As per usual, with four of the 2021 Advent Calendars, I’ll be updating this post daily, but this time, purely with Cam’s thoughts! Each day will have an image of the day’s build, a quick comment, with a final overall review at the end of the month. If you want to keep up to date with the post, use the link to the right of the page – it’ll be there for the duration of December. We won’t be posting any pics on social media, so it won’t get spoilt by us!
Theme: Seasonal; Star Wars
No: 75307
Release Year: 2021
Cost: AUD $49.95
Pieces: 335 (with 5 minifigures)
BB: If you’ve been along on this journey with me for a while now, welcome back! If you’re just new to the Advent Calendar season, then welcome. Last year we were able to hear Cam’s thoughts, so we’ll be doing that again! Each day Cam will open the new window and provide an image or two and his thoughts on the build, with a big wrap up at the end. I’ll post them at night, so there’ll be no spoilers during the day. This post will be updated each day (Perth, Australia time (GMT +8), so it’s all in the one spot. He’s not seen any yet, so these are all raw thoughts!
I’d also really appreciate if you gave us a thought by using the affiliate link if you’re shopping for Christmas LEGO on LEGO.com. I get a very small commission if you buy something using the link, which really helps paying to run the site. I didn’t receive any of these sets for free this year – they were all bought by either me, or Cam in the case of the Star Wars one.
Over to Cam!
It’s awesome that John has pulled me on board to help review the Advent Calendars again this year. Of course I get the pleasure of doing the STAR WARS calendar (if it is a pleasure!). So starting off with the box – it’s another classic ‘spoil the surprise by putting half of it all the the box’. Besides this they have gone for the winter/snow setting again and overall a similar box design to last year’s calendar.
Day 1: Razor Crest
Day 1. Todays Build. As an adult who also did last year’s advent calendar I must say I’m disappointed. It is an upgrade, but a micro scale Razor Crest two years in a row just doesn’t cut it for me. If you’re not sure what this is, it’s the ship from The Mandalorian on Disney+, piloted by Din Djarin (although it doesn’t exactly look like this now, does it?). It’s got a wider wingspan than last year, and the tiles on the side do look better, but it was a strange choice.
Surely it would have been better to do a micro scale AT-AT as a bit of a marketing ploy for the new UCS set. As for my trans-black cockpit – two different colours clearly. I hope that we have improvement from this in the future days!
Day 2: Bounty Hunter Fighter
A very interesting build this morning. This is a Bounty Hunter Fighter ship. It’s only seen briefly at the start of an episode of The Mandalorian on Disney+, piloted by Riot Mar. It doesn’t last long either, with crafty Razor Crest pilot Din Djarin blows it up after he is attacked by it. The interesting thing is that we have never seen this ship in LEGO form at all. Maybe we will see one in play scale in the future? As for the build, the two side wings are very flimsy, and care is needed to not knock them off. I’m not sure how I feel about the open studs on top – a tile would have finished it off nicely. I don’t think too many people are going to recognise this as the Bounty Hunter Fighter, but I’m sure kids will still enjoy building another little ship.
Day 3: Stormtrooper
Not too much to say about this one. It’s just a classic stormtrooper. A normal male clone head underneath. I feel like it would have been better to include a weapon of some sort, as this seems plain and has less playability for kids. We also have the newer dual moulded stormtrooper head – while it is a bit large, the attention to details in it is appreciated.
Day 4: E-Web Reciprocating Blaster
It makes sense! So todays build is the blaster/gunner turret for the stormtrooper, the E-Web reciprocating blaster. This is a turret used in The Mandalorian by stormtroopers in the series. I actually really liked this build. I’m not a fan of stud shooters as an adult, but for the playability for kids it is great. Not sure about the ‘snowballs’ though. I feel as if a trans-red piece would have represented the blaster bullets better. The E-Web has a great study design especially with the trans-clear pieces underneath and it complements the stormtrooper so well. Excited to see what is to come.
Day 5: Targets
I’m not too sure on today’s build. These obviously represent targets to shoot at. I think it is interesting that this is build has absolutely nothing to do with the STAR WARS universe. The build is very simplistic with just 3 pieces in each target. I do like that they can be used with the E-WEB from yesterday and can shoot studs at the targets and knock them over – It’s harder than it looks! So far I just haven’t been in love with much of this advent calendar. I hope it gets better.
Day 6: Imperial Troop Transport
Here we have the micro scale build of the Imperial Troop Transport from The Mandalorian. While we do not have this exact ship in a larger LEGO set style, you would be looking at the Imperial Armoured Marauder which is slightly different. This was a high piece count build, which was very flimsy until completed. The parts usage is nothing special, and there isn’t much you can do with this build. The ‘turret’ on the top is movable. I think that the side pieces don’t represent the troop transport in the series properly, but for this scale it would have to be a pass. I’m hoping to be excited about one of these builds soon…
Day 7: The Mythrol’s Landspeeder
Yesss! Excitement. This is my favourite so far. I really like that this was included as I feel like this speeder and the character who drives it have a crucial role in The Mandalorian. The Mythrol is one of the first characters we meet and the first bounty of Din Djarin. The speeder is piloted by The Mythrol in a later episode. This is the largest build we have had so far. I love the light blue colour, it matches the real speeder colour properly. I do wish however that it was The Mythrol minifigure included instead of the speeder. These are the things I’m excited to see in the advent because they are instantly recognisable from the series. Hope we see more of this in the coming days!
Day 8: Tusken Raider
I’m not too sure about the plain minifigure builds. Today we have just a basic Tusken Raider. There is nothing new about this minifigure – the printing hasn’t changed, nor the head mould. Again, I feel like it would have been better to include a weapon of some sort, as it seems plain and has less playability for kids. Maybe tomorrow we will get that (like with the stormtrooper). As an adult, I’m almost a little disappointed with a build like this today – I would be very interested to hear what kids think about receiving just a plain minifigure. Anyhow, another Tusken Raider for my collection of many.
Day 9: Tusken Raider Weapons Rack
Day 10: Tusken Raider Ballista
Another weapon for the Tusken Raider. Here we have a scaled down version of their Ballista – as seen in The Mandalorian. Obviously it is not an actual ballista, but the design mimics that shape. The playability is there with the stud shooter on top – we can use those red targets from day 5 again. The tooth/bone pieces on the side are a bit loose and easy to knock off. Again, I think that the ‘snowball’ representation of the white stud is a bit strange. Instead why not put a flick missile on top, would look for like a big arrow at least then!
Day 11: X-Wing
Of course – you can’t have a LEGO Star Wars Advent calendar without an X-Wing! We see the X-Wing a few times in The Mandalorian, especially towards the end of season 2. This X-Wing is pretty well designed features wise. We have a blue stud representing R2-D2, the cockpit and nose is a good shape, and the wings look good – but poorly attached. This build has many great elements of SNOT (studs not on top) to achieve lots of extra detail. There are pieces upside down and left and right. So design wise I think this was a very enjoyable build.
Day 12: TIE Fighter
The opposite build to yesterday! The dark side have their own attack ship too! Here we have a TIE Fighter, it is just the generic TIE Fighter. I would have expected that they would have built this as the leader of the galactic empire – Moff Gideon’s TIE Fighter with a red stripe in the cockpit area. It is a reasonably sturdy build for the attachment of the wings, there is no notable pieces and not a big variation from the many micro scale TIE Fighters that have been done in the past. This build stands out to me as part of the Original Trilogy Star Wars films rather than in The Mandalorian, nevertheless It’s still a nice build.
Day 13: Scout Trooper
I’m starting to see the pattern here I think. Today’s build is just another plain minifigure. The Scout Troopers have almost a comedic role in the series and are easily recognisable to the Star Wars franchise – I think this is good. Scout Troopers have always been a personal favourite of mine, so I was happy it was included, although I think my hopes are set too high to expect a speeder in the coming days. Like the stormtrooper previously, we have the newer dual moulded head. But again, fans of LEGO and The Mandalorian will already have this exact minifigure if they own the Razor Crest. As said before, why would you not give him a weapon straight away. I’m not sure if I should expect that weapon to come in tomorrow’s packet or will I be surprised. Stay tuned!
Day 14: Weapons Rack
Well I can’t say I am surprised about today’s build. The whole pattern that is going on is a little annoyingly predictable. So we have a generic weapons rack today, presumably the weapons to go along with our Scout Trooper. I like that they have included two blasters here, different sizes too. The build is basic, but serves a good purpose. I think it looks good and matches in with the scale of minifigures and the LEGO Star Wars universe – which helps it to stand out as a positive build for me. No rare or special pieces to mention, but I’m looking forward to tomorrow’s build because the pattern has ended. Catch you soon!
Day 15: Speeder Bike
Funny thing happened… my expectations were blown in a way… we got a speeder bike! It might not be anything too special but I think it is great for playability and swooshability! The design is very simple, but I appreciate the size of it to be accommodating to our scout trooper minifigure with the limitations to fit inside the advent calendar slot. I find it interesting that the base which is 2 1×6 plates together isn’t a single 2×6 plate – they mustn’t fit in the box! Now, we could go on and say the proportions and angle of the nose are way off and that it’s a bit blocky, but honestly I’m just glad LEGO included this as it is. Looking forward to the final few builds to go, hopefully we keep this good momentum up.
Day 16: Astromech Ferry
Today was an interesting build. A micro-scale astromech transport service. We don’t see much of this in The Mandalorian, but we do see a scene where The Mandalorian and The Child hide and fight off the back of the platform. I thought it was interesting to include this at this scale as it doesn’t really serve the notable purpose as in the series – this means you can’t -reenact and play with minifigures properly. In addition to this, the build is a bit inaccurate, with the height of the rear platform and also the enclosure on the platform too. Not too sure what else to say about this one, but I feel like there would have been better options from the series to include in the advent calendar.
Day 17: Imperial Light Cruiser
I really enjoy today’s microscale build of the Imperial Light Cruiser. This is the ship that Mof Gideon travels the galaxies in, and is the setting of the finale of season 2 of The Mandalorian. Of course LEGO had to include this build, because of it’s role in the series, but also because it is good marketing for the larger play size scale model which is still on shelves. The build here is clearly predominantly light grey, but has the trans light blue studs representing the boosters on the rear. The bridge on top is a little bit rough, I think there could have been a better design for it. Building the Imperial Light Cruiser was enjoyable, there are so many pieces in this one, and there are many SNOT techniques used to create a really accurate microscale ship. Good job on this one LEGO.
Day 18: IT-O Interrogation Droid
Day 19: Slave I
Another build that I am impressed with, partially due to the same theme of this build being apart of the entire Star Wars franchise. Today we built a microscale Slave I, the ship of bounty hunter Boba Fett throughout the movies and The Mandalorian series. This has been my favourite of this year’s calendar so far. There is really good parts usage, strong connections, lots of SNOT, and not to forgot a very accurate microscale version of the ship. Although, I will say that I think it is a bit too green, but honestly can’t complain. I’m excited to see what we get for the final five builds after such a cracker like this one.
Day 20: IG-11
I’m going to assume that the little pattern is starting up again after todays build. Here we have IG-11, the bounty droid that is seen throughout The Mandalorian series and ever so briefly in The Empire Strikes Back. Now if you own the Razor Crest LEGO set, you’ll already have this figure, the same situation as the Scout Trooper earlier in the calendar. There is nothing different with this build, it’s the usual basic droid parts with the printed ‘head’ piece. As I mentioned earlier, I expect the pattern to resume and tomorrow we get a weapon for him as there was not one with him today or maybe that is why there are two blasters on the Blaster Rack from day 14. If this is the case then I’m not sure why you would have two different ‘teams’ storing their weapons together. A little bit of a disappointing one today. Hopefully we have some improvement.
Day 21: Weapons Rack
I can’t say I am surprised or impressed with this build. So as expected, we built a weapons rack with the gun on the left to go along with IG-11. Not sure if it is a bit of a spoiler that Din Djarin’s Anbam phase-pulse rifle is the weapon on the right. A similar build to the last weapons rack shape wise, although I am a bit unsure about the ‘screen’ and ‘control panel’ if that is what they are? Or as John thought I am over thinking it and the red thing is the ‘Christmas bit’. Anywho, a few extra blasters for the collection, and the opportunity to be surprised for the last three days because my expectations are low at the moment.
Day 22: Christmas Grogu
Well… cute… not much of a build today, just the three pieces. The exclusive prints is what the LEGO Advent Calendar fans are all waiting for, usually it’s on the last day, but it has come early! Grogu, or The Child, in his Christmas sweater! We have the baby carrier piece for him too, great for attaching the child to the previous speeder build. The print on the torso piece is so delicate, classic white snow flakes and a green scarf. It is amazing that LEGO is able to put a print on so small and precise. I’m very interested to know why we got the exclusive Christmas printing a few builds early, so I’m looking forward to seeing what is to come.
Day 23: Grogu’s Carriage
The second last build of the advent calendar. An interesting build today – a great idea, not the best execution in my opinion. This is Grogu or The Child’s ‘carriage’. A levitation pod which he spends much time in. I think that the red is supposed to represent Christmas colours because the actual pod does not have any red on it, in fact, it’s plain white. Which brings my next point – why is this built light bluish grey? Seems like a slip in execution of this build. It has a 2×2 jumper to place The Child in from yesterday’s build, other than that no notable pieces or prints to mention. Hoping that the last build tomorrow is a good one.
Day 24: Christmas Mandalorian
The final build! Today we had our final minifigure (which was spoiled on the box) but it is Din Djarin, The Mandalorian himself, the main character of the series. We have an exclusive Christmas print here for him too, and it’s awesome to get two of them in the calendar this year. The delicate red scarf print on top of his Beskar armour is a subtle Christmas touch to round out the advent this year. We didn’t get his Anbam Phase-pulse rifle with him as it was included previously on the weapons rack. I don’t like how even if you had avoided looking at the box you would have still worked out that we would be receiving The Mandalorian figure. Everything besides his torso is nothing new, with a plain black head underneath the helmet. I wonder when we will see a printed face for Din Djarin. The only minifigure that would properly round up the 2021 LEGO Star Wars Advent Calendar. Happy Christmas Eve everyone!
This year’s LEGO Star Wars Advent Calendar was very up and down, with a little more down in my opinion. LEGO really went all out with The Mandalorian theme from the show on Disney+. Going with the theme was a bit restrictive as there aren’t too many notable builds to include. I was surprised to open up four figures that were all included in the Razor Crest set (albeit two have Christmas prints). I would have appreciated different figures, as there are so many more notable characters throughout the series.
The microscale builds this year were mostly really good. I think the X-wing was the least appreciated as it had a very weak connection for the wings and it’s such a recurring build. The Mythrol’s Speeder was my personal favourite of the entire calendar. It was great to get a completely new build and design, I just wished we got the minifigure too!
The pattern that was occurring was a little bit easy to predict and meant there wasn’t as much excitement when opening builds. While you didn’t know exactly what you were building most of the time you knew that it was going to be a minifigure, weapons rack or stud shooter build. It would have be appreciated if they had mixed it up more.
All in all, as an adult, and a lover of the original and prequel trilogiess more than anything I found myself very critical of the builds included. I still enjoyed opening them each and every day. I hope that you and your kids had the fun that I had as well. I already mentioned my favourite build, but a notable mention has got to be the speeder, scout trooper and The Child in the carrier. I loved putting the three of these together to recreate the scenes in the series.
So that wraps up the 2021 LEGO Star Wars Advent Calendar. Thanks to John again for allowing me to be a part of the blog, and for your patience too John. Now I’m sure you all won’t forget to open day number 25! Hopefully it’s a wrapped rectangle box that you shake under the tree and makes the plastic jingle sound we all love. Merry Christmas everyone!
