The LEGO Ninjago Movie (U) Review - At LEGOLAND Discovery Centre

No spoilers - I don't agree with spoilers...

We had thought we'd missed out on any previews of the new LEGO Ninjago Movie as we couldn't get down to London, but then we got an amazing invitation to go and see it at the LEGOLAND Discovery Centre!

We've been to the Discovery Centre at the Trafford Centre many times over the past 6 years, but rarely when it's closed to the general public, only once at night and definitely never to see a full length movie. When the boys realised where we were going, especially with it already being after tea, they were incredibly excited.

The LEGO Batman Movie is available now on DVD and Blu-Ray

We loved The LEGO Batman Movie, that tongue-in-cheek humour and dry wit is hilarious, and the kids laugh for more obvious reasons. A great mix of lightweight storyline and pathos which leaves everyone in a good buddy mood.

We first saw The LEGO Batman Movie in London and then we were given a digital download code to 'buy and keep' so that we could watch it again. I can honestly say I enjoyed it almost as much the second time.

LEGO NEXO Knights: Season One DVD Review and Giveaway

My children love the LEGO NEXO Knights and are fans of the TV series, so they're very happy that Season One will be available to buy on DVD from TODAY - 13th February, and we've been sent a copy to review.

LEGO NEXO Knights Season One contains all 10 episodes - 212 minutes of action on 2 discs.

LEGO Movie Clips, Printables, Games and Activities!

You may have noticed that LEGO movies are everywhere at the moment,The LEGO Batman Movie has just hit the cinemas, and The LEGO Ninjago Movie trailer is whetting our appetite for the next one! Half term is around the corner, so I've gathered together some of the best LEGO Movie activities that are around at the moment....

The Lego Batman Movie

We reviewed The LEGO Batman Movie and loved it. Here's the LEGO Batman Cribs short, our favourite of the LEGO Batman trailer videos - there are loads more on their You Tube channel.

There is a great LEGO Batman Movie website, with loads of free stuff for kids. A good place to start is with the SigFig Creator. Make a mini version of yourself - go random or even create your own supervillain... We have a complaint - where's the curly hair!!

The LEGO Batman Movie Review

Last Saturday we got up ridiculously early to catch the train down to London, for a special screening of the LEGO Batman movie courtesy of Warner Brothers. It was something we were incredibly excited about, and it really didn't disappoint...

We were tempted to take lots of LEGO Batmen with us, but remembering what happened to the rear end of our LEGO Scooby Doo Mystery Machine, we decided it better to choose one, and it was Tartan Batman who got a day out. I've already posted about the whole LEGO Batman trip to London, this is our review of the movie itself.

We went as fans, we loved The LEGO Movie, and Batman is a particular favourite of our 6 year old. None of us were disappointed.

A day in London with the LEGO Batman Movie and Tartan Batman.

On Saturday we went to all the way to London to go to the cinema. It was a very early start, and a long way to go for a movie, but when you consider that we'd been invited by Warner Bros to a preview screening of the LEGO Batman movie in Leicester Square, it was well worth the effort...

We were up at 4.45am - and out of the house by 5.20am to catch our train...it wasn't the best part of the day, they lied.

LEGO NEXO Knights 4D The Book Of Creativity Review, LEGOLAND Discovery Centre, Manchester

Today we were up bright and early to go to the Trafford Centre to LEGOLAND Discovery Centre and be among the first people to see the brand new LEGO NEXO Knights 4D movie, The Book Of Creativity, which launched this weekend.

It was a great opportunity for me to complete the photos for my post showing what's inside LEGOLAND Discovery Centre, and if you haven't been before, then it should give you a good idea of what you will find when you arrive.

LEGO DC Justice League: Cosmic Clash DVD Review

If you're going to review one LEGO movie in a week, why not make it two. Out tomorrow March 21st, just in time for the Easter break, LEGO are back with their latest home movie. LEGO DC Justice League: Cosmic Clash will be available on Blu-ray and DVD.

We were sent a copy to review, and it doesn't disappoint. Fairly standard LEGO fayre, with plenty to offer the more mature audience, the tongue-in-cheek humour and sarcastic facial expressions of the characters make this a great all-round family movie.

The LEGO Movie 4D: A New Adventure at LEGOLAND Discovery Centre in Manchester

Last weekend we were treated to early morning access to the LEGOLAND Discovery Centre in Manchester for the launch of The LEGO Movie 4D: A New Adventure. The film is an exclusive 12 minute movie which can only be seen on screens in official LEGOLAND attractions.

It's been a heck of a while since we went to a preview of a new 4D LEGO short film, in fact it was March 2013 to see the LEGO Chima 4D Movie. We loved The LEGO Movie, so we were looking forward to seeing Emmet and Wyldstyle again! I hadn't realised just how much until went inside and they were there - apparently it made my partner's day...

LEGO Friends Girlz 4 Life Children's DVD Review

Over the weekend we spent a lot of time on the sofa watching movies, and one of them was Girlz 4 Life, the new DVD from LEGO Friends. We've watched quite a lot of LEGO movies over the years, and they're always pretty watchable for the whole family, with the occasional joke for the adults thrown in.

In Girlz 4 Life the LEGO Friends (featuring the regular characters - Olivia, Stephanie, Emma, Mia and Andrea) are doing well and have a great new song 'Girlz' ready to earn them fame and fortune.

A famous pop star called Livi comes to stay in Heartlake City and her manager hears Girlz. she knows that Livi will do very well with it and steals it, saying she wrote it herself. Livi's version of Girlz soars into the charts and she becomes even more famous, leaving the LEGO Friends cheated. They need to let everyone know that it's their song, they want to get it back, and they turn to Livi herself for help.

New LEGO releases for early 2015

It's the new year and it has brought with it some fantastic new LEGO - new ranges such as Frozen and the Swamp Police, the relaunched Bionicle LEGO, and plenty of  additions to old favourites such as LEGO minifigures Series 13, Friends, Arctic and one of our favourites - The LEGO Movie.

Bionicle LEGO has been relaunched and there are 13 new figures - 6 protectors, 6 Toa heroes and the Lord Of Skull Spiders. My 6 year old loves these and has had great fun playing with them over the past couple of years. They are tricky for young hands to build, hence the 8-14 age range, but they stay together well and are very poseable, so play value is good.

The price point is excellent for children spending birthday money and Christmas vouchers and they retail between £9.99 and £14.99. You can find out more and get some cool background and build ideas on the LEGO Bionicle website.

 
Minifigures Series 13 is a brilliant collection. Only a couple of slightly less interesting figures and some really strong females, which should please a lot of people.

The LEGO Ghostbusters Ecto-1 Vehicle and Minifigures set 21108 Review

I was a bit stumped for my partner's birthday last month, but I knew what to get him for Father's Day - the LEGO Ghostbusters Ecto-1 set 21108. He's been following the story of this set since it very first appeared on LEGO Cuuso (now LEGO Ideas). We both voted for it - how could you not? It's genius.

Sadly the Fire House wasn't forthcoming - which we guessed as it would make a really huge set! However we do have the Ecto-1 and the 4 Ghostbusters themselves - Peter Venkman, Ray Stantz, Egon Spengler and Winston Zeddmore.

The LEGO Movie sets 70801 Melting Room and 70800 Getaway Glider

I said when we reviewed MetalBeard's Sea Cow that I'd review some smaller LEGO sets and here I have two of the £11.99 sets recommended for builders aged 6-12. The Melting Room and the Getaway Glider.

The Melting Room (set #70801) is a 122 piece set. It contains the melting room equipment and 3 great minifigures - Emmet (with Piece of Resistance), Wyldstyle (with hood) and Robo SWAT.

The way the set goes together is interesting as it has various hinges and will stretch and bend for easy play.

It's actually quite a complicated build and my 5 year old found it interesting and challenging. Once together it makes total sense, but it uses some nice techniques to make the different parts that go together. It stretches a younger builder, but shouldn't overly frustrate them.

Once completed you have a nice play scene from the movie which moves about for play and has an almost infinitely adjustable laser and a great tilting stand for Emmet to be chained into.

My boys have played with this set a lot and got a great deal of fun from it. The 3 characters included are really generous and ideal to spark the imagination in any child. It's quite hard to get the chains onto Emmet's hands and it's not entirely a sturdy build, but great for a 6 year old to play with. Excellent value.

The Getaway Glider (set #70800) is a 104 piece set containing the glider and 3 minifigures - Emmet (with Piece of Resistance), Deputron and Sheriff Not-a-robot with his horse.

This is a very pretty set. It doesn't 'do' an awful lot - as a playset it's limited, but it's really beautifully put together. The minifigures are great.

This set too has some interesting techniques. The wings are beautifully made with lots of detail, and designed to move during play, so don't fall off constantly. 
 

This set is not as much fun as the Melting Room, but it's an attractive model and nicely done. It doesn't really offer a lot of play value alone, but it gives you the Emmett with the Piece Of Resistance, and the Sheriff and Deputy to add to your other LEGO Movie minifigures, and that does add a lot to play value as they're important characters.

All in all  I think the Getaway Glider set was a little disappointing, but I'd still buy it - and indeed did - as I think it is worth it for the figures.

The Melting Room and the Getaway Glider are available from the LEGO shop in person and online. 

The LEGO website has free games and videos galore to keep your children amused over the Easter holidays, and the LEGO DUPLO 30 second video competition still has 3 weeks left to run!

I was sent a Getaway Glider by LEGO to review, but I'd actually already purchased both of these sets myself.