LEGO: Build the Stars of ‘Short Circuit’ and ‘Futurama’ With These Robot IDEAS Sets
These sets are alive, they will save Will Robinson, and lie to you about cake—give these LEGO robots your vote!
Johnny Five (Short Circuit)
Johnny 5 rolled his way into the hearts of audiences back in 1986. Initially designed as a weapon, a lightning strike altered his programming, transforming him into a childlike robot with a need to explore and require endless amounts of input.
There have been several Johnny 5 sets submitted to IDEAS over the years. I refuse to give up hope that one will make it to market, so of course, I’m supporting this LEGO robot from Diving Faces. It’s a fantastic design with built-in articulation. I really want to build it.
The Iron Giant
Recreate the beloved robot with this 16-inch brick action figure, featuring 24 points of articulation for dynamic posing. You can build him plain or with his S chestpiece. Comes complete with a Hogarth minifig for this LEGO robot to carry on new adventures.
Clank (Ratchet & Clank)
Bring the fan-favorite PlayStation character to life. This set, created by DistinguishedCrow, has 596 pieces and stands over a foot tall when built. It comes with a bowtie accessory, alternate eyes (for four total), and a plaque with the titular characters in minifigure form. This set isn’t just built and display; it has a dynamic range of motion built in.
For pose-ability, this figure features 31 points of articulation. The head has a neck rotation and hinge for the antenna. Each arm has up and down and rotational motion in the shoulder, a bicep swivel, elbow, wrist swivel, and fingers each on two ball joints. The torso has a waist swivel and each leg has forward, back, and side to side motion at the hip, a thigh swivel, knee, and the ankle can move forward, back, and rotate.
As you can see, the design also does an amazing job at hiding studs.
Bender Bending Rodríguez (Futurama)
“My story is a lot like yours, only more interesting ‘cause it involves robots.”
Packatrix‘s brick built version of the foul-mouthed, alcoholic, chain-smoking, gambling robot is on its way with over 1,000 votes. You can move his eyes for different expressions, and even add pieces to make his eyes bug out like in the show. Also included is a mini Planet Express headquarters.
Retro Robots: Bobby (Forbidden Planet) & B9 (Lost in Space)
Go way back with these classic bots from two foundational sci-fi TV shows. IDEAS creator jp-30nz1 has paired the two because they share a Robert Kinoshita as a real-life designer. Both are screen accurate—B9 has extendable arms he can flail while trying to protect Will Robinson. This is an awesome retro LEGO robot set. Bonus: the IPs of both shows have already been cleared by LEGO.
Portal Book Ends
Hold your favorite books in place with this video game-inspired set by JanwillemLoonen. The base of this 1,300-piece build has a Technic internal structure that holds the portal and halved companion cube.
On one side, you’ll find Atlas standing on a base designed to resemble the iconic robotic panels from the Portal games. Atop the base, you’ll also find Wheatley, the mischievous antagonist from Portal 2. And for fans who have been waiting over 15 years for their promised cake—you can finally make your own (LEGO) cake!
AdvertisementOn the other side, P-body stands on a matching panel-style base, featuring an orange portal and the other half of the companion cube. This base also includes a Sentry Turret, ready to fire, and the game’s ultimate evil… the bird! Nestled on the base is a bird’s nest, complete with GLaDOS in potato form.
Beastie Boys – Intergalactic
Time to get funky with Ad-Rock, MCA, Mike D., and a giant LEGO robot. This build features a sound brick which cycles repeating between the hit song’s iconic lyrics: “Another dimension, another dimension” and “Intergalactic planetary, planetary intergalactic.”
