Review: 75380 Mos Espa Podrace Diorama
Posted by CapnRex101,
Entering its third year, the Diorama Collection already includes several classic scenes from the Original Trilogy, although there are other areas of Star Wars justifying similar treatment. 75380 Mos Espa Podrace Diorama is a perfect example, depicting the iconic podrace sequence.
This dynamic scene is superb for a diorama and provides ample opportunity for detail, particularly on the podracers themselves, which look outstanding. However, the detailing will need to be truly unparalleled to explain the price of £69.99, $79.99 or €79.99.
Summary
75380 Mos Espa Podrace Diorama, 718 pieces.
£69.99 / $79.99 / €79.99 | 9.7p/11.1c/11.1c per piece.
Buy at LEGO.com »
Although too expensive, the Mos Espa Podrace Diorama looks wonderful on display
- Appealing model on display
- Highly detailed podracers
- Brilliantly textured rocks
- Maybe bigger than necessary
- Very expensive
The set was provided for review by LEGO. All opinions expressed are those of the author.
The Completed Model
This is among the larger sets in the Diorama Collection, measuring 27cm across, so matching 75330 Dagobah Jedi Training. I think that size was needed to accommodate both podracers in this configuration, although I wonder whether a different moment from the race could have been chosen, bringing the podracers closer and reducing the diorama's size and therefore its price.
However, I appreciate the consistency between sets in this series, as they almost all have the same depth and their black borders look marvellous, dotted with metallic silver grille tiles. Also, the printed LEGO Star Wars branding and quotation from the film on the dioramas are welcome and Qui-Gon's encouraging words to Anakin before the race perfectly encapsulate the scene.
A printed 25th anniversary brick is also included and located in front of the rock archway. The model is specifically inspired by the Arch Canyon section of the podrace circuit, which was an excellent choice because it provides an opportunity for depth in the diorama and different rock formations. Moreover, I like the angle of the archway, so it appears natural.
The rocks are assembled around bricks with studs on the side, covered with a variety of slopes and curved slopes. While part-intensive, this technique looks fantastic and finds a nice balance between smooth and jagged surfaces. The occasional dark tan and medium nougat pieces are effective as well, especially on the ground, where they mark the podracers' route.
Unsurprisingly, the back is plain. The diorama is obviously not designed for display from this angle, but I am pleased it is finished in the same colours as the front. Furthermore, the rocky texture wraps nicely around the sides of the cliff, so the flat back is disguised even when seen from either side.
The colourful podracers stand out brilliantly against the rocks and I like the dynamic position of Anakin's vehicle, as it passes beneath the arch. The trans-clear support is quite subtle and this version of the podracer is remarkably detailed, for its size. Yellow 1x4 skid pieces form accurate air scoops, while the power coupling is simply represented by a trans-pink 4L bar.
Between this bar and the 6L elements forming the control cables, the whole vehicle feels fairly strong, so only requires a single support underneath. Moreover, the cockpit is suitably detailed and I like the 1x1 plates denoting Anakin inside, as well as its colours. Ideally, the slopes on the sides would have been printed instead of using stickers, but at least the stickers look good.
I am less understanding of the stickers on Sebulba's podracer, as these designs are repeated and require careful positioning to line up with neighbouring elements. However, the podracer's overall shape and proportions are impressive. Even though both vehicles measure about 14cm in length, the orange and black racer looks much bulkier, corresponding with the film.
The pearl silver ice skates mounted on the engines form accurate stabilising vanes and I like how orange 14-tooth gears are integrated, providing some texture. The control cables should connect further back along the engines, although no connection points are available, so this is an understandable adjustment. The shape of the cockpit is faultless though, containing a tiny depiction of Sebulba.
Overall
I think the podrace sequence is ideally suited to the Diorama Collection and 75380 Mos Espa Podrace Diorama looks excellent on display. Despite only making up a relatively minor part of the whole model, the podracers are appealing and the surrounding environment looks splendid as well, thanks to the intricate rocky texture.
Unfortunately, price has been a repeated issue for the Diorama Collection and this addition to the series is no exception. Given the lack of printed parts on the podracers and the number of smaller elements, £69.99, $79.99 or €79.99 feels very expensive. However, previous sets from the range have been discounted and I have no doubt this diorama will experience the same.
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44 comments on this article
It's essentially two nicely done mini scale models (these two pods released back in 2003 for ten bucks if memory serves), with an extremely expensive display base attached. Truly bizarre.
It has just come to a point where I feel like it doesn't matter anymore that yes, while the sets are expensive at least they are good. The fact of the matter is that every set is now grossly overpriced, to the point where I would like to have a prequel diorama like this because I think it looks good, but I just cannot justify buying it even at a significant discount because that's still too expensive.
If you manage to get this at half off it's not a steal at all, it is the price it should've been originally. This is just a small wall with two polybag builds, there's no way this should be more than €40 or €50.
I think it looks cool but Anakin's podracer seems almost hidden by the arch. I feel like that would have worked better if it was in the middle of the diorama rather than at one end.
2 polybags and a wall. $80, please.
These dioramas can be summed up as great Lego recreations of certain Star Wars scenes not worth their price.
I like that the podracers actually have their control cables; I remember that previous mini-models of these vehicles left them out and just had 'invisible' transparent-clear pieces connecting the pod to the engines. I guess the bit larger size here (compared to e.g. 4485) allows that to work without them looking overly thick for the scale.
I have no intention of buying the set; even if I had the budget for it I'm not enough of a SW fan these days. But that detail stood out to me so I thought I'd comment on it ^^
Not bad as a model, but when I first heard 'Pod Race Diorama', I expected something very different. Like at least making a miniature version of the missing racers we never saw in Lego before, or at least make long overdue re-make of the Pod Racers of Gasgano/Aldar Beedo.
@Pollywanna said:
"It's essentially two nicely done mini scale models (these two pods released back in 2003 for ten bucks if memory serves), with an extremely expensive display base attached. Truly bizarre."
4485 was much smaller but those mini's were indeed great and no stickers!
Now this is podracing.
The dioramas are a very good way to double or triple the price of a playset without adding substantial value.
Nah £70 for this is fine. We've had far more egregious price inflations in Star Wars alone. The base of this set takes up a significant volume of plastic; maybe £35-worth on its own. It's not just 'two polybags and a wall'.
These dioramas still have a 100% hit rate in my opinion.
I don't really understand the polybag comparison. That Sebulba Podracer probably has 1.5-2x as many parts as a typical polybag, and yes, good terrain builds need a lot of parts, unless you would prefer it was made out of a single large plate with a couple of tan BURPs on top.
It's 718 parts, if we assume the two Podracers use ~230 parts, then the terrain is just under 500, or about 2/3rds of the set. Lego factors early discounts into their pricing - this will be available for £50-55 soon enough. If you don't like it, don't buy it, but don't pretend that it should cost £20.
I’ve said since 2022 that every 18+ Star Wars diorama is $20 - $30 overpriced.
We can’t say that LEGO isn’t consistent.
Just using the “adults” branding to charge more for less.
I'm surprised that there wasn't another negative point mentioned - Sebulba's racer not fitting through the arch.
Unlike most Star Wars sets, I do rather like the dioramas! Got the 2 2023 ones from Amazon this morning for around 30% off. Might get this latest one around May '25 then!
Only other Star Wars set of any interest to me, the rumoured C-3PO!
It's gets to a point with sets that anything under £100 is reasonable. All of these have been about this price, I'd be surprised if it was cheaper.
I can’t help but feel like these diorama sets are a way for adults to buy Lego without feeling silly about it - and the end result is spending over the odds on something that’s not really that impressive. Just buy the minifigure-scale stuff, guys; it’ll end up looking a lot better and you’ll get far more bang for your buck.
I think the sticker should have said "Now that's what I call podracing!"
The set overall looks decent, but I can skip it. I don't mind the Prequels, but I don't love them even though they were the first SW I was exposed to. Plus the expense and all of the other sets on my list, gotta make cuts somewhere.
I have 4485 and I could totally design a diorama for it lol this is too big and yet to small for minififures.
Too expensive too, but I could say that for almost every set nowadays
That thing has just 178 parts less than the 25 year old but still excellent 7171 lmao.
Makes me even more happy I found 7171 for sale recently for half the price of that diorama. The sole fact of having Gasgano absolutely destroys that new cashgrab.
@CCC said:
"I'm surprised that there wasn't another negative point mentioned - Sebulba's racer not fitting through the arch."
A bit curious, I agree, but hardly a big deal to me personally. Although a bigger arch would have added more bulk which might have helped to better justify the extravagant price.
@Sethro3 said:
"I think the sticker should have said "Now that's what I call podracing!"
The set overall looks decent, but I can skip it. I don't mind the Prequels, but I don't love them even though they were the first SW I was exposed to. Plus the expense and all of the other sets on my list, gotta make cuts somewhere."
While iconic "Now this is Podracing!" Is from a completely different scene.
I'm just going to make scenes like this out of my 13 years' worth of Advent Calendar mini-builds.
@Graupensuppe said:
"Now this is podracing."
That should've been the quote. Don't care that it's not the correct scene.
Agree with everyone who eloquently explained that set isn't worth it.
Too many display sets. Not enough minifigs. Adults, kids, all of us want some damn, good minifig sets!
@Mister_Jonny said:
"I can’t help but feel like these diorama sets are a way for adults to buy Lego without feeling silly about it - and the end result is spending over the odds on something that’s not really that impressive. Just buy the minifigure-scale stuff, guys; it’ll end up looking a lot better and you’ll get far more bang for your buck."
Long term AFOLs are used to buying minifig based sets, often with 8+ or 12+ on them.
Not a dig against this set (it did a diorama of the podracing scene as well as it could have without making it significantly larger to fit more racers. Overall props to the designer(s)!)... but I'll stick with my 4485. I already own that one and it's good enough for the price for me personally.
One reason I don't like this quote, is because it has a bit of a continuity error.
Why's he telling Anakin to 'remember?' Remember what? Anakin hasn't been training for years with Qui-Gon. Or, at all. What prior learning is he supposed to remember?
As a coach myself, it has always struck me as discordant. Was Qui-Gon stressed, and just reverting back to a rehearsed 'Ol-Gipper' speech? Was he just mailing it in?
Looks great but the price is absurd. Will not be getting this!
For perspective, the last minifig scale version of Anakin's podracer was $30 in 2019. Could they have done it again for $30 in 2024 and added a minifig scale version of Sebulba's podracer for $50 or $60? Of course they could have. Charging the same price for polybag-size podracers and a glorified display stand is highway robbery.
The last minifig scale pairing of the two podracers was $90 in 2011, which is $124 today. It would be hard to fit them in a $90 budget today, but Lego Star Wars has downscaled enough other vehicles in the past few years that it should have been very doable to get two playscale podracers in a sub-$100 set without shrinking them down into the Quantum Zone.
@CCC said:
"I'm surprised that there wasn't another negative point mentioned - Sebulba's racer not fitting through the arch."
I do not consider that a problem. If this was a play model, I would agree, but I think it looks plausible enough for display. Also, I would note that Sebulba's podracer takes a slightly different path to Anakin's through the Arch Canyon, as Anakin's smaller racer can pass through narrower arches and take a more direct route to the next section of the course. Perhaps that is what the diorama depicts, although I doubt that was the designer's intent.
@StyleCounselor said:
"One reason I don't like this quote, is because it has a bit of a continuity error.
Why's he telling Anakin to 'remember?' Remember what? Anakin hasn't been training for years with Qui-Gon. Or, at all. What prior learning is he supposed to remember?
As a coach myself, it has always struck me as discordant. Was Qui-Gon stressed, and just reverting back to a rehearsed 'Ol-Gipper' speech? Was he just mailing it in? "
I think he is just saying "remember what I am about to tell you..."
@monty_bricks said:
"Lego factors early discounts into their pricing - this will be available for £50-55 soon enough. If you don't like it, don't buy it, but don't pretend that it should cost £20."
We don't actually know this and discounts vary greatly around the world. For example, I've never seen the City Arctic Explorer 60368 ever discounted and am still keeping a close eye on the still MSRP Coruscant Gunship 75354.
I like this set, but won't be buying it. As many others have pointed out, I can get more Star Wars enjoyment from other sets.
Don't need to look further than the 4 dollar mini podracers from twenty years ago to admire how much the design of microscale LEGO models has evolved in that time but this makes the least sense as a model out of all the diorama sets. The other microscale one (Death Star Trench Run) is wall-to-wall greebling and the other one with two small vehicles (Endor speeder bikes) captures the excitement of that scene much better than just the bikes on their own would... and the greenery looks more interesting. Most of this set is an overdesigned blank tan wall
@CCC said:
"I'm surprised that there wasn't another negative point mentioned - Sebulba's racer not fitting through the arch."
MandR was basically looking for something to be smugly mad about with that complaint. It's a diorama, not a playset, and dioramas (especially non-Lego ones) often use forced perspective to accomplish a more striking image. It's not a continuity error, it's stylistic liberty. Complaints about the set's price and value are warranted in my book, but "big pod too big for hole" is grasping at straws.
Without any exclusive figs, this is WAY overpriced.
I know I've said Lego is always expensive, but this one is over the top.
Just a couple of small mini-pod racers and a nice terrain.
Not for $80-. Maybe $60 the most.
If it had exclusive figs of young Anakin and Sebulba I'd say yeah, but no figs, should be akin to the Death Star Trench Run diorama price. I loved that set, with all the greebling and miniships. That was worth the $60. I think I paid $50 actually on Amazon back then.
@monty_bricks said:
"I don't really understand the polybag comparison. That Sebulba Podracer probably has 1.5-2x as many parts as a typical polybag, and yes, good terrain builds need a lot of parts, unless you would prefer it was made out of a single large plate with a couple of tan BURPs on top."
Yeah, I could see Anakin's as a polybag, but Sebulba's is too big for that. But haters gonna hate.
@CapnRex101 said:
" @CCC said:
"I'm surprised that there wasn't another negative point mentioned - Sebulba's racer not fitting through the arch."
I do not consider that a problem. If this was a play model, I would agree, but I think it looks plausible enough for display. Also, I would note that Sebulba's podracer takes a slightly different path to Anakin's through the Arch Canyon, as Anakin's smaller racer can pass through narrower arches and take a more direct route to the next section of the course. Perhaps that is what the diorama depicts, although I doubt that was the designer's intent.
@StyleCounselor said:
"One reason I don't like this quote, is because it has a bit of a continuity error.
Why's he telling Anakin to 'remember?' Remember what? Anakin hasn't been training for years with Qui-Gon. Or, at all. What prior learning is he supposed to remember?
As a coach myself, it has always struck me as discordant. Was Qui-Gon stressed, and just reverting back to a rehearsed 'Ol-Gipper' speech? Was he just mailing it in? "
I think he is just saying "remember what I am about to tell you...""
That reading is even worse.
It's poor coaching and poor writing. I would expect Qui-Gon to be a better coach. You don't tell someone you just met, who's about to engage in a contest of quick reflexes, to 'remember.'
This is especially true because it's contradictory to the rest of his coaching points. A coach needs to be thoroughly logical and provide points that can be used for action. (Being inspirational helps, too!) Anakin shouldn't think, and certainly not remember. He's supposed to act and feel.
It's bad coaching. It's bad writing. It's internally contradictory. It's too wordy for this Lego application.
They should've used "Now, this is podracing!"
Nice though the podracers may be, they're still tiny. And there's only two of them. Surely this diorama would have been the perfect opportunity to include some others?
I have no problem with this whatsoever set as it looks great for a nostalgic display piece. However It would’ve been a day one purchase for sure if it had came with an exclusive 25th anniversary Aurra Sing mini figure
@Bricky_Dee_Williams said:
"I’ve said since 2022 that every 18+ Star Wars diorama is $20 - $30 overpriced.
We can’t say that LEGO isn’t consistent.
Just using the “adults” branding to charge more for less. "
Exactly. Vaders meditation chamber would have been in the 30$ range without the base.
And I still bought it, waited for a discount to 55$ until its EOL but still.
The concepts are great but I don't get how the little bit of extra filler for the floor adds so much cost. Makes me just plan to rebuild or tweak some of these out of my random parts collections and populate them with older figures.
@StyleCounselor
You make some good points that apply to our world and were probably also relevant for normal coaching a long time ago in a galaxy far, far away.
But.
There is something that existed in their part of the universe that we cannot comprehend, and I am sure Qui-Gon knew about applying it.
To quote "Anakin": Don't underestimate the Force.
@bananaworld said:
"
@StyleCounselor
You make some good points that apply to our world and were probably also relevant for normal coaching a long time ago in a galaxy far, far away.
But.
There is something that existed in their part of the universe that we cannot comprehend, and I am sure Qui-Gon knew about applying it.
To quote "Anakin": Don't underestimate the Force."
The ultimate Star Wars critical avoidance maneuver: imagination! Touche'. I doff my cap, yield the field, and beg forgiveness.
Now, I'm off to wonder what sort of time-space loop Qui-Gon (who was the noted master such that he was able to transcend death and instruct Yoda) was in touch with Anakin (the Chosen One) so that he was capable of reminding the remarkable pod racer to "remember" past lessons or experiences that the two had shared outside the mundane time arc provided by Ep. I.
No wonder the Eternal Master understood the importance of lil' Annie where the rest of us just saw a spoiled kid who tended to muff his lines. You could fill novels of fan fiction with this idea.
Splendid!
Apparently, the prequels weren't for everyone.
Yeah, I do like my imagination to imagine that the Force explains a lot of things away with some magic words and (literal) hand-waving.
It's no more silly than any religion in our galaxy.
@bananaworld said:
"
Apparently, the prequels weren't for everyone.
Yeah, I do like my imagination to imagine that the Force explains a lot of things away with some magic words and (literal) hand-waving.
It's no more silly than any religion in our galaxy."
Absolutely! That's the joy of all of this. Without it, what's the point?
I realize the enthusiasm of my reply could signify sarcasm. I heartily ensure you that none was intended. You instantly destroyed my argument and simultaneously reawakened the child in me. Well done.
Many people exaggerate. Both sides are wrong imho.
Set is overpriced and it doesn't matter if it will be discounted by (lets say standard) 30%! If it's after discount 55€ for small set without minifigs, specials pieces (beside quote). That's still ABSURD!
on the other hand it's not cheap 2x polybag with wall set