LEGOCY: Hands-on with the original LEGO Jabba’s Palace nearly 20 years later

For the past few Wednesdays, Boba Fett has been hogging the Star Wars spotlight with new installments of the Disney+ series. While fans are waiting on the new version of the bounty hunter’s stronghold to release, we’re looking back in time at the first version of the Tatooine dwelling. The original LEGO Jabba’s Palace is now coming up on 20 years old, and our first LEGOCY with 9to5Toys review is taking a look at just how well this classic Star Wars creation has aged.

Hands-on with the LEGO Jabba’s Palace from 2003

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Originally launching back in 2003, only the fourth wave of LEGO Star Wars sets to date at that point, Jabba’s Palace arrived at the $30 price point. Clocking in as set number 4480, it included 231 pieces alongside a total of six minifigures.

Before diving right into the actual building experience, it’s worth admiring the classic box art. Back in 2003, the LEGO Group’s packaging had much more character than today, with some snazzy shots of the kit itself in front of a themed background. Though my favorite bit has to be that the box still showcased alternative builds to the main set on the back. For Jabba’s Palace in particular, the LEGO set has the idea of creating a bi-plane and little outpost. As silly as the alternatives always are, that kind of charm about imaginative play is something that just isn’t as apparent with modern-day kits.

Once you’ve trekked through the build, you’re left with a classic LEGO Star Wars set that, while certainly a bit basic, has so much charm to it. Even keeping in mind that this is coming up on 20 years old, the LEGO Group did a really nice job recreating Jabba’s Palace the first time around. Especially at the $30 price point.

The main structure consists of two stories, with the main floor up top featuring Jabba’s throne room and some stairs leading up to it. There is some pretty interesting part usage to pull off the scene out of Return of the Jedi, and I am quite partial to how well it all flows together. Though the best part has to be that you can pull back the platform that Jabba sits on in order to activate a trap door and send Luke down to the Rancor pit, even if a menagerie isn’t included.

Now I know it leaves a lot up to the imagination, but the play features are certainly there. I’m not going to try to convince you that it’s the most display-worthy set of its time, but the aesthetic of early 2000s LEGO Star Wars isn’t lost on me.

LEGO minifigures were a big draw with classic Star Wars sets

Hands down my favorite aspect of the set has to be the minifigures. And oh does the original LEGO Jabba’s Palace deliver on that front. It not only has one of the more notable selections of figures from the theme overall, but also some inclusions that have become something of icons for all of LEGO Star Wars.

Given this is Jabba’s Palace after all, you’re getting a mold of the titular Hutt himself in LEGO form, which has aged so well. It’s not as detailed as the newer version, but it hits all the right notes for me as a LEGO and Star Wars fan. Then there’s Leia, who is outfitted in her iconic outfit from Episode IV. It was wild that the LEGO Group decided to include this back in the day, and the execution of such a revealing design for a minifigure is just so novel.

Luke on the other hand is rocking a full wardrobe, with not only his black Jedi robes, but also a cape and hood. All of that pales in comparison to the inclusion of a silver chrome Lightsaber. It’s one of the most classic aspects of the original LEGO Star Wars waves and something that even to this day, has not been done better.

I’d be remiss without highlighting that Jabba’s Palace also comes with a LEGO Gonk droid, which is another highlight for me. It’s been ages since there has been a printed build like this for the walking power converters, and once again, is something that modern LEGO could learn a thing or two from. You’ll also get a B’omarr Monk as well as another droid to complete the set.

9to5Toys’ Take:

When I think about classic LEGO Star Wars, the original Jabba’s Palace 4480 from 2003 is one of the first sets that come to mind. That’s partially because it was one of the first sets I got as a young LEGO builder, but also just because of how iconic of a set it really was then. And of course, still is to this day. As someone who has been building a lot of LEGO recently, and specifically a lot of Star Wars sets, it’s really interesting to check out a set that’s now almost two decades old. This set just screams classic LEGO Star Wars in such a nostalgic way, but it highlights just how good some of the minifigures have been.

It’s such a unique set for including the weird minifigures that it does, but it also goes a step further in taking some artistic liberties that we just don’t see anymore from the theme. While there are some newer sets that miss the mark on being screen-accurate, the original Jabba’s Palace is from a time when that didn’t matter as much. So when we inevitably see the upcoming Boba Fett’s Palace drop in the coming days or weeks, seeing just how far things have come will definitely put the set into perspective.

As far as actually adding Jabba’a Palace to your LEGO collection, this is definitely one of the more iconic kits from back in the day. I think its aftermarket price is likely only going to keep going up once the Book of Boba Fett wraps up its first season. And depending on how the reception of the new Palace set is, could be a contributing factor to the original’s price either going up or down.

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