Star Wars Death Star Final Duel LEGO Review

Today's LEGO review of Palpatine's Throne Rome, otherwise known as the "Death Star Final Duel", we're going to do something different. Instead of just getting up close and personal with all the little bits, we've gone ahead and captured a number of emotional, colorful recreations of the most epic scenes from Star Wars: Return of the Jedi, the film from whens this LEGO set and its minifigures originated. Prepare yourself for the most intense and highly dramatic LEGO review we've done so far!

Above you'll get the full view of the set. This "Death Star Final Duel" contains 724 pieces and is recommended for ages 8-14. That's not going to stop my daughter and me, both of us outside the recommended age range by three years or more! Putting together a set such as this is made all the more enjoyable with a friend or family member.

Much of this set is nearly identical on either side. You can (almost) split it right down the middle with the same pieces on either side. Besides the obvious differences, my daughter and I were able to match one-another's building as we created this set, both sides at once.

While building LEGO sets generally cant help but be a one-person activity, most of this set lets you and a tiny companion learn and build and build while you learn. Once you get to the collapsing platform on the left and the tube on the right, things change.

On the left you've got a platform on which Luke Skywalker can stand, telling Darth Vader and the Emperor his distain for battle. From there you can knock Luke down with a blow from Darth Vader's lightsaber with a moving pillar, knocking the whole platform down!

Down the center you've got an extendable walkway. This walkway, when pushed in, has two bar pieces which lock with clamp pieces on either side of this collapsable design. This collapsable, lockable design is good for moving around, as is often the case when you've got kids who want to play with the model in every room of your abode.

At the end of the walkway you've got a set of Royal Guards, each with their own handy pike.

Also along this bridge is a built-in "Force Jump" launcher for Luke. Don't attempt to aim – he's going wherever The Force wants him to go – which is often the other side of the room.

Up the main stairway you'll find two destructible steps. The lever to the right, when pulled, blasts both steps upward and outward.

Under the stairs you'll find plenty of room for Darth Vader to hunt our hero. At this point I should warn you: all the lighting in this article was added by SlashGear, and is not included in the set.

Also under the stairs you'll find a lever which connects to the platform above. Above you'll find a hole where a Lightsaber can rest.

Tapping the lever below blasts the Lightsaber upward, as if Luke had called for it with the Force, just before Darth Vader would stop him from striking down the Emperor.

There Luke can stand, gazing at the battle happening above Endor as the Emperor attempts to sway him to the dark side.

There you can witness the madness as well with the Emperor's reversible head. Luke's head is similarly reversible.

Just as the Emperor brings out the lightning, Darth Vader can bring out the fury, tossing his master down into the depths.

Inside this tube is the most difficult-to-place set of LEGO stickers ever placed. If you can get them all correctly attached, we applaud you heartily. Again, the lights you see here were added by SlashGear, and are not included with the set.

At the base of the stairs you can recreate the final emotional moments between Luke and his father, newly remade in the LEGO universe for this set. Here Anakin is revealed with the first 2-part helmet ever made for Darth Vader.

This set is available wherever fine LEGO toys are sold for a cool $79.99 USD. We recommend you pick up a few colorful LED pen-lights for full effect.

Below you'll find a number of other LEGO set reviews. Let us know which set you'd like us to review next!