43 replies to this topic

[Sinner]

Set Index: 9492

Quote

Scour the stars for Rebel forces in the TIE Fighter!

Hunt down the Rebels in the iconic TIE Fighter! Equipped with dual flick missiles and opening cockpit, this instantly recognizable and hugely popular starship of the Imperial fleet returns to battle the Rebel Alliance once again!

• Includes 4 minifigures: TIE Fighter Pilot, Imperial Officer, new Death Star Trooper and R5-J2 Droid
• Features TIE Fighter and 1 blaster
• TIE Fighter features opening cockpit and dual flick missiles
• Battle the 9493 X-wing Starfighter!
• TIE Fighter measures over 9” (23cm) tall and 6” (17cm) wide

TLG releases new TIE fighters regularly and they don't seem to like missing a year. (For the record, I consider the Scimitar to be a TIE ancestor.) This is the 2012 edition of the TIE/ln starfighter!


Three bags, 2 and 3 are identical, one for each radiator panel. (I'd already opened bag 1 and then I decided to do a review.... )


Four figs! I bought this set mostly for the model, but the figs are good just the same. "R5-J2" is the highlight to me.


Only one has a double site face, only the Imperial Officer has backprinting (vertical creases and a belt), but the pilot has a happy face!


I love the new helmet!


I hope the new droid head becomes a common part. (Since it has a stud it's likely! )


...and now it's time for the main event!


The new radiator panel design is a vast improvement. The center part is a print.


The border is held on via the top and bottom by four 6x2 with a 4x1 snot parts...



...and it ends up being very thin and it really looks the part.


The rear is less of a success; that back part is supposed to be concave. But it's a hard detail to do right. While complaining, it's a shame that TLG didn't divide the hexagon on the inside as well. Mod job?


The pilot has controls! And a seat! You can also see here how the new 4x1 curved parts (from Cars sets) is used to smooth off the top nicely.


This canopy is a huge improvement for so many reasons (especially the loss of the integrated laser cannons)...


...and the printing is much better as well.


For optimum swooshing, the radiator panels are held on very securely; two pins are on the pylon, and this axle...


...goes though and connects with this technic part. (Normally hidden.)


I recently moved so I don't have my other TIEs assembled, but I fixed this TIE/D Defender for the review.


The Defender looks bad in comparison here. The wings are sagging, the cockpit looks blocky and the tiles on the wings look lame in comparison.


Ditto. My "studio" looks lame here too.


Hmmm. Concave rear or not, the TIE/ln starfighter looks superior. It's hard to believe that these sets were about the same price...


It's a winner for pilot ergonomics too! A seat, controls, more room... makes you feel bad for the TIE/D Defender seeing it's equipped with a hyperdrive!


Previously unseen parts. EDIT: smokebelch picked my mistake; two of those gray wedges go inside the cockpit.


Ratings

Functions:
Not too many but the flick-fires are subtle, the canopy connection is sturdy and the radiator panel construction and connection is really strong. 8/10

Parts:
Nothing too exciting, the new figs and the canopy are the highlights. 8/10

Price:
At $89.99 AUD ($54.99 USD) for 413 parts it's not too good. But it's a Star Wars set... 5/10

Accuracy:
The best TIE yet, by a huge margin. I think it looks better than the UCS ones too. Guaranteed to make your older TIEs look crap. 10/10

Fudge:
This is so close to the perfect TIE that I'd be surprised if there is ever another one of this model. They'll probably do a bomber next year, and an interceptor next year and then they can never make a TIE ever again. (Feel free to rub my face in this comment in a few years.) 10/10

Overall:
Buy! 8/10




One thing that always bothers me about TIEs; how do the poor guys see? The left and right sides are a huge blind spot, as is the back. If it's some sort of holo-display why have a viewport at all...

Thanks for reading! Feel free to post image requests!

[mutley777]

Thank you you for the fantastic review Siegfried! This is by far the best TIE we have had ,ok so it is a close second the the UCS Vader's TIE but still .

The Minifigs are great in what is really only a medium size set. The price is a little steep, with this being £10 more than your pictured TIE Defender in the UK. I will be looking for a 3 for 2 deal to get my copies of this set.

[simonjedi]

Look out! Batman looks pissed and he's going to beat the shit out of you.

I agree with Mutley777. It is rather overpriced for what you get. I have a few Imperial pilots already so i might just eBay just the ship.

[surrideo]

Thanks for the review. Being in the UK too I will also be waiting for the price to drop at least £10.

It's worth noting that this is one of the few modern days sets which I would be buying for the set with no thought to the minifigs enclosed. This along with the X wing are so iconic and both with brilliant and imo best iterations this wave.

In regards the Tie Fighter design flaw you must need a separate licence to pilot a tie fighter, bit like an HGV licence. Though Lego may just have left out the oversized blind side mirrors  

[lego envy]

Perfect review. I might ebay the ship as well.Knowing me i will most likely just buy the darn thing. I love it ,but i wish it was a bit larger IMO.9x6 is kinda small for the money they want.

[smokebelch]

Nice review, definatly agree this is bar far the best Tie Fighter yet. As always a bit overpriced in the UK, but all the minifigs are excellent. The imperial trooper has a new torso also (with back print), and love the new Death Star trooper. And the new R5 heads are beautiful  

Also notice that 2 of the spare light bley cheese slopes you have listed as spares, are supposed to go either side of the pilot control panel in the front of the cockpit  

[Sinner]

mutley777, on 29 January 2012 - 02:25 PM, said:

The price is a little steep, with this being £10 more than your pictured TIE Defender in the UK. I will be looking for a 3 for 2 deal to get my copies of this set.

I got mine on a 20% off sale.  

surrideo, on 29 January 2012 - 02:50 PM, said:

In regards the Tie Fighter design flaw you must need a separate licence to pilot a tie fighter, bit like an HGV licence. Though Lego may just have left out the oversized blind side mirrors  

That sounds like a good mod.

smokebelch, on 29 January 2012 - 04:02 PM, said:

Nice review, definatly agree this is bar far the best Tie Fighter yet. As always a bit overpriced in the UK, but all the minifigs are excellent. The imperial trooper has a new torso also (with back print), and love the new Death Star trooper. And the new R5 heads are beautiful  

Also notice that 2 of the spare light bley cheese slopes you have listed as spares, are supposed to go either side of the pilot control panel in the front of the cockpit  

Thanks for picking up my mistakes.   I've corrected the review. But I never said they are spare; I called them "Previously unseen parts"....

[smokebelch]

Siegfried, on 29 January 2012 - 04:27 PM, said:

Thanks for picking up my mistakes.   I've corrected the review. But I never said they are spare; I called them "Previously unseen parts"....

Haha yeah sorry, didn't like to point out a mistake- its always the same when I build a ship, will end up with something I've missed and have 'spare' (or previously unseen   )
I only noticed when I thought 'hang on a minute I didn't get all those cheese wedges extra!'  

[Ackbar]

Great review!    This is a really great set. And the minfigs are stunning! Even though I mostly stick to USC sets, this was a must buy for me. The wings are spot on and - it's almost unbelievable nowdays - no stickers!

My only (small) complaint about this set is that there's too much dark grey around the cockpit. It would be more accurate with more light grey or at least the same coloration. Now the cockpit gets rather messy with dark and light grey blended randomly.

[gratefulnat]

Thanks for the review Siegfried.

I just finished building mine on Friday, and am loving this baby

One of the first LEGO SW ships I've had the urge to fly around in my appartment in many years, great build and great set!

[Algernon]

This is my favorite Star Wars set from the 2012 wave, followed by the new X-Wing. What a great model. It's leaps and bounds above any other rendition of the TIE fighter LEGO's ever released. The asking price is still pretty high (license themes ) but I'm still willing to pay it for a model this attractive.

Great review, I'm sold!  

[Davor]

Nice review.

I don`t see why are ppl complaining about the price, as far as I saw it in the shops last couple of days,  its little bit cheaper than 396 pcs/4mnfg ARC170 and it has little bit more bricks (413 + 4 mnfgs) - new box is maybe different, but its still in the same price range as last years.

[Speedboat]

Great review! The new TIE fighter is on my list for february purchases, the new iteration looks fantastic. Also, I really love the new Death Star trooper minifig. If only it was part of a battle pack instead of a larger set.  

Edited by Speedboat, 29 January 2012 - 07:31 PM.

[JackJonespaw]

Very nice review! I love the wings on this TIE! (Not to mention the figs!)

[Fighter of Frizzies]

A very handsome looking set that I can't wait to pick up (on discount!)

One area I'm quite pleased about is the thickness/sturdiness of the wings so that a display stand won't be necessary (unlike the 01 version).

[prateek]

Awesome looking set. It looks better and better every time I see it. Hopefully this will be one of those sets Lego marks down at the end of the year so I can snatch it up

[mortesv]

Great review and a great set -It is indeed far the best system TIE so far!

You shouldn't feel sorry for the TIE pilots - the knew what they were signing up for when they joined the academy!  

[Darth Yogi]

Thanks for the review.  I really love this set, even more because of this, and am planning on picking this set up as my first one of this wave.

Great review

[Brickmamba]

Very nice review, one of the stand out re-releases this summer in my opinion, the new wings look great and despite the price it does come with 4 figures including the new astromech which is a must have, looking forward to getting this

[Esurient]

Thank you for the review, I would buy this set for the minifigures too. But I will be waiting out for a 30%-50% sale off rrp before jumping into a few of these great sets.

[John31388]

Thanks for the awesome review, I can't wait to get this set as I don't have any tie's besides vaders. I think it looks great and the minifigs look awesome, also very happy that they went away from the black and blue combo

[Fallenangel]

Siegfried, on 29 January 2012 - 02:12 PM, said:

One thing that always bothers me about TIEs; how do the poor guys see? The left and right sides are a huge blind spot, as is the back. If it's some sort of holo-display why have a viewport at all...

The hexagonal bit between the twin ion engines is actually a rear viewport. The Essential Guide claims there is a “Solar Ionization Reactor” there, but this is the same source claiming the X-34 is a puny 3.4m.

Ackbar, on 29 January 2012 - 04:48 PM, said:

My only (small) complaint about this set is that there's too much dark grey around the cockpit. It would be more accurate with more light grey or at least the same coloration. Now the cockpit gets rather messy with dark and light grey blended randomly.

Interestingly enough, TIEs with monochrome hulls seem to be unique to the first film; models in subsequent films featured dark grey highlights (the sensor arrays on either side of the viewport, for example, tend to be darker on most TIEs, as well as the bits around the engines). Even in the first movie certain TIES, such as Vader’s wingman, feature some unusual paint schemes. I can definitely see your point concerning the random placement of such colors, though; necessary though it may be, it does hurt the overall look (an issue common to all predominantly grey sets).

Edited by Fallenangel, 31 January 2012 - 01:52 AM.

[Churchill]

Fallen, I've been thinking that since I built my TIE- I wish they could have incorporated a rear viewport.
I never noticed that symbol before, and don't think I've seen it elsewhere.  Any idea of the significance?  Even though for a fact we can see that there are some variations in color, I would think any symbol like this would go against the supposed uniformity of the TIEs.

[Anio]

Thanks for the review. :)

Siegfried, on 29 January 2012 - 02:12 PM, said:

The end of the blue pin is compressed or not ?
In other words, is it or not an illegal build ?

I would appreciate to have a photo of the pin into the DBG part.

[prateek]

Anio, on 31 January 2012 - 02:09 AM, said:

The end of the blue pin is compressed or not ?
In other words, is it or not an illegal build ?

No. That piece has a notch inside the tubes so the pin can fully click in.