All Good Things…

Nearly two and half years after first starting to design the Daily Planet it was finally finished. At least mostly. I haven’t yet had the second set of custom printed tiles run, but they are mostly designed. They include a large billboard featuring Perry White for the side of the building, along with the TV monitors for the newsroom, filmstrips for Jimmy’s darkroom, and a Pulitzer for Lois. Also on the design are postcards and a city map as well as a sign for a news stand mini modular to be attached next to the Planet. It’s a work in progress, but you can see the work so far below which includes placeholders for computer monitors for our intrepid reporters and the remaining news feed monitors. You can also see the pink stud pattern I use to align the designs for the printer.

Here’s a render of the news stand that I plan to build next to the Planet:

In the render above the small square white tiles will be replaced with “postcard” custom prints, and the 1 x2 white tile above the newspapers will be a Metropolis city map. And of course the large white tile above will be the Metropolis Supernews sign on the graphic above.

Templates to Create Your own Custom Art

If you’re interested in the artwork templates that I use, I’ve put up a ZIP file of 2 x 2 and 2 x 3 templates I use on this site. Inside the ZIP is an EPS, SVG, and Affinity Designer file type. Each also has 8mm x 8mm stud layouts below the empty artwork layer. Design your art on the artwork layers and either hide or delete the Studs layer before giving it to the printer.

So if you’re a digital illustrator you may be wondering why I don’t have an Adobe Illustrator template as well as the three I mentioned above. The reason is that I moved away from Adobe products some time ago, due in large part to their licensing model, which I believe is simply designed to separate users from their money. I don’t consider them to be a particularly ethical company, nor do I believe they really prioritize their users needs, though they obviously have a massive user base. If you do use their products, you shouldn’t have any problems creating your own Adobe templates from my files.

While I’m at it, I’d like to give a plug to Affinity Designer. I started using it on an iPad with an Apple Pencil, and although I do have the desktop version, I actually prefer to draw these LEGO elements on my iPad using this app. I don’t get a penny if you do try it, but if you’re considering moving away from Adobe files, I can heartily recommend it.

Now I’ll close with a bit about what this project has been for me personally. When I started the project, I really didn’t have any idea what went into a modular like this. I suppose I thought it’d be a month or two, and then I’d have something I could build for my son Henry to play with. But as it progressed, and I became more obsessive about adding details and trying to make it a quality modular, I got more emotionally invested in trying to create something anyone with an interest in DC, and Superman lore in particular, could really enjoy.

Another thing that happened during this build was my father dying rather suddenly. It’s hard to describe the effect it had on my and my feelings toward the model, since he was the reason I’ve always been so into Superman. At any rate the project has meant a great deal to me, and it continues to bring me great joy whenever I look at it, or someone asks about it online.

The Future

So what’s next for the model and what else would I hope to build? Well, I do plan to make the Planet available on one or more of the MOCs markets. I wish it would qualified for LEGO ideas, because while I think LEGO and DC have done a poor job of creating satisfying sets for fans (with the exception of some LEGO Batman sets perhaps) compared to the Marvel and LEGO partnerships, I think there are enough fans that would buy larger sets like the Planet. I had held out hope for some of the films in the Snyderverse (notably Zack Snyder’s Justice League and The Flash), for DC and LEGO to offer interesting sets, but none have appeared.

Besides the Planet I have thought about building a Wayne Enterprises building that is falling apart while Zod and Superman fight inside like was depicted in Man of Steel. My son and I think it’s just a very cool scene and the idea of creating a massively damaged building beginning to fall over is very appealing from a creative point of view.

I’ve also toyed with the idea of making the scout ship that was used to resurrect Superman in ZSJL. I think it’d be really fun to show the Flash running down the interior of the ship while Cyborg, Batman, Aquaman and Wonder Woman watch as the mother box falls onto Clark’s body.

But I’ve also committed to building a massive model of the Wizard of Oz for a collaborative display with my LEGO User Group for 2024. And if this build was any indicator, that’s going to take the bulk of my time for the next year after we’re settled back into our remodeled condominium, assuming that project ever ends.

I’m super grateful for all the support that the LEGO and DC communities have given me. Everyone who has seen the designs has been kind and encouraging, and it’s not lost on me how very wholesome and supportive everyone has been.

Welcome to the Planet!