Review of 9495 Y-Wing

Toys'R'Us has this set on sale this week so I picked one up.  I have been excited about this set from the first pictures that were released. 

To start with, here is a comparison of this one versus the one released in 2007.  There are several things I like about this one better.  To start with, the front of the engines don't have those golf ball looking caps.  The blasters have more detail rather than just being rods.  I also think the shape of the head is more traditional Y-wing than the previous model.

I think this one is an improvement in just about every way.

Review of TIE Fighter 9492

My Tie Fighter just arrived in the mail yesterday and I had a chance to put it together last night.  It is definitely a step above the previous models.  Let's start with the box:

If I can be unreasonably disgruntled for a moment, having Darth Maul on the box is irritating.  He was dead long before the modern TIE fighter came to be.  I'm sure it is because episode one is being re-released in theaters but still, not good enough.

The other thing about the box is I feel like it's too big.  There are three bags and an instruction book.  How big does it really need to be?
This also brings me to my first notation.  If you're like me you probably open all the bags first and then open the instructions.  But it turns out with this set the bags are numbered 1, 2, & 3, and you can quite literally open them in that order as you build.  If you have limited space or want to look through fewer pieces at a time, that may come in handy.