Month: May 2021

Things Are Getting Wild in LEGO City. [Hands on with 60301/60302]

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A few weeks ago, we got our first preview of the new ‘Action theme’ in the second half of 2021: Wildlife Rescue. The images were exciting because they revealed several new animal moulds: Lion and Cub; Elephant and calf; new monkeys, as well as the reappearance of other favourites: a recoloured crocodile (with a new, partially hatched egg); and a new print for the snake mould which debuted in 2018.

We also saw some recolours of the new 8x16x2/3 ‘road plates’ – seen earlier this year, printed up as a zebra crossing. How smoothly would these large, very rectangular elements integrate with an African wilderness?

I was fortunate to pick up 60301 Wildlife Rescue Off-Roader and 60302 Wildlife Rescue Operation a few days before the official release date of June 1 (Most of the world. The Americas will have to wait until August).


Rather than review these sets specificially, I would like to look at the animals in-depth and some of the specific landscaping details included. We might look at the minifigures, some of the printed elements included, and some other nifty details along the way.

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The Road Map For the LEGO® Powered Up System Unfolds

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I am currently attending the Recognised LEGO Fan Media Days from the comfort of my own home. Previously, this has involved a trip to Denmark, but this year the event is being held online. One of the presentations I have been looking forward to is an update on the LEGO® Powered Up system. We had the opportunity to hear an update from Gaute Munch, Director of the Creative Play Lab, and Flemming Bjørn Jessen, a Senior Producer in the Digital Technology Department.

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Blocks Magazine Opens Up Entire Back Catalogue To Subscribers. Issue 80 On Its Way.

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Two pieces of news from Blocks Magazine today: Issue 80 is now on its way to subscribers, and the team have now opened up the complete digital back catalog to subscribers.

Issue 80 of Blocks, the LEGO® magazine for fans, goes behind-the-scenes of 40516 Everyone is Awesome with Matthew Ashton, reveals how LEGO Masters went global and delves into the history of Looney Tunes. 

Blocks magazine Issue 80 is available worldwide as a single issue or as part of a subscription at www.blocksmag.com now and will be in UK stores from June 6. Subscribe today to be in with a chance of winning one of five 76182 Batman Cowl sets.  

Graeme Hancock, Editor at Blocks, reached out to me recently to tell me about their latest initiative for subscribers: if you are a subsciber, you gain access to their entire back catalog online. This is great news. I hate reading magazines that might make occasional references to their past issues, but without those issues being readily available.

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Travel put firmly back on the map with huge new LEGO® Art Set [Announcing 31203: World Map]

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Travel has been off the books for the better part of a year now (maybe more, depending on where you are going to and from), but the latest LEGO Art release will help you keep an eye on where you might want to be going!

While you might not be able to get on a plane to travel, your LEGO can take you there.

The LEGO® Art World Map (31203) has 11695 elements – the highest part-count of any LEGO set to date. It will be available from LEGO.com, and LEGO Stores globally from 1st June 2021, priced from [EUR 249.99/ $USD249.99/£229.99/ $AUD399.99/ 349.99 CAD] and will become available from other retailers globally from 1st August 2021.

With the high part count, and I presume a 5×8 grid of 16×16 backing plates (that’s over 10200 pixels), this set will take some time to put together. You might need something to help take you through it, and there is an extensive soundtrack to accompany the build, bringing you tales of travellers and adventurers from around the world.

The opportunities for customising this set are a little less varied than for the first wave of LEGO Art Sets – the prescribed builds include 3 versions, with different continents in the centre of the map.

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40516 Everyone is Awesome [Hands on review]

ramblingbrick 18+, Diversity and Inclusivity, Lego , , , ,

When the Adult Engagement Team asked me if I would like to review the new set 40516, it was described merely as ‘Merchandise.’ No description was available beyond that. Sometimes that can be a little vague. I was expecting to receive a storage box, a branded bag or an ill-fitting T-shirt ( mainly because nobody asked me my size.)

And then it arrived, and I opened the box. This set was something totally unexpected: bands of bright colour, with minifigures in single shades. The build looked elegant and straightforward enough. But I found myself thinking: Could this be one of the most significant sets of recent years?


Let me explain.
As you have no doubt seen, the set features 11 bold, colourful stripes on a platform. 11 minifigures stand on the platform, each matching a coloured stripe. Elements of a single colour make up each figure.

A message is sent out with the set, written on the first page of the instructions. It comes from Matthew Ashton, Vice President of Design for the LEGO Group, and designer of this set:


“I wanted to create a model that is a symbol of inclusivity, that celebrates everyone, no matter how they identify or who they love. Everyone is unique, and with a little more love, acceptance and understanding in this world, we can all feel free to be our true AWESOME selves! This model is to show that we care, and that we truly believe ‘Everyone is Awesome’! We hope you’ll build this model and display it with pride. It’s a celebration of love, a celebration of you!”

Matthew Ashton, VP of Design, The LEGO Group

I read it. I paused. I read it again. I have been trying to work out how best to respond. As a white, straight male, I feel almost unqualified to do so.

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40156: Everyone is Awesome LEGO® Set Celebrates Fans’ Diversity

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Matthew Ashton, VP of Design at the LEGO Group, has been teasing a new set for the last week or so on Twitter. … one different coloured 2×3 brick at a time.

Today the LEGO Group has unveiled set 40156: Everyone Is Awesome. This set features 11 various coloured stripes, along with a unique monochrome minifigure for every stripe, a celebration of individuality and inclusivity, love and acceptance.
The final model is relatively small, being a little over 10cm tall with a footprint of 22×16 studs. It has 346 pieces and has a recommended retail price of $AUD59.99 / €34.99 /£30.00 / $USD34.99 / $CAD44.49. It goes on sale through LEGO Branded stores and LEGO.com on June 1, 2021, commemorating the start of Pride Month.

The company has long espoused the virtues of diversity and inclusivity, particularly amongst its employees, but to express it in the form of an actual product is a huge statement to both the fan community as well as the community at large.

Alternatively, here’s a set with some really cool monochromatic minifigures as well as some elements in hard to find colours. It looks pretty.

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Daily Bugle 76178

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Today, The LEGO Group Announce the largest Marvel Super Heroes set to Date! The LEGO® Daily Bugle 76178. With 3772 Pieces, this set spreads the action across three floors, the roof and an alley: Just perfect for creating adventures in the Spiderverse. The Final model measures 82 cm tall, and has lots of great details, as well as 25 minifigures. Yes: 25.

Unfortunately, the press pack only included a few. However, I was able to enhance the end of the box to get all characters in one shot….

The set will be released on the 26th May for VIPs, and June 1st for everyone else, and cost €299.99/ £274,99 / $299,99/499.99 AUD/399.99 CAD

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Returning to Ice Planet, A Builder’s Diary I: Colour and Concepts

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Since I wrote an overview of ICE PLANET 2002, I have come to make a realisation: I’ve been a little too focused on news, reviews, and product announcements lately. Not to mention that little podcast thing. Perhaps to the extent that I have started to lose track of what I find to be so enjoyable about LEGO play… the act of creation. I’ve taken a couple of days out from the routine to start playing, designing and MOCing again.

A little while ago, I took a look at the theme ICE PLANET 2002 – a LEGO® space theme from the early 1990s. The theme was set on the Planet Krysto, in the centre of the known Universe. With three different figures, this theme included the first female Space Minifigure, a distinctive colour palette and a return to the values of Classic Space.

I now find myself wanting to explore this world a little further: bringing the United Galaxies back to Krysto, and using this as the basis for some MOCs of my own.

Nearly thirty years have passed since the United Galaxies’ Forces launched their last expedition Ice Planet 2002.

The Odyssey Base has since been abandoned after a computer virus, planted by Spyrius agents, rendered its systems inoperative. The United Galaxies’s rocket research program has been moved to several decentralised locations. A strange, coded signal has been detected coming from the area of the long-abandoned base in the meantime. A code not used by the forces of United Galaxies But from whom, and why? The Space Police say that an uninhabited, abandoned planet is outside their jurisdiction. Others say that the Space Police just want to chase bad guys that they know.

And so a new expeditionary force is set up, drawing upon the expertise of the earlier researchers. Their mission: identify the source of the signal, secure any residual artifacts from the original mission and, finally, establish whether there is any threat to the United Galaxies. If the Union is being threatened, neutralise the source of the problem…with extreme prejudice.

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THE ONE WITH THE LEGO® FRIENDS APARTMENTS SET

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Fans of the 90’s sitcom Friends were pretty excited a couple of years ago when the 21319 LEGO Ideas Central Perk set came to fruition. Now, out of the blue, we are going to see some more iconic locations from that series recreated in LEGO® form. Today, The LEGO Group announced the forthcoming 10292:LEGO F.R.I.E.N.D.S Apartments Set. This set is 31cm x 64cm x 10cm, and again uses a studio set metaphor to bring the set to life. Bringing us both Chandler and Joeys’s Apartment, along with Monica and Rachel’s apartment.

The Set will go on sale on June 1st, or 176th May to LEGO VIP Customers. it will cost €149.99 / $USD149.99 /  £134.99 / 259.99 AUD / 199.99 CAD / 1499.99 BRL

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