LEGO® NINJAGO: MOCcing with the new-for-2022 parts

Products in this article were provided by LEGO®; the author's opinions are their own.

Once my reviews of the first wave of LEGO® Ninjago sets for 2022 were wrapped up, it was time for my favourite part of the process - making MOCs with the new moulds and recolours! This wave of Ninjago introduced SCCBS with the EVO sets marking an exciting new beginning for Constraction in LEGO System, with several new moulds that caught my attention in particular.

LEGO® Ninjago review & MOCs: 71755 Temple of the Endless Sea

Products in this article were provided by LEGO®; the author's opinions are their own.

71755 Temple of the Endless Sea is one of the largest sets in the 2021 Seabound subtheme of LEGO® Ninjago. It contains 1060 pieces with an RRP of £89.99 / $99.99 / 99.99€, giving a decent price-per-part value of 8.5p / 9.4c / 9.4c (slightly better in Sterling than other currencies). I was attracted by the Teal, Black and Pearl Gold colour scheme of the set, enjoyed putting it together, but thought it had great MOC potential. Let’s take a look at the new and rare pieces it contains.

LEGO® Ninjago review: 71767 Ninja Dojo Temple

Áron Gerencsér (@_pohaturon) continues his LEGO® Ninjago 2022 set reviews with 71767 Ninja Dojo Temple. Buying this set? Consider using our affiliate links, New Elementary may get a commission: USA LEGO Shop | Australia LEGO Shop | UK LEGO Shop/for Europe 'Change region'. Products in this article were provided by LEGO; the author's opinions are their own.

LEGO® Ninjago 71767 Ninja Dojo Temple is the largest set in the first wave of 2022 sets, coming in at 1394 pieces at the $99.99/ £89.99/ 99,99 € price point. Sharing shelf space with the EVO sets and Lloyd’s Legendary Dragon, it sprinkles a bit of the new SCCBS system into a more traditional playset. Let’s see if this is a dojo worth training in, or if the ninja should look for a new home! 

LEGO® Ninjago review: 71766 Lloyd's Legendary Dragon

Áron Gerencsér (@_pohaturon) continues his LEGO® Ninjago 2022 analysis today with 71766 Lloyd's Legendary Dragon. Buying this set? Consider using our affiliate links, New Elementary may get a commission: USA LEGO Shop | Australia LEGO Shop | UK LEGO Shop/for Europe 'Change region'. Products in this article were provided by LEGO; the author's opinions are their own.

The first wave of LEGO® Ninjago sets in 2022 are introducing the new 6+ EVO subline, but there are also “regular” sets for more advanced builders. Filling the obligatory slot of ‘medium-large dragon set’ that every Ninjago wave needs is 71766 Lloyd’s Legendary Dragon, and it sure lives up to the name even if it doesn’t inundate us with new parts. Between the surprising and engaging build experience and the satisfying end result, this is a suitably impressive set to represent the evolution of Ninjago dragon design. Let’s dive in!

LEGO® NINJAGO EVO review: 71760, 71761, 71762 & 71763

Áron Gerencsér (@_pohaturon) takes a look at the range of 2022 LEGO® NINJAGO sets aimed at builders aged 6+: 71760 Jay’s Thunder Dragon EVO, 71761 Zane’s Power Up Mech EVO, 71762 Kai’s Fire Dragon EVO and 71763 Lloyd’s Race Car EVO. Buying these? Consider using our affiliate links, New Elementary may get a commission: UK LEGO Shop (for Europe, 'Change Region') | USA LEGO Shop | Australia LEGO Shop. Products in this article were provided by LEGO; the author's opinions are their own.

Constraction’s back, baby!

The first wave of LEGO® NINJAGO sets in 2022 is doing things a bit differently compared to previous waves, and thanks to set designer Niek van Slagmaat’s documentation on the process, we have some insight into what motivated this new approach.

LEGO® review: 71741 NINJAGO® City Gardens

Ben Davies (@ProfBrickkeeper) takes on the astonishing LEGO® 71741 NINJAGO® City Gardens, detailing all its interesting parts and techniques. Buying this set? Consider using our affiliate links, New Elementary may get a commission: USA LEGO Shop | Australia LEGO Shop | UK LEGO Shop/for Europe 'Change region'. Products in this article were provided by LEGO; the author's opinions are their own.

When announced earlier this year to coincide with the 10th anniversary of the NINJAGO® theme, 71741 NINJAGO City Gardens was met with much excitement, heralding the continuation of the popular NINJAGO City subtheme. With speculation about the possibility of further entries, we thought it was high time to take a look at the parts in 71741 NINJAGO City Gardens and the exciting techniques and innovative parts usage it features.

The previous two sets in the line, 70620 NINJAGO City and 70657 NINJAGO City Docks were both notable for the number of new and rare elements that they introduced. This is a trend which is continued in NINJAGO City Gardens, which heralds the launch of a myriad of new elements.

5x5 fest: Kev Levell's MOCs

Kev Levell (@kevlevell) is the next contributor to our 5x5 fest! We sent 5 LEGO® sets to 5 of our team and asked them to get creative with the parts. Be inspired every Friday!

As outlined in the 5x5 fest introductory article, each contributor was given two fixed sets, a Beatbox and a choice of up to two other sets. My five sets were 71476 Jungle Dragon, 43184 Raya and Sisu Dragon, 43107 Hip-Hop Robot BeatBox, 71740 Jay’s Electro Mech and 41921 Extra Dots Series 3.  I have not exclusively used parts from any of the sets in my MOCs, more is the case that I have used parts from all these sets in a haphazard fashion.

5x5 fest: Introducing the elements

It's been a while since we ran one of our "parts festivals", where we send LEGO builders some of the most interesting new elements and ask them to create some original models to inspire you. Well, buckle up because we have not one but two parts festivals coming at you this month, and they're a little different to before! We will introduce the second one soon, but today we reveal our 5x5 fest.

No, LEGO have not released a 5x5 plate, it's nothing like that! We simply sent 5 of our gorgeous contributors 5 LEGO sets, and asked them to get busy making gorgeous stuff. As well as parts in the sets, they could use their own part collections. So for the next 5 weeks, every Friday is 5x5 fest day when we will reveal what each of the builders created! The gorgeous bunch are Caz Mockett, Kev Levell, Aron Gerencsér, Thomas Jenkins and Tom Loftus.

Kev Levell's MOCs using LEGO® NINJAGO 71736 Boulder Blaster

Kev Levell (@kevlevell) creates his own models inspired by LEGO® NINJAGO 71736 Boulder Blaster after examining all its new and interesting parts. Buying this set? Consider using our affiliate links, New Elementary may get a commission: USA LEGO Shop | Australia LEGO Shop | UK LEGO Shop/for Europe 'Change region'. Products in this article were provided by LEGO; the author's opinions are their own.

Released in January 2021 as part of the LEGO® NINJAGO Legacy subtheme, it comes as no real surprise that this update of set 70747 from 2015 uses close to twice as many pieces. 71736 Boulder Blaster is beefed up, improved and generally just more impressive-looking.

LEGO® NINJAGO® review + MOCs: 71719 Zane’s Mino Creature & 71721 Skull Sorcerer’s Dragon

Aron Gerencsér (@_pohaturon) reviews two 2020 LEGO® NINJAGO® stes today as well as building his own models using some of their parts: 71719 Zane’s Mino Creature & 71721 Skull Sorcerer’s Dragon. Buying these sets? Consider using our affiliate links: UK LEGO Shop | USA LEGO Shop | Australia LEGO Shop, for other countries 'Change Region'. New Elementary may get a commission. The products in this article were provided for free by LEGO; the author's opinions are not biased by this.

LEGO® NINJAGO® has been spinning for a decade, and over the course of ten years we’ve seen nearly twice that many subthemes, with the latest having been a dungeon crawling fantasy adventure inspired by tabletop RPGs. 71719 Zane’s Mino Creature & 71721 Skull Sorcerer’s Dragon are two of the bigger sets in the wave, both featuring the “game experience” gimmick prevalent in it. 

Rolling a party consisting solely of thief-sorcerer multiclasses is a bold move. Let’s see if it works out for the ninja or if they get wiped by the boss. 

Kev Levell's MOCs inspired by LEGO® NINJAGO® 71720 Fire Stone Mech

Kev Levell (on Flickr) completes his exploration of the 2020 LEGO® NINJAGO® set 71720 Fire Stone Mech today by creating his own MOCs inspired by some of its parts. Buying this set? Consider using our affiliate links: UK LEGO Shop | UK Amazon | USA LEGO Shop | USA Amazon | Australia LEGO Shop, for other countries 'Change Region'. New Elementary may get a commission. The products in this article were provided for free by LEGO; the author's opinions are not biased by this.

In the past when I’ve used review sets to build alternative models for New Elementary, I’ve been strict and have only used the parts provided in the sets. I don’t think that’s an essential criteria at all though, in fact I love seeing what is possible when the “envelope is opened out”. So with the LEGO® NINJAGO set I analysed yesterday, 71720 Fire Stone Mech, I want to show you what makes this a set to buy for its parts selection – and not just bulk-buy those funky stepped panels!

It's time to mech up your mind...

LEGO® NINJAGO® review: 71720 Fire Stone Mech

Kev Levell (on Flickr) takes a deep dive into the 2020 LEGO® NINJAGO® set 71720 Fire Stone Mech today. Buying this set? Consider using our affiliate links: UK LEGO Shop | UK Amazon | USA LEGO Shop | USA Amazon | Australia LEGO Shop, for other countries 'Change Region'. New Elementary may get a commission. The products in this article were provided for free by LEGO; the author's opinions are not biased by this.

An incredible 45 sets were released within the LEGO® NINJAGO® theme in 2020; that’s a lot even allowing for magazine cover mounts and the perennial pocket money “character spinner” variants. It’s a number exceeded only by LEGO Friends sets, while LEGO Star Wars languishes just behind with 43.

The 71720 Fire Stone Mech is one of the larger sets in Ninjago's 2020 ‘Master of the Mountain’ subtheme. He’s a big fella too, weighing in at 667g with a total of 968 pieces including 5 minifigures, all for a comparatively reasonable £64.99 / US$69.99 / 68.23€.

LEGO® 71741 NINJAGO® City Gardens interview: designer Markus Rollbühler

The newest LEGO® NINJAGO® set, 71741 Ninjago City Gardens, has been one of the most anticipated sets in recent memory. To learn more about the process of creating the set, Ben Davies spoke to its designer Markus Rollbühler who discusses its design, new elements, secret references and shares a look at several sketch models! Buying this set? Consider using our affiliate links: UK LEGO Shop | USA LEGO Shop | Australia LEGO Shop, for other countries 'Change Region'. New Elementary may get a commission.

New Elementary: Hello Markus, congratulations on the set! The previous two LEGO® NINJAGO® City sets (70620 Ninjago City and 70657 Ninjago City Docks) both also received considerable praise upon release. Was there a sense of pressure when it came to creating a successor to these sets?

Markus: The LEGO® NINJAGO® City set was a phenomenon. When it came out, my friends were so excited for it that we all bought one each and met up and built them together, ending up with 5 or 6 cities on the same table. There are very few sets that have created similar universal excitement, so getting to design the third in this beloved line of modular sets was of course amazing and at the same time very daunting. Naturally, there are high expectations from both NINJAGO fans and the AFOL community on a set of this calibre. Wanting to make sure I designed a worthy addition to this world we had been building, I put quite a lot of pressure on myself. My amazing design team made that disappear quickly though and now I look back on designing 71741 LEGO NINJAGO City Gardens as an extremely joyful time. Getting to work on it was a dream come true!

10 years of new LEGO® NINJAGO® pieces

Ben Davies (@ProfBrickkeeper) celebrates the 10th anniversary of LEGO® NINJAGO® today as well as spotting new moulds in 4 sets just announced for March 2021. Buying Ninjago sets? Consider using our affiliate links: UK LEGO Shop | USA LEGO Shop | Australia LEGO Shop, for other countries 'Change Region'. New Elementary may get a commission.

2021 marks a major milestone for LEGO® NINJAGO®, which celebrates its 10th anniversary this year. Although the theme was originally intended to only last for three years – from 2011 to 2013 -–popular demand from fans led to Ninjago becoming an “evergreen” theme alongside the likes of City, Space, Castle, Friends and Star Wars.

With such a long lifespan, it’s not surprising that Ninjago has been a breeding ground of exciting elements for LEGO builders, and will surely continue to be into the future. In honour of Ninjago’s 10th anniversary, I’ve decided to highlight a selection of the most notable (and versatile) elements introduced by the theme, and take a first look at some of the upcoming elements coming in new Ninjago sets in March 2021.

LEGO® Ninjago MOCs: 70687 Spinjitzu Burst - Lloyd

Recently Inthert took a look at the parts in LEGO® 70686 Spinjitzu Burst - Kai, in particular the strange new plate with 4 handles. Now, Aron Gerencsér (@_pohaturon) focuses on the other new mould present in these Spinjitzu sets and uses it in his own creations. The products in this article were provided for free by LEGO; the author's opinions are not biased by this.

Occasionally the LEGO Group releases a highly specialised part designed, very pointedly, to fulfil a specific role in a play feature – with versatility taking the back seat. Naturally, we then do our absolute best to subvert that specific role and find other uses for them. 

One such part is Function Element W Hinge, aka Energy Burst with Wide Clip (Design ID 66960) appearing in three dual-moulded colour variants throughout this year’s Ninjago Spinjitzu Burst sets. I was sent 5 copies of 70687 Spinjitzu Burst - Lloyd, each including 4 of them in Silver Metallic with Transparent Bright Green (Element ID 6322846), giving me 20 of these to mess around with!

LEGO® Ninjago review + MOCs: 70686 Spinjitzu Burst – Kai

A rather odd LEGO® Ninjago element caught our eye this year, so we sent it to two members of our team to review and build MOCs with. First up: Inthert (on Flickr) reviews 70686 Spinjitzu Burst – Kai. If you're buying this set, consider using our affiliate links: USA LEGO Shop at Home, USA Amazon, UK LEGO Shop at Home, UK Amazon. New Elementary earn from qualifying purchases. The products in this article were provided for free by LEGO; the author's opinions are not biased by this.

Ninjago has always been known for introducing new elements, but the latest mini-wave of Spinjizu Burst sets have raised the bar – or should that be levelled the bar? More on that later but first let’s take a look at the build of one of the three Burst sets currently available: 70686 Spinjitzu Burst – Kai.

LEGO® Arcade Pods: Aron Gerencser's Robot Lovers and Hermit Crab

Continuing our examination of the cruellest seed part ever, today's builder grappling with the arcade pod from LEGO® Ninjago is Aron Gerencser (Pohaturon on Flickr). He's a professional journalist from Hungary who joins the New E team as contributor and subeditor, so make him welcome!

They say couples who play together, stay together - and I guess if that applies to both LEGO® and video games, the buff stacks!

LEGO® Arcade Pods: Mansur Soeleman's Tank & Terribilis

Today, Mansur “Waffles” Soeleman (instagram.com/lamborghiniwafflesauce) reveals his LEGO® creations using the two specialised parts that comprise the 'Arcade Pod' from Ninjago. Back in April, Victor Pruvost analysed these new parts and created his own models, and we sent some to other builders to see what they could come up with. Some products in this article were provided for free by LEGO; the author's opinions are not biased by this. Let's see how Mansur got on!

It would be an understatement to say that building something with the main element from 71715 Jay Avatar Arcade Pod was a challenge. It is a large, clumsy LEGO® part with strange shapes and bits sticking out. The angles on the front were not the issue; it was the clips and plate on the sides that got in the way of using this part in the ways I wanted to.

LEGO® NINJAGO™ Review: 71710 Ninja Tuner Car

Back in January, a new wave of LEGO® NINJAGO™ sets was released including today's focus: 71710 Ninja Tuner Car.  The sets tie-in with Season 12 of the Ninjago television series where an old game called Prime Empire is unearthed, resulting in havoc.  No wonder the sets have a definite cyberpunk video game vibe.



Ninja Tuner Car has 419 elements, including four minifigures and is priced at £34.99 / $39.99 / 39.99€. This set caught our eye thanks to its retro colour scheme, like a ski jacket from the 1980s! And of course we were drawn to the new elements underneath that hyper-cool exterior.

Articles about specialised LEGO® parts

Recently we published a great article by Victor Pruvost examining the highly specialised new LEGO® piece, the 'arcade pod'. However, many of you were soon frustrated as Google had some dumb bug resulting in all the images disappearing. I've now replaced them all, so check it out if you missed it:

READ: LEGO NINJAGO Arcade Pods: Victor Pruvost creates a Rover and Computer

Maybe you did see it already? So here's another couple of suggestions from the archives of New Elementary...