FIND MORE PRODUCTS LIKE THISWhile I was catching up on Eurobricks, I found something interesting on the LEGO Star Wars board by Just2Good. I’m not totally sure if it was an April Fool’s joke but he stated that there will be a new Death Star set coming out in 2016 which will replace the current 10188 set. It does sound pretty fake because there is one that is still currently being sold on . What if this piece of news was actually real and J2G fooled everyone by posting so close to April Fool’s Day to make it seem like a joke. There are some things that makes a new Death Star set plausible. First, the current set will be turning 7 years old in a few months and the minifigures are pretty outdated by today’s standards. They are still great minifigures but they could use an update, preferably with some different characters. There’s no other set that’s been sold as long as the 10188 set has been selling. There’s also another rumor that the current Death Star will be retired by the end of the year so a new one to replace the old one as a flagship set seems reasonable.
I’ve also heard from a pretty reliable source stating that the Death Star will be gone by the end of 2015 as well. Again, a new Death Star for 2016 set sounds far-fetched but not out of the realm of possibility. Is Just2Good telling the truth or is this a ruse? From what I’ve seen so far, some believe the rumor while some dismissed it. For me personally, I’m leaning towards believing it slightly more than thinking it’s fake. What do you guys think?The #10188 LEGO Star Wars Death Star has been one of the best-selling LEGO sets of all time, originally released in 2008, and finally retired after seven years at the end of 2015. However this wasn’t a true retirement, just a bit of time taken off to get some updates and improvements, and now the Death Star is back! The #75159 LEGO Star Wars Death Star includes over 200 extra pieces as well as three new minifigures. Below is the full press-release with pictures and details. Here is the official description of the #75159 LEGO Star Wars Death Star: Win the battle for the Empire with the awesome Death Star! R
eenact amazing scenes from the Star Wars saga with the Empire’s ultimate planet-zapping weapon—the Death Star! With over 4,000 pieces, this fantastic model has a galaxy of intricate and authentic environments, including a superlaser control room, Imperial conference chamber, hangar bay with moving launch rack and Lord Vader’s TIE Advanced with space for Vader inside, Emperor Palpatine’s throne room, Droid maintenance room, detention block, trash compactor, tractor beam, cargo area, turbo laser with spring-loaded shooters and seats for the 2 Death Star Gunners, and 2 movable turbo laser towers. This fantastic set also includes 23 iconic minifigures and 2 Droids to ensure hours of Star Wars battle fun. Includes 23 minifigures and 2 droids: Grand Moff Tarkin, Darth Vader, Emperor Palpatine, Imperial Navy Officer, Imperial Officer, 2 Stormtroopers, 2 Death Star Troopers, 2 Emperor’s Royal Guards, 2 Death Star Gunners, Death Star Droid, Obi-Wan Kenobi, Chewbacca, Princess Leia, C-3PO, Han Solo, Han Solo (disguise), Luke Skywalker (Tatooine), Luke Skywalker (disguise) and Luke Skywalker (final duel), plus R2-D2, an Imperial Astromech and a Dianoga trash compactor monster.
Features a superlaser control room, Imperial conference chamber, hangar bay with moving launch rack and detachable TIE Advanced with space for Lord Vader inside, Emperor Palpatine’s throne room, Droid maintenance room, detention block, trash compactor, tractor beam, cargo area, turbo laser with spring-loaded shooters and seats for the 2 Death Star gunners, and 2 movable turbo laser towers. LEGO VIP members will get early access to the #75159 LEGO Star Wars Death Star on September 15th, followed by general release on September 30th. Prices are as follows: US $499.99 – CA $599.99 – DE 499.99€ – UK £399.99 – DK 4499.00 DKK (Euro pricing varies by country). The set will be available at official LEGO stores and under the LEGO Star Wars section of the Online LEGO Shop. Rumors started circulating even before the #10188 LEGO Star Wars Death Star was retired that LEGO was going to release a new Death Star. Some people thought it will be related to the new Star Wars film, others speculated that it would be like the old #10143 LEGO Star Wars Death Star II display-model from 2005, and some LEGO fans reasoned that it will probably be just an updated re-release with new minifigures and improved building techniques. A
nd this third group pretty much had it right; the #75159 LEGO Star Wars Death Star is basically the same thing as the original set, with updated minifigures. It is clear that LEGO felt that there was no need to change the original set, besides freshening up the minifigures and adding a couple of other small changes. On the box image the Death Star is even oriented almost exactly the same way as on the original set, to emphasize that it is the same thing. Nobody was expecting that the sets will be this similar. In fact, when the first images of the new set leaked in mid-August, most LEGO fans thought it was a prank. Even with a re-release people expected that LEGO will at least update some of the more unsightly features of the original model, like the stepped curves. Personally, I would have loved if the outside would be covered with opening panels! The collection of minifigures is nice, but I don’t think it justifies a $100 increase in price. Just to give you some comparison here is some data. T
he #10188 LEGO Star Wars Death Star was released in 2008 with 3,803 pieces and 24 minifigs/droids for a price of $400 (10.5 cents a piece). The #75159 LEGO Star Wars Death Star comes with 4,016 pieces (213 more pieces) and 25 minifigs/droids for a price of $500 (12.4 cents a piece). The #71040 LEGO Disney Castle is 4,080 pieces (so 64 pieces more than the new Death Star) for a price of $350 (8.6 cents a piece). From this perspective, it might make more sense to just buy the old Death Star (which still sells for around $400 on the secondary market and prices will likely drop once the new one is out), and maybe add a few updated minifigs. Or if you just want to get a big display set, the LEGO Disney Castle is a much better deal. Below are a few more comparison pictures of the two sets (old on the left, new on the right). What do you think? How do you like the new LEGO Star Wars Death Star? Do you think it is worth getting it? What interesting changes and updates you notice between the two sets? A