Lego Death Star - Building The Doomsday Machine One Brick At A Time

In the Star Wars stories, the most malevolent element of the plot is the Death Star, the planet-destroying artificial moon that Emperor Palpatine was constructing in orbit around the moon of the planet Endor. It was the ultimate doomsday weapon. Destroying it was the only chance Luke and his friends had to save the Alliance from certain destruction - if they were faced with an enemy that could destroy entire planets, they would have no chance at all.

Making maximum use of the flexibility of their basic product, and the very active imaginations of their design staff, Lego has created their own version of this mighty weapon, the Lego Death Star, which brings the Star Wars Saga into the reach of kids (of all ages) everywhere. This fantastic set, with over 3,800 pieces - many of them specially designed for this set - creates the Death Star in great detail, presenting lots of opportunities to stage different action sequences from the Star Wars films.

The completed model is 16 inches tall, and 16-1/2 inches in diameter. This set, Lego 10188, consists of three decks, each of which has a number of different sections with a variety of functional purposes. One of the most recognizable is the Trash Compactor, where Luke, Leia, and Han nearly met their untimely ends. The compactor in the Lego Death Star has walls that can be rotated to close the chamber, crushing the trash - and any unfortunate individuals who happen to be in there at the time! Another really great aspect of this part of the model is the fact that the set includes the Dianoga monster that inhabits the compactor - and almost killed Luke.

Another neat feature of this Lego Death Star is the Laser Super weapon. This doomsday weapon is built with green laser beams that shine out from the edges of the dish and meet in the center to increase the intensity of the center beam. The weapon can be rotated, and the angle can be changed. These are just some of the moving parts in this model. Some of the other weapons in this model are lasers and cannons, found in the compartment near the Trash Compactor.

Some of the stations in the Death Star have various types of weapons consoles that can be operated by the Storm Troopers and other Imperial guards and mini-figures that are included with the set. Other interesting details in this Lego Death Star construction set are found in places like the TIE Fighter bay, where Darth Vader's TIE Fighter (which is included by the way!) can land. There are a total of 24 different mini-figure characters that are included in this Death Star set.

The upper deck of the Lego Death Star provides sleeping quarters which are equipped with typical furniture. Also on that deck is a weapons room with two dual laser cannons, plus an additional room which might be a conference room, including several rotating chairs and a large table, where the Emperor can hold meetings with his evil commanders. This is just one more example of the level of detail that this set contains, which makes it a great prop for recreating a variety of Star Wars scenarios.

This set, Lego 10188, is actually the second version of the Death Star that Lego has produced. The first version, Lego 10143, was released in 2005. In contrast to the new set, which is rich in detail and has lots of prop pieces that can be used to recreate various scenes, this first version seems to have been intended to be mostly a static display model - although a highly detailed one! The set, when completed, stands 25 inches high, and is 19 inches wide. It recreates the Imperial Death Star in its partially constructed state. There is even a scale-model Imperial Star Destroyer in orbit around the Death Star.

This Lego Death Star set is bound to be a popular item this year, certainly around Christmas time! If you want one for that special someone on your gift list - or if you want to have it for yourself - it would be smart to act fast, before you find out that it is temporarily (or permanently!) out of stock. Click the links in the resource box to get the latest information on best prices, and availability.