Today we quickly tour the LEGO Star Wars set 75316 Mandalorian Starfighter, a box of 544 pieces that will be available from August 1, 2021 at the public price of 59.99 €.

Long-time collectors may remember the similar ship from the set. 9525 Pre Vizsla's Mandalorian Fighter released in 2012 and this new variant of the Mandalorians' favorite model does a bit better in terms of finish even if the 33 x 30 cm ship is still not really on the scale of minifigs. Most of the features seen on the screen are there with the possibility of raising the wings in the landing position and orienting the cockpit which is here attached to the rest of the fuselage via a large ball joint. The solution used is childishly simple but it works.

The two wings may seem fragile at first glance, but they are sufficiently reinforced by layers of plates which contribute to the passage to give them a little thickness. the result remains correct except when the wings are raised and reveal a more summary dressing of the back. To choose I would have almost inverted the finish to be able to have a vessel with an impeccable aesthetic on my shelf.

On the side of the defects to be noted on this model: the absence of real landing gears or at least of a section of parts at the front under the fuselage which would have allowed to expose the ship perfectly to the horizontal instead to let the nose hang out on the shelf. Even the Gauntlet of 2012 had these attributes which gives allure to the vessel ... The canopy of the cockpit is not properly integrated and it will be necessary to be content with the two gaping holes on the sides that the stickers do not hide.

The ammunition of both Spring-Shooters placed at the ends of the wings remain visible when they are raised but these two accessories can be easily removed, just like the two Stud Shooters placed on either side of the cockpit. the half-dozen stickers to stick in this box remain reasonable, those which dress the canopy are also almost useless.

The endowment in minifigs is very correct here, it is the interest of the product: Bo-Katan Kryze, a major character of the saga The Clone Wars who are enjoying a resurgence of popularity thanks to the appearance of the character embodied in live action by Katee Sackohff in the series The Mandalorian, Gar Saxon a commander of Shadow Collective seen in the animated series The Clone Wars et Star Wars Rebels and a generic Mandalorian "loyalist".

The three figurines are unpublished and the pad prints are really very successful. the minifig of Bo-Katan is an interpretation of the character of the animated series, we find on the chest the two yellow bands that do not appear on the outfit worn by Katee Sackohff in the series The Mandalorian. LEGO makes the effort to provide hair that allows the character to be exposed without his helmet, but the pad printing of the forehead band on both sides of the head disappears a little under the hair. A new piece directly integrating the headband would have been appreciated.

The helmet used by Gar Saxon will also be that of one of the three upcoming minifigures in the LEGO Star Wars set. 75319 The Mandalorian Forge (258 - 29.99 €), the piece seems successful to me even if the growths may seem a little short compared to the character's helmet seen in The Clone Wars. no additional hair for this character and it's a bit of a shame even though Gar Saxon has very short hair in the series.

The generic Mandalorian has a neutral head under his helmet, you may replace it with any face to give it a little relief.

The three characters are equipped with the WESTAR-35 blaster usually used by the Mandalorians, here lazily embodied by a classic element that lacks a bit of panache. A new, more similar part would have been welcome knowing that LEGO provides five copies of the weapon in this set. The bulk of the effort was provided with really very successful minifigs, only a few suitable weapons were missing.

Unsurprisingly, LEGO continues here to decline some iconic ships from the Star Wars universe in a simplified version that keeps the price of these products at an almost reasonable level. Unfortunately, this is often at the cost of a little petty concessions, especially in 2021, and this box is no exception.

The possibility of exposing the ship with the wings up and the nose straight is not taken into consideration and the lack of a landing gear up front is really unfortunate. An aesthetic effort could also have been made at the level of the canopy of the cockpit. I do not even mention the possibility of a support to present the ship in flight position, it is probably too much to ask.

The minifigs save the furniture thanks to superb, very faithful pad printing, although the generic Mandalorian could in my opinion have been replaced by a more prominent character in the animated series. The Clone Wars. It's not as if LEGO has already exhausted all the supporting roles on the screen ...

Note: The set presented here, provided by LEGO, is as usual involved. Deadline fixed at July 7, 2021 next at 23pm. For newcomers, know that you just need to post a comment to participate in the draw.

Update : The winner was drawn and was notified by email, his nickname is indicated below. Without a response from him to my request for contact details within 5 days, a new winner will be drawn.

Amazon has added some LEGO sets that benefit from the "Get 3 for the price of 2"currently in progress including the LEGO Star Wars reference 75192 Millennium Falcon which is temporarily out of stock but available for order.

By ordering three copies at 799.99 € each, you pay only two (1599.98 € instead of 2399.97 €) and you therefore benefit from a reduction of 33%.

The hardest part will undoubtedly be to find two other fans who wish to afford this product which therefore costs € 533.32 ...

The offer is valid until June 28 or while stocks last. Non-cumulative offer, valid only once per customer account.

GET 3 LEGO SETS FOR THE PRICE OF 2 AT AMAZON >>

LEGO continues its quest for the miracle material that could one day replace ABS plastic and the manufacturer today announces that it has succeeded in producing a brick made from recycled PET (polyethylene terephthalate). This prototype would a priori offer the level of quality and safety required by the manufacturer and a one-liter PET bottle would make it possible to produce ten classic 2x4 LEGO bricks.

The campaign launched today is not an announcement in itself, it aims above all to confirm that the manufacturer is continuing its research and that recycled PET is one of the most promising materials among all those that have already been tested.

The formula used by LEGO for this first prototype includes PET from products intended for recycling as well as chemical additives which reinforce its resistance and make it possible to reproduce the essential mechanical properties, including the famous Clutch Power, to be able to hope one day to change the material without compromising on the durability of the product.

At LEGO, 150 people have been working for three years on the search for the material that may one day replace ABS (acrylonitrile butadiene styrene), a product derived from petroleum, and the manufacturer claims to have tested more than 250 formulations of "plastics" that would allow it to meet its ambitious goal of 100% sustainable materials by 2030.

At this point, there is no question of launching mass production and replacing the current ABS bricks, LEGO simply declares that it wants to launch an extended test phase which should last at least a year. The possible switch to a recycled PET-based material will not affect transparent parts and LEGO confirms that it is actively working to maintain color uniformity between the different generations of bricks.

New molds will also be necessary to ensure the production of bricks made of this new material. There is still a long way to go and it will be notably strewn with accelerated aging tests of the bricks in question to test the resistance of the material over time. It will remain to be seen in a few years how these new generation bricks will be perceived and whether there will be a "before / after" material change effect in the minds of consumers.

We know that LEGO has already integrated a biopolyethylene made from ethanol from the distillation of sugar cane in its catalog, but only 2% of production is concerned by the use of this material which does not offer the mechanical properties essential to conventional bricks. This biopolyethylene used for the manufacture of minifig accessories or plant elements is (fortunately) not biodegradable but it is recyclable via the same processes as conventional polyethylene.

FNAC is currently running a promotional offer that may be of interest to those who are planning to add the new LEGO Super Mario Starter Pack 71387 Adventures with Luigi to their collection: the brand is offering a nice official LEGO cover in the colors of the plumber for any pre-order of the set which will be available from August 1st.

To take advantage of the offer, simply add the two products to the basket and the cover is automatically offered, the total amount of the order remaining at € 59.99, i.e. the public price of the starter pack.

The cover can be used to store a Nintendo Switch console or a few LEGO Super Mario minifigures, but you should not expect to be able to take the entire level provided in the set with you.

71387 ADVENTURES WITH LUIGI ON FNAC.COM >>

LEGO SUPER MARIO COVER ON FNAC.COM >>

The other announcement of the day is the availability of the LEGO Builder's Journey video game on two new platforms: Nintendo Switch and PC. This game was previously an Apple Arcade exclusive, so you can now play it on your Switch via Nintendo eShop (19.99 €) or on your PC through Steam (16.99 €) or theEpic Game Store (16.99 €).

For those who do not know this puzzle game with a very sophisticated visual atmosphere developed by Light brick studio, here is the pitch:

If you want to get a better idea of ​​the gameplay before you jump in, here's a 13-minute long streak that should help you make up your mind: