Star Wars

TIE Fighter Pilot

The Empire's most menacing helmet, in glorious brick-built black.

Brick Rated Score

4.2/5

Set 75274 · 2020

Pieces724

Minifigsn/a

Year2020

Set number75274

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The verdict

This was one of the very first 18+ sets LEGO ever released, and even now it holds up as a proper piece of shelf sculpture.

The TIE Fighter Pilot has the highest part count of the original three helmets at the same old price, and honestly it is the one I find most fun to build. The stickers instead of prints sting a little and the all-black repetition is real, but the finished shape is so clean and so recognizable that I forgive it. If you love the Empire, this is an easy yes.

Best for: Star Wars fans who want a sleek, all-black display helmet with real screen presence

The full review

What it is

The TIE Fighter Pilot helmet was part of LEGO's very first wave of grown-up display sets back in 2020, launching alongside the Stormtrooper and Boba Fett. Out of that original trio, this is the one that got me. There is something about that low, menacing black dome with the twin breathing tubes and the ridged lenses that reads as pure Imperial menace, and LEGO nailed the silhouette. It arrives with 724 pieces, the most of the three, and when it is finished and sitting on the stand it genuinely looks like a prop, not a toy. The nameplate on the base is a nice finishing touch that makes it feel like a museum display.

The catch

I will be honest about the caveats, because there are a few. The graphics are stickers rather than printed tiles, and on a set that is sold as a premium collector piece, that always feels like a corner cut. The other thing is the build itself. Because the helmet is symmetrical and almost entirely black, you spend a good stretch in the middle placing near-identical dark pieces in mirror image, and if you love variety in a build, that section will test you a little. And since the whole first wave has now retired, you are paying a fair bit more than the original 59.99, so it is no longer the bargain it was on shelves.

Who it's for

So who should get it? If you are a Star Wars fan who wants a striking, compact display piece and you have a soft spot for the Empire's foot soldiers, this is a lovely thing to own and one of the better-value entries in the whole helmet line. It also pairs gorgeously with the white Stormtrooper if you want that black-and-white contrast on a shelf. I would steer you elsewhere if you build mainly for clever engineering surprises or if the sticker situation genuinely bothers you, because neither of those boxes gets ticked here. But as a pure display object, it earns its space.

The parts story

What the build is actually like, and the pieces worth knowing about.

The build is refreshingly logical. It starts with a studs-out core that uses different colors underneath to help you keep your bearings, then the outer black shell clips on in sections that slot together almost like jigsaw pieces. It is not a hard build, and that is part of the charm, you get to enjoy watching that iconic shape emerge without fighting the instructions. The breathing tubes are the clever bit, built from flexible tube elements sleeved in small round pieces so they curve naturally into place.

There are no wild new molds here, this is a set that earns its keep through sheer volume of small black elements and smart shaping rather than headline parts. For a black-brick hoarder it is a genuinely useful haul, with piles of curved slopes, tiles, and clip pieces that turn up in loads of other builds. At 724 pieces for the original 59.99, the part-count value was the strongest of the first three helmets, which is a big reason this one has always been my pick of the launch wave.

Fun facts

01The TIE Fighter Pilot was one of LEGO's very first sets to carry the adults-only 18+ branding, launching the buildable Star Wars Helmet Collection in 2020.
02At 724 pieces it packs the most parts of the original three helmets, yet all three shipped at the same 59.99 price.
03The entire first wave (TIE Pilot, Stormtrooper, and Boba Fett) has since retired, and sealed copies now trade for several times their original retail price.