What does this one do when it is working? It swooshes. The maker gave it a proper test, filmed it, and scored the swoosh an 8 out of 10, far above the 4 or 5 they had guessed beforehand. There is some creaking mid-flight, but that comes from the shells on the underside shifting, which sounds more like character than a flaw.
The whole model comes out of the Lego Icons rose bouquet set, listed at 822 pieces, and it is the maker's first MOC since childhood after roughly three decades away from the hobby. They took it on as part of the Will It Falcon trend and worked without instructions, figuring things out as they went along. Underneath, green structural bracing and Technic connection points hold the red shell pieces in place, and shells were added across the bottom to close it off.
The details are what sell it for me. Red curved petal shells form a segmented hull, with two dark green mandibles up front and an off-center round dish carrying a small bright pink cylinder at its heart. The dish also lifts off the model, and a brown and white tiled grille sits between the front prongs. The maker reckons the finished ship looks like a big tomato, and honestly I can see it.
Two open points stand out. It is among the most fragile things the maker has built, and a stand made from the stems could not take the weight, so that needs a rethink. The landing gear also stopped retracting once the underside was covered over. Whether a working stem stand is possible at all remains to be seen.
Project by Scott from Scotland. Watch it on their YouTube channel: