You are certainly familiar with this book which I have already told you about on the blog and I think it is an essential book if you are proficient in English. Do not hesitate to get it or better, have it offered to you, you will certainly spend long hours consulting it ...

Released in 2009, this richly illustrated book retraces over 296 pages the history of LEGO from the creation of wooden bricks to the most recent video games drawn from the various licenses. It is fueled by many anecdotes and will allow you to become unbeatable on the LEGO world. In addition, this work in English comes with a second booklet entitled " standing small »Entirely dedicated to minifigs.  It is available in its first edition for around 30 euros on Amazon.

Editor Dorling Kindersley announces a new edition of this work, the content of which has been updated for this year. On the menu, information on LEGOLAND parks, on the diversification of LEGO activities in the field of video games or films, etc.

On the other hand, no mention of the presence of the second book dedicated to minifigs. Wait and see ...

We know a little more today with these presentation brochures provided by the publisher Dorling Kindersley.

LEGO® Batman: The Visual Dictionary whose coverage has evolved further since the one I presented to you here a few days on the blog (And it will certainly change again by the time the book is released) will therefore contain all the sets of the Batman range released in 2006-2008, as well as the entire LEGO Super Heroes DC Universe range released in 2012. At first Seen, the book seems neat and well documented. An exclusive minifigure will be provided, but still no information on the character concerned.

The presentation text clearly mentions the presence of Superman, Wonder Woman (They are present on the cover) but also of Green Lantern which we had not heard about since the San Diego Comic Con in 2011 ...

In addition, DK is also announcing a new sticker book based on the Batman universe: LEGO® Batman Ultimate Sticker Collection. I'm not particularly a fan of it, but some collectors will certainly be in line tonight to get this book as soon as it comes out .... pre-order on Amazon for € 9.60.

The high definition visuals are finally available on the official LEGO website. Small precision for all intents and purposes, these images are in the cache of the LEGO site because they will be used to illustrate the sheets of the products when they are sold on the LEGO Shop. These are not photos stolen, nor stored there by mistake.

As a reminder, all these sets except the 6865 Captain America's Avenging Cycle are already listed at Amazon:

6866 Wolverine's Chopper Showdown  
6867 Loki's Cosmic Cube Escape 
6868 Hulk's Helicarrier Breakout    
6869 Quinjet Aerial Battle 

4529 Iron Man 
4530 Hulk 
4597 Captain America 

Click on the thumbnails to view the visual in large format, please note these images are in very high resolution:

We almost all agree that the set 6860 The Batcave did not revolutionize the way of interpreting this place. Children can play with it, but the older ones still look for the walls of ... the cellar, the cave, the underground ...

In short, Orion Pax had already proposed a vision of the Batcave all in darkness and in rocks populated by bats. Outer Rim Emperor, which now offers its Batcave MOC, admits to having been largely inspired by the work of Orion Pax and the result is once again rather pleasant.

The Batcave actually looks like a ... cellar that Batman has taken up residence in. This MOC is full of details, the rocky surfaces are finely executed and the Batmobile is very successful. So, I suggest you let go of your RIS episode and go on the Outer Rim Emperor flickr gallery or its MOCpages space to discover all the hidden treasures of Batman's lair.

There are the MOCeurs who create according to their inspiration, their budget and their attention to detail without taking into account the technical and commercial constraints that LEGO imposes on itself to design its official sets and there are the others ... Those who try to produce MOCs by trying to respect the usual codes of the manufacturer in terms of price / content ratio, finish and marketing / financial compromise ...

Nuju Metru has embarked on an ambitious project that began long before the official announcement of the LOTR range by LEGO: To propose a series of MOCs, or rather alternative sets, which could form a range of products marketed by the manufacturer. The result is astonishing: We find the spirit of the sets in the range System, with its ends of walls, its pieces of places and its functionalities intended to bring the essential playability to the whole.

Each of the six sets is skillfully thought out and very well done. We find there the usual techniques of the manufacturer with the obvious choices that must be made to ensure a certain commercial realism.

Some will find these MOCs disappointing because of their simplicity, but this style exercise should not be viewed as a simple attempt to create micro scenes in the universe of Lord of the Rings. The sacrifices that are made here have obviously been well thought out.

To discover all the sets of this parallel range, go to the flickr gallery by Nuju Metru. It's full of great shots featuring these mini scenes that all compare to the official LEGO Lord of the Rings range.