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Set Number: 4483
Name: AT-AT (All Terrain Armored Transport)
Theme: Star Wars, Episodes IV-VI
Released: 2003
Pieces: 1068
Minifigs: 4
MSRP: $100 USD
Brickset | BrickLink
This set was released around the time I started college, which regretably was also when I went into my dark ages as a Lego fan. It is one of the sets released around that time which ultimately represented the last hurrah of the old gray colors before they were phased out. Since being discontinued many people have added it to their wanted lists on various sites - a year ago it was the most wanted Star Wars set on BrickLink (as reported by The Brothers Brick at that time), and it's still on the list of most wanted sets at Brickset. I was fortunate enough recently to acquire one through BrickLink which was in like-new condition and included both the instructions and the original box at a fairly reasonable price (taking into account the supply and demand, at least...)
Box
Reverse
When buying a used set like this the box is generally considered unnecessary and tends to increase shipping charges, but in my opinion it can hold some sentimental value, especially if the box is in as nice condition as this one is. Interestingly, by this time Lego apparently had already stopped including pictures of alternate models for sets in the Star Wars line. At least there are some nice comparison shots with stills from Empire Strikes Back.
Instructions
First pages, including the obligatory explanation of how to assemble a minifig
Random page, showing construction of the very fragile cockpit/head (more on this later)
And, on the last page, an exciting action scene which makes it seem as though this set should have come with more than two Snowtroopers (the AT-AT includes seating for four of them, after all)
Pieces
Suffice it to say, for anyone like me who still stubbornly insists on using the old gray colors (my excuse is that, until I came out of my dark age earlier this year, I literally didn't have any parts in the newer colors), this set is a gold mine - a veritable cornucopia of useful parts ranging from fairly commonplace to quite rare. Of course there are also the usual assortment of parts in seemingly out-of-place colors, but to be honest if those weren't present I'd almost have to wonder if this was really an official Lego set
Minifigs
From left to right: AT-AT pilot, 2 Snowtroopers and Luke Skywalker
The pilot and troopers are the original versions with old gray detailing and were both unique to this set.
The AT-AT pilot has printing on the back of the torso, much like the standard Stormtroopers, and the Snowtroopers have neat-looking backpacks which are molded onto their helmets and are open on the bottom
I don't know about the rest of you peeps, but all these Luke minifigs have gotten kinda boring for me, particularly the ones with him in his pilot getup. Oh well - I know the idea was to let you could recreate the scene where Luke single-handedly destroys one of the walkers in the movie after his snowspeeder crashes.
Exterior
The legs, while stiff and arguably a touch shorter than in the movie, are fully poseable; I positioned them to look like it's in mid-stride. Overall I feel it's a pretty well done recreation, complete with all the fun angles found on the actual thing.
Front and rear views
The top two joints on each leg are comprised of these pieces, and the bottom one uses a standard Technic friction pin with an arch piece and an inner strut to help keep it stable. You can see how they cheated slightly by not including the inner "toe" for each foot, perhaps because they were worried about the feet on each side getting stuck together.
Side view, betraying the AT-AT's elephantine inspiration
Close-up of the head, bristling with armament
Close-up of the neck joint, comprised of a single precarious Technic connector
Bonus fact: The entire head and neck assembly is designed to pop out, presumably to recreate the scene where the head explodes after Luke tosses a detonator into the body. I find this kind of ironic though, since due to how it's constructed it's more likely that the head will just come off on its own if the above joint isn't tightened as much as possible.
Interior
Cockpit
While it might have been a pretty tight fit, it would have been nice to have two pilots as featured in the movie (since this is supposed to be the walker sabotaged by Luke, it makes sense that General Veers is absent).
Unfortunately the sides of the cockpit don't stay in place very well, since they're only attached by a single non-locking hinge on either side, so I decided to use the "string with end studs" included in the set (intended for suspending Luke under the main body just like in the movie) as an additional brace to help the sides stay properly angled. Normally there'd be a tan 2x4 plate behind that small grill at the front, but I replaced it with two dark gray 2x2 corner plates to provide room for the end studs of the string (which you can barely make out in this picture). Without this modification the sides kinda flop out and don't look right.
Main cabin (mirrored on the other side)
The two Snowtroopers are comfortably seated amidst posh sand-blue upholstery with a touch of yellow trim, but they're left wondering how on earth they're supposed to safely deploy to the ground (zip line not included). The platform they sit on slides out, probably just for easier finger-access to the troopers inside (all two of them
).Rear compartment / speeder bike stowage
Speaking of which...
The Bonus Snow Speeder Bike
I don't think the first round of speeder bikes had a very authentic appearance to them, this one being no exception. It does have some potentially useful parts, though. It's weird that by design there's one of those megaphone pieces for the little gray clip on the opposite side, but not for both sides. And yes, this was back in that nostalgic megaphone-as-laser-gun era.
Closing Thoughts
In spite of a couple structural flaws, I am quite happy with this set overall. I believe it's safe to say that this one looks a lot more authentic than the newer, motorized AT-AT. I wish I'd gotten it when it was still being produced, but I nevertheless don't regret paying a bit of a premium for what is clearly a very collectible discontinued set that would look good on any shelf tall enough to fit it.
Build: 8/10 - Not boring or too repetitive, but it was a bit tricky sometimes attaching newly-built sections to it without causing things to fall apart.
Design: 9/10 - Shows a very strong resemblance to the original models used in the films.
Construction: 6.5/10 - While all the crazy angles and the moveable legs doubtless made it pretty tricky from the set designer's perspective, there are a couple places which seem unacceptably poorly built for an official Lego set. I can move it without it coming apart, though
Parts: 9/10 - Despite some parts in funky colors, an excellent selection which will be a nice boon to my existing collection.
Price: 10/10 - Going by the original U.S. MSRP, I don't think there was really anything to complain about here.
Total: 8.5/10 - Whether it's still worth getting at current BrickLink asking prices is an exercise I leave to the reader.
It's hard for me to judge playability at this point in my life, but I imagine a kid could potentially have had a lot of fun with this set... as long as the head didn't fall off without the kid intending it to
Edit: Image hosting changed to Brickshelf.
Edited by searrius, 04 May 2010 - 12:57 AM.
. I have to agree with you on the plating. From what I can see on the pics it does look fairly flimsy.
So glad I got it on sale at TRU.
