4504 Lego

The 4504 Lego set re-release of the Millennium Falcon was met with great anticipation and gained praise from brickfilm aficionados everywhere. There were complaints about the price but that's a complaint voiced for just about every product on a store shelf of any kind.

Some astute shoppers searched far and wide to find bargains that just added to their excitement for the set while others waited patiently for the popular 4504 Lego set to go on sale at stores near them.

The 4504 Lego Millennium Falcon set is based on "Episode V: The Empire Strikes Back" of the phenomenally popular "Star Wars" film series. The set comes with Princess Leia, Han Solo, Chewbacca, C-3PO, and a Snowtrooper that many fans were happy to see.

With 985 pieces to link together, the 4504 Lego set takes a few hours to assemble but the hours are no object for the many fans who were so happy to finally have their hands on this set. Separate component parts include a removable cockpit, some removable top panels, and an escape pod so assembly can be done in stages. Once assembly is complete, the set is one big replica of the famed Millennium Falcon that many fans claim looks quite remarkably like the real thing.

Once assembled the set provides a very accessible way to film scenes both inside and outside the super-fast freight vehicle used for smuggling across the galaxies in the movie series. The roomy freight compartment inside has enough room to film action scenes and still hold plenty of cosmic cargo, too, and it's easily accessed by removing the top panels.

The removable cockpit on the 4504 Lego set holds only two minifigures whereas the cockpit in the movies seated four passengers. This smaller space is a concern to some brickfilmers but not such a concern that they don't consider their new sets truly awesome.

The quad-gun on top of the 4504 Lego Millennium Falcon is a big success, as far as fans are concerned, but the set is missing the quad-gun down below, where the freighter in the movie had another one at the ready. The Lego set lacks some of the forward missiles that some fans would really like to see, too.

All in all, the 4504 Lego Millennium Falcon set is considered a blockbuster success. Colors are more authentic to the movie version, the characters have had a makeover that fans welcome, and the moving on-ramp's clever mechanical design offers lots of options to work with.

But be careful with those barrel rolls. The 4504 Lego set has those wonderful removable top panels that make interior access a breeze but they don't stay on very well when staging cyberspace flying acrobatics.