Star Wars Figure of the Day: Day 1,582: CB-3D

CB-3D Wal-Mart Exclusive Droid Factory Packs
The Legacy Collection Droid Factory
Item No.: Asst. 14860 No. 91928
Manufacturer: Hasbro
Number: 1 of 5
Includes: Removable third leg, General Grievous figure, Darktrooper head and rifle
Action Feature: Rotate head for pop-up sensorscope, removable third leg
Retail: $17.00
Availability: July 2009
Appearances: I, Jedi

Bio: In the comic Star Wars: General Grievous, the cyborg general has dark plans for a group of innocent young Padawans. At the same time, the astromech droid CB-3D assists a rogue team, including the droid's master Flynn Kybo, on a mission to hunt down and eliminate Grievous. (Taken from the figure's packaging.)

Image: Adam Pawlus' TV tray.

Commentary: Who? A lot of the droids as the build-a-droid frenzy of 2008-2010 happened were pretty obscure, and CB-3D was likely not on anyone's wish lists. His name is probably the most distinctive thing about him, not following the R1, R2, R3 naming conventions we've had beat down us since the 1970s. Based on the vintage 2004 R2-D2 mold, this figure has a pop-up sensorscope as well as a removable third leg. His torso access panel has been glued down, but aside from that he's fairly similar to the many other droids to share this mold-- and he's one of at least three mostly-white astromechs with a silver dome and red markings. Seriously, Hasbro really likes this design as they keep doing slightly different versions of it on a regular basis.

If you need every droid, you don't need me to tell you this figure has pretty great sculpting and a decent paint job. If you're on the fence, you could just as soon get R2-M5 or Wedge's Astromech Droid (from the X-Wing) and probably not really notice the difference. It's so similar to other toys, I can't honestly tell you that you'll need all three, but this isn't a bad one to get. The fact that he has a Darktrooper part is going to make it worth picking up, if you aren't planning on building the build-a-droid from this series I'd say you can skip this set and not miss anything.

Collector's Notes: This specific figure has never been reissued, although there are other similar robots out there. The set was a slow seller in some markets due to the $17.00 price tag being roughly 70% higher than the sets from the previous year. A loose sample should set you back just under $10, but don't bother with that-- get a boxed one so you can build the Darktrooper. (A complete Darktrooper is quite expensive, particularly when compared with buying a lot of all 5 sets packaged.)

--Adam Pawlus

Day 1,582: July 7, 2011