8038 - Endor Battle Review

[Dalek Caan]

I don't own the Venator, but the new Endor set has more figures (most of them new), a great build for the base (although it lacks a rear) fith playfeatures, an awsome new ATST head (shame about the legs, I swapped them for the previous incarnation). People have said the Venator seemed too small, but still has some new figs/playability features.

[SuperDave]

Great review, but I'm still trying to decide between this and the Venator. (Tight budget, you know) Which one would you recommend the most?

The choice is yours alone, but I heartily recommend the Endor set. (I don't own the Venator.)

[donneyboy]

Its A great set, but its a shame we didnt get a Trench Coat Han.

[firestorm]

Even though i don't own this set yet, but just looking from the pictures already made me give it a 10 star. FINALLY ! The recreation of Ewoks. (if i remember correctly, the last ones were like the Ewok Attack) I actually was hoping also a Luke and maybe more troopers - Rebel Troopers, ewoks. I just love ewoks.

But just one question. Is this AT-ST really better than the last one 7657 AT-ST? I hope this one will be better though.

[donneyboy]

Even though i don't own this set yet, but just looking from the pictures already made me give it a 10 star. FINALLY ! The recreation of Ewoks. (if i remember correctly, the last ones were like the Ewok Attack) I actually was hoping also a Luke and maybe more troopers - Rebel Troopers, ewoks. I just love ewoks.

But just one question. Is this AT-ST really better than the last one 7657 AT-ST? I hope this one will be better though.

I'm not sure if the AT-ST is better, but it is more accurate.

[Flynn]

Anything is better than the last AT-ST, firestorm.

[science guy]

I'm still in the process of building mine, but I really think this is a fun playset for kids. You can really recreate a battle. This may be heretical, but I think it's more fun than the minifig death star due to the assortment of minifigs.

[The Guy]

Now I hate even more having to wait till Christmas for this because of this awesome review.

[Diaaabo]

My first review around here

Here's a set I haven't thought of acquiring, but then it was capturing my attention and now I play with this baby every single day

Parts:
A great variety of parts. Tons of tiles (48 1x4 dark blueish grey...), lots of plates, slopes and even some Technic.

The build
The set is built in several steps. The polybags are numbered, two bags for each construction phase. We start by the 12 minifigs, the glider and the Ewok catapult and two speeder bikes; the AT-ST and then the bunker. It's construction is plain simple, but with so much to build, it took me quite some time to finish it.
The AT-ST is prolly the most complex part of the build; since it includes some Technic and the walking mechanism isn't that good.
The "explosion" mechanism is simpler than it looks and easily built.

Design
Everything in this set is excellent! The catapult looks just like the one in the movie, as well as the bunker and it's details.
The AT-ST is a bit funnel-looking, but looks nice face to previous models.
The new speeder bikes look much better; although I prefer the one that comes in the 7676 set. I think that 2x3 plate behind the seat is there to allow two minifigs to ride the bike like in the movie, instead of only one minifig like in previous models.
The inner part of the bunker does not look that realistic, but it allows plenty of fun inside and makes you want to add something more to the base. It's a shame it's back is fully open, but I'll let it pass.

Playability:
With 12 minifigs, two speeders, one glider, one AT-ST and an exploding bunker, we have lots of fun stuff to do here!
The glider has a simple bombardment mechanism, allowing it to drop stones over the bad guys, just like in the movie.
The catapult is just awesome, it can throw 2x2 round bricks longer than 2 meters! Plus, it looks perfect, just like the one in the movie! I can't recall any LEGO catapult this powerful.
Like I said before, the AT-ST movement is a big weird. It should walk by moving a wheel left and right, but it only does walk if not over any surface. Still, the fact that the top hatch opens and allows one angry wookiee to throw it's driver out of there makes up for it. It should transport two drivers like in the movie, but the LEGO version only carries one.
The bunker possesses an opening door and a spring mechanism that blows up the lateral walls (and strong enough to take some minifigs along with it). The doors must open individually, instead of synchronized like in the 8036 set. The lateral wings are hinged to the central piece, allowing it to open and close so that you have more room inside the bunker to play with it. Inside we have some computers, gun supports and a part of the shield generator.

Minifigs:
12 minigs in the same set is a lot; especially being 6 of them exclusives! We have Han Solo, Princess Leia, Chewbacca, R2-D2, two rebel soldiers, three Ewoks, two Scout Troopers and an Imperial Officer. The Ewoks are marvelously detailed, unlike their predecessors. There is some unbalance between good guys and bad guys, since they could have gotten some extra stormtroopers in this set. Besides, where is C-3PO?

Price:
110€ is a bit of money. Nonetheless, the minifigs makes up for it, and since this is a licensed theme and I managed to get it a bit cheaper, I shall not complain

Overall:
An excellent set, especially for those die-hard Star Wars fans like me. If we had some stormtroopers (and even some more rebels) from the Battle Packs, it would get even better. LEGO' next step should be launching the shield generator platform eheh. I hope to see some Endor displays soon; and I shall add some modifications in some time.

10/10

[ImperialShadowTroop]

I don't have this set yet but i'm getting it for christmas ,so expect to see me soon!!!