Super Battle Droids: 2002 to 2024
Posted by CapnRex101,
There has been no shortage of Battle Droids in LEGO Star Wars sets, although the Super Battle Droid appears less frequently than the standard Battle Droid and not at all since 2015.
75372 Clone Trooper & Battle Droid Battle Pack introduces a new version and the differences between the current droid and its predecessors are more extensive than I envisaged. This article examines those differences in full.
LEGO produced the first Super Battle Droid for 7163 Republic Gunship and these figures are memorably distinguished by their unique pearl sand blue colour, exaggerating the subtle blue tone of these droids onscreen. A more appropriate pearl dark grey shade has been used from 2007 onwards, beginning in 7654 Droids Battle Pack. A variant with a rocket launcher arm was then introduced in 2009, with 8018 Armoured Assault Tank (AAT).
Considering the age of the original mould, the classic Super Battle Droid is remarkably detailed. However, the new version benefits from a more accurate torso and a narrower head, as well as improved bodywork around the shoulders. Additionally, there is now an indentation on the torso, which represents the Super Battle Droid's primary sensor.
Differences continue onto the back, where the internal structure is visible on both figures. The structures vary significantly and I am surprised the designers did not cover these supports this time. I assume that was impossible because of the manufacturing process. Regardless, this did not really bother me on the original Super Battle Droid, nor its modern counterpart.
Otherwise, the texture on the droid's midriff has been adjusted and there is no longer a mould mark visible there. The design of the hips and shoulder joints remains almost identical though, which surprised me when the new Super Battle Droid was revealed. After all, there have been issues with the clips on the arms and legs cracking in the past.
Thankfully, small changes have actually been made to the arms and I know the designers were aware of the prior problems when updating this figure, so I am sure the new joints are stronger. There are some minor cosmetic differences to the arms as well, while the connection between the torso and the legs has changed, so the body no longer tilts back as far.
When rumours of a new Super Battle Droid began to circulate last year, I expected the changes to be quite dramatic. However, the original Super Battle Droid was already a fantastic figure for its age, so relatively small changes are perhaps all that were needed. Regardless, the modern Super Battle Droid certainly improves upon its precursor, even though I would have liked to see a red dot highlighting the sensor.
Are you satisfied with the changes made for the updated Super Battle Droid? Let us know in the comments.
Our full review of 75372 Clone Trooper & Battle Droid Battle Pack is available here.
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46 comments on this article
"Those are the same picture."
Well, okay, they're not, but I really needed to squint to see the changes. Well done.
Pretty nice update to a classic figure. Definitely will be getting some, hopefully the joints stand the test of time.
It's a great update. The original figures were already good, and these have some sharper lines and extra detail, without looking wildly different.
The back of the torso has to be hollow for production reasons, I assume. Otherwise it would be a big chunk of solid plastic, and those don't tend to work that well in injection moulding. I can't really think of a way to close that part of more, short of providing an antistud or two and adding a plate, which would be much too bulky.
The latest Super Battle Droid is in its Ozempic era.
Never been a fan of such un-Lego-ish Lego figures. Don't have an idea how to make droids at that scale otherwise either, though...
Seeing the side by side is kinda cool, demonstrates how much more defined the detail on the new one has become
Pearl Sand Blue. Would love to own some parts in that colour.
It's nice to see that they actually went with film version of the SBD. It seems like these days LEGO (and Hasbro) uses the TCW versions.
I wonder how much those rocket arms go for? I'd love adding a few to the 75372 Super Battle Droids!
Edit: they apparently go for almost 3 bucks. For ONE. SINGLE. PIECE.
Eh. I might still get a couple of them anyway.
MakeSuperBattleDroidsBlueAgain
@picopirate said:
"No more belly button. However the crotch ring is still there."
Darn you. Now I can't unsee that...
I really hope the arm clips hold up on these. I remember how disappointed I was as a kid when my 7163 droids started breaking.
The problem with the last version was the clip on the legs always breaking. It doesn’t look like the legs have changed.
I find it interesting that the head of the original SBD design being a bit wide and a bit squat is also reflected in the style of the Clone Trooper helmets from the same set, which were also a bit more squat and square than they appeared in the movie. Not sure whether this would be a product of only being able to work from concept art for these designs at the time of the first AotC sets, or a stylistic decision from before minifigure designs became more standardised. Possibly the latter, since the same could be said of e.g. https://brickset.com/minifigs/sw0002 's helmet too, which the concept art limitation definitely didn't apply to... but either way, it's curious to me that it affected both of the then-new minifigure designs from that set equally.
Although honestly, I'd never even considered that detail with regards to the SBD until seeing it side-by-side with the new version, so...
Is it an optical illusion, or have they shrunk slightly?
@Rob42 said:
"It's a great update. The original figures were already good, and these have some sharper lines and extra detail, without looking wildly different.
The back of the torso has to be hollow for production reasons, I assume. Otherwise it would be a big chunk of solid plastic, and those don't tend to work that well in injection moulding. I can't really think of a way to close that part of more, short of providing an antistud or two and adding a plate, which would be much too bulky. "
The issue isn’t how thick the material is, but how much difference there is between the thick and thin sections. I’ve seen superballs in grocery store vending machines that are 1” or 2” in diameter, and they don’t have any problems, because the sphere is uniformly thick in all places. But if you make a part that’s mostly thin, and one section is significantly thicker, it cools at a different rate, and you get a “sink”, where the surface dimples. Look at the semi-auto pistol from the 2006 Batman theme vs the long-barrel version from Indiana Jones a few years later to see the difference. Also, the S1 Robot’s ray gun vs the non-CMF version is another example where they had to tweak the design to eliminate unsightly sinks in the surface.
I’m surprised no one has mentioned the foot gap yet. It is the first thing I noticed.
I’m curious if the side profiles of the leg clips match. From the front the shaping of the new clip looks more gradual. Which would indicate a bit more material is there. However what I’m seeing could just be an illusion from the lighting and the coloring in the plastic.
I like it. The original was iconic, so it's nice to see that they improved it to be more high definition and durable instead of trying to reinvent the wheel for the whole figure
@flord said:
"The problem with the last version was the clip on the legs always breaking. It doesn’t look like the legs have changed."
Yep legs breaking was always my problem too. From memory it appeared that the torso didn’t like to be inadvertently bent backwards (I’m not even talking huge amounts)!
I would be interested to know what intended range of motion was and if the new legs have the same problem.
they should bring back pearl sand blue, it was such a pretty color
I would really like to pick up the set. I like the small builds and I love the figs (and the newly updated SuperBattle Droids). I think it’s a great value. My mom gifted me 7654 Droids Battle Pack when it first came out. I would like to add this new offering to the previous set.
@PurpleDave: Thank you, I was misremembering the exact challenge of it. That would definitely be an issue here, what with the main bulk of the chest vs the bars for arms and legs, and all the smooth surfaces.
I wouldn't expect these to look any better than they do, and they do look great. But personally I prefer them in blue. Less accurate perhaps, but in Star Wars you take colour where you can get it. The last thing we need is more grey.
I also think both these and the regular Battle Droids should have updated legs by now. Having them fused together is not helpful.
@MeisterDad said:
"I’m surprised no one has mentioned the foot gap yet. It is the first thing I noticed."
Ah, I see it now!
That all but confirms that TLG did in fact redesign the mold to be stronger!
A testament of how well the original shape that it barely needs updating.
Can't wait till i get my hands on these in 75372!
I am forever in this humble fella's debt for this:
https://www.flickr.com/photos/sepulchure/50309094321/
@flord said:
"The problem with the last version was the clip on the legs always breaking. It doesn’t look like the legs have changed."
The torso has. And was the problem with the design of the legs, or the design of the torso? I once stuck a 1x1 cone into a 5L half-beam, and the half-beam split right open on the end. Was it bad design of the beam that was the problem? Unlikely, since a few years later they redesigned 4589 to include a stop groove where the sidewall of the stud blends into the flare of the cone. The issue was that the original version had such a gradual taper from the width of the stud that you could drive it into deep holes like a wedge used for splitting firewood, and it could rip open the other part. If the bar at the waist of the torso doesn’t have a nice round cross-section, pivoting the legs to the point where the widest point on the bar is parallel to the feet could exert an enormous amount of pressure on the inside of the clip. Alternately, as was often the issue with the old lightsaber hilts and blades, rotating it 90° from that position could result in an unusually weak grip.
@MeisterDad said:
"I’m surprised no one has mentioned the foot gap yet. It is the first thing I noticed."
I had not seen that at all... Wow.
Lots of crisp detail, and the revised seam is fantastic. I like the revised upper body around the head and the head shape a lot.
It’s also worth noting that 2007-2010 SBDs were a different color from the one used today.
Oh, and the first super battle droids were originally supposed to be old basic gray. IDs exist for each part in old grey.
I am very pleased to see the return of the Super Battle Droids, and even more so in such a promising set such as 75372. Most sets containing these figures came out during my dark ages, and although I have purchased a few of them it is great to finally have a low cost-ish opportunity to get quite a few more.
I am also delighted to see this kind of article here on Brickset, to me this is peak Brickset content and it is very much appreciated @CapnRex101, thank you!
Appreciate the accuracy change but honestly, I wish they'd update the leg pieces on both BD's and SBD's so they can move freely like skeletons'. I've always found it bothersome they lack that range of poseability and stability.
I'm the real weakness was in the legs which look the least changed, hopefully looks are deceiving. I did hope they'd replace the click with a click hinge, I've never had one of those break.
@AgentKallus said:
"I'm the real weakness was in the legs"
I always suspected you were involved somehow!
To bad they don’t have helmet holes!
@Skippyj said:
"To bad they don’t have helmet holes!"
...or fabric karmas!
@AverageChimaEnjoyer said:
"I wonder how much those rocket arms go for? I'd love adding a few to the 75372 Super Battle Droids!
Edit: they apparently go for almost 3 bucks. For ONE. SINGLE. PIECE.
Eh. I might still get a couple of them anyway. "
They used to be under a buck. Inflation. The same has happened with fabric kamas.
I wish the new design had an attachment point on the back and legs could be posed. But, overall it's just pleasant to have them back.
I like that the head is a better representation of the head, but if the clips still break this was a wasted effort. The clips look like they may be a fraction larger and therefore stronger, but that's just my eyeball measurement. I've never had a https://brickset.com/parts/6296892/plate-1x1-w-holder clip break in any color, so it's dissapointing the these minifig clips broke.
@graymattr said:
"I've never had a https://brickset.com/parts/6296892/plate-1x1-w-holder clip break in any color, so it's dissapointing the these minifig clips broke."
When the Type IV clip first came out, I had a couple box trucks and a Routemaster that used them to hold large sideview mirrors on, and I’d been having issues with the Type III clips losing their grip over time (partly due to the way I store them between shows). As soon as I could get those in red and yellow, I swapped out six of them…and within a few months I think I broke one. They appear to have changed the type of plastic they mold those in because I’ve never had issues with any except those first few.
Neat article. Very cool to see. …The only detail I’d suggest adding is plastic weight per figure to see if the new droid decreased plastic use.
They look almost the same to me, even if the new one is slightly more accurate
.
I was never really a fan of these minifigures. Legos should be playable, posable(to a degree), and swapable/interchangeable. The SBDs have almost none of that. swapability is very limited as pointed out by others here whom have broken other pieces on the battle droids. The legs don't move independently (same as the regular battle droids, which I'm also not so happy about, but they fold into a compact shape and are supposed to be built cheap, so it is also different). I also feel playability is quite hindered with these droids as they can't stand well on their own.
one idea I was hoping they would at least put an antistud on the backside so we could introduce some customization to our figures (backpacks, etc). Lego is talented enough to do more than just an antistud on the back, but it would be a good start.
I would also like a redesign the legs for two clips instead of just one. I think it's clear to everyone that they single clip is too fragile for the SBDs. two would probably be too off from a visual perspective though... Is there some kind of technic joint that could be substituted here?
They should have added stud on back this time...
@BlackFalconBirdman:
The issue with the clip may have to do with the fact that the bar has to be molded in two halves. Normally, bars are molded so there aren't any parting lines down their length, which keeps the shape uniformly cylindrical. When you split the mold down the length, the two halves can shift out of alignment, and the part may be wider than intended between the parting lines. Pivot the clip to span that distance, and it creates a lot of stress on the clip. However, there's no way to get in there and mold that section of bar in a tube.
If they flipped the design, however, it could work. Instead of a bar in the center, make the center solid. Where the sidewalls connect, change those to two short bars. Take the clip on the legs and split it in two. The waist might need to be a bit wider so none of the critical bits are so thin that you just trade one weak spot for another.