You may have seen LEGO recently using the hashtag #LicenceToBuild across its social media channels, hinting at something based on the popular James Bond films (and possibly the books too I suppose). Today the curtain is pulled back and the latest addition to the Creator Expert car series has been revealed: the 10262 James Bond Aston Martin DB5! BZPower has hi-res photos, video, and of course the press release to share with you all, so come check out this iconic car that's chocked full of gadgets!  

Today's raffle has been live for a little while, but we're just getting around to letting you know about it now. If you're a Premier BZPower member, you should head over and enter the 17th Anniversary Premier Raffle Alpha for a chance to win a copy of 71311 Kopaka and Melum - Unity Set from the 2016 line of Bionicle sets. If you're not a Premier Member, don't forget to enter the other raffles that are open to everyone, and also consider supporting BZPower by becoming one!

What's that? It's Tuesday again? Already? Then I guess we should all plan to head over to the BZPower Twitch channel tonight starting at 7:30 PM Eastern for some LEGO videogame action! We've been playing LEGO Marvel's The Avengers lately, but whether or not that's what we play tonight is still up in the air (like Thor or Iron Man). You can help sway the vote by checking out the Twitch Tuesday discussion topic and leaving your feedback and casting your vote. I'm looking forward to see what gets picked and to picking up the controller tonight to play some games with you all!

A song came out recently that is about the Bionicle character Lerahk, in a way. Mabel Ye's My Bionicle Boy can be heard on YouTube, bandcamp, and various other places where music is streamed or sold. Lyrics for this charming acoustic number are at the YouTube link above.

Later this week BZPower is celebrating its seventeenth anniversary! Seventeen years of Bionicle community and discussion is so amazing and it makes me proud to be a part of all this. In celebration, we'll be kicking off some raffles (hopefully) every day this week leading up to the big day. We're starting off with 17th Anniversary Little Raffle #1, giving all members a chance to win 70212 CHI Sir Fangar, and 17th Anniversary Big Raffle Primary, which gives you a shot at the classic Bionicle set 8981 Tarix in exchange for a small donation to the site. All of the raffles will end on July 31st, with prizes shipping out sometime after I return from BrickFair Virginia on August 6th. Good luck and here's to many more!

Father of Bionicle Christian Faber has recently posted a new video on his YouTube channel. Go watch Rebel Vlog 1.5 for an update to his recent giveaway of classic Bionicle memorabilia and a little discussion of the Rebel Nature project and the previously-promised new Cryoshell songs. Looks like we still have a few more weeks until the next installment, but I'm hoping it'll be a good one!

Shortly after the set itself was unveiled, LEGO has now shared the designer video for LEGO Voltron Defender of the Universe, the most ambitious LEGO Ideas set to date. Go watch LEGO set designer Niek van Slagmaat and graphic designer Mark Tranter talk about the process and the many iterations it took to make this set a reality. I think it really shows Niek's passion for the project and helps explain many of the trade-offs that had to be made for it to be possible. It definitely makes me more excited for this set and to chat with Niek about it during BrickFair Virginia next month!

It's Christmas in July! This time around we're going to be building the 2017 LEGO Employee Gift - 4002017 Nutcracker. This is a Technic set complete with a working mechanism and should be a fun build! Join us to watch at noon tomorrow on July 14th over at the BZPower YouTube channel. Of course there will be some giveaways as well, and we look forward to seeing you all there!

Forbes.com has unveiled three new sets for The LEGO Movie 2 that will be on display at San Diego Comic-Con next week! The first features Emmet, Lucy, and Ultrakatty against a Duplo invader. The second is an Escape Buggy with Emmet, Lucy, a new character named Sharkia, and a Metalbeard who's lost some weight (and limbs) since his last adventure, plus a cheerful-looking heart and star. The third, Sweet Mayhem's Systar Starship, includes Emmet, Lucy, Sweet Mayhem, and the aforementioned heart and star. Follow the link above for pictures and more details!

Today LEGO revealed what appears to be the last exclusive coming to this year's San Diego Comic Con. Apocalypseburg Unikitty is coming straight from The LEGO Movie 2 and really matches the tone we see in the trailer. You can check out the images over on Twitter. Let us know what you think of this new look for Unikitty in the Talkback!

The past few days have seen some of the exclusives LEGO will be giving out at San Diego Comic Con being revealed on their social media accounts. For Marvel and DC fans, you'll have a chance of getting Sheriff Deadpool or Black Lightning. Of course it will involve getting lucky in their lottery system, but that has been revamped and will hopefully make it more fair and less crazy. There's a good chance there will be a few more to come, so keep your eyes peeled!

Recently we've seen a lot of MOCs posted on BZPower from the BIONICLEsector01 Legends and Infamy Contest, and since I'm not involved in it in any way I can share one of my favorites here with you all! The stark contrast in the colors of Shadow Lord Tahu stood out to me immediately and caused me to take a closer look. I think my favorite part is the flames coming out of this corrupted Tahu's hand, symbolizing his elemental power in a way we don't usually see. I also like all of the sharp edges and spikes, making it very clear that this Toa is no longer a hero. Definitely give this MOC a closer a look, and while you're at it, check out the rest of the contest entries!

I look forward to seeing you all tonight over on the BZPower Twitch channel for our weekly live videogaming session. The fun starts at 7:30 PM Eastern, as per usual, and will run for around an hour or so. You can help us pick what we play by voting in the discussion topic. See you all there!

We're finally getting around to sharing the winners of the latest BBC Contest here to congratulate the builders of some awesome MOCs. Coming in first place were Cezium & Djokson with Involuntary Symbiosis, followed by Ballom Nom Nom & Sparkytron with The Big Catch in second place, and The Secret Walrus & Jayfa with Yin and Yang in third place. Go check out the BBC Contest #75: Results! to see the full results. Thank you everyone who participated - this contest was a great experience to watch builders pair up and make some great creations. We have some ideas for different things for some future contests, so keep your eyes peeled on BZPower for more opportunities to win great prizes.

Following some recent security upgrades that complicated paying for BrickFair, the cost of registering for the event has been reduced. Now, instead of a $20 early-pay discount, all BrickFair registration fees have been reduced to $65. There's still a payment deadline of July 20th for avatar tiles, name badges, MOC cards, and having your name printed in the Program Guide. Will we see you there? Let us know in the Convention & Event Planning forum!

Bionicle's original run had a rich story that got started on the tropical island of Mata-Nui, captivated fans for nearly a decade, and even helped LEGO survive as a company. But it all began with an original concept that evolved and changed into the toy line we've all enjoyed. But what was that original concept like? BZPower Member The Shadow Imperator has put together an excellent document detailing many ideas that were either altered or dropped altogether, like the early characterization of the Toa, Makuta, and even the great beings. He's pulled together a lot of sources to make this a thorough write-up, including answers from Alastair Swinnerton, the writer of the original Bionicle story bible. If you're a fan of Bionicle, it makes for a very interesting read, and be sure to thank The Shadow Imperator for putting this all together!

It's time we catch up on the recent LEGO Ideas projects that have achieved ten thousand votes of support and will be entering the next review phase. There's three that we've missed in recent weeks: International Space Station by XCLD, SpaceX - The Ultimate Collection by Matthew Nolan, and Steamboat Willie by szabomate90. It certainly seems like the space community keeps a close eye on Ideas, since we've had about ten projects based on real life spaceships that have been turned into sets or been considered. The last project is interesting since it's based off an existing license but with a classic twist. Would you consider purchasing any of these models if they were turned into sets? Let us know in the Talkback!

Remember that scene near the end of The LEGO Movie with the stop motion videos submitted by fans? It looks like LEGO and Warner Bros. are doing it again, but different! The Awesome Building Buddies Competition challenges you to team up and combine your two favorite things into one awesome creation. It's an interesting twist that will hopefully get people inspired and excited. The deadline to enter is July 31st at 11:59 PM Central European Time, so put on your thinking caps and get building!

Better late than never! The newest episode of Build & Banter is here for your viewing pleasure. Go check out Episode 4: Jurassic Journey to see ChocolateFrogs and Xccj talk all things dinosaurs and the Jurassic Park series while they build the Owen and Blue BrickHeadz set. There's some great discussion about the films and their place in our culture as well as the BrickHeadz theme and why it is like it is. Now that this is done, we should probably go plan our next episode out. See you all then!

Building on their past partnerships creating the Volvo L350F Wheel Loader and Volvo EW160E sets, Volvo Construction Equipment and LEGO Technic took their relationship a step further this year, using feedback from kids to create a concept of what the future of wheel loaders might look like! A press release on Volvo's site explains how a team building event became a concept autonomous vehicle known as the ZEUX. LEGO Technic will also be releasing 42081 Concept Wheel Loader ZEUX this August with 1189 pieces and costing $139.99 USD. Follow the link above to read more or read on to watch three videos of how this concept and set came about!  

There are a lot of different Kanohi masks in the Bionicle universe, but it's not quite an exhaustive amount. BZPower member Legodudelol was thinking the same thing and so recently asked, "What Kanohi would you like to have seen in Bionicle?" Head over to the Storyline & Theories forum to join the discussion - share your mask ideas and comment on how effective you think the ideas others toss out could be! Who knows, you might inspire someone or be inspired to use a power in your own story or creation.