7134 - A-Wing Fighter

Rating:
Pros: Authentic re-creation of the A-Wing
Cons: Landing gear; inaccurate side guns; ground crew
Contents: 123 pieces including 2 mini-figs
Price: $14.99
Reviewed: 6-Feb-2000
Reviewed by: Patrick Delahanty

It was just a routine recon job. Buzz Pixar was sent on patrol to the other side of Yavin. They were told The Empire may be in the area, so everyone was on alert.
Buzz figured he might as well make the most of it and enjoy the scenery. Yavin was a heavily forrested planet with lush green hills. It was a shame The Empire had driven all the natives into hiding.
As his A-Wing swung around into the western hemisphere, he caught the sight of a moon rising over the horizon. It took him a moment to realize that Yavin had no moons...that was The Death Star!

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This is my first Lego set in about 8 months. I got the Y-Wing soon after it was out since it's my second favorite Star Wars ship. (Imperial Shuttle is #1.) The small, sleek design of the A-Wing makes it a close third. When I spotted this on my Y2K trip to Ireland, I grabbed it.
Lego's A-Wing is a pretty accurate representation of the A-Wings we all know and love from Star Wars. They did an excellent job creating it in Lego bricks.
The cockpit canopy opens forward so the pilot (with an A-Wing flight suit) can get in and out. Behind him, a storage compartment opens in the opposite direction and a mailbox-type storage container fits in quite snugly.
One amusing, yet unfortunate feature is that the pilot's computer screen has a black silouhette of a Star Destroyer's bridge. Remember the scene where the A-Wing crashes right through the bridge and sends the Super Star Destroyer crashing into The Death Star? Apparently this Lego A-Wing pilot is doomed to repeat that scene for eternity.
The underside of the ship has three landing legs that Lego has been using on spaceships for over 15 years. You'd think they'd have come up with something better by now, but they're still using these ugly things. If you decide to hang your A-Wing from the ceiling, make sure you rip off the landing legs. They really take away from the model.
Another oddity is the side guns. They rotate 360 degrees vertically, but they don't look like the actual A-Wing side guns. These guns have an extra smaller gun on the outside. I suspect what happened is that Lego didn't have a smaller hinge-piece to include, so they put extra guns on to try to hide the inaccuracy.
This set also includes a mechanic. Why? I have no idea. I guess after the A-Wing keeps crashing into Star Destroyers, someone has to repair it. The mechanic has a tan baseball hat and a big moustache. He doesn't look like any character I remember from the movie...and I've never liked that mini-fig face.
Except for my somewhat minor nit-picks, the A-Wing is really an excellent set! Not only is it an absolute must for Space collectors, but it also makes a great gift for any Star Wars fan (even if they're not into Lego).