This is a cool set to have, and it's fun to play with as well.

Parts

This set has 454 pieces, and it was 50 USD when it was on sale. That means that the price per piece ratio was 11 cents per piece, which was perfect value for what we get here.

Minifigures

This set has 3 minifigs which are new. The Nahdar Vebb minifig looks very nice with his mon calamari head, and he also has a double-printed torso and a blue lightsaber. The other new minifig is EV-A4D who is a medical droid. This droid has lot's of tools. The only things which I don't like about this figure are that the face of this droid is a sticker and that the minifig doesn't stand very well. The last figure we get is General Grievous. Grievous looks MUCH BETTER than the version we got in the past.

The build

The build is very nice, and it will take you a while. We also get a few stickers to put on.

The completed model

This set has a chair with a lightsaber cache for Grievous and the starfighter itself. The chair can sviwel a full 360° and you can also adjust the back. The starfighter has a storage compartment where you can hide the flick-missiles on each side. On the bottom is a bomb which you can take off. The only problem I have with this play feature is that there's no button which you can use to drop the bomb. On the top, we get some turrets which you can adjust up and/or down. I also like the engine details on the back of this model and the landing-gear on the back can sviwel as well. What I also like about this starfighter is that the windscreen can be opened very nicely and easily, too, and I also love the way you can slide this piece. You can also put Grievous on the inside of the cockpit, but you have to take two of his arms off, which I don't like. I think this is a much better version of the General Grievous' Starfighter we got a few years ago.

Summary

All in all, this set is a great set and I would HIGHLY recommend you to get this. You can find this set on eBay and BrickLink for sure. Here is the link where you can check out the full gallery I made for this set on my website: www.klokriecher.de

Videos I made of this set:

Stopmotion

Review

Box/Instructions

The box in this set was a pretty good size. And by that I mean it's huge, but fits the bags and wide instruction booklet.(And warning, it rolls up easily and is a pain to flatten out. I got this set in a shoebox on my birthday) Anyway, the instructions are pretty easy to follow, though at some points it's hard to distinguish the many dark-grey pieces from the black pieces. However, it's still a generally good system to follow.

Parts

There is a very diverse selection of pieces in the set, including the long front gray piece that slopes down and covers most of the pieces below it, and helps to hold the front of the model together. The windshield piece is a pretty neat piece, and I believe is exclusive to the set. (It wasn't in the last one) There are plenty of specially molded pieces on the Grievous minifigure, and Admiral Ackabar's head is used on Nahdar Vebb. Plus, for $50 (original price) you get 454 pieces, so it's a pretty fair amount of pieces, especially with the minifigures.

Minifigures

As mentioned before, you get the General Grievous and Nahdar Vebb minifigures. Now, there is one problem with Grievous: his head detaches easily. (Must be a malfunction in the cyborg build) Otherwise, he is a great figure, with really cool pieces for the legs and a new specially molded torso. Nahdar is pretty basic pieces, not counting the head. Grievous' droid is another story. A4-D includes a variety of tan and dark grey pieces, and has some equipment for rebuilding the general attached to his backside. He's a bit hard to keep standing if not on a baseplate, but a great figure all the same. And one more thing: His face is a STICKER. A sticker.

The build

The construction part of the set is a complex (ish) but somewhat easy build. Parts may seem repetitive, like laying the same brown to tan pattern in the first few steps, building the same missiles or the same elevating laser blasters or the same side pieces with the opening missile compartments. Building the cockpit and windshield section itself is cool, with the control panels (which are stickers, sadly) is fun. It's a good experience.

The completed model

The model is an upgrade from the 2007 model, with more complex building to be done, It is also a bit bigger, and include the hidden missile that attaches to the ship's underside and the flick fire missiles. The windshield to the entrance of the cockpit still slides forward, and the tail fin still elevates in back. However this model includes a chair. A very random chair. A very random reclining chair for the General to be repaired in. The side stand still includes a rack for the lightsaber storage, and a gun this time around. Super-cool model.

Overall opinion

A fantastic Star Wars set. A very well made set. This set tops the 2007 version, which was very basic in many ways. This set's playability is very good, with hidden missiles seemingly everywhere, and blasters that rise up and down on top of the ship. The set balances well when the tail fin is down, and provides for a great display.

Pros:

-Grat minifigures

-Great Playability

-Good sized Star Wars set, bigger than last version.

Cons:

-General Grievous has a screw loose: his head falls off.

The box was huge for the size of the set, but all those bags and the instruction booklet need some extra room to move around to torture the person who's shaking it:)

Anyways, now to the set. The three new and exclusive minifigs included Nahdar Vebb, A4-D, and the General himself(at the time, because obviously now he's also in 9515 The Malevolence)! The features are cool, the sliding cockpit, hidden flick missiles, the rocket underneath, moveable laser cannons, a swiveling chair with a recliner, a lightsaber/blaster rack, etc.

I got this set recently for 40% off at a local toy store and it was well worth. The ship, Soulless One, is nice and large, and very swooshable. The play-features are well-done, but not obtrusive: the flick-fires fold away and are hidden perfectly and the large bomb nestles nicely underneath. The sliding cockpit works like a charm, and I especially was impressed how the rubber piece was used to keep the cockpit cover in place when closed. The end result is quite accurate to its appearance in Episode III and the Clone Wars. I used to play a lot Battlefront II, and this ship serves as the CIS bomber as well. The ship itself is reminiscent of a 1950s automobile in it general shape, and the side exhaust pipes are similar to that of some hot rods.

The build is quite interesting with a variety of techniques employed. The two side thrusters, while mirrored, are complex enough to not feel repetitive.

The "lair" is good for what it is--basically a dentist's chair. The chair looks nice and Grievous sits in it well. The storage for his gun and lightsabers is helpful.

The minifigs in this set are quite well-done. General Grievous is amazing and very detailed. You can adjust his arms enough so that he can hold his lightsabers at different angles as if he is spinning and swing them. Since Grievous does only deploy two-arms often, it is good that that look is an option (the two-arm look is also necessary for him to fit in the cockpit of the starfighter). When not using the two extra arms, I clip them on the side bars on the chair, and fold them behind the chair-back where they are not even noticeable.

Nahdar Vebb is a pretty standard Jedi, but with a rare and well-sculped Mon Calimari head. A4-D seems to be a pretty unique droud. The legs are standard battle droid legs, but I'm not sure how the torso has been used before--it's more robust than a battle droids. His sticker, while not ideal, works well enough. I've found that he stands quite well if you arrange pose his tool arms in such a way to hold the lights and round tray where he might actually use them.

Overall, this set is a must-have for any General Grievous fan and is a welcome addition to any lineup of Lego starfighter models.

I never picked up the original incarnation of General Grievous' Starfighter - set 7656 - modelled after the Revenge of the Sith version. I liked the ship, and I liked Grievous, but something about the lacklustre LEGO design of both craft and minifigure of the first set put me off. Imagine my delight when an upgrade as gorgeous as this one came along.

Box/Instructions

The box features the fantastic 2010/11 Clone Wars artwork, doused in blue hues and Captain Rex. I was always fond of it (so I'm less enthused about Darth Maul emblazoning Star Wars merch from 2012 onwards). The set itself is displayed equally well, and showcases the three (all new) minifigures. The instructions are a cinch to follow and shouldn't trouble any capable builders.

Parts

Plenty of decent parts to be had here; dozens of 1x2 tiles, a nice helping of dark bley plates and a smashing new canopy. There's also five lightsabers (it is Grievous after all), each with the shiny metallic hilts that have become the norm in recent Star Wars sets. There's a dash of Technic which is a nice inclusion (to both the parts and the build, but more on that later). On the downside, we have the usual sticker sheet...

Minifigures

...which even makes its way onto the minifigures. Medical droid EV-A4D's head, comprised of a 1 x 2 x 1 1/3 Curved Top brick, carries the most miniscule of stickers you'll ever come across. It's a pain to get on, and makes you long for the days of printed bricks more than ever. Though the droid itself is fairly useless anyway, with standard parts (apart from maybe the torso) and practically no balance.

Aside from that niggle, we get Nahdar Vebb, who's a perfect recreation of the Clone Wars character, and also a much cheaper way to get hold of a Mon Calamari head than Home One, and a stunningly updated and upgraded General Grievous. I've heard people complain about the Clone Wars TV show far too often for my liking; sure, the dialogue's a bit dubious, and the voice acting even more so, but it's enjoyable enough. But I digress.

The real reason to like the Clone Wars show is this: the Grievous minifigure accompanying this set. It's a fantastically menacing representation, even if a tad too un-LEGO-y (that's definitely a term) for some. The posture is exquisitely captured through the neck and bent legs that move individually of one another, and the printing is all superb. If I were to have one complaint, it would be the way the second pair of arms attach - while it allows for some cool poses, the arms should technically split into two, rather than the second pair extending at crazy angles from the first.

That aside, this is a seriously cool lineup of minifigures. At the price range it's also pretty decent for today's sets, though considering one is brickbuilt it wouldn't have hurt to chuck in a Clone Trooper or something.

The Build

Nothing tricky here, and a fairly swift build. Definitely enjoyable though, if a little repetitive when it comes to the mirrored engines. There's some interesting design choices though, and the sliding cockpit is genius. The inevitable flickfire missiles find their way in, but only under a hinged mechanism that cleverly hides them in the engines, for when we don't want to see eight bright orange cones sticking out of our starfighter.

Summary

There's not much I can say about this upgrade, apart from that it's totally badass. And pretty damn meaty too. Stand it next to the original incarnation, and poor old 7656 will likely be found the next day dismantling itself for parts in humiliation. The former attempt was half the price, sure, but also half the awesomeness. Released in the age when LEGO was all about using huge, specialist parts as a half-hearted attempt at 'slopes' (see the second Sith Infiltrator for further example), the original didn't have much in the way of 'wow' factor.

Luckily, 8095 does. Packing serious punch, with some pretty dandy play features and some kickass minifigures, there's not much more you could ask for. Except printed bricks. And even more minifigures. But you can't have everything. Suffice to say it's definitely a highlight of the Star Wars system line-up in recent years, and one of the few sets I'd recommend at full price. Buy it quick before it's discontinued forever. I guarantee you won't regret it.