Lego UCS Millennium Falcon review: "The greatest Lego Star Wars set ever"

The Millenium Falcon is the most iconic ship in cinematic history, and the UCS Millenium Falcon is one of the best Lego sets ever made. That’s the tier of collectibles we’re working with here, and boy does Lego know it. When it was first released during the Disney trilogy of films, it was the largest set ever made and saw patrons of the Lego store need literal carts to wheel the thing out, such is its massive size. It’s hung in the windows of Lego stores since then, and you’ve likely walked past it and wondered quietly what it would be like to actually own it.

At over $700 / £700, the UCS Millenium Falcon is a build you’ll never forget, and a statement piece in your office or living room that feels only slightly short of getting a tattoo of the thing. It is hulking, your back won’t thank you after the build, and it’s very expensive, but after you’re done you’ll be chasing the feeling of building something of its scale for a long time. It's the ultimate Lego Star Wars set, no questions asked.

Lego UCS Millennium Falcon features

• Largest & most detailed Falcon
• A physically massive model
• Features minifigs from across the saga

So, what makes this Millenium Falcon different from the other Millenium Falcon sets that Lego has produced? Well, the main things are detail and scale. This is a legitimate minifigure-scale ship, something that Lego Star Wars has been hesitant to do, for obvious cost reasons, but this set goes all out.

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The cockpit can look a little bit cramped, but I think that’s largely due to the dimensions of minifigures generally being far, far wider than a normal human, and outside of that small piece of the ship, everything else looks great.

The catch-22 is that unless you come from an incredibly affluent family, this isn’t a playset, so the number of little areas and scenes that you could set your figures in feel occasionally wasted.

When Lego gets to a certain scale, your eyes take a few moments to adjust and realize it’s actually a Lego model, and the Lego UCS Millennium Falcon definitely has that effect.

Lego UCS Millennium Falcon build

• Will take anywhere upwards of 15hrs
• You start with the frame & 'slot' rooms in
• Take care not to put much pressure on roof panels

The UCS Millenium Falcon has two main sections when it comes to building the set. The first is the hulking frame upon which the component 'rooms' sit. This is made from a lot of Lego Technic pieces, and means that pretty early into the build you’ll get the surprise (or shock) of just how massive the thing is.

After this, you’re going to be building a lot of small compartments and rooms that are then slid into the inside of the frame, and secured with Technic pieces. These rooms are enjoyable to build and it’s where you’ll get your best look at all of the small details that are hidden around the ship.

When you put everything together, it’ll snap into place nicely. However, there are two things you need to watch out for. It’s very easy to put too much pressure on the roof panels because as they are supposed to sit, they are not quite flush with the parts of the ships directly to the left and the right of the big blue engine port.

The other thing is that the two front wings sag very slightly due to the sheer weight of them, but this is nothing to worry about, and the ship itself is still as sturdy now as it was when I first built it - those are just a few little quirks to look out for if you ever have to move it.

Lego UCS Millennium Falcon design

• A magnificent, jaw-dropping build with so much detail
• Minifigs from two eras is a nice touch
• Where's Lando and Nien Nunb?

It’s difficult to imagine a Lego version of this ship looking any better. It is detailed within an inch of its life, and the sheer amount of plates, studs, and bricks on the outside back the rugged, thrown-together aesthetic of the YT-1300F light freighter. It looks incredible.

All of the areas of the ship you’ve seen in the film are very highly detailed, and even a few angles that didn’t ever make it to the screen are given some fleshing out. This was very clearly designed by someone who fantasized about what every inch of the ship looked like from the inside when they first saw Luke, Han, Chewie, and Ben make their way onboard in 1977.

There’s an interesting design quirk with the UCS Millenium Falcon in that it’s supposed to represent the ship from both The Empire Strikes Back and The Force Awakens, meaning there are two separate satellite dishes to choose from, and there’s also multiple versions of most characters. There are two Han Solos, one from each film, Princess Leia from Empire Strikes Back, Chewbacca, C-3PO, BB-8, Rey from The Force Awakens, as well as Finn and two Porgs.

It’s a bit disappointing that in the definitive version of this set that all of the pilots of the ship aren’t included, as a Lando Calrissian and Nien Nunb inclusion would have been a nice nod, but there is a reference to Lando in the actual build of the ship if you look hard enough.

Should you buy the Lego UCS Millennium Falcon?

If you can handle the monumental price, yes - you absolutely should buy the Lego UCS Millennium Falcon. It’s a set that stands practically alone in the Lego Star Wars canon, and as it’s likely to be retired very soon, I don’t know when we’ll see the likes of it again.

Sure, there are small things to nitpick like the minifigures and a few fiddly areas. However, it’s very difficult to argue against it being the very best Lego Star Wars kit of all time.

Buy it if...

Don't buy it if...

How we tested the UCS Millennium Falcon

The UCS Millenium Falcon took around four days of solid building (while watching Star Wars films, naturally). However, it’s built in such a way that you could easily divide it into teams. The set box actually contains four smaller boxes that you can easily break out into building with friends.

For more toy goodness, why not check out the best Star Wars toys or the best Nerf blasters?