Over the last couple of years, we have started to see two different lines developing in ‘Things that used to be called Ultimate collector Series’ – Direct to Consumer, highly detailed, Star Wars sets, with lots of detail: True UCS sets – such as the Millennium Falcon, Imperial Star Destroyer, Awing Fighter and so forth, and the Master Builder Series: Essentially a large, detailed playset – First seen last year with Betrayal at Cloud City, with origins a few years earlier in the Attack on Hoth, this year we move to Tatooine, and that first wretched Hive of scum and villainy: Mos Eisley, and more importantly, the Cantina.

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With 3187 pieces, a jaw dropping 21 minifigures, and a recommended retail price of $AUD529.99/ £319.99/€349.99/$USD349.99 this is the most detailed version of the iconic location seen to date.

When Star Wars first opened in 1977, society seemed to be predominantly human, with the mysterious Jawas and Sandpeople living seperately from regular society. Then Ben Kenobi takes Luke Skywalker to the cantina in Mos Eisley, and suddenly, humans are in the minority of sentient beings. We have been here before: 4501 in 2004 was the first example: back in the days when licenced minifigures were still yellow. It was a simple afair, with a dewback, landspeeder and a single booth, and one of the simplest bar setups we have ever seen.

Then in 2014, we got 75502: A little more detail, some more booths. Once again, we get Luke, Ben, Han, Greedo and a stormtrooper with a new type of Dewback lizard. But we also gain Figran D’an and the Modal Nodes – the house band.

2018, and we get our most recent outing: no sign of Luke and Ben, but we have Han, Greedo, the barman Wuher, and a sand trooper, as well as the spherical Ubrikkian speeder.

The new model looks like a large, tan rectangle, with a couple of half globes. The building opens up to demonstratethe bar and booths within. There are a couple of out buildings – including a workshop, and shop, run by the Jawas.

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There are probably more minifiugres than I can comfortably name… but let’s try:

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That’s quite a roll call.

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Here is the Press Release…

THIS PLACE CAN BE A LITTLE ROUGH – THE LEGO GROUP ANNOUNCES LEGO® STAR WARS^TM MOS EISLEY CANTINA™ CONSTRUCTION SET FROM STAR WARS: A NEW HOPE

 Star Wars fans, film lovers and builders can rejoice as the LEGO Group launches a new out-of-this-world building kit of a classic Star Wars scene – available from 16^th September from LEGO.com and LEGO Stores.

Coming from a galaxy far, far away and into to the homes of LEGO enthusiasts and Star Wars fans across the world – the LEGO Group’s new LEGO® Star Wars building set,  the Mos Eisley Cantina™ set, will dazzle adult builders and film fans alike. Bringing to life one of the Skywalker saga’s most iconic locations, the new set is sure to become an instant classic as Rebels immerse themselves in the famous cantina’s world of smugglers, musicians, bounty hunters and Jedi Knights.

The impressive building kit gives adult LEGO fans the chance to relax and enjoy a mindful building experience as they reconnect with their passion for the original trilogy. Intrepid builders can even open up the set’s removable roof to admire its intricate details and act out their favourite Star Wars: A New Hope scenes, using iconic character mini-figures including Luke Skywalker^TM, Han Solo^TM, C-3PO^TM. Additionally, the set features eight character minifigures that have been introduced in LEGO form for the first time, including Ponda Baba^TM (“He doesn’t like you”), Dr. Evazan^TM (“I don’t like you either…”), Garindan^TM – the Spy – , and more.

As they embark on their journey to bring Mos Eisley’s quintessential taverna to life, films lovers and Star Wars devotees will be thrilled to discover the set’s special features, such as the attachable buildings, two Landspeeders – one of which has never been built in LEGO before – and a dewback LEGO figure. The LEGO® Star Wars: A New Hope Mos Eisley Cantina™ is also dotted with hidden details throughout, such a “Wanted” poster featuring R2D2 and C-3PO, to the kyber crystals hidden in one of the exterior buildings.

Once built, the 3,187-piece LEGO® Star Wars Mos Eisley Cantina™ construction set makes for an extraordinary display piece, standing at over 7.5” (19cm) high, 20.5” (52cm) wide and 23” (58cm) deep when opened.

Part of the Master Builder series, the new Star Wars building kit is the latest example of how the LEGO Group aims to inspire builders to build, rebuild and get excited by the process of creation. Speaking about the creative process behind the new building kit, set designer Cesar Soares said: “The first time I watched the Cantina scene in Star Wars: A New Hope, I was just 12 years old. I remember thinking, ‘this is where the adventure starts!’ Years later, when I then became a LEGO® Star Wars ™ designer in 2016, this was the first set I built. With this design, we’ve added external buildings like the Jawa shop, refined the details, and chosen an impressive 21 minifigure characters, including all-new alien figures. I love that all Star Wars characters have cool backstories, no matter how briefly they appear, it wasn’t easy to decide which characters to include in the set, but we hope fans will love the entire model and its line-up of heroes and villains.”

There is a huge variety of LEGO® Star Wars™ building sets available to delight fans including the LEGO Star Wars Luke’s Landspeeder helping you reimagine your favourite Star Wars A New Hope scenes, or  create their own epic stories or just build and display the awesome models, such as the TIE Fighter Pilot HELMET™ and A-Wing Starfighter™. This set is perfect for those looking for a new building challenge – making it ideal for ages 18+ to enjoy solo or with friends and family.

The LEGO® Star Wars Mos Eisley Cantina™ construction set will be available for LEGO VIP members from 16^th September and then globally from 1^st October, directly via LEGO.com and LEGO Stores.

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Now, as my first coherent ‘Alien Experience’ as I was growing up, the cantina scene has a certain degree of nostalgic value for me. I appreciate the multitude of nooks, crannies and booths for the minifigures to gather in, to have a quiet drink, away from prying eyes. This set certainly catches the mood, and I am wondering how long it will be before we find some really moody custom lighting for the the set. With so many opportunities for story telling…I find myself wondering where I have left my copy of the no-longer-canon Tales from the Mos Eisley Cantina – an anthology from 1995, giving us the story of haow many of the cantina’s denizns got to be in the run up to this fateful scene.

I probably find this Master Builder’s set personally more appealing than last year’s 75222 Betrayal at Cloud City. It comes hot on the heels of the release of Diagon Alley – and you might suggest that this was the moment in Luke Skywalker’s life that his eyes were properly opened to the potential life of a Space Adventurer, much as Harry Potter was introduced to the ways of Wizardry in his first visit to Diagon Alley with Hagrid, all those years ago.

The set goes on Sale for VIPs on Sunday, and then wider distribution on the 1st of October.

What do you think of this latest AFOL Focussed Star Wars set? Do you prefer a detailed model of a craft, or the ability to craft a detailed diorama? Why not leave your comments below, and until next time,

Play Well.

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While you are here:

There is still a time to get you entries in for our LEGO Super Mario Competition. Design a new level, enemy and or obstacle for a chance to win LEGO Super MArio Prizes. Click here for more details.

Would you be interested in attending a Fan Event based o LEGO History, in 2022? OldBrick.it and I are investigating the feasibility, and trying to find out what people might like to see: go to this link before the end of September for more details.