It bums me out how few views Jangs reviews get nowadays. Never feels like he is in a rush to tell you all the details on a set, and he uses his own money so he's completely honest about how he feels, which is why I keep coming back here
Me personally, This is THE FIRST channel I go to before I buy a set. He points out every detail and feature, or lack there of. It's always a bummer when he doesn't own the set, thus, hasn't reviewed it. It's not very often I come here just for leisure though.
I’m amazed they included Malak’s missing Jaw, that seems kind of brutal for a minifigure, especially one that’s not in a set targeted at adults. I assumed they would have just included his regular face before losing his jaw but they went all out. I’m still trying to convince myself not to buy a $100 set just for the figure though. I don’t need it, but the FOMO is very strong. I always felt like I missed out by not getting the Revan figure and Lego knows a lot of people feel the same so instead of just giving us another Revan they decided they could earn more money off of us by making a new exclusive figure to go with Revan and make us buy an expensive set just to get it.
Hopefully with the Lego factory being built here in VA well see better quality control on parts and prints. But I have this set and love it. Love the reviews Jang and cant wait to see the Tantive-IV boarding review
I absolutely adore this set! The final result and the Malak minifigure are both amazing-moving it side to side can even do the “dance” he does sometimes since the legs have some give. With regard to the build experience, I usually prefer more but smaller bags, and this set provides that with spectacular pacing.
My prediction and hypothesis as to the reason they released this set was so that it would be at the correct scale with the C-3PO figure that will be released later this year. I think they want to get the shot with C-3PO, standing next to R2-D2 with his hand on the top of R2-D2
To me this R2 is very consistent with the helmet collection with how the dome is made. I will probably display it near them, I do not have any of the other buildable droids. Also consistent with BB-8.
I'm grateful for the discount retailers in my corner of the world, because I agree, the price is very high for what it is. It may be a mini UCS version for that price. My problem is Darth Malek: I don't mind him, but most people will not have a clue who he is.
This is a nice set! Love the Malek figure, in spite of his thicc jaw! 😂 Love the idea of an R2 mech!! Heck, a compartment for the unused display parts would be good too.
As an owner of the 2021 version, this is practically an upgrade (even at a downsize) with the jarring exception to the sticker quality - the white and grey sticker backing being noticeably a different match to their respective brick color hurt! Still a super cute set tho :)
I'm curious about scale. we had BB8 and BD-1 - if they do more droids will they be larger like those, or more like this one? I love the look of this and could replace my OG UCS R2 with it if there was a likely range of droids like a chopper/gonk coming
Couldn't care less about Malak. I'm much more likely to get this set than the UCS one not just because it's cheaper, but because I honestly think it's better. Only thing stopping me is I'd rather get 3po at the same time and properly scaled.
As an R2 collector i wil def get this one. Mabe alter it a little becouse it has some realy Minion vibes. Looking forward to getting it. Thanks Jang for thus great reveiw and stay safe out there.
I really feel the dome needs a grey line at the bottom to break the dark blue area from the body. R2 Looks like he has 5 o'clock shadow... He scales well with the Chewbacca it seems so... if the rumored C3PO looks good and scales with him, I'll get both droids. Appreciate your reviews and love to the community.
I've got both R2s, the big $250 one and this one. To me, this 'looks' better. There are things I like about the big one, but this one is my favourite. I'd honestly forgotten about Darth Malak until I opened the bag with him in it.
you said that some features couldn't fit inside to make room for others but there were no play features inside. i find it kinda dissapointing that they did'nt even fit one feature inside, bcs now they could've fit the arm inside
My main problem with the set ultimately is the printed dish - it's a nice gesture, but it doesn't cover enough of the dome, making him look bald from most display angles with the third leg.
I'm all for any brick-built R2-D2 set, but I'm not a huge fan of how many printed and stickered pieces this set relies on. I'm a sucker for astromech droids in general, and I want to be able to build a LEGO astromech droid in numerous different color schemes to match a lot of different droids. You can't easily do that with this set due to the need for custom printed and stickered parts, yet it was possible with the older R2-D2 sets. Much as I like the idea of a smaller and more affordable one, the larger ones still seem better to me simply because they're all brick-built.
Have to say the pricing on this is nutso here in NZ. I think back in 2021 I got the larger set (it was a gift but I know what it was selling for at the time) for around $250NZD which was I think around $50 off RRP. Now this set which is significantly smaller has an RRP in NZ of $220 - it's discounted most places to $185 - but that's STILL nuts considering how much more basic it is. I suspect they are banking on figure collectors just having to have it for the exclusive figure - but since most of my figures end up in a box, it's a hard pass from me.
Regarding what Jang said about the Mexico factory having the worst quality control, is there an article or a video exploring that? Because I've had a theory that the European factories produce better pieces than the ones in Mexico or China, but never saw anyone confirming or denying that
Darth Malak deserved his own set. He's also not related to R2-D2 in any way. What's next, a Revan minifigure included in a buildable C3P0? Come on TLG, this ain't the way.
Heads up!! This has gone for resale online without malek for 50-60ish$ already. I myself don't think he's worth 50 dollars so I got a new set (minus malek) for 50$
Not a bad "budget" version of the larger R2. At least it's cheaper and much easier to build. A shame about all the stickers, and some of them being misprinted. The 25th anniversary figures are odd. I feel like they should at least be somewhat related to the set. But Darth Malak has nothing to do with R2-D2, and the kids that get this won't care about the figure. But, at least fans have some way to get him, I guess.
I'm pleasantly surprised they even made anything KOTOR-related out of Lego. KOTOR is an awesome, classic game. However, why would they include Darth Malak in an R2-D2 set? Those two characters have nothing to do with each other.
I’m glad we got a Malak figure but Lego’s handling of the 25th anniversary feels very haphazard compared to the 20th which had purpose and clarity. What does Malak have to do with 25 years of Lego Star Wars? What does he have to do with R2D2? Why not a KOTOR set? A series of Legends sets would be an interesting way to commemorate 25 years.
To be fair, the exclusive minifigs were pretty random compared to the sets for the 20th too. I think Leia came with a podracer and stuff like that. Still, for the 20th you got the 6 main human characters from the OT, which was great. This time, the pattern seems to be "characters that don't have minifigures," which I guess is something I can appreciate. What bothers me though is the fact there's only 2? Do you think more will come out later this year?
I’m getting so burned out by the North American Lego factory issues… is there any reliable way to get sets from other regions? Without paying through the nose for shipping?
Large scale? Compared to your hands it's rather small.Also quality control for stickers really lacking. It's probably a printing/product development issue, not the designers fault.
This is definitely the most convincing of the Lego Star Wars sets so far; yes it's not the cheapest set and it's another R2-D2, but as you said, it's a lot more accessible than the UCS version by half the cost. It does seem noticeably shorter than I expected, it seems shorter than the retired BD-1 that came out two years ago, which was also priced the same as this, although that had more to the legs, and less body, while this R2-D2 has simpler legs but a third one and a more solid body. The value is almost perfect, it's not quite there due to looking smaller than expected but it's not tiny, it's still a decent size and a much better alternative to the much more expensive UCS version which was also rather fragile. I'm not one that cares for figures but having that Darth Malak as well as a figure sized R2-D2 and two printed plaques for each of them compared to the stickered plaques from the other two mentioned sets are nice bonuses. Discounts will of course happen so that'll bump up this set's value a good bit.
I love Artoo even in spite of the fact that I do not have much love for SW but the bigger R2 was too much to spend & I missed the polybag so this is a rather desirable model of the walking trashcan. The why on my love of R2 is I just do.
It doesn’t look excellent or awesome to my eye - for both the droid build itself and the Darth Malek figure. This is a little disappointing because for that scale and cost, I’d like it to be better than just okay. But if you like it, I’m happy for you. Cheers!
I like it. But the eye looks so weird. It looks like R2 has had his eyebrow shaved off. And R2 doesn't even have an eyebrow, so I don't know how LEGO have managed that?!
Of course they put Malak in the most boring and overdone concept for a set. Yes R2 is a very iconic character, but it's been so rinsed and repeated as a lego figure and set.
It bums me out how few views Jangs reviews get nowadays. Never feels like he is in a rush to tell you all the details on a set, and he uses his own money so he's completely honest about how he feels, which is why I keep coming back here
Same here! Watch him ever since the old days, and still do! He’s THE LEGO guy for me.
Me personally, This is THE FIRST channel I go to before I buy a set. He points out every detail and feature, or lack there of. It's always a bummer when he doesn't own the set, thus, hasn't reviewed it. It's not very often I come here just for leisure though.
I really hope they do a Chopper version of this
Id kill for a chopper set
Oh wow, yeah! Cool idea! Wouldn't it be excellent to have Chopper in this size and have him reunited with Artoo! 🤓
11:30 "It's just business. Lord Business."
~Lord Business, 2014
They know what they’re doing luring us with Darth Malak minifig like that
No idea who he is. Does he have anything to do with R2-D2?
Yeah... I'm not a fan. Would much prefer to see him in a set with proper context. I don't want another buildable r2-d2 😂
@@andrewgwilliam4831not really but I suggest you play Knight of the Old Republic, if you are into video games.
@@andrewgwilliam4831he's the main antagonist of the Knights of the Old Republic video game from many years ago.
@@andrewgwilliam4831 Nope, he was born wayyy before R2 was even built
Bought this yesterday for my birthday, can't wait to build it, and place it next to my BD-1 droid
I really want to see a photo of all the misprinted R2 heads together 😅
Love the impression of the investors at the end. Keep up the good work
I can see that darth malek being in the Lego Starwars magazine sooner or later
I’m amazed they included Malak’s missing Jaw, that seems kind of brutal for a minifigure, especially one that’s not in a set targeted at adults. I assumed they would have just included his regular face before losing his jaw but they went all out.
I’m still trying to convince myself not to buy a $100 set just for the figure though. I don’t need it, but the FOMO is very strong. I always felt like I missed out by not getting the Revan figure and Lego knows a lot of people feel the same so instead of just giving us another Revan they decided they could earn more money off of us by making a new exclusive figure to go with Revan and make us buy an expensive set just to get it.
Hopefully with the Lego factory being built here in VA well see better quality control on parts and prints. But I have this set and love it. Love the reviews Jang and cant wait to see the Tantive-IV boarding review
I absolutely adore this set! The final result and the Malak minifigure are both amazing-moving it side to side can even do the “dance” he does sometimes since the legs have some give. With regard to the build experience, I usually prefer more but smaller bags, and this set provides that with spectacular pacing.
i really appreciate that you dunk on the scalpers. one of the few lego youtubers i respect.
The side legs seem to be splaying out slightly?
Looks very good to me. The grey and white sticker backgrounds don't match the brick colour, though. 😢
I love this set. I normally don't buy display pieces, I like building buildings, but this looks amazing and the exclusive minifigure looks fun.
Love this review!
I appreciate the honesty❤.
Can’t wait for mine to arrive.
YAY! R2D2 in Lego! We always knew hes a "stud" :) He saved the Millennium Falcon in Empire and is my hero.
The arms being additions is exactly how it was done in the real movies, so ironically that's authentic.
Printed dome, A surprise to be sure, but a welcome one
Would definitely get this if I didn’t already have the bigger one. Hope Jang reviews the midi ships, that’s a line I want to complete.
My prediction and hypothesis as to the reason they released this set was so that it would be at the correct scale with the C-3PO figure that will be released later this year. I think they want to get the shot with C-3PO, standing next to R2-D2 with his hand on the top of R2-D2
Fun to watch you build this on twitch. Great video. 😊
I really like the look of this Artoo. Dome/head looks better than the big one to me. I will definitely buy this if i find a bit of discount.
Another one! Great review Jang, lots of fun watching this be built live.
To me this R2 is very consistent with the helmet collection with how the dome is made. I will probably display it near them, I do not have any of the other buildable droids.
Also consistent with BB-8.
I'm grateful for the discount retailers in my corner of the world, because I agree, the price is very high for what it is. It may be a mini UCS version for that price.
My problem is Darth Malek: I don't mind him, but most people will not have a clue who he is.
Nice to have an official Malak to go with Revan, especially as a collector who only focuses on pre-Disney material.
Which one do you like better, Jang, 2024 or 2021?
My favourite Lego youtuber, hands down. And this is a superb review. Might pick this up now as it’s more wallet friendly. 👍👍👍
Honestly the malak mouth print is quite gnarly
This set matches with the BB8. I would pick this up to go side by side with BB8.
I like it! And even when the scales are obviously completely different, I'd think it would look pretty nice grouped together with BB-8, D-O and BD-1?
Good comprehensive review. The Malak is an odd choice but probably a clever choice on Lego's part.
Excellent review. This is what the 2021 R2 should have been, as the other one was hit a too high price point.
could you hide the mold marks by rotating the bricks the other way?
This is a nice set! Love the Malek figure, in spite of his thicc jaw! 😂
Love the idea of an R2 mech!! Heck, a compartment for the unused display parts would be good too.
I like the star background
I’m pretty sure that someone will come up
with a MOC that will allow the middle leg
and it’s tools to retract.
As an owner of the 2021 version, this is practically an upgrade (even at a downsize) with the jarring exception to the sticker quality - the white and grey sticker backing being noticeably a different match to their respective brick color hurt! Still a super cute set tho :)
I'm curious about scale. we had BB8 and BD-1 - if they do more droids will they be larger like those, or more like this one? I love the look of this and could replace my OG UCS R2 with it if there was a likely range of droids like a chopper/gonk coming
6:26 EX-TER-MIN-ATE!!
Looks fantastic love the mini fig great review enjoyed your starlight on twitch last ngt 👍
Like always: honest review! Thanks!
Couldn't care less about Malak. I'm much more likely to get this set than the UCS one not just because it's cheaper, but because I honestly think it's better.
Only thing stopping me is I'd rather get 3po at the same time and properly scaled.
As an R2 collector i wil def get this one. Mabe alter it a little becouse it has some realy Minion vibes. Looking forward to getting it. Thanks Jang for thus great reveiw and stay safe out there.
"near-sighted scrap pile" (EP4, T4 Escape, Tatooine scene)
Hope that R2 75379 match to upcomming C-3PO accurately.
I have the larger 2021 version still in box, hadn't cleared room for it yet. Should I sell it and just buy this one instead?
Please *do* keep laying it out for the non-hobbyist Lego “fans” 😇
I really feel the dome needs a grey line at the bottom to break the dark blue area from the body. R2 Looks like he has 5 o'clock shadow... He scales well with the Chewbacca it seems so... if the rumored C3PO looks good and scales with him, I'll get both droids. Appreciate your reviews and love to the community.
I've got both R2s, the big $250 one and this one. To me, this 'looks' better. There are things I like about the big one, but this one is my favourite. I'd honestly forgotten about Darth Malak until I opened the bag with him in it.
is it possible to add some clips behind the plaque to store the arms and antenna?
you said that some features couldn't fit inside to make room for others but there were no play features inside. i find it kinda dissapointing that they did'nt even fit one feature inside, bcs now they could've fit the arm inside
My main problem with the set ultimately is the printed dish - it's a nice gesture, but it doesn't cover enough of the dome, making him look bald from most display angles with the third leg.
I was thinking it's like R2 has a receding hairline!
I'm conflicted which one to get the 2021 R2 or 2024 one
Beep beep boop beep, whistle, boop beep beep! Beep boop! 😁 (roughly translated: good job on the review, Jang!)
Im excited to build this
I'm all for any brick-built R2-D2 set, but I'm not a huge fan of how many printed and stickered pieces this set relies on. I'm a sucker for astromech droids in general, and I want to be able to build a LEGO astromech droid in numerous different color schemes to match a lot of different droids. You can't easily do that with this set due to the need for custom printed and stickered parts, yet it was possible with the older R2-D2 sets. Much as I like the idea of a smaller and more affordable one, the larger ones still seem better to me simply because they're all brick-built.
Given the UCS R2 and the 2021 R2 models, they should have released this as an R4 or Chopper set. Starting to feel like too many R2s like the X-Wings.
Thanks for the review!
Got it at Costco for $79.99 USD, regular price there.
Do you know which Lego R2D2 set has the remote control?
I ordered this set. I think it will look cool beside my large scale Yoda.
Have to say the pricing on this is nutso here in NZ. I think back in 2021 I got the larger set (it was a gift but I know what it was selling for at the time) for around $250NZD which was I think around $50 off RRP. Now this set which is significantly smaller has an RRP in NZ of $220 - it's discounted most places to $185 - but that's STILL nuts considering how much more basic it is. I suspect they are banking on figure collectors just having to have it for the exclusive figure - but since most of my figures end up in a box, it's a hard pass from me.
Neat set, neater fig! If they have to do collectible figs in expensive sets, perhaps a more niche fig is the right way to go
Regarding what Jang said about the Mexico factory having the worst quality control, is there an article or a video exploring that? Because I've had a theory that the European factories produce better pieces than the ones in Mexico or China, but never saw anyone confirming or denying that
Investors hoarding big boxes of lego is silly, lego is a pain to store for the 5+ years that any set will gain value.
Darth Malak deserved his own set. He's also not related to R2-D2 in any way. What's next, a Revan minifigure included in a buildable C3P0? Come on TLG, this ain't the way.
I've had a few quality control issues lately... it's definitely getting worse which is unfortunate to see
Heads up!! This has gone for resale online without malek for 50-60ish$ already. I myself don't think he's worth 50 dollars so I got a new set (minus malek) for 50$
Not a bad "budget" version of the larger R2. At least it's cheaper and much easier to build. A shame about all the stickers, and some of them being misprinted.
The 25th anniversary figures are odd. I feel like they should at least be somewhat related to the set. But Darth Malak has nothing to do with R2-D2, and the kids that get this won't care about the figure. But, at least fans have some way to get him, I guess.
I wasn’t a fan of the larger R2, it was just too expensive. I think this one looks great and I would pick it up even if malak wasn’t there
I have a feeling it looks much bigger than it is in real life.
8:02 which factory?
A little late to the party for this comment to matter, but I really think for this set a blue transclear leia mini fig would have been a perfect fit.
Yup... take my money. Thanks for sharing!
Almost the same size as bb8?
I will just say I like it way more in this scale.
I'm pleasantly surprised they even made anything KOTOR-related out of Lego. KOTOR is an awesome, classic game. However, why would they include Darth Malak in an R2-D2 set? Those two characters have nothing to do with each other.
On display l find the arms just a bit too small and weak, the proportion is off giving it a cheap feel.
Seeing how you were an RC guy, have you ever considered building your own life-sized astromech?
I’m glad we got a Malak figure but Lego’s handling of the 25th anniversary feels very haphazard compared to the 20th which had purpose and clarity. What does Malak have to do with 25 years of Lego Star Wars? What does he have to do with R2D2? Why not a KOTOR set? A series of Legends sets would be an interesting way to commemorate 25 years.
To be fair, the exclusive minifigs were pretty random compared to the sets for the 20th too. I think Leia came with a podracer and stuff like that.
Still, for the 20th you got the 6 main human characters from the OT, which was great. This time, the pattern seems to be "characters that don't have minifigures," which I guess is something I can appreciate. What bothers me though is the fact there's only 2? Do you think more will come out later this year?
Will always smile when you mock the speculation market
✨🪩✨ Like This Model,But only at The Discount Price! 🙂❤️👍
I’m getting so burned out by the North American Lego factory issues… is there any reliable way to get sets from other regions? Without paying through the nose for shipping?
Large scale? Compared to your hands it's rather small.Also quality control for stickers really lacking. It's probably a printing/product development issue, not the designers fault.
This is definitely the most convincing of the Lego Star Wars sets so far; yes it's not the cheapest set and it's another R2-D2, but as you said, it's a lot more accessible than the UCS version by half the cost. It does seem noticeably shorter than I expected, it seems shorter than the retired BD-1 that came out two years ago, which was also priced the same as this, although that had more to the legs, and less body, while this R2-D2 has simpler legs but a third one and a more solid body.
The value is almost perfect, it's not quite there due to looking smaller than expected but it's not tiny, it's still a decent size and a much better alternative to the much more expensive UCS version which was also rather fragile. I'm not one that cares for figures but having that Darth Malak as well as a figure sized R2-D2 and two printed plaques for each of them compared to the stickered plaques from the other two mentioned sets are nice bonuses. Discounts will of course happen so that'll bump up this set's value a good bit.
As a KotOR superfan I really don't want to pay $140 for a set I otherwise don't care about at all, but that Malak... if only Revan wasn't like $500.
I love Artoo even in spite of the fact that I do not have much love for SW but the bigger R2 was too much to spend & I missed the polybag so this is a rather desirable model of the walking trashcan. The why on my love of R2 is I just do.
So buy it at 2x vip points and its a little cheaper
It doesn’t look excellent or awesome to my eye - for both the droid build itself and the Darth Malek figure. This is a little disappointing because for that scale and cost, I’d like it to be better than just okay. But if you like it, I’m happy for you. Cheers!
DARTH MALEK??
Build Legos and have fun, invest in something other than toys
Ewwweeewww beep beep dibby dop boop bleep weeuuu pleep..
R2 approves ✔️
If they're gonna release kotor stuff I hope they do T3 M4, or a lego ebon hawk.
I like it. But the eye looks so weird. It looks like R2 has had his eyebrow shaved off. And R2 doesn't even have an eyebrow, so I don't know how LEGO have managed that?!
It’s crazy how absolutely fantastic the body looks but the head is really bad in my opinion.
Stickers meh
No interest in this whatsoever considering I already have the UCS one and would have loved a chopper instead. I'll have to bricklink the Malak.
Of course they put Malak in the most boring and overdone concept for a set. Yes R2 is a very iconic character, but it's been so rinsed and repeated as a lego figure and set.