Galaxy Explorer

As I passed on nearly all the Clone Wars sets back in 2008 I am very happy to see new film versions of these vehicles. Attack of the Clones seems to be the least represented of all the films, so a new Gunship, AT-TE, etc. are most welcome! I was thinking though, was a Clone Trooper ever placed in a wing turret during the film? I very recently watched the film on Blu-ray and cannot see anyone sitting in them. I also looked at the Incredible Cross-sections book, and again, no gunner. No big deal as it adds to playability. Now, about that Sail Barge. I am 100% sure I will pick this up. The minifig selection is excellent and as some others pointed out a great addition to Jabba's entourage. I'm fine with Max Rebo being the only band member included, but he's the only one I can see on the barge in the film anyway. The Barge itself leaves me a little disappointed. It's just not big enough. Back in 2006 I felt the same way- I really felt it should have been a $100 set like the ISD was. This year is no different and I would gladly pay $120-30 for a 1200 piece set. That being said, I still think it looks nice for it's size and I'm sure when official pics are released I will very much want one!

We are long overdue for some Bespin themed sets! Right now there is a Lobot figure available and that's it. I would like to see a new Cloud Car. It could easily fit the $25-30 price bracket and come with four figs- Two pilots, a Guard, and Leia in her dinner gown. A Cloud City playset would be very welcome. I think the best way to go would be a DTC set priced at $150 like Diagon Alley. It wouldn't need to be as big as the Death Star, nor would it even need to be shaped like Cloud City. Just a nice arrangement of the key scenes much like the 2003 version with more detail. I hope we see a few more AOTC sets as well. I've mentioned an Arena set before, and would love to see an updated Speeder Chase scene. I could see that being a TRU exclusive: Two speeders, Padme's apt. with break-thru window and Obi-Wan launcher, and a small section of the nightclub. Figures would include Ani, Obi-Wan, Zam, R2-D2, Assasin Droid, Padme, and the Death-Stick peddler! LEGO probably wouldn't do him, though. Still, Jabba has his water bong.

Bought the Rancor Pit last week. Very nice! This will be my last Star Wars purchase until May 4th unless I bump into a clearance sale somewhere. I might get the UCS B-Wing during double points month, but we'll see.

My favorite SW set would have to be the 4483 AT-AT. From the beginning back in 1999 I looked forward to this release, wondering how it would be designed. I couldn't help but be a little worried considering how they treated Slave-1 in 2000, but all my worries went away when I saw the first pics. It's a massive, beautiful set with a nice selection of minifigs- and $100 for a thousand pieces wasn't bad, either. Also near the top of my list are the 2007 MTT (possibly the best redesign ever), UCS ISD (I was actually stunned when this one was announced), 2006 Slave-1 (again, one of the best redesigns), Technic Destroyer Droid (Hasbro never could figure out- or never tried- to make a functioning Droideka so I congratulate LEGO for this one), Battle of Endor (perfect playset and one of the best minifig selections of all time), and 10188 Death Star- just amazing in every way. I'm also a big fan of all three System scale Millennium Falcons. I loved the first one, and since there was nothing to compare it to, the design never bothered me. When 4504 was announced, I thought it looked amazing and much more accurate. The 2011 version improved the design even more, allowing you to flip the ship upside down without the top hull falling open.

In 1989 I got 6060 Knight's Challenge and it was missing the 1x4x1 fence piece in blue. In its place was a blue 1x4 plate with 4 fingers. I didn't return the set thinking I would come across the correct part sooner or later. Turned out to be much later, as I didn't come across one till around 2008! That's the only time I've received a part that was not used in the set. I've also had one instance where I received an extra of one part, but was missing another. It was the UCS AT-ST, which came with three left hand curved foot parts and only one right-hand. Other than that, I've had very few missing part issues.

I remember the framework for the 7190 Millennium Falcon was very unstable until you added the large quarter dish pieces, and yes, Jango's Slave 1 was ridiculously fragile! The CITY Farm from 2009 is very tricky with the roof of the barn. It should have been made with walls, not posts. The 4483 AT-AT head always seemed to come apart while building. I see a trend here with Star Wars; come to think of it, Grievous' Wheel Bike was pretty flimsy too! But seriously, four sets out of a thirty-five year collection is not a bad record. I know there are some bad feelings about the 6210 ISD's design, but that fell apart after it was built.

Very nice review, and quite funny as well! I bought this set last night along with the Fire Station. The first Fire Chief car that doesn't look like a Go-Cart! I must say that the dashboard was a big surprise and my favorite part of the set. I'll bet we see this detail in future sets. I agree it doesn't look as sleek head on, bot that is typical with most of the CITY cars. I might try some of the wheels from the Parking Garage set from last year to make it look better. The scenario with the cat stuck up in a tree has been done three times now in CITY, which is fine but the tree doesn't look too good- my cat could jump from that with no problem. And where the hell did the fish come from? If it were just laying there, the cat wouldn't have climbed the tree in the first place- It would stay on the ground and eat it. Maybe the Chief wasn't just passing by and actually got a call. But yes, this is a very nice set with some great minifigs. Thanks again for the review!

Great review! I picked this set up a couple of weeks ago and I love it! It's a very solid, sturdy vehicle and serves as a great add-on to last year's Parking Garage. I do wish, however, that the minifig used a blue Octan torso rather than overalls. Nothing I can't change, though, so no big deal. Although there was a Tanker Truck released in 2010, I consider the current version to be an update of the Tanker seen in 6562 Gas Stop Shop from 1995.

Just registered! This will be my second Brickworld and June can't come quickly enough. I guess I had better start planning my MOC's!

Very nice review and thank you for the comparison pics! Although it's not perfect, I do like this set quite a bit. I guess when I heard "Battle of Hoth" AT-AT's immediately came to mind, and I started to think of a big $200+ DTC set. But this is fine- a nice, affordable set with quite a few accessories and a decent minifig selection. I bought this set about a week before Christmas and put it together right away. I really liked the addition of the rear gunner viewscreen with the AT-AT feet. Well done! The Probe Droid has lost it's cuteness from the 7666 version and actually looks a little sinister, but I can't help making the Joe Swanson noise when I swish it around! The legs are more articulated and look kind of spindly. It's great to finally get a General Rieekan, and I agree with everyone a gunner (Dak) would have been nice to have. Even better IMO would have been to scratch Luke altogether and use Wedge and Janson instead. The trench parts and field weaponry all look great, especially the trench cannon. It reminds me very much of Kenner's Imperial Attack Base from 1980. Yay vintage! This set combined with the Wampa Attack and AT-AT from 2010, and Hoth Base from 2011 would make a great diorama.

In 2006 there were only two Star Wars sets released that summer- the Sail Barge and the ISD. The UCS At-ST came out that Fall. I think. Back on topic, I'm perfectly fine with less sets being released. The Pirate Ship set looks nice, but I was a little surprised to see it. If I were planning a LOTR line I doubt that would be very high on my list. I'm very excited about the Black Gate set- looking forward to the Mouth of Sauron figure! All in all, this summer wave looks very good and I will be happy to add all of them to my collection!

Check your local Wal-marts! I found Mines of Moria for $54, Weathertop for $40, Ewok Attack for $12, and polybag Star Wars for $1.50! This was in Iowa, so I can't say what Chicago area has. Happy hunting!

Just noticed LEGO Shop at Home just added about eight pages of items to their Sales & Deals section. However, just like last year almost everything is sold out. I'll check my local LEGO Store to see what I can find.

Hmm, not so sure about a Racing sub-theme in CITY. I was never into race cars and such back in Classic Town time, so I'll probably pass on those. However, I'm very interested in anything Cargo themed. Might be adding another table next summer!

The Umbaran Cannon, BARC Speeder and Rancor Pit were the only ones I didn't see. No new planet sets either. I bought the Hoth set at the LEGO Store at Water Tower Place in Chicago.

What happened to the Kaboom? There was supposed to be an Earth-shattering Kaboom!

The Hoth set does not have any printing on the box indicating Special or Limited Edition. The white hands on Luke look a little strange as I always thought he wore grey ones in the Speeder.

Yes, Chicago. The only set I didn't see was the Rancor Pit.

Just picked up Battle of Hoth today at The LEGO Store downtown at Water Tower Place. It was $50 and they had quite a few. A-Wing, Battle Packs, AT RT, and Z-95 were also available. I'm glad these sets came out before the holidays. Last year's hold due to TPM's release made me feel like Cartman waiting for the Wii.

I've been a Trekkie since 1984. A friend talked me into going to see "Search For Spock" and I enjoyed it very much. After that I started watching reruns on TV and by the time "Voyage Home" premiered I was hooked. They must have seen me coming because the next year TNG made its debut and I loved it. I went to my first convention in the summer of 1990- I had a good time even though there was no guest. With the 25th anniversary in 1991 it seemed like Trek was as popular as it ever had been. I spent most of the year looking forward to "Undiscovered Country" and in September attended a marathon screening of the first five films. The following years through the 90's was basically an all-you-can-eat Star Trek buffet. I went to at least one, if not two conventions a year, got to enjoy a new feature film every two years, and of course dropped tons of cash on all the cool Playmates merchandise! When Trek finally lost steam in the early 00's I was ready for a break. Star Wars was going very strong with the prequels at the time so I had plenty of geekness to hold me over. When the JJ Trek was announced I couldn't have been happier that it was coming back, but I was concerned about the new cast. I remember all of the protesting when TNG came out, and I also remember when Harve Bennett wanted to do a Starfleet Academy movie after "Final Frontier" tanked. My concern was for nothing, as I loved the new film. I thought the actors were fantastic and the story was great. Very much looking forward to seeing the next film- another milestone as it will be my first Trek in 3-D!

My LEGO collection is 33 years old and counting. As I have never experienced any type of dark age I just keep adding and adding. Generally any set I purchase new either stays in it's box or gets placed in a Hefty One-zip bag. All of my spare parts (most of which I buy on ebay) get placed in Rubbermaid bins and little storage drawers. I have a whole area devoted to vintage parts so they won't get mixed in. This helps me a lot when I'm doing a Classic Town layout, or a current CITY layout. However, someday there will be a term called "Classic CITY" and I'll probably have a new vintage area for that as well.

Thank you for a very nice run-down of this cool set! A current version of this starfighter is very welcome- however, I wish LEGO didn't feel compelled to include main characters in every set. This would have been perfect with a Star Destroyer bridge to crash into, and a Piett figure instead of Ackbar. Solo should have been saved for a different set as well. I guess it doesn't matter too much as I will buy it anyway!

This is perfect. Those sets look beautiful together, and you've done an amazing job with the landscaping. Having the much larger cottage separated from the other three was a good idea, and creating your own streets instead of roadplates really helps. I could easily see this in a window display. Good job!

The TRU here in Chicago had several 2013 sets in stock, but I passed, as the mark-up was sickening. But what I saw made me excited- LEGO Store will get them soon enough. My must haves are the Museum- I have a perfect coastline spot for that one. Helicopter Arrest- A nice building and dock. I will probably de-criminalize the setting and make it a boat rental & repair shop. Fire Station- I have all but two Fire Stations since 1978 and this year will be no different. I'll fill in the sides with white windows to give it a more finished look but other than that I really like this one. I'm a big fan of taking Classic town sets and updating them. This Station looks fairly tall, too, so it will add to the skyline nicely. All Great Vehicles- They are on a continuing winning streak with these! I saw the Tanker and I think it's my favorite- again, another update from a Classic Town set.

So now that we know a Hoth Battle Set is coming next year, does anyone think that a new AT-AT could be right around the corner? I missed the 2010 version so I would love to see an updated one. How about a nice $140 sized set with a power generator to blow up, and maybe a turret? I'm not sure about the minifig selection, though, since most Hoth characters are represented in current sets. Maybe Vader, Veers, a driver, a couple of troopers and some Rebels, but I think it would need to include at least one or two "new" characters.