Battle of Hoth (#75014)

Lego has released another Hoth set exclusive to Toys R Us. You get two snowtroopers (with faces), two Rebel troopers, a tauntaun, Imperial probe droid, pilot Luke, and the new Commander Rieekan.

Comes with everything you see here, batteries not included, some assembly required...

This could be your third tauntaun, depending on whether or not you were lucky enough to pick up the other sets (7749 & 7879 are the other two). The large blaster is pretty cool, swivels up and down as well as side to side.

This is the best version of the dish blaster so far, even if it is a flick-fire missile. Unfortunately, unless you want to fire straight ahead, there's nowhere for our little rebel friend to stand. Commander Rieekan has a nice little workstation there. Personally, I would've preferred something a little more sheltered, but I'm not about to tell him how to fight his battles.

If you've picked up any of the Hoth sets, there's a good chance you already have several of these white speeder bikes kicking around. The blaster cannon has been around a couple of times too. They may be repetitive, but you need something to give the Imperials a fighting chance.

And the new probe droid. Watch out, it may have a self-destruct built in. Our little probe droid has come a long way since the Hoth Rebel Base version (#7666).

Here's the fifth version of the snowspeeder. We'll play "spot the difference" later.

Side view...

Pilot Luke with an alternate expression...

Inside the cockpit...

I've said it before and I'll say it again. Do yourself a favor and replace the 2x2 flat tiles (shown on top) with a 1x2 plate and a flat 1x2 tile. This keeps your minifigs from getting thrown around in the cockpit.

So, here's the line-up of the different versions. I never had the first version (#7130), so you'll have to look that one up on your own. Very subtle differences between these versions, including the alternating orange and grey color schemes. The guns on 4500 aren't the original ones, at some point I swapped them out to match the others.

The harpoon guns on the back continue to evolve, I think this one has the most movie-accurate version of the group.

So, without trying to impart my bias on anyone else, let me say that I think this could've been done a bit differently. The probe droid, and possibly even the tauntaun, should've been part of the Wampa Cave set. It would've increased the price a bit, but still would've been worth it. Everything else, except the snowspeeder, could've been a set similar to 7749. For a $65 CDN set, I would like to have seen a bit more. And I really feel these Hoth sets should be modularized so they link up somehow.

Don't get me wrong, there's a lot of play value with this set, especially with the ground fortifications. I'm not complaining, just offering up some suggestions of how I would've handled things if I were in charge.

Now, when do we get the Ion Cannon and the Shield Generator sets??

Millennium Falcon (#7965)

Thanks to a Christmas gift card, I was able to buy the updated Millennium Falcon through the Best Buy website. Who knew they sold Lego?? Anyhow... I wasn't sure about this one because I already had the previous version and couldn't justify paying full price for a few little changes. But, it was a whole different story when I got free shipping and the gift card paid for over half the cost.

Here are the two versions together. 4504 is the 2nd edition, and 7965 is #3. You'll have to check out my review for 4504 because I've "made a few modifications myself" and updated a few features. #3 is slightly larger (and more stable) than the old one.

Here's everyone posing for photos. The set comes with Obi-Wan, Leia, Han, Chewbacca, Luke, and Darth Vader (who, to my knowledge has never been on the Falcon). This one is apparently the Episode IV Falcon where #4504 was Episode V.

Leia and Luke both have alternate expressions. Leia brings her angry face while Luke has his blast shield for lightsaber training.

There's a smuggling compartment on this version, perfect for spice or anything else you want to keep away from Imperial entanglements. Not sure why Leia got the short straw, but she's gets to hide out for a while. The one drawback is that it's hard to get the figure back out of the compartment, at least for me. Maybe it's just my big fingers... Chewie is sitting at the holochess table. I really like the interior on this one more than 4504. This one is more open and allows for better playability. Taking out the escape pod (which was never in the movie anyway) was a very good move.

Luke can practice with the training remote now. There are clips on the center console for his and Obi-wan's lightsabers. Unfortunately, there isn't any storage for the three blasters and Chewie's crossbow, which seems like a bit of an oversight. It's not like they don't have the room, I may have to put in a few clips for that. The hyperdrive engine isn't labeled on this version like it was on 4504, but I think we can all figure out where it is.

The gun chairs now seat two for the top and bottom turrets. It slides in very nicely and is held in place so it doesn't rattle around...

...then the turret goes back on over top. The sensor dish is done very nicely on this one too.

The underside... Not much to look at, but she's got it where it counts. The frame is much stronger than 4504 was, even though it doesn't look pretty. Flick-fire missiles on either side, the landing gear aren't as fragile, and it's nice to have the turret on the bottom too.

Front view...

Rear view...

And finally, Darth insisted on a family photo with the kids.

 So, like I said before, there's no way I would've bought this one after already having 4504 if I had to pay full price, no matter how much it has been improved. However, if I didn't have an earlier version I would've been all over this one a long time ago. It looks great on the shelf and, more importantly, it's wicked fun to play with.

A-Wing Fighter (#75003)

My first set of the Winter 2013 line-up, the 4th version of the A-Wing fighter.And yes, I've had them all. In 2000, #7134 was the first version, 2006 brought #6207, and 2009 gave us our third A-Wing as part of #7754.

Because I tend to upgrade the previous models when the new ones come out, I'll have to compare #4 to the Home One version. If you have either of the first two versions, it's time to upgrade. If you only have #3, then you can decide (I'd still go for the new one).

Here they are, side by side. The new one is about two studs longer than #3 (which originally also had flick-fire missiles before I replaced them). You'll notice they notched the nose on #4, which is more in-line with the  Episode VI version. The canopy has a bar on the front which allows it to open with a couple of clips, rather than a hinged brick used in the prior models and eliminates the hole in front of the canopy.

The biggest difference in profile is the top fins, which have a bigger slope on the front and are rounded on the back. I don't really mind the flick-fire missiles, but the side guns are supposed to rotate according to ship specs, so I think I'll replace them.

A view from behind. The engine doesn't slide out the back like it did on #3, as we'll see in a minute. The thrusters are more movie-accurate on #4 than they were before.

This one comes with three minifigs; Admiral Ackbar, a pilot, and Han Solo. The pilot is great, lots of printed detail on the uniform and the new helmet is straight out of the movie. As for the other two figures?? Don't get me wrong, I like Han, but I just don't get why he's included with this set. And for some reason, the fine folks at Lego decided the good Admiral needed to have a coffee mug. Am I the only one who can picture him saying, "It's a frap(pe)!" ? Yah, probably...

And for those days when you just feel like crashing your A-Wing into the command bridge of a super star destroyer, the pilot has an alternate expression (not to be used lightly).

Here's a shot of the removable engine section. I know, everything you dreamed it would be and more.

So, do I think it's worth the upgrade? Absolutely, it's improved in all the right areas. This one has an incredible "swoosh factor". I challenge anyone to hold it and not start doing aerial combat moves.There are more stickers on this one, the narrow ones for the nose are a little tricky but they shouldn't be too much trouble. This is the A-Wing all the previous models wanted to be. It has a great price-point and is all kinds of fun to play with. A solid 10/10 in my book.