Star Wars Episode I: The Phantom Menace in 3D!

I think that many Star Wars fans are not too interested in the re-release of episode I despite it's graphics update into the realm of 3D magic. As we are all painfully aware, there is little that can be done to erase the painful performance by Jake Lloyd, who portrayed a young Anakin Skywalker, or the searing comedic talent of Ahmed best, who voiced the zany Jar Jar. On the bright side, episode one has some amazing chase scenes and action sequences thanks to the uber talented Ray Park, who of course played Darth Maul.  I will still fork over the cash to see this movie because I am a sucker for special affects and am too obsessed with Star Wars to pass this opportunity by. 

Recently, Mike Ryan of Moviefone website published a story that unearthed rumors that swirled the interweb before episode I came out. Some of the rumors are pretty weak but there are a few that would have made the movie much more interesting, particular where Darth Maul would have been Kenobi's clone. Pretty neat idea right? Well, follow the link here to read the rest of these unearthed rumors. Also, the one rumor I remember is the one that came from a trailer for episode III. Footage of the Millennium Falcon, Bubba Fett, and Chewbacca (not from the final Kashyk scene) were shown. I've met a few other people that remember this trailer and recalled that it played for only a short time; really it was more of a teaser trailer. However, no one seems to know why the footage was not used in the final film. Anyone out there with any ideas about it? I've also never seen this trailer again and would love to know if it exists somewhere out there in the web!

Star Wars Lego Mini-Figures: 7957 Sith Nightspeeder

Ventress

Opress

Anakin

Over the holidays I was given a new Star Wars Lego set! This is a new set based off characters from the Clone Wars tv show and featured Asajj Ventress, Savage Opress, and Anakin Skywalker. This set's vehicle is pretty simple, featuring a skiff-like machine with two detachable rocket-styled bikes. Opress and Ventress utilize the vehicle. There is nothing horribly complicated to this set, and truly the set is memorable only for the mini-figures that it includes.

I did not previously have a Ventress or Opress in my Lego mini-figure collection, but do have several Clone Wars Anakin Skywalker figures. The Ventress mini-figure included two lightsabers with curved handles similar to Count Dooku's. Her body has a simple design with dark blues and blacks, with small amounts of silver on the front. The head has an intricate design, faithfully representing the markings she sports in the cartoon series. These markings are found on both the front and back of her head.

Savage Opress is easily one of the most complex mini-figures I've seen. He came with two weapons, a double-sided lightsaber and a large war axe. The front of his face has an intricate design similar to that of Darth Mauls', but is in eye and has a head attachment with upward extended horns. A chest plate fits under his head and covers another intricate yellow design. When the chest plate is fitted on, this yellow design is completely obscured. I appreciate the level of detail here as Lego did not have to add the yellow design with it being covered up.

#7957 set Anakin

Lastly, an Anakin Skywalker mini-figure was included in this set. He came with a blue lightsaber that had a dull silver handle. Black and brown colors dominate his body, with simple lines suggesting robes and a belt, which is the attire worn during the cartoon series. There are scars on both the left and right side of his face and his hair is big and disheveled. Compared to the other Clone Wars series Anakin Skywalker I have (from the #7669, Anakin's Jedi Starfighter set) , the heads are identical, but the chest for the new one is much darker in color and has a slightly different pattern.

All three mini-figures from #7957

#7669 set Anakin with R2D2

Difference in R2-D2: Tricky!

The differences between the R2-D2's in my collection are tricky to spot! Two of the differences might be unintentional because they were perhaps produced by defects in the manufacturing process and hence may not be found on every minifigure. The other difference, which is between the earliest and later R2-D2s is not a manufacturing defect.

In my collection there are 3 R2-D2's. The earliest comes from the Droid Escape set #7106, released in 2001 and belongs to the New Hope series. Also belonging to the New Hope series is the second R2-D2 that came from the Limited Edition X-Wing Fighter set #6212, released in 2006. The third R2-D2 comes from Anakin's Jedi Starfighter set #7669, released in 2008 and belongs to the Clone Wars series.

R2-D2 & 3CP0 from 7106 set.

Backsides: 6212 R2-D2 (left) & 7106 R2-D2 (right)

 Differences: The earliest R2-D2 from the 7106 set has a circle instead of a dot on the back of it's dome head, which is sported on both the later versions. The circle is located within a small rectangle that is to the left of a black eye looking shape (see photo).

R2D2 & Anakin from 7669 set.

The Clone Wars (7669) R2-D2 differs from the X-Wing (6212) R2-D2 in that the 7669 minifigure has a blue print within the silver area on the dome, and has a small dot between two larger dots above the rectangle on the back of the dome (same rectangle discussed above). The small dot mentioned here on the 7669 R2-D2 may be unintentional and produced from a manufacturing glitch because the dot is quite small, however the difference in coloring is less likely to be a manufacturing glitch because it is a more

Backside of R2D2 from 7669 set.

noticeable difference; feel free to disagree with my logic on this one.