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Monday, September 30, 2013

Mega Bloks Hot Wheels Twinduction set review!


When I was a young kid, I loved Hot Wheels. I even still have one today that formed one of my earliest memories (it was first released in 1976 and the one I had as a kid was new!). Now, the thought of mixing Hot Wheels and brick-based building systems sounds like an easy win-win, but it could also be a real let-down if the sets are designed poorly.  Time to give it a shot!

Three LEGO Star Wars Planet set reviews


I've always been curious about these odd little sets and finally decided to take the plunge & try a few out.  I went with one each from series 1, 2, and 3.  In the videos are my thoughts.  What are yours?

Saturday, September 28, 2013

KRE-O Star Trek Enterprise ship construction set review!


Here's one for the Trekkies!  I just saw Into Darkness earlier this week after it was released to digital media.  I had already purchased this set by then, but what good timing!

K'Nex Mario & Angry Birds mystery pack openings


Trying out a couple new themes today from K'Nex!  These are actually compatible with LEGO & Mega Bloks (etc.) bricks, for the most part!


Friday, September 27, 2013

Mega Bloks Call of Duty RIB Beach Assault set review!


Another of the new Mega Bloks CoD sets, quite a bit smaller than the last.  This one is not my favorite of the lot.  In fact, it's my least favorite.  Even at that, it's still not a bad set.

Mega Bloks Call of Duty Chopper Strike set review


Here we go with a larger set from Mega Bloks' Collector Series Call of Duty releases for this year!  Looking pretty good.  More to come.

I forgot to mention one thing in the video, though.  The JANGBRiCKS Mega Bloks Curse did strike once again.  One part that was supposed to be black came through as gunmetal gray instead.  You can see it in the nose if you look carefully -- there's a gray stripe through what is otherwise an all-black sub-assembly. At least there were no missing parts this time!

Thursday, September 26, 2013

JANG's LEGO city (non)-update

I feel very awkward doing this.  Over the past couple of weeks the number of requests for an update video about my LEGO city has again increased dramatically.  I pretty regularly promise viewers that whenever there is an update to show, I will show it.  I have not shown any update recently because there is nothing new to show :-/

Because so many folks are requesting an update regardless, here it is, showing what my city looks like now; same as it did the last time I showed it.  Really sorry guys. I simply cannot show what doesn't exist.

Video: JANG's LEGO City (non)-update

Again, as I say constantly, when there's something new to show in my city, I will and do show it!

Bionicle / Hero Factory MOC: Zeyek


Now here's a subject you don't see me covering much anymore -- Bionicle!  Though I crossed the character to the Hero Factory universe, good old Zeyek will always be most fondly remembered from his days as a Bionicle chronicler.  This here is the first time I've really highlighted the simple figure on video, including highlighting his transforming feature that nobody noticed before1

LEGO small vehicle MOCs 9/25/2013


Just a couple very small LEGO cars and one small truck here. Nothing fancy, nothing special!

Tuesday, September 24, 2013

Mega Bloks Halo Forward Unto Dawn reviewed


Here it is!  Almost 15 pounds of pieces, 2,877 count in all, assembled into an over three foot long, 1/500th scale model of a capital space ship!  Enjoy!

Sunday, September 22, 2013

Mega Bloks Call of Duty toys are upon us! My first review!


I only just found out about the Mega Bloks Call of Duty line a few days ago, and as it turns out, they're already hitting store shelves!  Sneaky!  This is a big deal, guys & gals.  Not only is CoD a hugely popular & successful franchise, but the figures included with these new Mega Bloks sets are nothing shy of fantastic with their realism, articulation, and ability to be customized.  Even if you are anti-Mega Bloks, this is something you should have a look at.

Saturday, September 21, 2013

LEGO Creator Winter Village Market set 10235 Review!


The Winter Village Market is one of those very special sets of the year that comes together into a whole group of assemblies that collude to force you to absolutely love them.  The 1200+ pieces for just $99 give it a big head start on value, alone, but the wins don't stop there.

Friday, September 20, 2013

LEGO Chima set 70013 Equila's Ultra Striker set review


One more Legends of Chima set review to help with my effort to get caught up!

Mega Bloks Halo Orange Combat & ODST Battle Units


Another double-header here with two of this year's Mega Bloks Halo figure multi-packs.  I'll be doing a couple more soon as well.

Two more Legends of Chima Speedorz set reviews


Two more new reviews of older Legends of Chima Speedorz sets for y'all today! 

I swear I'm going to do some custom speedorz at some point.  Every time I open one of these sets I get that twinge of inspiration, and it's only a matter of time before it pushes through and something happens!

Thursday, September 19, 2013

Mega Bloks Halo 97065 Versus: Snowbound combat pack review


This is an older set, but it's been sitting on the shelf staring at me, challenging me to buy it, and I finally gave in!

Best-Lock Stargate SG-1 Death Glider set review


Talk about catching me off-guard!  I never knew such a thing as this existed.  Apparently the line was announced last year and started hitting store shelves around early January?  As a devout fan of Stargate SG-1 during its run, I was partly shocked to see a mainstream toy made for it so long after the series' demise, and partly elated at what I hoped would be the tip of the iceberg.

Now, I know many folks would see the [insert-company-other-than-LEGO-name-here] brand name and immediately explode with disgust without any real knowledge about the product.  I chose to give the thing a chance, without prejudice.  Check out how it turns out!

LEGO Minecraft micromob population explosion!


Minecraft, anyone?  Wait, I've used that leading question before.  Well, here we are again, more LEGO Minecraft stuff, this time all micromobs, including extras of the official 'mobs from the Forest, Village, and Nether sets, plus some revamps and some new characters of my own.  I'm doing the new ones the best I can without custom paint or stickers, and each has involved experimenting with a ton of part permutations to arrive at what I'm personally most happy with for now!

Mega Bloks Halo 97011 Warthog Resistance set review!


Here's another current, but previously-released Mega Bloks Halo set.  This one includes the unforgettable and unmistakable Warthog with its standard armament, plus three figures, a Forerunner structure, and one powerful Spartan weapon.

Tuesday, September 17, 2013

Mega Bloks Halo 97014 Covenant Wraith set review!


Many times I've seen this set in stores, and part of me definitely wanted to buy it (even before I started reviewing Mega Bloks sets), and another part definitely did not want to buy it.  There's an element of the design that really bothered me, and I discuss this in the video.  Ultimately, clearance pricing at my local Target store made it feel silly to not buy this set, and to my surprise, what I liked most about it were things I had previously overlooked altogether -- the figures!

Two new polybag set reviews, VW T1 Camper Van & Friends Ice Cream Stand


Two videos today, both covering little bag-based sets, both acquired through promotional offers (one of them going on right now -- see the left sidebar!).

Saturday, September 14, 2013

About Hero Factory hero MOCs...

I know a lot of you have asked for me to do Brain Attack hero MOCs.  I hear you, but I just haven't been able to muster up the motivation or creativity to make it happen.  The biggest problem for me is that the Brain Attack heroes have that distinguishing visor feature.  With so few compatible head & visor options, there aren't many different "faces" I can create.  Given that a face really defines the look of a character, I fear I would settle into just doing upgraded or alternate versions of the core heroes LEGO already made. If I attempt to use other head builds that skip the official visor piece, I know from experience that viewers won't be at all happy.  So, I'm in a real bind.  I feel a need to break away from the official styles altogether and just do my own thing my own way.

I am absolutely committed to continuing the use of my very large collection of parts to make more Hero Factory MOCs going forward, but they will consistently receive less attention than the far more open & free brick-based creations that so many more people enjoy.

Update and apology!

Hey everyone, sorry about the slow updates on the blog this week!  My life has been more hectic and busy than usual for the past little while and thrown into the middle of it all was a swap to a new computer that has left a lot of things in shambles and in-between states as I try to get everything set up again.   As you can see from this evening's posts, I have maintained my commitment to pumping out videos on a regular basis regardless.

Here are some of the things that are coming up soon:
  • Three more Legends of Chima set reviews including two older Speedorz
  • Still more Mega Bloks Halo items, including a stack of current battle packs, two older vehicle sets, and the absolutely epic Forward Unto Dawn (which I have finished!)
  • A few random Kre-O mystery pack figures I picked up from a theme I've never before touched
  • A Best-Lock brand set review, if you can believe it (I could hardly believe it myself)
  • Full video overviews of Zeyek and his starship, long delayed but still coming!
  • A full explanation of the old "Order" storyline I had going for Hero Factory, along with clear video overviews of some of the characters and a reveal of another Brotherhood of the Light character MOC.

LEGO Ninjago set 70505: Temple of Light review!


I've had the Ninjago Temple of Light set complete for weeks now and I just haven't gotten to doing the final review video all of this time!  Finally I get caught up with this one!

LEGO Chima 30252 Crug's Swamp Jet set Review!


This is just a polybag set and Toys R Us was giving them away in an in-store promotion if you purchased a certain dollar amount of other LEGO items.  I actually very much like how this one goes together.  It's think it's small & simple, but awesome and fun.

Mega Bloks Halo transparent figures, new & old


This week I uploaded videos of three Mega Bloks figures I bought on eBay, all with see-through bodies.  Two are old, one is new & current, but all three are new to me :)

LEGO Friends series 3 animal polybag reviews!


I purchased and reviewed all three of the new LEGO Friends series 3 animal polybag sets, two of them featuring exclusive new colors of previous animals, and one 100% new!  Check 'em out:

Saturday, September 7, 2013

New LEGO Chima Speedorz reviewed: Furty's Swamp Jump, Croc Chomp, Tower Target


For a lot of Legends of Chima fans, this here is a surprise.  LEGO dropped three brand new, and fairly special Speedorz sets on us, just past the Summer vacation season.  All three feature slick transparent speedorz, and we even get a new race! 
Is this really it for 2013, or will we start to get the "spring 2014" sets early as well?

LEGO Series 11 collectible minifigs: I got 'em all!


The 11th set of mystery-packed LEGO minifigs came out this week and I've got all of them on YouTube, with openings in four groups of four figs each, followed by a wrap-up featuring all 16 of the little things and a little talk about my favorites. 

Mega Bloks Forward Unto Dawn progress


The build of this 2,800+ piece set is well underway.  Here's the first really quick update.

Wednesday, September 4, 2013

LEGO Minecraft The Village & Nether set reviews!


About five months ago I reviewed the first LEGO Minecraft set when it was a one-off Cuusoo release. I've played a lot more Minecraft since then. Today, I'm happy to have in my hands two whole new sets that make this into a fledgling theme!  I liked the first quite set a bit, but my opinions on these two new micro worlds are quite different!

Custom LEGO Shell gas station & car wash MOC


You may have seen the makings of this in my most recent train video, but it wasn't nearly complete or ready to show at that time.  Now I've fixed all that!
This is the first part of what will be a two-part combination with an adjacent auto repair & tune-up shop that will fill up one awkward diagonal corner of the main commercial neighborhood in my city.  It's fun stuff!

Tuesday, September 3, 2013

Mega Bloks Halo 97129 UNSC Pelican Gunship set review +bonus


This review of Mega Bloks' Halo 4 Pelican has been a long time coming.  Folks who regularly follow the blog will know why.  Folks who don't, will find out in the video anyhow :)  I certainly could have done without the wait and frustration, but the end result of it all is very satisfying nonetheless.
As a bonus, I have yet another Mega Bloks Halo series 7 mystery pack video, my last!  That's right, in this one you'll get to see me completing my collection of these figures, except for the remaining uber-rare active camo units!

Sunday, September 1, 2013

New LEGO Minecraft sets incoming, new free offers from the Shop

Last night I ordered the two just-released new LEGO Minecraft sets, the Micro World The Nether and the Micro World The Village, both online exclusives. They'll arrive soon and I'll be eagerly reviewing them! If you're personally interested in buying either, I'd suggest ordering soon as they're likely to sell out like the original did thanks to the combination of fans and scalpers investors.
 

I've shown my own humble first actual Minecraft world on video and late last week started up my second world to take full advantage of the long-awaited title update 12 on the Xbox.  I'll be looking into the details of the new LEGO sets to see how close they came to replicating the "real" thing ;)

In other news, there are new freebies available from the LEGO store!  Check 'em out:

FREE Exclusive Mini Volkswagen T1 Camper Van with purchases of $75 or more!  Valid 9.1.13 - 9.30.13 or while supplies last.

FREE Exclusive Clone Trooper™ Lieutenant with LEGO® Star Wars™ purchases of $50 or more! Valid 9.1.13 - 10.31.13 or while supplies last.

I wasn't even aware of the Clone Trooper one until after I checked out last night and saw they had added it to my order!  You know what that means, though, right? Aside from the Minecraft sets, I made another Star Wars purchase! Any guesses as to what?  Here's a hint:  It's big!