Befitting his ostentatious villainy, Gru resides in a spectacular mansion, inexplicably constructed among normal suburban homes. 75583 Minions and Gru's Family Mansion conveys the towering architecture of this location, albeit with dubious external detail.
On the other hand, the interior features various memorable details from throughout the Despicable Me series, while the minifigure selection is outstanding. Nearly the entire family is included, plus three exclusive Minions, so this is an extremely appealing prospect for fans of Despicable Me.
Jay's Brick Blog, the news and reviews site run by my good friend Jay Ong in Melbourne, has just received a design refresh and a brand-new logo.
Perhaps more importantly, Jay has introduced a minifig identification feature which will help you identify series 25 and later minifigs by scanning the dot matrix code on the boxes without the need for an app, which is sure to be useful once the Space series 26 drops next month.
So, be sure to add the blog to your daily reading list and bookmark the minifig scanner ready for the 1st May.
It's owned by 1,403 Brickset members. If you want to add it to your collection you should find it for sale at BrickLink, where new ones sell for around $90.00, or eBay.
Today's random minifigure is njo589Zane (Golden Ninja) - Legacy, a NINJAGO figure that came in one set, 40374 Golden Zane Accessory Set , released during 2020.
Our members collectively own a total of 1,596 of them. If you'd like to buy one you should find it for sale at BrickLink, where new ones sell for around $8.90.
Many LEGO set designers use our BrickLists feature to maintain a list of the sets they've worked on and often provide interesting insights about their involvement.
Once a week we publish an entry from one of their lists on the home page to increase awareness of this information and to encourage more designers to create them.
Without a doubt, my favorite set I have worked on so far. Inspired by tokusatsu and anime alike, this set was something I wanted to do for Ninjago for a very long time.
I like to think of this set as a playtheme in a box. It has 1 mech, 3 vehicles and 1 villain mech. I took a lot of the learnings I got from designing Voltron and expanded on them in this set. By limiting the amount of technic and making as many of the connections system connections, I kept the wiggling and bending to a minimum while also making it relatively easy and fun to build.
For this set, I was finally given the element frame to create the piece I have been wanting since I worked on Zane's Titan Mech in 2019. https://brickset.com/parts/6365679/flex-joint-female-w-dia-4-85-snap The new hip and shoulder joint that marries the AT-AT ratchet with 2 Galidor ratchets to create a 2 axis joint capable of carrying larger models. This piece was originally pitched by Janko Grujic (https://brickset.com/sets/designer-Janko-Grujic), and I had asked for it ever since he did.
It also uses all the new pieces we made for SCCBS. It does this both in conventional ways (cockpit and limbs) and novel ways (shell in the thighs of the Kai mech). Fully showcasing the overall versatility of the new suite of elements.
I'm so happy that it is doing well and many kids have managed to get their hands on this toy. It is my pride and joy.
After a lot of silly fuss a few weeks ago involving lawyers and oversized minions, full pictures of the four Despicable Me 4 sets are now available for all to see thanks to listings at LEGO.com.
We've added them to our database and you can also view them after the break.
May the Fourth promotional items have usually settled into patterns, beginning with minifigure polybags, before the launch of brick-built droids and microscale models. Recent promotions feel less predictable though, including 40686 Trade Federation Troop Carrier.
This model looks excellent and suitably marks the 25th anniversary of The Phantom Menace, but seems better suited to army building than limited promotional availability. Even so, I am curious about this set, which will be available with purchases of over £145, $160, €160 at the beginning of May.
Welcome to "What's Up With That...?", the article series where I, ex-LEGO designer James and host of new YouTube channel TUBESIDE, will explore some of the frequently asked questions from AFOLs about the mysteries of the design decisions of The LEGO Group.
Quick question: Are LEGO sets more expensive now than in the past? The simple answer is yes, obviously, but what about adjusting for inflation?
To make an easy comparison, 6276 Eldorado Fortress was $66 with 506 elements, adjusted for inflation, that's $163.05 in 2023 with a PPP of 32.1¢ and the one that came out last year is $190, 2509 elements, with a PPP of 8.6¢. So as you can see, LEGO models are better value now than before, case closed.
But as I write this, there are already people typing comments about "Yes, but in the old days there were much bigger pieces! Everything nowadays is made of tiny 1x1s to inflate the part count!"
The fifth annual Reading Brick Show takes place next weekend, 27th-28th April, at the Loddon Valley Leisure Centre, Reading, UK.
It's one of the largest LEGO shows in the UK where you'll find awesome MOCs, robot battles, building opportunities and traders selling new and used sets, parts and minifigs.
I will be there with my GBCs so, if you're attending, come and say hello.
Various large-scale droids have been produced recently, including fan-favourite characters and some more unusual designs, such as the classic Imperial Probe Droid. 75381 Droideka joins the range this year and destroyer droids are surely unusual, but also extremely popular!
This rendition of the droid appears remarkably detailed and is even capable of folding into the rolling configuration shown in the films. It seems the designer has found the perfect balance between display value and function, so this should be a fitting successor to the brilliant 8002 Destroyer Droid, released in 2000.