BARC Trooper (75037) Lego Star Wars Review

If you thought the Battle of Kashyyyk was brief in Episode III:  Revenge Of The Sith, then if you blinked in the wrong place you would have missed the reference to Saleucami.  But why would you blink?  How could you blink?  For all their midi-chlorian induced foresight and wisdom the Jedi are taking a pummeling.  Chancellor Palpatine issues Order 66 and the average Star Wars fan’s mouth hangs open whilst the principle Jedi Generals are taken down on the various battlefields.  On Saleucami, Jedi General Stass Allie is leading a BARC speeder patrol when Commander Neyo receives Order 66 via comlink.  He and his wingman then drop back and open fire on Allie’s speeder bike which then crashes killing the Jedi General.

Interestingly, it is only in the summer wave of Lego sets in 2013 that we see Stass Allie in minifigure form for the first time so getting a BARC trooper in the insignia of the 91^st Reconnaissance Corps is timely, but is also the only minifigure highlight of the 75037:  Battle On Saleucami set released in the winter wave of 2014.

At the time of writing this is the first BARC Trooper we see in minifigure form and is unique to this set.  Although, we certainly have not been deprived of BARC speeders in recent years.

It is a handsome minifigure comprised of four pieces, and a pretty accurate rendition of what we see in the film.

The head piece is the most unremarkable, and is quickly becoming a regular fixture in Lego Star Wars sets released in 2013 and 2014.  A single sided print that we first saw in the 2013 Clone Trooper in Phase 1 armour, we also see it on the 41stElite Corps Scout Trooper and Kashyyyk Clone Trooper in the 75035 KashyyykTroopers Battle Pack.

Don’t be put off, we get a really nice helmet to cover this unmemorable face.  The eye is immediately drawn to the insignia of the 91^st: a small red circle with a white sword pointing upside down (not dissimilar to the logo belonging to the national postal service of Australia).  This is seen on the left hand sided of the helmet (as you look at it).  An insignia that is also seen in the centre of the torso and just below the hips on the upper leg on the left hand side.  The helmet has the same form as a Phase 2 clone trooper helmet – a comparison picture to a 501^st Clone Trooper from 2013 can be seen below.  Whilst the form is the same, the print has many differences:  visor shape differs to the usual T shape of a standard clone trooper; grey markings below the visor give a more streamlined aerodynamic feel to the helmet.

Drop to the Torso and we have a beautiful print to the front and rear.  The torso has a white base colour, with white arm on the left hand side and dark red on the right (again as you look at the minifigure).  A different colour on each arm is an interesting touch, not quite movie accurate (more of a dark red shoulder plate) but I’m not being picky.  The hands/gloves are black.  The torso print itself we have largely seen before, on the Clone Trooper in Phase 1 armour found in a number of sets from the summer wave of 2013.  See photos below for comparison purposes.  I have commented before on how much I like this print.  It has been re-used here with further printing outlining a light grey strap and shoulder buckle to the front and rear with additional pouches/details attached to the waistline on the rear.  As mentioned above, we get another 91^st insignia in the centre of the torso on the front.

The legs have black hips with white legs.  A print can be seen on the front.  A simple print, but after all that busy detail on the Torso a simple design is welcomed.  Armour plates on the upper leg  are delineated with grey lines that transition into black lines with greater emphasis around the knees.  The red and white insignia of the 91^st is seen on the upper leg on the left hand side.

To recreate any of the scenes from the film in a meaningful way, you are going to need two for the patrol scene, and a few more to represent the corpse strewn swamp where Allie crash lands.  In a battle pack retailing at a price of £14.99, no big deal, but I would have taken a few droids out of the set and replaced with a second BARC Trooper any day of the week.

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