As expected, 75339 Death Star Trash Compactor presents this famous scene with incredible accuracy and looks fantastic on display, despite its muted colours. In fact, the varying colours between these dioramas are attractive and this model surpasses the others in minifigures and functionality. The motion of the walls and positioning of the items inside are clever.

C-3PO was released during 2015 and included printed arms, which was significant because that minifigure depicted the character with his red arm from The Force Awakens. An equivalent standard of detail is present here and corresponds with the onscreen character, as seams between panels and the energy transducers on Threepio's shoulders look great. As a LEGO set, it looks and works way better than any of the marketing material can ever suggest, and it’s one of the highest-quality creations to come out of the LEGO Star Wars theme in years, feeling almost more like a custom model than an official set. In amongst the trash there are vantage points for the four characters of Leia, Luke, Han and Chewbacca to sit or stand as they try to navigate the junk around them as the walls close in, and these placement positions remain useable at any width you want to set the walls to.All six characters who you would hope to be included in 75339 Death Star Trash Compactor Diorama are here – Leia, Luke, Han, Chewbacca, R2-D2 and C-3PO. Chewbacca remains the same as most other sets he appears in, while Leia is the same version that has appeared in a couple of other sets from the last few years.

Death Star Trash Compactor is also the only one of the three new sets to include a bona fide play feature, in that its walls can compress together to simulate the compacting function of the on-screen scene. The printed tile that sits at the front of the display base appropriately features the iconic Han Solo line: “One thing’s for sure. We’re all gonna be a lot thinner!”However, where 75329 Death Star Trench Run Diorama and 75330 Dagobah Jedi Training Diorama very much lean into the hands-off approach that comes with this new design ethos, 75339 Death Star Trash Compactor Diorama feels like the compromise to ease the wider LEGO Star Wars audience in. For what is essentially also a display-first LEGO set, 75339 Death Star Trash Compactor Diorama still comes with a notable play feature, indicative of perhaps one avenue the Diorama Collection could explore more of, without compromising on authenticity. Death Star Trash Compactor Diorama has carved out its very own sweet spot between being a display piece and a full-on playset, thanks to a simple yet dynamic feature that harnesses the interactive potential of a LEGO Star Wars set – while still managing to add credibility and authenticity to something specifically designed for older collectors. Build the drama of a classic Star Wars: A New Hope scene with this Death Star Trash Compactor Diorama (75339) build-and-display model For everything that it achieves so well and so simply, though, 75339 Death Star Trash Compactor Diorama comes at a hefty, over-the-top price. Having your cake and eating it is usually not possible – the LEGO Star Wars team have found a way to make it happen here, but for anyone wanting to enjoy this future classic themselves, to paraphrase some LEGO set we’ve just built: one thing’s for sure. We’re all gonna be a lot poorer…

Inspired by Star Wars: A New Hope, the LEGO Star Wars Death Star™ Trench Run Diorama invites builders to recreate the gripping scene of Darth Vader™’s pursuit of Luke Skywalker™, as Luke fights to destroy the newly-built Death Star for a victory on the Rebellion side. Finish off the build with the memorable words of Darth Vader, “The Force is strong with this one.” While this will be exclusive to Walmart here in the United States, the LEGO Group has firmly stated in the past that regional exclusive sets are a thing of the past. So there will likely be a retailer in other countries carrying the set, if the LEGO Group themselves don’t sell it via LEGO Shop Online. 9to5Toys’ Take: As is the case with 75330 Dagobah Jedi Training Diorama, the high piece count is misleading and otherwise inflated by the use of a number of 1×1 pieces throughout. These pieces do contribute to the greater level of eye candy and detail that these higher-level LEGO sets are offering, thanks to the display-guided design approach, but they do also contribute to something being rather much smaller than some may otherwise expect from a piece count of 802.

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Death Star Trash Compactor Diorama is part of April 2022’s LEGO Star Wars Diorama Collection, which represents a new creative direction for the theme, offering older fans a higher level of detail and authenticity at the expense of playability and other design considerations usually built into sets for younger audiences. Unlike their allies, Princess Leia and Chewbacca remain unchanged. Leia's famous hairstyle looks perfect and I love her double-sided head, that captures the character's feisty personality. The torso looks splendid too, although I was hoping the dress component introduced in 75244 Tantive IV would return. These undecorated legs look very bland, by comparison. The set was provided for review by LEGO. All opinions expressed are those of the author. Minifigures

R2-D2 appears more frequently than almost any other Star Wars character, but experiences infrequent changes. The introduction of printing on the reverse therefore appears simple, but represents an important update and looks brilliant. The decoration across the front has been altered as well, albeit subtly. For example, the octagonal vent now features more dark blue. It’s a scene complete with the entire cast of characters too, including even R2-D2 and C-3PO who, otherwise in a different area of the Death Star entirely, are represented as standing on just the other side of the trash compactor here. As the walls slide inwards, everything attached to the walls moves together. The result looks surprisingly realistic, although my favourite feature is actually the flexible hose that links both walls. This naturally bends as the walls move, recreating the gradual mangling of metal which takes place during the movie! Again, this substantially improves the illusion.As mentioned, it’s necessary to the scene in question, and from an authenticity and quality perspective it adds a level of dynamism and literal movement that can’t otherwise be achieved in any other way. It does, however, also encourage a lot of touching and play – there’s nothing wrong with that, but it muddies the waters around the marketing for the series of sets that it belongs to. Channel your focus to help C-3PO and R2-D2 save Han Solo, Luke Skywalker, Chewbacca and Princess Leia from a crushing fate. Relive that dramatic Star Wars: A New Hope scene as you build the Death Star trash compactor's moving walls and other authentic details. To complete a nostalgic centrepiece, attach the plaque with Han's witty quip: ''One thing's for sure. We're all gonna be a lot thinner.'' It's ridiculously costly because Lego knows how hardcore their customers are for collecting minifigures, and how hardcore the Star Wars fanbase is. And how willing both are at paying significantly over the odds for things to complete their collections. Hence we got these ridiculous prices for these Diorama series of sets. And I'm not one that's interested in minifigures at all, it's always been the builds for me.