25 years in, LEGO Star Wars has finally created the perfect set - and it’ll cost you less than what came before

As we head into another corporate made-up holiday for May 4th, know that there is at least one significant, non-annual, and lesser-discussed Star Wars thing to celebrate in 2024 – 25 years of Lego Star Wars.

The success of Lego Star Wars can’t really be understated. In video gaming, we know it as the brand combination that led to oodles of video games – but it charted a new course for Lego at large, too. It’s the single most successful piece of Lego franchise licensing, but is also undoubtedly the brand that cracked the door open for other brands. With Lego’s interest piqued, the toy behemoth has recreated everything from Batman to Horizon Zero Dawn in its iconic bricks – but it all began with Star Wars.

Part of the triumph of Lego Star Wars is really the breadth of its appeal. This is shared with regular Lego – there’s city sets of police stations and hospitals for kids, but also supremely detailed fully-featured buildings for the bigger kids. Lego Star Wars has long followed this template, serving up cutesy play sets ranging from a tenner or so up to larger ‘Christmas present’ tier toys – and then more expensive sets for adults who really should know better.