500 Years of the Royal Mail - Online Museum

LEGO postman with a LEGO
Penny Black, first and
rarest British stamp from 1840.

Well you don't see many of these every day, a on-line museum for the 500 years of the Royal Mail. Now I know some museums are doing digital stored collection and I am happy to see this happening more and more as years go on. You can go to museums without leaving the comfort of your own home or pay for entry. These stored collections catalogs get the collection out to the public easier (one of the fundamental principles of a museum) and are great for researchers to see what they have before inquiring to see the items. 

This beautifully done on-line archive of images of portraits, documents, engravings, artefacts, stamps etc. Each image is provided with a few paragraphs of information describing what it is and the history behind the item you have selected. The layout almost gives a similar style to some social media sites, e.g. Instagram or Pinterest. A unusual way of displaying this but I think it works really well.

You have 6 categories to choose from to help you narrow down your search of items and information. Although the images and information is repeated in some of the different categories provided. The categories include:

• Moments in History - taking a look at the main milestones of the Royal Mail.
• Stamps - taking a look at main milestones in design and changes of the history of Stamps.
• The Beginning of the Royal Mail - obviously looking at the beginning of the Royal Mail and how it came about. 
• World Firsts - taking a look at what the Royal Mail started first in the world of the postal service.
• Iconography - taking a look at the visual images, symbols, or modes of representation collectively associated with the Royal Mail.
• People - taking a look at all the people who were involved in the Royal Mail and how they impacted it.

To help you even farther with navigation around the site you have a filter system in which you can select for all an item you are specific looking for. So you can choose the century the item was made or used in and which category you wish it to be from and the order they are all listed in. For example I want everything from the 1500s, themed to The Beginning of the Royal Mail and be viewed by latest - oldest items. 

Another feature with this section is you have a option to favorite items that you like best and gives you a opportunity to come back to them later on.   

Victorian post

Now you also have a search engine to search for specific item. However, if you don't visit the site often you can't possibly know what is there specifically. So this is only good if you know you way around and know what is actually there to see. 

Now it doesn't stop there you have the Features section which house additional thing to take a look at. This are some:

• By Land, Sea and Air - this section talks about the evolution of how the post got from a) to b) and how this benefited society. 
• The Letters of our Lives Campaign - a campaign to collect letters on hidden social and political history of the UK through the people who lived it.
• And so much more...

Now this is a great public resource which the Royal Mail had provided us. The complete collection which is provided here can be interesting to a Royal Mail enthusiast, Stamp collectors or any history buff who fancies knowing more on the Royal Mail and its history behind the British postal service we know today.

Brickmania Panzer III Ausf H set REVIEW!

Now you are probably wondering why am I reviewing a Brickmania set that has been sold-out late last year. Well not all of them have sold-out, you can still buy the Panzer III Ausf H at Brickmizimo. 

Now lets look at the set itself. Designed by Daniel Siskind, owner and main designer of Brickmania in September 2015. However, a new generation of this model is out now. This new model isn't much different to the original but has small details and improvements. 

At Brickmizimo this kit is 149.50 euros/$168.58/£117.44. I believe this isn't a huge difference to the original price of the model at Brickmania. 

The instructions are printed with high quality paper and ink. With these you also get a history section at the back of the booklet. This shows a very small section of the background behind the tank itself. 

Of course with most of Brickmania's larger models you also get a certificate of authenticity and the box is numbered and signed by Daniel (the designer).

You only get one custom printed minifig, a Panzer officer. I would have liked it if he was given a side-arm but he is great on his own.  

Now the antenna can be adjusted up and down. However, when it is up it gets in the way of the main gun of the tank. Also it is very fragile as it is attached with a minifig studded back piece. 

Now what really annoys me with this kit is the tracks. They are too small for the wheels and ever once in a while they slip off completely. However, I do believe on the new version, the tracks are bigger to remedy this problem.

The 1x2 1 studded tile which attaches the gun to the turret makes the main gun weak to adjust.

The sides of the tank that which protect the tracks we fragile and move a lot as they are only attached with one stud. 

This model is great but it does have some problems with the design but luckily in the new version which is out now most or not all are fixed in the redesign. 

Brick Shakespeare: Tragedies & Comedies book REVIEW

Brick Shakespeare
by McCann, Sweeney & Thomas

The Brick Shakespeare books takes a unique look at Shakespeare's most famous plays. The version I got housed two books one on the tragedy plays and the other comedy. You can buy them separately depending on what plays you wish to read. With the version I got you receive a double sided poster with Lego Romeo and Juliet on one side and The Taming of the Shrew on the other.

Poster of The Taming
of the Shrew

As the all of the plays they decided to recreate in the book are long they haven't created the full versions. So they handpicked the scenes which are the most interesting and significant to the story-line. 

This whole book is illustrated by scene by scene photos. The sets they uses in the images to illustrate the books are very basic. They hardly house imagination or effort put towards the design of them. They could have done better. I have seen many books similar to these with far more interesting sets which background the scenes they recreate. 

I don't normally talk about the covers of book in my reviews but with this one I am going to make a exception. They are unusual. The cover isn't of one picture like most but it is made up of many. Now I don't know about you but I never really seen many books like that. I see what they are trying to do with this; they are trying to showcase all the plays they are depicting in the book but this me think of some Instagram page and not a book cover.   

Poster of Romeo and Juliet

As I said above each play is depicted in Lego images in a scene by scene style which isn't unusual for Lego books like these ones. However, the script which is written below of each frame is placed within a scroll like backdrop and the font made to look like handwriting. This way of displaying the plays seem silly and unnecessary. This trying to create a theatrical feel to the book. I see what they are trying to achieve with this; they are trying to make it seem old to give the reader a sense of place. Although this only makes me see a childish feel for the book.   

Brickmania Flak 36 8.8 CM Anti-Aircraft Gun - REVIEW!

The Flak 36 8.8 CM Anti-Aircraft Gun is a custom LEGO WW2 Brickmania set. As most of Brickmania builds, the gun is designed by Daniel Siskind, owner and main designer.

This set is about $50/£34.29 for a 137 LEGO pieces, is good value for a Brickmania set. With this set you don't get any minifigs. However, if you purchase the Flakkorps upgrade you get three custom German Soldier minifigs, five BrickArms artillery shells and two LEGO shovels. However, this is $45 on-top of the original price, making it $95/£65.15. Buying the items separately wouldn't make much difference to the price. 

Building this set is a bit fiddly at times but it is moderately easy to put together. The instruction manual is made up of high quality paper and ink. The instructions themselves are simple to follow stages of the build.

The gun itself is full with great little details. The gun is able yo be adjusted up, down and side to side just like the real thing, allowing you to shoot down enemy planes. The only problem I have with this set is it is very fragile and parts down fall off regularly when used. Also the light blue axis for the seat of the gun. 

Great Lego Sets - A Visual History book REVIEW!

Great LEGO Sets by DK

With this large book, the Great Lego Sets by DK, you receive a exclusive micro-scale space cruiser. This small spaceship is inspired by the 1979 LEGOLAND Space Cruiser and Moonbase set, #928. Which you can find documented within, and displayed on the cover the book.

Like most of the Lego history books by DK, they take you through year by year. Far as I know this book doesn't look at all of the Lego sets which have been produced but a selection of over 300 of the best sets.

For each set you get a detailed 'Guided Tour' which takes you through the sets and the 'Brick By Brick' that takes a look in more detail on the elements which are used in the sets.

Exclusive Micro-Scale
Space Cruiser

However, what makes this book so different from the Lego books produced in the past is you learn about some of the designers themselves. These small profiles on the designers are only depicted with ground breaking sets, such as one of the largest Lego set, the Taj Mahal #10189, 2008.