B-Wing (#75050)

This is Lego's third kick at the B-Wing model, and in my opinion the best of the three.

The front view. Since it doesn't have 6208's flick missiles, the front grills are more detailed. One thing I liked more about the other version is the curved wings. These wings are just flat, which to me doesn't seem right.

Close-up of the rotating cockpit section. I do prefer the new guns here to the old ones. This cockpit is also rounder than the prior version, which just seems like a better fit.

It comes with three minifigs (L to R): Ten Numb, General Airen Cracken, and B-Wing pilot. Ten and the pilot both come with alternate expressions.

Rear view. Here's another area I feel was better on 6208 (and I may retro-fit), I just don't like the look of the engines with the cone pieces. The ship design has engines more in-line with the 6208 model.

The plans call for a spring-loaded missile launcher on each wing, but I took them out. These ones are still a bit too long in relation to the main guns, but they'll do for now.

The 6208 model was designed to stand like this, but it's more difficult with this model (took me a few times, and then I had to be pretty quick with the camera to get this shot).

A closer view of the lower guns. While not elaborate, I do like this design better than the prior version.

Here they are together for comparison (6208 is the one in the back). This one is a bit longer in the wings. Shortly before purchasing this one, I noticed the "neck" section of 6208 was starting to bow under the weight of the cockpit section. The new design has a much shorter neck which should resolve that problem.

Wrap-up and scoring

• Features: 8/10 - The rotating cockpit and folding wings are really all this model has in terms of features. At least the previous model had the cool service bay stand to go with it. 
• Design: 8/10 - They fixed a few of what I felt were design flaws from the last version, but I would've preferred the non-cone engine design.
• Price: 8/10 - The price is in-line with the piece count for the set. It wasn't an amazing deal, but at the same time I don't feel like I over-paid for the set.
• Minifigs: 10/10 - Three really good minifigs with the set, can't complain at all. The pilot helmet design is awesome, and two of the three figures have alternate expressions. And with printed legs for all three, good job. 
• Overall Score: 8.5/10. This one has such a great "swoosh factor" to it. There aren't many things I would change. 

The Ghost (75053)

I'm anxiously awaiting the release of the new Star Wars Rebels series this fall. Lego has released the Ghost as the second of two Rebels sets this year.

The set comes with four minifigs: a slightly modified storm trooper, Hera Syndulla (the Twilek), Kanan Jarrus, and Zeb Orrelios (who you may recognize from the early Ralph McQuarry concept drawings of Chewbacca). Sabine Wren, the female Mandalorian, is conspicuously absent, which leads me to believe we'll be seeing her in the winter sets, along with some of the villains.

The pilot compartment slides out so you can get Kanan in and out. There's room behind him for something, but a minifig won't fit.

The whole thing just slides back into place and locks in, which is handy because it would be awkward to slide out during a battle.

Hera sits behind and above Kanan and is easier to access. Apparently this is the pilot's position and Kenan is controlling the front turret.

Zeb gets the rotating turret chair. It's a little tricky getting him in and out. It would be easier if his head was just a touch smaller, but then I suspect he'd look a little weird.

The whole assembly just slides back into the ship. In case you were thinking of doing barrel rolls, the turret isn't actually held in place by anything other than gravity.

Three storage compartments on top, lot of room for weapons, but not much else is going in here.

There are escape pods on each side of the ship. When they come out with a Sabine minifig, she'll have to go in one of these.

A view from the rear. This is where the Phantom docks (we'll get to that in a minute).

The underside (obviously). One thing I have found so far is that the model can be awkward to handle, depending on where you hold it.

Pulling the red knob will open the cargo hold where the holocron is kept. As you can imagine, this isn't an easily accessible area of the ship.

The front guns rotate as well as swivel up and down. The technic pin used to hold it in place doesn't offer a lot of friction, so the guns will go with gravity if you're even slightly off level.

And the moment you've all been waiting for, this is how the Ghost looks like with the Phantom docked in place. I know, it takes your breath away a little.

Scoring:

• Features: 9/10. There is pretty good play value with this model. Every part of the ship seems to do something.
• Design: 9/10. This one was very fun to build. The slope on the wings was accomplished fairly easily, although they're probably the most fragile parts of the ship. I felt there was a lot more creativity on this model than what I've found in the "usual" builds.
• Price: 8/10. $90 USD. As I said in the Phantom review, round this one up to $100 and include the Phantom. Instead of feeling cheated that we had to buy it separately, we pay a little more but still feel good.
• Minifigs: 10/10. Can't complain here. I feel the number and quality of the minifigs is a perfect match for the set. 
• Overall Score: 9/10. So much fun all around! A great build and fun to play with when it's done. The only problem is that we have to wait until the winter release before we get any Imperial ships to go up against the Ghost. I suppose you could use a TIE fighter if you already have one, from the previews it doesn't look like those have changed.

I think the question we're all wondering is, "Yah, but how does it hold up on the Kessel run?"

The Phantom (75048)

This is one of two sets available for the upcoming Star Wars Rebels animated series coming out this fall. If you haven't already, go check out the teasers and trailers for the show, it looks like it could be good. I think there's more mystery and storyline potential between episodes III and IV than there was between II and III.

This is the Phantom. It comes with Ezra Bridger and a spunky little astromech droid C1-10P, or "Chopper".

Ezra comes with a helmet and an alternate expression. Chopper comes with, well... shorter legs.

There's a handy storage area for Ezra's helmet (or hair, depending on what he's wearing) and his blaster.

Chopper fits into the back...

Yes, I know. There's supposed to be a missile on top. Get over it. Unless it's absolutely essential for the stability of the set, I'm not doing it. Anyhow, here it is with the wings deployed.

I'm not sure if it's actually supposed to function as an escape pod in the show, but I suspect this feature won't last very long before I permanently attach the two sections together.

 And now for the scoring...

• Features: 8/10. It's a small model, what do you expect it to do that it doesn't do right now?
• Design: 8/10. I don't see why it needs to come apart. And I certainly don't see how that would be an advantage in an emergency. The cockpit module doesn't seem to be enough to sustain life support functions for very long.
• Price: 4/10. $25 USD for this little gem. Battle packs are cheaper and have more in them. Realistically, it should've been part of the Ghost set (review is coming next). Charge $10 more and make it one set.
• Minifigs: 7/10. Two unique figures, but you can't help but feel robbed slightly when you pay for the set. Fortunately I had Lego VIP points and the set only cost me $10. Throw in another storm trooper just to make us feel a little better.
• Overall Score: 6.75/10. By itself, there's not much you can do with this one. If you have the Ghost, you really need to get the Phantom to go along with it. As I said before, it should've been included as part of the Ghost set.

Droid Gunship (#75042)

This is the second version of the Droid Gunship (#7678 was the first). We got to see it in action during Episode III and the battle on Kashyyyk. Since then, it has been featured in the Clone Wars series a few times.

The set comes with four minifigs, A new Chewbacca (sporting two-toned hair and printed legs), a Kashyyyk scout (same as you'll find in the battle pack), a super battle droid, and a standard battle droid. I like the new Chewie, and the Kashyyyk clones are my favorite.

Not sure why they didn't include a blue pilot droid with this set like they did last time, but we only get a standard droid. There's room for him to lie down, and there's even a targeting display... if only his feet were equipped with optical sensors. I feel that important displays like that should be placed where they can be useful...

A view from the rear. As you'll see in the comparison photos below, this one is much more streamlined than the prior version. Yes, there are supposed to be the new spring-loaded missiles on each "wing" but I took them off.

Turn it over for access to the bombs...

Pull the levers on the back to release the bombs, or load them up again.

Here's the newer 75042 on the left and the old 7678 on the right. The new one is much more in-line with the movie version with the lower profile.

The two pilot compartments. According to the tech specs, these gunships were technically droids and didn't use pilots, just like the Vulture Droids.

The underside is where the biggest difference is between the two. The Bomb deployment system is much better on the new model. It's also easier to grab this one, where the old one always felt a bit delicate if you didn't pick it up just right.

So, here's how I would rate the set:

• Features: 8/10. While there aren't really a lot of features with this model, it's not like there's a lot of wasted space that could be doing something if it had been designed better. The construction is solid, although slightly front-heavy. 
• Design: 8/10. Even though other reviews have called the underside "lazy", I think it works very well with the improved sleek look of the model. However, I do think they could've used the light grey pieces instead of the blue.
• Price: 7/10. SRP on this is $50 USD. I get the licensing fee, but it seems like there could've been a little more included for the price. Or take out a droid and knock a couple bucks off the price tag.
• Minifigs: 6/10. The new Chewie is great, but it felt like the droids were just fillers. If Lego feels they need to add in a standard battle droid as a pilot for extra play value, go ahead. But the super battle droid seemed a bit out of place. There aren't really any Jedi to add to the set, we have enough Yodas already. Another clone would've been cool, or maybe a generic Wookie warrior. 
• Overall score: 7.25/10. Far better than the original version and although not without a shortcoming or two, this is a good model.

AT-AP (#75043)

This is the second version of the AT-AP featured in Episode III. The first version was released in 2008, so it was probably time for a new one (my review of the first one is here). This one didn't really get a lot of screen time, just a couple of passing appearances on Kashyyyk and Felucia.

The set comes with five figures: Commander Gree, Tarfful, two battle droids, and a super battle droid. I'm not sure who was in charge of the weapon department, but I'm fairly certain the leader of the wookies would have something better than a musket.

There are some nice additions to the design of this model. There is a swivel lock on the back to keep the turret from moving.

Slide it down...

...and the main gun swivels up and down while the turret rotates.You'll probably notice I removed the spring-loaded missile and replaced it with a solid brick.

The roof flips up for access to the interior. I used two clones from the Kashyyyk Troopers set to man the cockpit. Not as fancy as the original, but there is more room. If you really felt the need, you could put in a simple weapon storage rack similar to the one in the first version.

Another improvement from the prior version is the laser canon on the front is now moveable. You may now oooohh and aaaahhhh to your heart's content.

There is a lock on the back to keep the third leg in place during travel. The old version used an inverted brick to hold the foot in place, this one just swings down.

Access panels on each side open up, more for looks than functionality. It's very difficult to get the minifigs in and out without using the top hatch.

So let's look at the two models together. This one is larger than its predecessor
. 

The cockpit base is much more solid than the old version and as you can see, it is more level as well.

View from the rear. Nothing really life-changing.

My final verdict? Since it has been six years since the last version, many of you likely won't have to worry about having a duplicate. This one is easily superior to the older version. The frame is stronger and it looks more like the movie version than before. Your clone army needs this set to combat the Separatist forces. Don't let them down!

Republic Gunship (#75021)

I wasn't overly excited about this one when it came out. Sure, it made it on my wishlist, but it was down at the bottom. I wasn't going to spend the money for what looked like another rehash of the gunship. Granted, the second version (7676 in 2008) was better than the first one (7163 in 2002), but what could they do to this one to make it worth buying again??

Then I was given a gift card to Best Buy (sounds familiar, doesn't it) which meant I only had to pay $25 for the set. Well, that's a different story. I don't mind spending $25 for a set like this, even if I have the previous version. So, let's take a walk through some of the features...

The set comes with the 7 figures posing outside (all the others I supplemented from battle packs): Padme with her torn shirt, Obi-Wan, Anakin (all three have alternate facial expressions), Clone Pilot, Clone Captain (the red one), and two super battle droids.

The cheesey swoop bike slides into the back hatch. Take a good look because this is the last time the bike will ever been seen with my gunship. I'm putting in a small rack to store the lightsabers instead.

Here's a view of the rear turret and weapon storage compartment.

The inside seems a bit bigger than it was on 7676.

The wing-mounted turrets are a bit nicer on this version. My only gripe is that the laser dish is on top of the dome instead of the front where it's supposed to be. The domes on 7676 were closer to being correct, so I may have to find a couple of extras on Bricklink.

I'm really glad they put these turrets back on. Because they used Technic pieces instead of hinges, the turret pods can swivel up and down as well as swing back into the ship. I may have to look at retro-fitting 7676 with these.

Instead of the mobile command post in 7676, the front storage compartment on this model holds a few refills for the flick-fire missiles. The field bacta tank was removed as well, so there's more reclaimed space. I was a little sad that the nose-art had been removed, but the model is based on the Episode II version rather than the Clone Wars.

The canopies are much nicer on this version as well. I found the ones on 7676 had a tendency to come off if you didn't open them just right.

Flick-fire missiles are pretty much the same as 7676, but these ones have the small colored pieces added in.

There's also a storage box for a Jedi holocron.

This small little handle is genius. It makes carrying the gunship so much easier.

For those who are curious about how this one stacks up compared to the 7676, here they are side-by-side. This one is a bit shorter than the last one and not quite as long.

Here they are from the top.

So, those of you who don't already have a gunship, or who have 7163, should save up empty cans and bottles or whatever it takes to get one. For those who already have 7676, let me speak to you for a moment.

Anyone who doesn't already have one of the prior versions won't truly appreciate the improvements in the design and build as much as you will. You know that frustration you get every time you pick up 7676 and you have to check which pieces are coming loose due to the weight of the ship? Having to constantly push everything back together unless you somehow find a way to hold it from the bottom? Well, those days are gone, my friend. This one is incredibly sturdy, thanks to the Technic frame inside which supports and distributes the weight of the model evenly. The engine pods on top don't even rotate like they do on 7676. Lego tacked down and secured everything.

I give this one a whole-hearted 10/10 for all the improvements Lego put in. Now that I've actually seen it in action, I would've happily paid the full price for it. Sure, Anakin's face looks a little goofy, but you probably already have 17 different versions of him anyway. Now, if you'll excuse me, the gunship has to go rescue some Jedi from the Separatist forces...