Review: 75009 Snowspeeder and Hoth
Posted by Huw,
You may recall us mentioning that, for some reason, series 4 of the Star Wars Planet sets have made an appearance in shops in some mainland European countries already. They are not due in the UK until August, apparently, and I don't think they are in North America yet, either (correct me if I'm mistaken).
Thankfully being in the EU enables us in the UK to bypass anomalies such as this, especially so when the European Amazons stock them. So, I ordered the two I didn't already have from Amazon.es and they arrived today.
You may also recall that when I reviewed 75010, the B-Wing from series 4 that was kindly sent to me by Ahrien a few weeks ago, I thought it was the worst Planet set ever. Surely this one was going to be better that that...
Box and contents
All Planet sets look the same inside and out and contain the same. I don't know why I bother writing this bit of the review, to be honest :-) However, look closely at the picture above and you will notice a difference: it's shrink wrapped. This is a first for me and I suspect it's been done at Amazon's request, or maybe even by Amazon, because I don't believe other shops sell them like this. It certainly helps to keep the planet protected and if you're paranoid about such things, Amazon.es would be a good place to buy them. I'd be interested to hear if anyone else has found them shrink-wrapped like this.
The Minifigure
The set hasn't been inventoried at BrickLink yet so I don't know for certain that the Snowspeeder Pilot is unique but I suspect it is. To torso and legs look the same as Luke Skywalker's in 75014 The Battle of Hoth, but of course this one has a different head and helmet. Regardless, it's very nice.
The Snowspeeder
This is the first micro-scale Snowspeeder to have been made by LEGO. There was a pico-scale one in 4486 AT-ST & Snowspeeder and also 8029 Mini Snowspeeder, which was designed but never actually produced.
As you can see below, it's excellent. The nose slope is printed and everything looks right and well proportioned. My only complaint is that the black 1x2 plate used in the cockpit should have been trans-black like the 1x1 cheese wedges.
After taking these pictures I noticed that two of the four white 1x2 jumper plates used beneath the cockpit are the old style without grooves, and two are the new style with them, which I thought was a bit weird. It doesn't really notice when you look at the model normally but this photo has accentuated the difference.
The completed model
As usual, a stand is provided, with a unique printed 4x4 tile, to display the minifig and ship on. The planet looks suitably cold and icy.
Overall opinion
Series 4 of the Planets appears to have one of the worse -- the B-Wing -- and one of the best spaceships in it. This Snowspeeder is big, chunky, swooshable, looks great, and just as it should, and with the exception of the black plate issue, could not really be bettered. The minifig is nothing special, but is perfectly acceptable and appropriate for the set.
Recommended.
I hope 75011, up for review next, is as good as this.
4 likes
17 comments on this article
Thanks for the nice review. The Snowspeeder and the cold planet Hoth seems to be pretty HOT!
Great review Huw, Im pleased this set is an excellent model unlike the B-wing. It's good to know at least one of the upcoming series 4 sets will be of a good enough standard.
^^ You said it!
I have all the parts to build 8029, but this mini scale model is much better; of course it's 5 years later and makes use of newer pieces. Glad to see that they Lego is printing the 4x4 plates and the odd pieces for the Planets series; like the original release of the Star Wars Minis series.
With a week of -40 Celsius here in Ottawa the last thing I needed was a to revisit Hoth.
you said this was the first...how about the micro-scale from the first advent calendar?
I'd label the advent calendar one as pico-scale also.
I've never really been interested in the Planet sets, but this one looks fantastic! Thanks for the excellent review.
Like this set and the tie bomber from this series!
The leg printing on the minifigure looks... sub-par.
This seems to be a great set, but I still need to get some other things which are more readily available before I go on Amazon to look for it. Thanks for the review Huw!
Hey all Lego Star Wars fans do any of you buy fleets of these small Lego Star Wars Sets for Roll Play Games?
Hoth, well, looks quite like Hoth!
Your Planet Series reviews have destroyed (B-Wing) and then restored (this one) my faith in Planet Sets. To me, it's all or nothing, and by the looks of it I would still be leaning towards "all".
I'm otherwise not really a Star Wars collector.
i liked the cloud car best
I have got to say that these reviews have been great!!! I'm not much of a set collector, mainly a minifig collector but after reading the B-Wing review, I went back and read all the other reviews and have since gone out and hunted down all 6 of Series 1&2. Now anxiously awaiting Series 3&4!
Thanks for the great reviews and keep up the good work!
I think the pilots name is Dak Rattler I think
I've purchased this one and 75011 Tantive IV & Alderaan from Amazon.es and both come in plastic wrap, which I think is a great idea for preserving the planet printing. This seems to be a novelty, as some months ago I received 9679 AT-ST & Endor from the same Amazon.es and it didn't have any plastic wrap at all.
I also think that the 2x1 black piece should be dark transparent, but appart from that it's a great mini-model.
Thank you very much for your effort!