End of the Road?

As I've previously mentioned on these pages, I have LEGO Star Wars to thank for rescuing me from my LEGO Dark Ages. Specifically, it was the arrival of 10188 Death Star in 2008 which started my slide down the slippery slope. My wife bought me the set as a Christmas present, and I bet she's regretted that decision ever since....

Following the arrival of 10188 and its construction over the Christmas holidays I was basically hooked. With my passion for both LEGO and Star Wars rekindled I became gripped by a mania of sorts and decided to try and get hold of complete, boxed examples of all of the LEGO Star Wars sets going back to the first appearance of the theme in 1999.

Most of the sets were reasonably easy to find on eBay back then if you were patient, and the majority weren't particularly expensive either. A few, such as 10123 Cloud City with its exclusive Boba Fett minifigure (above) turned out to be harder to track down than most and/or painfully expensive, but they were thankfully in the minority. As chronicled in this old post I also had to make some tricky decisions about exactly what to collect, for instance whether to restrict my growing collection to retail sets alone or whether to also pursue rare promotional items such as the 2012 New York Comic Con model of Luke's Landspeeder below. I eventually opted to focus on collecting the retail sets. Promo sets would be welcomed with open arms when the opportunity arose, but they'd be considered "nice to have" additions rather than a part of the core collection.

As it turned out, however, securing a copy of every retail set to date was only the start of the story. Because while I was picking up old retired Star Wars sets, LEGO was hard at work releasing an ever-increasing number of new sets every year, and after you've invested the time, effort and expense of tracking down the full back catalogue, you feel almost obliged to pick up all the new sets too in order to stay up to date. LEGO released 13 Star Wars sets back in 1999 when the theme first appeared, and 19 sets were released the year I started my collection, so staying up to date wasn't as financially prohibitive back then. The problem is that since then the number of releases has continued to increase to a point where there were 69 LEGO Star Wars releases in 2018. Not all of those were retail sets, granted, but if I'd known how the release schedule would explode over time I might have thought twice about starting to collect the theme back in 2008....

Looking back, even prior to the announcement of the LEGO Star Wars licence extension in February 2012 my enthusiasm was starting to wane, as I confessed in this posting in 2011. Central to my disaffection was the sheer number of remakes of previously-released sets. Many of these remakes, such as 7877 Naboo Starfighter above, were arguably not even a meaningful improvement on previous versions, unless of course you consider an increase in price to be an upgrade. A growing focus on minifigures in Star Wars sets was also becoming a frustration; my love of LEGO is principally founded on the building experience rather than which minifigures a set contains, and it was starting to feel like the build was being included as an afterthought in some sets (for example 7879 Hoth Echo Base below) with the minifigures being the main driver for the release.

And yet despite my misgivings I've continued to dutifully pick up all of the LEGO Star Wars retail offerings year after year up to and including 2018, and I've also made a start on the 2019 sets. The thing is, however, it's felt like a particular slog this year, with relatively few sets really getting me excited. And so it is that with no end in sight to the annual tidal wave of Star Wars sets I've finally made the decision to stop collecting them. It stops right now, so no 75235 X-wing Starfighter Trench Run (below) for me....

Obviously this decision has been a long time coming. While there hasn't been anything in particular that has finally forced my hand, my previous complaints about the number of remakes and preponderance of minifigure-focused sets are as relevant as ever this year. To that you can add my lack of enthusiasm for the increased number of sets aimed at younger children, particularly the 4+ and Microfighters offerings, and the prevalence of sets such as 75235 above and 75237 TIE Fighter Attack below which feature crude, basic builds. All things considered, there seem to be fewer and fewer Star Wars sets of interest to me this year, so it's time to see sense and call a halt to this expensive and space-occupying obsession.

Before anybody points out the obvious, namely that I'm no longer the target audience for LEGO Star Wars, let me be clear that I'm not criticising LEGO for their continuation of the theme. While I have concerns about the way that the company does things sometimes, for instance lining the pockets of scalpers by releasing hard-to-find promo items as discussed here and here, Star Wars continues to be an extremely popular and successful product line for the company, so you can hardly blame them for continuing to pump out sets year after year. After all, youngsters are discovering the Star Wars universe for the first time every day, and the remakes of classic vehicles are serving their needs. Furthermore, LEGO can hardly be faulted for the disappointing and uninspired vehicle designs which populate the newer Star Wars movies and series'.

While my unhealthy need to collect all the Star Wars sets is now hopefully over, I do still anticipate picking up some of the Star Wars offerings. There's a good chance that I'll continue to acquire the UCS sets, for instance - the soon-to-be-released Imperial Star Destroyer above will surely be impossible to resist - and any sets featuring genuinely interesting new vehicles from the Star Wars universe (assuming we actually get some) will also be fair game. I might even be tempted by the occasional remake, providing that it genuinely offers something over and above previous iterations other than just a higher purchase price. What I won't be doing, however, is just buying Star Wars sets to keep my collection 100% up to date, and that thought fills me with relief. I really should have made this decision years ago.

The Gimme LEGO Awards 2017

Welcome to my annual round up of the best and worst of the year from an AFOL perspective. This is the seventh consecutive year that I've published these awards, and I have to confess to approaching the 2017 awards with a mixture of excitement and trepidation as I'm struggling to recall a year which has featured quite so many standout sets in some categories. As ever this is obviously a personal take on the highlights and lowlights, so if you disagree with any of my selections then please feel free to make your case in the comments below....

1. Best Theme

Last year's winner: Ninjago

2017 winner: The LEGO Ninjago Movie

After bagging my 2016 theme of the year award I didn't think that Ninjago managed to maintain the same lofty standards this time round. That however opened the door for a new theme to steal in and grab the crown, and truth be told the LEGO Ninjago Movie theme actually takes the 2017 award by quite a distance. Consisting of a total of 29 retail, magazine and promotional sets, the theme takes full advantage of the varied and vibrant subject matter provided by the movie, serving up a high quality selection of sets for kids and AFOLs alike.

When it comes to any theme the flagship sets will inevitably attract most of the attention, and in the case of the LEGO Ninjago Movie theme the superb 70620 NINJAGO City (above) has certainly taken its share of the plaudits. What's at least as impressive however is the way that the theme manages to serve up a number of excellent sets at a variety of different price points; at the lower end, for instance, 70608 Master Falls (below) features an attractive and detailed structure plus four minifigures for just £24.99/$29.99, and pretty much whatever your budget you'll find a worthy offering.

One aspect of the theme which greatly appealed to me is the focus on mechs, some of which are excellent. 70612 Green Ninja Mech Dragon (below) is both great to look at and packs a ton of playability, while of the more orthodox mechs on offer, 70615 Fire Mech (reviewed by me here) is imposing, stable and eminently posable. As one might expect in an action theme there's a predictable focus on vehicles, but a number of sets feature location-based subject matter so there really is something for everybody.

Aside from the widely-available retail sets the theme also features a mixture of other offerings including some desirable polybags and other assorted promo items to keep collectors on their toes. Overall, when you consider the variety of offerings and consistent quality across the theme, plus the presence of two genuine set of the year contenders in 70620 NINJAGO City and 70618 Destiny's Bounty (below), it made the choice of the LEGO Ninjago Movie as theme of the year pretty straightforward.

Honourable mention: LEGO Ideas. Another theme to serve up a couple of set of the year contenders, namely 21309 NASA Apollo Saturn V and 21310 Old Fishing Store, was LEGO Ideas. That's particularly impressive, given that there were only four releases under the LEGO Ideas banner in 2017. It's probably fair to say that this was a breakout year for Ideas - we've had some excellent releases in previous years, but this was the year that LEGO decided to loosen the shackles and push the boundaries in terms of part counts as well as excellent design.

If I'm honest, I think it's unlikely that Ideas will ever win the Gimme LEGO 'Best Theme' award outright - too many of the projects that get the thumbs up for release are basically licensed fan service in search of a set and they leave me completely cold. If however we continue to get a couple of real gems every year like we have for the past few years then I'll be delighted.

Honourable mention #2: Star Wars. Despite LEGO Star Wars being the catalyst for my return to the LEGO fold a decade ago I've been pretty critical of the LEGO Star Wars theme for some time now. High prices, a profusion of lazy remakes and some dubious design decisions have blighted the LEGO Star Wars theme for as long as I can remember, and despite being a big Star Wars fan I've struggled to retain much enthusiasm for the theme.

I'd be lying if I claimed that all in the LEGO Star Wars garden was suddenly rosy in 2017, but I've certainly found more to like in the selection of sets on offer this year. Part of this is undoubtedly down to the availability of new and interesting subject matter upon which to base sets, but the theme has also featured some genuinely desirable and well-designed sets this year at a variety of price points.

Examples of outrageous pricing unfortunately remain, and the theme continues to be over-dependent on remakes and bloated by too many sets, but I'm finally able to muster some enthusiasm for LEGO Star Wars again, and that's definitely a good sign.


2. Most Disappointing Theme

Last year's 'winner': LEGO Classic

2017 'winner': No outright winner

No one theme stood out in this category, although a few themes perhaps fell slightly below expectations this year. Technic, for instance, was absolutely outstanding in 2016, and with this year being the 40th anniversary of the evergreen theme I would have expected LEGO to pull out all the stops to celebrate; as it turned out, the flagship sets in particular were perhaps not up to the lofty standards set in 2016, and the daddy of them all, 42070 6x6 All Terrain Tow Truck (below), was horribly overpriced to boot.

Also disappointing was the way that Dimensions fizzled out in 2017. I've enjoyed playing the game on XBOX One and collecting the multitude of expansion packs, and having invested so much in the Dimensions experience it felt like a real kick in the teeth when Warner Bros pulled the plug on it just two years into its planned three year run. I've lost count of how many unlikely properties have been immortalised in LEGO as a result of Dimensions - Beetlejuice, Portal and the A-Team to name just three - and the theme will be missed, by me at least.


3. The "Medieval Market Village" award for Best Non-Licensed Set

Last year's winner : 10251 Brick Bank

2017 winner: 21310 Old Fishing Store

As mentioned above, 2017 was the year that LEGO Ideas started to push the boundaries in terms of set size. My pick for best non-licensed set was a major beneficiary of this, the sublime Old Fishing Store. I can remember being very impressed with the original concept posted on the Ideas website, but thinking that it unfortunately had no chance of being green-lit by LEGO. My surprise at subsequently learning that the project had in fact been approved after all was matched by my delight at how faithful to the highly detailed original concept the retail set turned out to be.

Most of the past winners of the Gimme LEGO Best Non-Licensed Set award have been Modular buildings, so it's fitting that the Old Fishing Store features incredible levels of detail both inside and out that stand comparison with any of the modulars. While building the set I couldn't believe quite how much time was spent assembling the interior and exterior fixtures and fittings; indeed, such is the level of detail that decorating the interior can get quite fiddly at times and is occasionally frustrating, but it's worth it in the end.

In addition to looking amazing the Old Fishing Store includes a whole host of rare, and in some cases unique, elements. Those builders planning to cannibalise the set for parts can also expect a generous helping of sand green tiles and SNOT bricks to use in their own creations. Even the included minifigures (below) are worthy of mention since they're all unique to the set and a couple of them incorporate new dual-moulded legs and exclusive torso prints.

The Old Fishing Store is one of those rare sets that has remained proudly and prominently on display in my house ever since I finished building it. It was fun to build and looks amazing; if it's a taste of the kind of sets that we can expect from the LEGO Ideas theme in years to come then I for one will be absolutely delighted.

Honourable Mention: 10255 Assembly Square.  If you're going to make a fuss about an anniversary then you need to make sure you don't drop the ball in the process. While the Technic 40th anniversary selection felt a bit underwhelming, no such criticism can be levelled at 10255 Assembly Square which turned out to be a fitting 10th anniversary tribute to LEGO's much-loved Modular building line.

I think it looks wonderful - three attractive, distinct buildings which dovetail beautifully and form the centrepiece of a bustling scene. All the expected Modular tropes such as the appearance of rare colours, ingenious parts usage and extravagant detail both inside and out are present and correct in abundance; my favourite example of clever parts usage is the incorporation of black excavator buckets in the roof of the sand green flower shop. As an added bonus, the standard 32 x 32 Modular footprint has been expanded to 32 x 48 for this set, and even then it's hard to see how anything else could have been crammed in.

Other contenders: 21309 NASA Apollo Saturn V, 17101 Creative Toolbox, 10257 Carousel.


4. Best Licensed Set

Last year's winner: 75827 Firehouse Headquarters

2017 winner: 70620 NINJAGO City

Following in a tradition of unexpected left-field releases established by the likes of MetalBeard's Sea Cow and the Temple of Airjitzu in previous years, 70620 NINJAGO City was announced in June of this year and it frankly blew me away.

I literally shook my head in wonderment at the retina-searing riot of colours and different building styles when I first saw the set 'in the flesh'. Such is the eclectic nature of the design that you'd think it shouldn't work, but it somehow manages to hang together as a cohesive whole and looks amazing. Furthermore, as a consequence of the multitude of different zones shoehorned into the set it must surely be one of the most varied and entertaining builds of recent times; it's at times reminiscent of constructing 10188 Death Star and the experience of building a number of stylistically diverse areas such as the garbage compactor, the prison block and the Emperor's throne room.

As you'd expect from a LEGO Ninjago Movie set 70620 NINJAGO City scores highly from the perspective of playability thanks to the incorporation of countless little vignettes, not to mention a number of interactive mechanisms such as an elevator, a cash machine, a sushi conveyer belt and a crab grill. The set is also replete with rare elements, some of them appearing for the first time, and similar to the Modular buildings there's an impressive array of advanced building techniques in evidence, plus some unexpected and ingenious parts usage.

It always feels a bit odd talking about value for money when discussing a toy costing hundreds of pounds, but at 4,867 elements and retailing for £259.99 / US$299.99 / 299.99€ I have to say that NINJAGO City feels pretty reasonably priced to me. Overall, it's hard to imagine any LEGO fan failing to enjoy building this set, and it's my licensed set of the year by some distance.

Honourable Mention: 75098 BB-8. This set was one of the main reasons that I started to rediscover some love for the LEGO Star Wars theme in 2017. That LEGO found a way to release a decent-looking version of BB-8 and not charge the earth for it was impressive enough, but the fact that the designer also somehow managed to incorporate a number of play features into the build without compromising the appearance means that it's up there as one of my very favourite sets of the year - excellent!

Other contenders: 70618 Destiny's Bounty, 75192 Millennium Falcon


5. The "Phantom Menace" Award for Most Disappointing Set

Last year's winner: 75098 Assault on Hoth

2017 winner: 10256 Taj Mahal

OK, so a potentially controversial pick here. I know that many will disagree with this award, particularly those who missed out on this set the first time it was released, in which case feel free to have your say in the 'comments' section below if you feel so inclined....

Unless you've been hiding under a rock for the past few months you'll probably be aware that this set is a re-release of 10189 Taj Mahal which appeared on shelves back in 2008. At 5,922 elements the original Taj Mahal set was at that time the largest set that LEGO had ever released, a crown it proudly held on to until the release of 75192 Millennium Falcon some nine years later. Following its retirement in 2010, the aftermarket price of the original Taj Mahal set rose steadily, with sealed examples eventually selling for thousands of pounds. The set came to be viewed as one of a select group of all-time classics alongside the likes of 10182 Cafe Corner and 10179 Millennium Falcon, and it was one of the sets that helped to fuel the LEGO investment boom.

Given the degree of price speculation you might think that the unexpected re-release of the original Taj Mahal set in a new box would have been roundly welcomed by AFOLs, but picking through the comments of LEGO fans within the various online communities it appears that reaction is definitely split. Many AFOLs who missed out on 10189 Taj Mahal are predictably supportive of the re-release, but others fear that the value of their LEGO collections will decrease as a result of such re-releases, arguing that it's the healthy LEGO resale values which have given them the confidence to build their collections. Others are resentful that, having saved their pennies and eventually accumulated enough to pay the inflated aftermarket prices for the Taj Mahal, they're now seeing others buy an identical re-release for a fraction of what they paid for theirs. I can see some logic in the argument that re-releases such as this would impact the LEGO aftermarket, potentially making AFOLs more cautious about spending the amounts of money that they currently do on big, adult-oriented sets at retail; this would have a knock-on effect on the sale volume of such items, which in turn might make LEGO less likely to release such sets in the future.

For all the arguments above, however, there's a more compelling reason why 10256 Taj Mahal is the most disappointing set of the year and that's the fact that it's first and foremost a massive wasted opportunity. To be frank, the LEGO Taj Mahal, while undeniably huge and imposing, nevertheless falls some way short by recent design standards. The availability of a myriad of new elements since 2008, plus the tendency for set designers to increasingly embrace more advanced building techniques in official releases, presented the opportunity for LEGO to produce a significantly superior version of the set, similar to what they did with 75192 Millennium Falcon earlier this year. Instead LEGO took the easy option and just re-released the old set in a new box, throwing in a brick separator to sweeten the deal. That's just lazy, and I expect better from them. What a shame.


6. Best Minifigure

Last year's winner: Gizmo and Stripe

2017 winner: Rocket Boy

As noted in previous years, the quality of LEGO minifigures is now so high that trying to make an objective judgement of which is best has become next to impossible. The task is further complicated by the sheer number of minifigures released by LEGO in 2017 - a total of 830 according to Brickset, which is the most that LEGO have ever released in a single year. Even though that's a serious motherlode of minifigures to look through, there was one clear standout for me and that was Rocket Boy (below) which was released in May of 2017 as part of the seventeenth series of Collectible Minifigures (CMFs).

I suspect that when it comes to the novelty CMFs such as Rocket Boy, Corn Cob Guy and other guys wearing novelty suits you either love 'em or hate 'em, and I'm firmly in the former camp. I continue to be amazed that despite churning out well over 20 series of CMFs including theme-specific offerings LEGO are still able to come up with fresh, original ideas for further CMFs. Certainly Rocket Boy is a gem, perfectly timed to ride the wave of Classic Space nostalgia that continues to wash over parts of the LEGO fan community. The icing on the cake with this minifigure is something you can't even see in the picture above, namely a Classic Space torso in light bluish grey (image below from Rebrickable) which is unique to the minifigure; with so many LEGO fans building Classic Space MOCs these days this torso is a welcome gift to the community and will I suspect be in high demand.

Honourable Mention: 4-LOM, Commander Raggmunk, General Garg, Princess Leia, Corn Cob Guy 


7. The "Better than Expected" Award

Last year's winner: Elves

2017 winner: LEGO Star Wars.

As previously mentioned, 2017 was the year that I finally started to feel more love for the LEGO Star Wars theme again after way too many years spent turning my nose up at the product line-up and scowling at all the remakes.

Pleasingly, I thought that most of the 2017 System Scale Star Wars sets had something to commend them, although there were admittedly a few dogs rubbing shoulders with them including the baffling 75177 First Order Heavy Scout Walker. I've already waxed lyrical about 75187 BB-8 which was for me the best Star Wars set of the year, and while the two 2017 UCS sets were remakes they both improved on the previous versions enough to make them worthwhile purchases for LEGO Star Wars fans. Furthermore, while I admittedly found it hard to get too excited about the clutch of 2017 Microfighters sets I did think that some of the Buildable Figures were great and was delighted that this particular subtheme took its first step into vehicles with the impressive 75532 Scout Trooper & Speeder Bike set (below).

A decent year for Star Wars sets, then. Here's hoping that the 2018 sets are at least as good....

Honourable mention: The LEGO NINJAGO Movie theme. I didn't have particularly high hopes for the LEGO Ninjago Movie sets. I figured that they'd sell well regardless of their quality thanks to all the free advertising that the movie would provide, and might therefore be a bit "by the numbers". I also wasn't especially enthused by the LEGO Batman movie sets and thought we might get a similarly lukewarm Ninjago Movie selection. As you'll have gathered from my comments above, however, it's fair to say that my doubts were answered in emphatic fashion....


8. Most Welcome LEGO-Related Announcement

Last year's winner: London Leicester Square LEGO Brand Retail Store and pre-opening event

2017 Winner: 60 Years of the LEGO Brick 

OK, so not an announcement as such, although I've been able to sneak the 60th anniversary celebrations into this category by virtue of the recently-announced 40290 60 Years of the LEGO Brick set (below) which will be given away free during 2018 with qualifying purchases at brand stores and shop.lego.com.

LEGO previously celebrated 50 years of the LEGO brick with the release of two 50 year anniversary retail sets in the form of 5522 Golden Anniversary Set and 10184 Town Plan (below). The latter was a wonderful re-imagining of a classic set, and I'm keeping my fingers tightly crossed that LEGO freshens up a couple more classics to celebrate 60 years of the LEGO brick. Indeed, there's some speculation that there will be a whole series of 60 year anniversary sets, although if true it still remains to be seen whether these sets turn out to be basic brick boxes, remakes of classic sets or something else.

9. Gimme LEGO Reader's Choice Award

Last year's winner: 71040 Disney Castle

2017 winner: You choose!

Think you can do better? OK, you've seen my choices so now it's your turn. At the top of the page on the right of the screen you'll see a selection of LEGO sets which I consider to be some of the best that 2017 had to offer. Please carefully peruse the list and vote for your favourite set of 2017; if your favourite isn't on the list then select 'None of the above' and leave a comment below or send me an e-mail via the contact button letting me know which set you think is the best of 2017. At midnight on 14th January 2018 the poll will close and we'll have our winner.... If you're reading this on a device which isn't displaying the poll as described then click "view web version" at the bottom of the page in order to see the nominations and cast your vote. Thanks for participating!

*Voting has now closed - results coming soon!*

Previous Gimme LEGO Awards: 2016, 2015, 2014, 2013, 2012, 2011

A Wretched Hive of Scum and Villainy....

Whenever there's talk on the various forums (fora ?) about which Star Wars sets are ripe for a makeover, a few 'usual suspects' invariably emerge. One of those fan-nominated prime candidates, Set 4480 Jabba's Palace, has now been the subject of a pretty decent remake in the form of last year's Set 9516 Jabba's Palace.  Set 4501 Mos Eisley Cantina is another set which features prominently in such discussions; is it indeed crying out for a remake, or should LEGO leave it well alone ?

There are actually a couple of different versions of Set 4501, although the differences are purely cosmetic. The set first surfaced in 2003 (blue box version), with an Original Trilogy black box edition appearing a year later. Both versions utilise the same core set imagery on the front (picture above - click to enlarge), although the design is embossed on the black box version and this together with the absence of the unsightly sidebar of the blue box version gives it a clear edge in the style stakes IMHO. The black box version above features the parts count in the bottom right corner which suggests that my set might potentially have begun its retail journey in the U.S. where I believe there's a requirement for the number of elements within to be displayed on the packaging.

The back of the boxes (below - click to enlarge) share a number of images which provide an overview of the set overall, the play features and the minifigures. The blue box version includes an additional image, that of an alternate build which can be assembled with the elements contained within the box; while I'm generally a big fan of LEGO printing images of alternate builds on its boxes and instructions, I can't in all honestly say that the bizarre creation here is much to write home about; maybe LEGO just let the designer's child loose with the elements and told them to build something....

The boxes are designed to be opened via thumb tabs, although the previous owner of my used blue box example was kind enough to carefully open the box by sliding a sharp instrument under the left box flap exactly as I would have done. My black box version is still sealed, so it was the blue box version that I built for this review.  The set contains a total of 193 pieces, and these fill only a tiny fraction of the box which is around 11 inches square and 3 inches deep; the box could have been half the size and there would still have been more than enough room for the contents. In addition to the parts there's obviously an instruction booklet, but no DSS.

In the case of the blue box version at least, the cover of the approx. 8.5 x 6 inch instruction booklet (above - click to enlarge) mimics the front of the box, with only the recommended age range omitted. The booklet contains 32 pages, although it feels like less. In addition to the building instructions there's a single page showing a couple of other Star Wars sets (below - click to enlarge) plus advertising for a LEGO product survey and the LEGO Star Wars website, which I'll wager looks a bit different now to what it looked like back then....

Colour representation in the building instructions is horrible (picture below - click to enlarge). Those white-looking 2 x 4 bricks in the middle of the build are actually light bley, and the 1 x 8 bricks on either side of them are supposed to be black, while the 1 x 4 x 1 panels on the sides are dark bley. It's disorienting to begin with, although you get used to it.

Given the modest parts count, the set contains a surprising number of rare and/or unusual elements, and you can see some of them in the picture below. The dark bley engine and 22L flexible hose in the top left of the picture are unique to Set 4501, as are all five of the sand red elements in the middle. Sand red is one of the rarer colours in the LEGO palette; according to Bricklink, only 39 different elements have ever been produced in this colour (click here for details), and if you exclude the various minifig parts you're only left with 25 in total, so to find 5 of those 25 elements in one small set is pretty cool. The dark red 1 x 1 x 1 corner panel only appears in one other set apart from this one, as does the tan 1 x 6 x 2 arch with curved top, while a number of elements - the dark red 1 x 2 x 1 panel, the dark red modified 1 x 2 tile with handle, and the dark red 3 x 2 left and right wedges, as well as the sand blue jumper plate - only feature in three sets in total including this one. All 21 elements in the picture are found in 8 sets or less.

In addition to being a repository of rare elements, this set is also a veritable treasure trove from the perspective of the minifigures it contains. A total of five minifigures come with the set, with the undoubted star of the show being Greedo (below - click pics to enlarge). A used example of this minifigure commands upwards of £20 on Bricklink and eBay, reflecting it's status as one of the more desirable Star Wars minifigures. Although by today's standards his relatively complex moulded and painted head isn't necessarily particularly unusual, back in 2003 it would I think have seemed quite exotic, and his painted arms would also have been a fairly unusual feature. Greedo only ever appeared in this set, and in addition to this his head, torso and legs are all unique to this minifigure, all of which helps in part to explain why he's so prized by collectors.

LEGO have released lots of different minifigure versions of Luke Skywalker, but the version found in Set 4501 was the first. This version initially appeared in Set 7110 Landspeeder back in 1999 (the first year of LEGO Star Wars) prior to being included in Set 7190 Millennium Falcon in 2000. It made its final ever appearance in Set 4501. The head and hair were included in a number of other Luke Skywalker variants, but the tastefully printed torso and legs are unique to this figure. There's no backprinting on the head or torso. Luke comes complete with a lightsaber, featuring a nice shiny chrome silver hilt.

Next up we have Han Solo. While unique to this set, he's actually almost identical to the version of Han Solo which appears in Set 7190 Millenium Falcon, differing only by virtue of the colour of his legs which are standard blue in Set 7190 versus dark blue in this set; the dark blue legs, which feature a printed belt and holster,  are exclusive to this minifigure. The torso, which sports a white v-neck shirt and black waistcoat, and the head, with its smirking expression and brown eyebrows, adorn a few different versions of Han Solo spanning a number of different sets. There's no backprinting on the head, torso or legs.

The version of Obi Wan Kenobi below (click picture to enlarge) is another minifigure which is unique to this set. The torso and head, neither of which are back-printed, have only ever graced two minifigures, both of which are versions of Obi Wan. Strangely, while Luke is provided with a lightsaber in this set, Obi Wan is not, which could potentially cause problems should they encounter a scarred sociopath with the death sentence in twelve systems while they're visiting the Cantina....

The last of the minifigures is a Stormtrooper (pictures below - click to enlarge). While his legs, torso and helmet are pretty standard Stormtrooper fare, the addition of a cloth pauldron and the rebreather on his back makes this variant unique to the set; Bricklink alternatively describes this figure as a Sandtrooper on account of these additions. Unusually, the Stormtrooper isn't supplied with the regulation blaster, instead sporting what looks to be some kind of balance bar, presumably to help him stay mounted on his dewback ride (see later).

Aside from the clutch of rare minifigures, another highlight of the set is the one and only appearance of the dewback (below - click pictures to enlarge). This sand green monstrosity is made up of ten separate elements not including the saddle and harness. The head has a limited range of movement in the vertical plane, and the tail articulates at the body and also near the tip, which attaches via a rather unsightly light bley Technic half pin. Similar to the original version of Jabba the Hutt which can for example be found in Set 4480 Jabba's Palace, the dewback is rather plain and would have greatly benefitted from  some printed detail. Even so, once the saddle and harness are in place and the dewback has a Stormtrooper on its back it actually looks pretty cool, as you can see below.

Having put together the minifigures and the dewback it was finally time to get stuck into some proper building, and I started with the landspeeder. It'a a very simple build, occupying a mere ten pages of the building guide, and you can see the finished model below (click pics to enlarge).

Although far from perfect, it's not a bad rendition of the X-34 landspeeder (movie still from Wookieepedia below - click to enlarge). Of note, it's the only version of the landspeeder that LEGO have ever produced which tries to approximate the colour of the subject matter - all the other versions LEGO has released are predominantly tan in colour. The model is fairly crude and maybe seems a bit too long, but I do like the way that dark bley flexible hoses have been used to create a striated appearance on the side and front of the vehicle. The vertically-mounted engine at the back sits on a sand red 4 x 4 plate, and the whole assembly tips back on a couple of hinges to reveal a small hidden compartment; that's it in terms of play features, apart of course from the ability to swoosh the model around the room, and in truth that's the most important thing....

X-34 landspeeder from Wookieepedia

The Cantina itself completes the set, and you can see the finished structure below. It's made up of three distinct sections - the booth in which Han and Greedo 'work out their differences', an arched entrance and a tiny bar area. The sections are joined by brick hinges which allow some degree of flexibility in arranging the sections relative to each other. The tabletop between Han and Greedo (a tan 2 x 4 plate) tips up to reveal a hidden compartment that's just big enough to conceal Han's blaster - handy, that.... I have to confess to quite liking the sand blue, tan and dark red detailing even though it's almost certainly just an affectation - I'm pretty sure that in Star Wars : A New Hope no such decoration was visible inside or outside the Cantina.

Everything comes together as you can see in the picture below (click to enlarge). While the set has undoubted play value, at only 193 pieces there's obviously not much to it, and it was clearly never designed as a display piece. Given the limitations of the set, it's easy to see why the fan community is clamouring for a remake - there are few more iconic scenes in Star Wars than those which take place inside the Cantina, and the possiblities from a design and minifigure perspective are almost endless. In fact, bearing in mind LEGO's tendency to release updated versions of older sets (sometimes over and over again....) it's actually quite surprising that they haven't already remade this one. I certainly wouldn't bet against it.

Set 4501 Mos Eisley Cantina was available at retail between 2003 and 2005, at a RRP of £27.99 / US$30. It contains 5 minifigures, of which 4, including the popular Greedo figure, are unique to the set. It also contains the dewback, which is similarly unique to the set. Overall, therefore, it's not hard to see  why the set is prized by collectors, and why it commands such a hefty premium in the aftermarket - Bricklink prices for a boxed example start at around £90 / US$145. If you're lucky you might find a cheaper example on eBay, although eBay sellers are increasingly wise to the resale value of LEGO these days and price accordingly.

Mostly on account of the high aftermarket price, it's hard to recommend the set now unless you're a Star Wars completist and/or a minifigure collector. It's not that the set is especially bad, just that as previously stated there isn't really much to it, so unless you really can't help yourself, there are better sets to spend your hard-earned cash on.

A pair of landspeeders from Set 4501 & COMCON024