Among the various Star Wars sets by LEGO, the model of Slave 1, the ship used by Boba Fett the bounty hunter, has been released in six different versions . These versions have ranged from two small, pocket-sized ships to several larger ones that measure more than a foot long. While Boba Fett has just a small part in the overall Star Wars stories, he has captured the interest of many of the story's fans. His ship has also turned into an object of great interest among those same fans.
In the Star Wars saga, Boba Fett, the bounty hunter, plays a role in the story in Episodes V and VI. He's the bounty hunter who is hired by Darth Vader capture Han Solo and to turn him over to Jaba the Hutt. The ship that he pilots, Slave 1, was originally owned by his "father", Jango Fett (actually, Boba is a clone of Jango), who, shall we say, "procured" it during his escape from the prison colony on Oovo IV. The ship was a prototype of an Imperial Firespray class patrol ship that he stole while making his escape.
He named the ship Slave 1, and began a program of significant upgrades and re-armaments. He took the ship to the Kuat Drive Yards and had their powerful drive engines shoe-horned into the ship's hull, taking up two-thirds of the available space. The armaments added to the ship included twin blaster cannons, two rapid-firing laser cannons, and two projectile launchers, each of which could hold up to three homing missiles. There was also a mine laying system that could be equipped with seismic charges.
The models of the Slave 1 that have been produced by LEGO include much of this weaponry. The sophistication of the models and the level of detail has increased greatly as different models have been released. The first version, LEGO 7144 was released back in 2000, and although it captured the basic elements of Slave 1's design, it was fairly primitive, as it was lacking a lot of the specialized elements that were added to later models. It looked a lot like something a builder would produce using just generic LEGO parts.
The Slave 1 version released next by LEGO was designated as LEGO 7153. Here, the quality and level of detail began to improve a bit. The cockpit for this ship was a piece of molded plastic with a dark tint. The pieces on the upper side of the landing shoe were also special pieces, which gave it a more finished look. This model was larger, it had more than two times as many pieces, (358), as the 7144 version, which had just 165 pieces. This set also came with mini-figures, unlike its predecessor.
The Slave 1 model designated LEGO 6209 came next, released in 2006. Once again it was a larger model than the previous one, having 537 elements. At this point the design of LEGO Slave 1 really began to come into its own. The number of specialized parts increased substantially, which gave the ship a much more finished appearance. The ship includes a cargo hatch that can open to load the Carbonited Han Solo aboard. The finished ship included the mine launchers, as well as the missile launchers. The twin cannon arrays are also present. The total of four mini-figures (five if you count the Carbonited Han Solo) was the most to be included in a Slave 1 set up to this point.
The current version of Slave 1, LEGO 8097, is still in production. It is a larger model than its forerunner once again, but only slightly - it contains 572 elements as opposed to 537. The level of attention to detail in the model has increased once more. They use more special pieces in this set to create a highly finished appearance. The cover over the cockpit is hinged and can be opened, and you can place a mini-figure pilot inside. This latest version comes with three mini-figures (fewer than the last set!), and also has the Carbonite skid. The skid is designed to fit the Han Solo mini-figure, so that it can be "Carbonited" for delivery to Jaba, for great realism. The finish details on this newest model are quite impressive, and the finished model has a look of bounty hunter utility to it.
The two other versions of Slave 1 that LEGO produced were small (pocket-sized) versions of Han's ship. One of them, designated LEGO 20019, was a promotional piece that was included with the Brickmaster Catalog January 2011 issue. It was not released for sale in stores. The other miniature version was part of a two-ship combo released in 2003 - it was combined with a model of Obie-Wan Kenobi's Delta-7 Aethersprite Class Starfighter. All or these Slave 1 LEGO sets are available in the secondary market, if not the primary retail market, so it's not too late to complete your collection. If you are, or know, a Star Wars fan, this ship is certain to be appreciated as an addition to their Star Wars fleet.
In the Star Wars saga, Boba Fett, the bounty hunter, plays a role in the story in Episodes V and VI. He's the bounty hunter who is hired by Darth Vader capture Han Solo and to turn him over to Jaba the Hutt. The ship that he pilots, Slave 1, was originally owned by his "father", Jango Fett (actually, Boba is a clone of Jango), who, shall we say, "procured" it during his escape from the prison colony on Oovo IV. The ship was a prototype of an Imperial Firespray class patrol ship that he stole while making his escape.
He named the ship Slave 1, and began a program of significant upgrades and re-armaments. He took the ship to the Kuat Drive Yards and had their powerful drive engines shoe-horned into the ship's hull, taking up two-thirds of the available space. The armaments added to the ship included twin blaster cannons, two rapid-firing laser cannons, and two projectile launchers, each of which could hold up to three homing missiles. There was also a mine laying system that could be equipped with seismic charges.
The models of the Slave 1 that have been produced by LEGO include much of this weaponry. The sophistication of the models and the level of detail has increased greatly as different models have been released. The first version, LEGO 7144 was released back in 2000, and although it captured the basic elements of Slave 1's design, it was fairly primitive, as it was lacking a lot of the specialized elements that were added to later models. It looked a lot like something a builder would produce using just generic LEGO parts.
The Slave 1 version released next by LEGO was designated as LEGO 7153. Here, the quality and level of detail began to improve a bit. The cockpit for this ship was a piece of molded plastic with a dark tint. The pieces on the upper side of the landing shoe were also special pieces, which gave it a more finished look. This model was larger, it had more than two times as many pieces, (358), as the 7144 version, which had just 165 pieces. This set also came with mini-figures, unlike its predecessor.
The Slave 1 model designated LEGO 6209 came next, released in 2006. Once again it was a larger model than the previous one, having 537 elements. At this point the design of LEGO Slave 1 really began to come into its own. The number of specialized parts increased substantially, which gave the ship a much more finished appearance. The ship includes a cargo hatch that can open to load the Carbonited Han Solo aboard. The finished ship included the mine launchers, as well as the missile launchers. The twin cannon arrays are also present. The total of four mini-figures (five if you count the Carbonited Han Solo) was the most to be included in a Slave 1 set up to this point.
The two other versions of Slave 1 that LEGO produced were small (pocket-sized) versions of Han's ship. One of them, designated LEGO 20019, was a promotional piece that was included with the Brickmaster Catalog January 2011 issue. It was not released for sale in stores. The other miniature version was part of a two-ship combo released in 2003 - it was combined with a model of Obie-Wan Kenobi's Delta-7 Aethersprite Class Starfighter. All or these Slave 1 LEGO sets are available in the secondary market, if not the primary retail market, so it's not too late to complete your collection. If you are, or know, a Star Wars fan, this ship is certain to be appreciated as an addition to their Star Wars fleet.
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