Review: 75428 Battle Droid with STAP
Posted by CapnRex101,
The selection of large-scale droids continues to grow with the arrival of 75428 Battle Droid with STAP, joining last year's brilliant 75381 Droideka in the Trade Federation army! However, perhaps this droid will be overshadowed by its associated vehicle, which looks fantastic.
In fact, its complexity and detail mirrors vehicles from the Ultimate Collector Series, focusing very much on accuracy to the source material. By contrast, the Battle Droid seems a bit chunky in official images. Perhaps this is necessary for articulation, though it waits to be seen whether such a compromise is worthwhile.
Summary
75428 Battle Droid with STAP, 1,088 pieces.
£119.99 / $139.99 / €129.99 | 11.0p/12.9c/11.9c per piece.
Buy at LEGO.com »
This set is surprisingly enjoyable, but I wish the Battle Droid was more accurate
- Incredibly detailed STAP
- Impressive display value
- Decent articulation, particularly for poses on the STAP
- Battle Droid seems too bulky
- Not to scale with other droids
- Overpriced
The set was provided for review by LEGO. All opinions expressed are those of the author.
Minifigure
Large-scale characters are generally joined by minifigure-scale figures and the Battle Droid is no exception. However, this droid incorporates a tan 1x2 plate for its backpack, unlike others in modern sets and harking back to some of the droids' early appearances in 1999 and 2000.
The Completed Model
A minifigure-scale STAP is also provided, very similar to the version available in 75372 Clone Trooper & Battle Droid Battle Pack. This edition is reddish brown and does make some minor changes to the design, adding a footrest and bringing the steering section a little tighter to the vehicle's main body.
You can display the STAP on its trans-clear stand, beside the printed plaque. As normal, the plaque's style matches those from the Ultimate Collector Series, although this one is smaller. While that is consistent with earlier large-scale characters, this plaque instead focuses on the vehicle, so maybe it should be bigger to mirror the Ultimate Collector Series.
Moreover, the battle droid comes with a straight arm and a blaster, in case you wish to display this figure apart from the STAP. These pieces are attached to clips behind the plaque, which is quite neat.
Another clip enables you to connect the plaque to the STAP's display base. Attachment points are found on the front and back, although I am not exactly sure why anyone would use the clip behind the speeder.
Star Wars vehicles tend to be relatively large, even those designed for a lone occupant, so the STAP stands out as unusually small. Of course, that makes complete sense for a scouting and patrol craft and the LEGO model is quite substantial on display, measuring 38cm in height, with the Battle Droid on board.
The display stand is surprisingly parts-intensive, containing over 130 pieces, but necessarily so for a vehicle like the STAP, which cannot stand by itself. The black colour and general design is reminiscent of Ultimate Collector Series display bases and the model is completely stable when connected to its stand via three clips.
The droid's stance aboard the STAP is reasonably faithful to the movie, with their feet mounted on the pedals and the hands wrapped around the handlebars. Ideally, the feet would be slightly smaller and simply lock into the top of each pedal, though their bigger size helps to stabilise the Battle Droid when standing separately and the pedals' cradle-like structure is secure.
Also, the pedals are adjustable. I think the pedals' forward position, pictured above, arguably looks more natural, but bringing them further back is more accurate to The Phantom Menace. Regardless, both options are welcome, although the blue Technic pins visible on these pedals are annoying.
The handlebars can move as well and incorporate clips where the droid's hands are attached, which create a firm connection. Between the adjustable pedals and handlebars and the Battle Droid's many articulated joints, plenty of dynamic poses are possible, even with only one hand gripping the handlebars!
Here is the Battle Droid spotting a vulnerable Gungan wandering through Lianorm Swamp, for instance:
Even with the Battle Droid removed, I think the STAP looks quite impressive. The craft's overall proportions and shape correspond with its appearance in the movies, albeit with some sharper angles where slopes meet, which is typical when building curves of this size. Additionally, I am quite happy with its colours, except for those blue Technic pins.
The use of 1x2 bows down the front of the STAP is lovely, creating the impression of a smooth shape, despite the wedge slopes along the sides. Even the gap in front of the horizontal fins is faithful to the source material. However, the engines would perhaps benefit from a trans-yellow glow inside, making the speeder look truly active and providing a dash of colour.
On the other hand, the printed turbine blades on the front seem reasonable and I like those on the back too, using elements typically found in City sets. There is a hint of blue visible between the engines, where a brick peeks out from under a reddish brown 2x3 tile, but this is not obvious from most angles.
The yellow Technic piece on the handlebars is awkward too, but again, only really visible from behind. The handlebar assembly is helpfully designed to be removed when attaching the droid to the speeder and I like the stickered radiator adding some detail in the middle.
Similarly, the shape of the blaster cannons is perfect and I love the use of curved bars, created for 71049 Collectable F1 Race Cars, as cables behind the weaponry. For complete accuracy to the STAP onscreen, this whole section of the speeder should be articulated, but keeping it static greatly improves its strength.
The weakest part of the set is the Battle Droid, unfortunately. I appreciate that translating such skeletal droids to a stable LEGO model would be extremely challenging, but the proportions of the figure are just wrong. While the chunky legs are understandable for stability, the upper arms could surely have been slimmed down to mirror these droids onscreen.
Moreover, I was disappointed to find that the Battle Droid is not to scale with 75381 Droideka or any other buildable droids. The disparity is not enormous because the B1 should be larger than the destroyer droid, albeit only by a couple of centimetres at this scale. Instead, the Battle Droid is 30cm tall, so the duo look awkward displayed together.
The articulation leaves something to be desired as well. It is certainly not bad, as the joints are strong and the ball-jointed wrists are particularly important for poses carrying the blaster rifle in two hands, as Battle Droids commonly do. However, I wish the elbows could move inwards and the knees can only bend around 40 degrees.
The droid cannot therefore fold into its transport configuration. I was not expecting that to be possible, but I hoped it might be better than it is. Nonetheless, the droid's articulation is good enough for basic combat stances and more than sufficient for dynamic posing while riding the STAP.
Unless this figure was constructed like 75398 C-3PO or 75434 K-2SO, its legs were sure to be bulkier than they are onscreen. On that basis, I am quite pleased with this section of the model, other than the occasional dark bluish grey parts. I love how Technic gears are integrated beside the joints and the stickered details on the 2x6 tiles are effective.
A sticker is placed on the droid's torso too, which is my favourite part of the figure. The narrow supports between the hips and the upper chest are great and I like the wedge slopes on either side, creating accurate diagonal bands. The grey pieces around the hips are not ideal, although these are not quite as distracting as the dark bluish grey elements on the legs.
Similarly, the grey ball joints on the wrists are distracting, but those elements are sadly colour-locked, as we have discussed before. Otherwise, I think the detailed lower arms look fantastic, but the upper arms are much too chunky. I wish the large ball cups could have been integrated with the torso and the Technic balls linked to the arms, which could then be thinner.
B1 Battle Droids are nearly always armed with E-5 blaster rifles and this rendition looks pretty good, including a conduit on top and the bulky forward handgrip. The main grip features a clip that connects to the Battle Droid's right hand, while the fingers on the left can wrap around the barrel neatly.
Moreover, you can mount the rifle on the droid's backpack, thanks to a clip on the side. We do see the rifles stowed there when the droids are transported in The Phantom Menace, although not when riding STAPs. Nonetheless, the shape of the backpack looks superb and I like the two antennas on top, again matching the live action droids in the movies.
The droid's head is quite accurate to the films as well. While the 2x4 bow is not perfect, as the head should narrow towards the end, I like the printed designs and the details further back are excellent, including ice cream cones for the movement processors, beside a couple of dark tan pieces.
Overall
Despite certain issues with the Battle Droid, 75428 Battle Droid with STAP has exceeded my expectations. The vehicle is exceptionally detailed and uses some clever building techniques, achieving a standard similar to Ultimate Collector Series models, in my opinion! The droid is a little underwhelming by comparison, thanks primarily to those bulky arms.
Also, I was hoping for slightly better articulation, especially around the knees, but this range of motion is sufficient for poses aboard the STAP. Otherwise, as is so frequently the case for Star Wars sets at the moment, the major issue is the price. Once discounted from £119.99, $139.99 or €129.99, I think this set will be a pleasant surprise for many, though not before.
75428 Battle Droid with STAP will be released on the 1st of July and is available to pre-order now.
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36 comments on this article
Could we get a pic of the battle droid next to the astromechs?
Do you have 8001 somewhere to show them of together?
Nice review, thanks.
I'm on the fence about this one. I don't usually get droids (and those I got I sold, except the UCS R2-D2). But for some reasons, I got the Droideka last year and really like it. I'd like to have them both together, despite the fact that they are not quite to scale.
That said, my wishlist is enormous, so I'm probably never getting it.
Excellent review! I agree that the STAP looks awesome and the Battle Droid looks pretty solid with the exception of the arms and the scaling relative to the Droideka.
I feel like this is a set that would benefit from using more Technic parts on the upper arms. If you used one of the newer BIONICLE hand ball-joint pieces for the joint and connected the rest of the arm using complex technic detailing you could get a more accurate thinness. Honestly, it's sets like these that (to me) make it especially clear that Lego shot themselves in the foot when getting rid of all of the BIONICLE and CCBS molds.
Tl;dr: Good review; battle droid arms could be fixed with technic stuff and Lego lost out by getting rid of Bonkle parts
Looks great to me. I’m slightly puzzled by the price criticism - 13 cents per part is indeed a little pricey, but isn’t it pretty much exactly in line with the typical ppp of a Star Wars/Disney IP licensed set?
Great review as always Capn! This set definitely opens the door for a brick built B2 super battle droid, and maybe even a BX commando droid, since Lego is finally bringing back commando droids in the upcoming Separatist MTT
I... surprisingly am okay with this set despite the price and minor cons it has.
Always love your reviews! Albeit a different look, I didn’t mind the battle droid when I first saw it. It is disappointing the scale doesn’t translate, but the chunky design makes for a unique display piece!
I like this set a lot. The STAP itself looks great, and I also really like the Battle Droid, but I agree with your criticisms of it, Capn.
It’s nice to see a Battle Droid minifigure with a backpack again. Also, I love the storage for the Droid’s straight arm and blaster on the back of the display stand. It’s a nifty little inclusion, and I had wondered if the set would have something like that.
Overall, a nice set, and a great addition to the buildable characters / droids subtheme, just not as good as last year’s Droideka. Nice review!
I wish we’d stuck with brown for the battle droid vehicles into the Clone Wars era; it’s a better match for the droids than the grey and dark blue we ended up with.
I really wish this was just the battle droid for $40-$50. I don't think anybody asked for the rest.
i love this and I want it
They should have sold this as an Ultimate Collector Series STAP, without the droid.
Thank you for the extra picture, @CapnRex101. And OMG, that's horrible? If they decided to reboot Artoo to go with 3PO, etc., why would they do the battle droid and droideka in 2 more different scales?!?
Protein Edition Battle Droid.
why does a b1 have jacked triceps???
@WolfpackBricksStudios:
I’ve been saying for years that I wanted a UCS STAP. I also want a UCS Ep6 speederbike, and a UCS Soulless One.
@yellowcastle:
Sometimes when you’re building a thing, you realize that a particular element seems purpose-made to represent some portion of the design. This is true for MOCs, and likely true for official sets as well. I can see a few instances of parts that were the perfect shape for one detail or another, which probably made this scale a certainty. Ironically, bumping up the scale might have helped with keeping it from looking like the “B” in “B1 stands for beefcake.
@tmtomh said:
"Looks great to me. I’m slightly puzzled by the price criticism - 13 cents per part is indeed a little pricey, but isn’t it pretty much exactly in line with the typical ppp of a Star Wars/Disney IP licensed set?"
That is about right for play sets with minifigures, but I think the Battle Droid with STAP feels overpriced compared with the previous large-scale characters. For instance, 75416 Chopper (C1-10P) contains 49 fewer pieces than this set, but costs £94.99, $99.99 or €109.99. I would expect this set to cost more than Chopper simply because the model is larger, but probably not that much more.
@yellowcastle said:
"Thank you for the extra picture, @CapnRex101 . And OMG, that's horrible? If they decided to reboot Artoo to go with 3PO, etc., why would they do the battle droid and droideka in 2 more different scales?!?"
No problem. I am not too concerned about the Battle Droid's size beside C-3PO because this set would become very large and expensive if they were accurately scaled. The Battle Droid would need to be about 42cm tall and perhaps that would be achievable for the Battle Droid alone, but with the STAP, I suspect the price would get out of hand.
I was hoping the scale with the Droideka would be closer, but again, I can guess it would be difficult to make the Droideka much bigger without it becoming unmarketable. Presumably the Battle Droid needed to be this size because of the price point or to use certain elements, as @PurpleDave suggested.
I think this set looks really cool, and I would like it for my collection. I think LEGO did miss a trick by not going more Technic-heavy on the droid though, I think that would look better.
I don't care for the STAP at all and I would have liked a stand alone B1. Personally I think it is a bit of a weird choice for a display set, it is fairly limiting and I suppose there would be lot bigger market for 'B1 without STAP'.
That's just my personal opinion of course, but I don't find the STAP particularly interesting as a vehicle. To me it neither looks good nor does it have a memorable scene in the movies, at least none that I could remember.
Therefore no matter how good this set might be, it just isn't for me. Sorry. Excellent review anyway.
The set looks great from all angles, great review. .
I didn't think it was so large until it was compared with the Droideka which I own. As you say, they look quite awkward displayed together so I probably won't get this.
@AustinPowers said:
"That's just my personal opinion of course, but I don't find the STAP particularly interesting as a vehicle. To me it neither looks good nor does it have a memorable scene in the movies, at least none that I could remember.
Therefore no matter how good this set might be, it just isn't for me. Sorry. Excellent review anyway. "
I would say the STAP's most memorable scene is actually in the Clone Wars movie, Anakin commandeers one during the vertical siege sequence. Otherwise, though, I'm probably more familiar with them from all the Lego versions than anything else.
The collector is me was really considering going back getting Chewy to go with 3PO, the astromechs, B1 and Destroyer. I could envision all of these characters on display together. Going with at least 3 different scales kind of ruins that plan for me. Thus, I may simply stick with $200 UCS Artoo and move on.
@WideWonderfulWilliam said:
"Oh, STAP."
In the name of love
It's obligatory, so let's get it out of the way:
Roger, Roger
We have clearance, Clarence
What's your vector, Victor?
Now that that's out of the way, there's one detail I'd have liked to see in this set. There's a B1 in TPM that has a stylized "1138" visible on its backpack (I think it's the one that Jar Jar knocks the head off of after the shutdown), and that would have been a neat print.
@Klontjes said:
"I don't care for the STAP at all and I would have liked a stand alone B1. Personally I think it is a bit of a weird choice for a display set, it is fairly limiting and I suppose there would be lot bigger market for 'B1 without STAP'."
So what you're saying is, "Don't STAP me now!"
It looks more like a human cosplaying as a Battle Droid. I bet their name is Roger.
Don’t hate on my battle droid for hitting the gym and making those massive bicep and thigh gainz
@yellowcastle said:
"The collector is me was really considering going back getting Chewy to go with 3PO, the astromechs, B1 and Destroyer. I could envision all of these characters on display together. Going with at least 3 different scales kind of ruins that plan for me. Thus, I may simply stick with $200 UCS Artoo and move on. "
Would you please add a picture with Chewbacca ripping off the offending arms?
@Sandinista said:
"Don’t hate on my battle droid for hitting the gym and making those massive bicep and thigh gainz"
Yeah, he doesn't skip leg day *or* arm day.
Ok this looks very cool and although I appreciate the criticisms in the review, I don't find myself concurring in this particular case.
Looking forward to this set.
I'm interested to see if it scales well with the Star Wars CCBS buildable figures from 2015 - 2018.
It is a shame that the differing scales won't allow an accurate battle droid\C-3PO head swap.
@bananaworld said:
"It is a shame that the differing scales won't allow an accurate battle droid\C-3PO head swap."
You mean besides the glaring absence of sand-red?
Absolutely need to pick this up because my partner loves the droid army and STAPs in particular, but getting a good enough discount probably won’t be fun, sigh.