Brick Barbarian

76125 Iron Man Hall of Armor     First of all how cool was Tony Stark's lab and hall of armor in the movie? I mean he isn't even hiding his super cool lab in some underground cave. Instead, he has it under his living room overlooking a sweeping view of the California coastline. The best of both worlds right? Tinker in the lab, watch the game, and picnic on the beach all within a short walk of each other. After seeing that lifestyle, who would want to live in some gothic stuffy mansion and spend all day in a moldy Batcave? Bruce Wayne move over. Tony Stark has been reimagined and is now the centerpiece of the cinematic superhero universe!      Gee can you tell I like Ironman more than Batman? I do. Personal feelings aside though, this is a great set. It would have been nice to see it more fleshed out, but that would also mean more parts and a higher price point. Bigger sets pound for pound do not always equal higher profits.      To get an idea...

Lego Manor Von Barron Haunted House Set 10273    Pharoah has heard our pleas! Finally, Lego is giving us a Creator Expert Haunted House. This set is supposed to compliment the roller coaster, carousel, fairground mixer and Ferris Wheel. The question is does it compliment those previously released sets?      Lets take a look at the insanely popular Haunted House from 2012. At $180 dollars, it was the high price point set of the Monster Fighters line. It was built in a modular style. The gothic worn exterior reminded fans of those old spooky gothic mansions right out of a Lovecraft story. At the same time, the house blended in with the modular buildings. It was the perfect fit for a city street. Every time I looked at it, I expected Herman Munster to walk out the door with his 10 gallon lunchbox.     Fans have longed for a reboot of this set. Prices on sealed Haunted House sets have more than doubled at $368. Even in used condition they have appreci...

Lego Animals     Ah yes, animals. We all love them. Farm animals, wild animals, and domesticated animals have all filled our hearts with joy and wonder. In the Lego world animals can provide some serious bucks as well.     To be clear, I am going to take a look at Lego animals that come in the regular sets. Animals that come in Duplo sets will be a separate discussion at another time. Let's do this.      The first animal, the goat, came out in the Village Mill Raid set back in 2011. To date, this is the only mini figure scale goat Lego has ever done. How much has this little guy appreciated? He currently resells at 31 dollars a pop. The retail price on the set he came in was 70 dollars. Granted, his value is high because Lego has not done another goat. In any case, if you have one hang on to him.          A couple of years ago, I was going to buy one off Bricklink. At the time, the goat was reselling at around 20 dollars...

   This is the one I bought for my son back in 2000.  Lego Haul Slave 1  20th Anniversary Edition  I bought the   first Lego Slave 1 for my son when he was really tiny. He did manage to build it. Of course all these years later, the mini figures are MIA. Luckily, he still had most of the parts in a bin including the black brick with the frozen Han Solo printed on it. A few years ago, he donated the bin to me. He declared he outgrew them. I just smiled. Like we outgrow our favorite childhood toys right? As a tribute to him, I decided to make it my mission to get every Slave 1 set built and on display on my shelf. Well, the 20th Anniversary Slave 1 did arrive yesterday. Some sets, you don't invest in. Rather, you build. This is one of those. My son won't be here physically to help me build this one. He is out of state. I miss him, and I think this build will remind me of the joy I saw on his face back in 2000 when I bought the first Slave...

Lego Investing Slave 1 20th Anniversary             Yes, it has been 21 years since Lego made the leap and got the Star Wars license. While The Phantom Menace was not 100 percent satisfying for fans of the original films, it did do one important thing. The new Star Wars movies inspired a new generation to fall in love with Star Wars. Over 20 years later, Lego is still cranking out Star Wars sets. This line accounts for almost half of all the sets Lego releases a year. Yeah, as Ron Burgundy would say, "its kinda of a big deal."      To celebrate the 20 years of acquiring the Star Wars liscense, Lego released sets featuring some of the classic molds and prinings of the original Lego Minifigure designs from that era. Fans are very happy about that, as am I.      The question in this article is what is the resale value of this set? There is a lot to like. It is a smaller scale detailed build of the UCS Slave 1 that re...

Brickmania Kit PT 109 Review          Yes, I did break the bank and purchased this set at Brickfair VA in 2019. I think I walked past the set at least a dozen times at the show. Finally, I decided it was now or never. I knew the set was not going to be restocked any time soon. It was near the end of its print run. They only had two copies at the stand. At a retail price of about 2000 dollars, it was the most I had ever spent for any Lego or Lego Market build. The only question is was it worth it?     Everything about this set was as close to Lego excellence as it could get. The instruction manual was easy to read and follow. The box was durable and well packaged. The colors in the instruction manual were crisp and distinct.     This was a complicated build. I worked on it on and off for six months. There were times, I had to step away from it not out of frustration, but because the unique design began to fill my imagination. It pr...