Flieger

Most builds are actually good, I think. And if they are not, one can change them. That is the beauty of Lego. I found Shin Hati's starfighter's proportions wrong, so I rebuilt it. I found Baylan's hair piece to be a bad choice, so I used another (and added shoulder armour). But unless I buy unlicensed third-party items, there is little I can do to improve Fox and his pink armour plate. People tend to complain about things which cannot be improved at home, like stickers instead of prints, or minifig quality. I agree, they might be when talking about a 20€ toy, but certainly not when dealing with a 650€ adult collector’s item – one that is actually labelled Ultimate Collector Series. Lego is much more than a toy company, it actively and openly aims at adults, too. We can argue back and forth about the target audience for a regular LSW set, lacking hard data anyway. But just ignoring quality control issues by saying it is for kids and kids do not care... does not feel right to me. As mentioned before, Lego does charge premium prices and claims to be the best.

Or to put it differently: Disney Star Wars has consistently failed to attract new, young audiences. Last time I (teacher) saw kids talking Star Wars all the time was the TCW era, with a mild intrest in TFA but then it was gone. All the shows aimed at young people had no impact. Who even remembers Resistance? Lego Star Wars reflects this perfectly. Now we get entry level sets exclusively aimed at adults. What 7-year old wants Jedi Bob or an Ackbar trooper? That is pure 90ies nostalgia and memes, i.e. 100% adult. This is where we are. A Lego diorama of the Death Star conference? Sure, I would buy that immediately! Same with many other diaramas. ...I am 40 years old. It is high time we hold Lego to that standard of adult collector's item and stop defending inaccuracies by mindlessly saying its a kids' toy every single time an inaccuracy is mentioned. (Yularen's wrong uniform details cost as much in printing as would have the correct one e.g., in an 650€ set!). Not to mention Lego prides itself being the top of the line, premium producer...

Seeing it from different angles and in a video (rather than a render), I must reiterate that the Night Trooper's appearance is definitely hurt by the lack of arm printing. From the side it just looks like a regular shiny Stormtrooper. The printing per se looks actually better than what I feared, the gold is more substantial, the red has some depth. But overall I miss the worn-out, battered look. A splash of gray would have helped a lot. ...and arm printing. For a set this size and price, without new moulds, this should have been possible.

Wow, that Night Trooper looks bad. Too shiny and clean; on the front action shot of the box art it is hard to distinguish from a regular shiny white Stormtrooper. A very few gold and red highlights are not a enough. The lack of grey is bad enough, but would have been ok if the armour was otherwise worn out. It is not. It is clean af. The lack of arm-printing and more elaborate helmet printing hurts the minifigure additionally. I know those would have cost more but we are paying premium already. (...and are asked to tolerate huge stickers which are crucially needed in this set). Don't get me wrong, I would gladly pay the price - and more, if need be! - had the Night Trooper been better. Also, Thrawn has the same problem: no belly from the beer, no wear and tear, no Peridea-flair. (I know some people like that. I prefer screen accuracy). True, but it does not change much. Obviously some could have survived but what narrative purpose would they serve? Their master is defeated, and if they are indeed Mandalorians they have a very hard time ahead of them (again: very little information on them). They are done.

Granted, noone ever stays dead in SW, but his forces were annihilated. Especially if they were loyalist Mandalorians in Imperial gear there is little opportunity to see them again (...not much source material on these guys...). Anyway, they would be a good company; Patrol Troopers and Range Troopers e.g. got very limited screentime but truly excellent minifigs with new moulds. The Patrol Trooper's helmet in particular is a masterpiece. I cannot believe they were put in a one-off battle pack. and I wish we had seen more of them in canon. Admittedly, I am not sure how much we will see of the Night Troopers after Thrawn's return and hopefully his takeover of the Imperial remnant with all its forces. Yet, that Thrawn-entrance scene alone makes them worth it. I am highly critical of Disney SW but even I cannot escape the mastery of that scene. And I want to recreate it. Thank you, sir! I grew up with the Thrawn-Trilogy when it was the only "new" SW so I am biased. And I know I can build him myself pretty well, but still. I want him.

You are of course right in that his helmet is a challenge. Thrawn, Ezra, and presumably Ahsoka too are merely new prints, a lot less cost intensive than a new mould. But then Lego has invested in new moulds for the Imperial Armored Commandos e.g., which showed up in one episode and which were destroyed in it (so it is unlikely to see them again). To me it seems weird that such a popular character like Enoch gets less attention than that. ...not that I am unhappy with the commandos, I like them. Also, tbh, Enoch is cool but he is basically Phasma reloaded. And we know who is really Thrawn's right hand: Pellaeon. That one is far more important than Enoch anyway.

I said that yesterday.

No disagreement here. Lego is a super-premium product (and priced accordingly), getting prints right should be expected when they have correct source material available to them. A wrong print costs them as much as an accurate print, anyway, so there is that... However, I do have to disagree slightly on another point: screen accuracy. We do not get a screen accurate Peridea-Thrawn... in a Peridea-set. While I do understand the wish for a pristine Grand Admiral's uniform, I would have preferred the screen accurate look. And that means big belly and worn fabric.

To be fair, this time Lego had the advantage of hindsight. The rank insignia of the first Thrawn minifig was wrong because Lego used concept art. And it came in a rather inexpensive set clearly aimed at younger audiences (i.e. that of the Rebels show). I am not one to criticise Lego when the fault is clearly not theirs. Obviously I am happy about the correct insignia, and not just to not criticise Lego... they keep a keen eye on Imperial rank insignia on their officer uniforms as the recent ISD shows. The new Thrawn minifig imo is ok. It works because one can use the body for other Grand Admirals and/or other periods of Thrawn's life. But I am also sad because it is a missed chance: we will never get to see Thrawn with a beer belly and worn uniform look in Lego. I know I am in a minority and many love the MMA champion Thrawn of Rebels. Anyway... here is the concept art Lego was using:

I too would prefer the worn and ragged look of the screen-original because it is ... screen accurate. But then, there is also the argument of having a pristine uniform to create other scenes and characters. Also, the pic I saw was pretty blurry...

I am a teacher in Germany, which is almost like Lego hometown; many generations have been enjoying Lego over here. And Lego Star Wars among kids, as opposed to Lego in general,... nope. Not a thing anymore. It was big during the original TCW run, you could hear the children debate endlessly about clones, droids and so, and you could reference SW in class and everyone got it immediately. Those days are gone. Obviously my impression might be faulty, other indicators pointing in the same direction might be too. But then I am not claiming to speak the word of god, I am merely asking for proof. Just calling something true because you believe it is true is not my thing. Given that the SW merch sales are a highly politicized affair that I for one would like to have some reliable data rather than gut feelings, emotions, and anecdotes. It also should be mentioned that I made a lot of other points here, including an inaccurate print on a minifig that clearly aims at adults due to its set's pricetag alone, which is not any more economically sensible than an accurate print.

Re: ISD It might be weird but I am more disappointed that the crewman has a black cap. Crewmen on the bridge have olive caps, the black caps are for technicians. Also, a black uniform officer, while overdue, would not have been my first choice. But it is ok. However, I would have given two minifigs of a kind: two navy troopers, two stormtroopers, two gunners etc., rather than one of each. Still, a great playset! As a kid loved this kind of set. No distracting good guys, nice exterior, less than stellar but still not immersion-breaking interior... yeah I would have annoyed my parents. Look on the bright side: we get a black uniform with another set of rank insigna. I unironically think that is great.

YOU claimed, and still claim the vast majority of sales were to children. It falls on you to proof your own statement, not me to disprove it. I think you cannot do that, of course. There are no figures availble to the public still you claim certainties in all too apodictic fashion. It helps to remind you that you are simply not based on facts and figures. At all. Good then tell me the eeconomic reasons why Yularen got a stud printed on his belt that should not be there, because it is not a misprint. It is not a mistake, they intentionally printed the stud there. And it is still on all Yularens.

I do not believe you have any sales figures or hard data on LSW demographics. I for one doubt very much all sets are meant for kids, much less all minifigs (UCS Venator Yularen...). Just as well, I doubt kids do not care about the minifig quality - I did care when I grew up with Lego. Back then in 1990 I was amazed and happy about finally getting proper plate armour for my knights. It might be that younger people may not focus as much on details as some adults, but they do care. Otherwise it is hard to explain why Lego would invest so much effort into Ninjago figs which are meant for children, and much more so than LSW minifigs. Frankly, the dividing line is not adult vs kids, it is indifferent vs attentive. Lego is simply able and willing to produce much better figures on mass for other themes, just not for LSW. I am merely holding Lego to Lego's own standards, i.e. one which they rather admirably adhere to in some other themes. And let us not pretend it is all economic decisions: misprinting Yularen’s belt is as expensive as is printing it correctly. And yes, in a set with a price tag equalling my apartment’s monthly rent, aimed for adults and collectors, marketed as super-high-end-premium product deluxe, I want those details done right. I am aware that I might be a minority in that particular case, but as you said it yourself: LSW is (apparently) faced with decreasing popularity. And I think the relative lack of minifig quality, of which there are so many examples on so many levels, is a reason for that. Btw., if I am wrong, and you do have data on the LSW demographics, please share.

Very interesting topic, and an important one. I think it is good to have a seperate thread for it rather than than discussing it in the news section over and over again. I got two points which I would like to add: 1) minifig quality: Seriously, this is puzzling. The minifigs, on which LSW depends 100%, are of low quality compared to what other themes get. Obviously this has not escaped attention but that is only because the gap between LSW and, say, Ninjago is insanely huge. The numbers of new moulds and luxurious prints over there is staggering. We did not even get a new visor piece for Cody and Fox so that their helmets look bad. Kamas, if they are printed, should be printed around the legs and not just on the front. Baylan Skoll, the main antagonist of Ahsoka, did not get an orange blade or should armour but an ill-fitting hair piece. R2-prints are notoriously wonky and more often than not ignore the back. And so on... I do not mind if Lego gets something wrong when based on prelimary artworks but LSW's minifigs appear increasingly low effort. 2) delays:Night Troopers, Enoch and Thrawn to name one example... so cool yet why are their Lego counterparts not even in sight? Instead of capitalizing on the moment Lego waits a year. Maybe they have to, due to information blackout by Disney (very nice of them) or due to long development processes, or both. I do not know. Fact is that the customers, we, cannot make impulse purchases. The moment the troopers chanted Thrawn's name I was pumped and ready to buy 10 BPs and the large Chimera set. Only no such things were available. Now, after time and reflections have cooled my head, I am a lot less likely to spend this much money. The hype is gone. And this is a recurring problem with LSW. Again, Lego may not be to blame, but it is what it is. (And even if the Night Troopers come, see point 1... knowing Lego they won't look as good as they could.)

Lovely! It is my favourite starship so I am biased but you did it 100% justice.

Thanks for the review! At first I also rated it 10/10 despite the obvious weaknesses in the minifig design of Baylan, the lack of skirt printing, and the reuse of Qi'ra's hair. But the longer I looked the more I was annoyed with the colour choices of Shin Hati's fighter. Instead of yellow, it should be gold. Instead of light grey, it should be metallic. And that really hurts. Contrary to some opinions, the fighter is not too large, though. Looking at the screenshots and comparing the head of Shin to the cockpit space, Lego is right. However it is probably wrong in terms of proportions. I don't mind that much since I can change that easily. Changing the colours... not easy. The E-Wing on the other hand is near perfect, small mods to the cockpit and the seating position of the pilot, and we are done. In the end, my final judgement is still overwhelming positive. I got this for 70€ (and it was not hard to find) instead of 105€. Both fighters feel worth more than 35€ and minifigs are a solid enough base. 8/10 for me.

Thank you! I will try that out.

Can someone recommend a better skirt piece for Morgan Elsbeth? Plain black seems boring and there must be a better way.

Well, I would enjoy a bunch of minifig Imperial Security Troopers (basically black Mudtroopers with riot shields), also imperial officers with their great coats (around since R1). While they are not as flashy as another Stormtrooper variant, I think there is a place for them. The aftermarket prices of the Han Solo-Mudtrooper indicates at least a small interest. But yes, overall the minifig potential of Andor was not great. Also I want the Night Troopers before any other types trooper anyway... The good news is that if they visit this era in animation, there is a chance, however small, of getting Dryden Vos one day. He already made it to The Clone Wars, after all.

Don't worry I was agreeing with you, too; I just used that as a starting point for another issue. So all is well :)

Interesting idea! I had not thought much about upgrading Shin, but maybe that would be a good option. Thanks :)

Obviously KotoR has a pull still, otherwise people would not be bothered redoing it. The fanbase might be older now but that is pretty much exactly target demographic of at least a part of Lego's sets; i.e. AFOLs. Expressing mere doubts that the HR-fanbase is – as of that moment – significant enough for Lego to have commercial success (backed up by hard numbers, not feelings, mind you), is not degrading people's interest. I for one love the Solo-Movie but I will not be seen lashing out at people who correctly note its commercial failure and thus the reduced likelihood of more Solo sets. I will not been seen actively othering people by using politicized terms like "echo-chamber" (which has been used by both sides of an ugly discussion, btw., and should be banned from this forum for its toxicity). For me it is more that I need some emotional connection to the source material to enjoy a Lego set (= paying money, which is what Lego wants in the first place). I and, judging by the sales figures, most other people do not have it with HR yet. That might change. I for one hope it does. You know, "hope" ... that Star Wars thing.

Indeed, cape plus pauldrons does not work at all. The thin cape works for Shin, but I think her slender physique would be ruined by any Lego shoulder armour - quite unlike Baylan as Stevenson was a bear, and the pauldrons emphasize that niceley. I also agree that hood and cape are a nice combination as well.

Yes, Lego will play it safe. But it is not the publishing date of HR that is the problem, it is the lack of audience. Recent releases struggled getting 10k sales. The first installment was very successful but from then it went downhill fast. I mean 10k fans, as of now, are not nearly enough to be remotely interesting for Lego. How many of them are even interested in Lego? 1/3? 1/10? Then subtract the numbers who would not buy a set for whatever reason (dislike, current financial situation), and you arrive at what...? Makes no sense. Jedi Surivor sold more than 800.000 copies, Fallen Order even more. And we did not get sets for them. If that's not save enough for Lego, the 10.000 or so fans of HR won't matter either. (Yeah, I know, BD1) So while "lol" was not exactly helpful, claiming HR is worth a set and it only takes time does not seem to be terribly helpful either.