9499 Gungan Sub, part 2

 

  • 9499 Gungan Sub, part 2

    Posted by Huw, 14 Jun 2012 04:41. Filed under Set review.

    9499 Gungan SubBag 2 contains the base of the cockpit and the three remaining minifigs.

    This is a quick build. The anchor is the new type introduced last year in the PotC sets, but this is its first apperance in blue.

    9499 Gungan SubQui-Gon and Obi-Wan are new. Obi-Wan has a new torso and head. Qui-Gon looks the same as the one in 7961 Sith Infiltrator...

    9499 Gungan Sub...until you turn their heads round to reveal their underwater rebreathers.

    9499 Gungan SubThe bag also contains Amidala and this is how she's packed. The polybag packaging suggests that the components are made in China. However, that is not a problem because they are excellent miniature works of art as you will see...

    Here she is, then, in all her glory:

    9499 Gungan Sub9499 Gungan Sub9499 Gungan Sub

    Her hair and headpiece is truly magnificent: the moulding and printing is flawless. The alignment of the printing on the torso and dress is pretty much spot-on. The base of the dress is circular and the same size as a 4x4 round plate.

    She's a beauty for sure, and well worth the 13 year wait we've had for her. The manufacturing capabilities of LEGO have improved tremendously in that time and it's doubtful whether something this good could have been made back then. You just have to compare the old and new Gungan heads, for example, to see how things have improved.

    LEGO has certainly played it cleverly putting such a desirable figure in this expensive set where, it could be argued, she doesn't really belong. Even if you don't like the sub. you'll need to buy the set for her alone. The aftermarket price is bound to be high: in fact someone has one listed for £30 on eBay.co.uk at the moment. I don't suppose that'll drop much in time given the likely demand for her.

    9499 Gungan SubBag 3 builds the left side of the sub which is very cleverly constructed to form its curved sides.

    9499 Gungan SubBag 4 is the same build, mirrored, for the right hand side. There are a lot of slopes, inverted slopes (underneath, which can't be seen in the pictures) and the new curved 2x4 slopes used in the construction.

    9499 Gungan SubBag 5 completes the build, adding the top and back. The canopies are new, I believe. I tried to photograph them separately but it was near-impossible to do so.

    The rear propulsion unit plugs into the back and the finished model looks like this:

    9499 Gungan Sub9499 Gungan Sub9499 Gungan Sub9499 Gungan Sub

    The three minifigs all fit quite comfortably into the cockpit, although I did have take the Jedis' capes off to get them in.

    Overall I think this is an excellent set. It's an interesting build, full of useful pieces, and the end product looks great and exactly as it should do. The arguably superfluous minifig Queen Amidala is the icing on the cake and makes this the 'must have' Star Wars set of this summer. It is undoubtably expensive (£55 in the UK, probably $60 in the US) but on this occasion, I think it's worth it: a great model and even greater minifigs!

    Coming up next: I'll do the series 2 Planet sets over the next few days, then next week CapnRex101 and I will collaborate on Jabba's Palace...


    32 comments, latest one posted 12 months ago. (Commenting has ended on this article)
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Comments

Posted by yys4u in United States, 14 Jun 2012 05:14

Her giant base reminds me of those hero clix figs

Posted by Brickman193 in Australia, 14 Jun 2012 05:35

Haha, it seems all the good stuff is the first two bags...! :P

Posted by Carl in New Zealand, 14 Jun 2012 07:06

This looks like a pretty good set for making MOCs.

Posted by Goldmatt in United States, 14 Jun 2012 08:11

WOW! Great review Huw! This is certainly the must have Star Wars set this year... until we see Jabba's Palace!

Posted by domboy in United States, 14 Jun 2012 08:31

Two things I don't understand... why in blazes has Lego remade the Gungan sub?? And why in the world is Queen Amidala in it?? From this review it looks like the sub isn't all that different than the original version, isn't all that amazing compared to all the other cool things in Star Wars, and why not make a set of a scene (or vehicle) that Queen Amidala was actually a part of?!?? I just don't get it....

But yes, the minifig is great...

Posted by graphite in United States, 14 Jun 2012 08:57

The only vehicle the Queen in full dress would really go with is the royal star ship which maybe they'll make or maybe not. Even though she's not in the scene with the sub, getting to her is the goal of them taking the sub through the core of the planet so in a playability sense it works out.

Posted by Orthobotrex in Philippines, 14 Jun 2012 09:18

After a long wait, Queen Amidala finally arrives, albeit, in a sardine can... Still, I'd have to buy the whole set just to get her.

Posted by natro220 in United States, 14 Jun 2012 09:28

@domboy - while I agree with you that this is a strange set to include Queen Amidala, this set is a VAST improvement over the first Gungan Sub. I would welcome this over another iteration of Jedi Starfighter (I don't think we've had a tan or purple one yet!). I think it is worthy of a remake...and Star Wars will be around for another 10 years...I'm sure we'll have plenty of scenes and playsets in that time, probably some including Queen Amidala now that they went through the expense of making her.

Posted by Huw in United Kingdom, 14 Jun 2012 10:59

@domboy, I think I answered this in the review: Episode 1 is back in the cinemas so it's been re-released to 'cash in' on that, if you will. It's vastly superior to the old version, thanks in part to the richer palette of parts available to the designers now.

Amidala doesn't appear in the movie that much in full regalia, does she? So I imagine finding a suitable play set to put her in might be an issue.

Posted by CapnRex101 in United Kingdom, 14 Jun 2012 11:39

Excellent review Huw, looks like a great model, but Queen Amidala is pretty much beyond any Minifigure we have seen before in my opinion.

@Huw - Do you prefer this Queen Amidala to Boba Fett from your article the other day? Also there is a typo, in the penultimate paragraph you have put 'expsnsive.' Thanks for the mention!

I am building Jabba's Palace right now ready for the collaborative review!

Posted by CapnRex101 in United Kingdom, 14 Jun 2012 12:23

@Legoboy3000 - Huw is correct, the anchor is actually different to the old one, the older anchor had the crossbar built in, but this one has a hole for the bar to be inserted if you wish.

Posted by Goldmatt in United States, 14 Jun 2012 12:27

@Legoboy3000 The older anchor is also a darker shade of blue.

Posted by Zackula in United States, 14 Jun 2012 12:38

I actually like the older one better. I don't know why, it just has a certain charm to it.

Posted by Modok in United States, 14 Jun 2012 12:50

Well, if anyone likes the sub for its parts, I expect that there'll be a glut of minifig-less subs available on eBay pretty soon.

Posted by skipper1011 in United States, 14 Jun 2012 13:01

I highly dislike the Queen Amidala figure. She looks so un-LEGO-like. As for the set itself, I prefer the older one.

Posted by nerfman1234 in United States, 14 Jun 2012 13:40

That Amidala is just awesome. This set is cool overall, but Jabba's Palace may exceed it.

Posted by gamesgem in United Kingdom, 14 Jun 2012 14:08

I'm pretty sure Lego will do the same thing with the Queen Amidala figure as they did with the Slave 1 figure of Boba Fett. Once the set has been on sale for a while they will release a cheaper set, with her in it, like the Desert Skiff which contains Bona Fett, so I'm not going to be paying silly money for her. Don't panic is my feeling. But she is lovely, well done Lego, and nice review Huw. You take great pictures, which really show off the sets at their best.

Posted by Ypres in Canada, 14 Jun 2012 14:11

Hmm, I'm willing to gamble on that fact that Amidala will probably be released again in the future. She makes enough screen time in episode 1 and the Lego-Starwars Licence is going to continue for a long time, so I'm pretty sure there will be a set down the road where she's needed.

Posted by natro220 in United States, 14 Jun 2012 14:55

Maybe she will be in a Naboo palace set?

Posted by Jarod98 in United Kingdom, 14 Jun 2012 15:10

Very nice reveiw, Huw. I'm looking forward to that Jabba's Palace review as well!

This brings me to ask, if Lego is releasing a bunch of Episode I sets because it is coming out in 3D will they do the same for Episode II? This would be awesome if they did so.

Posted by Mickitat in Germany, 14 Jun 2012 15:47

I will not buy this set. It is just boring. Perhaps if it is on sale to get the parts, but I doubt I will keep the figs.

Posted by cloaked7 in United States, 14 Jun 2012 16:16

@yys4u is correct. The base of QA is more like a HeroClix base than a LEGO minifig base. As @skipper1011 pointed out, the figure is so un-LEGO like. Is that a good thing or a bad thing? I guess that is a matter of opinion. Some traditionalists may not like the un-LEGO aspect, where others may see change as good. I think the change is good. I think it opens the door for who know what kind of changes to minifigs. I must say, the detailed lines and painting are very impressive.

Posted by The Brick Show in United States, 14 Jun 2012 16:21

US retail price is $70

@domboy - my thought is they are putting Amidala in there to try to entice collectors to pay the high price.

Posted by TBOC in United States, 14 Jun 2012 17:15

I am so glad this is part of my budget this year...

Posted by peterlmorris in United States, 14 Jun 2012 18:07

Awesome review. Actually you did provide a great close-up shot of the new canopy. Much appreciated. We spacers ae going to make excellent use of it, I'm sure. And hopefully we'll get it in some nice trans colors, too!

Posted by aquafreak125 in United Kingdom, 14 Jun 2012 18:18

Thanks for the review Huw! Photography is amazing as usual :-)
This is one of the summer Star Wars sets I'll be buying, since I missed out on the first version..being like a year old and all!
The figures look great, and Amidala is truly the jewel of the set! Excellent figure!
Anyone notice how that detachable rear "escape pod" with Jar Jar could be used by Obi and Qui-Gon to lure away the Eopee Sea killer? Hehe

Posted by BigOnBricks in United States, 14 Jun 2012 18:37

Wow, that Amidala minifig is amazing. Must buy this set!

Posted by dragon_teenager in United States, 15 Jun 2012 00:03

I like the design of this set a lot. But as some have mentioned, I have no desire to get it, because it's just a gungan submarine. It's a decent parts pack, but I have trouble getting excited for this.

Regardless, your review is great!

Posted by mikesardy in United States, 15 Jun 2012 02:31

I was just wondering will this be coming to the US and if so do you know when?
Thanks

Posted by LukeSkywalker in Ireland, 15 Jun 2012 05:59

In Episode 1 The Phantom Menace, scenes of the Gungan sub on its way to Theed are intercut with scenes of the royal palace with Queen Amidala speaking to Senator Palpatine, I think this was the main reason for including her with this set. Also, she has about 5 or 6 different outfits in the movie, not counting her Padmé disguise, so there's lots of potential for LEGO variants down the line (though it could take some time...).

Posted by ncbarrett in United States, 15 Jun 2012 09:06

IT is very likely they use her dress again, however this might be the only one in this color, so if I can find the set discounted, I'll grab it.

Thanks for review.

Posted by MoonKnight in United States, 16 Jun 2012 15:04

Does anyone know what the orange mine looking thing is in the right window of the gungan sub?

I still think that Boba Fett takes the cake for being the best minifig ever made. There's a lot more detail on him than Queen Amidala. Although she has indeed been the most anticipated minifig considering TLG has never made one. I will definitely be buying this set, not just because of Queen Amidala but I'm really liking the new Obi Wan minifig as well.

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