Episode 352 (and 353 and 354)

Read the comic here.

Ian always has Sandstorm's powers manifest as special effects - I wanted to use real sand. I ran out of time, though, and had to go with tan bricks. I think the effect is okay, even if I did make sure to explain it in-strip so people would know what was going on.

I'm traveling to SuperCon this weekend - and as such I probably won't have access to the site to make changes. To keep everyone happy, I've posted Friday and Monday's strips early. To get to them, either click "next" from today's strip or use the archive and jump by date. You're on the honor system not to peek ahead. (Yeah, that's going to work out.)

This also means that Buy-Me-Mizer orders placed while I'm gone will ship on Tuesday. It's not much of a delay, but I thought I'd mention it. All orders placed (as of this writing) are off to the post office this morning before I leave.

Everyone play nice!

And, speaking of playing nice, if you're missing Whiskey's classic look, be sure to read today's S-Team strip!

Episode 351

Read the comic here.

...Sounds like a groovy plan to me.

LEGO Steampunk in 50 Bricks or Less

Keeping the steam going from the FBTB Steam Wars contest, Reasonably Clever is pleased to announce the following:



This contest will run from February 1st until March 15th - click the logo above to read the full details, rules, and list of prizes!

Episode 350

Read the comic here.

Yes, another new set. This one I'll get a few days use out of, at least. For those of you concerned about the fate of Scotch or Morpheus the cat, they both return with today's episode. They were, as I mentioned in blog comments, just waiting in the car.

("What car???" you ask? Well, one cobbled together from Advent Gifts, I guess. I dunno. It happened off camera. Maybe it'll be the focus of a mini-series years from now. "Whiskey Tango: From Whence the Car?")

Normally comics etiquette would require a misunderstanding leading to a fight between the two teams before they could work together, but I've decided to count Slick's tasering as the fight and just move on with the story.

For those of you with a life...

Some of you might be wondering why Google has this as their logo today:

The reason? The LEGO brick turns 50 today. (Well, sometime in January, anyway.)

Happy birthday to the solution to, and cause of, all my problems.

Read more about it a the LEGO Press Release.

Episode 349

Read the comic here.

A lot of work goes into this strip that you guys never see. Stupid, needless work. For example, today's strip features an extension of the concert stage set - a new baseplate added to the site with some "backstage" set dressings. Can you make out ANY of that in the strip? Not really. So I had to go with a "narration moment" to tell you where you were looking at. *sigh*

Sandstorm's "juris-my-diction crap" line is lifted from the opening scene of the Matrix.

Finally, does anyone else think Shellshock looks inappropriately pleased to see Slick being carted off to jail?

Buy-Me-Mizer Update

I added a few new parts to the Buy-Me Mizer today.

Two new legs: Spring Blue and Spring Dark Blue
Three new faces: Pepper, Dudley, and another eye-patch variation
One new helmet: Stormtrooper
Three new torsos: Red Haltertop, Black Space II, Stormtrooper
Two new neckwear options: White Fringe, Yellow Fringe

Total Combinations now at 109,901,610,000

ALSO: I've gotten a couple of emails about people getting an error when adding multiple figures to their cart. From what I've been able to trace down, this is being caused by you having a figure in your cart for a while, then coming back and adding more figures later. The best solution I've found is to just clear your cart and re-add the figures - that seems to clear the error. If you're still having trouble, please comment or email me.

Workbench: Ian's Steamwheel

Partly as a gesture of goodwill, partly just to see if I could, I spent some time last night trying to convert Ian's Steamwheel from a LEGO CAD file into reality.

Its going...okay. Some of Ian's color choices haven't been released by LEGO so I'm having to tweak the color scheme a bit. There are also a couple of small design glitches (gears not meshing, parts not fitting exactly right) that I don't think anyone could have spotted in the LCAD environment.

Still, it's an interesting challenge. Of course, if this wins over my Steampunk Falcon over in the FBTB contest, I'm going to demand choice parts from Ian's prize set... ;)

Episode 348

Read the comic here.

And thus ends Whiskey's brief reign as a David Lee Roth impersonator. But with both Whiskey and Slick in the hands of the cops, there's sure to be some twists left before the S-Team depart.

Whiskey's line "And I would have gotten away with it, too." is straight from the ending of every Scooby-Do mystery.

If you look in the background of the last two panels you'll see that Smokescreen has finally returned, pizza in hand.

Episode 347

Read the comic here.

Unlike Whiskey, I'm not much of a Van Halen fan. Luckily for me, there's this thingie called the internet that let me access things like the band's play list for the 2007/2008 tour.

So, for those of you who don't know every track, Jamie's Cryin', You Really Got Me, and Get Me A Doctor are all Van Halen classics performed in the current tour. I tried to get that across with the musical notes established in previous episodes...

Oh, and if anyone doesn't get the "Don't Taze Me, Bro" thing, here's an informative link.

Episode 346

Read the comic here.

Ouch. That's gotta hurt.

Episode 345

Read the comic here.

My wife's comment when reading this strip? "Damn, that's one big taser."

Maybe the rent-a-cop is over compensating for something.

Episode 344

Read the comic here.

Yes, another new set, one I'll probably only use this once. But some observations just have to be made.

Rest assured, things get chaotic tomorrow.

Falcon updates

Spent a couple of hours tinkering today. I think the results were worthwhile.



The link goes to a teaser page of new images - I'll work stuff into the main article tomorrow.

Epidode 343

Read the comic here.

Ian, of course, has created his own special effect for Silence's teleportation. I have no idea how he generates it, so I made up a new one. Neener.

In retaliation, I hope to vex Ian with my introduction of the S-Team's remote communicators - that's a really tough piece to find. (It was a detail bit on a promotional mini TIE Fighter a couple of years ago.)

Nifty, but also Spooky

Looks like Google Maps has updated their photos of my town.

Steampunk: The Falcon of the Millennium

Here it is - my first big venture into Steampunk.



Click the link to begin the adventure! Then come back here and talk about it. :)

Steampunk Falcon in Action

Here's a short video of the Gearing/Engine of the Steampunk Falcon.

For demonstration/play purposes both pistons are linked together causing both propellers to spin when you move any part of the system.

In the "Real world" each piston would control a single propeller, allowing for better load balancing/lift configuration.



[ Back to the Main Article ]

Episode 342

Read the comic here.

Today we get a better look at Science Guy's lab - the set is a bit deeper than the one Ian uses, but I had that huge teleporter prop to fit into view...

Stretch isn't quite right, there's more than half the team left. Two members of the S-Team who didn't bother to show up at the lab: Stallion and the Scarlet Swordmistress. You can blame that fact on my being too lazy to build them just to cram them into the background.

That said, I'm sure I will take the time to build them so they can be in the background tomorrow.

The first draft of this had Science Guy's final line as "You should learn to trust in the AWESOME POWER OF SCIENCE!", but once I decided on the teleporter's sound effect, the repetition was just too much. His new final line reads like something a real-world techie might say to a co-worker who just doesn't get how things work. I imagine Science Guy has to dumb down his explanations quite a bit for Stretch.

Epidode 341

Read the comic here.

Sorry the strips have been running late - I keep forgetting to add in time to build duplicates of Ian's sets. Of course, I could have done that a lot earlier, but I'm sooooo close to finishing my Steampunk ship...and you know how it is when you're soooo close to finishing a MOC. Other projects seem to slip past you...

Anyway, today we have another copy of a set - this time Science Guy's Lab. You really can't see it that well, but trust me, I went and found photo references and everything.

I debated whether Science Guy would balk at using his teleporter...or balk at being that close to Hannah Montana. I figured the first joke was just a smidge more interesting.

The teleporter was is actually part of a long-abandoned Tramp Freighter project. It was part of the star drive at one point...

Someone else's Contest

For those of you wondering why I haven't posted a new Contest yet, it's because I've decided to enjoy someone else's for a change.

That's right, I've been sucked into

Click the picture to read all about it. (Pops)

Steampunk has been on my mind a lot lately - I was playing around with it a bit when Ian sent me a LDraw Model he had been working on. Then several of my friends emailed me about this contest. I knew I had to enter.

My entry will be ready in the next couple of days - I just need to finish up the engine area and do a bit of detailing. Look for the big reveal this weekend.
(And here's hoping no one else submits a much better rework of the same ship before then!)

Anyway, no new Reasonably Clever Contest until this one has run its course. We'll start something up for the Feb/March timeslot.

Set Review: (8150) ZX Turbo Racer

Yes, yes, I know I'm behind in posting these.

Here's the next of my set reviews: the ZX Turbo Racer (Set 8150)

Click on the link or the picture to check out the review, then come back here to share your own opinions!

Epidode 340

Read the comic here.

Yes, the S-Team cameo is more than just Stonewall and Smokescreen chatting at a concert.

For today's strip I had to build my own copy of Ian's Monitor Room. It's somewhat frustrating to do - Ian owns a huge pile of all the LEGO parts that I don't own, and he insists on using them.

Ah well. It's enough for me to be able to suggest that his characters stand around betting on if emergencies are real or not.

Epidode 339

Read the comic here.

As you might have guessed, Ian Healy's S-Team will be featured pretty heavily as guest stars over the next couple of weeks. And, no, it's not going to end well.

Episode 338

Read the comic here.

Yes, Whiskey took the time to dress up like David Lee Roth. I guess all those clothes he got for Christmas came in handy after all.

Episode 337

Read the comic here.

Is that Hannah Montana's band or the rest of Van Halen? I dunno. I just put a couple of minis together. I don't know if you'll ever get a clear shot of him, but for some reason Robert Smith from the Cure is on keyboards.

So. How many of you think Whiskey is going to go wait in the car with Scotch for the concert to end?

Episode 336

Read the comic here.

Today we have a bit speaking part for Stonewall and Smokescreen from Ian's S-Team. (As well as a line from "The man in the dark blue hat.")

With all the potential mayhem in the air, it's probably a good thing that some super-heroes are around.

New Parts in the Buy-Me-Mizer

I added a few new parts to the Buy-Me Mizer today.

Two new legs: Sand Red and Light Blue
Two new faces: Female Rock Raider and Rebel Trooper
Two new helmets: Rock Raider an Rebel Trooper
Three new torsos: Dark Blue Hoodie, Bomber Jacket/w pistol, Rebel Trooper

Total Combinations now at 107,123,309,568

I have some more parts on the way in - look for another part update later this month.

Episode 335

Read the comic here.

"And then the wheels came off."

A better look at the Stage Set

By request, here's a better look at the full "Stage" set from the new story arc in Reasonably Clever's Reasonably Clever Web Comic.

Click the picture above for a very huge version that lets you see a lot of the detail.

I'll take some more supporting shots later this week.

2008 Avent news! Yes, already.

This was pointed out to me in the comments over the weekend - thanks to "anonymous", whoever you are.

Over at Brickset, they have a list of new sets for 2008. It's full of spoiler-y goodness.

There's one thing on the list, though, that I just have to share with everyone now. (The image was taken from Brickset, who apparently got it from Eurobricks. credit where it's due.)

Anyway, check this out:

Yes! A new theme for next year!

And check out this fuzzy bit of detail:

The jester hat is cool, if of limited use. I'm more excited about that new corset torso piece. And the inclusion of that rare long-hair wig as part of the set.

Mmm, Mmm, Good.

Episode 334

Read the comic here.

This is the first time we've seen Whiskey blissfully happy in a very long time. Too bad it couldn't last for more than three panels.

Yes, that's a new set - I'll get some detail photos up later in the week.

And, if you look into the background, you might just spot some famous faces from the S-Team making an unannounced cameo. They'll have a small speaking role later in the week, so stay alert!

Epidode 333

Read the comic here.

For those of your angsting about the color of Whiskey's trousers (both of you), you can rest easy - he's gone back to the well-worn pair of jeans we're used to seeing him in. As to the rest - I'm going to give it a couple of weeks and see if the look annoys me or not, then make changes as necessary.

The concert tickets are my way off of the plane of infinite grey - I was building a concert set for another side project and decided it was foolish not to make use of it in the strip as well.

Episode 332

Read the comic here.

For those of you who missed the "Wigswap Theater" post awhile back, Whiskey is wearing the new hairpiece that comes with the latest Anakin Skywalker figure (Set 7669).

I'm still playing around with the idea of the "new look for Whiskey" being a lasting change - I do think it's time he had at least a bit of a makeover.

In Other News...

Just a few minor things.

• The 2007 Advent Battle has been archived off of the main comics page.
• I'm trying to come up with a good "Deep Winter Contest" that can run through Jan/Feb. I've read a couple of good suggestions so far (One-Man Fighter, Vigs) but I'd like to hear from more of you as to what you're interested in building at the moment. Also, what you'd like to see as prizes.
  
• There was record snowfall yesterday, but the streets have all been plowed and traffic was normal this morning. I think this is a first for Michigan.

Episode 331

Read the comic here.

The torso I've been using for Whiskey's Jacket is indeed from 1993 - at least, that's when it was first released. It was quite popular in the 1990's, showing up here and there until 1999. There was one last re-issue in 2004's City Airport - and then nothing.
LEGO has been putting a lot more detail work into their torso designs lately; it's not shocking to see this rather plain bomber jacket fall by the wayside. Personally, I'm in favor of the trend - I think it gives the minis a lot more personality.

Hello, 2008!

Happy New Year, everyone.

Hope that 2008 brings you all that you wish it to.

Transfomer Challenge - The Results!

The December Challenge is O-VAH!

Midnight has come and gone here in Michigan, and that means I can upload the entries and results of this challenge.

Before I get to that, however, let me first say Thank You to all those who participated. This, as it turns out, was a real bitchkitty of a contest. Maybe the reason there aren't many transforming LEGO sets on the market is because they're really, really tricky to make.
(Crowd to Doyle: DUH.)

We had one more entry before zero-hour, bringing the total Transformer Army to nine. Click on the grid to go to the contest page, where you can check out each entry in detail!

Go ahead. I'll still be here when you get back.

All done? Cool. Then you know who won, who placed, and who tried.

I couldn't have picked a better batch of winners. We had a very multi-faithed winner's circle. - from the commercialized Santa, to a Nativity (well, sort of), to a Jewish dreidel.

Hearty congrats to the three builders who will be receiving prizes: George Fox, Pumpkinetics, and Jonathan Skinner. Look for an email from me later today, guys.

I also want to showcase the work of Phillip Thorne, who sent in a "Contest Non Entry" of his unfinished, but still kick-butt works-in-progress. Check them out here. (Love the hat choice on Santa. Wish I had used that in the strip.)

Finally, Doug7172 had a couple of entries that didn't make it in before deadline, but just barely. Please take a moment and check them out as well.

Once again, thanks to everyone who entered, or at least thought about it!

Now it's time to start brewing up the Deep-Winter Challenge....what shall we build this time?

VS

Epidode 330

Read the comic here.

I thought I'd start the new year off with a bit of gratuitous LEGO nudity. It looks like Whiskey still isn't wearing any underpants. (A fact revealed back in the BrickHouse days)