6915 - Warp Wing-Fighter

Rating:
Pros: An excellent design - the best of all UFO ships; a wide variety of great pieces; a U.F.O. mini-fig with helmet and shoulder-pads; under $30
Cons: Landing gear design could use some work; pre-printed cockpit canopy, wings, and saucer pieces
Contents: 234 pieces including 2 mini-figs
Price: $29.99
Reviewed: 12-Jun-1997
Reviewed by: Patrick Delahanty

The battle in the stars has begun. The L.S.S. Explorien, sent out to investigate a flurry of U.F.O. sightings, has just reported in. They've encountered a small fleet of medium-sized space fighters.
The captain of the L.S.S. Explorien recently transmitted the following log entry: "If this was a long time ago and we were in a galaxy far, far away, I'd swear that the Rebel Alliance was after us. These alien fighters look like a fleet of X-wings about to take on the Death Star...and we all know how that battle turned out. Send support fighters now. We can't take them all on ourselves and will have to fall back."
Space Fleet experts have determined that the alien fighters are equipped with several weapons arrays. They believe that taking out one will not affect the others. Also, reports have shown a number of engines on the rear. Three appear to be some sort of hyperdrive engines while others may merely be thrusters. At this point, reports are still unclear.
These still-mysterious aliens present the most serious threat to the Sol solar system since the original Blacktron threat ten years ago.

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This is the U.F.O. set I've been waiting for. From the catalog views, this looked like it would be my favorite. It certainly hasn't let me down. I thought the price would be around $40 but was pleasantly surprised to find that I was about $10 too high.
Some sites with information on this set list it as having just one mini-fig. They're wrong. There is one alien with helmet and shoulder pads and there is one cyborg. People just didn't know that there was a cyborg hidden in a compartment behind the pilot.

The set most closely resembles an X-wing fighter from Star Wars except for the saucer section on the front and some slight additions in the rear. There's even a place for a cyborg (or droid) behind the pilot. A little cargo bay opens up and he fits inside nicely. Anyone who has seen Star Wars knows how handy it can be to have a droid along. The similarities can't be completely coincidental.
The cockpit controls are the same as the front of the Cyber Blaster with a little sloped radar display. The cockpit canopy is flourescent yellow with pre-printed graphics on it. I don't care for pre-printed pieces, but this is far less obtrusive than the Aquashark canopies.
On the sides of the front disc, you'll find small laser cannons...two of many. This is a definate attack vessel. The two lower wings also have weapons mounted on them. (They stick out similar to the weapons on all four wings of an X-wing fighter. Another coincidence?)
The rear of the ship has four fixed wings (which I've mentioned numerous times already). There are also two small adjustable wings above the top pair. Those two have small jet engines mounted on the ends. The four fixed wings have what appear to be thrusters on each wing-tip. Between the upper and lower wings on each side, you'll find 2 more pairs of engines. Plus, there are three engines on the rear of the ship. (The pieces can also be found on the Launch Command Space Shuttles.) This ship was built for some serious speed.
On the top of the ship, you'll find a black radar panel mounted on top of a large weapons array. This whole assembly can flip up to allow you to open the compartment with the cyborg. A truly great design.

There are lots of neat parts in this set...too many to list here. I was pleasantly surprised to find a black Space Shuttle plate and the three engines in this set. (Those of you with Launch Command shuttles will know what I'm referring to. If you don't have a space shuttle, you probably wouldn't care anyway.)
One neat thing about the larger U.F.O. sets which I neglected to mention in my review of Alien Avenger is that there are heat-sensitive stickers which are mounted on round disc plates. This set only has one...but since I assembled it in 90+ degree weather, it wasn't working well.
Unfortunately, the "landing gear" on this craft leave something to be desired. This is the main reason why this set isn't a 5-star set. They're nothing more than vertical support pieces which you'll find in quite a few sets of the past 12-or-so years. One of their more annoying uses was in Explorien set 6856. I wish they would go away and some REAL landing gear pieces would appear. Something more aerodynamic would be nice...especially if they didn't fall off as easily.

This is my favorite Lego set to come along this year. It's a lot of fun in a medium-sized set. It is truly worth its price. If you collect one space set this year, make it this set.