Disclaimer: This review contains spoilers of the final episodes of the final season of Star Wars: The Clone Wars. The whole set, although small, is in fact one big spoiler.
So, if you haven’t seen The Clone Wars finale and are about to, move along and let the Force be with you!

But if you still want to read this review, follow me…

The set

The Duel on Mandalore set contains only 147 parts, but believe me, each one is filled with the Force. The stationary elements of this set refer to the episodes “The Phantom Apprentice” (the throne) through “Shattered” (Mandalorian vault).

The throne

The throne is basically a simple structure mostly in shades of gray, with a touch of brown and orange. The window, in translucent orange with decals simulating decorations, really attracts attention. The window is tilting—collapsible. This playable feature is a reference to the final scene of Ahsoka and Maul’s duel in the throne room on Mandalore. A few more bricks from which you could build the throne’s surroundings, e.g. like in the New Asgard set, would be very useful.

Mandalorian vault

In turn, the little vault build refers to the final episode, “Shattered.” In this Force-proof capsule, Darth Maul was to be transported to Coruscant. Since the capsule is the work of the Mandalorians, it is decorated with images of distinctive helmets and scenes from the Mandalore-Jedi Wars.

Stickers

For such a small set it has a surprisingly large number of stickers, as many as five. Three of them are really big, and their application is quite demanding.

Applying stickers to the orange window is a challenge, because you have to do it very skillfully to maintain the symmetry of the patterns. In turn, it is relatively simple to apply a sticker at the foot of the throne and the door-locking panel on the vault. This locking panel sticker reminds me a bit of the IG-series droid head. But that might just be me.

The entire front panel of the Mandalorian vault is a huge sticker, so you have to be really careful while applying, especially since the “glass panel” is a part of this sticker! It is worth making sure that there is no remaining air there.

Minifigures

The set stars duo Ahsoka Tano and Darth Maul. The presence of two great minifigures in a relatively cheap set is almost like a gift from Watto himself—though I also get the impression these minifigs are inflating the price of this small set. Of course, the Ahsoka minifigure attracts the most attention, with orange skin and a great mold of her montrals (the things on her head), that are also in highly contrasting colors. Against it, Darth Maul looks a bit pale, despite the fact this is a version with nice new prints. First of all, his head is disappointing. I don’t know if it’s a matter of colors or design, but Maul’s head is not menacing at all and I’m not really convinced by this minifigure. Anyway, I’ve never been a fan of the LEGO version of Darth Maul. I have the impression that due to the complexity of the patterns on this Sith’s face, it is simply not possible to convey it well as a minifigure head.

Duel on Mandalore in front of the lens

Both characters use two lightsaber blades, which gives a lot of room to show off when it comes to photos. For this reason, fans of creating a digital lightsaber effect and fans of practical effects will have something to do.

Four blades give you a lot of possibilities when it comes to setting the battle scenes of these two warriors. The set itself is a bit of an obstacle though. Due to its modest size, it’s useful as background only in the case of tight frames. In the case of these two, that can be quite good solution.

I am used to creating a bit wider frames, so this set was a kind of challenge. Thanks to it, I’m able to try more dramatic, tighter frames and angles. A tighter frame also allows you to get closer to the character and show the tension between opponents.

Final thoughts

75310 Duel on Mandalore is a very nice set, mainly thanks to the minifigures. So it’s a good deal, almost like a Mandalorian bounty. However, for the price of $19.99 it could be a bit bigger. Nevertheless, it’s worth getting, because you get two really nice minifigures without having to buy much more expensive sets. Overall, this set has the high ground.

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