Review: 75102 Poe's X-Wing Fighter
Posted by Huw,
We continue our look at The Force Awakens sets today with 75102 Poe's X-Wing Fighter, which was perhaps the most anticipated of the range, certainly by me. However, whereas CapnRex101's excellent reviews of other sets have been full of interesting insight and speculation about the forthcoming film, you won't read anything like that in this one because I know very little about it. Instead, I'll simply look at the set from a LEGO fan's perspective.
Box and contents
I won't waste time discussing the box, you can see it on the set details page if you haven't already.
Minifigures
Three minifigures are included in the set, along with droid BB-8.
First, we have an unnamed resistance X-Wing pilot, attired in dark orange overalls. The level of printed detail on the torso is impressive. The helmet is absolutely fantastic: it's covered with fine printing and the trans-yellow visor is moulded into it.
The back is also printed. You can see the fantastic helmet print here, too.
Poe Dameron sports an identical torso as the pilot above but has a black helmet.
He also has a two-sided head.
The third minifig is an unnamed resistance ground crew although CapnRex101 tells me that he's actually called Goss Toowers. Whatever, he looks pretty cool. Note his nose: something that's not normally printed on LEGO heads.
The white printing on my helmet could have been better...
The rear of the torso is printed, but not the head.
Finally the fourth 'minifigure' is spinning droid BB-8 who, by all accounts, would seem to be a star of the film. Much like R2, I guess.
It's constructed from two new pieces: a 2x2 spherical body with stud on top and 'anti-stud' on the bottom, and the head.
The build
The bad news is that the set comes with a sticker sheet. The good news is that all of them simply provide minor aesthetic improvements to the finished model so not applying them will not adversely affect the overall appearance. Look at them carefully in the image below because you won't see them again in the pictures, I didn't apply them...
The parts are divided into five numbered bags which makes construction much easier. The small ground support vehicle and ladder are built first.
Next it's on to the craft itself. The rear of the fuselage is constructed first, which houses the wing opening mechanism, built using a smattering of Technic parts.
Bag two provides parts for the nose. As with all previous LEGO X-Wings, it's tapered slightly using plate hinges.
Bag three contains the highlight of the set: the canopy. It's a new shape and printed on three sides. It looks fantastic. However, we believe it's also been the cause of a recall from retailers' shelves due to some of them being moulded out of tolerance which prevents it from closing fully.
Mine, however, is fine.
Also of note in this bag are 1x1 plate shooters mounted on 1x2 plates. I've not seen them before but I see they've featured in many of this year's sets, none of which I have!
Bag three finishes the fuselage. The long Technic rods at the back are used to mount the wings.
Bags four and five provide parts for the wings
The completed model
There's no doubt it looks fantastic.
It's everything a spacecraft should be: sleek and swooshable.
No, the transparent 2x2s I've used to build a stand are not included...
However it's not without its faults: the blue bands at the back look absolutely terrible and spoil what is otherwise a great looking model. If they were black it would have been slightly better, of if they were concealed like they have been on previous X-Wings.
Unfortunately they can't be left off otherwise the wings flap about.
The do, however, provide for a very satisfying snapping action when the wings are closed by rotating the black gear on the top of the fuselage.
The engine intakes, formed using this silver 'mudguard' piece, looks fantastic when the wings are closed.
BB-8 is mounted behind the cockpit where we are used to seeing R2-D2. Some have said he has a tendency to fall out but I haven't noticed that. He does wobble with the slightest touch, though.
The flick-fire missiles at the end of the wings are totally superfluous and spoil the look so I'll be removing them from mine now I've photographed it.
You can see here that, unlike traditional X-Wings, the upper and lower wings to not overlap exactly, which presumably is true to the craft's appearance in the film.
Another minor design flaw concerns the way the engines are mounted. They are held on with 2l axles which fit into 1x2 Technic bricks. Unfortunately the 'lip' of the 2x4 plates used to hold the elastic bands prevents them from being pushed fully into the bricks which causes them to wobble a bit.
Verdict
Minor faults notwithstanding, this is an excellent model that's a thing of beauty and great to play (swoosh) with. It's everything a good Star Wars model should be: a faithful representation of an iconic vehicle with a great selection of minifigs, although how closely it matches the 'real' thing yet I don't know.
The only fly in the ointment is the price: In the USA, I guess $80 is just about palatable, but £70 in the UK, for 717 pieces, certainly is not. That's 10p a piece, roughly twice that of Creator sets, for example.
Nevertheless if you buy just one The Force Awakens set, make it this one. Just wait for it to be reduced a bit...
Thanks to LEGO CEE team for providing the set for review.
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49 comments on this article
Sticker 1, by the way, is never used, which is a bit strange. The wings also aren't amazingly true to the film, based on what we've seen from the toys and trailers. The bottom wing shouldn't go under the top wing at any point, and when closed they should be at the same height, not one under the other.
The rubber bands completely kill the set. They are horrible. I certainly prefer the old X-wings.
Thanks for the review Huw.
The best X-wing so far (minifig scale) and the best one in this serie. Love the black and orange color and the minifigs are very well detailed. The helmet is great! The only thing that is a eye-sore are the blue elastic bands. I will replace them with red ones. Strange that the price of the X-wings are so high compared to the other SW sets. In the Netherlands it is 89,99 euro's. After set 4502 with Joda's place, the X-wing sets after that kept roughly the same price just for the X-wing.
I orded mine through the Dutch LEGO World Steering Group compensation list, but over here the set has already been sold out at Shop @Home :( So I hope I can still receive it.
@magmafrost: sticker 1 goes on the grey box on the ground crew vehicle.
On the other hand you can see what it looks like with stickers applied in the official pictures or other reviews, so I'm doing others that are sticker-averse a service by showing you what it looks like without them.
The blue bands remind me of when they use those blue or red axle (?) technic bits in sets that stand out really unfortunately. Why couldn't they just have been black? Still, the set looks good, and the minifig helmets are VERY impressive. I'm a bit disappointed my favorite Star Wars character, Mr. Plinkett, hasn't made it into a set, though.
I knew I'd be getting this set when the images appeared, but it's better than I thought. The blue bands are really the only flaw with the set for me. I don't mind the wobbling engines, as mine will be on display most of the time, and I am not complaining about more launchers - I like them. :)
It looks fine without the stickers. However... those blue bands. Wow, LEGO, would it have bankrupted you to put black bands on there?!
I personally like the TIE a bit better. It is notably much more accurate to the teasers, and doesn't have any ridiculous off-color parts. It's also a bit cheaper.
I like Huw's reviews. I don't apply stickers to my sets either :-)
I wasn't planning on getting any of these Star Wars sets, but after seeing this review, I've changed my mind. Just need to find some black rubber bands...
@Huw
thanks for showing the set without the stickers. It is always nice to see what the models look like with stickers as well as without them.
Personally I don't mind the flick-fire missiles at the end of the wings, what is more disconcerting to the overall aesthetics of the star fighter are those blue rubber bands. I don't own any previous X-Wing models so I wonder how those were designed, and how those bands were better hidden inside the ship. Alternatively, how, if possible, to design this 'wing-attack-foil' feature without using rubber bands?! IMO TLG should have used a different colour such as black or dark grey, but definitely not blue!
As many others have also mentioned, all new SW set at RRP at terribly overpriced, though I am looking forward to getting this set, as I feel it is a 'must have'.
@barman
"I orded mine through the Dutch LEGO World Steering Group compensation list"
I have never heard of this 'group', do you perhaps have any information about this group?
Halloween- themed X-Wing? I can understand the black to make it less visible in space, but orange?
And $80? For the smallest minifigure-scale X-Wing?
There's absolutely nothing wrong with the stickers applied in my opinion. I'd say they improve on the already superb appearance of this set.
This ship looks amazing. Star Wars fan or not, you've gotta admit its a beautiful thing!
"They are held on with 2l axles" Did you mean 2x1 axles? I was thinking, "Wow, that's a whole lot of axles, they must all be 2x1 axles" and then I realized the typo.
2l: that's an 'ell' l, not a 1, one :)
Anyone willing to wager (CapnRex?) that Poe is a an Imper-... First Order spy? Hulloh, his ship is black! *Wink and a nudge*
Think I'm gonna have to get this one. All the minifigures look fantastically detailed, BB-8 is a must-get, and the ship is outstanding. Maybe the rubber bands can be coloured black with a marker?
Like all licensed sets these days, though, I'll be waiting for some good discounts before purchasing.
This is the one that I want from this wave but I can wait for a good sale so no rush. I always love Huws transparent stands but always forget to add some transparent bricks to my bricklink orders.
@Huw: Yes, the wings are meant to look like that. Not directly on top of each other (like the old one) and not directly behind each other (like some people seem to think they are). Also, for licenced themed sets, 10p per part is the benchmark. Most Star Wars sets are nowhere near that!
Anyways, great set, and I'm sure there are some black rubber bands around the house that are the same size as those blue ones.
I think the Poe Dameron minifigure is one of the best in the range but the set itself is somewhere in the middle of the seven for me. The shape and features of the T-70 have been rendered nicely but there are some avoidable issues to be found, as Huw mentioned in the review.
For those interested in applying the stickers I found them to be quite easy on the whole. There is always something to line them up with, although those on top of the wings have a tendency to lift as they are applied to the rough surface of a 3x4 slope.
A good reason not to apply, then. Once upon a time slopes were always printed because of this problem.
I wish Lego would start packing clear pieces with this kind of set, like they did with the delorian a few years back!
@pagani88: Where are you getting that from about the wings? All photos of the full-size prop show them folding completely flat and other merchandise, like the Revell kit, reproduces that. It's just Lego that's out of line here.
Pretty glaring design flaw for a set with this asking price.
This is a most for me as my Rebel Alliance only has one X-Wing in its possession, times have been hard indeed for the cash flow of these guys unlike the Imperials.
looks like you forgot a 2x1 tile with grille in the cockpit
@Rob42: What do you mean by completely flat? Behind each other or on top of each other? Because they definitely don't close on top of each other. Search: Force Awakens X Wing. You can see from the in- flight shots that the top wing is almost completely behind the lower one.
Behind each other, folding into a single plane with no overlap and without the step the Lego model has. When they're closed, the two sections of each wing form one seamless part and only diverge at the wingtips where they hold the guns, the forward part curving down, the rear part up.
I quick google of "TFA X-Wing" shows quite a few shots of the new X-Wings, and it looks like the wings do not line up like previous versions. Heck, looks like it could even overlap less to be more accurate.
Like, when theyre closed, it looks like a normal wing. Not double thick. Then when they open, the wing splits, not on the horizontal plane, but along a line intersecting the direction of travel.
OK I dont have to vocabulary to explain that shape but agree with @Rob42 about the 2 pieces forming 1 seamless wing when closed. :D
@Rob42 and TheHastyTadpole: I see now that the lower wing is actually a rectangle, not the same shape as the top one. I also see that the wings do fold flat with each other, rather than the top one being higher up when folded, meaning the wings don't overlap. Thanks for pointing that out! But now I know what you meant, it have been quite hard for Lego to do that, and I think it would have bumped up the parts and price a bit. Or the design might have been changed.
Wow, this is a super set! Thanks for another superb review! One thing though Huw, you put the mini fig on the ground crew cart on backwards. He's supposed to be facing away from the vehicle. (You can actually see this in Episode IV)
Oddly enough mine came with 3 set of stickers, for a moment I thought it was because you could build different versions; similar to other X-Wings. But not, they are the same. Also I was missing the cockpit stick, I used an extra from another set.
Thanks a lot for the idea of how to display it... I am usually looking for ways to create displays/stands.
If anybody has any ideas/instructions please send them this way.
I had wanted to get this one ...
... but in Australia, it'll be absurdly expensive. And (like a few other recent sets, WALL*E being the main offender), the minor issues add up to make me think that, actually, no, I'd rather not get it. I could forgive the blue rubber bands (although they do look pretty atrocious) but the gamble on whether the cockpit will shut properly or not -- plus the flimsy way the engines are attached to the back of the ship -- I don't think it'll be worth getting, because these things will just annoy me.
Anybody else not seeing the like button for comments on this post?
Great review; I still think that SW ships don't have enough "meat" on them to justify high prices, especially considering how many small parts there are that inflate their already low piece counts.
^^ Nobody is seeing them, I removed them.
^ Thank you. I'm not sure whether it was missing or if I just didn't see it in the instructions and thought it was a spare part!
For those who don't like the blue rubberbands (like me), i suggest using the white ones found in other sets such as the previous X-Wings.
The reason for the blue rubber bands is that for many years now (at least since 2002), Lego has used rubber bands that are color-coded by size. This is massively useful for someone with a large collection—I've struggled when rebuilding older sets to find which size of identical black rubber band is exactly right for the set in question. The colored bands are much better, but by the same token you don't get a choice in color—swapping the bands out for a different color will result in a function that is either too tight or too loose.
I'm not bothered by the blue rubber bands, but then again, I've never been bothered by the blue and red Technic pins, either. They add variety to a set's appearance and are much more convenient for building than pins that can be mixed up with the other parts of the set.
Ive been back into Lego as an AFOL since 2012, mostly collecting Star Wars. If 3 years of collecting Star Wars Lego has shown me anything, its that if you like this vehicle, but not this exact build of it, wait 1 or 2 years. I promise they'll make new versions of EVERY FREAKING THING heh.
2017 we'll get Po's X-Wing, and they'll get the wings right. We'll get Kylo's Shuttle, and they'll get the wings right. Heck, we'll probably even get another run of A, B and Y Wings, why not!! I think I can find room for a few more thumbtacks on my ceiling.
Im holding my breath for the EP VIII Falcon with *spoiler* a triangle shaped dish!
Seriously though. I bet the next version of this X-wing will be a lot more accurate. Ill wait for that one. BUT getting every minifig this run ;)
Great review!
A comparison with the classical X-Wing belonging to Luke, would have been a great addition to the review. Could you add some pictures with the two aircraft side by side?
@pagani88: I'd already pointed out to you in several earlier posts that the wings were in the wrong configuration. Glad to see you finally saw the light...
The image here shows a good side view of the wings in the film.
http://www.starwars.com/databank/resistance-x-wing
You can see how they are shaped differently.
I love this ship, but it does have flaws. I bought the Habro vehicle and it actually has a dark grey and orange color scheme, which makes sense. The original snow speeder had a similar color scheme and is probably more like what we will see on screen instead of black and orange.
I wish there was an OT X-Wing set like this. I would buy it in a heartbeat, even for 90€. There was too much wrong with the last X-Wing like white nose, R2 sideways and that old canopy piece that did never fit on an X-Wing. And adding ground vehicles and a ladder is just amazing and reminds me of the good ol' '99 X-Wing. Well, perhaps there is something coming out in a couple of years, once this retires, that makes my heart jump!
I would like to suggest a compromise on stickers in these reviews, but it means extra work for the reviewers. Build the model, and photograph it, without stickers. Then re-build it and photograph it again, with the stickers. I want to see how the stickers look on a model, especially if they are across multiple parts or were hard to apply symmetrically. I also understand that people will want to see what the set looks like without the sticky stuff. So, a double up will do the job - even though it will take twice as long to prepare for the review. (I am assuming that these sets are sent to you for review purposes, and not bought with your own money. If the reviewer has paid their own hard-earned cash for a set, then they can do what they like with it.)
Still on the stickers issue, allow me to respectfully disagree with Huw by saying this: every set has a kit of parts, in which stickers are included in. So, in my opinion, if you pretend to review a set, you should do it using all the parts provided. Otherwise by definition you are not reviewing the complete set.
The 10240 X-Wing had a much better wing positioning system, without using any rubber bands at all. It used technic shock absorbers instead, and the design also gave the wings a bit of "give" in case you bumped into something (which was entirely likely when "swooshing" given the sheer size of the thing). From the looks of movie stills, it seems as if the wings are completely wrong. They could have done that better. And it does indeed look like the colors should have been dark gray and orange instead of black and orange. The model looks great otherwise on its own merits.
Are none of you aware that the color of Lego rubber bands correspond with tension strength? Those blue ones are color locked. Technic building would be a nightmare otherwise.
i've got to say I do love this kit. Also agree it was way too expensive in Australia. My biggest gripe as others pointed out was how unstable the rear engine attachment is. The fitment is terrible and two of our engines fall off without any trouble. Bit disappointed about that part, but otherwise i smile every time I look at it.
Reading through the comments there are a few people asking about display options. i have a solution that I manufacture myself. Not sure if i'm allowed to advertise that here though. Can someone advise if i can post a link, picture or something here to show you what I have made and see if you like it. i would honestly like your feedback.
thanks,
james