Building bricks

LEGO and Me

I started with DUPLO, and even after transitioning to the classic LEGO System, I would occasionally return to it. There's a beauty to the simplicity of the blocks, and their compatibility with the LEGO System made them very useful.

One of my earliest and most memorable newly-bought sets was the Temple of Anubis (5988) from the Adventurers line—a birthday gift that perfectly aligned with my childhood obsession with Ancient Egypt, fueled by 360-degree photographs in Encarta, the Franco-Belgian Papyrus comic and its TV adaptation, and, of course, The Mummy. Nowadays, I am more fond of this pulpy approach to Ancient Egypt than Ancient Egypt itself, perhaps.

A huge part of my childhood LEGO experience was second-hand, mostly from my dad’s old sets and the random lots he’d buy. As a result, I grew up with a lot of 70s and 80s sets—Town sets, Castle sets (even one of the Black Falcons fortresses). I distinctly remember him bringing home a collection of Fabuland once. We reassembled them together, and though he eventually sold them, I still think fondly of their charming designs. I never had any of the so-called “girl lines” like Paradisa or Belville, but I always liked their soft pastel colors whenever I saw them in stores and catalogs.

For a brief moment, I even ventured into the weird world of Znap. As I understand it, I had shown interest in K'NEX, and my parents, firmly loyal to LEGO, figured their in-house alternative would be the superior choice. The line flopped, sure, but I do think it was quite interesting.

Then came Slizer and RoboRiders. Those small, canister-contained sets were my first taste of Technic-based action figures. Then Bionicle arrived and changed everything. The early years of Bionicle were mesmerizing: the techno-tribal aesthetic, the deep mystery, the collectible masks, the online adventure game. I was all in. Those first few years of lore were perfection. The introduction of the Toa Nuva felt a bit of a step down, though, and when the story shifted to Metru Nui, something about the new setting and tone just didn’t capture me the same way.

LEGO Harry Potter* was another major fixture in my later childhood. Naturally, I was obsessed with the franchise, but the LEGO sets were fantastic even outside of their licensed appeal. They were playful, filled with tiny whimsical details, and prioritized fun over strict accuracy. They encouraged alternate builds, which made them feel infinitely replayable. But after the third movie, it felt like the whimsy was lost, and worst of all, the minifigures switched to flesh-colored faces.

The last theme worth mentioning is probably LEGO Star Wars. My first set was the Podracing bucket (7159). It barely resembled the actual pod racing scene from The Phantom Menace—but who cares? It is a LEGO bucket! Over the years, I picked up some Star Wars sets, but I never really prioritized them. I do remember enjoying the early LEGO Star Wars video games.

Modern LEGO

The modern LEGO era arguably began with the changing of the greys. With it came an increased focus on licensed sets. That's not to say licensed sets didn't exist before (as I've illustrated earlier), but I feel like, for example, that the earliest Harry Potter and Star Wars sets were unrestrained by their cinematic inspirations.

The worst trend (for me personally of course) to come out of this modern LEGO era is the sets for adults. Though an incredible feat of luck, I actually obtained dozens of them for a steal. They look like sturdy detailed builds, but dang, I miss the creativity and imagination that are needed to overcome part and cost limitations.

There's definitely some nostalgia speaking. Not every experiment was a hit, in multiple senses of the word. For every Znapf (which I consider a noble failure) there's a Jack Stone.

Mega Bloks

During my last trip to Disneyland Paris, such a long time ago, I committed what is a cardinal sin in my family: I bought a Mega Bloks set. A small set of their Pirates of the Caribbean line that was sold in the hotel's gift shop. It definitely felt flimsier than LEGO, but it also looked a lot more realistic. I still appreciate it, and I've tried to collect more of it on flea markets over the last few decades. So far I only got a handful more of such small sets (mostly duplicates) and one bigger set. I've even picked up other lots of random Mega Bloks pieces, with the intention of using them to create dioramas recreating settings from the movies and online game.

Later, much later, LEGO launched their own POTC line. It honestly pales in comparison. And I think that actually illustrates my core qualm with licensed LEGO. I think that it often doesn't make for good LEGO sets since it aims to evoke films very directly, but due to the constraints of the medium it also can never truly replicate it. Mega Bloks was different. It's got detailed figurines, complicated and somewhat realistic textures, and it doesn't shy away from massive one-off elaborate pieces. It makes for a product that is quality-wise definitely inferior, but also one that because of this gets much much closer to the look of the films.

Leftover bricks

Bricklink Studio

Bricklink Studio is such a fun software tool to digitally build LEGO with. It is, however, frustratingly unclear how I can contribute missing parts.

Clone bricks

There are several brands other than LEGO offering compatible bricks. Of the Chinese manufacturers, GoBricks seem to be well-regarded. They provide bricks to brands such as Mould King.