Lego’s First ‘Star Trek’ Set Ought to Be a Signal of Nice Issues to Come

After what’s felt like years of ready, hoping, and speculating, earlier this 12 months, Lego finally confirmed it will be boldly going ahead with a Star Trek set that has develop into the centerpiece of the brick-maker’s annual Thanksgiving celebrations. Can it dwell as much as the hype?

Fortunately, the reply is a convincing sure. Lego’s first foray into Star Trek, the Enterprise-D from The Subsequent Technology, is a captivating tribute to the legendary collection whereas additionally being a particularly compelling construct expertise for diehard Lego followers, full of enjoyable strategies to take care of Star Trek‘s famously smooth-lined starship design on this planet of Lego. io9 not too long ago acquired a evaluate copy of the Enterprise from Lego, so we’re right here to take you inside and see what makes it so good—and why we hope it means it’s the first of many.

How lengthy does it take to construct Lego’s Star Trek Enterprise-D set?

Clocking in at 3,600 items, the Lego Enterprise-D is a reasonably sizeable mannequin, leading to a reproduction of the Galaxy-class starship and a sturdy show stand to pose it mid-flight on that measures round 23.5″ from fore to aft and 10.5″ tall (aided by the very fact the ship is held at an upwards angle on its stand). Whereas it’s a main enterprise, the construct is damaged into three distinct sections: the secondary hull and the Enterprise‘s nacelles, the stand itself, after which half of the 30 luggage within the set are devoted to the primary saucer.

Given the character of the Enterprise-D’s design, when you get going, there are loads of comparable strategies repeated again and again, so in the event you’re a well-known builder, you possibly can go fairly rapidly and even duplicate some steps to hurry up the method. Total, although, in the event you’re taking issues leisurely, you could be accomplished in 9-10 hours… or round 12 episodes of Deep House 9, in the event you’re like me and wish to put one thing on when you’re constructing (sorry TNG followers, however I’d not too long ago simply restarted a rewatch and determined to proceed that moderately than placed on a extra thematically applicable little bit of background noise!).

What number of minifigures are in Lego’s Star Trek Enterprise-D set?

Regardless that the main target of the set is the ship duplicate moderately than a playset surroundings, it will be a criminal offense if Lego’s first Trek set didn’t go all in on minifigures. Fortunately, the Enterprise-D comes with 9 minifigures to faithfully recreate the bridge crew you recognize and love: Picard, Riker, Troi, Worf, La Forge, Information, Dr. Crusher, and Wesley Crusher in his well-known jumper. Becoming a member of them to spherical out the set is a welcome however barely oddball alternative in Guinan, hostess of the Enterprise lounge Ten Ahead, however she, like Wesley, breaks up the ocean of comparable Starfleet uniforms with some beautiful distinctive parts to recreate her trendy wardrobe.

Every minifigure comes with an adjunct, some extra distinctive than others, even when they’re all applicable. Wesley will get a really distinctive accent within the type of a mini duplicate of the moveable tractor beam generator from “The Bare Now,” as does Riker together with his beloved trombone. Picard naturally comes with a teacup, Guinan has a inexperienced bottle of one thing from Ten Ahead (it’s by no means explicitly famous what it’s, nevertheless it looks like a nod to the Aldebaran whiskey Information affords Scotty in “Relics”), Information will get Spot the cat, and Geordi comes with an engineering equipment. Maybe the least attention-grabbing ones are sarcastically essentially the most usually Star Trek: Worf will get a handheld phaser, which is cleverly constructed with a wedge piece and a deal with, at the very least, whereas Deanna and Beverly get a PADD and medical tricorder… each of that are simply printed 1×2 tiles. That are tremendous and possibly the perfect Lego may do at minifigure scale, however simply form of boring.

What is good is that, in a uncommon transfer, the Enterprise-D comes with just a little separate stand to place the minifigures on in a row, full with a cute little Subsequent Technology title card (albeit as a sticker, moderately than a printed piece). It’s a pleasant acquiescence to the truth that the construct is extra in regards to the show mannequin than the minifigures themselves, nevertheless it was nonetheless good that Lego constructed one thing extra structured to show them on, as a substitute of simply leaving them as-is.

Is Lego’s Star Trek Enterprise-D set tough to construct?

Constructing a Lego mannequin out of a ship just like the Enterprise-D is a dangerous endeavor, given its peculiar shaping and weight distribution, on prime of the truth that, properly, it’s largely gray. However Lego places loads of attention-grabbing strategies in all through the construct to not solely successfully seize the curvature and shaping of the Galaxy-class but additionally to maintain your fingers busy and never have issues blur into a protracted collection of comparable patterns getting used to construct similar-looking, similar-colored items.

There are undoubtedly just a few locations the place extra seasoned Lego builders can begin duplicating builds to hurry up the method: the construct of the secondary hull of the Enterprise is cut up into two halves, for instance, earlier than you construct the 2 nacelles which might be equivalent in construction. When you’ve constructed the skeleton of the primary saucer, you’re then primarily repeating little plate sections of the hull to sandwich over it. Whereas the repeating generally is a bit, properly, repetitive, there are sufficient attention-grabbing strategies used for skilled builders and sufficient easy patterning for Trek followers who is perhaps embarking on their first-ever Lego construct of this scale.

On prime of that, though the Enterprise-D is a show set moderately than a playset, the design staff nonetheless snuck in just a few enjoyable little options and Easter eggs. The aforementioned foremost saucer part, for instance, is secured into place by just a little floating shuttlecraft coming in to dock at its aft shuttle bay—which could be eliminated so you possibly can separate the saucer from the secondary hull to copy the Galaxy-class’ distinctive function. And though you don’t get to construct its iconic bridge, the middle of the saucer does maintain just a little duplicate of the Enterprise‘s dedication plaque! At the same time as somebody who’s on the document on the D being removed from my favourite Enterprise design, I couldn’t assist however be charmed at simply how properly Lego managed to convey it faithfully to life.

How a lot is Lego’s Star Trek Enterprise-D set? Is it well worth the worth?

Alas, that is going to be the sticking level for lots of Star Trek followers. At $400, the Enterprise-D will not be fairly so eye-watering as a few of Lego’s different current set costs, nevertheless it’s nonetheless an enormous ask, and particularly tough contemplating it’s the primary time (and doubtlessly final) the corporate has tackled Star Trek. You’re undoubtedly getting one thing that feels well worth the worth when it comes to measurement and scope, nevertheless it’s not exhausting to marvel if Lego ought to’ve began out at a smaller scale or with totally different concepts past ship replicas to check the waters and see if Star Trek may develop into simply as enduring a Lego collection as Star Wars has, if the choice was a really expensive one-off.

We don’t know what the longer term for Lego Star Trek holds past the Enterprise-D—this may very well be the beginning of a yearly launch schedule akin to Lego’s strategy to Lord of the Rings, a line that solely stays within the higher echelons of adult-focused, high-end (and high-cost) units. It’s simple that as a construct expertise and as a reproduction of one of many collection’ most well-known starships, the Enterprise-D is a Star Trek and Lego fan’s dream: it appears nice, it’s a enjoyable, huge construct, and it’s bought an excellent assortment of minifigures that feels full in the way in which that, if that is it, at the very least you bought every little thing you’d need.

Nevertheless it’s equally simple that loads of Star Trek followers and loads of Lego followers are going to be delay by Lego’s determination to go huge because it did right here to justify asking such a excessive worth, in an age the place the corporate’s merchandise really feel like they’re solely getting pricier and pricier. There’s much more worth within the Enterprise-D in comparison with a few of 2025’s different big-ticket units, positive, however $400 remains to be $400.

If there was some form of indication from Lego that this wouldn’t be it and that there could be extra, smaller-scoped units, it is perhaps a neater capsule to swallow, figuring out Trek followers can wait and see what else the corporate does in the event that they don’t wish to throw down this a lot money in a single go. At the same time as nice a set as it’s, it’s a tricky promote to anybody however a few of the most diehard Star Trek followers with out some Ferengi-level justification to your pockets.

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