TIE Defender (#8087)

Imagine how excited I was when this set came in the mail from Bricklink on the same day I received my Toys R Us gift cards (cashed in some hotel rewards points), which turned into the ARC-170.

Don't remember seeing this one in any of the movies? Don't worry, This is one of those "expanded universe" items (meaning still officially Lucas-sanctioned, but never had screen time). The TIE Defender first appeared in the 1994 PC game TIE Fighter.


Here's the front-view. If you like the flick-fire missiles (and I don't), these ones are a little harder to access. They still look good as guns, so I haven't swapped them out.


A view from the rear (insert oooh's and aaah's here).


A closer view of the cockpit module. The hinge is much better on this one than it has been on previous TIE models, which had a tendency to come off when opened. The one drawback with the swiveling cockpit is that it flips upside down when you open it.


They revised the helmet for the pilot (shown on the right) so it's not just a black version of the regular stormtrooper helmet (on the left).

This was a fairly straight-forward build, nothing complex really. This one is a must-have for your Imperial fleet. Faster and more maneuverable than the X-Wing, and better weaponry than the A-Wing.

ARC-170 (#8088)

The ARC-170 fighter... this one first came out in 2005 (as set #7259). I thought the original was good, but it had a few shortcomings, which the new version has resolved.


Here's the front view. The S-foil wings are a lot more stable on this model than they were on the original, each wing is secured with two connectors instead of just one. I love the larger engines on this one as well. The nose is a lot smoother-looking than 7259 (the two halves didn't even really meet in the front). The stickers on the cockpits were a little tricky to get on straight. Make sure they are on right the first time because there's no pealing them off again for a second try...


Rear-view with the double cannons (7259 only had one in the back). They still flop around back and forth, but there doesn't seem to be a good way to add the right amount of resistance.


Look at that, all three cockpits swing open. It's much easier to get the figures out than it was with the original. Kit Fisto is included, but there's no place for his lightsaber in the ship. They also didn't include any weapons for the clones. The green astromech droid was a nice touch, it's good to see them getting away from the generic red R5-D4 figure. I'd love to see a "build your own" astromech droid kit where we could mix and match all the pieces, but I'm not holding my breath.


A closer shot of the wings, a much better open/close mechanism than the red balls on the first one...


You had to know I was going to take out the flick-fire missiles...

I really like this revised version, so much that I am debating on whether or not to dismantle the first one for parts. They are the same size, but this one feels sturdier. The only drawback in my opinion, and in the grand scheme isn't really a big deal, is the lack of weapons. It would not have killed anyone over there to include a couple of blasters for the clones. That is easily forgotten when you're in a dogfight with vulture droids or the magnaguard fighter...