LEGO is no longer just for kids! Star Wars fans
were delighted when in 1999, the first Star Wars themed LEGO set
was released to coincide with The Phantom Menance movie and became
one of the coolest things for fans to own.
Not long after, new LEGO sets started to emerge
following each of the newer movies. You could build many scenes
from each movie or just play with the models of the ships or LEGO
men characters.
Recently LEGO extended it's license with
Lucas film Ltd to continue releasing sets until 2011.
The sets also inspired video games based on
the Star Wars LEGO pieces.
The most popular sets to own would no doubt
include the spaceships and vehicles such as the Millennium Falcon
and the X-Wing. Specific LEGO pieces were created to achieve the
accurate look of each spacecraft.
Many of the sets have been redesigned over
time, including the ever popular Millennium Falcon, to improve the
accuracy of each model.
The mini figures have also been redesigned
many times, with the most obvious being Obi-Wan Kenobi whose torso
and face changed color, and the Storm troopers which have gone
through three different helmet shapes, three different heads and
two different torso colors.
There is no doubt that the vehicles were the
most popular sets, and therefore LEGO went on to create the
Ultimate Collector's Series which included more detail and were
generally larger in size. Collectors didn't mind that they were
more expensive as they often included more pieces and required
more time and skill to put together.
Expanded Universe sets are in plans for the
future based on the fictional background of the Star Wars
universe.
Most of the Expanded Universe information
comes from Star Wars related books, comics, video games and other
media which can take place anywhere from 25,000 years before The
Phantom Menace to 137 years after Return of the Jedi, so LEGO
designers have a lot of background to choose from.
Whether you collect them for fun or as a
serious hobby, the LEGO Star Wars sets have become popular with
both adults and children and will probably go on to provide lots
of enjoyment for many years to come.
