Today The LEGO Group has shared their latest designer video going behind the scenes of one of their fantastic sets. Head on over to YouTube to watch the LEGO Star Wars 75313 UCS AT-AT Designer Video and hear from LEGO Design Master Henrik Andersen. The skilled designer talks about the challenges and solutions to get such a large set to stand on its own and also shows off the interior and the play features. He hints at some easter eggs, but apparently you'll have to wait until you build it yourself (or read a review) to find out what they are. I honestly wish the video for such a massive set had been longer and gone into even more detail!

The LEGO Ideas team keeps churning out interviews with members of the vaunted 10k Club. In a double-double interview, you can learn about both the Movie Set and The Nanny by Lionel Martin and Max Brich, a duo with two projects currently in review. Then you can head over to meet Andrea Lattanzio, The Creator of A-Frame Cabin who made it to the club for the first time. It's always nice to learn about these builders and their LEGO stories!

To all those celebrating today I'd like to wish you a happy Thanksgiving on behalf of BZPower! We hope everyone has a happy and safe holiday celebrating in whatever manner you see fit. Hopefully there's good food, family and friends, and everything that makes the occasion special for you and yours. I am, as always, thankful for the BZPower community and all the wonderful Bionicle fans I've gotten the chance to meet and interact with over the years. Your passion keeps us going!

Earlier this year, unprecedented flooding impacted portions of Germany, destroying entire villages and causing large amounts of damage. Earlier this week, The LEGO Group and the LEGO Foundation announced a 960k EUR grant to support children and families affected by the disastrous flooding in Germany, with the funds going to the German Red Cross. The money will be used to help rebuild several kindergartens wiped out by the natural disaster as well as to build a family aid center. It's fantastic to see the company helping the local communities in the wake of these horrible events.

BZPower Member Distorted has shared one of his latest builds over in the Bionicle-Based Creations subforum. Go check out Terminal to see what you can do with a couple dozen Toa Metru feet and some interesting techniques. The MOC was created as part of a series at The New Elementary - head over there to check out Old Elementary: Part 2 of the LEGO BIONICLE 20th Anniversary Festival to learn about some classic parts and see what some talented builders have done to use them. But back to the Terminal; I love the splashes of color provided by the dark red feet, the orange elbows, and the trans-light blue pieces to stand out against the silver and grey. The shape itself is almost mesmerizing, like if you stare at it too long you might get hypnotized. Go take a closer look for yourself and see what you think!

A new project has achieved ten thousand votes of support on LEGO Ideas recently: Castle Outpost by xXgGhostXx, who is newcomer to the 10k Club. Clearly showing the passion of castle fans out there, the model features a modular construction allowing you to get to all the nooks and crannies to check out the intricate details the builder included. Perhaps medieval fanatics will get lucky and it will become an official set, but until we know for sure I'll just enjoy the beautiful MOC!

Earlier today, the latest episode of the Bits N' Bricks podcast went live, covering a relatively recent addition to the LEGO games collection: the collaboration between Speed Champions and Forza Horizon 4. Head to YouTube or your preferred podcast platform to listen to Season 4, Episode 41 - When Forza Cars Met LEGO Bricks and hear from Ethan Vincent and Brian Crecente as they talk to former design manager for LEGO Speed Champions Craig Callum, LEGO Game senior producer Jared Bals, and Forza Horizon Creative Director Mike Brown about the partnership. It was really interesting to learn about how the conversation between the two groups started, developed, and became the DLC we now know. I was also intrigued to hear about the process of incorporating the LEGO sets into the reality-based world of Forza and what liberties were taken to make it work, as well as the storytelling side of the experience. Check it out!

In the wake of The LEGO Group's impressive performance in the first half of the year, it looks like the company has decided to pass on a bit of those profits to its employees. As reported by Bloomberg yesterday, over twenty thousand employees will get additional time off and bonuses across the board should see a boost. Hopefully this includes the many factory and retail workers who had to continue to go to their plants and stores during the pandemic and have certainly earned some additional compensation. In any event, it's always nice when companies reward employees and not just the executive leadership!

It's Tuesday again already? Come on by the BZPower Twitch channel tonight starting at 7:30 PM Eastern as we hop back into The LEGO Movie 2 Videogame. We made some solid progress last week, so hopefully we can keep up the pace tonight as we collect more master pieces. See you there!

Last week ground was broken in the Jinshan District of southwestern Shanghai, where the next LEGOLAND resort is being constructed. The park is expected to open in 2024 and will span nearly eighty acres of space, according to Xinhua. Among the most interesting tidbits in the article is the revelation that there will be a Monkie Kid-themed section of the park. I'm curious to see what types of rides they come up with to celebrate the theme. Hopefully that means it will stick around until 2024 too - but that is no guarantee, sadly, as Bionicle Blaster's presence at LEGOLAND California clearly indicates.

It's time for your next dose of LEGO Ideas builder insight! Kamila has recently shared two more 10k Club Interviews for our reading pleasure. You can head over to their blog to learn about Spaceballs by Tom and BTS "Dynamite" by Josh Bretz and Jacob. As per usual, they all go into their LEGO pasts and talk about what inspired them to create their respective projects. It's always nice to get that behind the curtain look, so go give both a read!

It would appear that LEGO Masters will return to the United States for a third season! If you're interested in applying and can get away from work or school for five to seven weeks sometime between February and April of next year, head over to the casting call website and sign up! Be prepared to answer a lot of questions about you and your teammate (although you don't need to have one) to prove that you have what it takes to make it on the show. Best of luck to all the applicants, and I can't wait to see what the third season brings!

The LEGO Ideas team has kicked off the fan vote portion of two of the contests that have been running on the platform. You can cast your vote in The LEGO NINJAGO & 1-Button Game Challenge and Strike a chord with the Fender Stratocaster! contests until November 25th and November 26th, respectively. Your voice will help decide who wins some fabulous prizes in each, so take the time to check out all the finalists and pick your favorites!

Most sales are happening next week on Black Friday. LEGO is enticing some early holiday (or personal, if we're being honest) shopping with VIP Weekend today and tomorrow. Among several Gifts with Purchase, VIP members can enjoy double VIP points on all their purchases. Check out the deals, then check your shopping list to make the most of this offer.

Our next live build will be this Sunday, November 21st as we assemble the lovely-looking and iconic LEGO Star Wars set 75304 Darth Vader Helmet! *Insert raspy breathing noises here.* Join us at 1 PM Eastern on the BZPower Twitch channel to see this model come together and win some prizes! We're looking forward to seeing you there!

If the Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade is a highlight of your turkey day, make sure to keep your eyes peeled for The Brick-Changer next week. The part turkey, part dragon creature will be joined by pop singer Zoe Wees as it, "rebuilds a drab LEGO brick landscape into a whimsical, bustling city that is bursting with color." I couldn't tell you the last time I watched the event, but maybe this will make me tune in. How about you?

BZPower member Harvali has been enjoying the BZPRPG now that it's kicked off again, and wrote a short story about their character in the game. Head on over to the Library to read "What Do You See?" to learn a bit more about the Matoran known as 'Kanohi.' It's a quick read, but provides some nice insight to the villager and to the setting of the game. If you like it, let the author know and maybe check out the BZPRPG itself for more collaboratively-created stories!

From now through November 30th, Xbox Live Gold members can pick up a classic LEGO videogame for free! Head on over to grab LEGO Batman 2: DC Superheroes, which can be played on any console since the Xbox 360. While the title may be a bit dated, there's still a lot of fun to be had and plenty to play through if you want to get 100% completion!

The 10k Club Interview stream continues today with Kamila sharing some insight on the Imperial Island Fort by Florian. While we've already met Florian aka BrickHammer several times in the past, it was interesting to see that this was actually the first project he submitted to LEGO Ideas - it just took longer to reach ten thousand votes than his later ones. So while you might remember some things about the builder, it's still worth reading to hear about the project and how he got his LEGO Ideas start!

Earlier today Jacob from the LEGO Ideas team announced A Galaxy of Celebrations, a new contest asking fans to create a Star Wars-themed holiday Brickfilm for a chance to win some fabulous prizes. Submissions need to be between fifteen and thirty seconds long and based on one of the following holidays: May the 4th, Father's Day, Summer Holidays/Back to School, or Winter Holidays and can even use some official Star Wars sound effects provided by Lucasfilm. One winner for each category will get a copy of the 75309 UCS Republic Gunship and 75288 AT-AT (the normal-sized one), and one overall winner will also get the 75313 UCS AT-AT! So what are you waiting for? Break out your cameras and get filming before the January 13th deadline!

After taking a break for a week, we'll be back tonight playing some more The LEGO Movie 2 Videogame and continuing our quest towards 100% game completion. Come by the BZPower Twitch channel at 7:30 PM Eastern to watch us adventure through Bricksburg and wherever else the game takes us. It's taking all my effort to stick with it and not play Halo Infinite, so hopefully you'll all come by and chat with us as we play!

It looks like the latest episode of the Bits N' Bricks podcast went up early on Spotify and other podcast platforms again! This week, Ethan Vincent and Brian Crecente talk to several alumni from Templar Games - Peter Mack, President & Creative Director, Lucas Meyer, Lead Programmer of Backlot, and Justin Luchter, Senior Audio Designer - about the LEGO Studios Backlot game. You can go listen to Alligators, Buckaroo Banzai, and LEGO Studios Backlot to hear about how the company's work on the Bionicle Mata Nui Online Game and other titles led to their work on this project, and how it came together quickly yet maintains a lasting legacy. It was interesting hearing them admit to it not being their best work despite the fond memories so many people have for it. Check it out for yourself!

Last week The LEGO Group revealed VIDYOLAND, a Dream Island in Animal Crossing: New Horizons that you can visit to hang out with Party Llama and other characters from VIDYO, play minigames, and earn cool cosmetic items. The Dream Address for the island is DA-4202-8210-6712, and you can head over right now! You can visit the LEGO Twitter account to watch a short teaser showcasing the island, the characters you can meet, and some of the activities you'll find there!

After a bit of a hiatus, Kamila from the LEGO Ideas team has started sharing the next batch of 10k Club interviews, going behind the scenes with the designers of many of the recent successful projects on the platform. Today you can head over to meet Alex Storozhuk, The Creator of Lifeguard's Shack, who also designed the recently-release Home Alone project that's now a set. You can hear about where this builder's interest in bricks started and their inspiration for the shack. Go give it a read!

Recently another cool creation has entered the hallowed halls of the LEGO Ideas 10k Club. Based on a franchise I've never heard of, the Moominhouse by Bonefoot comes from the Swedish/Finnish comic and book series called Moomins that has been around since 1945. While the outside of the house looks rather simple and somewhat blocky, the interior is crammed with a myriad of details that I'm sure fans of the series will love. We wish them the best of luck when they enter their upcoming review phase!

Recently The LEGO Group announced it would be sending minifigs to space as part of the NASA Artemis I mission. The endeavor is part of the Build to Launch STEAM program revealed earlier this year. Heading to space in the Orion spacecraft will be LEGO Education minifigures Kate and Kyle as well as LEGO City figures Julia and Sebastian, meaning there will be four more LEGO minifigs on the flight than humans. Unfortunately the launch has been pushed back to February, but it will still be exciting to see LEGO figs paving the way for humans to return to the moon next year. Hopefully their inclusion will help get more children interested in science, technology, and space exploration!

Earlier this week the Toy Association announced the finalists for the 2022 Toy of the Year Awards, and there's plenty of brick products in the running. Here they are:

• Collectible - MARVEL Studios Collectible Minifigures
• Construction Toy - Friends Heartlake City Grand Hotel and Spider-Man Daily Bugle
• Creative Toy - VIDIYO The Boombox
• Grown-Up Toy - Botanical Collection Flower Bouquet
• Playset - Star Wars Boba Fett's Starship and Super Mario Adventures with Luigi Starter Course
• Preschool Toy - Disney Ariel, Belle, Cinderella and Tiana's Storybook Adventures
• Specialty Toy - Everyone is Awesome
• STEAM Toy - CREATOR 3-in-1 Ferris Wheel
• Vehicle - Creator Expert Porche 911

The winners will be announced at the The Toy Foundation's TOTY Awards gala on Friday, February 18, 2022. Best of luck to the LEGO products and all the other finalists!

The LEGO Group has been busy lately, sharing not one but two new videos going behind the scenes of some recently-released sets. First, check out the LEGO 10294 Titanic Designer Video and hear from LEGO Design Master Mike Psiaki and Andrew Skinner from the Southampton SeaCity Museum as they talk about the actual ship and the set based on it. There's lots of interesting facts about both! Then head over to watch the LEGO Ideas 21330 Home Alone Designer Video, where LEGO Designers Enrique Beixer and Antica Bracanov are joined by LEGO Ideas Design Manager Sam Johnson and LEGO Graphic Designer Kirsten Nielsen to discuss the set's many details and easter eggs as well as the LEGO Ideas design process. As always they're both great looks behind the scenes and succeed in making me want to build both of the models!

Recently another cool creation has entered the hallowed halls of the LEGO Ideas 10k Club. Take a look at Steampunk Explorers by Castor-Troy, which features a trio of Victorian-era buildings in our favorite plastic bricks. This is the third project this builder has had reach the goal, after the Movie Set and The Nanny. I really love the interiors of the buildings and the different labs and workshops where the minifigs come up with the steampunk inventions like the flying machine and hot air balloon. The exteriors are very detailed too and feature some fantastic building techniques. We wish them the best of luck when they enter their upcoming review phase!