The Star Wars Lego set 8039, Venator-Class Republic Attack Cruiser is a model of the precursor to the imposing Imperial Star Destroyer so prominently featured in the opening moments of Star Wars A New Hope.This ship was designed as Grand Chancellor Palpatine's personal flagship during the Clone Wars and is prominent in the opening salvo of Episode Three Revenge Of the Sith when Anakin and Obi-Wan crash land part of a Venator onto Coruscant.The Lego Venator is not to minifigure scale but does a great job of replicating the design of the ship.It is 20 inches (50.8cm) long, 12 inches (30.5cm) wide and 7 inches (17.8cm) high, making it a pretty impressive model.For extra playability the constructed set has a handle at the top which can be used to lift the vehicle safely without fear of breaking off plates.It is very effective addition and while aficionados will no doubt lament that it reduces the set to a "kid's toy" the handle retracts quite nicely and does little to detract from overall feel of the set.The Venator comes with a clone pilot and a clone gunner both of which have appeared in sets previously.The new figures for this set include two Senate Commandos.The bodies of these figures have the same body as a regular clone, just painted blue instead of white and a new helmet design to reflect the different appearance of this elite Galactic Senate guard.The final figure is the exclusive Chancellor Palpatine minifig, and this figure represents Palpatine before he reveals himself as the Sith Lord.There are a number of playable features on the ship including an opening area at the front where Palpatine's office is located.Inside there is a simple chair and table set up with a few of Palpatine's trademark maroon colored flags and rugs.It seems cramped but it is obvious that Lego has done this to reduce the size of the overall set yet retain the sleek shape of the ship.At the rear there is a removable command module and opening gunner areas on the side.Weapons include various flick fire missiles and a bombing mechanism on the bottom that can be removed and then refilled.Overall the ship is beautiful representation of the original, instantly recognizable and highly playable.Unlike earlier models of this size, like the Star Destroyer model 6211, kids can play with the Venator using the retractable handle and have no concern about breaking it apart.The added exclusive minifigures make this set a must buy before it sells out and demands high prices on the secondary market.
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