LEGO Star Wars AT-RT 75002 isn’t one of the LEGO Star Wars 2013 sets that was high on my list of must-buy sets when it was announced, but once I saw the prototype photos I was sold. While we’ve had a healthy number of LEGO AT-RTs (the prequel version of the “Chicken Walkers”) over the years, this is the first time we’ve had one designed in blue 501st-specific colors. This 501st AT-RT is based off the “Battle of Umbara” arc of Clone Wars, quite possibly the greatest story arc ever in the Clone Wars cartoon, which made it leap from “unnecessary” to “got to have it” in my mind. And for $19.99, it’s one of the best values of any early 2013 LEGO set…

The Right:

First off, let’s talk value: LEGO 75002 gives you 222 pieces for $19.99. That’s less than 10 cents per piece! For a LEGO Star Wars licensed set, that’s a pretty miraculous price! For comparison’s sake, the LEGO Star Wars 2013 A-Wing set is 177 pieces for $24.99–that’s 45 less pieces for a full $5 more. In short, as far as pricing goes, the LEGO Star Wars AT-RT 75002 is a superb deal (and we really don’t get many of those in the LEGO Star Wars line).

The LEGO Star Wars AT-RT includes four minifigures: Yoda, a 501st Clone Trooper, a Commando Droid Captain, and a Droideka (Destroyer Droid). Unbelievably, this is the first time a LEGO 501st Clone Trooper minifigure (besides Captain Rex) has been released! That’s quite a shocker, considering that the 501st Legion are the Clone Troopers under Anakin Skywalker’s command, and are featured far more heavily in the Clone Wars cartoon series than any other clones. Bravo to LEGO for finally giving Clone collectors one of the absolute most-wanted figures in the LEGO Star Wars universe, as well as for including them in multiple 2013 sets (there’s another 501st Clone Trooper and a 501st Clone Pilot minifigure in the 75004 Z-95 Headhunter set) to help us army-build these coveted forces.

Even if you have the previous LEGO Clone Wars Yoda minifigure, this one has a slightly-modified new and improved print, which makes it the best version of Clone Wars Yoda. The Commando Droid adds some extremely subtle paint deco changes, so it’s not “just another Commando Droid”.

Finally, this is the first time I’d built a LEGO Droideka minifigure, so I didn’t realize what a treat I was in for. I had no idea the Destroyer Droid minifigure would be composed of so many pieces or would take several pages to assemble, but it was very interesting building it. I’m not sure that it’s scaled anywhere close to accurately, but the Droideka looks great and must be one of the most (if not the very most) intricately-designed minifigures ever by LEGO!

Although it’s the main component of this set, I don’t have a ton to say about the 501st AT-RT itself. I simply love the look and style of the AT-RT in blue and grey, and I think it’s easily the best-looking AT-RT ever released.

The legs and feet are fun to move and pose, and I was able to get the LEGO 501st AT-RT posed “walking” and “running” on an extremely non-flat boulder outside with very little fuss. For whatever reason, I hadn’t been expecting the gun on the AT-RT to swivel back and forth, but the fact that it does adds much more potential for setting the AT-RT up in dynamic battle stances.

The build for the LEGO Star Wars 75002 was very quick and straight-forward. I’m not a fast builder and I usually make plenty of mistakes, but this was a simple and relaxing build to complete in under an hour. The large stickers were even easy to apply perfectly centered, so my OCD didn’t even go off. A fun and easy build for children and adults alike.

The Wrong:

The only thing that really rankles me about this set is the minifigure selection. This is a LEGO Clone Wars set, but Yoda has never–ever–gone on a mission with 501st, and he certainly wasn’t present during the Battle of Umbara (which the 501st AT-RT is based off of). I understand the compulsion for LEGO to throw in a Yoda minifigure to sell sets (especially since he’s on the LEGO Star Wars 2013 packaging), but I would have much rather had one of the clones with unique armor deco from this story arc like Kix, Jesse, Fives, or Dogma.

I also would have much preferred more Umbaran minifigures to the Commando Droid Captain, as the Umbarans are the major antagonist of the battle and not the Droids. Not mention the fact that the Commando Droid Captain minifigure is pretty terrible–Commando Droids are the droid ninjas of the Star Wars universe, so it’s always so disconcerting that they can barely stand up in LEGO minifigure form (and not at all on a surface that isn’t 100% flat).

“Where Can I Buy It?!”

I had my LEGO Star Wars AT-RT 75002 set delivered from Amazon for $19.99 plus no tax and free shipping. That’s cheaper than I’d have to pay at any local retailer, and they wouldn’t have had the set stocked for a couple weeks yet. Can’t beat that!

Overall: While I balk at some of the minifigures selected for this set, there’s no way that I can look past the fact that the 2013 LEGO 75002 Star Wars AT-RT is a tremendous value and a great set all-around. The modified Yoda minifigure is slight improvement, and I’m thrilled to finally have a 501st Clone Trooper minifigure (and looking forward to many more!). The Commando Droid Captain is pretty weak as a figure (as are all of LEGO’s Battle Droids), but the Destroyer Droid minifigure is so brilliantly constructed that it more than makes up for it. And the AT-RT is just beautiful in its 501st deco and a surprising amount of fun to build and play with. There hasn’t been a better LEGO Star Wars set at the $19.99 price-point in years. The LEGO Star Wars AT-RT 75002 earns a fully-positive review and a high recommendation.

GRADE: A-