Figure of the Day: Day 286: General Grievous

GENERAL GRIEVOUS Demise of Grievous
The Saga Collection Target Exclusive
Item No.: No. 87067
Number: n/a
Includes: Blaster, staff, flames
Action Feature: n/a
Retail: $12.99
Availability: Spring 2006
Appearances: Revenge of the Sith

Bio: Half alien. Half machine. All evil. Before he was the leader of the Separatist droid armies, General Grievous was a ruthless Kaleesh warlord who was badly injured in a shuttle crash. His body and brain were rebuilt, and after extensive training in the art of lightsaber combat, Grievous became one of the most feared enemies of the Jedi Order. His fateful confrontation with Jedi Master Obi-Wan Kenobi proved that even a living, breathing technological terror like Grievous was ultimately no match for the power of the Force. (Taken from the figure's cardback.)

Image: The toy shelves of Adam Pawlus.

Commentary: The love of the overpriced figure stopped here-- so far. General Grievous was an old figure with new parts. This figure was largely based on the Sneak Preview General Grievous from 2005, but with a new head, new forearms, and of course, flames galore. The mean reason to buy this figure is for the flame deco and accessories-- without them, this is a crappy figure. The flames in the eyes can be easily removed, and the figure has about 10 meaningful points of articulation. My sample, when placed on a shelf, tended to fall over a lot. The plastic is a little rubbery, but if posed properly he'll stay put for a good long time. Still, the figure is limited in what it can do in the way of dioramas, so odds are more than likely that this figure will appeal to die-hard Grievous fans and collectors that will buy everything. For the average fan, there are plenty of other Grievous figures to look up, but truth be told Hasbro still has a while before making The Perfect Grievous.

Collector's Notes: While expensive figures sting, expensive figures that can be easily had for 75% off sting worse. As the final (so far) figure in Hasbro and Target's premium pricing figure program, this General Grievous was blown out at most stores for a fraction of its original price, meaning that someone probably lost money on it beyond us poor schmuck collectors. On eBay, the figures typically go for $6 before shipping, although some have gone as high as $10. I'm going to cry now.

Day 286: February 16, 2007