Lego 75017 Duel on Genosis - An Investment Victory, or a Crushing Defeat?

I know it has been a while, so I wanted to do a Set that I was really exited about for my next visual review/blog. I haven't been into Lego sets very long, but I am a huge Star Wars fan. Besides the obvious sets like all the UCS ships, my favorite retired sets are all the Duel sets. Mostly because they are simple and can be displayed in a bunch of different ways.

Unfortunately it has really been a long time since we have had one. Luckily, with the fall lineup we finally got a new one and it was a great one: The Duel on Genosis. Why does it look so great? Well, for one, its much bigger than the other duel sets there have been. Pretty much every Duel set there has been has had less than 200 pieces and just 2 minfigures. This one has 391 pieces and has a lot more play pieces which we will go over below.

On to the duel!

So first off, the box:

I really love this box. In general, I like two different types of boxes: Boxes that really make the ship or set stand out with a color complimentary background that really makes it stand out, and boxes that have a lot of different things going on making the set look really fun. This one fits the latter description. You have Poggle the Lesser flying around, the big column is falling, Yoda is hovering while in battle with Doku. Even the overhead lights on the arch are lighting up. There isn't a child that sees this set that wont want to play with it. The box is definitely one of the better ones of the new sets.

My only complaint against the box is that the background being brown doesn't compliment the set quite as much as I'd like. I am not sure the set draws you to it, though once you look you are pretty wow-ed.

Once you open the box, you get about what you paid for: 391 pieces for about 10 cents a piece. The opened set doesn't look any bigger or smaller - just about average. There isn't anything when you open it that tremendously stands out; most the pieces are of average size. The only sort of cool piece is the large, flat, grey piece in the middle:

On to the set!

First up, we get the "big name" exclusive minfigure, Poggle the Lesser. Though he not actually a big name, he is definitely a more unique minifigure and will most likely carry the value of this set quite a bit (at least in my opinion). Strong minifigures, as we all know, can be very important to a sets value - especially a duel set like this:

I really liked his wings. they are made of a thin, bendable plastic and fit on pretty well. The head piece is the best part as it very detailed and really stands out. This minifigure is going to be pretty sought after in the line because of it's uniqueness.

(Note: Yes I know the dog hair. Sadly, I vacuum, but with three dogs it just doesn't happen. Gonna get hard wood   )

Next up is FA-4, which is a redesign:

This figure is alright, but I don't find that it really has a wow factor. I am not really a big fan of minifigures that include normal pieces with a body and arms and head. It may have been the best way to build this one, but I like them to be more non-lego. Not a ton of value in this figure, but it is only in 2 other sets so its value will most likely be stagnant. I doubt it will show up in many more.

Next up is the excellent re-design of Count Doku:

Though our friend Poggle is the exclusive minifigure, Count Doku is really going to help the value of this set a lot as well. He is, as of now, an exclusive re-design to this set and he looks awesome with the chrome Lightsaber handle and the lightning.

I wouldn't underestimate the lightning effect on the minifigure. I was recently parting out the Jek-14 set and someone on Ebay was selling Jek with lightening (he doesn't come with it in the set). He was getting over $4 more for just having that piece. It is not a very common thing in Star Wars sets, so this definitely is going to help the value.

The face is also done really well with great facial hair detail.

He we go with the rest of the first bag. First up is the speeder the set comes with:

This speeder is pretty close to the one that comes with the 75012 Barc Speeder set. It has just a little different color scheme. though it is nothing crazy impressive, don't underestimate its value to this set. Speeder's are big time fun for children and sets that have them add a lot of play-ability. This adds to all the different things and scenes you can make with this set.

The next part you build is the Arch passageway along with the platform that uses the long, flat, grey piece I spoke of earlier:

The build is pretty easy and fun. Its actually much sturdier than other sets that include archs and things of that nature. The detail to it is really nice as well. the light fixture is also really cool as well as it has places to attach minifigures (in several pictures of the set Poggle is chillin' on top of it).

The last bag gives us another minifigure - an exclusive redesign:

Funny enough, Yoda is not in near as many sets as you think. For being one of the most iconic characters, and probably the most quotable character in the movies, he is only actually in 9 sets. Since there are over 300 Star Wars Lego sets, this makes him fairly rare for his popularity. Most of his variants sell for around $8 or so, and I think this one will fit right in that category, adding some solid value to the set.

The rest of the last bag is the back end of the playset:

The back part of the set is pretty bland building wise but shows off a few of the cool play-ability pieces of the set. For one, the black rod piece is for Yoda so oyu can fly him around while fighting Doku. Second, you have the big column (if you remember in the movie these were used as weapons in this scene quite a few times). This one can be tipped over to fall on an unsuspecting minifigure. It is controlled as well meaning you can stop it in thin air if you would like for Yoda or Doku to use the Force.

So how does the set look displayed?

I think it looks awesome for a $40 set. I decided in mine to have Yoda in clear battle with Doku, poggle is just chillin out watching everything happen and FA-4 is just dead in the middle. I think I have issues...

To display some of the cool parts of this set, here is the flying Yoda and the falling column:

Poggle is going to regret standing there.

As an investment, what can we expect from this set? Well I think it is a big time sleeper winner and here is why:

• Duel Sets past investment success
• Solid minifigures
• Genosis sets

1. Let's see how the duel sets have done. If you didn't know, this is actually sort of a remake of the 7103 Jedi duel with Yoda and Doku. How did that set do?

Retail: $9.99 Current Price: $35.27 CAGR: 12.15% ROI: 253% over 11 Years

Not too bad. In reality, this set did a lot better because it has had pretty stagnant growth for the last while. How did the other Duel sets do?

7101 Lightsaber Duel. Retail : $5.99 Current Price: $21.67 CAGR: 9.67% ROI: 261% over 14 Years

7200 Final Duel. Retail : $6.99 Current Price: $28.40 CAGR: 13.49% ROI: 306% over 11 Years

7201 Final Duel II Retail : $6.99 Current Price: $14.82 CAGR: 7.07% ROI: 112% over 11 Years

Pretty solid, right?

And then, there is the set that most clearly matches up with this set: 7257 Ultimate Light Saber Duel.

7257 Final Duel II Retail : $29.99 Current Price: $116.28 CAGR: 18.46% ROI: 288% over 8 Years Pieces: 282 with 2 Minifigures

This set definitely depicts just a bit more iconic scene, but I think the fight scene with Yoda and Doku is probably one of the best and most iconic scenes of the early episode trilogy. Just think about it - it's the first time that we get to see the ultimate Jedi master in Yoda. He is flipping all over the place, tearing people up. This set has the same suspension type pieces used in 7257 for Yoda, and has some extra play pieces as well as being 100 pieces more. This is definitely good news for the set's value.

2. Here are rough averages for the minifigures on Ebay currently (these obviously will go down after a while but the price of minifigures definitely helps see the value in the set)

• Doku: $15
• Yoda: $9
• FA-4: $4
• Poggle: $8

Total: $36.

Definitely helps you see that the minifigures have definitely value. there were listings that sold for higher for each minifigure. The set has 375 other pieces on top of the valuable minifigures!

3. Genosis. If you haven't noticed, the whole fall line was based on these scenes and really most of the sets have been pretty exceptional looking. I haven't found a bad one in the bunch. With the Genosis battlepacks and the genosis cannon set along with the new line, this is going to add a nice collectible plus to this set along with its great display-ability, play-ability, and minifigures.

Why do I call this set a "sleeper"? Well for one, it is definitely not the stand out set of the fall line. Not that it isn't one of the best, but the redone Gunship and AT-TE along with the Jek set and the Ewok Village are going to overshadow this set quite a bit, especially for investors. That's why I don't think this set will get near as much attention. Plus a lot of investors are not investing in Star Wars near as much. Why does this help? Well, I feel like these investors will buy the more obvious sets like the gunship and the Ewok Village, leaving sets like this to really surprise.

Considering everything we have shown, past sets, the minifigures, the sleeper possibilities and the Genosis line, I am going to predict a pretty conservative 12.5% growth after 5 years (after release). I think this set will at least see 10% and could definitely see up to 20% before I would really be surprised. If it grows at that rate, you would be looking at a price of $72 2-3 years after retirement. I don't think it will be extremely hard to grab this set for $25-$30 meaning you should be able to double your money, and have a nice upside as well.

Eitherway, you have to grab one for your collection if you are a big Star Wars fan. this is definitely the best looking of the duel sets and will be a nice change of pace in between those 200 vehicles you have!