Category Archives: News

Stay current on the latest news and information about LEGO, from sales & deals to new set announcements. We also cover LEGO events and conventions all over the world.

LEGO Despicable Me 4 75583 Minions and Gru’s Family Mansion [REVIEW]

The Despicable Me franchise, which includes 3 movies and a fourth coming out this July, as well as 2 spin-off films focusing on the yellow banana-loving minions, has been hugely successful, with each film landing in the top 5 grossing films for the year they came out. Hence, it’s no surprise to see another batch of LEGO sets as part of the summer wave. The first set we’re covering is LEGO Despicable Me 4 75583 Minions and Gru’s Family Mansion, which includes 868 pieces, comes with 9 characters, and will be available on May 1st for US $99.99 | CAN $129.99 | UK £89.99

The LEGO Group provided The Brothers Brick with an early copy of this set for review. Providing TBB with products for review guarantees neither coverage nor positive reviews.

Find out if the set is as much fun as a banana

LEGO Despicable Me 4 75582 Brick-Built Gru and Minions [REVIEW]

Recently there have been several LEGO sets building characters outside of the usual minifigure scale, like the buildable LEGO Star Wars 75371 Chewbacca and LEGO Super Mario 71411 The Mighty Bowser. These sets straddle the line between play sets and display scenes, offering options for collectors similar to the BrickHeadz theme, and sub-themes like the Star Wars helmets and starship collections. One such set is from the Despicable Me 4 wave, a brick-built Gru surrounded by 5 minions on a rotating base. LEGO Despicable Me 4 75582 Brick-Built Gru & Minions comes with 839 pieces and will be available on May 1st for US $54.99 | CAN $69.99 | UK £49.99

The LEGO Group provided The Brothers Brick with an early copy of this set for review. Providing TBB with products for review guarantees neither coverage nor positive reviews.

Find out if this display set is worth picking up

BrickCon 2024 is laying the Foundations of another year of fun! Registration is now open. [News]

BrickCon is returning for its 23rd year, as the longest-running fan-run LEGO convention and a newly-formed nonprofit. So it makes sense that this year’s theme is “Foundations,” reflecting its new charitable goals that revolve around STEM education. But also in keeping with that theme, this year’s show will boast a dedicated exhibit for those old sets that continue to inspire us today. The convention returns to the Meydenbauer Center in Bellevue, WA on September 5th through 8th, with public viewing days on the 7th and 8th. And as always, adult builder and fans can count on plenty of presentations, games, activities, roundtables, shopping opportunities, and of course displaying for the 12,000 LEGO fans that take in the hall full of builds. Registration is now open, so be sure to visit brickcon.org to get signed up ASAP.

More details on BrickCon 2024 below, including hotel information

TBB Weekly Brick Report: LEGO news roundup for April 20, 2024 [News]

In addition to the amazing LEGO models created by builders all over the world, The Brothers Brick brings you the best LEGO news and reviews. This is our weekly Brick Report for the third week of April 2024.

TBB NEWS AND REVIEWS Did you catch our last Brick Report? Once you have, check out this week’s roundup to read the announcement about May the 4th LEGO Star Wars sets, our review of the new 75382 UCS TIE Interceptor, and unwrapped the new Star Wars GWP.

LEGO Star Wars 40686 Trade Federation Troop Carrier – GWP [REVIEW]

This year marks the 25th anniversary of Star Wars: The Phantom Menace, and there have already been a few LEGO sets announced, like the Podracer diorama and the Droideka. But one of the most iconic characters introduced in that movie, aside from Darth Maul, is the B1 Battle droid. Providing comedic scenes of dialog and utter destruction at the hands of Jedi Qui-gon Jin and Obi-Wan Kenobi, and young Anakin. The latest Gift with Purchase from the LEGO Star Wars theme is a redesign of the battle droid carrier that helped deliver battle droids in the battle of Naboo, in case you don’t already have too many of these clumsy cannon fodder. LEGO Star Wars 40686 Trade Federation Troop Carrier will be available from May 1st through May 5th for a minimum purchase of  US $160 | CAN $TBD | UK £145 from the Star Wars theme.

The LEGO Group provided The Brothers Brick with an early copy of this set for review. Providing TBB with products for review guarantees neither coverage nor positive reviews.

Read on for our full review

LEGO Star Wars 75382 TIE Interceptor: the Ultimate Collector Series returns to its roots [Review]

2024 marks an auspicious year for LEGO Star Wars, as it hits its quarter-century. The theme has evolved and changed a lot over the years, but one mainstay has been the Ultimate Collector Series, which launched just a year after the Star Wars theme’s debut. 7191 X-Wing Fighter and 7181 TIE Interceptor were the first sets to be released under this banner in the year 2000. While the former has seen two re-releases, one of which is on shelves at the moment, the latter has not been re-visited at this larger, detailed scale – until now. With 1,931 pieces, it will retail for US $229.99 | CAN $299.99 | UK £199.99 (non-Insiders can get it from May 4th). Has it been worth the wait? Read on to find out!

The LEGO Group sent The Brothers Brick an early copy of this set for review. Providing TBB with products for review guarantees neither coverage nor positive reviews.

Continue reading →

LEGO unveils Ultimate Collector Series TIE Interceptor and more alongside May 4th plans [News]

With LEGO Star Wars celebrating its 25th anniversary this year, May the 4th was always likely to be a big day for the theme. Today, LEGO has announced their plans for Star Wars Day, including a livestream event, a host of new sets, and some collectible memorabilia. The headline announcement is 75382 TIE Interceptor, which will be the next entry in the Ultimate Collector Series. With 1.931 pieces, it will retail for US $229.99 | CAN $299.99 | UK £199.99, and will be available from May 4th, with LEGO Insiders getting early access from May 1st.

Also arriving from the 1st of May are three Gifts with Purchase, availability of which will be through to May 5th or until stocks last. The main attraction here is 40686 Trade Federation Troop Carrier, which has a spend threshold of US $160 | CAN $TBD | UK £145 or more. The celebrations continue with a livestream event on May 4th, a 25-second film festival, and a coffee-table book entitled ‘The Force of Creativity’, pre-orders for which open on May 1st. More information on all that, as well as set photos, can be found below the jump.

Click here to read more information and see more pictures of the new Star Wars sets!

TBB Weekly Brick Report: LEGO news roundup for April 6th, 2024

In addition to the amazing LEGO models created by builders all over the world, The Brothers Brick brings you the best LEGO news and reviews. This is our weekly Brick Report for the first week of April, 2024.

TBB NEWS AND REVIEWS This weeks news includes Dispicable Me 4 sets, and a companion adventure for the LEGO Ideas Dungeons & Dragons set. Goth fans are weeping over our April Fools fake news, and LEGO announced initiatives to support neurodivergent individuals in their stores.

LEGO, Illumination, and Universal partner to launch Despicable Me 4 sets this spring [NEWS]

The LEGO Group, Illumination, and Universal Products & Experiences have officially confirmed their partnership on a new venture. Contrary to recent speculation sparked by an April Fools’ Day prank on social media, this collaboration does not involve a giant Minion. Instead, the trio is gearing up for the release of Illumination’s highly anticipated film, Despicable Me 4, hitting theaters on July 3. To mark the occasion, the partnership is introducing an exclusive line of LEGO Despicable Me 4 sets, sure to delight fans of the animated franchise. This range features four products, two of which were unveiled today: 75583 Minions and Gru’s Family Mansion and 75582 Brick-Built Gru and Minions. These sets will be available starting May 1st.

Check out these new DM4 sets below!

LEGO announces initiatives to support neurodivergent individuals in stores [News]

The LEGO Group has today announced that they will be implementing a series of measures to make life easier for autistic and neurodivergent children and adults in their brick-and-mortar stores. Work is being carried out with KultureCity, a charity whose aim is to facilitate the implementation of such measures. This is actually not the first time the two firms have worked together; the LEGO House, in Billund, Denmark, has already received KultureCity’s stamp of approval for sensory inclusivity. The aim is for all stores in the USA and Canada to get the same certification this April, with more locations worldwide to follow later in the year.

The LEGO Life Magazine will also receive some minor updates to make it more accessible for everyone. And the LEGO Foundation has also announced five new partners in their Play for All Accelerator program:

  • Social Cipher: a video game platform focused on social and emotional learning for the neurodivergent.
  • Kokoro Kids: A platform in Spanish, Portuguese, and English dedicated to using play for developing emotional skills early on in kids.
  • Mom’s Belief: an Indian-based organization (the largest in the country) approaching the education of neurodivergent children in a holistic manner.
  • onebillion: a software publisher dedicated to publishing reading and math resources designed to help those children in most need.
  • Little Journey: Using technology to bring a sense of ease to families with children amid the healthcare process.

    • Read the LEGO Group’s press release on these initiatives after the bump

New LEGO sets for April 2024 now available for purchase [News]

Don’t be fooled! April 1st means a new wave of LEGO sets hitting store shelves. And while the offerings aren’t as plentiful as those we saw in March, there’s a couple of behemoths that have arrived (for LEGO Insiders only) which are destined to quickly sell-out: LEGO Ideas 21348 Dungeons and Dragons: Red Dragon’s Tale and LEGO Batman 76271 Batman: The Animated Series Gotham City. Check out the highlights from this latest wave below. But for the best view of everything available, old and new, be sure to visit the LEGO website (LEGO US | LEGO CAN | LEGO UK).

Check out our favorite sets in the April wave below!

LEGO Dungeons & Dragons 6510864 Mimic GWP and Red Dragon’s Tale campaign – The adventure continues!

Tomorrow is a very big day for LEGO and D&D fans, with LEGO Ideas 21348 Dungeons & Dragons: Red Dragon’s Tale preparing to hit store shelves. But this massive new set also ushers in a few optional items that go along with it. Beginning on April 1st, the Red Dragon’s Tale campaign book will be available in the LEGO Insiders Rewards shop (US | CAN | UK) for 2,700 points. And if you purchase the new LEGO Ideas set between April 1st – 7th from the LEGO website, you’ll be able to pick up the 168-piece LEGO Dungeons & Dragons Mimic Dice Box GWP along with the massive tower (US | CAN | UK). The GWP may also be available from resellers via eBay. I got a chance to look at both before they hit store shelves. Read on to find out if these accessories are worth picking up!

The LEGO Group sent The Brothers Brick an early copy of this set for review. Providing TBB with products for review guarantees neither coverage nor positive reviews.

Read on for our full review