Star Wars Advent Calendar: Day 8
Posted by CapnRex101,
The 2017 LEGO Star Wars Advent Calendar has been excellent so far, exploring new areas of the Star Wars saga while maintaining a consistently high standard of minifigures and models. I am hoping that will continue into its second week.
"The snow man was put in to avoid having to build a stupid weapons rack." Those are the words of LEGO designer Hans Burkhard Schlömer when describing the creation of 75146 Star Wars Advent Calendar, the 2016 set, in his BrickList. Designers are evidently aware that weapons racks never prove popular, hence their exclusion from last year's calendar, so one wonders why they have been reinstated this year. I am disappointed to find one and can only imagine that most children opening their calendar will be as well.
Nevertheless, this gift fulfils an important role by providing a blaster rifle for the First Order Stormtrooper revealed yesterday and there is a spare clip for another minifigure's blaster as well. The design of the rack is very plain but I do like the dark bluish grey ladder that forms a radiator grille. A crate containing a black wrench is also included, perhaps for adjusting the settings on the blaster cannon from day four.
Overall - 1.5 - Today's model serves a practical purpose by arming the trooper from yesterday but is otherwise very boring. Hopefully this is the weakest point of the entire Advent Calendar and we will be back on course tomorrow!
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At least there's a crate. I can never have too many crates or barrels. Still, though...
1.0 for the blaster and 0.5 for the wrench. Hopefully if history is any guide, we are now done with weapon racks.
I personally quite like this all though it looks a bit boring it would be perfect in Unkar Plutts shop
I thought the choice of a Spanner or a Blaster for the Storm Trooper was quite amusing.
Maybe the crate and engine? is a supply of power and ammo for the Cannon?
Or something which ties to tomorrows model?
It looks very much to me like it could be part of the Encounter on Jakku set, so I wouldn't be surprised to see something along those lines tomorrow.
Yup, I thought after last year we were done with these. Oh well, still happy to finally get some of the newer subthemes/movies recognized. 6/8 amazing days in my opinion and honestly the rifle from earlier will find its way to my Cassian minifig. It does look a lot like his blaster.
A sure disappointment but I am glad that we got it out of the way quickly, rather than having the disappointment of it much later in the calendar.
Curse you, weapon rack!
Lame weapons rack. A wrench? That's not a weapon. Or it's Clue in space ... Major Brance did it with the Wrench on Starkiller Base.
I don't mind the weapons rack so much but to juice it up for the build, at least provide multiple weapons and tools. So at least 2 - 3 different blasters, a wrench and crowbar and some printed round tiles that are thermal detonators.
I was actually excited, as I needed a crate for another build I'm working on. :-)
One day there will be a huge collector's market for these weapons racks just like the AMC Pacer or Gtemlin. At that point you will all be eating crow for maligning these things. I foresee these going upwards of $0.30 on the open market within a few years ;)
I agree with LegoDad - at least give us a few bonus weapons - especially as lots of people will have a bunch of stormtroopers armed with nothing more than stud shooters.
Not bad for a parts pack though. Brown crates are always welcome on a cityscape, tools and blasters are always welcome and the DBG ladder will have its uses somewhere.
Had it had a white 3x3 plate w/curve to simulate snowy ground would of been more in keeping with the winter theme.
After seeing the picture on the inside of the flap today I couldn't even be bothered to open the packet. What a load of $h!* LEGO!
Knew they'd have this after the weaponless Stormie!
I can always use the crate to make furniture... but still crap.
Well, i actually quite enjoy tool-racks! I think they are quite nice for making a playscene or layout.
Unexciting, to say the least. Could indeed make itself more appealing with some bonus guns, but no, it just supplies what was missing from the Stormtrooper yesterday.
Fa la la la la, la la la lame!
IT'S A CRAP!!!
The least they could have done is put a gun metal version of the blaster and wrench. 1.5 indeed!!
This build isn't exciting but if you are a kid it's got great play value.
My Advent day was ruined even before opening today's SW gift. Some idiot posted a spoiler in the comments section of the "friends advent calendar review" and thus ruined it for me. I was hoping the comment was a joke. My hope was in vain!
Not sure what the beef is with this specific weapons rack - the dark grey vent and brown box are really handy pieces. It's better than many that have come before it and much better than some of the 'builds' in the other calendars.
@boneheadhh1: shoot, you’re right. I’m on it. Get back to me in a few days once I have them all.
That would be an interesting contest though. The best weapons rack using less than 20 pieces.
This one is much less bad than some of the weapon racks we've had in previous years, in my opinion. Personally, I don't find the weapon racks too unfortunate, though of course I'd prefer none. This one, on the other hand, has a crate, a wrench, and a ladder, and seems less like a weapons rack and more like a set piece to me.
A drastic rating change from 4.5 - 5 to 1.5! Give the little rack break. The crate is nice, but I also agree they should've added more weapons.