LEGO Star Wars 75356 Executor Super Star Destroyer Review

We’ve had plenty of LEGO Star Wars Star Destroyers over the years – the most recently retired of them being the incredibly oversized 4,784-piece Imperial Star Destroyer. And in comparison, this brand new 630-piece Executor Super Star Destroyer might seem paltry, but this set is hugely impressive for its size. And, unlike its bigger, bulkier and pricier siblings, it’ll look absolutely amazing sitting on just about any shelf.

What’s in the box?

The LEGO Star Wars Executor Super Star Destroyer comes with a manual and six helpfully-numbered bags of pieces. The former features some factoids about the ship, both in-universe and in the context of the making of the movie.

There aren’t any minifigures, though that’s not surprising given the sheer scale of the Super Star Destroyer – Darth Vader and company would be invisible without the aid of a microscope. A LEGO separator is included… though, when it came to fitting the lower engines at least, a pair of tweezers would have been handy. But more on that shortly.

The build

For the most part, LEGO Star Wars 75356 Executor Super Star Destroyer is easy, if time consuming, to build. The main body comes first, followed by the grey plates that cover the city-like structure in the middle of the ship.

The build is split into several sub-pieces though those are sensibly divided and you can more or less guess where they’re going to go. And because the ship is so flat (the stand comes last) there’s no need to balance it on anything mid-build.

When it comes to putting the grey plates on, make sure they click properly into, otherwise you’ll be able to see the coloured pieces inside the middle of the craft. Yes, like many builds, the Executor Super Star Destroyer has out-of-place green, red and yellow pieces in the middle of it. They’re entirely invisible once the build’s finished, but it felt odd putting them in there.

As mentioned above, the lower engines are indeed a little fiddly to fit, and we ended up dropping them a few times before getting them in the right place. But, honestly, we can’t see a way around that. What is baffling, however, is that the instructions tell you twice how to build the mini Star Destroyers, instead of using the usual 2x symbol. Building them simultaneously would have saved a little time.

Play or display?

The Executor Super Star Destroyer is meant for display but it doesn’t seem particularly breakable and it could happily soar around the living room without crumbling to pieces. But, perched on its stand, it’s a fantastic piece and much easier to display than its larger, now retired counterparts.

At 43cm wide you may need a wide cabinet to fit it in – or, as we did, display it at an angle. We also had to reposition the Star Destroyers a little for it to fit, but it’s now nestled neatly on its own shelf. You could, potentially, take the mini Star Destroyers off but they really do lend the ship a sense of scale.

Value for money?

£59.99 is a very reasonable price for this set, just £15 more than the Hoth AT-ST we recently reviewed. We’d love to see more Star Wars ships recreated in this size, style and price range. Maybe it’s time to revisit the Clone Wars-era Venator Attack Cruiser.

Should you buy LEGO Star Wars 75356 Executor Super Star Destroyer?

If we had to find fault with this set, we’re not entirely happy that the tips of the Executor’s top plates don’t click together. Instead ,they rest on the body of the model. You can wiggle them a little and while it’s not something the casual observer would notice, we know it’s there.

But should you buy the LEGO Star Wars Executor Super Star Destroyer? Absolutely. It’s a fantastic looking set, and it’s mind-blowing that LEGO managed to scale down the ship without losing any of its quintessential menace. It’s almost as unsettling and imposing as it is in Star Wars: Return of the Jedi, though try to resist smashing it into your LEGO Death Star.

★★★★★