Tuesday, May 25, 2010

Figure of the Day: Day 1,290: Chewbacca

CHEWBACCA Millennium Falcon Co-Pilot
The Legacy Collection Basic Figures
Item No.:
Asst. 87535 No. 91418
Manufacturer: Hasbro
Number: #BD31
Includes: Bowcaster, headset, bonus droid part
Action Feature: n/a
Retail: $7.99
Availability: October 2009
Appearances: Star Wars

Bio: Chewbacca must quickly prepare the Millennium Falcon to leave Tatooine when stormtroopers arrive in pursuit of the ship's new passengers. The Wookiee fires up the engines as Han Solo exchanges blaster fire with the Imperial troopers. (Taken from the figure's packaging.)

Image: Adam's back yard.

Commentary: In 2004 Hasbro introduced this Chewbacca sculpt and they aren't shy about rereleasing it several times over. There's a regular Star Wars version, a damaged "Sandstorm" version, two Hoth versions, the basic "Endor" version, and surely there will be others in the future. This one is a nicely decorated, super-articulated version with what basically looks like an iPod, but you and I all know it's the internal communications equipment on the Millennium Falcon. Aside from the improved fur paint job, and the retooled head, this is the same basic Chewbacca figure you've come to know and love. If you're looking to flesh out a diorama or ship display, he's probably worth getting, but ultimately he offers little that you haven't already seen. It's great Hasbro is using their best Chewbacca figure when making new ones, but a little bit of gear may not be enough to get you to re-re-rebuy this figure, even if it is the only one to include a headset so far. Kudos to Hasbro for finding another variant to scrape off the bottom of the barrel after 33 years, particularly when it turned out fairly well.

Collector's Notes: Available on and off, it's entirely possible if you live in a less densely populated area, you can still find it.

--Adam Pawlus


Day 1,290: May 25, 2010

1 comment:

D'arthtagnan said...

Talk about dropping the ball. Bat-wing-eyebrow-chewbacca AGAIN? it clearly states on the cardback that this is supposed to be a NEW HOPE figure, but they used the Empire look, wasting the potential to capture the iconic image of the Wook Riding Shotgun.
Hasbro could've used the Early Bird Chewy, which as of this writing, is the Ultimate Chewbacca figure for 1977 Star Wars fans.
Yes I bought one, as it's going to be the only headset figure we're going to see. And yes, I bitched the whole time I was shaving his giant eyebrows off with an exacto knife.

This figure was re-released with Jedi Luke in the TRU exclusive Wave 13, if you want it,look for the only wave 13 items left on the pegs.