LEGO Star Wars 75238 Action Battle Endor Assault review

There is a new game in town, with 75238 Action Battle Endor Assault part of a new LEGO Star Wars range. Is this set a bullseye – or does it fly wide of the mark?

Price: £24.99 / $29.99 / €29.99  Pieces: 198  Available: Now

LEGO Star Wars Action Battle sets are a new range in the LEGO Star Wars theme that combine iconic vehicles and settings with explosive play features. 75238 Action Battle Endor Assault includes a speeder bike with a stand, an Ewok hut, two brick built targets and two fully armed and operational cannons. The set also contains two exclusive minifigure variants – Wicket and a Scout Trooper.

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Whether in deep space or on the ground, huge battles are an integral part of what makes Star Wars so popular. Countless sets based around the various conflicts have been released, but this is the first time that fans can recreate the action in such a dramatic and devastating way. Technic cannons are used to fire giant projectiles at targets built into vehicles or buildings. Scoring a direct hit causes the build to break apart and sends minifigures flying.

The firing mechanisms of the Technic cannons work perfectly and they pack a punch, but be careful triggering them as they are very sensitive. The design behind the targets is also very clever, especially as they are so simple to put together – the printed 2×2 round tiles with Rebel and Imperial insignias are also a nice touch. As a play feature it is a lot of fun. The arrows really pack a punch and hitting the targets is incredibly satisfying.

While the speeder bike and Scout Trooper are sent flying upon impact, unfortunately none of the Ewok Hut breaks apart and Wicket just tumbles off his perch. This aspect is not quite as action packed as it should be.

There is also a slight design flaw – the 1×2 tan slope needs to be turned the other way round from the way the instructions show, otherwise Wicket gets caught and does not fall off. Neither the speeder bike or Ewok hut are particularly accurate to the source material but they are at least instantly recognisable and as representations they do an okay job.

The speeder bike comes together quickly with no real challenge, with the overall look a little bulkier than it needs to be. It’s a shame the design wasn’t given more care so that fans could use it outside of the Action Battle set if they so desired. It would just look too bulky sat alongside other LEGO speeder bike designs.

The Ewok Hut is a little more involved and overall is an enjoyable section to put together. There is nice shaping throughout, with the foliage and reddish brown skeleton leg offering nice detailing.

Two minifigures are included. Wicket, which is an updated version of the one included with 10236 Ewok Village. The tan printing around the face looks great but there is nothing really that different from previous variants.

The Scout Trooper has a brand new helmet piece. It is dual moulded and it is beautiful. There is tiny intricate detailing printed all over and it is potentially one of the best stormtrooper helmets that the LEGO Group has ever produced. The torso printing is equally well printed, but the legs completely let this figure down. They are just too white and do not look accurate enough to the source material. Fans will no doubt mix and match to create the perfect looking Scout Trooper – but this certainly isn’t the one.

As a play experience, this set absolutely hits the mark. As a collectible LEGO piece it is not close enough to the source material to please hardcore fans and the minifigures are not quite desirable enough  – even if the Scout Trooper helmet is worthy of any collection. There is a stylised charm to this model, though. The colour scheme and the balance of the two builds together actually makes it quite a cool looking thing to display – it will certainly be a conversation starter if anyone sees it on a shelf.

Those looking for fun play features should definitely consider adding this to the collection – but fans looking for a more rounded and traditional LEGO experience may want to aim their targeting system elsewhere.

75238 Action Battle Endor Assault is available now at shop.lego.com. You can help support Brick Fanatics’ work by using our affiliate links.

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