LEGO® Star Wars Diorama review: 75352 Emperor's Throne Room & 75353 Endor Speeder Chase

The Star Wars movie Return of the Jedi, also known as “How The Care Bears Kicked the Emperor’s Behind”, celebrates its 40th anniversary in 2023. Wait, that makes the movie the same age as me, and the movie is considered to be classic...

Sorry, I had to recover from that. Back to the bricks: to commemorate the occasion, LEGO Star Wars has released several sets, and UniekeBricks has kindly sent us 2 of them to have a closer look.

Products in this article were provided by UniekeBricks; the author's opinions are their own.
LEGO® Star Wars 75352 Emperor's Throne Room Diorama
US$99.99/ £89.99/ 99.99€/ AU$159.99
807 parts
Released May 2023
Buying from LEGO.com? Please consider using our affiliate links, we may get a commission: USA LEGO Shop | Australia LEGO Shop | UK LEGO Shop.

LEGO® Star Wars 75353 Endor Speeder Chase Diorama
US$79.99/ £69.99/ 79.99€/ AU$129.99
608 parts
Released May 2023
Affiliate links: USA LEGO Shop | Australia LEGO Shop | UK LEGO Shop.

Last year, LEGO introduced the Diorama Collection, which is a series of display sets depicting classic scenes from the Star Wars Original Trilogy. I took a look at the first Diorama Collection sets last year, and now we get 2 new arrivals, both from Return of the Jedi:

75352 Emperor’s Throne Room Diorama in which Emperor Palpatine tries to turn Luke to the Dark Side, while Luke tries to bring his father back to the light, ultimately resulting in a yeet.
75353 Endor Speeder Chase Diorama in which Luke and Leia fly through a forest trying to hunt down a Scout trooper.

Shuttle Tydirium, what is your cargo and destination?

Before we get to the destination of the models, we'll inspect the cargo found in the boxes. Not many surprises here: Despite the part counts of 807 pieces in 75352 and 608 pieces in 75353, there are no new molds, and just a few new elements to be found. Most of the new elements involve the minifigures, which I’ll show later on. Let's start with the standard parts first.

There are 3 recolors to be found, but there is a caveat.

Window 1 x 2 x 3 Train in Light Bluish Gray (6435915 | 3233), found in 75352
Equipment Cleaver, 2 Holes in Black (6395769 | 79811), found in 75353

Both these elements are a recolor for their specific mold variations. But both elements also have an older mold variation that has already appeared in their respective colors. Seeing the differences are very small, you could consider these recolors to be moot.

I can't find many differences on the train window, aside from mold patterns. I have heard reports that the glass panels can be harder to remove from the window, so something has changed, it's just not clearly visible.

The cleaver has received 2 new holes; one in the top of the blade and one in the handle. Otherwise, the molds are identical.

Due to their size, the other noteworthy elements found in 75352 needed their own image:

Hose Rigid 3mm D. 27L / 21.6cm in Light Bluish Gray (6320144 | 70688) has appeared in 1 other set
Hose Rigid 3mm D. 43L is new in Light Bluish Gray (6440416 | 69271)

The main feature of the throne room is the large window in the back, created with a newly printed Dish 10 x 10 in Trans-Clear (6457969 | 105149).
Both sets include a Brick 1 x 4 x 3 with ‘40 RETURN OF THE JEDI’ print in Black (6441773 | 104181). The brick is also found in 2 other commemorative sets.
All diorama sets (including the non-Star Wars ones) include a printed Tile 2 x 6 with a quote related to the depicted scene. For 75352 it is “I am a Jedi, like my father before me” by Luke Skywalker (6433800 | 102796), and 75353 also quotes Luke: “Quick! Jam their comlinks. Center switch!” (6433805 | 102801)

Return of the Elements

Aside from the new elements, there are others worth mentioning.

The new Plant, Fern 2 x 3 x 2, examined by Ben Davies at their introduction in 10316 The Lord of the Rings: Rivendell, makes its 2nd appearance in 75353.
Slope Double 45° 1 x 1 in Black (6439560 | 35464), found in 75352, is new for 2023, after their introduction in 76918 McLaren Solus GT & F1 LM, reviewed by Thomas Jenkins.
Tile 4 x 4 in Dark Bluish Gray (6429074 | 1751) was introduced this year in a single set.
Plate 3 x 3 in Dark Green (6253285 | 11212) was introduced in 2022 and appeared in 3 other sets.
Tile 2 x 4 with ‘LEGO STAR WARS’ print in Black (6388259 | 1538) has only appeared in the other Star Wars Diorama sets.

The speeder chase scene takes place on the forest-covered moon of Endor, turning set 75353 into a nice foliage pack, including 24 of the earlier mentioned Plant, Fern 2 x 3 x 2. This makes the set a relatively cheap way to get the element in bulk while waiting for it to appear on Bricks & Pieces.

The trees are made out of SNOT bricks, providing them in high quantity.

"Who are you?" "Someone who loves you."

Each set comes with 3 figures, most of them new.

Minifigures in set 75352

Darth Vader has appeared in this form before in 75347 TIE Bomber form 2023.

Emperor Palpatine

New dual sided Head in Tan (6433796 | 102792)
New printed Torso in Black (6442214 | 76382)
New printed Legs in Black (6433798 | 102794)

Luke Skywalker

New molded Hair Mid Length, Smooth, Swept Aside in Dark Tan (6441117 | 3884)
New printed Torso in Black (6441824 | 76382)

Minifigures in set 75353

The torso and legs of the Scout Trooper have appeared once before in 75332 AT-ST from 2022. The helmet and head are common parts.

Luke Skywalker

The helmet is not new, but has only been seen once in 2015: Helmet Rebel Commando with Dark Green Band Print in Dark Tan(6433806 | 102802)
New printed Torso in Dark Tan (6443895 | 76382)
New printed Legs in Dark Tan(6433802 | 102798)

Princess Leia

The same helmet as Luke
New printed Torso in Olive Green (6444524 | 76382)
New printed Legs in Olive Green (6433804 | 102800)

“I tell you, this station will be operational as planned.”

The construction of the sets is pretty straightforward. The base has the same 18-studs depth as the other Diorama Collection sets, but the large window of the throne room sticks out the back.

The window also brings the most interesting building technique: The rigid hoses are used to create 2 rings. On these rings we connect the train windows using clips. When all in place, they form the other ring of the large window. The large 10 x 10 dish is held in place by 2 clips and 2 T-junction bars.

As mentioned, the trees on Endor are made up out of SNOT bricks, covered with a layer of plates and tiles. I can’t say they are really ugly, but they do look too squarish for my taste. They don’t feel organic enough, and could use some curved bricks. Ideally, a more round structure, covered in Brick Curved 1 x 4 x 2/3 Double Curved Top, No Studs to get the right texture?

The speeders look very nice; the 2 vehicles are near-identical, aside from an added seat for Luke on the right one.

“Now witness the firepower of this fully armed and operational battle station.”

Set 75352 Emperor’s Throne Room Diorama looks great, albeit a bit grey. Palpatine needs to have a chat with his interior decorator.

The two new minifigures (plus one relatively new) are always welcome to collectors. In terms of new elements it falls a bit short, unless you have a need for a large round window.

This set will mostly appeal to Star Wars fans who want a display model. For MOCcers the set is pretty light-on, although another source for 4x4 tiles in dark grey is always welcome.

Set 75353 Endor Speeder Chase Diorama is a good-looking addition to the series, bringing some color compared to 75352 Emperor's Throne Room Diorama.

The speeder bikes can be moved around to create some variation. The build itself is not as interesting though, with only the bikes using some clever techniques. The set is useful to get some relatively cheap ferns, but otherwise the bricks are pretty standard.

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15 May 2023