South Africa Welcomes Its First LEGO Brand Store in Johannesburg

Just last week we made mention of a new LEGO Brand Store in North America, which will open November at Greenville in South Carolina, making it the 94th LEGO Store in the North America. And LEGO is obviously not stopping from there, and more upcoming stores are lined up to open their doors to LEGO fans the world over. For instance, this Saturday, South Africa finally had the distinct honor of having a LEGO Store of its own. The country’s first ever LEGO Brand Store in Johannesburg, located in  Sandton City Mall, opened its doors to greet the eager LEGO fans across the city. While the country isn’t out of reach for LEGO products on retail, having a branded store makes things even better.

Not only will LEGO sets, minifigures and assorted merchandise be available at the Sandton City LEGO Brand Store in Johannesburg, the main draw is of course finally giving South Africans a good shot at LEGO’s direct-to-consumer (D2C) products.

LEGO Brand Store in Johannesburg
This brick-built mosaic is displayed proudly inside the LEGO Brand Store in Johannesburg, depicting the country’s ‘Big 5’ wild animals.

It being a notable occasion for LEGO with its first named store in South Africa, the venue was blessed with some pretty impressive displays. Two of the most prominent are a 15,041-piece brick-built mosaic portrait depicting the “Big 5” wild animals of Africa, along with a scale model of Johannesburg built by zaLUG.

irzhjphjm5eb8b7fzg9esr 970 80

We offer a big round of congratulations to South Africa for their first LEGO Store, and more LEGO building fun for many years to come.

DK’s LEGO Animal Atlas Now on Reduced Prices Of As Much As 30% Over At Amazon

We’ve gone over, in the past, a good number of official LEGO books recently published and released by the company’s steadfast print partner Dorling Kindersley (DK). Granted, most of those books that came out were franchise titles, whether LEGO’s own or licensed elsewhere. But there have also been DK LEGO books with more “generalized” subjects. Take for instance this volume, the LEGO Animal Atlas. Released two months ago, it contains a mini-encyclopedia of some of the world’s most familiar animals, along with building tips from UK-based AFOL gurus such as Jason Briscoe, Rod Gilles and Simon Pickard, to help child readers construct LEGO brick-built animals. As a bit of a trivia, the LEGO Store Monthly Mini-Build for the month of August (which is a Toucan by the way) is also featured in this latest LEGO-inspired DK offering.

As if the LEGO animal-building instructions weren’t enough, the LEGO Animal Atlas also takes pages from its licensed-property brethren. But where LEGO Star Wars or LEGO DC Visual Dictionary might have a minifigure included, the LEGO Animal Atlas comes with a 60-piece LEGO brick set, with enough specific elements to build four particular creatures featured in the book.

LEGO Animal Atlas

LEGO Animal Atlas

Currently you can find the LEGO Animal Atlas online at Amazon, where it has recently undergone a hefty price cut of more than 30%. Here’s the full description of the book as posted by Amazon.

LEGO Animal Atlas: Discover the Animals of the World and Get Inspired to Build!

An atlas of animals with 60 bricks to build four exclusive mini-models: panda, penguin, giraffe, and kangaroo.

Discover the planet’s amazing animals with specially commissioned LEGO® models and maps. Which animal gobbles up 4,000 clams in one meal? Where can you find a snail as big as a baseball? The LEGO Animal Atlas has answers to these questions and a whole lot more. The book is packed with fascinating facts, images, and building ideas for more than 110 models of the world’s most awesome animals. 

A detailed LEGO map, dotted with charming micro-build creatures, introduces each of the continents. The maps are followed by colorful spreads featuring up to seven LEGO animals in their habitats. From a cute koala in the Australian outback to a mighty lion prowling the African savanna, this book showcases many of the world’s favorite animals–plus some unusual sights, such as the bizarre blue-footed booby and the mysterious giant squid. 

The models are built with mostly standard bricks, and tips and breakdowns will inspire children to create their own animal models. A combination of clear photos, authoritative text, fun facts, and classic LEGO humor helps children learn as they build and play their way around the animal world.

Rolls-Royce UltraFan – The Ultimate Jet Engine Qualifies for LEGO Ideas’ Second 2018 Review Stage

For those who have been keeping up with us on our coverage of new Product Ideas on LEGO Ideas that have passed the 10,000 support mark, they might think the initial trend of “high-techie” aspiring official sets was broken with Steamboat Willie and the M&M Dispenser. But now the prevailing theme’s back in full force with the next LEGO Ideas project gaining the 10K thumbs-up of approval from LEGO fans: the Rolls-Royce UltraFan – The Ultimate Jet Engine.

This next Review-ready Product Idea is courtesy of LEGO Ideas member DanCodd. Instead of perhaps yet another tableau to the glory of the private aerospace company SpaceX, we get a pure intricately technical model of a  new, energy efficient, jet engine.

Jet aircraft history buffs can tell us all about Rolls-Royce being one of the top jet engine designers and manufacturers in the world, and their UltraFan is subtitled by DanCodd in his Product Idea as “The Ultimate Jet Engine”. That’s no exaggeration since the Rolls-Royce UltraFan – The Ultimate Jet Engine has more than 20,000 pieces to boast of! Now just to be clear, if ever this project sees the light of day as an actual LEGO Ideas set, then the designers will have a bit of a challenge in their hands on how to compress this mammoth MOC into a viable. trimmed down, LEGO set.

Rolls-Royce UltraFan - The Ultimate Jet Engine

Look at the structure of the UltraFan in these photos. From the fan-blades to the engine interior, the whole setup is mind-blowing. And DanCodd claims that his proposed project for LEGO Ideas is overly simplified as it already is! It also features a handle mechanism that actually turns the blades when cranked.

5083279 172897004 small VLUN Kn0igawqA thumbnail full

With the support gained by the Rolls-Royce UltraFan – The Ultimate Jet Engine, the number of Product Ideas that’ll go to the Second 2018 Review Stage for future LEGO Ideas sets have grown to six. DanCodd’s submission has some heavy competition in this batch, but his set’s ready for the challenge.

LEGO Star Wars Porg (75230) Official Images Spotted at Ukrainian Online Retailer

Remember back in the early days of Star Wars: The Last Jedi in UK cinemas, when brick-built statues of those adorable Porg creatures popped up in the streets of London? Horrendous as they may seem for some, most LEGO Star Wars fans however, simply loved the idea of having a LEGO Porg set that they can bring home with them. We are also aware that the LEGO Star Wars Porg (75230) is really going to happen when back in June, a Dutch online retailer listed the set in their database. And this time around, we finally have a glimpse of their official images.

The LEGO Star Wars Porg (75230) involves perhaps one of the most breakout popular alien creatures ever conceived in the latest Star Wars franchise. It’s amazing how many times before we managed to get tangible documentary proof of announced but unrevealed LEGO sets from some far-off sources. This time, the one that showed photos of the original box for LEGO Star Wars Porg (75230) for everybody’s consideration, was discovered by Promobricks at an online toy retailer in the Ukraine.

LEGO Star Wars Porg (75230) There’s also an image of the completed Porg (75230) model, which also gets a standing plaque similar to the LEGO Star Wars Ultimate Collectors’ Series sets. The most fascinating features of the model are its articulated flippers, a mouth mechanism to open and shut that meme-worthy mouth, and flipping wings. The back of this avian model is impressively detailed as well.

And that’s about it. The Ukrainian retailer hasn’t put their price for the LEGO Star Wars Porg (75230), where elsewhere it’s listed as €80/$95, before images were even shown. But now we know what the Porg model looks like, so it’s up to LEGO Star Wars fans if they’re up to getting this set. It does look purposely hilarious.

Hong Kong MTR Celebrates the LEGO Brick’s 60th Anniversary

Just to remind all LEGO fans out there, this year marks the 60th Anniversary of the LEGO Brick; and though the major celebrations for it might have already passed, there’s still enough places in the world where LEGO can be found announcing their milestone in a very memorable way. In Hong Kong for example,  The LEGO Group has partnered with the Mass Transit Railway (MTR) system to launch a special express train decked out in LEGO décor and fanfare. Particular Hong Kong MTR trains will sport its special LEGO 60th Anniversary theme from Friday, July 27, to August 15 next month.

From the walls, to the seats, to the sliding doors, Hong Kong MTR commuters to this express on the Tsuen Wan line will be greeted by some LEGO CMF Series 18 characters, as well as the ubiquitous 2×4 LEGO brick.  Warm wishes for LEGO’s 60th anniversary are also plastered everywhere.

Hong Kong MTR

The temporary decking out of this LEGO-inspired Hong Kong MTR train was arranged by Troy Taylor, LEGO general manager for Hong Kong, Macau and Taiwan. The cheery, generally yellow motif of the express’ interior was carefully chosen to, in Taylor’s words, “make sure it is fun and engaging.”

Another collaborative work by LEGO, this time with Facebook, has led to the development and launch of an AR filter featuring the minifigure characters and designs from the tricked-out LEGO Hong Kong MTR express. So far, the filter seems only available for Chinese users. Watch how it works in the  video clip below.

LEGO’s New Advertising Campaign Concept Invites Fans to Imagine and Build the Future

Being a well-established toy brand with a wide reach across the globe, LEGO makes sure that its brand and image remains easily remembered and recognizable the world over, not just for its wide variety of products but also for its distinctive spirit of play. That’s why they spare no expense when it comes to developing new advertising campaigns that are sure to grab everybody’s attention. And this new campaign, courtesy of the Ogilvy & Mather agency in Bangkok, looks beautiful, artistic and full of LEGO meaning. They were conceptualized by O&M Senior Art Director Asawin Tejasakulsin, and are divided into two slogans: Imagine and Build the Future.

AsawinTejasakulsin 05 768x529@2x

The Imagine LEGO ad posters feature some magnificent brick builds that are integrated into an ordinary room’s furniture, creating something more magical than mundane. See that LEGO King Kong brick-build turning a speaker tower into the Empire State? How about a dragon providing fire for that stock pot? With LEGO, imagination simply becomes reality.

Build the Future

Meanwhile, Build the Future gives an inspiring message for the little kids who love LEGO and whose time spent playing with them might inspire their careers tomorrow. The message can’t be any clearer with the children making brick-build “shells” of what they might want to be when they grow up.

Build the Future

While we’re looking forward to the day when LEGO will release these posters on a new ad campaign for their brand, you might as well want to check the rest of Asawin Tejasakulsin’s Imagine and Build the Future ads.

 

LEGO Brand Stores Reportedly Accepting Pre-orders for the LEGO Harry Potter Hogwarts Castle (71043)

We always try to bring you all the LEGO news that’s fit to share here, but these past days the only bit of news that gets talked about is the official reveal of LEGO Harry Potter Hogwarts Castle (71043), and all the nitty-gritty details and secrets its micro-scale structure holds. There’s really not much more to tell about 71043 that hadn’t been told before. It arrives on August 15 for LEGO VIP members, and September 1 for everybody else. The set’s already listed on shop.LEGO.com too. But perhaps this little update warrants attention: some LEGO brand stores are now accepting pre-orders for the LEGO Harry Potter Hogwarts Castle (71043). Reports have been coming in from LEGO shoppers that certain LEGO brand stores they’ve been to lately have notices put up at their front doors. The message, apparently, is quite clear: “Ask us about how to Pre-Order our new Exclusive.”

pre-orders for the LEGO Harry Potter Hogwarts Castle (71043)

Our fellow LEGO news source, The Brick Fan, has also picked up on this news. On their official Facebook page, at least one happy LEGO fan has confirmed that his local LEGO Store has been accepting pre-orders for the LEGO Harry Potter Hogwarts Castle (71043), with a receipt snapshot to prove it. It’s real.

This would have to be one of the nicest things LEGO has done for the fans yet. Now, the only thing left to clarify is if the 71043 preordering is good for all LEGO Stores or just a select few. We suggest Potter-fans who want this epic set contact their nearest LEGO Store in their area for confirmation.

LEGO Park People Exhibit Now on Display at Houston

If you’re a fan of LEGO by any stretch of the imagination, then there’s nothing like the feeling of marveling at a large brick build that’s been put on public display. But it could be even better if the LEGO construct was exhibited in a free-roam public place, like the brick-built Porg statues put in London’s walkways last year to promote Star Wars: The Last Jedi. One particularly notable display of publicly-accessible LEGO artwork is one called as Park People, the brainchild of artist-lawyer and LEGO Certified Professional Nathan Sawaya. He has already made this exhibit in public parks of several cities like Los Angeles, San Diego, Las Vegas and Washington, DC. Now the next stop of Park People is the south, in Houston, Texas.

At the park benches in 1200 Smith St. outside the Allen Center, visitors may find a series of near life-sized LEGO brick-built people, each one using a single color scheme and posed sitting and relaxing on the benches. Park-goers are not only free to take pictures but also to directly interact with the Park People as if they were real.

Park People

Carol Watson, Events Manager of Brookfield Properties Arts which sponsored Sawaya’s Houston leg of Park People, notes the interactive and reflective nature of the LEGO figures on display. “I mean, you have the orange LEGO human who’s in lotus position,” she points out. “So, if you sit down, you can get in to a meditative state or you can sit down and have a conversation with somebody, but it’s also a way to engage with other people.”

Park People remains on display in Houston up until August 10, where it will take a short break before being re-exhibited at the Houston Center, 909 Fannin St., from August 13 to 24. Visitors to the LEGO figure displays may take photos and selfies, and play-interact with the Park People, but for safety considerations the organizers won’t allow eating and drinking, smoking, or climbing on the brick guys. There’s no price for admission.

LEGO Star Wars Collectible Trading Cards Coming In August

Like any other well-established LEGO line, LEGO Star Wars has long been developing a good variety of products for both LEGO enthusiasts and Star Wars fans to enjoy. There have been plenty of starships, imperial and rebel war machines, minifigures, and even buildable figures – and this time, we will be seeing a LEGO Star Wars collectible trading cards sets very soon.

For the LEGO purist, this may seem to be unattractive, however, its quite clear that LEGO and Lucasfilm now have their sights in coming up with a full range of LEGO Star Wars collectible trading cards. This remarkable piece of news was broken by Promobricks, meaning it’s probably going to start becoming available in Europe before going elsewhere. The cards will be launched by the publishers of the LEGO Star Wars magazine, the first stop being Germany.

LEGO Star Wars collectible trading cards

The collection itself is of a respectable size with 252 cards total, each depicting, whether solo or in groups, all minifigure versions of every prominent Star Wars character in the film trilogies and major spin offs. Furthermore, 24 of those cards will be “Gold” Limited Edition cards, likely referring to the material used to decorate them.

Additionally, Promobricks reports that packs of the LEGO Star Wars collectible trading cards will start coming out as early as August 11 in Europe, and some Gold cards will be available as special extras on certain issues of LEGO magazine publications, not just with LEGO Star Wars.

Here’s a list of the known sources for the limited edition LEGO Star Wars cards, courtesy once again of Promobricks:

  1. LE01 – Yoda (August 11) – starter pack
  2. LE02 – Obi-Wan Kenobi (August 11) – LEGO Star Wars magazine #39
  3. LE03 – Luke Skywalker (September 8) – LEGO Star Wars magazine #40
  4. LE04 – Old Han Solo (September 13) – 5! Magazine 10/18
  5. LE05 – Chewbacca (October) – Extra Pack
  6. LE06 – Anakin Skywalker (September 18) – LEGO Ninjago comic #27
  7. LE07 – Rey (August 11) – Multi Pack
  8. LE08 – Poe Dameron (August 11) – Multi Pack
  9. LE09 – First Order Trooper FN-2187 (August 11) – Multi Pack
  10. LE10 – Clone Captain Rex (August 11) – Multi Pack
  11. LE11 – Darth Vader (October 13) – LEGO Star Wars magazine #41
  12. LE12 – Darth Maul (August 23) – LEGO Ninjago magazine #41
  13. LE13 – Captain Phasma (October 23) – LEGO Nexo Knights magazine #31
  14. LE14 – General Grievous (October 11) – 5! Magazine 11/18
  15. LE15 – Kylo Ren (November 17) – LEGO Star Wars magazine #42
  16. LE16 – Imperial Death Trooper (October 30) – LEGO Ninjago magazine #43
  17. LE17 – Boba Fett (unknown date) – Mini Tin Version C
  18. LE18 – Emperor Palpatine (unknown date)
  19. LE19 – Anakin Skywalker & Count Dooku (September) – Blister Pack
  20. LE20 – Luke Skywalker & Darth Vader (September) – Blister Pack
  21. LE21 – Obi-Wan Kenobi & Darth Maul (September) – Blister Pack
  22. LE22 – Yoda & Emperor Palpatine (unknown date) – Mini Tin Version B
  23. LE23 – Rey & Kylo Ren (unknown date) – Mini Tin Version A
  24. LE24 – Finn & Captain Phasma (September) – Blister Pack

What do you think of these new line of collectibles from LEGO? Will you consider them as a Day 1 purchase? Let us know in the comments below.

Blocks Magazine Issue 46 Features Kessel Run Millennium Falcon and Other LEGO Star Wars Solo Sets

As you already know, Disney Lucasfilm’s second Star Wars Story spinoff Solo ended up a major flop in the box office after the promising performance of its predecessor Rogue One. Some say it was affected by bad fan reactions to The Last Jedi. Be that as it may, the movie still boasted magnificent machines that have made its way to become official LEGO sets. And these sets are the focus of the latest Blocks Magazine Issue 46, marked for August 2018 but available earlier as is the fashion. For their August issue, the centerpiece feature of the month is the LEGO Star Wars Kessel Run Millennium Falcon (75212). This and several other Solo tie-ins will go before the Blocks crew who will tell readers which are worth the buy, and which ones are better off forgotten.

In addition, Blocks Magazine Issue 46 also features an interview with some of the designers behind these latest LEGO Star Wars sets for an inside look on how the Solo LEGO sets were conceptualized, including the famed Kessel Run Falcon. Here’s what Blocks Magazine has to say about their latest issue.

Blocks Magazine Issue 46

Can you have too many Millennium Falcons? Of course you can’t, so this month we welcome the Kessel Run Millennium Falcon to planet Blocks, accompanied by the fleet of Star Wars sets that hit the shops at the same time. We don’t just review the sets, though – we also talk to the designers behind the new wave for the inside story.

We’ve recently been to LEGO headquarters and heard a lot about the direction the LEGO Group’s heading, and it looks like we’ve got some exciting times ahead. But learning from history is also important and that’s what Daniel Konstanski does this month as he explores the LEGO family tree. Do you remember Aquazone? He does, and there’s a lesson under the waves.

Of course, we’ve also got the regular features about technique, buying, showcasing and much more, so enjoy the August issue and don’t forget to get in touch, especially if you’ve been building.

Other feature articles on on Blocks Magazine Issue 46 include their analysis of the LEGO Creator Expert Roller Coaster (10261), a look back on LEGO Aquazone from the ’90s, tips on creating micro-scale vegetation, and an update on their ongoing recreation of the Rope Bridge setting from The LEGO Ninjago Movie.

Blocks Magazine Issue 46 is now available for online subscription, and for more information, be sure to visit their official website right here.