With Star Wars Day approaching, LEGO is gearing up to bring the festivities alive with its brand-new and upcoming LEGO Star Wars sets. The Danish toymaker recently announced three shiny new sets, including an Ultimate Collector’s Series X-Wing Starfighter and two dioramas that are designed to celebrate the 40th anniversary of Return of the Jedi. With great pride, we can say that every set is skillfully crafted to cater to the desires of devoted fans and caters to both adults and kids alike. So the next time your partner ridicules your “childish hobby,” you can confidently remind them of the artistry and dedication that goes into each creation.
While the LEGO X-wing Starfighter set isn’t as big as some other X-wing models, the set is still impressive, thanks to its newly detailed design to the cockpit and wings. With a total of 1,949 pieces, it measures over 21.5 inches long and features the ability to switch from flight mode into attack mode at the flick of a switch. There’s even an all-new Luke Skywalker minifigure, an R2-D2 LEGO figure, and a display stand with a plaque to go along with the set to help fans fiddle around and come up with their own twist.
As per LEGO Design Master Henrik Andersen, “Whilst this is not the first time we have brought the X-wing Starfighter to brick life, this is the most detailed and I am so excited with the final design. It is such an iconic ship, by designing at this new larger scale we were able to include more specific details such as the thrusters, the cockpit and the wings. We are so excited to now share this with fans.”
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The toymaker has even unveiled two new diorama sets namely the Endor Speeder Chase Diorama and the Emperor’s Throne Room Diorama sets, which help immortalize “two of the film’s most iconic sequences in LEGO bricks.” The LEGO Emperor’s Throne Room (75352) is an 807-piece set that reimagines the iconic duel between Luke Skywalker and Darth Vader in Emperor Palpatine’s Throne Room on the rebuilt Death Star. The set also features an Emperor Palpatine minifigure and comes with lightsabers, Sith lightning, and a rotating throne to help nail the exact look and feel.
On the other hand, the 608-piece LEGO Endor Speeder Chase (75353) diorama set depicts Luke Skywalker, Princess Leia and a Scout Trooper racing on speeder bikes, weaving in-between the trees. The set will include two speeder bikes with transparent stands (allowing the bikes to tilt, conveying movement), minifigures of all three characters, two buildable trees, and more forest elements. Both the diorama sets even include a plaque with the Return of the Jedi 40th anniversary logo and a memorable quote from each scene.
During the big announcement, Jens Kronvold Frederiksen, design lead for LEGO Star Wars said, “It’s hard to over-state the impact that Return of the Jedi has had on popular culture since its release 40 years ago, and it was a real pleasure as a fan to help create these new dioramas that celebrate some of the film’s most iconic moments. Whether you were in the cinema for Return of the Jedi’s original release or came to discover it later, these two dioramas allow builders to recreate and display their own slice of cinematic history – and revealing them to fans, at the same time as many are enjoying Star Wars Celebration, is the perfect way to unveil them.”
All three sets are now available for pre-order via the official LEGO store, with their releases starting from the first week of May (May 1 for both the dioramas, May 4 aka Star Wars Day for the X-Wing). The Lego Star Wars Ultimate Collector Series X-wing Starfighter comes at a price tag of AUD $369.99, the Emperor’s Throne Room Diorama will set you AUD $159.99 back, while the Endor Speeder Chase diorama set is for AUD $129.99. So if you were looking to indulge yourself with some Star Wars action this Star Wars Day, LEGO’s new sets have come to the rescue.