Lego U.S.S. Enterprise NCC-1701-D review

Move over, Star Wars, and get out of here, Marvel, because there is finally an official Star Trek Lego set… and what a set. The first Star Trek Lego set was always going to be some variation of the USS Enterprise, but as a massive The Next Generation stan, I'm glad that it was my beloved: the U.S.S. Enterprise NCC-1701-D.

With an 18+ recommended age rating and a hefty 3600-piece count, it's certainly not for the faint of heart. That's fine, though, because I have to imagine that just about everyone who wants one of these things is someone who watched the original show back in the day. Who knows, though, maybe Paramount+ is bringing in the next generation of Next Generation fans?

It's also a hefty $400 — a price point that will make you yearn for the moneyless society of the show. So, was it worth the wait, and is it worth the money? Let's head into the review at warp seven and find out.

Lego U.S.S. Enterprise NCC-1701-D: Build

Image 1 of 4

• Body constructed with two mirrored halves
• 3600 pieces
• Some easy-to-apply stickers and printed pieces

The Lego Star Trek: U.S.S. Enterprise NCC-1701-D is made from 3600 pieces, split across 30 different bags and two instruction books. The first book covers the ship's main body and the flight stand, while the second book is devoted to the saucer section.

To make it so, the build starts with the main body and wings that hold the nacelles (aka the ship's warp engines). You actually construct the body from two mirror halves, which are then attached using several long cross-axle pieces (the long plus-shaped bars). I was especially impressed with how the designers crafted the main deflector array — that blue oval on the front of the ship that's always firing off tractor beams and tachyon pulses — which is made from two, custom-printed cockpit windscreen pieces that you invert, creating the concave shape of the array.

With the body constructed, it's time for a quick detour to assemble the flight stand, as the fixed position it offers makes attaching the engines much easier.

Image 1 of 4

Speaking of which, you'll move on to building the nacelles themselves, which make good use of blue and red transparent pieces to recreate the iconic look of the ship's glowing engines. Once assembled, the nacelles slot into place nicely, and by this point, you've got a working ship… as long as you don't mind commanding your daft-looking ship from the battle bridge.

The back half of the build is a lot more technical, as you're building a larger circular disc out of square and rectangular Lego pieces. This feat is achieved by first constructing a central frame, similar to the spokes of a wheel, and then attaching it to the main body. I ran into an issue here, as I discovered I'd made a mistake in section 1 that only reared its ugly head here. A single piece was rotated 90 degrees in the wrong direction, and it stopped the saucer from slotting in. Fortunately, I was able to repair it without disassembling the entire thing, but my heart did stop for a second when I discovered my mistake.

Once the frame is in place, you then attach the top panels, which use angled pieces and hinge attachments, slotting together into a damn impressive approximation of a circle.

Image 1 of 2

Things get trickier from here, though, as the final stretch has you repeating this process on the underside of the ship. The instruction book seems to imagine that you've got infinite room to work underneath the ship while doing this, but in practice, it's quite tricky. I gave up in the end and just flipped the whole thing over, which felt very sketchy, and I ended up knocking a few random pieces off during the operation.

Despite my brief (and self-inflicted) cardiac episode, I had a fantastic time building the Enterprise. The nine minifigures are scattered throughout the build, providing a nice palette cleanser as you work through this sizeable build. They're all simple to construct as you'd expect, though Riker's trombone is an impressive — and rickety — piece of engineering.

Some mirror sections effectively call for you to build the same thing twice, but the fact that it's mirrored — and not identical — keeps you on your toes. There are some special printed pieces, along with some stickers scattered throughout the build, but they're all easy enough to apply.

Lego U.S.S. Enterprise NCC-1701-D: Design

Image 1 of 4

• Great display model
• Comprehensive collection of minifigures
• Can be a little fragile to handle when completed

I've been waiting a very long time for a Lego Star Trek set, and I'm thrilled to say the U.S.S. Enterprise NCC-1701-D was worth the wait. The design team has perfectly replicated the iconic starship in exquisite detail — no small feat given its awkward size and shape. I was skeptical of how the circular saucer section would look when built out of flat-edge pieces, but it looks stunning.

Some easter eggs are hiding around the ship that fans will appreciate, including the dedication plaque that emblazons the back wall of the Enterprise's bridge (complete with a hilarious typo). Sadly, this set isn't big enough to have a minifig scale bridge hidden inside it, so the plaque lives in a hidden compartment instead.

Speaking of minifigures, the collection included here is comprehensive, with almost all of your favorite characters from the show (bad luck to the Tasha Yar and Chief O'Brien stans out there). They all look wonderful, each with their own unique accessories ranging from Worf's phaser through to Riker's ridiculous trombone.

Image 1 of 4

There are some unique Lego pieces used here, too, including Worf's "hair" and Guinan's flamboyant headpiece. There is a platform to store the minifigs on, and a printed display piece with cool facts and figures about the Enterprise on it, too.

Another neat touch is the "pin" that locks the saucer section in place, which is cleverly disguised as a shuttlecraft approaching the shuttlebay. It's a cute piece of design, though the detachable saucer section itself is — much like in the show — a gimmick that you'll rarely use.

The model is too fragile to handle (since completing it, I knocked a piece off while showing it off on webcam and can not for the life of me find where it came from). Beyond that, there is no display stand to hold the saucer section on its own, so unless you're recreating the end of Star Trek: Generations, it's not worth detaching.

Should you buy the Lego U.S.S. Enterprise NCC-1701-D?

If you're a Star Trek fan and a Lego collector, of course, you should buy this set. And by the looks of it, a lot of you already did because the Lego U.S.S. Enterprise NCC-1701-D sold almost immediately out on launch day. If you missed the first wave, don't worry, because we're sure it'll be back in stock at warp speed.

The Enterprise is a brilliant set to build and a gorgeous display piece when it's done. It's expensive, as you'd expect from a 3,600-piece Lego set, but I think it's well worth the price of admission for Trekkies. Your wallet's shields never stood a chance.

Other Lego sets to consider

As we said in the intro, the Lego U.S.S. Enterprise NCC-1701-D is the first and only Star Trek Lego set out there for now (unless you count the Type-15 Shuttlepod that came with the pre-order), so we don't have any other Trekkie sets to recommend to you.

If you're agnostic in the Trek vs Wars divide, there are plenty of amazing Star Wars Lego sets to consider, though. My personal favorite is the Venator-Class Republic Attack Cruiser, an enormous 5,374-piece monster that dwarfs even the Enterprise.

If the $649.99/£559.99 price tag on that set has triggered a red alert from your bank, there are some cheaper sets we love too; namely, the Mos Espa Podrace Diorama and the adorable Grogu with Hover Pram, both of which can be had for under $100.