It was over 40 years ago. Wednesday, during the September school holidays. Probably the Croydon twin cinema. I remember it was raining. After Star Wars and The Empire Strikes Back (sure… they call it a New Hope these days, but that’s another franchise), I couldn’t wait to see the next film made by George Lucas, along with one of his mates who made that shark film. (I was 12… give me a break)
From the opening scene, as the Paramount logo cut to an actual mountain – sure, it feels like a cliche now, but this was early in my cinema appreciation career- through to the final scene, I was taken on a roller coaster ride through Peru, Nepal, Egypt and even the middle of the Mediterranean. Once I got my head around the fact that the Lost Ark featured in the title didn’t belong to Noah, I was fine.
This year, we see the 30th anniversary of the release of Jurassic Park: the original, and in my opinion, the best offering from the 6 movies in the franchise.
Last year, I brought you an overview of LEGO Dinosaur sets over the years. The sets are due for release in June, but 5 sets in the series have been revealed today, with one, 75961 Jurassic Park Visitor Centre, available to preorder from March 8, 2023. Scroll down for more details and pricing:
After a few weeks of leaks and speculation, the LEGO Group have revealed to next Disney Collectable minifigure range 71038 . They go on sale on April 1st 2023. The set will still have bags, making feeling for contents possible, but I won’t think we should take that for granted going forward, with boxes scheduled to appear for CMF later in the year.
There are 18 to collect, due for a May 1 release at a RRP of in May 2023 priced at €3.99 /USD $4.99/5.99 CAD/3.49 GBP/AUD5.99.
We have some figures that previously have only existed as minidolls, some who are brand new, and a couple where you can only wonder why they took so long!
This year, the Disney Company celebrate their 100th anniversary and, as part of that celebration, there are a few LEGO Sets to go with it…. Today, offical images are reveals of some (others have already arrived on the shelves.
Today, the LEGO Group is kicking off its celebration of Disney’s 100 anniversary by recreating some of the most beloved Disney movie moments in iconic LEGO® brick form as part of its new #SharetheWonder video series.
The three-part series will feature scenes from timeless Disney and Pixar movies, and will encourage fans to share their own favorite LEGO built Disney moments on social media using #SharetheWonder. Watch the teaser here. The #SharetheWonder series will debut throughout the next month on LEGO.com, LEGO social channels and Disney’s YouTube.
Disney100 is a celebration of timeless storytelling and unforgettable characters that have entertained and inspired people of all ages for a century. To commemorate 100 years of Disney, the LEGO Group is inviting families to share the wonder of storytelling, imagination, and creative play that LEGO® Disney has inspired over the 24 years since it launched.
The LEGO Group has also revealed its first collection of Disney100 products to help fans of all ages experience the magic of LEGO Disney storytelling:
This year, we celebrate the 45th anniversary of the debut of the LEGO® Minifigure in 1978. While we have seen some amazing changes since those early days, perhaps some of the biggest changes to the original figures with their simplistic prints, and even simpler smiles were seen in 1989 with the arrival of LEGO Pirates: We got the first named character: Captain Redbeard in some markets, he was full of innovations: a red beard and eyepatch were added to his face; he gained a wooden leg, and a hook for a hand: both seen for the first time. We also saw the first feminine Minifigure released in that theme.
Continuing its theme of celebrating key moments in LEGO History, The LEGO House has just announced that their exclusive set for 2023 celebrates the Minifigure’s 45th birthday with a giant replica of Captain Brickbeard, resplendent in all his Brick Built Glory!
When JBBrickFanatic’s LEGO® IDEAS submission BTS Dynamite was announced, a lot of AFOLs said. ‘Huh? What?’ I’ll admit I was unfamiliar with the source material. Just like I’ve struggled with Adventure time, Minecraft, the Caterham seven and Tron Legacy. But just because I am unfamiliar with the source material does not invalidate it.
Today, the LEGO Group have revealed 21339 LEGO Ideas Dynamite – recreating scenes from the K-Pop boy band’s 2020 music video, along with bringing us
It was 1982, and the final episode of NPR adaptation of Star Wars (A New Hope – not that the label was familiar to us yet) had just been broadcast on ABC FM on Sunday morning. “Next Week – The Lord of the Rings episode 1″…of 26. This BBC production was my introduction to Lord of the Rings. Over the next 6 months, 12-year-old me followed the adventures of Frodo and the Fellowship of the Ring, as they covered the diverse geography of Middle earth. I opened the books and began to explore the extended world.
With time, Peter Jackson’s movie adaptations became a regular Wedding Anniversary date for Ann and myself. Then, in 2010, I finally came out of my Dark Ages and accepted that I was allowed to buy LEGO® sets for myself. Fast forward to 2011 and after presenting Bag End, assailed by dwarfs at Brickvention 2011, I put together a model, loosely based on Rivendell, at the time of the Council of Elrond.
Rivendell: A MOC by the author – on display at Brickvention, Melbourne Australia 2012.
Using non-licensed minifigures, and drilling a hole through the middle of a pearl gold 1×1 round brick/stud to use as a ring, many kids who saw the layout identified most of the figures in the fellowship correctly. Except for 2. But they were so consistent that I suspect I must have been wrong in identifying Merry and Pippin.
And then, in 2012, we saw our first wave of Lord of the Rings sets – with the Fellowship of the Ring carefully spread across no fewer than four sets! A second wave followed in 2013, before leading into the sets licenced from the Hobbit. In this second wave was the set ‘Council of Elrond.’ With 4 Minifigures and 243 elements this was a somewhat lacklustre representation of the iconic scene from the story (be it book, radio drama or movie).
And now, after 10 years Lord of the Rings is back.
With 6167 Pieces and 15 minifigures (plus some statues of Elven Heroes from days gone by.) this is a beautiful set, providing exquisite architectural details, as well as rolling landscape and new minifigures throughout.
Last week, it was announced that LEGO® DOTS is going to be discontinued, with no new releases after the March Harry Potter wave. But will other themes be stepping up to keep up our supply of customisable posters, storage boxes and pencil pots?
The adult-focused Helmet series keeps on coming, with another in the Marvel series revealed today. 76251 Star Lord’s Helmet has been unveilled ahead of the Nuremberg Toy Fair this week. With 602 pieces, it has an interesting form compared with previous marvel helmets, as this helmet is not designed to cover the entire head.
It has been a couple of years since we have had a Marvel helmet in this scale (not counting 2022’s much larger Black Panther), but I cannot help but think something must be being hidden away, given LEGO Spider-Man’s 20th anniversary this year.
I guess I can only hope.
This model has 602 pieces, and will be released on April 1st, 2023. Expected pricing is 79,99 USD / 79,99 EUR / 69,99 GBP / 129.99 AUD / 799.0 CNY / 99.99 CAD.
When the prequel trilogy was first released, I didn’t really get it. Whether this was just me, or intrinsic issues with the storytelling, I was not too sure. I didn’t really understand them the way I understood the original trilogy. And surely the fact that I watched individual films in the original trilogy approximately 200 times between 1977 and 1999 is probably irrelevant. Probably….
And then, during the pandemic lockdowns, my now adult son took me by the hand and said ‘Dad, I think you need to watch this. I have found a guide to take you through the essential episodes, but I think it will help everything make sense.’ And so we watched a sizable part of the clone wars: Campaign after campaign, Politics, Intrigue, Grumpy Padawans. And then I rewatched Revenge of the Sith. And on the whole, for the first time ever, it made sense to me. I became invested in Rex and Cody, as well as the rest of the 501st. enough to move on to Rebels. And now it looks like Asokha will make sense to me when it debuts. Woo Hoo.
And Not that I get it, I can understand why these helmets will spark a generational shift in the Star Wars Helmets: no longer limited to the Original Trilogy, fans of the Clone Wars can also feel specifically loved by this range, with the arrival of 75349 Captain Rex and 75350 Commander Cody.
When the first Botanicals sets were released at the start of 2021, the world was taken agasp. Not only was there a bonsai tree covered in frogs, but also a Floral bouquet that needed a second look to confirm its LEGOness. jump to the future: Last year we saw an orchid and some succulents added to the mix. These models have now been on display in our living area since initial construction, and catch the eye of LEGO Fans and non LEGO Fans alike. Even my parents comment favourably about them! We even had a lot of people contribute designs for vases for their flowers a couple a years ago – I was amazed by some of the responses we had.
And now there are another two sets scheduled for release in early February… just in time for Valentines day. The sets are designed to be built on your own, or with some help from your special friend. This could be an ideal first date activity as shown in a video shared by the LEGO Group on its social channels a year or two ago.
First we have 10313 Wildflower Bouquet with 939 pieces: It brings us some spectacularly bright colours, and varied blooms: this is an eyecatching design.
Next we have 10314 Dried Flower Centrepiece – With 812 pieces, this is an exploration of earthy tones and a muted palette, but still bringing us some unique explorations of neat parts usage.
Read on for more pictures and the offical press release:
The Rambling Brick 
You must be logged in to post a comment.