Star Wars Republic Gunship Clone Wars Version Review
The long-awaited 75309 Democracy Gunship is finally here – just does the first LEGO Star Wars UCS set based on a prequel trilogy vehicle since 2010 evangelize everything we've been asking for?
More than xxx,000 fans are responsible for ensuring 75309 Republic Gunship would land on shelves in 2021, having voted in droves for the iconic troop ship in a LEGO Ideas poll terminal February.
A potential UCS TIE Bomber and UCS Nebulon-B Frigate will have to wait: this is the time of the prequel trilogy kids, who grew up enthralled by George Lucas's adventures in CGI and are now presumably prepare to throw downward big, LEGO for Adults-sized budgets on LEGO Star Wars sets.
75309 Republic Gunship is the first existent opportunity we've had to do that – then with the weight of xxx,000 fans' expectations on its shoulders, can information technology live up to the hype, and kick-start a new wave of Ultimate Collector Series sets based on The Phantom Menace, Attack of the Clones and Revenge of the Sith?
Theme: Star WarsPrepare name: 75309 Commonwealth GunshipRelease: August 1, 2021
Price: £329.99 / $349.99 / €349.99Pieces: three,292Minifigures: 2
LEGO:Available now
Probably the biggest claiming in realising any LEGO Star Wars ship that regularly commands a £100+ fee in UCS calibration is, well, figuring out that scale without entirely blowing the upkeep. Given the last playset version of this ship came in at £109.99 / $119.99, that could hands have happened with 75309 Republic Gunship, in an endeavour to really and truly set it apart from its minifigure-scale predecessors.
But credit to designer Hans Burkhard Schlömer: he's managed to keep the price from ballooning to 75192 Millennium Falcon and 75252 Imperial Star Destroyer levels, while still delivering a send that goes above and across the calibration of previous Republic Gunships and, in doing and so, feels very worthy of that Ultimate Collector Serial bluecoat.
It'due south hard to get a sense of that scale from the box alone, though: once over again, the muted eighteen+ packaging really undersells one of the LEGO Grouping'southward most expensive sets, and the awkward angle of the master image doesn't really aid. For a improve idea of what to expect from the sheer size of 75309 Republic Gunship, expect to the photos in this review (and even the official lifestyle images).
Part of what makes that scale so deceptive is that this Gunship uses exactly the same ball-articulation pieces for its forward turrets as the minifigure-scale versions. As Hans told us in a contempo roundtable interview, there's a very specific reason for settling for those same elements, and they're embellished with curved bricks to communicate the scale.
Merely given those turrets are one of the first things your centre is fatigued to when taking in the Gunship'due south box art, nobody's going to gauge you for underestimating the size of this prepare. Just make certain you lot do know what you're getting yourself in for, because it's an absolute beast. (You lot're going to demand a biggerboat shelf.)
Refreshingly for a LEGO Star Wars UCS set, the early stages of the build are surprisingly Technic-calorie-free. Contempo models including 75252 Imperial Star Destroyer and 75275 A-wing Starfighter have relied heavily on a cadre Technic frame to support the weight and stability of their outer shells, but 75309 Democracy Gunship instead falls back on a traditional (and welcome) mix of plates and bricks.
That's not to say it's entirely absent of Technic, and in fact what little there is actually has an even greater role to play in realising the structural integrity of the Gunship. The troop bay is entirely hollow, which means the bar that runs along the top of it has to practice a lot of very literal heavy lifting in supporting the ship's enormous wingspan.
Somewhat ironically, that Technic segment is actually the least sturdy part of the construction process. One time the core bar is in place, you'll need a delicate (nonetheless somehow simultaneously firm) bear upon to continue building upwardly and effectually the rear of the fuselage. It's a challenging moment in what'southward really a pretty challenging build on the whole, well worthy of that 18+ tag (fifty-fifty while the LEGO Group is adamant it doesn't denote difficulty).
There are some tricky angles involved in adding various sub-assemblies, for instance – the underside of the wings springs to heed, and that's a especially cumbersome section given near of the Gunship is already in identify by that indicate. Information technology's not often you'll need to become upwards and walk around a set, but you might find yourself doing then here. (Boat tiles on the base exercise make it easy to rotate if you're space-conscious, but, you know, you probably shouldn't exist ownership this if that's the case.)
The difficulty involved in assembling 75309 Democracy Gunship is actually merely reflective of the accomplishment in engineering that it represents, though – at that place'southward comparatively and then fiddling Technic across its 3,292 pieces, with nearly of its weight supported by just a handful of beams and axles. Information technology's a refreshing approach for a UCS set up, and then perhaps fitting that information technology'south been applied to the first prequel trilogy vehicle in this subtheme since 2010's 10215 Obi-Wan's Jedi Starfighter.
But a UCS model can't rely entirely on size and structural integrity to print: it too needs to convey the shape and item of its source cloth, and it's difficult to find points where 75309 Republic Gunship doesn't do that (while also bearing in mind that LEGO is an artistic medium, and this is therefore an estimation of its subject matter, rather than a literal calibration model).
On the contrary, it'due south littered with intelligent and innovative techniques that add together depth to not only the build experience, but the finished model, as well. Stepped curved elements convey the incremental slope seen on the olfactory organ of the real deal (or fictional bargain, possibly); the armament belts in the acme of the transport rotate in tandem; and the gunner seats in the extending chimera turrets may just surprise y'all in how they first come together, and are subsequently rotated into position.
Speaking of those bubble turrets: they represent perhaps the biggest design choice in 75309 Democracy Gunship, which is to say that it's based on the in-universe version of the transport with partially-endmost bay doors. The forward doors are replaced by the swinging turrets, as per 7163 Republic Gunship and 75021 Democracy Gunship – and in direct dissimilarity to 2008'southward 7676 Republic Set on Gunship, the merely one based on The Clone Wars Boob tube series.
It's a smart decision, because while the fully-endmost doors are undoubtedly more satisfying to look at, the bubble turrets (which are printed, by the way – just like all the windscreen elements hither) make for a more interesting and varied build experience. The simply downside is that information technology exposes the bare anti-studs on the inside of the ship'southward tail ramp, which are a real sore spot when viewed from sure angles.
That tail ramp is besides really the but place where gravity hasn't quite been conquered: it clips in identify fine enough, just either because the quality of those clips in our review re-create were worse than usual, or the associates of plates is too heavy, our ramp has proved prone to falling down repeatedly.
A final tiny point of contention lies in the missile chutes that sit atop the Gunship. They're the last part of the ship to come together, and for the most function, they're a reasonable facsimile of what they're supposed to represent – at least within the existing part palette. They're a little as well athwart, and the transition towards the black pieces at the end is a fiddling too astringent, only we can't think of a better way to achieve their conical shape at this calibration.
More than frustrating are the stickers required across them, which are a real pain to align; and the force required to connect them to the rear hull, which is facilitated past 3 Technic pins on each side. Snapping them in place without breaking either the chutes or the ship gives you a real sense of achievement, but simply because information technology'll accept you a few tries.
Those really are very minor gripes, though, in what'south otherwise a very satisfying, authentic and authentic rendition of the Republic Gunship in LEGO bricks – without a single new moulded element required.
For the fans who take relentlessly requested Phase 2 Commander Cody and/or Jedi Bob for the past 17 months, seeing Mace Windu and a Clone Trooper Commander sitting on 75309 Republic Gunship's stand will probably exist pretty disappointing.
Only information technology shouldn't exist: this isn't a set y'all're buying for the minifigures, and locking incredibly popular characters behind a £329 set designed for display would have been the incorrect move. Instead, the Star Wars blueprint squad has very smartly included 2 minifigures most of u.s. can live without (if the Gunship isn't otherwise high on your wish list), but are all the same a bang-up bonus in their own correct.
That said, Jedi Bob would have been a perfect meta addition to 75309 Republic Gunship preciselybecause nobody'southward buying information technology exclusively for the minifigures, and a hint of hardcore fan service therefore isn't going to put off coincidental buyers who would have preferred a named Jedi. C'est la vie.
Let's consider, for a moment, the value of the previous two Ultimate Collector Series sets, 75275 A-wing Starfighter and 75252 Imperial Star Destroyer (sorry, 75308 R2-D2: y'all're not UCS, or so says the LEGO Grouping). The old retails at £179.99 / $199.99 / €199.99 for ane,673 pieces, while the latter costs £649.99 / $699.99 / €699.99 for 4,784 pieces.
That'due south hopefully enough to show that the old metric of price-per-slice doesn't really thing much anymore: the Star Destroyer includes enough huge elements that its toll has been bumped upwards significantly in comparing to the A-wing, or even previous UCS sets. And so while 75309 Republic Gunship feels pretty reasonable on paper at three,292 pieces for £329.99 / $349.99 / €349.99, that's not the whole story.
The question is: does itfeel like adept value when all's said and done? The more relevant stat to consider when asking that question is the ready's wingspan, which measures a whopping 74cm. It's a great marker for just how much space you'll demand to accommodate 75309 Republic Gunship, and therefore more indicative of how far your money has gone by the time you lot place those minifigures on the stand (the final touch in the teaching manual).
You won't quite realise it as the nose and fuselage come together, merely when the first one of those wings is clipped into place, whatsoever qualms over the value of 75309 Republic Gunship will instantly melt away. Any prequel trilogy fans who've been relishing a UCS fix in the face of abiding original trilogy vehicles won't regret coughing upwards total cost for this one.
75309 Republic Gunship is very different to any other UCS set in recent retention: it'south the outset one decided by the customs; it'due south the beginning prequel trilogy example in more a decade; and it offers a very dissimilar building feel to whatsoever other LEGO Star Wars directly-to-consumer set currently on shelves.
It's for all those reasons that 75309 Commonwealth Gunship stands so distinctly in the current portfolio from a galaxy far, far away, and why – even with a couple of pocket-sized visual gripes, and the absenteeism of Jedi Bob – fans of prequel trilogy vehicles (and we are out there – at least xxx,000 of us!) should exist more than satisfied with what's arguably one of the most anticipated LEGO Star Wars sets of all time.
This set was provided for review past the LEGO Grouping.
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How long does it accept to build LEGO Star Wars 75309 Republic Gunship?
You'll spend roughly the entirety of Season 6 of Brooklyn Ix-9, or roughly six and a half to vii hours, putting together 75309 Republic Gunship.
How many pieces are in LEGO Star Wars 75309 Republic Gunship?
75309 Republic Gunship contains three,292 parts beyond 17 sets of numbered bags. That's 2,117 more than pieces than the final version of this vehicle, 2013's 75021 Republic Gunship.
How large is LEGO Star Wars 75309 Republic Gunship?
75309 Republic Gunship measures 33cm tall, 74cm wide (that's the wingspan) and 68cm long. Information technology'due south a beast, and you're going to need ample brandish infinite to arrange it.
How much does LEGO Star Wars 75309 Republic Gunship cost?
75309 Republic Gunship will retail for £329.99 in the Britain, $349.99 in the US and from €349.99 in Europe when information technology launches on August 1.
Source: https://www.brickfanatics.com/lego-star-wars-75309-republic-gunship-review-shouldering-the-expectations-of-30000-fans/
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