After a quick announcement yesterday that the official reveal of 75309 UCS Republic Gunship would be hitting YouTube today, thousands of viewers tuned in from all over the world to catch the first glimpse of the set.
The video started with David Hall from Solid Brix Studios sharing the large box he had received from LEGO. He then promptly opened the package to reveal the contents – the sleek black packaging that we have come to recognize as the 18+/Adult Collector theme with a starkly contrasting red and white Republic Gunship. After some quick admiration it was time to cut the seals and dump the elements onto the table.
The outer packaging contained another white box as well as some loose bags. The total bag count comes to 17 while two technic axles come separate in the box. The thick instruction manual comes bagged as well along with the sticker sheet and data sheet. David then started the build.
After getting through the first few portions, it was time for the Q&A to begin. David introduced Jens Kronvold Frederiksen, creative lead of LEGO Star Wars, and Hans Burkhard Schlömer, designer of the Republic Gunship and then started in with his list of questions.
We will let you watch the full video for all of the details, but we will share a few highlights here.
One particularly interesting question was how Hans started with the design of the model. He said that he framed it around the front cockpit elements knowing that choosing the right elements would determine the size of the overall model. As we already knew, the decision was made to re-use the same element from the Jedi Interceptor. Both cockpits received special printing to capture the correct look.
Next was describing some of the special features of the set. There are counter-rotating chambers in the back of the ship that represents how the missile launchers on top are loaded. The doors on each side of the ship slide back, and the ball turrets on either side are fully hinged allowing them to rotate as well.
Closing out the video was the final reveal of the two minifigures that will be included in the set. Mace Windu and a Clone Trooper Commander were selected as the two inclusions. While clearly out of scale with the ship itself, these are are included purely for display purposes – plus what good is a LEGO set without minifigures?!
Are you pleased with the design? Was the reveal what you had hoped it would be? Let us know down below!
Founder and owner of The Holo-Brick Archives, Kevin Downard maintains and curates the Database Catalog as a collecting resource for all fans and covers new product releases.
Getting in at the ground floor when the LEGO Star Wars theme first launched, Kevin has been collecting ever since. He is a self-proclaimed minifigure guru and has a passion for tracking down and cataloging every minifig variation – no matter how obscure. He has assisted Rebrickable and Bricklink in maintaining their set inventories, helped overhaul the rebelscum.com LEGO forum, and created the LSW Collector mobile app.
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