G8-R3 Astromech DroidDiscover the Force Walmart Exclusive Wave
Item No.: Asst. 38601 No. 38604
Manufacturer: Hasbro
Number: #4 of 12
Includes: Droid harness, removable third leg, game stuff
Action Feature: Head, limbs are removable build-a-droid pieces
Retail: $8.96
Availability: February 2012
Appearances: The Phantom Menace
Bio: G8-R3 is an astromech droid on Queen Amidala's starship. The little droid bravely heads into danger to repair the starship's shield generator, which has been badly damaged by the Trade Federation forces. (Taken from the figure's packaging.)
Image: Adam Pawlus' photo area.
Commentary: This was one of the droids that a lot of us were beginning to suspect we might never see. Rather than make a new dome mold, Hasbro repainted the build-a-droid R5 sculpt to make G8-R3, a different-and-therefore-worthwhile release. This is the first (and so far, only) release of the droid, and Hasbro has not included it on a list of figures which are slated to be reissued later this year-- so get it now.
As a unique droid you should just stop reading now and get him. Why not? It's not like you have it. The mustard-yellow markings loog good, and the sculpt is one of Hasbro's better Astromech sculpts. The arms are totally removable and swappable with other build-a-droid figures, and the deco is pretty great-- check out all the silver markings. The coloring is largely crisp without too much slop, and it just plain looks good. The only thing Hasbro could have possibly done better was sculpt the dome a little differently, as some prequel R5 domes are a different shape, but as of late I'm just happy they tried to do it. You know the drill as articulation goes, so get this one if you're into droids. Just know it isn't perfect, but to be honest I'd rather have an acceptable repaint than no droid at all-- of course, this means Hasbro will redo it in a few years, but until then this is more than adequate for my needs.
Collector's Notes: At press time (in April) this figure is still abundant but I expect he'll dry up soon enough. Be sure to get him if you see him, as he's arguably the most exciting robot of 2012 so far.
--Adam Pawlus
Day 1,818: June 1, 2012
I bought 2 of these guys and put an extra BAD R2-B1 dome on the body to make a BAD (and clean paint variant) version of the yellow Naboo R2 droid, R2-C4.
ReplyDeleteI'd do the same if I could get a spare of the droids pack cheap.
ReplyDeleteI wonder why Hasbro hasn't done new prequel R5 domes for BAD yet?