The Brick Connection– A novice Lego fan explores the great brick world of LEGO

Wyaaaaaa. Ruh ruh?

That’s Wookieespeak for “Hello. How are you?”

Wookieespeak of course is the language of Wookiees, like everyone’s favorite Wookiee and Han Solo’s best friend, Chewbacca.

So if you haven’t guessed this week’s topic yet…

…well you must be really stupid. That sucks for you.

As of this blog’s posting we are 92 days from the release of Star Wars Episode VII: The Force Awakens. A movie that is 32 years in the making…because that’s how long it’s been since Episode VI was released. Like every other Star Wars fan, or should I just say every other living, breathing human being, I am very excited to have this epic story continued.

Yes, of course we had the prequel trilogy that came out between 1999 and 2005, but that was a story that most people knew the gist of. Promising Jedi Knight is a little too promising. Falls in love with and marries a pretty girl, but turns over to the dark side right before the birth of their twins. The wife dies after childbirth and the kids are separated to keep them away from their evil daddy. And they all lived happily ever after…

Or at least they did a couple decades later when the twins were reunited and the evil daddy was defeated.

The point is, now we are finally getting a continuation of the story. What does the galaxy far, far away look like 30 years after the death of Darth Vader? What’s going on with Luke, Leia, Han, and Chewie?

This time we don’t really know what’s coming, much like those who were alive during the release of the original trilogy didn’t know what was coming before each movie came out. Which is what makes it so darn exciting!

So of course all this Star Wars talk on a LEGO blog brings me to the brand spanking new LEGO Star Wars sets. It’s been almost two weeks since “Force Friday.” Have you all recovered yet?

You can bet I was standing in line at a toy store at midnight on Force Friday, wanting to be one of the first to purchase the first wave of LEGO sets based on Episode VII.

Actually, that would have been a really horrible bet, as I was most definitely not in line that night and I have still not purchased any of the new sets. But all joking aside, I genuinely would love to be able to build and play with one of these sets.

Let’s go through them shall we…

There were seven sets released on Force Friday. Oh my gosh, and it’s Episode VII! Seven for VII! Nice!

Here is the list:

Rey’s Speeder

Poe’s X-Wing Fighter

Millennium Falcon

Kylo Ren’s Command Shuttle

First Order Special Forces TIE Fighter

First Order Transporter

First Order Snowspeeder

Now I’ve only seen pictures and videos of each set and of course they all look amazing, but the one I’m most excited about and would like to purchase is Rey’s Speeder. Yes, I realize that most people might say the Millennium Falcon or one of the bigger sets, but remember, I’m still new at this. Rey’s Speeder looks like something I could actually complete without having a mental breakdown. Plus it helps that it is the cheapest of the sets, selling for about $20.

And it features the new character I’m most excited about: Rey. There are many rumors that Rey is the daughter of Princess Leia and Han Solo. And with parents like that, you know she’s a total badass. So I definitely can’t wait to learn more about Rey and the role she will play in the new Star Wars generation.

For the rest of this week’s blog I will be accumulating a bunch of reviews, pictures, and videos of each new set for you. I’ll cover three sets this week and the other four next week.

I’ll start with my favorite: Rey’s Speeder

Here’s the description on LEGO’s website:

Speed into action on Rey's Speeder!™

Hover into action on Rey's Speeder™! This cool landspeeder has everything Rey needs for scouting the surface of a desert planet, including dual stud shooters, opening storage hatch and side-mounted bag, blaster, buzzsaw and electrobinoculars. There’s also a detachable sled with space for a minifigure when Rey must make a quick escape down the desert dunes! Recreate your own fantastic scenes from Star Wars™: The Force Awakens. Includes 2 minifigures: Rey and Unkar’s Thug with a crowbar.

Here’s a picture of the LEGO box next to a picture from the movie.

Pretty sweet! 

The set has 193 pieces and two minifigures. Of the six reviews for this set on the LEGO website, all are positive. Everyone likes the minifigs, especially Rey and her headpiece, which can also be switched to her regular hair. Other positives that get mentioned have to do with the storage for Rey’s accessories and the opening hatches.

In The Brick Show’s video review of the speeder set, they had similar thoughts. It seems the main complaint about this set was the fact that there were only two minifigures instead of three. Apparently it’s common at this price point for there to be two minifigs. Although, I don’t know who else they could have had in relation to this set. You need Rey because it’s her speeder and you need a foe and that’s what you get.

Some other highlights:

• The side hatches open when you turn the engine in the back. Turning one way opens one side and turning the other way opens the other side.
• Two stud shooters in the front.
• A box that fits perfectly inside the vehicle to hold extra ammo.
• Binoculars and buzz saw attached to the side of the vehicle.
• Cool print and headpieces for both minifigures.
• Inverted tiles on the bottom of the speeder to make it look like it’s really hovering

Overall this is a great set, especially considering its size. Due to its price and the fact that the speeder has been heavily featured in the movie trailers, I’m sure this is going to be a very popular set. Most people seemed to be able to finish this build in less than an hour, even less than 30 minutes. If I ever get my hands on this, I will not be most people

Poe’s X-Wing Fighter

LEGO’s description:

Go on daring missions with Poe's X-Wing Fighter™!

Battle the forces of the First Order with Poe's X-Wing Fighter™. This customized starfighter is packed with features, like the 4 spring-loaded shooters, 2 stud shooters, retractable landing gear, opening wings, opening cockpit with space for a minifigure and space behind for the BB-8 Astromech Droid. There’s even a loader with weapon rack, extra missiles and ammunition, and a seat for a minifigure. So climb the access ladder, strap in and get ready to recreate your own great scenes from Star Wars™: The Force Awakens! Includes 3 minifigures with assorted weapons and accessories: Poe Dameron, Resistance ground crew and a Resistance X-Wing Pilot, plus a BB-8 Astromech Droid.

I wanted to do another side by side comparison of LEGO and the movie, but I don’t think there’s an official photo of the movie’s X-Wing. Instead I found a photo taken for Vanity Fair with the actor who plays Poe Dameron (Oscar Isaac) standing all cool-like next to his X-Wing.

Between the reviews I found on LEGO’s website and Amazon and video reviews from The Brick Show and JANGBricks, it seems that LEGO’s newest X-Wing fighter is a hit.

Veteran LEGO Star Wars fans will first notice that the color scheme of black and orange is very different. Previously released x-wing sets were mostly white. In fact, this set doesn't seem like it will even match the real one in the movie. But it's a cool color scheme and makes it stand out more.

JANGBrick thinks the issues people might have with this set are that it’s very similar to the last LEGO x-wing design and different from what an x-wing looked like in the original trilogy. These are just things that he is guessing people will complain about, but he has no qualms about it. Apparently everyone loved the previous LEGO x-wing design so if LEGO wants to do it this way again, who cares. And a different look to the x-wing compared to the original trilogy is to be expected when it’s 30 years later. I think we’re all grateful that the cars they make today don’t still look like cars made 30 years ago.

The only other issue seems to be the rubber band mechanism that holds together the wings. The rubber bands are blue for one thing, which does not match the orange and black of the rest of the X-Wing. And JANGBrick notes that the rubber bands are a little too tight, causing some of the back pieces to bend.

Some good highlights:

• Printed canopy over cockpit (no stickers!)
• Cool helmet pieces for the minifigs: shape, design, print, and see-through goggles
• A BB-8 Astromech Droid is included (the breakout star of the new Star Wars)
• Ground pieces are nice
• Fun play features (movable wings, landing gear)
• JUST PLAIN AWESOME         

This set is so popular that it's currently out of stock on LEGO's website. Of course you can still find it on other websites and probably in toy stores too. The set retails for $79.99, which according to some reviewers is about $10 too much. I don't think LEGO's worried about people not buying it due to its price though. On LEGO's site, reviewers' build times supposedly ranged from 45 minutes to 3 and a half hours. Hmm, if that 45 minute build is true, I'd like to see some video.

Millennium Falcon

LEGO's description:

Travel the galaxy with Han Solo, Chewbacca and others in the iconic Millennium Falcon™!

One of the most iconic starships of the Star Wars™ saga is back, and it’s leaner and meaner than ever before! As featured in exciting scenes from Star Wars: The Force Awakens, this latest LEGO® version of the Millennium Falcon™ is crammed with new and updated external features, including an even more streamlined and detailed design, detachable cockpit with space for 2 minifigures, rotating top and bottom laser turrets with hatch and space for a minifigure, dual spring-loaded shooters, sensor dish,ramp and an entrance hatch. Open up the hull plates to reveal even more great new and updated details inside, including the main hold with seating area and holochess board, more detailed hyperdrive, secret compartment, extra boxes and cables, and storage for spring-loaded shooter ammo. And of course no LEGO Millennium Falcon model would be complete without Han Solo and Chewbacca, as well as other great characters from Star Wars: The Force Awakens. Activate the hyperdrive and set course for LEGO Star Wars fun! Includes 6 minifigures with assorted weapons: Rey, Finn, Han Solo, Chewbacca, Tasu Leech and a Kanjiklub Gang Member, plus a BB-8 Astromech Droid.

The biggest and perhaps most anticipated new Star wars set. Here it is next to a screenshot of the real one from the trailer.

It seems the bigger the set, the pickier LEGO fans are going to be about it. Plus, when it's based on an iconic spaceship, people are going to have very high standards.

On LEGO's website there are currently five reviews up so far. Maybe because they are the only five people that have finished building it.  Of those five people, two do not recommend that you buy this set.

The least impressed person thought it was déjà vu, meaning too much like the previous Falcon set from 2011. In his words, “this is just a clone of a previous set with a few more parts and a higher price.”

But that’s not true. In fact, someone from LEGO actually responded to this guy’s review to tell him some of what has changed from the previous set.

The updates they mentioned were:

• New minifigures – including an aged Han Solo
• More details inside the falcon
• Improved build with more stability to the cockpit and sleeker design to the front portion of the ship

And from the video reviews I’ve seen, this LEGO employee is not making stuff up. Both The Brick Show and JANGBricks highlighted the many improvements and added detail for this set, despite its similar design to the 2011 Millennium Falcon set.

JANGBricks mentioned the less exposed studs, which even a novice fan like me noticed when comparing pictures of the two Falcon sets. The less exposed studs make it look a lot nicer. Jang also talks about the complete rebuild and redesign of the nose of the ship, which very slyly integrates spring-loaded shooters.

The interior is also a lot more detailed, including the fact that it’s a bit of a mess. There are a lot of random pieces strewn about the interior, suggesting that there hasn’t been much upkeep in the decades since last we saw it. Personally I think that’s a very interesting detail to have because it basically gives us a little insight into what we'll see in the movie.  

The Brick Show also mentioned the added details and the sturdier build. An older-looking Han Solo and Chewbaca’s new bow were highlights for them. They thought it was a little pricey, which is what everyone seems to agree on about all of these new sets. But they really loved the build. The Brick Show is holding off on an official rating until the film comes out, which I think makes sense. I mean I was really excited about the Ant-Man set I found online because I had seen the movie and thought it went perfectly with what I loved about the movie.

The Millennium Falcon set is priced at $149.99 and comes with 1,329 pieces, 6 minifigures, a droid, and hopefully some caffeine to help you get through the build. I’m going to guess if you gave me this set today and I worked on it continuously, only stopping to eat and sleep, I could finish before the movie comes out in December….maybe.

So that was my overview of the reviews for the first three Star Wars sets. It was my over-review. It was my review-over. It was my, I’m-to-cheap-to-actually-buy-the-sets-and-review-them-myself-review. You're welcome!

Please share your own thoughts on the new Star Wars sets. Have you bought all of them? Are you saving up? Are you just gonna buy the cheapest one and hope you win the lottery so that you can buy all the other ones too?

Let me know your thoughts on these sets or any of the previous Star Wars sets. Do you think the new ones are too similar to the previous old sets?

Next week we'll take a look at the sets of the bad guys, The First Order and Kylo Ren. 

Be sure to check out both The Brick Show and JANGBricks on YouTube, especially their reviews of the new sets. 

Until next time...here's an awesome LEGO recreation of the Star Wars trailer. Less than 92 days to go! :D

*Compliments, general feedback, and constructive criticism are welcome. Any haters that are gonna hate, hate, hate, hate, hate can go step on some Lego with their bare feet.*