Nuju Metru

Congrats, Danny! We're glad to have you.

This warship was my holiday project... since I was separated from my normal assortment of fantasy parts, I opted to build something that I don't normally build: a spaceship. I had tremendous fun overcoming certain challenges while building this huge thing. I worked, by necessity, almost entirely with pre-2014 bricks. Building in a color scheme of scarce colors forced me to get more creative on many instances. I'm pretty satisfied with the end result, here, considering my limitations. Here are some things you probably can't tell from these pictures alone: --The cargo bay doors slide simultaneously open on both sides when you turn the click-jointed axle stopper above them. --A panel attached to the observation dome can be removed to showcase the command deck inside. --The hangar bay doors open on both sides, and the "Orestes" small fighters can be stashed in there. --The plasma turrets rotate (okay, maybe you could tell on that one). Thanks for looking! I appreciate your feedback.

Built these for a commission. Check out more images and the larger versions of these on my Flickr. Enjoy, leave any thoughts in the comments below!

I build so many dragons-- so I decided it might be fun to try building one at a different scale! Meet Skrulk, an imposing fire dragon. (All pictures link to their larger versions) From the start, I decided that I'd only be able to make a bust of a dragon. This was because of two factors: one, my limited parts, and two, stability/structual integrity concerns... It would have been a very different engineering challenge to build a full-size dragon at this scale. It's something I might do in future, but it'll certainly take more planning! Having a poseable dragon was important to me, because it's a more fun display piece. I consistently played with balancing flexibility in Skrulk's neck with bulk and covering over vertebral joints. I'm happy with how this bust came out; I think it looks solid from all angles. A simple grey base seemed the best choice to display this bust without upstaging the dragon head, but I also considered a wooden shield and even a mound of treasure as other base options. Thanks for looking. If you've got any feedback, I'd love to hear it! Also, if you want to see more pictures, just check out my Flickr.

I designed Fyaska as the 1st-place prize in the Dragons category for my Dragon-Building Contest 2, but then I grew too fond of the build and decided to keep her for myself! In building Fyaska (originally a prize I intended to give away), my design goal was to use colors and parts I didn't expect to need for forthcoming "Dragon Lands" creations. White bricks photograph poorly on my white backdrop, so I generally don't use them; I knew I wouldn't miss them. Light aqua, sand blue, and lavender are colors I have very few bricks in—and which are consequently difficult to use on "set" MOCs—so I also deemed what little I had in these hues dispensable for a prize. It was a fun challenge to utilize my parts in these rarer colors, and also to avoid black as much as possible in creating this icy creature. I even re-trimmed the membranes after following my own wing-cutting process just to shave away vestiges of black sharpie marks. I'm very proud of how the head came out on this dragon, especially since I was able to implement all three of my rare secondary colors. It's hard to see in this picture, but the round tile on Fyaska's head adds a splash of light aqua to her snout. More pictures and larger versions of these pictures can be found on my Flickr page.

Hey everyone! I built this dinosaur for a commission. It's to scale with minifigures and has 19 points of articulation! Any comments and critiques are appreciated. You can click any of the above images, or go to my Flickr to see a few more.

Nothing fancy-- just usual slight ups in exposure, contrast, etc. to make the pics pop!

You say "to-may-toe," and I say "owe-KNEE-wah..."

Cheers.

Still not totally sold on this guy's work... I think he shows promise, maybe, but his current stuff isn't great.

Thank you everyone for the detailed feedback! I really love reading your thoughts. I don't mind at all! There are parts of the designs besides the chest-gears which also carry a vaguely steampunk vibe... see the pistons coming out Pakuru's elbows, or the little exhaust vents on the Kopere's forearms. With the "mechanical motif," I was trying to break as much of the CCBS system's natural smoothness/futuristic appearance as possible, while maintaining satisfying silhouette integrity for the characters. I think the tribal detailing sort of upstages these other details, though, so I see what you mean. Definitely an interesting idea! I opted for CCBS shells as the loincloths on both characters because they had the benefit of attachment points, on which I could execute more of the style I had in mind.

I designed this famous beast for a commission, and I'm very happy with how it turned out! This minifig-scale Balrog was a tremendously fun challenge to design. It has 39 points of articulation, can balance on its own feet in many poses, and features custom-cut cloth wings. If you're interested, instructions are available-- PM me for more information. All images link to their larger versions on Flickr! Or, to see more images, go check out the Flickr album. I appreciate any comments or critiques you may have. Thanks for your feedback!

. . . . . . . . BONEHEADS OF VOODOO ISLAND When BIONICLE is rebooted (a second time), I hope they go this old-school with it! These "Boneheads of Voodoo Island" are an homage to what I love most about BIONICLE: its unique tribal-meets-mechanical whimsy, which I think the first waves of both Gen. 1 and Gen. 2 captured so well. With these Boneheads, I wanted to go back to—or, actually, go radically further past—BIONICLE's beginning in two ways. First, I've chosen to imagine the intellectual property had stayed somewhere in its infancy (i.e., when BIONICLE was still "Boneheads of Voodoo Island"); second, I've opted to design these characters in an "older" technology vocabulary than normal BIONICLE characters. I'm really happy with the genre these two choices, working in tandem, have evoked. All pictures in this topic link to their larger versions on Flickr. Meet Pakuru the Warrior and Kopere the Adventurer. Find out more about them below! . . . . . . . . PAKURU THE WARRIOR Pakuru is a Toa-like protector of the people of Voodoo Island. Armed with a powerful mace and tribal blade, he's a real force to be reckoned with! Pakuru proudly wears ceremonial floral jewelry, and collects shells in his spare time. He enjoys that shell collection more than just about everything else. It brings him a lot of peace. . . . . . . . . KOPERE THE ADVENTURER Kopere is a Matoran-like denizen of Voodoo Island. He's equipped for any adventure. Kopere likes to fight smart. He takes down enemies from afar with his crossbow! Kopere's belt is laden with spare shots, plant samples, and a lantern (among other things). Don't mess with the belt. You'll regret it. . . . . . . . . That's all I got! Feel free to leave any comments or critiques in the comments below. I look forward to reading your thoughts! If you want to see a few more shots of these two, or wanna browse bigger pics, check out the Boneheads of Voodoo Island on Flickr.

The fact that I've missed LEGO day at AT&T twice now is entirely unacceptable

Once it got to the point with the car, I was all "I wonder if a LEGO vehicle can safely protect its driver in the event of an accident?" The answer was a resounding no.

I think that Aaron Newman has some okay ideas, but he's definitely over-hyped.

Right!?

Those dragon wings really look quite familiar...

You sound surprised to hear that I'm still around. Watching. Always.

Ooh, ooh, Trivia Time, Trivia Time! Aaaaactually the Parakuka were originally somebody's custom species. Their creator (Nebula 2.0, if that player is still around) and I PMed back and forth for several weeks to hone his original species pitch into something that I felt would fit into the BZPRPG world in terms of genre, power balance, etc. I gave the guy kudos in my original announcement post. It was because I liked the Parakuka so much, and I saw them fitting into my staff plot so well, that I appropriated the baby custom species for my own evil ends.

I've been curious about this for a little bit- how much friction is there in Ike's wing mechanism? And is it comfortable to operate while holding/swooshing the set?

What's this about? This is me trying to be funny. And look how much people laughed at the joke! Ain't I just a hoot? For those of you who are actually up in arms about me not owning "THE most important set of 2015," here are the reasons I don't: I no longer buy BIONICLE sets for myself, since I have nowhere to display or store them whole... And my CCBS parts bin is almost too full to close.The only reason I ever buy myself any LEGO these days is because I want certain pieces. When I get a new, boxed LEGO set, 49 times out of 50 it gets built, admired for a moment, and then almost immediately sorted out into my parts bins. Since I generally don't use BIONICLE sets' parts, pretty though they may be, in my dominantly-System MOCs, I have no real reason to actively purchase whole CCBS sets anymore.Besides, I'd rather spend my pleasure money on stuff like new clothes (blasphemously, I prioritize other things over my LEGO hobby).I'll freely admit that the only new BIONICLE/CCBS sets I own these days are ones that BZPower ships me and/or ones I'm given as gifts. MMvsSG wasn't shipped to me, so that's a simple reason I don't own it.MMvsSG isn't the most important set of 2015, in my opinion-- In terms of BIONICLE, I think the most important set for me is actually first-line Gali; she's an excellent figure, who in my opinion epitomizes everything gen. 2 wave 1 did right. But I don't even own her, for all the reasons listed already.Me not purchasing all the BIONICLE sets has nothing to do with my love for the brand or my support for TLG. It has more to do with the fact that I'm an adult living a life that doesn't have as much storage space, leisure, or toy money in it anymore. If you think someone who doesn't own every last BIONICLE product is also someone unfit to review new ones, I'm hurt and confused. I put more work than you might imagine into the reviews I write, film and photograph. Although I'm a very busy person, I'm still willing to dedicate hours to composing and editing these multifaceted reviews as quickly as I can turn them around, so that you in the community can see the sets as soon as possible... I think this reflects that I have a great deal of passion for what I'm doing. I have immense passion for the product - whether or not I like any particular set I'm reviewing, I'm deeply invested in the BIONICLE brand overall, as I've been for fourteen years - and immense passion for the responsibility that comes along with being a BZP Official Reviewer. So please, don't mistake a flippant line (it was a joke!) from my review for me discounting how freakin' awesome it is that I'm among a few people in the world who get sent these products ahead of their release, for free, to take a good look at. I worked hard - and still work hard - to be here; but I nevertheless think of my Official Review gig as an incredible privilege, something I don't take lightly. Understand that I'm grateful for all the stuff LEGO and Andrew send to me. I reiterate this at the beginning of every review I write.

Thanks! I knew I could count on you and/or your brother to pick up the slack! You're thinking of the right little Technic bit, and sorry to all the viewers out there for not having included a picture - I totally didn't even notice the little guy when I spilled out 71310's parts and combed through for ones I didn't recognize. By the time I'd passed that point in building Umarak, I didn't want to go back and take another picture.

This article title pleases me immensely (doo dah doo).

I like this- it's a cool idea, and was executed well. Good overview of all the sets, I was glad to get a place to look at them as a group (where I wouldn't feel the need to open and close 20-some hi-res images!).