If you follow this blog, it has not escaped your notice that the set 9497 Republic Striker-Class Starfighter will contain the minifigure of a character almost unknown to even the most cultured fans of the Star Wars saga. And for good reason, it is a character created for the game Star Wars The Old Republic released in December 2011.

Created for the webcomic Threat of Peace (accessible here) Introducing the game Star Wars The Old Republic, the character of Satele Shan is a young woman descended from [Darth] Revan, a Jedi turned Sith and then turned back to Jedi (you follow?) and Bastila Shan, a Jedi woman seen in the game Star Wars Knights of the Old Republic released in 2003. In SWTOR, she is the Grand Master of the Jedi Order and fights against the Sith led by Darth Malgus, notably during the Battle of Aldeeran.

Visually the character has evolved a lot between the comic version and the one seen in the two trailers of the game: Hope et Return. Her physical appearance in the game is based on that of the second-class American actress's face. Sno E.Blac and the minifigure will therefore be inspired by this 3D version of the character. She is equipped with a double blue lightsaber and dressed in a sauce jumpsuit heroic fantasy which should appeal to fans.

This is therefore a key character in the Star Wars universe developed in this MMORPG and which will appeal to the most addicted players. The others will undoubtedly be delighted to have the right to an unprecedented character who, even if he is not from the canonical Star Wars universe, is always better than an umpteenth minifigure of Kenobi or Anakin.

Forget the Wookiepedia visual that everyone has been posting since this morning, I really turned the whole internet around for you and found you a real RED Republic Starfighter visual that served as the inspiration for the set 9497 Republic Striker Starfighter...

This ship appears in the webcomic  Star Wars: The Old Republic Blood of the Empire, a series of comics distributed on the web and which takes place in the world of MMORPG Star Wars: The Old Republic.

He will presumably also appear in the video game.

By the way, if you are a fan of comics and understand English, take a look on this comic in 3 acts. It is top of the range.

And all of a sudden, this 9497 set takes on a little more meaning: This ship is really red, it has these shapes, and the LEGO reproduction is convincing.

So, thanks who?

Here is what could possibly be the polybag offered by LEGO on the Lego shop during the special Star Wars week which runs from April 28 to May 4, 2014.

This bag (LEGO Reference 5002123) containing the minifig of Darth Revan, character from the video game Star Wars: Kinghts of the Old Republic and seen in the outfit above in the MMO Star Wars: The Old Republic, is obviously already available in the Czech Republic if Brickset is to be believed.

It should therefore not take long to arrive in volume on eBay et bricklink for those in a hurry ...

At the time of the takeover of the Star Wars universe by Disney, I am surprised to see that a character from theUE arrives at LEGO ...

Note: The official visuals for The Simpsons minifigures are available at SpringfieldBricks.

You know how good I think of the 9500 Sith Fury-Class Interceptor set based on the Star Wars The Old Republic (SWTOR) game universe and Pixmania's current offer on this box should finally convince you to get it. without delay.

This online merchant currently offers this set at 29.90 €, the box is in stock at the time of this writing and I advise you not to hesitate too much at the risk of being disappointed ...

Delivery is free in Relais Colis and they will cost you € 4.99 for home delivery.

The public price charged on the LEGO Shop for this set is 99.99 € and amazon france displays a price of 61.14 €.

Click here or on the image above to access the product sheet at Pixmania.

Other boxes are offered at attractive prices like the set 75020 Jabba's Sail Barge at 59.00 €, it's up to you to find the right deal and compare the prices.

(Thanks to TomB for his email)

What to remember from 2013 except that this past year still cost me too much in LEGO. In the mass of sets that I acquired during the year, some will remain as interesting boxes that I appreciate where others have only joined my storage space to satisfy my collectionnite.

In the Star Wars range, I retain two sets that I particularly liked in 2013. First of all, the 10236 Ewok Village because LEGO is doing well by offering a plush diorama and a slew of cool minifigs.

I experienced the release of this Ewok Village as the arrival of the set which finally allows us to bring together all these somewhat frustrating boxes released over the years with a few Ewoks and other Scout Troopers accompanied by a tree (7956 Ewok Attack, 9489 Endor Rebel Trooper & Imperial Trooper Battle Pack and even the 7139 Ewok Attack of 2002...) by adding of course the excellent set 8038 The Battle of Endor released in 2009. The ultimate Endor diorama of sorts ...

I also really enjoyed the set 75025 Jedi Defender-Class Cruiser, a nice ship from the universe of The Old Republic, which is one of the few Star Wars sets in the 2013 System range to offer anything other than a few cool minifigs accompanied by a large handful of parts serving as an alibi. It also has the merit of refreshing, as was the case with the set 9500 Sith Fury-Class Interceptor in 2012, a line which understandably consists of a lot of remakes of the same ships.

Younger fans or AFOLs returning from Dark Age are delighted to finally be able to afford a Republic Gunship (75021) at a reasonable price where I only see a reissue of sets 7163 (2002) and 7676 (2008). It takes for everyone...

Regarding the disappointments, I remember two things: The scandalous cockpit sticker almost impossible to put on the set 10240 Red Five X-Wing Starfighter, pettiness that no longer exists on boxes sold at high prices and the Jabba's Sail Barge of the set 75020. I was hoping, perhaps a little naively, for something more ambitious than a simple, somewhat failed remake of the 6210 set released in 2006.

On the superhero side, an overall thumbs up to LEGO for the DC Universe / DC Comics branch of the line, even though I'm starting to get a lot of Batman minifigs ...

If the Tumbler of the set 76001 The Bat vs. Bane: Tumbler Chase is an insult to all fans of The Dark Knight saga, the set 10937 Arkham Asylum Breakout released at the end of 2012 / beginning of 2013 raises the level brilliantly: It is a superb playset, aesthetically very successful and if LEGO could take us out the rest of the asylum with the characters that are missing in a second set, it would be paradise. .

The rest of the lineup, including pitiful sets based on the movie Man of Steel, especially for the minifigs of the DC Comics universe that I collect with pleasure.

Regarding the Marvel licensed sets, it's very poor: The sets based on the movie Iron Man 3 and on the animated series Ultimate Spider-Man have only the merit of coming to supply our collections of super heroes with new minifigs, the rest of the contents of these boxes also serving as an alibi to justify the mention " Construction toy".

Regarding the Lord of the Rings / The Hobbit range, I'm generally satisfied with what LEGO was able to offer in 2013: the set 10237 Tower of Orthanc is a success, with a downside concerning the many stickers to stick. In my opinion, this is a great example of a successful combination of exposure potential and playability.

Everything is not in the same barrel and I could have done without the set 79008 Pirate Ship Ambush for example. Other important scenes of the trilogy would have deserved a box instead of this one.

Among the four sets of The Hobbit range, I especially remember the set 79013 Lake Town Chase, but I think LEGO did well with the boxes on offer. The minifigs are superb and although I would have liked to have had higher walls, bigger rocks, etc ... for me, the contract is fulfilled.

Obviously, the sets that I liked the most in 2013 are mostly big boxes which not only contain a few minifigs, but which offer a real playful or visual context and long hours of construction. This is what I expect from LEGO, and I hope 2014 will live up to it ...

And you, what are your favorite sets out of all those released in 2013? Which ones did you hate?