on the longer side would be
called Shop At Home. UCS: Ultimate Collector's Series. A line called a 2x4 brick.
SHIP: Seriously Heavy Investment in of large LEGO Star Wars sets designed Plates: Thinner than bricks but not
Parts. A MOC, usually a spaceship, over for older teens and adults. as thin as baseplates. Three plates
100 studs long. stacked together equals the height of
Sigfig: The minifigure version of V one standard brick. Can be joined from
a LEGO fan that is used in online Vignette: A small scene recreated on a above or below like standard bricks.
communities as an avatar or signature square plate, generally 8x8 studs. Printed Parts: Can be bricks, plates or
minifigure. tiles. They come with printed designs,
SNIR: Studs Not In a Row. A building W often referred to as decorated parts.
technique using bricks positioned WIP: Work in progress, usually referring Studs: The fundamental joining
diagonally. to a MOC. method of basic LEGO bricks.
SNOT: Studs Not On Top. A building Tiles: Thin, like plates but without any
technique that places elements on their BASIC BRICKS studs on top (see SNOT).
sides or even upside down to achieve a Baseplates: The foundation for many
smooth surface. projects, be it houses, space bases or
SPUA: Special Part Used Again. A brick castles. They’re normally thin plates ■ If you can think of a widely-used
produced for a specific theme, but with no connections underneath so you LEGO term that’s not in the Brictionary,
used for another. can only build on top. Some older sets drop us a line at editor@blocksmag.
STAMP. Stickers Across Multiple Pieces. included raised baseplates resembling com to get it included.



www.blocksmag.com February 2020 Blocks 107

BRICKPICKER



















BUYING UP BATMOBILES


The BrickPicker team says there’s no such thing as a bad investment
where the latest Bat-investment is concerned

Words: Ed Mack, BrickPicker Pics: Phil Wrighton, The LEGO Group


S OF THIS writing, Black Friday has just passed and there was a quick burst of appreciation on LEGO secondary market sites
the new 76139 1989 Batmobile has just been released. because of the lack of inventory at primary retailers, but the interest and
While I was a huge Adam West Batman fan, I had mixed value of 76023 soon decreased after new stock hit the shelves, and even
feelings about some of the newer Batmen and their toys. after retirement, the set has appreciated much slower than most would
A I honestly liked Michael Keaton in the 1989 version of have expected.
Batman, and I also like Ben Afleck in the newest DC Comics theatrical While nobody knows what the future holds for 76139 1989 Batmobile
releases, but I had little love for George Clooney, Val Kilmer or Christian in terms of collectability and appreciation after it retires, it is by far the
Bale as Batman. This also correlates to their vehicles. most detailed and accurate Batmobile ever released by the LEGO
The Adam West Batmobile is the true classic in my opinion – a little Group. With the typical Ultimate Collector Series-style plaque and some
over the top, but iconic nonetheless. The 1989 movie version of the exclusive miniigures, this set is just gorgeous. It has playability features
Batmobile would rank second on my list of all-time Batmobiles and and also displays very well on any shelf or desk.
vehicles. Tim Burton’s take on Normally I would tell
the Caped Crusader was so people you couldn’t have
dark and revolutionary that it’s CAUTION IS NOT RECOMMENDED enough of such a set, but
also remembered as a classic WITH THE 1989 BATMOBILES the LEGO Group sometimes
among many Batman and throws a monkey wrench
comic book fans. into the best laid plans of
Fast forward 30 years, and the LEGO Group has inally paid proper investors and collectors, and produces way too many of a particular set. A
homage to the 1989 Batmobile with the release of its 3,306-piece procrastinating LEGO collector really won’t know until it’s too late and the
behemoth. While you can say the 1,045-piece 7784 The Batmobile: set is off the shelves and sold out, so maybe caution is not recommended
Ultimate Collectors’ Edition was a quality version of ‘a’ Batmobile, it with the 1989 Batmobile.
wasn’t really a replica of any Batmobile in particular. In fact, it wasn’t until In this case, I would deinitely own a few, and I would also try to buy a
the release of the 1,869-piece 76023 The Tumbler from Christopher few of the magniicent mini 40433 1989 Batmobiles (in case you didn’t
Nolan’s Dark Knight Trilogy that an accurate version of an on-screen get one through LEGO Shop At Home promotion) on secondary market
Batmobile was designed and sold to the public. sites to package them together. The mini Batmobiles are truly limited in
While the Tumbler was one of my personal favourite sets because of production, and are the guaranteed collectables of this year’s Batmobile
its huge tyres, it never really received the love from LEGO fans, collectors releases in my opinion. A combination of the two would only increase
and investors that many thought it would. When it was irst released, their collective values, and be more enticing to future buyers. n












Ed recommends investing The Batmobiles could be
in both big and small a winning ticket for
Batmobiles. LEGO investors.








108 Blocks February 2020 www.blocksmag.com

#1 RESOURCE
®
L E G O ® P R I C E A N D N V E S T I N G G U I D E
I
for LEGO investing
& collecting
®
Leading Authority of the LEGO Secondary Market


®
• LEGO Price Guide (Based on eBay Values)
®
• LEGO Investing Blogs and Set Evaluations

®
• Large, Active Community of LEGO Resellers

• Reports & Tools

®
• LEGO News Feed

• Inventory Stock Tracker with Mobile Alerts

• Daily Deals Community Forum - ind out what
the deals of the day are from the rest of the
Brickpicker community


Visit us at www.brickpicker.com











The Collectible ® MINI AVAILABLE
NOW!
LEGOFIGURE
COLLECTOR TIPS
VALUES INVESTMENTS PROFITS FUN FACTS







AVAILABLE
NOW!
JEFF MACIOROWSKI
ED MACIOROWSKI

• Up-to-date secondary-market prices Up-to-date secondary-market prices Written by the creators
f for new and used miniigures from or new and used miniigures from
of BRICKPICKER
2000 to present000 to present
2
• Hundreds of valuable miniigures Hundreds of valuable miniigures Over 250+ pages on
®
priced and highlighted Lego Collection
priced and highlighted
Information
• Hundreds of full-color photosHundreds of full-color photos

• Useful tips for collecting, Useful tips for collecting, #
#1 SELLER ON1 SELLER ON
i
investment, and nvestment, and
detecting counterfeits
detecting counterfeits

REBUILD


THE




Rebuild Challenge
Rebuild Challenge

Blocks’ least adept builders take on the challenge of rebuilding LEGO sets into
something – anything – else, all within 15 minutes


W H AT I S I T ?
Unikitty needs
to get around. If you were the ruler of Cloud
Cuckoo Land, what would
you ride around in? Unikitty
can have anything she likes,
so she has a chocolate-
mobile: a confectionary car
powered by mugs of hot
chocolate and a giant ice
The actual set builds four awesome characters.
cream cone. Chocolates,
cream and strawberries come
together for a tasty vehicle.

Builder: Graham
Set: 70822 Unikitty's
Sweetest Friends EVER!
Pieces: 76





















T H E B U I L D I N G

WHY DID I choose this set? Why? Why did I willingly choose 15 minutes of frustration?
I thought, ‘Ooh, this has a few interesting pieces in it, this will be fun to rebuild.’ But
there literally are only a few interesting pieces in this set. There is nothing else. The
original version builds three characters from The LEGO Movie 2: The Second Part,
but given that two of them use a bunch of bespoke pieces, it leaves few options for
building anything else.
I tried doing something at microscale, simply to differentiate it from the original set,
which was a complete fail. Then I spotted the wheels and realised that the only logical
thing to do was build a car. A very, very rudimentary car.
One of the only pieces repeated to any extent in the set is the chocolate bar, so the
only thing it occurred to me to build was a chocolate-based car. Finding a spot for the
mugs and ice cream cone was tricky, but given that it was just a platform with wheels,
sticking them on the back seemed to make sense.
I had initially attempted to use Unikitty’s parts in another way, but when the car
started to come together she was the only character whose pieces I wasn’t using
elsewhere, so she became the driver by default.
Another lesson in the adventure of rebuilding learned. Next time I’m going to
choose a bigger set – hopefully with fewer specialised pieces. n



110 Blocks February 2020 www.blocksmag.com

NEXT MONTH IN









I N S H O P S M A R 5
NINJAGO GOES DIGITAL








PLUS PLUS
INSIDE THE MEET THE
BOOKSHOP: SCIENTIST
HOW DOES USING LEGO
THE LATEST BRICKS TO
MODULAR INSPECT
COMPARE? INSECTS


























































Get yours early by subscribing at www.blocksmag.com
www.blocksmag.com April 2018 Blocks 3

BRING YOUR




LEGO TO LIFE




WITH LIGHTS






















































Designed &
assembled
in Australia





Largest lighting kit range

Wide range of light effects
Easy to install

2-Year Warranty
International Shipping



lightmybricks.com