Review : LEGO Star Wars 75309 Republic Gunship

Today we quickly tour the LEGO Star Wars set 75309 Republic Gunship, a new box of 3292 pieces stamped Ultimate Collector Series which only owes its appearance in the LEGO Star Wars range to its success during the consultation organized in January 2020 on the LEGO Ideas platform.

Let's get rid of the error made by LEGO on the packaging of the product and on the instruction booklet: the logo of the Galactic Republic has been replaced by that of the Empire. The manufacturer readily admits his error but is satisfied with a laconic press release in the form of a vaguely humorous pirouette:

The manufacturer also warns that the correction will not take place at best until the end of 2021 or early 2022 and that the first batch of sets already manufactured will be sold as is. It's up to you to see if this error justifies waiting for the modification. Regarding the collector's potential of this "alternative" edition of the product which will be available in volume for many months, it will undoubtedly be necessary to wait a few years to capitalize on this error.

I have to say I'm a little surprised that a mistake like this could have crept up on the packaging and the instruction booklet without anyone noticing it in time. We know that the design and production of a set involves the participation of many employees of the LEGO group, multiple validation stages as well as regular consultation of the beneficiaries of the license concerned. Absolutely no one, from designers to marketing geniuses to Star Wars themed specialists at LEGO / Disney / Lucasfilm, has seen a thing.

That being said, was this UCS version of a ship that was already available by LEGO in system format in 2002 (7163 Republic Gunship), in 2008 (7676 Republic Attack Gunship) and then in 2013 (75021 Republic Gunship) really essential? ? To believe the fans who voted overwhelmingly for this ship, it is. However, I think that many of them already saw themselves having a slew of Clones or Cody in Phase 2 armor, they will be at their expense because this is an imposing model to exhibit that is not accompanied by only two minifigs.

The ship's scale is determined by the two bubbles that serve as canopies and the rest is built around. This Gunship is obviously not on the minifig scale, although we can install Mace Windu and the Clone Trooper Commander on the two seats which seem almost to scale and which therefore seem to me a little undersized compared to the rest. of the ship.

The internal structure of the model is well thought out, it is the upper part of the vessel that supports the floor and this solution ensures a certain rigidity to the whole without imposing too many beams crossing the empty space on the back. The different panels of the hull are a little less solid and it will be necessary to be very vigilant when moving the model. The two movable side doors are for example fixed on a single white beam via a single row of tenons. These two doors also lack in my opinion a little finishing and the gray areas around the slots would for example have benefited from being covered with Tiles to really reproduce the visual effect seen on the screen.

The finish of the cabin is quite correct even if we do not escape ten 6x6 matt plates with their central injection point clearly visible on the wings and on the ramp that leads to the cockpit. There was undoubtedly better to do than to be satisfied with these elements which smell a little the ease. The designer, on the other hand, did his best on the front of the vessel, with a good effort to integrate the green curves in the cabin which compensates for the staircase effects and the front of the transparent canopy which protrudes a little.

The wings and the two reactors are firmly fixed to the cabin, via a Technic axis for the two wings and via a few blue pins for the engines. These are crossed by a Technic axis over part of their length, their strength is assured.

The fenders are heavy, but they are effectively supported by the Technic element assemblies designed to prevent them from sagging and the stacking of plates gives them maximum rigidity. The two wings take a little volume at the junction with the body of the vessel, we avoid structures that are too flat and a little bland often present on the models in System format. All the armament usually carried by these vessels is present with rockets placed under the wings and inside the two side doors and two missile rollers, rotating via a few gears, integrated between the engines.

You will have noticed, the two mini-shaped mobile bubbles Death Star with their firing position normally occupied by a Clone Trooper are not perfectly round. The addition of a series of elements allowing the bubbles to be fixed on their respective supports and the integration of a ring of parts between the two hemispheres deform these two constructions a little. I still welcome the pad printing effort on the eight hemispheres provided in this box, even if I imagine that LEGO would not have dared to impose stickers on us to stick on these elements.

The sheet of stickers is also a little petty for a high-end product at 350 €, knowing that it is mostly satisfied with stickers on a transparent background adding some visual details to the shell and two symbols of the Galactic Republic which they are in conformity with the difference of those present on the box and on the instruction booklet. The other sticker provided is the one that distills some facts on the ship with an error on the length of the thing: Starwars.com gives 17.69 m, LEGO writes 17.4 m.

The product presentation support is well designed, it knows how to be discreet and it allows to expose the Gunship in a relatively dynamic way, slightly leaning forward. The vessel is not integral with the support, it is content to rest on a white piece which fits into the rear floor which therefore remains immaculate. Knowing that it will be necessary to free up a space of approximately 80x80 cm to expose the model, I think that LEGO could have split a rotating support that would have allowed to enjoy the ship from all angles without having to grab it by its central part and lift it up.

The two minifigs provided are simple decorative elements of the presentation medium, and even if they are unheard of in this form, we must therefore be content with Mace Windu with his traces of dust on his chest and a Clone Trooper Commander Phase I a little more detailed than that of set 75019 AT-TE (2013) but dispensable.

From August 1, it will be up to everyone to assess whether this ship really deserves the investment requested by LEGO. The model is imposing, it is relatively detailed even if the subject imposes a lot of internal vacuum with a cabin around and we obtain an imposing exhibition product 68 cm long by 74 cm wide that we will have to manage to fit on a shelf.

I imagine that some of those who voted for this set in the initial consultation were instead expecting a smaller, cheaper ship full of Clone Troopers, the UCS set. 75098 Assault on Hoth having officially opened the door to this type of playset in 2016. It will not be, it will be necessary to pay 349.99 € for this globally successful exhibition model and be satisfied with the two minifigs provided.

Note: The set presented here, provided by LEGO, is as usual involved. Deadline fixed at July 30, 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.