This year's employee Christmas gift revealed
Posted by Huw,
Since 2008 LEGO employees have received an awesome gift at Christmas in the form of an exclusive set, often tied in with a significant anniversary in the company's history.
Matthew Ashton, VP of Design, tweeted a picture of this year's set yesterday but as a courtesy to employees who are yet to receive it I won't post a photo above the fold of this article to avoid spoiling the surprise.
So, continue reading if you wish to see it.
Being Star Wars there will be considerable demand outside the company for it so expect to have to pay £300/$300+ on the secondary market to get hold of one.
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So cool. Wish I worked at LEGO. I have to own this
Seriously, is that Santa in an X-wing?
Wow, this year, the naughty kids are *screwed*.
Is that a stand for the xwing on the grotto-thing in the background??
This is quite ridiculous. Christmas in the world of Starwars... it's almost as strange as this episode of Flintsones where they have Christmas even though they are prehistoric. Apart from this cultural mindbender it's a sweet Lego set though.
Cool!
Star Wars holiday special: LEGO edition
:-o
@Huw what defines a ‘LEGO employee’? Those who work in customer care, online ordering, warehouse staff, admin staff? Are LEGO Store staff included/excluded. I’ve always thought of the LEGO Stores being run like a franchise?
^ All of the above. The UK stores are not franchises, but the certified stores in eastern Europe and elsewhere are.
Shouldn’t Santa have a red helmet?
That certainly put a smile on my face :) This is a truly fun set. There are previous employee gifts that I would want more (I'm not into Lego Star Wars), but it's certainly a fun idea and a great gift
This is so good and that really upsets me
Thanks @Huw
Candy cane laser cannons, brilliant!
A lovely set, absolutely love the retro Star Wars logo. Such a good idea to display my 7140-1, not with the snow environment of course, but still, very nice mix, Star Wars X-wing with Christmas "camouflage", what were the odds???
I find it funny that so many AFOLs complain each year when Lego releases another x-wing on the market no matter what movie version it is, then an x-wing they can't easily get comes out and everyone wants one.
Yeah yeah ok, and now please reveal the 2020 Modular Building.
@Magpie9 I’d have thought that this would probably shelf warm if released generally - it’s scarcity makes it desirable to completists- there’s nothing worse than a hole in a collection!
So, is this a christ-wing? And isn't the cross rather an easter symbol?
Insane but brilliant, I want one, I don't need one, its madness. I just smiled.... for about 2 minutes...... Its on my Never will own list, along with most things Comic Con as the rarity / cost is prohibitive but maybe.... come on lucky numbers :-) In light of TLGs recent we wont make regional sets I wonder if they should look at a re-release of these sets 1-2 years later so the Employees do get something exclusive.... but we could get hold of one later... then at least TLG gets the money not someone on Ebay.....
Ugly. IMHO
This is definitely a holiday bonus for Lego staff. Either enjoy the set, or sell it on eBay and enjoy your cash bonus instead. Merry Christmas everyone!
That's hilarious. And it looks like you could build your own based off the sequel trilogy x wings. It looks pretty similar.
This is fresh, as a SW never I have been so much jealous for an employee gift.
Edit: at least there is BrickLink for others to buy and oh wait, Lego now owns that market.
This looks amazing and I Wish Lego would release it.
I wonder when it will show up on Bricklink?
Lego X-mas-wing :-)
Are there North pole sign posts at the end of wings?
insanely cool! will the instructions & parts list end up here on brickset?
@thor96 well they have Life Day... sorta counts
I still don't like Lego's X-Wing design but this is a cool set. The candy canes are my favourite touch. And the hut is cool too.
Just noticed the little sleigh is actually a rebel transport speeder thing from in the Yavin base
I really want a full modern x-wing collection but this one is so expensive.
Grrrrrrrrr.... you empty your wallet on VIP weekend and BFCM.... and this comes along.. can't resist this and just ordered one from bricklink. This set is just nuts... so nuts i'm amazed Disney signed off on it but it's a must have to complete the X-wing line up
Can we get a moment of silence for my Wallet, as I browse E-Bay and Bricklink in search of this?
Well, I didn't buy the new Millennium Falcon, and I'm not buying the new Star Destroyer (I have the old magnet one), therefore I can justify me paying $300 for this.
The Star Wars Holiday Special! Happy Life Day!
If you love this set and buy it from the secondary market then brilliant, I genuinely hope you enjoy building and playing with this quirky, fun set.
However, if you’re buying at these prices to satisfy the need to “complete” a particular collection then I think you need to check your head.
I couldn't care less about this. Rather, I agree with Spike730: show us the 2020 Modular Building.
And I also agree with thor96 about how ridiculous it is to have Christmas-themed Star Wars sets. A Life Day set? Maybe. But a holiday in a galaxy far, far away celebrating the birth of a Terran religious figure? That makes no sense whatsoever. I have the same problem with the Star Wars Advent Calendars.
What !!! Another X-wing. Enuff already!! Ok I want one.. ;-)
@Huw : Any idea if the minfigs are special to this set. I see a Yoda, a pilot and a droid.
Definitely the best star wars 20th anniversary set!
Super excited to get mine when our store gets them in. Every one of the sets I've gotten since working there are super cool!
That's actually really cool except for again the hole where the lever goes. I like the color scheme though.
Looks interesting. I saw it last week somewhere online. I don’t need it, so I won’t look at the prices. Sounds like any discounts and free Christmas set may be the best reasons to work at a Lego store.
If this was available for retail purchase, I would definitely be buying it!
"It doesn't have to make sense; it's entertainment." - Pearl, Steven Universe
I think I love this set for the fact that it's blatantly unashamed to be a ridiculous concept. Add to that, the colour scheme is fantastic, and the use of candy cane designs for the laser cannons is a really neat touch.
Another one to add to my 'admire from afar' list! xD
@GeneralKenobi Any official LEGO employee gets it. From retail to corporate and doesn't matter if you part/full-time.
I already guessed this year's gift theme easily, but sort of wished it was like a midi-scale ISD or such, but a Christmas X-Wing is still cool! Looks like some people here take holiday-themed sets a bit too seriously. Like chill out its a toy and toys don't have to be logically made, just made to be fun!
That is awesome. I am jealous
Wow, fun! Not a fan of exclusives, but when it comes to employee gifts, I love that they do a special thing just for them. Sure can't comprehend the kind of people who'd sell them, though, even for $300. This would be a keeper!
So is the Christmas Special canon again?
My wallet aches for you guys.
I find it funny how people are getting hung up on the Christmas In Star Wars concept; especially since we have had Christmas Advent Calendars for Star Wars for years at this point.
Yes from an in universe standard, there is no Christmas in the Star Wars Galaxy with Life Day replacing the concept instead. But, Star Wars is a fictional world made by Humans of the Planet Earth and some of us definitely do celebrate Christmas. Seeing how many kids find Star Wars toys under the Christmas tree its almost a natural extension.
A few noticeable Star Wars Christmas items; Lucasflim's 40 years of custom Holiday Cards for their employees:
https://www.starwars.com/news/from-mcquarrie-to-chiang-highlights-from-40-years-of-lucasfilm-star-wars-holiday-cards
The short lived "Christmas overlay" at the original Star Tours ride in Disneyland in the 1990's:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=omkX2BVjpKo
I like it.
I find it especially funny as it reminds me of that scene near the beginning of "The Santa Claus(e)", where Tim Allen sarcastically remarks that kids will love it when Santa arrives in his tank for the season. If he came with that X-Wing the kids could literally "have a blast" ;-P
That's definetaly the true Red Five.
I'm super excited about this- it's my first year working at the LEGO Store and so my first holiday gift. As for anyone selling their gift- being caught doing that would make it so you can't do it again. Not worth the risk IMHO- and besides, I want to keep mine!!
I wonder how quickly I can get a job with Lego...
This is so f*****g cool!
I love it!
I wonder how many exclusive parts/prints there are for it. Might be possible to part it out and make your own like that Comic Con Star Wars set from a few years back.
@TomKazutara said:
"Wow, Lego really treats his fans huh?
No Santa fig anymore for the calendar, but for the employees.
I guess I stop buys Lego Star Wars.
Makes me just sad.
"
So you're gonna stop buying them just because the lego group gives its employees christmas gifts?
Also neither of the figures are exclusive
@thor96 said:
"This is quite ridiculous. Christmas in the world of Starwars... it's almost as strange as this episode of Flintsones where they have Christmas even though they are prehistoric. Apart from this cultural mindbender it's a sweet Lego set though. "
Bit of frivolous fun eh? It's a toy. Not a statement
At least the existence of the bag/sack in green means that it might appear in other sets in green.
Incredible. The Force is strong with this one.
That’s Santa piloting the X-Wing, isn’t it? So cool!
If I were a collector of LEGO Star Wars, I’d have to have this.
@rustenrat:
I've seen someone comment that the pilot _may_ be new, but based on how it was stated it shouldn't feature anything unique and Christmas-themed (in other words, it may just be the first roll-out of a new X-Wing pilot torso...though I didn't see any mention of the head or helmet). I have no idea about the droid. Yoda absolutely is unique to this set...but may use stock parts. They did a Santa Yoda for the first SWAC, but he had sand-green head and hands, red pants, and a candy cane tucked in his belt. This clearly has white hands, an olive-green head, black pants, and no candy cane. Best guess is they used the Santa torso that appears in the 2017 and 2019 City Advent Calendars, which has white fur trim at the waist and collar, but not connecting the two, and which has red belt loops. So, totally unique minifig, but easy to fake with stock parts.
@jkb said:
"So, is this a christ-wing? And isn't the cross rather an easter symbol?"
In red it would be a St Patrick's cross wing!
@The_Toniboeh
I though that pilot is exclusive figure. Can you give me part list for it?
Ho Ho Ho! I was so lucky to pick-up one of these, buying directly from a LEGO employee on Saturday as their Asia HQ is not far away from where I live and a mall that I frequent.
I built the set last night and I wanted to share my thoughts.
First off, it is awesome! This set is far and above what LEGO has been doing for years. Why? Because it contains a System-Sized Candy Cane X-Wing, Sleigh Speeder with Gifts, Yoda's (Snow Covered) Hut which doubles as a stand for X-Wing. The Minis are the same old, same old R2 (surprisingly the head print centered perfectly), Yoda with Santa torso (non exclusive, I think???) and green short legs...and the Yuletide Squadron Pilot with exclusive leg and torso print.
Why do I like the set so much? Well...secondly, it is because of these:
1) The box is reusable and reminds me of the old days when the boxes were designed as part of the set, for storage, once done.
2) The holiday card from LEGO, the instructions are interactive with fun, whimsical graphics and QR codes that lead to videos to watch.
3) The build is separated into 3 parts, with 3 instruction booklets, so you can choose what you want to do (I know some sets do this, but not all).
4) There are three "sets" in one with the X-Wing, Hut (stand) and Sleigh. This is so much fun!!! It provides both play and display all-in-one.
5) It is the final 20th Anniversary LEGO Star Wars Set and since I've bought them all, this year... it completes the wave.
Finally, I want to say that I love the concept of this set. It's truly a family holiday experience, think of when you bought the first few Advent Calendars and they were 'special' for the unique Xmas prints. However, I don't believe that the prices I've been seeing of $400-600 USD (consider shipping in the overall) is worth the cost for an exclusive box, card, instructions and a single minifigure (presuming the Yoda torso is not unique). Is this set for crazy-collector fans like me, maybe you too? Yes! Did the set lose more than half of its value after I opened it? Yes! So consider why you want it, what you will do with it, etc...before investing.
I have done an overview and unboxing video on my YouTube channel...will film a third, review video, now that I have finally built this truly, inspiringly-fun set. I will post that tomorrow.
Happy Holidays!
Side note: When watching the LEGO produced videos (via QR code), reading the holiday card and understanding the "concept" of this being a treasured family gift... If I were not an entrepreneur, I'd want to work for a company like this. It's touching!
@legoman1234 said:
R2 is a stock figure that is available in other sets. Yoda is an exclusive minifig, built out of common parts (the torso is from the last three City Advent Calendars). The pilot uses the new OT Obi-Wan head, but the body looks like an updated version of the B-Wing Pilot outfit used in the planet series and for Ten Nunb. The bib looks black in person, but based on the box art and photos of the minifig, I think they intended to make it dark-green for a more Christmasy feel.