It’s been more than 10 years since Jarek shared the first version of his LEGO A-wing, a sleek starfighter first seen in Return of the Jedi. It’s always interesting to see how builders approach the same subject matter years apart, with improved building skills as well as access to new LEGO pieces. Jarek says that his updated A-wing has better proportions than the 2008 version, with properly brick-built missile launchers.
See more photos of Jarek’s A-wing along with new variants
If the Disney animated series Star Wars: Rebels was any indication, LEGO fans can look forward to a full assortment of sets featuring the characters and vehicles from the new series, Star Wars: Resistance, which just debuted a couple weeks ago. While we wait for official sets, we can enjoy this lovely mini version of the Fireball, a racing ship maintained by Kaz Xiono, Tam Ryvora, and their teammates, built in brick by Tim Goddard. Tim captures the unique color schemes and markings wonderfully, including the little fins and vanes on the nose and wingtips, and even the small gray panel in the white stripe near the nose.
Next up, Torra Doza’s Blue Ace in iconic Gulf Oil livery?
According to concept art, the RZ-1 A-wing interceptor is the fastest ship in the rebel fleet. It is certainly one of the sleekest fighters in the Star Wars universe. This model by Thomas Jenkins is high on my list of fan creations. The off-set tiles down the front of the ship lend a realistic look, without detracting from the clean lines. I also really like the angled detail on either side of the front fuselage that smoothes out an otherwise sharp edge.
The slight angle of the engine pods is quite accurate to its on-screen inspiration, and there are some excellent details along the back of the fighter as well, including an asymmetrical ingot on one side, and a very nice rear thruster detail using 2 spoilers in white.
There’s a special class of LEGO model which always catch the eye — those smaller creations which manage to pack in impressive depth of texture, making them look much bigger than they really are. This smart spaceship by Silmaril_1 looks supercool in its white and green livery, all sleek lines and futuristic curves. But the level of details along the side creates a sense of scale way beyond what you might expect from such a relatively small model. Minifigure hands and textured bricks are used to good effect, and the moulded hollows and ridges on those Technic panels work superbly at this scale as hull detailing. It’s a sharp and clean colour scheme, and the model is presented well — looking crisp and fresh against that black void of a backdrop.
We’ve been featuring the excellent LEGO models of Polish builder Jarek for more than ten years. While Jarek builds across many LEGO themes, he is perhaps best known for his highly detailed LEGO Star Wars vehicles, from the sleek A-wing back in 2008 and a 2-meter-long Imperial Star Destroyer to Darth Vader’s TIE Advanced just a few months ago. And yet, Jarek has never before built the iconic X-wing starfighter — until now.
The Incom T-65 X-wing is a particularly challenging craft to render in LEGO due to its harsh angles and distinctive details. As one of the most recognizable vehicles in the Star Wars universe, as well as a frequent subject of official LEGO sets, like the recent 75218 X-wing Starfighter. As a result, even casual fans tend to catch even the smallest inconsistencies and inaccuracies.
See more of what might be the best LEGO X-wing ever
Over the past few years, Rob Damiano has been building up a believable world around his Classic Space-inspired Nova Team. We have featured his work before and were pleasantly surprised to see this lovely Nova Team star-fighter. In a nod to the Classic Space ship numbering system, Rob named his star-fighter the LL-824 Paladin, and it is clad in the iconic blue, gray and trans yellow colors. It looks incredibly fun and swooshable. However, what really makes Rob’s work stand out is his photography, which utilizes a mix of practical effects and digital editing. While the Paladin is great, the setting and lighting help bring it life. It is reminiscent of the lively scenes found in LEGO product catalogs of the 1980s and 1990s, which also happen to be one of Rob’s sources of inspiration.
Despite — or perhaps because of — the release of two different T-70 X-wings produced in support of The Force Awakens in late 2015 and mid-2016, it’s been over six years since LEGO has released a version of the iconic T-65 starfighter featured in the Classic Trilogy. With the release of 75218 X-wing Starfighter on August 1st, the most recognizable Rebel fighter in the Star Wars universe becomes available to a new generation of LEGO builders. The latest X-wing includes 731 pieces and four minifigs and will retail for $79.99 in the US (CDN 99.99 | GBP 89.99).
How does this latest LEGO X-wing stack up against the previous X-wings released over the years?
Read our hands-on review of 75218 X-wing Starfighter
The use of repetitive shapes and colors can work wonders in a LEGO model — case in point, this awesome starfighter by Andreas Lenander. The various wings and nacelles all share similar shapes and outlines with red and white plates, giving the starfighter a wonderfully cohesive look. Andreas has made great use of the new X-Wing canopy, and a black cauldron on the engine of the ship.
A blend of agility and speed unmatched across the Twelve Worlds — well, at least that’s what Jeremy Williams says of his latest LEGO starfighter: the Xylian Interceptor. The overall shaping of this spaceship is wonderful, and the crystal-clear photography allows you to appreciate all the building techniques that went into it — don’t miss the complex arrangement of hinges, slopes, and curves that form the tips of the crescent body. I love the way the cockpit spheres are clamped in place, managing to look both realistic and futuristic at the same time. Jeremy’s trademark greeble skills are on display all over this model, particularly in the junction between cockpit and crescent, and the engine housing. Put a well-built model together with a strikingly simply colour scheme and smart presentation, and you’ve got a great little LEGO sci-fi creation.
One of the things I enjoyed about the last season of Star Wars Rebels was the incorporation of the new canon material introduced in Star Wars: Rogue One, with mentions of Director Krennic, appearances by the Death Troopers, and Ryder’s U-Wing, constructed here in LEGO form. Inthert has done an excellent job depicting the beat up, minimalistic, utilitarian look Ryder’s U-Wing was known for.
A top-down shot allows us to see the greebling on the interior of the front nacelles, giving the ship an exposed look similar to that of the Y-Wing. Close inspection reveals the neat usage of minifigure walkie-talkie elements and old vehicle exhaust pieces as hoses of some sort.
SweStar‘s latest starfighter is so sweet and cool, I don’t not what should I start with — an outstanding cockpit design or amazing textural detailing of the rear part of the ship; it’s just yet another example of the design so perfect, it’s hard to find a single thing to criticise the creation for. The build’s color scheme gives some very nice retro vibes, and I can’t help mentioning the Retro Spaceman as seen in the Series 17 of the Collectible Minifigures. I would love to see this guys piloting the spaceship!
And it would be a crime not to share one more picture of the starfighter showing its very cool shape.
I was never satisfied with LEGO’s attempt at a microscale Republic Gunship (also known as an LAAT) from the 2013 advent calendar, as it lacked the signature long engines, unless that’s what the binocular piece is supposed to represent. So a few days ago, since I’m working on a larger Star Wars microscale build, I thought I would try my hand at a micro LAAT, then a day later, I ended up with these two. Although I wasn’t worried about part count, these use only 19 pieces each, just five more than LEGO’s version.
Check out the video instructions below — there are picture versions, and a video that goes a bit more in depth on how to build this cute little model. I have also included a link to download the decal sheet I made, so you can print it out yourself as well.
Click here to see the instructions!