Starspeeder 1000 (Vehicle Playset) - ST - Exclusives

The adventures continue at Star Tours! The Star Tours Travel Agency provides convenient daily departures to destinations throughout the galaxy. Unlike other touring companies, Star Tours offers a wide range of itineraries to varied destinations such as: Tatooine, Naboo, Kashyyyk, and Coruscant. All Star Tours passengers travel in comfort and style onboard the new Starspeeder 1000 - the most sophisticated and luxurious spaceliner in its class. This starspeeder accommodates multiple tourists. It features advance hyperdrive and deflector shields. Traveling the galaxy can be a bit dangerous at times, so in preparation for these risky situations, the vehicle is equipped with two powerful flash cannons and two concealed laser cannons. With the new AC-38 pilot droid, the reliable astromech droid R2-D2 as your navigational crew, and systems analyst C-3PO on deck for assistance, each tour is guaranteed to be a new adventure. May the Force be with you!

We have to tell you right from the start that we never had so much fun playing with an Expanded Universe Star Wars vehicle (including many of the movie-specific vehicles Hasbro releases in every Star Wars line) than we did with the Star Tours Starspeeder 1000. It literally reeks of awesomeness and has some of the coolest electronics and light effects we’ve seen in years. That coupled with a great design should make this one of the most sought-after Star Wars vehicles in recent years. For a vehicle that would easily fit in the “Deluxe Vehicle” assortment size that Hasbro normally releases to mainstream retail, it’s significantly cheaper by comparison and has electronic features that even give much larger vehicles a run for their money. The Starspeeder 1000 is simply a great vehicle, possesses tons of play value and equally functions as much as a vehicle as it does a.... dare we say it? A playset! This blatant thunderous applause we’re already giving the Starspeeder 1000 is coming from collectors that do not really care much about anything related to Star Tours. That may be sacrilege to those who love Disney and Star Tours, but that should give you some idea just how incredible this vehicle/playset is and why you’ll maybe want to consider it for your own collection. Trust us when we say that the Starspeeder 1000 should serve as an example of what Hasbro needs to bring to the basic figure line. If they can sell a vehicle like the Starspeeder 1000 with lots of features, doors, accessories and stunning electronics for under $60, then it’s beyond egregious that they would sell a hollow shell of a vehicle like 2009’s TCW ARC-170 Fighter for almost $80 (at its worst). To be fair, we don’t know the level of involvement Hasbro even had in this vehicle, so we may be comparing apples to oranges here and our opinions may be baseless. But we'd imagine Hasbro had at the very least some input since they hold the license for 3.75" scaled vehicles.

As we’ve eagerly stated, the Starspeeder 1000 is loaded with features. The vehicle has buttons superbly designed to be completely seamless with the vehicle. Nothing looks out of place at all. Every button activates some lights and/or a phrase/sound effects combination from the Star Tours attraction. They are very audible, loud in fact and the lowing lights capture your attention. The included R2-D2 “figure” is simple but is perfect for the vehicle. Technically, calling this R2-D2 a figure is stretching it because he has extremely limited articulation (just his dome rotates), but he sits in his droid socket like a glove. They've also included an action feature in his droid socket as well. Push on R2-D2 to activate his very familiar bleeps and blurts. Again, how cool is this? Why hasn't Hasbro included this feature in the latest X-wing fighter? “Seated” directly behind R2-D2 is the IC-360 Camera Droid. This droid has its own hatch and an indented resting spot when the Starspeeder 1000 is in motion. Although C-3PO is an important part of the Star Tours attraction, he unfortunately has been left out of this set. (But we'll comfortably live without him.) There are four action feature buttons that work four specific things on the vehicle. The top left button activates the five left doors and locks them in an open position. (Press the button again to close the doors.) It also activates a bell sound effect and turns on the yellow overhead lights inside the hull of the speeder. As you probably imagine, the top right button also does the same thing, but activates the five right side doors. The two bottom buttons trigger various phrases from C-3PO and R2-D2 and well as the incomparable “light speed” sounds from the films. And lastly, a button on the top right front of the vehicle releases the two cannons hidden inside the hood of the Starspeeder 1000 and come out quickly and become ready for action in a second, almost like how a sports car's lights turn on when you start it up. (It’s awesome!)

We instantly fell in love with the four interchangeable destination screens. Each functions like a special key (they each have unique “teeth”) to press the right combination to sound off the appropriate dialogue and effects. They work like a charm and add incredible diversity to this vehicle. And the pictures on them are just so cool, especially the Spirit of Yoda. The decals are pre-applied inside and outside of the vehicle and they add tremendous depth and dimension to the vehicle. An astounding ten (10) 3.75” action figures can fit inside the seating of the vehicle and the bus looks fantastic when fully booked with guests. Another great feature is that the command chair can be removed and has been specially designed so you can place Captain REX (the Star Tours droid, not The Clone Wars character) in the specially designed spot in the floor for him. How cool is that?! That is some amazing backwards forward-thinking isn't it? The lights are made from high quality materials and really cast brightly before your eyes. We are so impressed with this feature alone and feel it warrants the $55 price alone. Star Wars collectors should be able to find some value in this vehicle for their collections. You can easily pretend that this is some random Rebel cruiser or just some generic transport to take your action figures from one diorama to another. But whatever you decide, we hope that you will be able to enjoy this vehicle in person and not just in pictures. Let us say it again. This is the most fun we’ve had with a Star Wars related vehicle in years. And that is saying very much! This item won’t see mass release, so if you’re interested in one, eBay or Disney Merchandise will be your only options! Contact them at 877-560-6477.