REVIEWS
i Price: £34.99, $39.99, €39.99 / Mini-dolls: 3 / Pieces: 361
41393 BAKING COMPETITION
It’s the great Friends bake-off, pitting apples against bananas
Words and Pics: Graham Hancock
THIS SET PROVIDES
Ready, set,
bake. AN IMPRESSIVE
EXAMPLE OF THE
STORYTELLING THAT
THE LEGO DESIGN
TEAM EXECUTES
Catastrophe at the green kitchen.
Each contestant has
an oven and sink.
All the requisite
baking accessories
are included.
Small builds Welcome to the Big Bake Show.
are included
throughout.
V E R D I C T
IN THE UK, The Great British Bake Off is the Everything required to set This set is worthy of it’s anyone’s guess how they it
the trophy it includes
show that has best put competitive baking the scene is there, starting with them inside the tiny ovens. The
thanks to its incredibly
into primetime, but there are countless global the spinning wheel in the centre clear design. oversized baked treats still look
examples, including Cupcake Wars in the (applying the stickers to it is a great, using the wonderfully
USA. 41393 Baking Competition seems to be patience-testing experience). 79/100 unusual melty icing elements.
channelling a mix of these food-based game Spinning the wheel tells the Meanwhile, the inclusion of studio
shows. contestants the ingredients they lights and the television camera
This set provides an impressive example of will need, with sugar, lour, eggs and plenty really add to the sense that the set represents
the storytelling that the LEGO design team more situated on the shelves and in the a television set.
executes so well. Everything is completely cupboards below. Given the popularity of these competitive
clear in this model. Fixed around the central Both kitchens are equipped with utensils baking shows and that many are family-
podium are two kitchens, almost identical, but and an oven, with mixers, chopping boards friendly viewing, it makes perfect sense for the
in different colours. There’s one for each of and rolling pins making sure the apron- Friends theme to visit the concept. It is hard to
the two competitors, who will have to impress wearing mini-dolls have all the tools they will imagine how it could be more clearly executed
the chef presenter to win the trophy and prize need. In front of each podium is the giant in a single set, and Bake Off fans will likely
money. cake that each contestant is baking, although enjoy it very much.
www.blocksmag.com February 2020 Blocks 51
REVIEWS
i Price: £7.99, $9.99, €9.99 / Mini-dolls: 1 / Pieces: Various
V E R D I C T
FRIENDS PLAY CUBES A fair execution of a
lawed concept – last
year’s Heart Box sets
LEGO Friends introduces a new concept with plastic cases containing were better.
mini-dolls, bricks and stickers
22/100
Words and Pics: Graham Hancock
THERE IS A trend in the toy industry at
the moment for ‘unboxing’ toys. Driven by
children watching YouTube videos featuring
other children opening toys, it has led to a lot
of companies designing toys with as much of
an unboxing component as possible – multiple
layers of opening are preferred, ideally with a
mystery component. If there are customisation
options in there too, all the better.
It is profoundly depressing that the LEGO
Group has jumped on this bandwagon.
Each Play Cube contains a small plastic case
with studs on the top and bottom, allowing
them to be stacked or built upon, with a few
connection points on the inside. These do
not feel like the usual plastic the LEGO Group
uses, but they do not feel too limsy either.
A small number of bricks are included,
roughly the same amount as found in a decent
polybag, and a mini-doll. The bricks build
small scenes that clip into the cube or can be
easily removed for play. At least one sticker
IT IS PROFOUNDLY
DEPRESSING THAT
THE LEGO GROUP
HAS JUMPED ON THIS
BANDWAGON
is placed on the back of the cube to set the
scene, but due to the size, the main label is
dificult to align.
The really egregious bit of these sets
though is the mystery aspect. A cardboard
case covered in question marks contains a
collectable animal. If there were ive animals
across the ive sets, it would be annoying but
fairly typical for this sort of thing. Instead, each
set includes one speciic animal – but each
animal comes in ive colour variations. Children
have little hope of getting a full set of 25.
Compared to last year’s fully buildable heart
boxes, this is a big step backwards. The LEGO
Group typically makes quality toys and leaves
others to chase trends that do not offer value
to children. Unfortunately, this product does
not demonstrate that best practice.
Studs allow
the cases to
be stacked.
52 Blocks February 2020 www.blocksmag.com
RE
REVIEWSVIEWS
i Price: £109.99, $119.99, €119.99 / Miniigures: N/A / Pieces: 30
853967 WOODEN MINIFIGURE
Is the irst LEGO Originals product worth spending your brick budget on?
Words: Chris Wharfe Pics: Chris Wharfe, The LEGO Group
V E R D I C T
The bricks should Nothing about this Thirty colourful
give you a sense feels worth the bricks come in
of the small exorbitant price tag. the box.
scale. Come for the concept,
but don’t stay for the
product.
30/100
This result isn't
guaranteed.
WHO NEEDS AN oversized wooden by the handful of actual LEGO elements would be an easy LEGO-adjacent purchase
miniigure? Well, the LEGO Group hopes included in the box – are the only points of for giving a subtler brick-based touch to your
it just might be you – if you’re artistically- articulation this miniigure has, but those home or ofice space. At £110, it needed
minded, anyway. The irst LEGO Originals plastic yellow hands stand out terribly against to either have the option of coming ready-
product that isn’t a VIP reward is the eye- decorated, or have been at least twice the
wateringly expensive 853967 Wooden size. It’s weighty enough in hand, but that
Miniigure, and it’s intended as a means to IN ITS PLAIN, doesn’t equate to a premium product alone.
unleash your creativity. What that means in There’s no denying this is an interesting
practice is a completely blank canvas. UNDECORATED avenue for the LEGO Group to go down, and
Unfortunately, that already limits the FORM, IT’S NOT it opens a lot of doors for cool display pieces.
Wooden Miniigure’s audience, because in REALLY THAT EYE- But launching the line with this feels like a
its plain, undecorated form, it’s not really misire, and future releases will need to be
that eye-catching. And if you don’t have the CATCHING much better value for money to win out over
conidence to approach this canvas with an physical bricks. If you have the artistic nous to
artist’s hands – not a small ask, given its price – turn it into something like the examples shown
you could ind yourself with a very costly, and the otherwise completely wooden statue. off in the included booklet, and fancy a (still
not wholly attractive, paperweight. You’ll likely also ind yourself a little put off expensive) project, then dive in. Otherwise, it’s
The miniigure’s hands, which are designed by the miniigure’s size, but that again circles dificult to recommend the Wooden Miniigure
to hold brick-built objects – as demonstrated back round to the price point. At £30, this to anyone but the most ardent of collectors.
www.blocksmag.com February 2020 Blocks 53
LEGO MASTERS USA
AMERICAN
MASTERS
Blocks gets an exclusive preview of LEGO MASTERS to
ind out what fans can expect from the irst US edition of
the ultimate brick contest
Words: Graham Hancock Pics: FOX
L EGO MASTERS IS going stateside. ‘I thought my world couldn’t
get any more LEGO-y,’ says the host of the series, Will Arnett, who
is clearly enthusiastic about the contest. As the voice of LEGO
Batman, he is no stranger to clutch power.
‘It’s creeping up on a decade here that I’ve been immersed in the
LEGO world, in a way that I couldn’t have imagined, with all the LEGO movies.
Now I’m immersed in the physical world of LEGO as well. It’s been eye-opening
just to see how brilliant some of the artistry is, how brilliant some of these
builders are.’
After successfully launching in the UK, Endemol Shine Group has been
exporting the competitive building television series around the world, with
editions airing in Germany and Australia. It seems as if a US version was only a
matter of time.
Executive Producer Anthony Dominici is just as excited as his host to be
bringing the series to an American audience. ‘I like to make shows that are
positive and fun,’ he says. ‘I used to do a show called Extreme Makeover: Home
IIT’S A BIG PRIZE, SO WE WANT TO
MAKE SURE WE’RE NOT BEING TOO
CASUAL, AND WE REALLY DO PUSH
PEOPLE TO BRING OUT THEIR BEST
Edition, where we built houses every week for a deserving family. That was such
a fun and creative show. Every week we were building a new home for a kid who
needed it. People need positivity and hope in their lives, and inding people they
are watching on TV who they can connect with and relate to is what I like to do
when I work on these shows.’
Ten teams, each with two builders, will be put through a series of challenges.
Some will be elimination challenges, in which the bottom-ranked team will leave
the series, while other smaller challenges will earn the winning team advantages.
Eventually, just a handful of teams will remain, with the winners of the inal
challenge crowned ‘LEGO MASTERS’ and walking away with a signiicant prize.
‘We want to do challenges from across the spectrum, some things that people
can watch at home and be like, ‘I can do that, I can make one of those,’’ Anthony
explains. ‘Then we have challenges where we’re just trying to reveal who these
builders are, getting to know them through their builds, through their likes and
dislikes, through a genre that they might build. Coming up with challenges was
the most fun thing, talking to builders, experts, fans and our judges.’
54 Blocks February 2020 www.blocksmag.com
LEGO MASTERS USA
Will Arnett's LEGO
world just got a
little bigger.
www.blocksmag.com February 2020 Blocks 55
LEGO MASTERS USA
Travis and Corey
discuss their build.
56 Blocks February 2020 www.blocksmag.com
LEGO MASTERS USA
On the topic of judges, two of the LEGO Group’s design team will be bringing
their expertise to the series in order to put the builders through their paces.
LEGO Design Manager Specialist Jamie Berard and LEGO Design Manager Amy
Corbett will be assessing the builds in each episode, and making the dificult
decisions about which teams to send home.
‘This is really like nothing else I have done before,’ says Jamie. ‘You might
have seen me on those YouTube videos but that is very small scale. I got to help
out with the UK version and seeing the difference from how the show started
and where it has evolved to here… this really is an impressive, big production.
I THOUGHT MY WORLD COULDN’T GET
ANY MORE LEGO-Y
Coming on set is just a whole new world and I am learning so much.’
Typically, these shows have a ‘good judge’ and a ‘bad judge’. Does that exist
between Jamie and Amy? ‘Good question,’ he laughs. ‘We are not sure how the
edit is going to go right now. I would like to think Amy and I bring a balance.
Sometimes you have to be a bit tough in order to get the best out of people,
but in the end we’re always giving good feedback and hoping to make the best
models possible, because we want everyone to succeed. It’s a big prize – $100,000
and the title of the irst LEGO MASTERS in America – so we want to make sure
we’re not being too casual and we really do push people to bring out their best,
because this is a pretty big deal.’
The teams focus
on building.
F AV O U R I T E C H A L L E N G E S
JAMIE BERARD
‘I am rather partial to the irst one. Once you get to
know all the people involved and you get to know their
characters, there are several challenges where I was
really looking forward to seeing how they were going to
handle it, because you know they have a certain sense of
humour or way of approaching things. You really start to
anticipate what they’re going to do. And that’s kind of
the fun when you’re getting to know people.’
www.blocksmag.com February 2020 Blocks 57
LEGO MASTERS USA
F AV O U R I T E C H A L L E N G E S
WILL ARNETT
‘I would be remiss if I didn’t say that most of the
challenges have been really excellent. We’ve found ways
to showcase how certain teams are better in certain
ways – sometimes they’re much more engineering-
J U D G E S C O L O U R C O D E
based; sometimes they’re more about showing pure
artistry.
LEGO design experts Amy ‘I think a challenge that really showcases both was our Jessie and Kara like green
Corbett and Jamie Berard and purple.
bridge challenge, where each team had to construct a
are on judging duty.
six-foot span bridge, and at the end of the challenge
they would all be judged by how much weight they can
hold. Then the bottom two teams would be judged by
their appearance in their construction. Watching these
bridges being built within the very limited timeframe
and then watching them withstand so much weight was
incredibly impressive. I think people are going to be
very surprised.’
Selecting the 20 people who would compete for that appealing cash prize was
a big undertaking. ‘It was really hard,’ Anthony acknowledges. ‘We auditioned
thousands of LEGO builders from around the country, and we got applications
from around the world for the show. We wanted people who brought a great
story on their own, who were amazing and incredible builders.
‘We are so lucky to have the cast that we have. They all have different styles,
and they all bring their own different personalities to each one of their builds.
That’s what’s cool about it, because you can give them all one broad challenge
brief and you’re going to have 10 completely different, imaginative results that
WE’RE SO LUCKY TO HAVE THE CAST
THAT WE HAVE. THEY ALL HAVE
DIFFERENT STYLES, THEY ALL BRING THEIR
OWN DIFFERENT PERSONALITIES TO EACH
ONE OF THEIR BUILDS
you wouldn’t have expected.’
For Will Arnett, it has been an opportunity to pick up a few LEGO tips
and tricks. ‘I’m kind of with them every step of the way, so I feel like I know
a lot more about the ins and outs of what it takes to create an epic build,’ he
elaborates. ‘But then we have moments where they’ll ask me, ‘Do you think
you could do it?’ I don’t know if I could, especially given the incredible time
constraints. The ticking clock gives that added pressure. I have enough respect
towards these builders to say I don’t think I could do what they do.’
It’s hard to imagine entirely resisting the temptation to get hands-on, though.
‘We will do these little fun quick challenges, so I have done a few things here
and there that have been really fun,’ he continues. ‘Virtually every day we are
surrounded. We have over three million bricks on set. I’ll come in to these huge
tubs everywhere, and I’ll often start the day by just kind of absent-mindedly
58 Blocks February 2020 www.blocksmag.com
LEGO MASTERS USA
Jamie and Amy
deliver their verdict.
Amy checks
in on
Krystle and
Amie.
Will checks in with
Christian and Aaron.
The contestants ind
themselves in the
LEGO MASTERS
Build Room.
www.blocksmag.com February 2020 Blocks 59
LEGO MASTERS USA
M E E T T H E T E A M S
Boone and Mark Manny and Nestor
Team name: The Bearded Builders Team name: Father and Son BFFs
Professions: Teacher and HVAC Installer Professions: Barber / Retired Truck Driver
Christian and Aaron Mel and Jermaine
Team name: Clark Kent and Superman Team name: East Coast Bricksters
Professions: Army Sergeant / LEGO Educator Professions: Law Enforcement / Technical Cell Phone Consultant
Flynn and Richard
Team name: Married Thespians Sam and Jessica
Professions: LEGO Engineering Teacher / Team name: The Eccentrics
Theatrical Lighting Designer Professions: Set Builder / Artist
Jessie and Kara Travis and Corey
Team name: The Higher the Hair the Closer to God Team name: Brothers Who Brick
Professions: Administrative Assistant / Retail Manager Professions: Preschool Teacher / LEGO Engineering Instructor
Krystle and Amie Tyler and Amy
Team name: The Unicorns Team name: The Newlyweds
Professions: Gaming Designer / Software Engineer Professions: Model Designer / Piano Teacher
60 Blocks February 2020 www.blocksmag.com
LEGO MASTERS USA
F AV O U R I T E C H A L L E N G E S
ANTHONY DOMINICI:
‘I would say my favourite challenge comes a little later
in the season when we have some of the teams work
together. LEGO, as I am sure you know, means ‘play
well’, so we wanted to see how well the teams could
play together as part of a challenge. They are actually
co-building part of their build, and that was really cool.
The teams were really excited about it because it’s not
something you would normally do in a competition. Two
different ideas and approaches make for a better result
– something even bigger and more unexpected.’
running my hands through these tubs of bricks. There’s something therapeutic
about it – that sound and that feel.’
Anthony is impressed with how the builders are rising to the challenges that
they face during the series. ‘It’s so much more than I would have ever expected,
it really is,’ he enthuses. ‘I’ll build a model with my nephew or something like
II HAVE ENOUGH RESPECT TOWARDS
THESE BUILDERS TO SAY I DON'T THINK I
COULD DO WHAT THEY DO
that, and I think that is pretty awesome, but when you see what these guys and
women come up with, it’s mind-blowing. You don’t know where it comes from –
they’re building without a sketch or without a computer. They know how to do
this because they are such experts with LEGO. I think that’s the coolest thing.’
Jamie has given up trying to predict what will happen next. ‘It’s reality TV,
and I totally understand now, reality can be crazy and just throw things up that
you never expected. There are deinitely some strong builders here that I had
high hopes for, but this competition brings out another side of people. It puts
them in new spaces. You might be surprised by how people really shine, who you
thought, ‘Oh, they are probably not good builders.’ Then really good builders
can have those missteps that send you home. There have been enough ups and
downs in this competition that I think people will have a tough time guessing
who reaches the end.’
The fan-turned-LEGO-professional sees the series as a great opportunity. ‘I
think LEGO MASTERS is a chance for us to show what we LEGO fans already
know is awesome to a whole new audience,’ he says. ‘There’s so much cool stuff
when you go to fan conventions and big events, but it’s really invisible to most
of the world. Getting on a mainstream channel like FOX and having Will Arnett,
some fantastic builders and some great challenges is really going to open up
LEGO to a whole new audience.’ n
LEGO MASTERS premieres on Wednesday,
February 5 (9:00-10:00 PM ET/PT) on FOX.
www.blocksmag.com February 2020 Blocks 61
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62 Blocks February 2020 www.blocksmag.com
THE RETURN OF
LEGO IDEAS THE FAN BLOCK BUS HOW TO LEGO FABULAND 2010s:
BUILD YOUR OWN
DROID ALERT STAR DISNEY TRAIN
IDEAS FIRST LOOK AT OVERWATCH FROM MARCOS GOING OFF-ROAD
VOTE RESULTS ARE IN SPEAK WITH BRICKS LEGO CENTRAL PERK SCREENS TO STUDSBESSA CLIMBS ABOARD WITH CONTROL+ SCROOGE MCDUCK YOUR HOLIDAY
WARS GETS A BOOST
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IN
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RECREATING ONE OF HISTORY'S MOST ICONIC MOMENTS A T. REX FROM THE LOOKING R E V IE W
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www.blocksmag.com February 2020 Blocks 63
T 3241 Nursery, a 1997
THE HISTORY OF LEGOHE HISTORY OF LEGO
LEGO Scala set.
www.blocksmag.com
64 Blocks February 2020 Blocks February 2020
64 www.blocksmag.com
THE HISTORY OF LEGO
BUILDING BLOCKS
THE HISTORY OF THE LEGO GROUP:
THE 1990s
Rampant success in the early ‘90s gave way to complacency and calamitous
business decisions by the end of the decade
Words: Daniel Konstanski Pics: The LEGO Group
ISASTER WAS COMING, and nobody knew
D it. The LEGO Group rode a wave of proit
into the 1990s. Despite not having a single
product tied to a popular cartoon or movie,
designers and marketers had deftly predicted
what kids would want for over a decade since
the advent of the miniigure. As new territories
were added to the company’s reach, the pile
of money pouring into Billund’s coffers rose
higher and higher; the LEGO Group was lush
with success. Beyond just making money, how-
ever, Kjeld’s dream of being more than a toy
company, of being a change agent for positive
childhood development the world over, seemed to be coming true, and
had sunk deep into the company’s ethos.
To many within its walls, the business founded all those years ago
by Ole Kirk had transcended being a simple toy company; it existed
now on a higher plane, and with that lofty stature came both power
and responsibility. The heights to which it had risen, however, would
be matched only by the breadth of its coming fall. Upon the turn of
the millennium, the LEGO Group would not only be in a ight for its
survival, but its identity. Yet all of that seemed impossible as the ‘80s
drew to a close.
From 1991 to 1993, the LEGO Group rapidly expanded its
production facilities in order to keep up with demand. Another Swiss
factory opened, this time in the town of Willisau; four additional
modules were added to Billund’s Kornmarken factory; and in the US,
Enield’s production plant inished its sixth expansion, bringing the
www.blocksmag.com February 2020 Blocks 65
THE HISTORY OF LEGO
total size to 535,000 square feet. Adding to its pride at being a standard
bearer for childhood development, the LEGO Group was also part
of an economic turnaround in its home country. Thanks to its robust
international sales, Kjeld Kirk’s company had been largely immune from
Denmark’s long economic recovery from the downturn kicked off by the
oil crisis 20 years earlier. In 1992, the LEGO Group – along with other
Danish heavy hitters like Novo Nordisk – helped Denmark run a trade
surplus for the irst time in decades.
It is dificult to overstate how successful the LEGO Group looked
from the outside in the early ‘90s. Over 10 billion bricks a year were
being sold in nearly 120 countries. 70% of homes in the US had LEGO
products in them. That is incredible, until you learn the even more
startling fact that in Europe, that number climbed as high as 85% by
some estimates. Billund owned the construction toy market, and proits
would peak to an all-time high in 1996. Success, however, had bred an
ugly counterpart: complacency. That complacency primed the company
for a disaster that had seen its seeds unassumingly laid back in the late
‘70s.
Until the ‘90s, the LEGO Group’s primary competition had been other
toys. In the early days it was German products. During the ‘80s, cartoons
from all over the world brought a slew of plastic tie-ins to the fore. The
SUCCESS HAD BRED AN
UGLY COUNTERPART FOR
THE LEGO GROUP:
COMPLACENCY
‘90s then saw direct competition in the construction toy sector, thanks to
the earlier expiration of the LEGO brick patent. Each of these instances
had been thwarted by the quality and imagination of LEGO toys.
Lurking in the background, however, was a new threat: videogames and
other digital play opportunities.
In the 1980s, these had primarily been limited to arcades, but with
the rise of personal computers and videogame companies including
Nintendo and Sega, consoles suddenly began inding their way into
millions of homes. These were the same homes the LEGO Group
currently dominated, as the battle for kids’ attention entertained a new
competitor – and it was a heavy hitter. Graphics improved with each
new system, game characters developed bigger fandoms, and storytelling
and lore captivated the minds of more children. For toy manufacturers,
it was terrifying.
The threat from videogames had long been on the company’s radar,
but success had made management slow to react. That all changed in
the mid-90’s, when there was suddenly a major about-face. Fear that the
brick was losing relevance clamped a chokehold on the company that
66 Blocks February 2020 www.blocksmag.com
T
THE HISTORY OF LEGOHE HISTORY OF LEGO
The inauguration of the Willisau
factory in Switzerland in 1993..
would not let go for almost a decade, and not before it nearly strangled
LEGO to death. The effort was well-intended, and supported by
numerous experts at the time, but it would end up being an unmitigated
disaster.
Fearing that their most valuable asset, the brick, may be about to lose
its value, management tried to salvage the company by pivoting away
from that core and capitalising instead on the brand. The logic ran that
parents trusted the LEGO Group as a positive force in children’s lives,
and they would therefore extend that trust to other branded products,
even if they weren’t bricks.
With the beneit of hindsight, it is obvious that this was an error of
immense proportions, bordering on arrogance. People didn’t love the
brand in isolation; they loved the brick. It was an unfortunate side effect
of Kjeld Kirk’s noble vision that the company got caught up in its own
legend; they believed it and thought everyone else did too. They were
wrong.
A new era dawned, and management moved boldly, as immortalised in
the awkwardly named LEGO Brand Architecture. At the time, this was
envisioned as the next evolution in the company’s product line, building
on the ‘System within a System’ and ‘System in Play’ before it. Going
forward, growth would be the guiding star, and it would be achieved by
making sure products adhered to four rules. They would be: all over the
world; for all ages; always branded; in many categories.
Godtfred Kirk’s mandate that the company focus solely on the brick
was abandoned during 1997, in favour of an effort to make the LEGO
www.blocksmag.com February 2020 Blocks 67
T
THE HISTORY OF LEGOHE HISTORY OF LEGO
Inside the Willisau factory.
The Golden Gate Bridge
model in LEGOLAND
California’s Miniland.
www.blocksmag.com
68 Blocks February 2020
68 Blocks February 2020 www.blocksmag.com
THE HISTORY OF LEGO
brand the strongest in the world amongst families with children by 2005.
The brick was relegated into one of four categories where this objective
was to be pursued: family attractions, where the ambitious goal was one
new LEGOLAND park every three years; creative self-expression, which
would see the LEGO Group produce branded clothing, backpacks,
watches, et al; interactive media, which would pit the LEGO brand
directly against its nemesis in the videogame sphere; and constructive
play materials, which is where the brick was housed – but the door was
left open for other products that would be in this genre, but not part of
the System.
Those of us alive and collecting at the time can remember when this
all happened. We may not have been able to explain it speciically, but
the products suddenly became… different. Large moulded elements
replaced what would have required ive or more bricks before. Building
got easier. Almost instantaneously, LEGO toys dropped precipitously
in desirability, as management allocated resources to pursue all sorts
of different ventures, attempting to break into markets that the LEGO
Group had no experience in. Simply put, the toys were not as fun to play
or build with. Godtfred must have been rolling over in his grave, as his
fear that focusing on growth would come at the cost of the LEGO Idea
became a reality virtually overnight. As Torsten Rasmussen said when he
quit the Executive Board as a result of all this:
‘We were presented with plans and budgets and strategies that were
unrealistic, and would obviously create problems. These were ventures
that Godtfred would never have allowed. He had always insisted that
EIO WAS BATTLING
AGAINST THE ELEVATED
PEDESTAL THE LEGO GROUP
HAD PLACED ITSELF ON
the LEGO management concentrate on LEGO, and all other activities
Kirkbi [the Kristiansen family’s investment company] could take care of.
Now, the LEGO management had to do it all at once. I told Kjeld that
I disagreed with the strategy, and a month later we agreed to end our
cooperation. In June 1997 I was out.’
He proved a prophet, as earnings and proits fell steeply that same
year. However, both literally and iguratively, a new hope rose at that
same time that would, along with BIONICLE, prove to be the LEGO
Group’s saviour in the early 2000s. Peter Eio, head of the LEGO Group’s
US operation in Enield, began to explore a partnership with Lucasilm
and Star Wars. After inding a willing partner in Lucas Licensing
president Howard Roffman, Eio battled with the LEGO Group’s most
senior executives over six contentious months. More accurately, though,
he was battling against the elevated pedestal the LEGO Group had
placed itself on, which mandated that Star Wars was anathema to proper
child development. In the end, it was Kjeld himself who saw that his
noble vision was preventing something good from happening, and he
personally blessed the Star Wars venture.
As the decade closed, a stark dichotomy existed in Billund. 1999 saw
the blockbuster launch of LEGO Star Wars. This was on the back of
Mindstorms, the long-awaited fruit of the partnership with Seymour
Papert begun over 10 years earlier, which released in 1998 to critical
and commercial success. Incidentally, it was those two product lines
that would largely be responsible for the birth of the AFOL community.
However, amidst those successes, almost everything else was on ire.
Unlike the blazes that had threatened the company in decades past, this
one was not physical, but it would prove over the next few years to be
the most destructive of all: once again, the LEGO Group’s very existence
would be threatened by lame. n
www.blocksmag.com February 2020 Blocks 69
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6. Now eight-wide 8. The new, red Star
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001_Cover_V1CW.indd 1
001_Cover_V1CW.indd 1
M
MOD SQUADOD SQUAD
UCS STAR
DESTROYER
PART 1
An incredible model like the LEGO Star Wars Ultimate Collector Series Star
Destroyer deserves an interior, and Blocks is here to demonstrate how to add one
Words and Pics: Daniel Konstanski
HE LEGO STAR Wars Ultimate The impressive set
lacks an interior.
Collector Series (UCS) recently
saw the incredible 75252 Imperial
Star Destroyer added to the long-
T running series. A masterpiece of
size, movie accuracy and sheer magnitude, it’s
the deinitive version of the source material in
brick form.
That doesn’t mean that there’s no room
for improvement though, with that room
speciically found in the model’s interior. Just
as the Mod Squad did for the UCS Millennium
Falcon, we’re going to add interior sections to
this iconic Imperial vessel.
This irst part of this modiication project will
demonstrate how to install a support structure
for the entire back left section of the ship,
which is where the Probe Droid nook and the
bridge with control pits will be located. Fiddly
as enhancing the support structure is, it is vital
to adding interior sections to the model.
74 Blocks February 2020 www.blocksmag.com
MOD SQUAD
THE SUPPORT STRUCTURE 1 2
This was the trickiest part of the project to
figure out. The UCS Star Destroyer, despite its
relatively simple triangle shape, combines its
components to create a variety of angles at
non-standard distances in multiple dimensions.
Having room for strong supports while keeping
the sections small enough to slot in proved a
challenge. Even if you decide to put different
rooms inside, this support structure is highly
recommended – it is the result of around 10
iterations. This is the only part of the mod that removes and replaces parts from the oficial set.
Maintaining the strength of this existing support is key.
3 4 5
6 7 8
9 10 11
12 13 14
Temporarily disconnect and rotate away the support.
www.blocksmag.com February 2020 Blocks 75
MOD SQUAD
15 16 17
Pop the support in next to the green plates. Insert the bracket. Replace the support you moved out of the
way when done.
18 19 20
This section will attach to the existing
support structure.
21 22 23
24 25 26
27 28 29
Swing the tabs on to the receiving pins.
76 Blocks February 2020 www.blocksmag.com
MOD SQUAD
30 31 32
33 34 35
36 37 38
39 40 41
Slide the red axle in to lock the support in
place on the left.
42 43 44
www.blocksmag.com February 2020 Blocks 77
MOD SQUAD
45 46 57
Push the pin in to lock the support in place
on the right.
58 59 60
61 62
THE FLOOR
For this section of the mod it’s time to build
some extra floor, laying the groundwork for the
interior sections that are coming next.
1 2 3
The exact size is key so that the loor its
within the prescribed space.
4 5 6
78 Blocks February 2020 www.blocksmag.com
MOD SQUAD
7 8 THE PROBE DROID NOOK
Several iconic scenes from the Empire Strikes
Back occur amidst the backdrop of the
Probe Droid nook, from which Darth Vader
is conducting his search for Luke Skywalker.
The monolithic greys of the Star Destroyer are
actually broken up in this area by black control
panels and blue lights across the top.
Add a tile layer at the end.
1 2 3
4 5 6
7 8 9
A stair step shape for the wall is needed
due to the ship’s sloping exterior.
10 11 12
www.blocksmag.com February 2020 Blocks 79
MOD SQUAD
13 14 15
The curve shape mimics the movie set.
16 17 18
19 20 21
22 23 24
Swap in other decorated tiles as needed,
just be sure they have a black background.
25 PLACEMENT 26
The final step is to place the section into the
model supported by the structure constructed
earlier. It should drop right into place and line
up with all the other supports and knobs that
are part of the official model. If done correctly,
there should be no sliding – despite it not
being attached via studs.
Place the panel in the space left for it.
80 Blocks February 2020 www.blocksmag.com
MOD SQUAD
27 28 29
30 31 32
33 34
THE MONOLITHIC
GREYS ARE BROKEN UP
BY BLACK CONTROL
PANELS AND BLUE
LIGHTS
Space will be created for some
nice interior sections.
www.blocksmag.com February 2020 Blocks 81
TE
TECHNIQUECHNIQUE
Words and Pics: Simon Pickard
BEHIND THE
PIECES
Using his new Philistine Temple model, Simon Pickard explains
his creative process
82 Blocks February 2020 www.blocksmag.com
TECHNIQUECHNIQUE
TE
www.blocksmag.com February 2020 Blocks 83
TECHNIQUE
W HEN I’M DISPLAYING at LEGO shows, one of the most
frequent questions I’m asked relates to the process of
my designs, particularly focused towards those aspects I
undertake before even picking up my pieces.
There’s no way to properly quantify how inspiration comes
to you. I am an avid fan of historical builds like this Philistine Temple model.
However, there are ways you can engineer your building process to maximise
your LEGO skills and be constantly inspired. Here, I will explore some of the key
approaches I use to help improve my technique every time I create something.
NO COMPROMISE
The irst mantra I work with is to say, ‘No compromise.’ It can be very frustrating
trying to get the model to look as perfect as I feel it needs to. It’s a pressure
that’s increased when you’re creating something other people should be able to
recognise. However, rather than give up and compromise the shape, colour or
texture needed, I follow my mantra.
There is almost always a solution to creating your desired effect in LEGO
pieces. If you accept this you will push yourself forward and increase your
building skills, and you will generate further thoughts on how you can
manipulate the pieces to your desired end. There will be times when you really
can’t ind the best way to accomplish the model, but the process of trying still
improves your building skills.
AVOIDING YOUR COMFORT ZONE
My second most important discipline is to avoid building only in my comfort
zone. My interest in history certainly helps here, because its remit is much wider
than a focus solely on single topics like cars, trains or animals.
This mantra is not intended to simply overstimulate your list of building
projects, but rather to help your mind and eyes see LEGO in different ways.
The challenge of creating in different themes forces you to think further out of
the box, improving your spatial visualisations and lateral thinking. That can then
translate into new and hopefully better approaches to building in your favourite
themes.
STUDYING ARTISTIC STYLES
While LEGO may not be recognised by very many as an artistic medium, we can
certainly make use of the art world in our design and inspiration. Many artists
spend years studying the various artistic evolutions and developments within
their ield.
When studying at school myself I particularly liked Henry Moore’s faceless
approach to igure work. Regular readers will likely have noticed several igure
builds I have shown in this magazine are faceless in presentation.
There are also fellow LEGO fans to learn from. On the whole I have found the
THE CHALLENGE OF CREATING IN
DIFFERENT THEMES FORCES YOU TO
THINK FURTHER OUT OF THE BOX
adult fan community to be very open about their ideas and approaches, which
gives you a wealth of opportunities to explore and develop the creative styles
others have employed. In the case of the model here, I have frequently seen
highly textured walls being used by historical builders. I consider my fellow Brick
to the Past builder Dan Harris to be the best at this kind of technique. Because
of his inluence I had wanted to try this out for a while, and so the model
showcased here features the heaviest wall texturing I have ever done.
84 Blocks February 2020 www.blocksmag.com
TECHNIQUE
The temple build is full
of tricky angles.
www.blocksmag.com February 2020 Blocks 85
TECHNIQUE
Simon was inspired by Dan
Harris' heavy wall texturing.
More resources were available during
the research period than anticipated.
Simon mapped out the
entire build beforehand.
THERE IS ALMOST ALWAYS A
SOLUTION TO CREATING YOUR
Simon refuses to
DESIRED EFFECT IN LEGO PIECES compromise on his
amazing LEGO builds.
86 Blocks February 2020 www.blocksmag.com
TECHNIQUE
Simon's full
temple build.
RESEARCH
I have been keen to build a model that featured mid-collapse action. I had
already tackled this on a smaller scale with a segment of wall, and since then I
have wanted to create a representation of Sampson’s last act from the bible. This
was where he famously pushed apart the pillars causing a dramatic collapse, so
was ideal for my purposes.
My initial thoughts were that I could only do this from my imagination.
However, even in an ‘only imagined’ model there are often useful things you can
research. In this case I could draw on the artwork of others who have tried to
represent the Sampson scene. This research started me on a most unexpected
journey, which fuelled my inspiration and infused my model with historical and
archaeological inluences.
I had thought for a long time that there were no discovered Philistine temples
of the kind that Sampson destroyed from which to design an accurate model. In
searching for paintings and drawings of this scene by various artists, however,
I realised that several of these temples have actually been discovered, the irst
being in Tell Qasile.
The model I created here is based on a real temple that existed over 3,000
years ago. I also learned that the temple did indeed have two pillars in the
middle. My intention was to make stone pillars, yet I found that the real pillars
were actually wooden logs that rested on stone plinths (read more about the
pillars in Issue 63’s Technique section).
I found that most of the reconstructions drawn from this archaeological dig
showed the temple with a solid roof. Interestingly, they show Philistine houses
with open inner courtyards, similar to those that were present in a Roman villa.
When I combined this with the words in the bible that say the Philistines were on
the roof, I now had an interpretation of the design.
While this may not be entirely accurate, the detailed study is the important
part of this, because I was able to put an interpretation on the design that I
would never have thought of without seeing what information I could turn up
before beginning my build process.
BRINGING IT ALL TOGETHER
I started out referring to my mantra, ‘no compromise’. With my research
linked here, I now had a workable foundation shape that my temple could
replicate. While the building looks fairly straight, it is illed with unusual angles
on the walls. The main structure is not only at a diagonal angle to the lower
wall sections, it is also not a perfect rectangle. I could have simpliied the
design, espeically given that it was not a replica of this temple but rather an
interpretation of a different one. Instead, I sat down and mapped out the correct
shapes before building upwards.
The shaping was eventually achieved by making heavy use of hinged plates
and tiles. The walls themselves are secured using hinges all the way up, at every
junction where the walls are not at right angles to each other.
Here I found that using the artistic wall styling, which had been inspired by
Dan Harris’ work, proved to be very advantageous. The heavy texturing made
it much easier to hide the small cracks and twists in the wall, resulting from my
desire to match the foundations of this uncovered temple design. n
www.blocksmag.com February 2020 Blocks 87
PIECE PERCEPTION
Name:
Simon Pickard
Flickr ID:
brick.spartan
COWBOY HAT
A spot of spontaneity was involved in using an unorthodox part in this build’s wall
Words and Pics: Simon Pickard
OST OF THE time a piece day my father proudly announced that he had into the build. By the time he came back I was
is used in an ingenious another tan piece for me to use and dropped a able to show him that I had inserted the piece
way because it is essential. cowboy hat on to my table. he had found. In the end I liked it so much as a
Sometimes people use the feature that I left it there, and it remains in the
M piece as inspiration to build HERE IS A PIECE inished build.
up a model around it. But this month, here is a The picture illustrates the section of
piece that has no business being used where it THAT HAS NO wall that the hat is buried into. It may not
is, but it seemed amusing. BUSINESS BEING USED be immediately apparent but it should be
At the end of the irst week building the WHERE IT IS noticeable.
Philistine temple, my family were rather familiar Those who want a real challenge can look
with the colour tan. They were often picking through the Technique section and try to spot
up tan pieces I had dropped in the house We both laughed, but as he walked away, the miniigure legs and hips, with the hips being
during the build process. On one particular I started wondering if it was possible to get it in a separate feature and location to the legs. n
88 Blocks February 2020 www.blocksmag.com
RETIRED PIECE
RETIRED PIECE:
RACK WINDER
One of the earliest elements designed with play features in mind, the Rack
Winder is a one-trick pony that excels at its job
Words and Pics: Daniel Konstanski
HE ERA OF play features dawned multiple components to create the inished move an attached assembly back and forth
in the late 1980s. While dynamic element? Probably. Did it enable functions when oriented horizontally, or up and down
elements such as hinges had never before seen in a LEGO set, and when positioned vertically. This latter use was
been around for years, most therefore blow our young minds? Yes. its most frequent. Vertically it could be used as
T sets had few functions beyond The piece functioned by inserting the rack an elevator, as in 6394 Metro Park & Service
opening cockpits, or a sliding cart that had element, which looked like a long brick that Tower or 6990 Futuron Monorail Transport
to be pushed by hand. Mechanised functions had exchanged grooves for studs on its top. System. Horizontally it slid parts of 6987
where force was transferred were limited to The integral gear component then cranked Message Intercept Base back and forth, and
little more than reeling in rope. Then came the it through the Rack Winder. Thanks to tubes was used as part of a crane in both 6989 Mega
Technic Rack Winder. on the bottom, the rack could be joined to an Core Magnetizer and 6542 Launch & Load
Was it awkwardly named? Absolutely – assembly that would move forward and back Seaport.
despite its name, it would never make an when turning the Rack Winder. If that assembly Today, similar functions are accomplished
appearance outside of System sets. Was it was anchored, it could be made to hinge up with much more versatile parts, which
versatile? Not at all – it was useless without or down. probably indicates why the element is no
its sister element, the Technic Rack, and In that capacity it opened cockpits, raised longer in use. It lives on in the hearts of those
together they could only do one thing. Was it missiles from their berths and opened roof who had the sets containing it, all of which
likely dificult to manufacture due to requiring hatches. Its other coniguration was to simply command high aftermarket prices. n
Pairing with an M-Tron
magnet allowed for Number: 2426
picking parts up. Oficial Name: Technic Rack Winder
Unoficial Name: Turney-extender part
No. Sets Included In: 9
No. Colour Variants: 3
Years Produced: 1987 – 1993
First Appearance: 6953 Cosmic Laser Launcher, 6990
Futuron Monorail Transport System
Final Appearance: 6983 Ice Station Odyssey
Why We Miss It: Having one of these in your collection
guarantees owning a classic set from the 1980s or
1990s.
The Space Police I lagship used
the piece to open a cockpit and
deploy a rover.
The Technic Rack Winder The Launch & Load Seaport
appeared in nine sets. incorporated 2426 into its crane.
www.blocksmag.com February 2020 Blocks 89
IDEAS SHOWCASE
CITIES IN SECTIONS
If you don’t have the space for modular buildings, John Harvey’s
alternative town plan might be right up your LEGO street
Words: Chris Wharfe Pics: John Harvey, BrickinNick, Seb_E
Possible miniigures
I N F O for the inal set.
Ideas ID:
John Harvey
Project:
https://tinyurl.com/
wnckbb9
John hints at his
daily routine.
A slice of
city living.
Familiar signage on
the Underground.
The tube carriage is
open for access.
Have your Oyster
card ready.
90 Blocks February 2020 www.blocksmag.com
IDEAS SHOWCASE
IVEN UNLIMITED TIME, This is your irst Ideas project. How have you E L S E W H E R E O N
space and money, most LEGO found the experience so far? L E G O I D E A S
fans would love streets of Amazing, I only put the project on Ideas so I
There are dozens of projects on LEGO Ideas –
modular buildings snaking could draw a line under it, call it inished, and
here are just a couple worth checking out
Gthrough their LEGO towns. stop tinkering with it. I think a lot of people like
But time, space and money are unfortunately the compactness of the design – clearly I’m
real constraints for most of us – particularly not the only one lacking in display space.
space, which the enormous modular buildings
cannibalise in spades. If John Harvey’s If the project is approved, are there any
imaginative interpretation of real-world cities compromises or changes you think the
comes to fruition, though, you might yet be LEGO designers might have to make?
able to construct your own slice of urban life in The ground loor overhangs considerably from
a much more compact way. the tube line below, allowing access to the Ideas ID:
BrickinNick
platform, and improving the visual impact. I’ve Project:
Blocks: What inspired you to create Cities in tried to reinforce the above-ground structure https://tinyurl.com/
qp8hje9
Sections? as much as possible, but only a physical model
John: I love the modular series in LEGO, but would show if it would actually stand up like n Tesla Cybertruck
I never have enough room to display them. this. Talk about capturing the zeitgeist.
That’s where the idea of stacking a similar mass BrickinNick took no time at all in
on a base a quarter of the size came from. I What channels have you used to promote assembling a LEGO model of Tesla’s
then thought, if the design is stacked, why not your project so far? newly-unveiled Cybertruck, but then the
show the layers under a city as well as on top I've only really posted this on the LEGO real-life electric vehicle’s design is full
of it? subreddit (reddit.com/r/lego), which is a great of angles – making it perfectly suited to
community for getting inspired and seeing the interlocking bricks. And with a LEGO
Can you talk us through the design? other people’s designs. motor, it could also become a truly electric
The project doesn’t aim to replicate a recreation. It’s quickly gathering support
speciic London Underground station, but Have you been surprised by the response so on LEGO Ideas, and BrickinNick thinks it’s
does reference the classic designs of Leslie far? It’s been shared on a couple of blogs, a perfect it with the LEGO Group’s own
Green, who was responsible for the iconic late been a staff pick on the Ideas platform, and sustainability mission.
Victorian stations across the North of London. is doing impressive early numbers in terms
Ideas ID:
The glazed ox-blood tile work seemed to of support.
Seb_E
translate well into shiny tiled LEGO, and is the I didn’t realise it had been shared to those Project:
quintessential London Underground aesthetic. blogs, thanks for letting me know. I love the https://tinyurl.com/
tra4dt6
Aside from the architecture, I tried to recreate Londonist – seeing my work shared by people
the little parts of London that stick with you I admire is a very strange feeling. n
after years of living in it – mainly lattes and
rats.
There's plenty to see on every
level of this city section.
The use of corner tiles to spell out ‘London’
is a great touch.
The London at the bottom was actually one of
the irst things I did! It was too perfect not to
include. Unfortunately I don’t think it’s going to
work for every city name. n Giant Miniig
If oversized miniigures are your jam, but
Do you envision this being the irst in a not when they’re made out of wood, then
series of city builds? cast aside the LEGO Originals product
I think the mini-modular and stackable and vote for Seb_E’s marvellous model.
sectional design is translatable to so many This entirely brick-built giant miniigure
scenarios. I am certainly going to continue used around 1,000 elements, and
designing on this theme and would love to measures over 28cm tall. And unlike its
see others do the same. So far, my ideas wooden counterpart, it even features all
have been a pub with a beer cellar, Paris with the same articulation as a regular LEGO
catacombs underneath, a church with a crypt, miniigure.
and the canals of Amsterdam.
Why did you choose to go with the London Fancy getting your LEGO
Underground irst?
I'm an architect by trade and travel every day Ideas project featured in
through the London Underground. I always Blocks? Send it to
wondered what it would look like to ly through [email protected]
the ground, seeing all the tubes intersect with
each other and pop out at random spaces. I with the subject title
wanted to see if I could recreate a fraction of ‘Blocks Ideas
that complexity in LEGO form. [your project name]’.
www.blocksmag.com February 2020 Blocks 91
MONTH IN MOCS
MOC&A / LEGO THEATRE Sylvain Garnier
Builder:
Flickr ID:
Campistron1683
An incredible working build sets the stage with changing backdrops
Words: Graham Hancock Pics: Sylvain Garnier
The theatre with lighting.
YLVAIN GARNIER TOOK his love How did you decide to build this stage? project allowed me to deine the main features
for the stage and conceived an The genesis of this project is very interesting. of the architecture of this MOC and the
ingenious LEGO model that allows It all started with the Captain Hook miniigure general colour range that I was going to use. I
the scenery to be changed with from the Disney Collectible Miniigures was limited though by the constraint of 3,000
Sa hidden moving component. It series. That colourful miniigure, with his parts authorised for an Ideas project. While it
makes for a theatrical build with a theatrical extravagant clothes in the fashion of the did get 2,760 supporters, it did not meet the
lair that is simply begging for miniigures to 17th century, immediately made me think of threshold, so I decided to resume the project
perform on. Sylvain spent time with Blocks a famous character from a French comedy without imposing any limit in terms of size, and
explaining how this MOC came to be. called Mascarille, because he wears a small to rebuild everything from scratch to make a
mask. I decided to modify this miniigure in much larger MOC. If the Ideas project was a
Blocks: Do you enjoy the theatre? order to bring it closer to the stage character nice playset, this one would be the equivalent
Sylvain: I have loved the theatre for a long and I placed it with other characters in a of a UCS set.
time. I have always been fascinated by this small vignette on a 16x16 plate. I presented
universe of illusions, shadow and light in which this result on a forum and the participants Did you know from the beginning that you
characters seem larger than life. I even have encouraged me to develop it to present it on would have a working mechanism?
a PhD degree in seventeenth-century French the LEGO Ideas website. One of the reasons I wanted to expand
theatre and wrote a book on that subject – so It was then that I built a real LEGO theatre, the original project was to be able to
it is really important in my life. inspired by a theatre that was built around include a working mechanism inspired by
1640 – the Théâtre du Palais-Royal. This the scenography of the time. I started by
92 Blocks February 2020 www.blocksmag.com
MONTH IN MOCS
All the world’s a
potential LEGO
model.
Sylvain found a solution for
making the build move.
The players take to the stage.
designing the mechanism, then I adapted the achieve it. A friend of mine had described this old
scale of the architecture to what was required mechanism in a book he had written. I used
by it. At the very beginning I had no idea What challenges were there when building his explanations to reproduce this system,
how I could achieve that, it was nothing like the model? which functioned with ropes around a central
Designing the working mechanism was the axis that passed under the stage. It worked
RATHER THAN USING biggest challenge I have ever accomplished immediately and I was so happy when it did.
GEARS, I REPRODUCED in all of my AFOL life. I had to try many How happy are you with the inished build?
techniques. I irst tried to use a system based
THE VERY ORIGINAL on gears and racks from LEGO Technic. On What are your favourite parts?
SYSTEM THAT WAS paper it seemed to work, but in reality I never I am really proud of what I achieved. It is not
USED IN THIS THEATRE managed to activate more than two pairs of perfect and I know some things could be
improved but I feel like I have shared a really
panels. When too many gears were linked,
IN THE 17TH CENTURY the mechanism ended up jamming. I spent original project with the LEGO fan community.
months trying to solve this problem without I like different aspects of this MOC – the stage
any success – it was really frustrating! arch; the curtains; the decorations; the golden
I inally solved the problem by adopting winged igures – but my favourite part is the
anything I had built before. I am not an expert the simplest solution. Rather than using gears, two columns with the decorated bases. n
in LEGO Technic mechanisms – I knew the I reproduced the very original system that
effect I wanted to achieve, but not how to was used in this theatre in the 17th century.
www.blocksmag.com February 2020 Blocks 93
MONTH IN MOCS
BLOCKS MOCS / The latest selection of MOCs that have
caught the attention of the Blocks team
CYBERCOW
2077
Builder:
Stu Pace
Flickr ID:
Stu Pace
HARLEY
DAVIDSON
E-WANDERER
Builder:
Gaetan Boudard
Flickr ID:
BobDeQuatre
MECHA
PENGUIN
MK3-08
Builder:
Mitsuru Nikaido
Flickr ID:
Mitsuru Nikaido
PIZZA
RESTAURANT
Builder:
Peter Furstenberg
Flickr ID:
Peter Furstenberg
EDWARD’S
FISHING HUT
Builder:
Dale Harris
Web:
www.harrisbricks.
com.au
94 Blocks February 2020 www.blocksmag.com
MONTH IN MOCS
MOC IN PICS / HMS ILLUMINA
ZiO Chao decided to build a ship worthy of the British navy
Words and Pics: ZiO Chao
HMS ILLUMINA IS inspired by HMS Victory,
I used paper for the sails. The
the most famous British navy ship. I chose HMS
cloth sails that TLG produced
Victory because I wanted to build a lagship are really nice but are too small
for the red soldier, and the red soldiers looks and are only in one size. So I
scanned them, enlarged them
like British soldiers. It is a classic sailing ship
and then printed them out on
with a yellow and black colour pattern, which is paper. Although paper is not
known as ‘the Nelson Chequer’. as durable, I found that thicker
paper has lexibility like a cloth
sail and maintains the shape.
HMS ILLUMINA It's a miniigure-scale
Builder: ship and playable
ZiO Chao – with miniigures,
Flickr ID: everything comes
ZiO Chao alive. I can make a
scene with this ship
feel like a sea battle
or life on the sea.
This is the fourth ship that I built.
I loved LEGO Pirates since
I was a kid but I was also
fascinated with navy ships. I
ind they are magniicent and
gorgeous, and I dreamed to
build one.
I ignored the
horizontal curve
of the ship and Sections of the deck can
focused on the be removed to access
vertical curve. the areas below.
www.blocksmag.com February 2020 Blocks 95
MONTH IN MOCS
MOC&A / NEBULON-B Builder:
Steve Marsh
Flickr ID:
FRIGATE Rubblemaker
A memorable but often overlooked Star Wars ship is recreated in LEGO bricks
Words: Graham Hancock Pics: Steve Marsh
N THE CLOSING scene of Star Wars:
The Empire Strikes Back, the camera
pans out of he medical bay to reveal
that our heroes Luke Skywalker, Princess
ILeia, C-3PO and R2-D2 are standing
within the Nebulon-B Frigate at the centre of
the Rebel Alliance leet. It’s a striking moment The Nebulon-B Frigate
in the saga, with the memorable ship making appears in Episode V.
a mark in just a few seconds. Steve Marsh built
his own version of the ship, which has been
overlooked in the LEGO Star Wars theme’s
20-year run.
Blocks: Which Star Wars ilm is your
favourite?
Steve: My favourite Star Wars ilm is deinitely
The Empire Strikes Back. I watched that as a
child so many times on VHS that I wore the
tape out.
How did you decide to build the Nebulon
Frigate?
I had built several Star Destroyers previously,
some my own design and some other
people’s, and really wanted to try making a
rebel ship. I also wanted to get away from the
clean angles and straight lines of Imperial ships
and push myself to create something quite
complex, but at a scale that hadn’t been done
very often. The Nebulon-B Escort Frigate its
this niche very well, though I would be lying
if I said I was conident I could create one. I
haven’t been making MOCs for very long so I
did not think I’d get very far, let alone inish it
entirely.
What reference did you use?
I used mostly online 2D images that show the
Fans have had to dream Transparent bricks
ship from all sides, then a few images of the up their own LEGO hold the model up for
ship as a wire mesh to get an understanding versions of this ship. photography purposes.
of how the multiple sections line up with each
other. The big problem with Star Wars ships
is that there are so many different variations
of them out there. You have to use your gut
instinct when creating some sections, as you
may ind 10 different versions of the area that
you are trying to build. The one rule I imposed
on myself was to not look at any other custom
LEGO builds of this ship. I didn’t want to
be inluenced by the parts usage of other
builders. In the end I used a couple of pieces
that do appear on other MOCs of this ship in
the same place, but it was purely coincidental.
96 Blocks February 2020 www.blocksmag.com
MONTH IN MOCS
How did you go about building it? a long Technic beam that stretched back to time. At that point I was using a stack of 17
I am a completely practical builder. I don’t use the aft engine section. After completing that I transparent bricks to hold up the back section.
any digital software to design my builds and created two ‘sleeves’, which went on to be the These are really unstable and meant only for
prefer to just cobble stuff together until it looks two light grey angled hull sections that fold the photography of the ship. It was a wobbly,
right. The build really started when I looked over at the front and back of the ship. heart in the mouth 10 minutes as I clipped it all
at a single piece in my spares collection. It is in place hoping it wouldn’t all come crashing
the piece that forms the top of the large dark What challenges did you encounter? down – I have since built a much stronger
grey curved protrusion at the front of the ship Whilst building the angled hull sleeves at the support for the back section.
(the freshwater tanks), and is meant for use in front and back of the ship I found the pieces
aircraft LEGO sets. I looked at it and thought I used to keep them at the correct angle How happy are you with the inished build?
it would work well for this section, though I kept popping off. It was a delicate process to Very happy, though there is always room for
didn’t have a clue how I would do it at that keep them together until I could clip them in improvement with LEGO and proportionally
stage, just that it looked right to me. place, but once in place they held really well. it is not perfectly in line with the actual ship,
I then made a Technic beam that formed the Then the only other challenge was but it is a good compromise for its scale. I’m
spine of the front section. After this I created that I had to put all the separate working with someone on creating instructions
each of the pods individually, connected them parts together and connect it to for it, at which point I hope to be able to sort
and added the tiles to the spine. Then I moved its stand at the same out any issues the model has. But it looks like
on to the top and used my aircraft piece. I a Nebulon-B so I must have done something
built backwards along the ship from there with right! n
I WANTED TO GET
AWAY FROM THE
CLEAN ANGLES AND
STRAIGHT LINES OF
IMPERIAL SHIPS AND
PUSH MYSELF TO
CREATE SOMETHING
QUITE COMPLEX
www.blocksmag.com February 2020 Blocks 97
BLOCKSTALGIA
Vikings was full
of play potential.
VIKINGS
What happens when Castle meets BIONICLE? Only something as bold, inventive
and outright fun as LEGO Vikings
Words: Chris Wharfe Pics: Chris Wharfe, Daniel Konstanski, The LEGO Group
WITH JUST SEVEN sets released over two years, Vikings its the pillaging defenceless villages, the LEGO Group established a formula
deinition of a iller theme neatly. Sandwiched between Knights’ for their Vikings that stuck across six of the seven sets: a band of hardy,
Kingdom II and Fantasy Era Castle, it plugged the swords-and-shields helmeted (and most often bearded) warriors pitted against a creature
gap in the LEGO Group’s line-up in the mid-2000s, but did so with from Norse mythology. Dragons, wolves and even mighty sea serpents
such aplomb that its inal wave ended up sharing shelf space with its illed modern LEGO sets’ conlict quota, and they did so using parts
thematic successor in 2007. rarely seen outside the BIONICLE theme, injecting a little more life into
At the time, the design team seemingly wasn’t interested in teaching those otherwise narrowly-used elements.
kids what Viking life was actually like, running with the stereotypical – Only one set diverged from that formula, and it was arguably one of
but famously false – horns on the warriors’ helmets. Then again, given the earliest battle packs, a year before the irst Star Wars army builders
what Viking life was actually like, historical accuracy may not have been hit shelves. 7020 Army of Vikings with Heavy Artillery Wagon may not
best suited to the company’s target market. have included a buildable creature, but it did offer 312 parts and seven
Instead of sets depicting the fearsome folk brutally raiding and miniigures for £17.99, so nobody was complaining.
98 Blocks February 2020 www.blocksmag.com
BLOCKSTALGIA
BREAKING DOWN
THE THEME
M E M O R Y L A N E
'IT WAS A SHAME TO SEE A FUN, FAIRLY ORIGINAL SET
LANGUISHING ON THE SHELVES'
GRAHAM LAMENTS THE VIKINGS SET HE COVETED
BUT NEVER OWNED The Vikings theme was, and remains,
easy to collect – with just seven regular
My abiding memory of the Vikings theme is seeing 7018 Viking Ship retail sets, and zero promotional releases
challenges the Midgard Serpent at a particular toy shop several years after or polybags to hunt down.
the set and theme had been retired. It was a shame to see a fun, fairly original
set languishing on the shelves rather than being snapped up.
I was actually getting stuck into the revamped LEGO CITY at the time Vikings introduced multiple elements,
that the Vikings theme arrived, but it was still nice to see something so including the miniigures’ helmets, battle
distinctive. The use of a few moulded bricks for the dragons, but having them axe blades, and new horn pieces, which
be predominantly brick-built, was a great way to have them feel authentically are still widely used today.
LEGO.
Of all the sets released, 7019 Viking Fortress against the Fafnir Dragon was The Collectible Miniigures theme paid
the one that appealed the most – the dragon looked to be a good scale with homage to Vikings with its own horned-
the fortress, and that fortress looked to be just the sort of playset model that helmeted warrior in Series 4, and the irst
brings a smile to my face. If only I hadn’t been so fascinated by the police female LEGO Viking in Series 7.
station and hospital at the time.
BY THE NUMBERS
Years active:
7
THE NUMBER OF REGULAR
RETAIL SETS
M E M O R Y L A N E
£150.93
'STILL ONE OF MY ALL-TIME THE COST OF COMPLETING
THE THEME AT RETAIL
FAVOURITE LEGO THEMES'
2,827
CHRIS REMEMBERS THE MOMENT VIKINGS TURNED HIS LEGO
WORLD UPSIDE DOWN THE NUMBER OF BRICKS THAT
WOULD GET YOU
The year is 2005, and I’m standing in a branch of Toymaster that’s long since
shut down. In one hand, I have 7018 Viking Ship challenges the Midgard 27
Serpent, and in the other, 10134 TIE Fighter Collection. By some stroke of
THE NUMBER OF MINIFIGURES
luck, both have been slashed to half price. But I’m a few years away from
THAT WOULD GET YOU
earning my own disposable income, so I’m faced with a dilemma.
Okay, it’s not exactly Sophie’s Choice, but my extensive Star Wars collection
is screaming at me to put down the boat and bulk up my Imperial leet. 1,019
Fortunately, I ignore that voice in my head and spring for the serpent set. THE NUMBER OF PIECES IN
Building it is a revelation, and I soon ind ways to get my hands on every other THE THEME’S LARGEST SET,
Vikings set released that year. To this day, it’s still one of my all-time favourite VIKING FORTRESS AGAINST
LEGO themes. THE FAFNIR DRAGON
www.blocksmag.com February 2020 Blocks 99
BLOCKSTALGIA
i Aftermarket price: £202 new, £98 used / Miniigures: 6 / Pieces: 578
7018 VIKING SHIP
CHALLENGES THE
MIDGARD SERPENT
THE VIKING SHIP may have been challenging
the Midgard Serpent, but it certainly wasn’t
challenging builders back in 2005. The
boat’s hull is comprised of ive enormous hull
elements – two identical end pieces, and three
smaller middle sections – that were created
speciically for this set, then never seen again.
But while 70618 Destiny’s Bounty has now
come along and re-written the script for ships,
those single-use pieces did serve a purpose:
7018’s boat is huge, especially given its
incredible £34.99 RRP.
There was plenty of building to do
elsewhere, anyway – the deck of the ship
packs in a spit, hanging cage (for mutineers,
presumably, given the lack of adversarial
miniigures), and a huge catapult that ires
ball-tipped axles using the spring-loaded
player stands from the early 2000s Sports
theme. The huge paper sail that looms over
the ship may have been tricky for small hands
to apply back then, but it only adds to the
grandeur of this vessel.
All that said, 7018 is also a perfect
showcase for what was so great about the
Vikings theme: no element of the set was
an afterthought, with the mythological
creatures commanding just as much attention
as the Viking weapons, transports and
locations dotted through the theme. The
Midgard Serpent is no exception to that
rule, combining a ferocious appearance with
a well-articulated – yet sturdy – build. Six
miniigures were bundled in to give it a fair
ight, exemplifying the playability these sets
had to offer.
100 Blocks February 2020 www.blocksmag.com
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