Review: LEGO Star Wars 75306 Imperial Probe Droid

Today we quickly tour the LEGO Star Wars set 75306 Imperial Probe Droid, a box of 683 pieces which is currently available for pre-order at the public price of 74.99 € with the two new helmets available in the sets 75304 Darth Vader Helmet (834 - 69.99 €) and 75305 Scout Trooper Helmet (471 - 49.99 €). Delivery promised for April 26th.

In the pretty box which takes the format and dressing of the helmets already marketed in the Star Wars range, enough to assemble the LEGO interpretation of the Viper Probe Droid seen for about fifteen seconds in theEpisode v.

Some will wonder if this droid that self-destructs after being hit by a blaster shot really deserves a reproduction of this size in a dedicated set, but fans of the Star Wars universe will tell them that everything that appears in Star Wars, even for half a second, is bound to be passed on to legacy at LEGO. In more than 20 years of the Star Wars universe in the catalog, anything that is not a remake or a reissue is generally welcome.

Over the years, the Probe Droid has obviously been the subject of many MOCs, more or less successful, on a scale similar to that of this version and it was necessary that one day LEGO seized the file to finally propose a "official" interpretation of the thing. It is now and I think the designer is doing honorably when it comes to the overall aesthetic.

The idea of ​​the snowy base is excellent and the small promontory placed just under the droid somewhat masks the presence of the inevitable transparent support from certain angles. The integration of the small presentation plate with its edges covered with snow which distills some facts on the subject dealt with is also very successful. The droid is therefore perched on a stack of round transparent bricks crossed by an axis and at the end of which there is a square brick. This brick is there to ensure the stability of the model when it is plugged into the base and even if the construction is indeed not likely to fall, the whole shakes a little. Come to think of it, a white thru-axle would undoubtedly have allowed the support to melt a little more into the model.

The Probe Droid is assembled very quickly, you will not spend hours on it. Since this is a LEGO brick-based model, you won't have to be too careful about the finish of the robot's body with really widely spaced side bricks. The five appendages of the droid seem to me rather well reproduced, they remain of a relative finesse without losing in level of detail and articulations. The robot's "head" is undoubtedly the most successful element of the model with many growths which wonderfully reproduce the machine seen on the screen. The two antennas are not retractable but you just have to remove the gray rods and plug in the candles directly by turning them over if you want to vary the pleasures.

If the contents of this box are quickly assembled, the assembly of the droid remains very interesting by the different techniques implemented to achieve the final result. As is often the case with models that are almost monochrome in their external appearance, the designer does not hesitate to bring a little variety in the colors for the bowels of the construction. The presence of these elements, the color of which has little to do with the product itself, also makes it easier to locate through the pages of the instruction booklet. I'm not making a Prévert-style inventory of the solutions used to obtain the final result, the photos speak for themselves. If you prefer to avoid spoiling the pleasure of assembly, simply hover over the thumbnails without clicking on them.

Some might have preferred a black droid, LEGO has chosen the Dark Gray. I prefer the color chosen by the manufacturer, it allows to effectively manage the contrast with the few black pieces and the metallic elements coming from the small bags of accessories used and this color will be a little less sensitive to dust when the construction is exposed on the corner of a shelf.

The model is satisfied with four stickers in addition to the one to stick on the presentation plate, it is reasonable and these stickers contribute to the general aesthetics. I'm not sure that if LEGO had chosen to pad print the orange areas, the rendering would have been better given the dark shade of the parts on which these graphic details would have had to be printed. Significant bonus, the background color of the different stickers matches the color of the parts.

Those who have been waiting for a very successful model of the Probe Droid may be disappointed by some of the somewhat rough finishing details on this model. But it's LEGO, and it's just a brick-based interpretation with its constraints and aesthetic approximations. One should also not seek consistency between the scale of this Probe Droid and those of other existing droids in the LEGO Star Wars range, there is none.

A clarification for those who regret that this model is not accompanied by a mini-version of the droid as is the case for BB-8 or R2-D2: the designer has confirmed having deemed it superfluous to add one of these micro- constructions alongside the model because the Probe Droid does not exist as a "real" minifigure at LEGO.

In the end, I think that this original and new product in this form in the LEGO Star Wars range has serious arguments to make: its retail price of 75 € seems reasonable to me, the assembly phase is very entertaining and the positioning aesthetic. between model and LEGO seems to me here rather balanced.

Note: The set presented here, provided by LEGO, is as usual involved. Deadline fixed at April 8th next at 23pm. 

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.