LEGO

LEGO is a Danish brand of building-block toys. In 1999, Star Wars became their first ever licensed product (Spider-Man, Harry Potter, Batman and a few others followed) and since then, building sets from all six films have been released. These sets mainly feature prominent vehicles, and a few scenes.

The general reaction of Star Wars fans regarding the licensing is very positive, with a recent trend of making "My own Creations", or custom sets, out of one's own collection.

The LEGO Star Wars video game, released in 2005, was based on the LEGO sets portraying Star Wars characters such as Anakin Skywalker and Mace Windu in the prequel movies.

A sequel was also released, which is based on the original trilogy (episodes IV, V and VI). It is presented in a similar format, though introduces new features to correspond more with the interactivity of LEGO.

Craft
As mentioned above, spacecraft and other Star Wars vehicles are LEGO mainstay for the line. The sets include the most prominent of spacecraft, including the Millennium Falcon and the X-wing, along with some less well-known craft, such as the Flash Speeder and Count Dooku's Geonosian speeder bike. Specific pieces of special design and various printed pieces have been developed by the company to achieve an accurate look of some of the more complicated craft. LEGO still uses stickers, as they are more cost-effective, though some fans have cried foul.

However, some of these craft were not well received. This prompted LEGO, starting in 2004, to produce "re-designs", a model of the same craft as the original, but in a new design. These include the Millennium Falcon, snowspeeder, landspeeder, X-wing and, most recently, the AT-ST and Y-wing. The Slave I has been incarnated three times, the latest in 2006.

Considering the massive scale of some Star Wars craft, "minifig scale" sets are not feasible. As such, LEGO introduced the Ultimate Collector's Series (UCS) range of sets. These feature craft of awesome proportions, filled with more detail than could otherwise be accomplished. They also come with fact sheets on display stands. A few minifig scale sets have also been adapted to UCS scale. These are larger and more expensive, but appeal to adult as well as slightly older collectors who might not find the other sets challenging enough a build. These UCS sets include the X-wing, Imperial Star Destroyer, snowspeeder, Y-wing, AT-ST and, most recently, the TIE Advanced.

On the other end of the spectrum, there are the MINI range, a series of craft designed in micro-size for younger builders. As fans had been building their own "mini-scale" ships for a while, these were generally well-received. However, some believed the small size decreased the level of detail and fun. Almost all the more prominent and popular craft have received the MINI treatment, ranging from the Imperial Shuttle to the MTT. On an interesting note, the MINI starfighter models are very close being to scale to the UCS Imperial Star Destroyer.

Craft remain the most popular section of LEGO Star Wars range, appealing to a wide audience, ranging from the casual buyer to the serious collector, from the young to the old.

Locations/Scenes
Besides its mainstay of craft, LEGO has also produced a number of sets centered around prominent sets or locations. However, these generally do not have the same appeal as the sets featuring vehicles.

"Locations" range from large sets to single objects, such as moisture vaporators and cranes. Single objects are most often paired with vehicles, such as the Episode Two speeder bike sets: 7113 (Owen Lars' swoop) with the moisture vaporator and 7114 (Count Dooku's Geonosian speeder bike) with the crane.

Such sets have, overall, drawn much flak for not staying accurate to the films, or falling short of fan expectations, "playsets" especially. For example, 4501 Mos Eisley Cantina was not too well-received as it included only Han Solo's private booth (out of the rest of the cantina) instead of the expected complex, and 4480 Jabba's Palace was discredited for its lack of faithfulness to the film.

Most of the smaller location sets are paired with vehicles, not limited to single props. 7180 B-wing came with a mock-up of a Rebel base, and 4502 X-wing Fighter had Yoda's Dagobah hut as a side-draw. Episode One's 7121 Naboo Swamp, a swampy landscape of plant life and was paired with two STAPs and their battle droid pilots.

Also, there are the massive stand-alone playsets, such as 4480 Jabba's Palace, 10123 Cloud City, and 7257 Ultimate Lightsaber Duel. However, experimenting with this playset format, similar to those utilized by toymakers Hasbro and Mattel, has attracted its fair share of controversy. Long-time fans have griped about the sets' inaccuracies. For example, Cloud City is actually a combination of the most important scenes and locations, inclusive of the Luke/Vader duel, the dining room, carbon-freezing chamber and landing pad. However, this joining of the locations into one individual platform (without walls and on one level) have drawn their fair share of flak.

Of course, there are supporters a-plenty of this new way of LEGO set presentation. The high playability level, comprising various interactive features and mechanisms (for example activating the throne room trapdoor in Jabba's Palace) has greatly appealed to LEGO Star Wars' younger fans. Also, such large sets comprise higher numbers of minifigures (LEGO people) than usual, and are perfect ways to launch never-before-seen minifigures of new designs (see "Characters" below).

Most fans wish for more location sets to be produced, to help them re-enact their favorite iconic scenes better. Of course, the current sets available have brought sufficient satisfaction to most LEGO Star Wars collectors, but more sets can never be a bad thing.

Characters
The final, but very integral part of a LEGO Star Wars set is the characters. Almost all of the saga's most iconic characters have been incarnated into LEGO form.

The most common form in which Star Wars characters appear in the LEGO universe are as minifigures, classic LEGO people. These come with a boxy torso and interchangeable (able to be separated and switched around) heads, torso, headpiece (hair or some form of headgear), cape (made from real cloth and attached onto the neck, before the head) appearing on some characters and legs, though most fans switch arms, hands and even hips while this is not officially intended.

New minifigures of accessories representing members of the Star Wars universe never cease to cause excitement. Due to the unique appearances of the many droids, soldiers and aliens that comprise this universe, many new moulds have been specially created for the series. Prime examples are the stormtrooper helmets, General Grievous torso, Greedo head and so on.

New moulds for accessories have also been created, such as helmets, headpieces, weapons and so on. The notable ones include the lightsaber handle (which has since been reused as gun heads and microphones both in and out of the Star Wars range), electrobinoculars, the recent new-mould blasters in the 2007 sets, Rebel pilot helmets, and so on.

There are a few variations of the standard LEGO minifigure produced for the Star Wars range. The most controversial and prominent type are the light-up lightsaber (LUL) minifigs, released with some of the larger Episode III sets in 2005. Star Wars characters given the treatment include Darth Vader, Mace Windu, Obi-Wan Kenobi, Anakin Skywalker, and Luminara Unduli. These figures look like usual ones on the surface, except that, to facilitate internal electronics, all components cannot be removed, excepting the headpiece. When the head is pressed down, an LED illuminates the LEGO lightsaber blade. The batteries last three hours and are not intended for replacement, though they can be replaced. Most fans cried afoul when these were produced, some even considering them to be gimmicks. However, a large number of fans, especially younger ones, were quite excited by the advent of this innovation.

The other variation is the minifigure magnet. So far, two of such sets (containing three characters each) have been released. The six characters are Yoda, Anakin Skywalker, a green clone trooper, Obi-Wan Kenobi, Darth Vader and Chewbacca. Strong magnets are placed in the minifigure's legs, so while they look exactly like a normal LEGO minifig, they can stick onto magnetic surfaces. Unlike in LULs, only the legs and the torso of the minifigure cannot be separated.

Star Wars products were also among the first, besides the Spider-Man range, to experience the change from yellow to peach. As of mid-2004, all of LEGO licensed product ranges experienced a change in skin tone from the classic yellow to the more realistic peach. On the whole, most fans were upset, as this now rendered the later minifigures incompatible with the earlier ones. Non-licensed ranges of LEGO were not affected by the color change.

Other less common incarnations of characters from the Star Wars universe include Technic models and UCS characters.

Technic is a form of LEGO which entirely forsakes the regular brick design and relies on technical parts such as gears, axles, cross-bars, and so on. It is mainly droids, such as the pit droid, R2-D2, C-3PO, battle droid, super battle droid, and droideka that have been incarnated in this unique form. Technic sets allow for accurate features and various movements otherwise impossible. Both the pit droid and battle droid sets fold up, while the super battle droid has a quick-draw blaster function. R2-D2 produces a tool arm, and C-3PO's head and arms fall off when you push the center.

However, Jango Fett, Darth Vader, and the stormtrooper have been turned into Technic figures as well, mainly because of the mechanical appearance of their costumes.

The last way Star Wars characters appear in LEGO is as UCS models (see "craft" above). Darth Maul's bust and Yoda are the only two UCS characters as of 2006. Building at this scale provides immense amounts of character detail. These sets are made up mostly of standard LEGO bricks.

Star Wars LEGO: List of sets
Some of the Star Wars LEGO sets include landspeeders, TIE Fighters, and several characters such as Darth Vader and Han Solo. These sets have been produced and re-released over the years, and new sets were created with the release of each prequel film.

As of 2006, the following LEGO sets have been produced. (Set number followed by set name and included minifigs, categorized by episode):

Episode I: The Phantom Menace
3343 Star Wars #4

Minifigs: Battle Droid (Two) Battle Droid Commander

7101 Lightsaber Duel

Minifigs: Darth Maul, Qui-Gon Jinn

7111 Droid Fighter

7115 Gungan Patrol

Minifigs: Gungan Warrior, Jar Jar Binks

7121 Naboo Swamp

Minifigs: Battle Droids (Two), Qui-Gon Jinn, Jar Jar Binks

7124 Flash Speeder

Minifigs: Naboo Security officer

7126 Battle Droid Carrier

Minifigs: Battle Droids (Six), Battle Droid Pilot

7131 Anakin's Podracer

Minifigs: Anakin Skywalker (Podracer), Padmé Amidala, Pit Droid

7141 Naboo Fighter

Minifigs: Anakin Skywalker (Starfighter), Battle Droids (Two), R2-D2

7151 Sith Infiltrator

Minifigs: Darth Maul, Sith Probe Droids (Three)

7155 Trade Federation AAT

Minifigs: Battle Droids (Two)

7159 Podracer Bucket

Minifigs: Jar Jar Binks, Anakin Skywalker (Podracer), Aldar Beedo

7161 Gungan Sub

Minifigs: Obi-Wan Kenobi (Hood), Jar Jar Binks, Qui-Gon Jinn

7171 Mos Espa Podrace

Minifigs: Anakin Skywalker (Podracer), Gasgano, Sebulba, R2-D2, Jar Jar Binks, Padmé Naberrie, Qui-Gon Jinn, Pit Droids (Three)

7184 Trade Federation MTT

Minifigs: Battle Droids (Seven)

7186 Watto's Junkyard

Minifigs: Watto, Aldar Beedo

7203 Jedi Defense I

Minifigs: Obi-Wan Kenobi, Droidekas (Two)

7204 Jedi Defense II

Minifigs: Security Battle Droid, Battle Droid Commander, Qui-Gon Jinn

Mini sets:

4485 Mini Sebulba's Podracer & Anakin's Podracer

4491 Mini MTT

4493 Mini Sith Infiltrator

Technic sets

8000 Pit Droid

8001 Battle Droid

8002 Destroyer Droid

Episode II: Attack of the Clones
4478 Geonosian Fighter

Minifigs: Geonosis Battle Droids (Two), Geonosian Warrior, Geonosian Pilot

4482 AT-TE

Minifigs: Clone Troopers (Four)

7103 Jedi Duel

Minifigs: Count Dooku, Yoda

7113 Tusken Raider Encounter

Minifigs: Tusken Raiders (Two), Anakin Skywalker

7133 Bounty Hunter Pursuit

Minifigs: Obi-Wan Kenobi, Anakin Skywalker (No Cape), Zam Wesell

7143 Jedi Starfighter

Minifigs: Obi-Wan Kenobi (Headset), R4-P17 (Head)

7153 Jango Fett's Slave I

Minifigs: Jango Fett, Boba Fett (young)

7163 Republic Gunship

Minifigs: Clone Troopers (Four), Super Battle Droids (Two), Jedi Knight, Droideka

Mini sets:

4487 Mini Jedi Starfighter & Slave I

4490 Mini Republic Gunship

4495 Mini AT-TE

Technic sets released

4481 Hailfire Droid

8011 Jango Fett

8009 R2-D2

8012 Super Battle Droid

8007 C-3PO

Episode III: Revenge of the Sith
6205 V-Wing Fighter

Minifigs: Clone Pilot, Astromech Droid (head)

7250 Clone Scout Walker

Minifigs: Clone Trooper (Red markings)

7251 Darth Vader Transformation

Minifigs: Darth Vader (No Cape), Anakin Skywalker (Burned), Medical Droid

7252 Droid Tri-Fighter

Minifigs: Buzz Droid

7255 General Grievous Chase

Minifigs: Obi-Wan Kenobi, General Grievous



7256 Jedi Starfighter and Vulture Droid

Minifigs: Anakin Skywalker, R2-D2 (head)

7257 Ultimate Lightsaber Duel

Minifigs: Obi-Wan Kenobi (Light-up Lightsaber), Anakin Skywalker (Light-up Lightsaber)

7258 Wookiee Attack

Minifigs: Wookiee Warriors (Two), Battle Droids (Two), Spider Droid

7259 ARC-170 Starfighter

Minifigs: Clone Pilots (Three), R4 Astromech Droid

7260 Wookiee Catamaran

Minifigs: Clone Swamp Troopers (Two), Luminara Unduli (Light-up Lightsaber), Yoda, Wookiee Warrior, Chewbacca

7261 Clone Turbo Tank

Minifigs: Mace Windu (Light-up Lightsaber)[1], Battle Droids (Two), Kashyyyk Scout Trooper, Commander Cody, Clone Trooper (Episode 3), Clone Aerial Trooper

7283 Ultimate Space Battle

Minifigs: Anakin Skywalker, Obi-Wan Kenobi (Headset), Buzz Droids (Two), R2-D2 (Head), R4-P17 (Head)

7654 Droids Battle Pack[2] (2007 Release)

Minifigs: Battle Droids (Four) Silver Super Battle Droids (Three)

7655 Clone Troopers Battle Pack[2] (2007 Release)

Minifigs: Clone Troopers (Two), Clone Commander (Yellow Markings), Clone Shocktooper

7656 General Grievous' Starfighter[2] (2007 Release)

Minifigs: General Grievous

65771 Episode III Collectors' Set

Minifigs: Clone Pilots (Three), R4 Astromech Droid, Buzz Droid

Mini sets:

6966 Mini Jedi Starfighter

6967 Mini ARC Fighter

Episode IV: A New Hope
4477 T-16 Skyhopper

Minifigs: T-16 Pilot

4501 Mos Eisley Cantina

Minifigs: Han Solo, Luke Skywalker, Ben Kenobi, Greedo, Sandtrooper

6211 Imperial Star Destroyer

Minifigs: Grand Moff Tarkin, Stormtroopers (Two), Darth Vader, Emperor Palpatine (Hologram), Royal Guards (Two), Imperial Officer, R1 Astromech Droid, Mouse Droid

7106 Droid Escape

Minifigs: C-3PO, R2-D2

7110 Landspeeder

Minifigs: Luke Skywalker, Ben Kenobi

7140/7142 X-wing Fighter

Minifigs: R2-D2, Luke Skywalker, Biggs Darklighter, Rebel Mechanic

7146 TIE Fighter

Minifigs: TIE Pilot, Stormtrooper

7150/7152/7262 TIE Advanced & Y-wing

Minifigs: Dutch Vander, Darth Vader, R4 Astromech Droid

7190 Millennium Falcon

Minifigs: R2-D2, C-3PO, Han Solo, Princess Leia, Luke Skywalker, Chewbacca

7263 TIE Fighter

Minifigs: Darth Vader (Light-up Lightsaber), TIE Pilot

7658 Y-wing Fighter[2] (2007 Release)

Minifigs: Y-Wing Pilot, R2 Astromech Droid (Head)

7659 Imperial Landing Craft[2] (2007 Release)

Minifigs: TIE Fighter Pilot, Sandtrooper (Two), Stormtrooper (Two)

10131 TIE Collection

Minifigs: TIE Pilots (Two), Droid brain, Darth Vader

10144 Sandcrawler

Minifigs: Jawas (Three), Owen Lars, C-3PO, R2-D2, R1-G4, Gonk Droid, ASP Droid, R5-D4, Treadwell Droid

Mini sets:

3219 Mini TIE Fighter

4484 Mini X-wing Fighter & TIE Advanced

4488 Mini Millennium Falcon

4492 Mini Star Destroyer

Technic sets:

8008 Stormtrooper

8010 Darth Vader

Episode V: The Empire Strikes Back
3340 Star Wars #1

Minifigs: Emperor Palpatine (Black Hands), Darth Maul, Darth Vader

4479 TIE Bomber

Minifigs: TIE Pilot

4483 Imperial AT-AT

Minifigs: Luke Skywalker, AT-AT Driver, Snowtroopers (Two)

4500 Rebel Snowspeeder

Minifigs: Luke Skywalker, Dack Ralter, Rebel Hoth Trooper

4504 Millennium Falcon

Minifigs: Han Solo, Snowtrooper, Princess Leia, Chewbacca, C-3PO

4502 X-wing Fighter (Dagobah)

Minifigs: Luke Skywalker, R2-D2, Yoda



6209 Slave I

Minifigs: IG-88, Dengar, Boba Fett, Han Solo (Carbonite), Bespin Guard

6212 X-Wing Fighter

Minifigs: Luke Skywalker, Wedge Antilles, Han Solo, Princess Leia, R2-D2, Chewbacca

7119 Twin-Pod Cloud Car

Minifigs: Lobot

7130 Snowspeeder

Minifigs: Luke Skywalker, Dack Ralter, Hoth Rebel Trooper

7144 Slave I

Minifigs: Boba Fett, Han Solo (Carbonite)

10123 Cloud City

Minifigs: Darth Vader, Luke Skywalker, Stormtrooper, Boba Fett (Markings), Han Solo, Han Solo (Carbonnite), Princess Leia, Lando Calrissian

Mini sets:

4486 Mini AT-ST & Snowspeeder

4489 Mini AT-AT

6964 Boba Fett's Slave I

Episode VI: Return of the Jedi
3341 Star Wars #2

Minifigs: Han Solo (Brown Legs), Luke Skywalker (Hood), Boba Fett

3342 Star Wars #3

Minifigs: Chewbacca, Scout Troopers (Two)

4475 Jabba's Message

Minifigs: C-3PO, R2-D2, Bib Fortuna

4476 Jabba's Prize

Minifigs: Gamorrean Guard, Han Solo (Carbonite), Boba Fett

4480 Jabba's Palace

Minifigs: Jabba the Hutt, Princess Leia, EV-9D9, Gonk Droid, B'omarr Monk, Luke Skywalker

6206 TIE Interceptor

Minifigs: TIE Pilot

6207 A-Wing Fighter

Minifigs: A-Wing Pilot, Rebel Mechanic

6208 B-Wing Fighter

Minifigs: B-Wing Pilot, Ten Numb

6210 Jabba's Sail Barge

Minifigs: Jabba the Hutt, Luke Skywalker, R2-D2, Princess Leia, Lando Calrissian, Han Solo, Boba Fett, Gamorrean Guard

7104 Desert Skiff

Minifigs: Luke Skywalker, Han Solo

7127 Imperial AT-ST

Minifigs: Chewbacca

7128 Speeder Bikes

Minifigs: Luke Skywalker, Scout Troopers (Two)

7134 A-wing Fighter

Minifigs: A-Wing Pilot, Rebel Mechanic

7139 Ewok Attack

Minifigs: Wicket, Paploo, Scout Trooper, Stormtrooper

7166 Imperial Shuttle

Minifigs: Imperial Pilot, Emperor Palpatine, Royal Guards (Two)

7180 B-wing at Rebel Control Center

Minifigs: Rebel Pilot, Rebel Mechanical, R4 Unit

7200 Final Duel I

Minifigs: Darth Vader, Emperor Palpatine

7201 Final Duel II

Minifigs: Imperial Officer, Luke Skywalker, Stormtrooper

7264 Imperial Inspection

Minifigs: Darth Vader, Emperor Palpatine, Stormtroopers (Four), Royal Guards (Two), Imperial Officers (Two)

7657 AT-ST[2] (2007 Release)

Minifigs: AT-ST Pilot

Mini sets:

4494 Mini Imperial Shuttle

6965 TIE Interceptor