Star Wars (June)
75091 Flash Speeder (£34.99) - This set actually seemed like pretty good value for money as it included five minifigures: two Battle Droids, two Naboo Security Guards and a Gungan Warrior. The Flash Speeder itself is probably a little oversized although it had the shape absolutely right and looked superb to me with seating for at least two minifigures and a large gun turret on the back.
75092 Naboo Starfighter (£54.99) - The Naboo Starfighter was the 'worst in show' in my opinion. It looked very much like previous versions other than having a little more bulk underneath on this occasion, and the price was greatly inflated by the inclusion of a couple of ground vehicles for maintenance. The minifigures have all been seen before, although some were new variants: Anakin Skywalker, Obi-Wan Kenobi, Naboo Pilot, R2-D2, two Battle Droids and two Droidekas. I must admit that the new Droidekas looked pretty good, although they felt tacked on in an attempt to justify the price.
75093 Death Star Final Duel (£69.99) - I have little doubt that this will stand out among the Star Wars sets for many. This is obviously a playset but actually looked quite impressive with some nice details and three large round windows like in the film. It includes a sliding door much like 9526 Palpatine's Arrest and has some room for dueling in front of the Emperor's throne. Two Royal Guards, Emperor Palpatine, Luke Skywalker and, most excitingly, a new Darth Vader are included! The new helmet and upper torso pieces were only visible in images but looked great. It is a bit of a shame that the change is being made as the current helmet has been around since the beginning of LEGO Star Wars, but the new version looked like an improvement to me.
75094 Imperial Shuttle Tydirium (£79.99) - This model was visible from the back when we entered the Star Wars area and immediately I was impressed. The engines and wings looked simply like scaled down versions of those on 10212 Imperial Shuttle and the minifigure selection is not bad either with Chewbacca, Han Solo (in Endor garb at last), Leia and two Rebel Commandos included. However, the cockpit area looks awful. The general shape has been lost and although I appreciate an attempt at a brick-built version rather than a large windscreen with a sticker, the result was not very impressive.
75097 Star Wars Advent Calendar (£24.99) - The general theme of the Advent Calendar was the same as usual with a selection of mini models and minifigures. The mini models were actually pretty impressive I thought and included a Sandcrawler, Probe Droid, Sarlacc Pit and Jabba's Sail Barge. I doubt the box artwork was completed as the two seasonal minifigures, R2-D2 as a reindeer and C-3PO as Santa Claus, looked fairly crude. I would hope that new prints will be added prior to release. Assuming they are, this looks to be the best Advent Calendar yet!
75106 Imperial Assault Carrier (£99.99) - As many people guessed this set is in fact a Gozanti-Class Cruiser as seen in Star Wars Rebels. The external silhouette looked pretty much perfect but the inside was disappointing, with only a single seat cockpit and a computer console. Four mini TIE fighters hang from underneath the ship and looked to be a little bigger than polybag versions. The ship was very much in the same style as 7964 Republic Frigate, with decent detail on the outside but almost nothing on the inside. The minifigures include Agent Kallus, and Astromech Droid, an Imperial Officer, two TIE Fighter Pilots and Sabine Wren with a helmet!
