Review: LEGO 75304 Darth Vader and 75305 Scout Trooper Helmets

March 26, 2021 | 7

With Star Wars Day 2021 almost upon us, LEGO are gearing fans up for a May the 4th Celebration with two new long-awaited Helmets – 75304 Darth Vader Helmet and 75305 Scout Trooper Helmet!

The Helmet Collection has been a fairly new sub-category of sets within LEGO Star Wars, giving fans the opportunity to build and display some of the galaxy’s most iconic Helmets, and Darth Vader and Scout Trooper expand on 2020’s  Boba Fett, Stormtrooper and TIE Fighter Helmets.

The collection (and Probe Droid!) is now available for preorder from LEGO.com, ahead of a general release of 26 April 2021 – just in time for Star Wars day!

I was very lucky to have received the opportunity to check them out early, so enjoy an early review and in-depth look into the LEGO Darth Vader and Scout Trooper helmets!

Special thanks to the LEGO Group for providing these sets for review

75304 Darth Vader Set Details

Name: Darth Vader Helmet
Set Number: 75304
Pieces: 834
Price: AU$89.99 | US$69.99 | £59.99 – Buy from LEGO.com [AUS] [USA] [UK]
Exclusive to: N/A
Theme: Star Wars – The Helmet Collection
Release Date: 25 March 2021 (preorder) : global release 26 April 2021

You should be no stranger to Darth Vader, possibly one of the most iconic characters in cinematic and sci-fi history, and LEGO will please many fans with the debut of the 2021 LEGO Darth Vader Helmet.

This is especially pertinent for fans who missed out on the Target and event-exclusive – Darth Vader Bust, but this more than makes up for it by upsizing the build and display potential in a far superior design.

Here’s a look at the instruction manuals, with a nice little introduction (as if he needed one!) to Darth Vader, and I love the inclusion of the LEGO Star Wars Creative Director’s Jens Kronvold Frederiksen’s signature and profile. The set designer is Cesare Soares.

Good news, the instructions now use the grey background which is way more legible.

Here’s a look at the finished product – at 834 pieces, it’s the largest of the two, with almost double the pieces of the Scout Trooper helmet, but the build felt fairly brisk.

As you can see, you mostly build with black elements, which makes the build a little tricky – I had to strain my eyes and concentrate quite a bit when building the helmet.

If you’ve built helmets like Iron Man, Boba Fett, Stormtrooper or TIE Fighter Pilot, the design approach is fairly, standard although I enjoyed the different techniques used for Vader, especially getting the shape of his eyes and mouth.

Most of the details including his nose, mouth and chin are stickers, and I think there’s quite a glaring omission with the design of the mouth as the lines just sort of abruptly end and there’s this very noticeable empty section in between the grey screws that seal his mask.

That said, I love the generous helping of studs all over, and I think Jens, the designer did a great job getting Vader’s helmet shape right. The studs just give it that LEGO identity, and I’m glad they didn’t go all smooth with it.

Here’s a look at the helmet from the side.

And here’s a look at the printed plaque. Yay for printed plaques.

These helmets are perfect if you want to expand your Boba Fett, Stormtrooper and TIE Fighter Pilot collection, OR if you’re a LEGO Darth Vader superfan.

It’s such an icon and would more than impress as a display piece in your home, office or Darth Vader shrine.

What I liked:

• Looks great on display without taking too much space
• Build was fun and varied with interesting techniques
• Pricing is not too bad, especially in Australia

What I didn’t like: 

• Building with all black pieces is tricky, and you can’t zone out during the build
• Stickers are a little disappointing, especially in the mouth area

Final Thoughts:

This will likely be one of the most popular Star Wars helmets ever (until they release The Mandalorian), mostly thanks to Vader’s iconic status in the Star Wars galaxy.

As a display piece, these helmets are beginning to grow on me – I currently have Iron Man on display next to my TV, and it brings me a smile to see it there, and I have Boba Fett on my to-build and display list.

As small, fairly accessible sets, I really like this little sub-theme that LEGO have created, which allows fans to outwardly share their love of LEGO and Star Wars without needing a whole new coffee table, or to clear a ton of space to display them.

There are some improvements that could be made such as getting rid of stickers but for the most part, Vader fans will be really happy, especially if you (like most of us) missed out on the Target bust.

Rating and score: 3/5 ★★★✰✰

Build [3] – The build was interesting, with some cool techniques employed, but the black gets old after awhile
Real Value [3] – It’s not the cheapest set, but relative to other adult/Star Wars sets, the value is decent
Innovation [3] – The design is quite cool, and I think it’s impressive the design team adapted the shape so well
Coolness [4] – It’s Vader’s helmet built out of LEGO. Enough said.
Keepability [4] – As these helmets are small, I can see them staying on display for long periods of time. With more being released, the lure to have the “entire collection” also becomes stronger

75305 Scout Trooper Set Details

Name: Scout Trooper Helmet
Set Number: 75305
Pieces: 471
Price: AU$89.99 | US$49.99 | £44.99 – Buy from LEGO.com [AUS] [USA] [UK]
Exclusive to: N/A
Theme: Star Wars – The Helmet Collection
Release Date: 25 March 2021 (preorder) : global release 26 April 2021

Moving on next, we have a Return of the Jedi staple – the Scout Trooper! The bane of Ewoks, fans of ROTJ are going to have a blast assembling this helmet together.

Here’s a look at the introduction section of the manual, which contains information on the Scout Trooper who look so bad-ass on his Speeder Bike, and also the LEGO Star Wars Creative Director’s signature: Jens Kronvold Frederiksen.

The Scout Trooper Helmet was designed by Hans Burkhard Schlömer

As helmets go, and as much as I love Vader, I have to give it to LEGO – they absolutely nailed the shape of the Scout Trooper’s helmet.

The proportions, and angles are simply perfect, and this such an aesthetically pleasing model to look at once finished.

It really helps that the slightly blocky shape of the Scout Trooper’s helmet translates really well here, but there are some masterful design techniques employed to get the shape so accurate.

The visor is so fun to look at, and while you can notice stickers aplenty used in the set, I really appreciated the use of the LEGO Mario Koopa/Bowser sell for the nose, and the wheel arch for his mouthpiece.

Here’s a look at the back which shows off the vents of the helmet (it must get stuffy on Endor), which are sadly stickered elements. And there are a lot of them, so if you hate stickers, you’re likely not going to enjoy this part in the build.

Here’s a look at the top of the helmet, and back where you see so much of that unashamed studs aesthetic which I really like.

The size difference between Vader and the Scout Trooper aren’t that apparent when you put them side by side – it doesn’t feel like there’s 300-less pieces, apart from it being a little on the short side.

But boy, am I enjoying how good the Scout Trooper looks next to Darth Vader.

If you enjoy LEGO’s Helmet collection, the Scout Trooper in particular will make you feel all fuzzy inside.

What I liked:

• The most accurate LEGO Star Wars helmet yet
• Build was fun, with some really innovative techniques
• Looks so good on display

What I didn’t like: 

• The sides are a little flimsy, and has the tendency of popping off if you move it around
• Annoyingly large number of stickers

Final Thoughts:

Like Darth Vader, the Scout Trooper helmet makes for an excellent display piece, especially if you fall in the “Empire Did Nothing Wrong” bandwagon.

As small, fairly accessible sets, I really like this little sub-theme that LEGO have created, which allows fans to outwardly share their love of LEGO and Star Wars without needing a whole new coffee table, or to clear a ton of space to display them.

Where the Scout Trooper helmet really shines is in how accurate the shape and proportion are – it looks so good that at a glance, you might think it’s an actual prop, and design team did a great job with adapting the helmet’s shape so well.

I fell in love when I first saw the box photos, and now that I’ve built and displayed it, I can attest to it being one of the most movie-accurate LEGO Star Wars helmets yet.

Rating and score: 4/5 ★★★★✰

Build [3] – The build was fairly interesting, with cool new techniques and clever part usage
Real Value [4] – The Scout Trooper is the most affordable set in this new drop and oozing value at US$50!
Innovation [4] – Some really nice part re-colours, and I just love how the shape of the helmet came together
Coolness [4] – Looks so bloody good on display I don’t think I’ll ever pack this one away
Keepability [4] – As these helmets are small, I can see them staying on display for long periods of time. With more being released, the lure to have the “entire collection” also becomes stronger

Thanks for reading my review of the 2021 LEGO Darth Vader Helmet and Scout Trooper!

The LEGO Darth Vader Helmet and Scout Trooper Helmets are available for pre-order NOW from LEGO.com, ahead of the 26 April 2021 general release date. What better way to celebrate Star Wars Day than by expanding your LEGO Star Wars helmet collection!

I’d love to know what you think of the new Darth Vader and Scout Trooper Helmets? Let me know in the comments which one is your favourite!

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Special thanks to the LEGO Group for providing these sets for review.