Review: 75370 Stormtrooper Mech
Posted by CapnRex101,
75370 Stormtrooper Mech is probably the most plausibly canonical of the new Star Wars mechs. After all, the Galactic Empire's numerous forces would definitely benefit from enhanced armour and early Dark Troopers seemingly fulfilled such a role.
Furthermore, this mech is piloted by an updated Stormtrooper, whose torso first appeared in 75339 Death Star Trash Compactor Diorama. For those wishing to collect an army of the new Stormtrooper, this mech is currently the only way.
Summary
75370 Stormtrooper Mech, 138 pieces.
£12.99 / $15.99 / €15.99 | 9.4p/11.6c/11.6c per piece.
Buy at LEGO.com »
Although reasonable for play, 75370 Stormtrooper Mech misses opportunities for detail
- Appealing proportions
- Desirable minifigure
- Restricted articulation
- Lacks some Stormtrooper-associated features
The set was provided for review by LEGO. All opinions expressed are those of the author.
Minifigure
LEGO sometimes chooses to change a ubiquitous minifigure, typically overhauling the design completely between sets. The classic Stormtrooper has instead been updated in stages. The dual-moulded helmet was introduced in 2019 and captures wonderful detail, although replacing the original piece proved very contentious when the change was made.
The torso and legs were then replaced in 75339 Death Star Trash Compactor Diorama, where Luke and Han appear in their Stormtrooper disguises. I am not entirely convinced this change was necessary and it is not ideal for army building, although the new armour looks good. The shading on the breastplate is better and the power cells are now accurately printed above the right knee, rather than below.
I was initially disappointed when the hips on Clone Troopers were swapped from black to white, but have since become accustomed to this, so the colour does not bother me on Stormtroopers. This female head has been used for Imperial personnel a few times already and the minifigure is armed with a standard blaster rifle, as usual.
The Completed Model
All three Star Wars mechs measure 13cm in height and their construction is similar. Each mech incorporates the now-standard limb elements, although they are much more detailed here than on the comparable Marvel mechs. Fortunately, the Stormtrooper mech therefore appears quite bulky, which suits these armoured soldiers perfectly.
The static limb components are obviously restrictive for posing, but they are connected to the body using ball joints, which provide a great range of motion. The feet are similarly articulated and you can easily stand the mech in a running pose, as shown below. However, the arms are unable to move inwards very far, so the brick-built blaster cannot be gripped in both hands.
Admittedly though, the torso armour would probably inhibit inward movement regardless of the static arms. I dislike that the Stormtrooper minifigure is relatively exposed from either side, but the shape of the chest is effective and the printed Imperial emblem looks superb, decorating a white 2x2 tile.
The minifigure is not held particularly securely inside the cockpit, standing on a 1x2 foot plate. There are no controls either, but I like the clips on the waist, where you can keep the trooper's rifle. Additionally, the bulky armour covering the arms looks great, especially since the shoulder plate extends over the ball joints, unlike on 75369 Boba Fett Mech.
While the thumb is static, the fingers are articulated, so can wrap neatly around the rifle grip. The weapon is actually fixed using a Technic pin, however, so is raised above the hand to an awkward degree. The design of the blaster rifle looks reasonable though, including a scope on top and the requisite stud shooter.
I think the back is the weakest area of the model. 75368 Darth Vader Mech and 75369 Boba Fett Mech both present some detail on the back, whereas this Stormtrooper mech leaves the new 4x7 vehicle base exposed. This becomes even more disappointing because Stormtrooper armour is well known for its characteristic backplate and cylindrical thermal detonator, both of which could have been scaled up for the mech.
Also, the legs could have featured asymmetrical knee armour, as another allusion to traditional Stormtrooper garb. The textured detail across the legs is splendid though, mirroring the mech's arms. The feet look nice too, particularly considering the simplicity of Stormtrooper's footwear in the movies, which provide little inspiration for the mech.
Overall
75369 Boba Fett Mech certainly exceeded my expectations, so I approached this mech with interest. Sadly, 75370 Stormtrooper Mech is not as impressive as the bounty hunter's vehicle, although I continue to appreciate the stocky proportions of these mechs and there are features specific to Stormtroopers, although fewer than I expected.
Failing to recreate the Stormtrooper's distinctive backplate and thermal detonator, for example, feels like a missed opportunity. Also, the limited articulation is problematic, as the mech should be able to grip its weapon in two hands, while the price of £12.99, $15.99 or €15.99 feels rather expensive when compared with 75369 Boba Fett Mech. I am thus a little disappointed with the Stormtrooper mech.
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57 comments on this article
That bland back section seems like a serious oversight. I remember encountering it on some of the larger Bionicle sets and having to get creative to cover them up. Maybe some inverted 2 x 2 white plates would work here, assuming they exist at this point.
If the empire had built an army of these, the original trilogy would be very short
European army builders should wait for the August issue of Star Wars magazine instead.
Moe: So, come on: I need a Lego Star Wars set that says friendly, all-ages building.
Homer: How about a TIE advanced update?
Barney: I like it!
Moe: Mmm, nah. I want something that says people can have a nice relaxing time.
Homer: [pounds fist] I got it! Updated Sandcrawler!
Barney: I like it!
Moe: Hey! How about, "Stormtrooper Mech"?
Barney: I hate it.
But seriously, I like it. Looks like a hoot. Some MOCer is going to put 10 of these in a diorama.
Also, I want a B-1 Battle Droid Mech.
Why have these even been made as sets? How do they fit into the franchise? Which part of the Star Wars saga do they appear in?
Yeah,honestly it doesn't seen too far removed from what the empire would build. This feels kinda like a legends model.
@kingalbino said:
"Why have these even been made as sets? How do they fit into the franchise? Which part of the Star Wars saga do they appear in?"
Why - because they're fun.
How - with your imagination.
Which - the one you want them to appear in.
Aren’t you a little tall for a stormtrooper?
This might be the only context in which that weird helmet looks any good, which should tell you something.
@kingalbino said:
"Why have these even been made as sets? How do they fit into the franchise? Which part of the Star Wars saga do they appear in?"
They don't fit in, but they allow children to have a fight between a stormtrooper in a mech and wolverine in a mech or a ninjago mech, which they find almost as entertaining as imagining the winner of a shark fighting a bear.
To me, the biggest drawback of these mechs (aside from the designs and prices), is the lack of articulation, the knee and elbow joints should be able to move, it really restricts what you can do in terms of displaying and playing with them.
Interesting use of a female head for a Stormtrooper . . . I can't think of any SW canon examples of a female Stormtrooper. . . but I could be wrong.
I think you could remove the 1x2 foot plate and place the figure on the studs beneath, secure connection and the figure is less exposed at the top.
@SinKiller_Nick said:
"Interesting use of a female head for a Stormtrooper . . . I can't think of any SW canon examples of a female Stormtrooper. . . but I could be wrong."
Presumably Phasma worked her way up through the ranks.
Hmmm, besides a few head swaps I am so getting at least 5 of these with a discount.
@CapnRex101, can we see a highlight of the new 4x7 vehicle base part in the darth Vader review if that is coming? I’d like to see it in better detail, looks interesting. Thanks for the reviews.
@Lemerbrix06 said:
"If the empire had built an army of these, the original trilogy would be very short"
"Empired overspends on an army of mecha Stormtrooper pilots miss every shot with; Empire runs out of cash to finish Death Star and get quickly overtaken by a well-funded alliance of rebellious systems."
@TheOriginalSimonB said:
" @SinKiller_Nick said:
"Interesting use of a female head for a Stormtrooper . . . I can't think of any SW canon examples of a female Stormtrooper. . . but I could be wrong."
Presumably Phasma worked her way up through the ranks."
Let's not have this argument again, the ucs at-at comments were a nightmare.
@SinKiller_Nick said:
"Interesting use of a female head for a Stormtrooper . . . I can't think of any SW canon examples of a female Stormtrooper. . . but I could be wrong."
There are several, particularly in the later seasons of Star Wars Rebels, including a Death Trooper Commander.
@kingalbino said:
"Why have these even been made as sets? How do they fit into the franchise? Which part of the Star Wars saga do they appear in?"
The way I see it, it's a way to give kids a large action figure play experience while still retaining the appeal of a minifig-scaled set.
You can tell from the way that the mechs are designed moreso as extensions of the character designs rather than technology that would realistically exist in-universe.
It's not as if crazy lore-breaking toys like this are anything new either. When I grew up I had a y-wing that transformed into a giant robotic Anakin Skywalker
I like that these things don't just look like upscaled minifigs. It helps to sell them as mechs, rather than "three Wolverines in a trenchcoat".
But yeah, that backside needs some help.
A good philosophy to remember: If a toy based on something you like strikes you as ridiculous: You're not in the target audience of that particular item.
Simple as that. It will save both you, and likely those around you, from a lot of unnecessary negativity.
As for the set, I quite like it. Though me being me, I tend to like these sorts of sets for what they could become when inspiration strikes, rather than for the build as advertised. Comes with the territory of working better with a pre-existing framework, than trying to design from scratch. Brains, huh?
One thing really bothers me about this design. I drive a rather diminutive convertible, and while it isn't known for rollover accidents, under hard racing performance a rollbar is recommended. Also, I have recently recovered from a spine injury.
Given these are battle mechs are going to engage in extreme movement, and the pilot is at exposed risk at the neck and head... to quote the aliens from Buckaroo Banzai Across the 8th Dimension, "Very bad design. "
@TheOriginalSimonB said:
" @SinKiller_Nick said:
"Interesting use of a female head for a Stormtrooper . . . I can't think of any SW canon examples of a female Stormtrooper. . . but I could be wrong."
Presumably Phasma worked her way up through the ranks."
Good point!
@BrickBoriqueno said:
" @kingalbino said:
"Why have these even been made as sets? How do they fit into the franchise? Which part of the Star Wars saga do they appear in?"
They don't fit in, but they allow children to have a fight between a stormtrooper in a mech and wolverine in a mech or a ninjago mech, which they find almost as entertaining as imagining the winner of a shark fighting a bear."
best answer!
I know the review came down more in favour of Boba's, but as that was largely due to how personalised and recognisable a mech based off him would be and all I really want to do is army build with a few of these backed up by regular troops, this is the one that's really got my attention
Does it fit in 76210
That back view is very not good. I'll still pick this one up, I love the concept, but I'm definitely going to modify it.
What?? No waist-cape!?
Why does Lego hate its fans?!
Someone should make a Brickfilm of the Marvel and Star Wars mechs beatboxing and dancing or some shit.
@ToaofPlastic said:
" @kingalbino said:
"Why have these even been made as sets? How do they fit into the franchise? Which part of the Star Wars saga do they appear in?"
The way I see it, it's a way to give kids a large action figure play experience while still retaining the appeal of a minifig-scaled set.
You can tell from the way that the mechs are designed moreso as extensions of the character designs rather than technology that would realistically exist in-universe.
It's not as if crazy lore-breaking toys like this are anything new either. When I grew up I had a y-wing that transformed into a giant robotic Anakin Skywalker"
For gentlemen of a certain age, who can forget the Kenner Star Wars Mini Rigs?
https://www.flickriver.com/photos/darthray/20781082751/
@ResIpsaLoquitur said:
"Also, I want a B-1 Battle Droid Mech."
A Super-Duper Battle Droid?
@JPKuiper said:
"Aren’t you a little tall for a stormtrooper?"
Comment Winner!!!
Thanks for making my day!
@BrickBoriqueno said:
" @kingalbino said:
"Why have these even been made as sets? How do they fit into the franchise? Which part of the Star Wars saga do they appear in?"
They don't fit in, but they allow children to have a fight between a stormtrooper in a mech and wolverine in a mech or a ninjago mech, which they find almost as entertaining as imagining the winner of a shark fighting a bear."
That is a fantastic point. The ol' "Who would win in a fight: Boba Fett or Wolverine?" Thanks for helping us all (or at least me, anyway) think like a kid again. :)
Also, the shark. Everyone knows that.
@Goujon said:
" @CapnRex101, can we see a highlight of the new 4x7 vehicle base part in the darth Vader review if that is coming? I’d like to see it in better detail, looks interesting. Thanks for the reviews."
Certainly not, his reviews are not up to such small details...for such nitpicking you have to visit newelementary.com. And tomorrow you will ask for a picture of teh underside of the .2*4 brick - we know you guys. Btw is there finally a 2*4 brick included?
So bored with Mechs.
What’s next?
A Mech-Mech??
@SinKiller_Nick said:
" @TheOriginalSimonB said:
" @SinKiller_Nick said:
"Interesting use of a female head for a Stormtrooper . . . I can't think of any SW canon examples of a female Stormtrooper. . . but I could be wrong."
Presumably Phasma worked her way up through the ranks."
Good point!"
Plus, you know, the Empire was spread out over a vast area of the galaxy, whereas the OT only really showed us stormtroopers on a handful of planets/moons, ships, and the two Death Stars. A good number of them didn’t talk either, so it’s entirely plausible some of them could have been female. And let’s not forget that the Empire was around for a number of decades.
You could argue that mechs like this could actually have existed somewhere at some point. Obviously they didn’t see use on Tatooine, Hoth, Bespin, or Endor during the films, but that’s not to say they weren’t somewhere. Kind of like we had no idea TIE Strikers and Reapers were a thing, or Deathtroopers and Shoretroopers, until we saw them in Rogue One. As for Vader and Boba’s, they could have had them, but none of their onscreen scenes really called for giant humanoid battle armor.
@ResIpsaLoquitur said:
"Also, I want a B-1 Battle Droid Mech."
Proportions would be pretty excellent for a Super Battle Droid mech actually. Remove some armor to the barest leg components and the bulk is suitable. Can even have a gray-colored normal battle droid to act as the head. Only problem would be getting straight arms for wrist blasters.
@CliveyB said:
"So bored with Mechs.
What’s next?
A Mech-Mech??"
76210 is just that.
@kingalbino said:
"Why have these even been made as sets? How do they fit into the franchise? Which part of the Star Wars saga do they appear in?"
There was something similar in Lego Star Wars: Terrifying Tales. None of these seem to match it that well, but it is the closest thing I can relate to this.
https://www.google.com/search?rlz=1C5GCEM_en&q=lego+star+wars+terrifying+tales+mech&tbm=isch&sa=X&ved=2ahUKEwj2jpySioqAAxUbT2wGHWGxBuMQ0pQJegQICRAB&biw=1440&bih=789&dpr=2&safe=active&ssui=on
@Trigger_ said:
"Someone should make a Brickfilm of the Marvel and Star Wars mechs beatboxing and dancing or some (poopy)."
Whoops, forgot that I probably shouldn't say that on here, sorry!
@StyleCounselor said:
" @ResIpsaLoquitur said:
"Also, I want a B-1 Battle Droid Mech."
A Super-Duper Battle Droid?"
Roger Roger!
@ra226 said:
" @BrickBoriqueno said:
" @kingalbino said:
"Why have these even been made as sets? How do they fit into the franchise? Which part of the Star Wars saga do they appear in?"
They don't fit in, but they allow children to have a fight between a stormtrooper in a mech and wolverine in a mech or a ninjago mech, which they find almost as entertaining as imagining the winner of a shark fighting a bear."
That is a fantastic point. The ol' "Who would win in a fight: Boba Fett or Wolverine?" Thanks for helping us all (or at least me, anyway) think like a kid again. :)
Also, the shark. Everyone knows that."
I know someone who loves his sharks with frickin' laserbeams attached to their frickin' heads.
;-)
Ugly. Expensive. Not as posable or dynamic as a real action figure. I expect these will be phased out very quickly.
While I'll admit "best of the batch" (of BOTH licenses...but there's a saying: "low hanging fruit"), I feel an opportunity missed: it should have been a Zero-G Stormtrooper, as THAT would have made more sense (in context), AND would have 'filled a gap' as to a troop-type not done yet...yeah, yeah I know: "not canon/E.U. doesn't exist any more..."...tell that to Thrawn...or Mara Jade...or...ya' know; it's fine, it's fine...
Also, I still say *Ahem*"DC"*Ahem* (seriously, how is this 'mech thing' so far off of being in "Micro Fighters" territory..?)
Inverted slopes could have helped with the look of the back side.
@sipuss said:
"European army builders should wait for the August issue of Star Wars magazine instead."
The Lego Star Wars Magazine still exists? They stopped carrying it in stores where I live. :( I figured they just stopped.
Anyway, I'm not a fan of the Lego Star Wars mechs, but the Boba Fett mech looked much better than I cared to admit. This however looks bland. I suppose that's the problem with a character who is mostly white.
However like Rex I do like how bulky the armor looks. It does give these mechs their own face compared to the Marvel mechs.
@CliveyB said:
"So bored with Mechs.
What’s next?
A Mech-Mech??"
72004
I'm getting the Boba Fett Mech solely for the minifig. I'm a Stormtrooper junkie, so I want this as a general rule, but those knee/elbow connection pieces are lazy and drive the price up. I'm not complaining about the price because I know the Star Wars tax is real, but if LEGO could keep the price down with other parts, they should have. I prefer the articulated joints used about 15 years ago in Exo-Force and other themes. Check out set 7700 and see how much more play value and posing is possible. It's a small failure, but a failure nonetheless to not use existing parts.
@CliveyB said:
"So bored with Mechs.
What’s next?
A Mech-Mech??"
Harry Potter's mechs...
@fdsm: "You're a pilot Harry.":)
Thinking more about it, I think what's making the SCCBS-limb mechs bother me is the price point. If the sets were cheaper, complaining about the lack of articulation would be overly negative. When 71761 launched the system at $10, it felt reasonable enough, and the fact that Ninjago CORE skewed younger (despite sharing the written age range of 6+ with the new mechs) made the "articulation is bad for children's play patterns" decently acceptable. When you're selling a mech at $16, again, I have to be a resident constraction fan and point sets like 70784, or better yet, 70778 (look at that, the 6+ age range). Were knees and elbows annoying for kids less than ten years ago, hmm?
I REALLY want to like these Star Wars mechs, I'm a strong defender of their place in the Lego product catalog, but I can't help but wince at the downward trend of these sets, raising prices and oversimplifying things that didn't need to be simplified. I guess decent thumbs are the latest casualty.
Speaking of this set specifically, something about the shoulder armor bugs me and I agree that the exposed back is unsightly, especially for something of this price point. Not every set needs to be as dense with detail as Speed Champions and Icons sets, but that is rather blank.
It'd be kinda neat if they started randomizing Stormtrooper heads in sets, both improving the value of buying multiple and increasing access to a variety of skin-tone head prints, but I can see how that would cause issues with building instructions, and to a lesser extent, establishing set inventories.
@SinKiller_Nick said:
"Interesting use of a female head for a Stormtrooper . . . I can't think of any SW canon examples of a female Stormtrooper. . . but I could be wrong."
None pre-Disney. Of course, it would make sense to equip them of all your troopers with the mech armor, eliminating the physical disadvantages of such troopers.
@ArmoredBricks said:
" @SinKiller_Nick said:
"Interesting use of a female head for a Stormtrooper . . . I can't think of any SW canon examples of a female Stormtrooper. . . but I could be wrong."
None pre-Disney. Of course, it would make sense to equip them of all your troopers with the mech armor, eliminating the physical disadvantages of such troopers."
The first female Stormtrooper I can think of was definitely pre-Disney, in the Star Wars Legacy comic series. https://starwars.fandom.com/wiki/Jes_Gistang
@GenericLegoFan said:
"Yeah,honestly it doesn't seen too far removed from what the empire would build. This feels kinda like a legends model."
A mech is just a walker with arms. If these mechs fit in anywhere it’s Star Wars.