Star Wars Figure of the Day: Day 2,437: BB-9E (Droid Factory Line Look)

BB-9E Disney's, Bigger than Hasbro's
Droid Factory The Last Jedi Boxed Set
Item No.:   No. 23185
Manufacturer: Disney
Number: n/a
Includes: 3 more droid figures
Action Feature: Breaks down into 4 separate pieces
Retail: $29.99
Availability: September 2017
Appearances: The Last Jedi

Bio: All different types of Astromech droids populate the Star Wars galaxy.  Each droid is different and has their own unique personality and colors.   These four BB units are featured in Star Wars: The Last Jedi.   May the Force be with you... and your Droids!  (Taken from the figure's packaging.)
Image: Adam's photo lab.

Availability: Click here to buy it at Amazon now!

Commentary:  As of now I've not seen the movie and have mostly ignored spoilers. BB-9E is a mystery to me - it's black, it's probably a First Order droid,  It has a head seemingly more inspired by the shape of R5-D4's head, with a more angled look and a red eye. It's black and silver, so it looks a bit more like Darth Vader - it must be evil!  Probably.  Maybe it's just cute.  Maybe he'll join up with the Resistance until BB-8 shoves him out of a space ship - which is what happened on Rebels with Chopper.

Functionally the toy is the same as the other Disney droids - he stands larger than Hasbro's models, and can pop apart at the equator to reveal a weighted ball inside that allows him to stay upright.  The head can be popped off and you can mix and match the droid hemispheres if you like.   It's basically a cute Star Wars Weeble - he wobbles, but won't fall down.   You're probably seeing the movie right now so you've got a better idea if this figure is interesting or authentic than I do as I write the review.

I can say it's neat, I like the look, and it's functionally a sound plaything.  I'd say it's a good figure for the price, as is the entire set, if you want a bunch of little round robots.  The entire The Last Jedi line feels a little anemic so far, but so did Kenner's 1980-1982 offerings for The Empire Strikes Back - it was fairly true to the movie in that sense, too.  I guess by now, I'll know if Hasbro's line was good or not - I also get the feeling Hasbro is also just finding this out.

Collector's Notes: I got mine from Disneyland via my pal Zac.  Thank you Zac!

--Adam Pawlus

Day 2,437: December 15, 2017