The Brick Connection– A novice Lego fan explores the great brick world of LEGO

Howdy y’all!!

Let’s dive right in to this week’s topic: Minilife TV

The LEGO Movie's got nothing on these guys! (Except for millions upon millions of dollars and worldwide recognition.) 

If you didn’t read my first post on this fantastic LEGO animation web-series, please check it out here.

In that post I gave a quick review of the first season. Now I will review season 2, but much more in-depth.

The series follows two minifigs named Ian and Chris.

Chris and Ian decide to start their own TV show called Minilife TV. “A show about everything.” As opposed to Seinfeld, the show about nothing. So the show is about them doing their show. It’s a show within a show!

The reoccurring characters in this series are an eclectic group of creatures.

They are:

Snowball the vampire

Archie the robot

Michael the Veterinarian and his girlfriend, Claire

Death – the Grim Reaper

Guy with no arms (and sometimes no body)

Annoying cashier guy

Each season is 15 episodes. In the first 30 episodes, which are all the ones I have seen so far, each episode ranges from about 3 to 8 minutes in length. They are actually currently making season 5 now and have released a total of 61 episodes as of today’s date (10/15/15).

To know this show is to know the randomness of it. And random equals fun. Sometimes an episode shows Chris and Ian doing their show within a show and sometimes it’s them having crazy random adventures with their friends. For example, in episode 5, a baby shows up at Chris and Ian’s place and they decide to use an experimental growth hormone drug to advance the baby’s age. What it actually ends up doing is advancing his brain, making his head double in size and turning him into an evil genius.

So, just your average sitcom plot.

At one point in season 1, Ian ends up running for office without Chris even knowing about it. Another time Claire has to be rescued by Chris and Ian from a group of mummy terrorists. And in the final episode of season 1, the show breaks the fourth wall so to speak, when Chris and Ian end up frozen in time. Still able to talk, but unable to move because according to Chris, “the animator might have died.”

This is when the camera pulls out to reveal a human version of Chris passed out. A human version of Ian then discovers Chris and tries to wake Chris up from whatever is happening to him. Is he really dying? The finale ends with Ian dramatically shouting to the heavens, “¿Por qué?” For those who didn’t take Spanish in grade school, that means, why.

With that little summary of season 1 out of the way, let’s take an episode by episode look at season 2...

To follow along, here is the YouTube playlist for season 2:

Episode 16: Season 2 Premiere – At first the episode opens without any mention of the events that occurred in the season 1 finale. But then LEGO Ian says they need to show everyone what happened and LEGO Chris begrudgingly agrees and that’s when they initiate a flashback sequence.

There we see human Chris finally waking up from what was apparently a four-week-long nap. I won’t give everything away, but human Chris and Ian end up talking to LEGO Chris and Ian, who can finally move again now that the animator is awake. LEGO Chris and Ian are very skeptical of their “big, curvy” counterparts, which is understandable when they find out that their whole existence is dependent and controlled by strange large creatures. Watch the episode yourself for the whole story.

Funny lines

“Did you see those weird things sticking out from the side of their heads?” – LEGO Ian

“I have to pee. I have nothing to pee with.” – arm-less (and currently body-less) guy

Episode 17: A Dark Night – This is a reminder that Minilife TV has been around for a few years now. This episode is about the characters going to see The Dark Knight Rises, a movie that came out in July of 2012, which was also when this episode first premiered. Chris, Ian, Snowball, Michael, and Archie are adorably dressed up as a couple Batmans and Robins and Waldo, from the Where’s Waldo books. Watch the episode for a surprise appearance by a different superhero.

Funny lines

Michael: The only thing I could find was my “Where’s Waldo”costume.

Chris: You could have at least worn the Waldo glasses.

Ian: I couldn’t find them!

Episode 18: DEATH’S VLOG – One of the best episodes of season 1 featured Death, the Grim Reaper. It showed a day in the life of Death who struggles morally with his job…of killing people. In this episode Chris and Ian persuade him to appear again, this time doing a Vlog.

Funny lines

“Every day I literally have to kill someone… so that’s a real bummer” – Death

“I’ll catch ya boys later. Not that I mean you’re gonna die or anything like that.” – Death

“Well let’s shut this off…I gotta go touch up my sleeves” – Ian (referencing his painted on sleeves)

Episode 19: Some Nights – We see what Archie does in his free time. Apparently robots can fall in love.

Funny lines

Don’t sit too close [to the TV]. You might damage your sensors. – Snowball to Archie

Episode 20: Mime Support – Guys, mimes are LEGO people too. A mime tries to cheer up a sad female stranger. She ends up inviting him to hang out with her. He thinks their falling in love, but she breaks his heart. Minilife TV turns this into a PSA supporting mimes. Find out how you can support the cause.

Funny lines

“Yeah I can f***in’ talk. I’m a mime, not a freakin mute.“ – the mime

Episode21: How I Got Your Laptops – Snowball explains to Chris and Ian where he got the laptops he recently gave them. It is revealed that Snowball and Archie have been putting on a talk show in Chris and Ian’s Minilife TV studio called “The Late Night Snowball” and that Archie is able to reproduce.

Funny lines

“I was able to stop the custard cluster in your head. And I had enough drained out to bake a pie.” – Michael to Snowball   

Chris: Does that mean that pie Michael gave us was made from the insides of your head.

Snowball: I suppose

[To Ian] We have to stop accepting gifts from our friends.

Episode 22: The Late Night Snowball – Chris and Ian let Snowball continue his talk show, and appear as guests. The most meta episode of Minilife TV as Chris and Ian discuss the origins and future of their show while appearing on a show within their show.

Funny lines

“Late Night Snowball was filmed in front of a live fake audience.” – voice over

Episode 23: Birds n’ the Bees – Chris and Ian try to discuss how guys talk about girls and vice versa. It was going okay until they tried to impersonate how girls talk about boys. Not a good idea. Fortunately their friend Claire was there to set them straight.

Funny lines

“Man if I were dating Barbara, I would do crazy things to her with the LEGO body I just ordered.” – 'bad boy' Ian

“If I were ever alone with her I’d totally call my parents and introduce them to her” – 'good boy' Chris

Episode 24: The Quest for ICECREAM – Chris and Ian want ice cream. Ian volunteers to make the treacherous trip to the back of the freezer for the frozen dairy. Apparently Chris and Ian have a very large freezer.

Funny lines

“And if anyone ever comes across this diary they must promise to imagine me saying all these things in a british accent like I did.” – Ian (said in a fake British accent)

Episode 25: Upisode – An emergency comedy sketch is needed when Chris and Ian go….UP!

Funny lines

“If you’re watching this, then that means you are not stuck at a bottom of a well” – Ian

Episode 26: The Late Night Snowball – Yes, this is the same name as episode 22, but it’s a new episode of The Late Night Snowball. Snowball interviews a famous painter that literally started painting that morning. Talk about a meteoric rise. The highlight for this episode though is a fake commercial for censor bars. Yes…censor bars.

Funny lines

“Elegant. Bold. Words……Censor Bars. For Nudist and naughty people.” – commercial voice over

Episode 27: Home Alone – Chris is home alone when a robber comes.

Funny lines

“Why are you wearing those stripes? Are you some sort of deranged Mime artist? ‘Cause I swear, I’m not affiliated with any clowns.” – Chris

Episode 28: PRANK WEEK – Minilife TV staff and stars pull of series of pranks on each other. Some of which are life endangering. But it’s okay, because at the end of the week they use their time machine to go back and stop it all from ever happening. One prank features annoying cashier guy, who has a new job at a fast food restaurant. Not for long…

Funny lines

“Alright, who replaced my surgical scalpel with a bendy straw?!” – Michael, the Veterinarian

Episode 29: Robots, Wizards, and Rock ‘n Roll – Archie helps Claire move into her dorm. Claire gets literally run into by a professor/wizard. The professor/wizard thinks Archie is a robot he can buy. Claire explains that he is her friend, not something that can be bought. Long story short, the wizard kidnaps Archie and Claire has to save the day.

Meanwhile Chris, Ian, and Michael try to start a band, but are confused when their belief in themselves and their “feel” of the music don’t result in instant success. Crazy right?

Funny lines

“We’re like hardcore plastic punks” – Chris

Episode 30: Season 2 FINALE – Another experiment gone awry with Michael leads to another season finale cliffhanger. In attempt to make cats smell like cinnamon using a special potion, Michael accidentally gets some on him. This naturally causes him to become a big green blob monster. The monster then eats Chris, Ian, and a guy named Jack. How will they get out? And will Michael ever be Michael again?? I guess I’ll have to wait until next season….which I could watch right now, but I will wait until it's time to do my review of season 3.

Funny lines

“Hey, I’m trying to avoid my problems while making everyone else acutely aware of them! Can you please mind your own business?” – Chris

Ian: We’ve gotta do something Chris. We can’t be digested by Michael.

Chris: I know, imagine all the calories we have. 

So that's my review of Season 2 of Minilife TV. I hope I have made some of you fans of this hilarious show. Be sure to subscribe to them on YouTube, follow them on Twitter, and like them on Facebook. 

FYI, I have absolutely no affiliation with Minilife TV or human Chris and Ian. I am also not affiliated with LEGO Chris and Ian for that matter. I just happened to stumble upon the show while on YouTube a couple months ago and thought it would be a fun thing to talk about as a new LEGO fan. 

You can look forward to more season reviews in the future. As for next week's blog, well I finally think I'll have time to build my very own Star Wars set: Rey's Speeder. It's my first major build. Wish me luck!

Until next time...go ahead and paint yourself a nice pair of sleeves. 


*Compliments, general feedback, and constructive criticism are welcome. Any haters that are gonna hate, hate, hate, hate, hate can go step on some Lego with their bare feet.*