Citations › Citation ID: 135

C135. BOOK: Daniel Konstanski, The Secret Life of LEGO Bricks: The Inside Story of a Design Icon (Unbound, 2022), p. 217.

The L-shaped 5x5 LEGO Technic brick was developed in the late 1990s for what would have been the largest LEGO model ever released and whose identity was so secret that designers are still not permitted to reveal it. Slated for release in 2001, this cancelled set was so massive that it justified the development of the L-shaped brick all on its own. Set 8466 LEGO Technic 4x4 Off-Roader was the only model to include the element for the first four years of its mould’s existence, showing that the LEGO Group had big plans for it. Just before the 5x5 was deleted from the element library, designers in the LEGO Star Wars team needed it. 10143 Ultimate Collectors Series Death Star, released in 2005, used several in its superstructure, but the major coup came two years later. Returning full circle, the L-shaped 5x5 served as an integral part of 10179 Ultimate Collectors Series Millennium Falcon, released in 2007 – the largest LEGO set at the time.

5x5, Corner (part 32555) was created for an unreleased set, but popularized by Star Wars sets like the Millennium Falcon.