Battle of the sail barges

Today's post is actually from yesterday's build... continuing the theme of recent posts, I've been back on the 10179 build today (9 more sections done with only 7 elements to go).  

Another of the recent purchases was the second version of Jabba's sail barge - the 2013 version (75020). Apart from the fact that the box arrived a little bit damaged and it was missing the usual 2-3 pieces, it was in generally very good nick, apart from being dusty.  

Once cleaned and rebuild, I'm very happy with the purchase.  The build took about 90 mins and was pretty interesting - the symmetric duplication was fully bearable and it therefore felt fresh throughout.  The minifigs are also interesting: Leia has unique braided and coloured hair which is actually rubber:

There are also unique Max Rebo and Ree-Yees minifigs in the set which my 7yr old niece (who loves her Lego) found really funny (she liked Leia better, though).  

There's a surprising amount of detail and playability packed into the set, with a cannon tucked away in the prow (forgot to photograph this). Here's a couple more photos:

So, how does it compare to the 2006 version (6210)?  I have to say that the 2006 version stands up really well for its age.  I always loved the use of upside-down boat pieces for the front of this set and the overall design very good for the time.  The older set is slightly larger all round but they do share a distinct inheritance.  

Apart from the lovely front of the older version, though, I think the 2013 set wins on all counts: the internal structure is nicer; it has wheels which improve its playability, I love the cannone in the front, the minifigs are way better and the windows open easily (on the older version they are attached to 3mm hose which doesn't allow them to move smoothly).

That said, both sets are really very nice!