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Saturday, November 28, 2015

LEGO Technic Getaway Racer review! set 42046


Here's the second modest-sized, pullback motor-powered Technic set to be released for the 2016 season.

2015 LEGO Target Exclusive Minifigure Gift Set


Details of this year's minifig cube leaked out quite early in the year, but finally it has landed in Target stores.  It features one representative each from DC Super Heroes, Ninjago, Chima, and City, each with something new.

LEGO 2015 Gingerbread House reviewed! set 40139


LEGO's seasonal giveaway items are usually really nice, but this to me is just fantastic and delicious!

Wednesday, November 25, 2015

LEGO City 2016 Police Pursuit review! set 60128


In recent years, red trucks driven by LEGO crooks have been caught by a floatplane, a hovercraft, a big SUV, and a tiny ATV.  How will this one fair against what could be the fastest (in-universe) LEGO City police car of all time? Kids will have decide for themselves, but for now, here's a set review.

LEGO Star Wars: The Force Awakens C-3PO polybag


My area is usually behind schedule in getting new products and these LEGO Star Wars Episode VII C-3PO polybags just went up at Toys R Us stores in my area.

LEGO City 2016 4x4 Off Roader review! set 60115


Another new LEGO City race-themed vehicle set here, this time going for the trophy truck style, sort of...

LEGO Technic 2016 Display Team Jet review! set 42044


This is a small & cheap set that I think would make a great Technic starter set for many young aviation fans.

LEGO Creator Chopper Transporter - ALL 3 builds reviewed! set 31043


Things are getting pretty small in scale now, and to think, there are still some smaller 2016 LEGO Creator sets yet to review!

Monday, November 23, 2015

LEGO Technic 2016 Police Interceptor review! set 42047


My first review of one of the new "2016" LEGO Technic sets.  This one's an SUV with a pullback motor, roughly 6" long with a nice build.

LEGO City 2016 Race Boat review! set 60114


Here's a new small LEGO City racing boat (possibly a drag boat, if you like) with a brick-built hull.

Sunday, November 22, 2015

LEGO 2015 Winter Fun reviewed! set 40124


Final seasonal vignette set for the year!

LEGO Creator 2016 Park Animals - ALL 3 builds reviewed! set 31044




Here's another new Creator set that pours on the cute factor with a dog & duck, an owl, and a squirrel as its three official build options.

LEGO Creator 2016 Fast Car - ALL 3 builds reviewed! set 31046


Here's my first look at one of the new 2016 LEGO Creator 3-in-1 sets now starting to show up in stores.  In addition to a car, this can be officially built into a truck and a skid steer loader with the included instructions.

LEGO City 2016 Garbage Truck review! set 60118


I liked playing with toy garbage trucks from a very, very young age.  It felt satisfying to have a proper job to do and to load up any sort of cargo unsorted & transport it away.  LEGO seems to agree, and has come up with this new play-focused vehicle to keep miniature streets a little cleaner all around the world.

LEGO City 2016 Rally Car review! set 60113


After catching up on three rounds of European Rally Championship on TV today, it's fitting that I should kick off the 2016 set review season with the new official LEGO rally car :)

LEGO 2015 Santa's Visit reviewed! set 40125


Santa Claus has come to LEGO-town with another 8-stud-wide seasonal vignette set.

Saturday, November 21, 2015

Custom LEGO hospital MOC progress #3


Recently I've mentioned that I was unsatisfied with how little MOC & city work I've been able to do, and I promised to expend extra effort to correct that deficit.  I've been doing just that, and this week finally made some time to get back to my hospital.

Unfortunately I have just over one further week of breathing space before the next huge LEGO release season begins and all effort diverts back to the foundation of the entire JANGBRiCKS channel (new set reviews), but I'll try to make the best of the remainder of this intermission :)

Friday, November 20, 2015

LEGO Mars Mission MT-31 Trike from 2007! set 7694 review


I feel like I've had Mars Mission sets around me for months (probably because I have), so it sometimes feels a little awkward that I keep having more to build & show :)

LEGO Alpha Team Navigator & ROV from 2002! set 4792 review


Adding a little more to my underwater collection, this is one of the smaller subs from the Deep Sea Mission sub-theme of LEGO Alpha Team.

LEGO Insectoids Planetary Prowler from 1998! set 6919 review


It's not an insect, it's not an insect-like thing, it's just a wheeled vehicle that, in-universe, is disguised to look insect-like :)

LEGO Life on Mars Red Planet Cruiser from 2001! set 7311 review


Only my second LEGO Life on Mars series set, small & quite funky.

Wednesday, November 18, 2015

See the LEGO Wall-E official neck fix in action


Brickset reported overnight that LEGO published an updated Wall-E instruction manual that includes a long-awaited fix for the free-swinging neck.  I went ahead & implemented the fix on my own set to show you all how it works.

It's quite a simple rebuilt done with very ordinary parts and it barely changes the external appearance of the model.  

Sunday, November 15, 2015

Mega Bloks Halo Promethean Weapons Customizer Pack review!


Another small MB Halo pack that just started hitting store shelves this past week.  I do like the Forerunner stuff!

Mega Bloks Halo Spartan Armor Customizer Pack review!


This looked like it'd be another straightforward Mega Bloks Halo figure pack review, but then I noticed something unexpected and, in my opinion, both unsettling & unnecessary.  It won't be an issue for everyone, though -- watch the full video and see what you think.

Friday, November 13, 2015

McFarlane Walking Dead Prison Catwalk, Upper & Lower Cells, Boiler Room review!


I've previously reviewed the 2014 Prison Tower & Gate set as well as a few other boxed products from this line and even some figure blind bags.  This year a bunch of products arrived out to add to the prison complex, and I decided to cover all of them in a single video covering, as always, both positive and negative points as I see them.

Thursday, November 12, 2015

LEGO Star Wars Magnaguard Starfighter from 2008! set 7673 review


Here's another slightly obscure Star Wars ship that LEGO only made once, and that I rather like.
Don't be surprised when you see this taken out of a sealed box in what appears to be a future Bricklink haul -- YouTube time is not real time :)

Wednesday, November 11, 2015

LEGO Mars Mission MX-41 Switch Fighter from 2008! set 7647 review


Mars Mission!  One more down & still more to go :)

A look through a LEGO catalog from 2002


I still have a stack of these things and get my hands on new (old) ones every now & then.  In the midst of reviewing old sets it's interesting to occasionally take a look at how LEGO presented entire product lines together, back in their day.

Saturday, November 7, 2015

LEGO White & Red Bricks Holiday Bauble Ornaments opened!


I previously checked out the "gold brick" version of this and a lot of folks appreciated the look, so I've finally gotten caught up with the other two options currently available in the LEGO shop.  The quantitative difference between these two is really surprising.

LEGO Alpha Team Helicopter from 2001! set 6773 review


I previously thought Alpha Team was one of the series I didn't like from LEGO's weird period of the late 90s to early 2000s, but this is the third of those sets I've reviewed and the third I've genuinely enjoyed.

LEGO Technic Robo Riders "Dust" from 2000! set 8513 review


I recently finished up my reviews of all of the Slizer / Throwbot sets and found another of the successor sets from the Robo Riders line in my to-do queue.  These were small sets, and this one in particular is fairly simple in its design, but I feel it's well done for what it is.  I especially appreciate its ability to stand upright without aid in spite of the motorcycle based design.

Friday, November 6, 2015

LEGO vs. Hasbro! Star Wars TFA Millennium Falcon comparison


Finally, here's the brick-based vs. traditional toy comparison I've been most looking forward to this year.  Hasbro's new big "Battle Action" Millennium Falcon was released earlier this week and I was quick to pick it up & check it out.  It's a good deal larger than the LEGO version and has more action features, but it's lacking in interior play space.  The price difference between the two is almost negligible, though, making this an interesting and delightfully fair fight.

What do you think?

All Things LEGO Dimensions so far (updated Nov. 6!)


Updated with new wave 2 item pack videos & others (bolded) November 6, 2015!

I've invested a ton of work (and play!) into LEGO Dimensions and have collected together links to all of the related videos I've uploaded to date.  I'll bring this same post up to date on a regular basis as new content is produced!

General
Physical toys - figures & gadgets

These are looks at the real-life minifigures and playable side builds that come with various Dimensions sets.
Build With Me

The Dimensions add-on sets all unlock in-game, digital, playable content and are fully intended to be purchased by game owners.  Most of the stuff has no physical instructions -- to wisely save trees & reduce costs, you get instructions on-screen in the game.  However, plenty of folks have shown interest in some of the exclusive figures and builds, so I came up with the idea of real-time build videos guiding folks who don't own the game through some of the more popular assemblies. Instructions are also available in PDFs on the official Dimensions site, but lots of folks enjoy calm videos, I've found :)

This is footage captured from me playing the normal, linear, single-player campaign levels that come with the basic Starter Pack.  You can play through the entire game without purchasing any add-on content.
Gameplay - Other

I'll also be covering every add-on level from official Level Pack sets, in addition to doing some "free play" exploration in the unlockable Adventure Worlds, one for each theme.

LEGO Hot Wheels Star Wars First Order Stormtrooper Car MOC


Whelp, it ain't perfect, but it's done, for now.  It's my 6-wide / Speed Champions scale squint-your-eyes rendition of the Hot Wheels Star Wars The Force Awakens First Order Stormtrooper Car.  If that isn't a mouthful, I don't know what is.

LEGO Tipper Truck from 1975! set 435 review


Here's an oldie!  This was from back when LEGO vehicles were still quite tiny, though the product had long since outgrown its HO scale roots.  In some regions this little dump truck was marketed as set 612.

Wednesday, November 4, 2015

LEGO Dimensions Super Angry Kitty physical replicas


After trying out the LEGO Dimensions Unikitty Fun Pack I couldn't help myself; I had to build these ludicrous rage mode versions.  They're over-the-top silly in game, and the fact that they're inspired by real blocks that allow them to be translated directly into real form is some form of magic insanity.

Mega Bloks Call of Duty Legacy Heroes figure pack review


Like the last big box o' Halo figures, this Mega Bloks Call of Duty troop pack started out at $25 USD, which is a stupendously low price for 16 of these highly-articulated micro action figures.  Just unbelievable value.