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Hi. This is my eighth Star Wars review and it features: the 30005 Imperial Speeder Bike!
Theme: Star Wars (ROTJ)
No of pieces: 29 (excluding fig)
Release Date: 2009
Minifigs: 1
RRP when released: Free (promotional set)
Bricklink
Brickset
This set is based on a custom vehicle from the minds of TLG. It has never been seen in any of the films or EU, to my knowledge. It appears to be a small, one-man speeder bike that is apparently Endor-themed, looking at the background of the picture on the bag and instructions.
Instructions
This is the front cover of the miniscule instruction booklet. It shows the vehicle whizzing along through the dense forests of Endor's moon.
The instuctions are printed on both sides of the paper, as well as a small advert for LEGO.com and two of this years Original Trilogy sets: 7749 Echo Base and 8038 The Battle of Endor.
Build
These are the 29 pieces that make up the vehicle, as well as the stormtrooper on the left. They are mostly ordinary pieces, but there are some that I didn't have already such as the two axes.
At stage three in the build, the model will look like this. The base of the speeder has been assembled, but it doesn't look like much yet.
By stage six of ten, handlebars have been added as well as a small engine on the back.
The finished product looks like this. The axes are clipped onto the sides and the front has been nicely built up.
Vehicle
From the front, you can see that the pilot has a clear view ahead. If the binocular pieces are supposed to be guns, they aim at the ground, so would be quite ineffective unless the target was lying down. I expect they're just for detail.
Looking at the back, we can see the small exhaust mounted on the back. The axes, so the instructions say, should be pointed towards the ground. Maybe this vehicle is supposed to be some kind of Imperial Lawnmower?
The side view shows off the vehicles perfect shape. The front tilts down, much like a Swoop bike, and the axes are held on the sides. The stormie riding the bike cannot hold the handlebars, unfortunately. They're just there to rest his arms on.
And off he goes into the jungle. Maybe a tree has fallen on the road and is blocking traffic. This Woodcutter trooper is off to clear the way with his two little axes.
Minifigure
Being such a tiny set, it only includes on basic minifigure: a good old stormtrooper. I don't have many of these, being a PT fan, so another one was nice to add to my small collection. As he's a speeder pilot, he's not equipped with any kind of weapon, apart from his axes of course. Perhaps he's descended from the Dwarves theme?
Ratings and thoughts
Build: 5/10 - Simple and quick, as you'd expect from a small set like this. It wasn't boring or repetitive so it gets a good score.
Minifigures: 4/10 - As nice as this stormie is, a scout trooper might have been more appropriate and more appreciated by some people.
Playability: 4/10 - There isn't much to do with this set but swoosh it.
Design: 7/10 - It does a little odd, but it fits in with the design of the other 74-Z speeder bikes the Endor sets have included, and the handlebars are quite nice too.
Price: 10/10 - All this little beauty cost was 65p for the newspaper!
Overall: 30/50 - A wonderful little promo that I'm sure will be very popular among Star Wars LEGO fans.
And to finish: a shot of him terrorizing a poor Ewok!
Thanks for looking, everybody. Comments welcome, as always.
Edited by BoneyT, 06 September 2009 - 10:43 AM.
I picked up a few of these, and was planning to make a review before I read this. 
I think LEGO were getting rid of seconds from the factories in the form of promos. 
. It is a shame I don´t live in the UK, I want this promo sets ><!!!!!!!!
