Star Wars Figure of the Day: Day 3,371: BDX Droid (Green with Cresh symbol, Droid Factory, Boxed)

BDX DROID Green Cresh
Star Wars Droid Depot
Item No.: ???
Manufacturer: Disney
Number: n/a
Includes: 3 other droids
Action Feature: Hatless - I repeat, hatless
Retail: $49.99 $59.99
Availability: May 2026
Appearances: The Mandalorian and Grogu and theme parks

Bio: All different types of droids populate the Star Wars galaxy. Each droid is different and has their own unique personality and colors. These four were featured in Star Wars: The Mandalorian and Grogu. May the Force be with you... and your Droids! (Taken from the packaging.)

Image: Adam's photo lab.

Availability: Click here to buy it at eBay now!

Commentary: It's time for me to look at the green BDX Droid. I checked my order to make sure I wasn't in error - but when I got this set back in May, it was $49.99. Disney Store increased the price to $59.99 at some point before or on August 1. For a fairly expensive, repetitive boxed set based on a movie most fans skipped? That's a curious thing to do. Target and Walmart have marked down most of their movie window The Mandalorian and Grogu toys, and there haven't been any reasons that I would guess to justify a sudden 20% price hike. It's not like there's a new low free shipping deal to counter, or some great coupon. As such, I'll spoil the ending and say "don't pay $60, wait for a deal or skip it."

At $12.50 a pop, these guys had some zing. eBay sellers are getting $10-$12 per on opened up sets, which is a bad sign. Typically, a figure from a boxed set commands a price at least slightly higher than its share of the boxed set. There are even complete sets selling for as little as $36 delivered. It feels weird to steer you to eBay rather than the original source, but we are in an amazing era where it's kind of hard to deny that a lot of these items are a bit overpriced.

Part of the reason for that may be profits. Disney did a good job making sure a tiny figure that could have gotten away with three joints had considerably more. Each leg is jointed at the knee, ankle, and hip. The neck is jointed to swivel and bend in two spots. That's 10 joints on a little guy and I don't think fans are going to give Disney credit for it since this isn't a figure that needs a lot of dynamic action poses. Since I assume we'll never see another of this theme park droid/cameo as a toy, it's good that Disney maxed out the feature set on the first drop so you can have them walk around your Rebel ships and pilots. And by that, I mean your old ones, because Hasbro avoided 3 3/4-inch ones this year.

The vaguely Tomy-flavored little robot has a couple of antenna and a hole for a hat or star or other accessory. There are even small holes for a stand. How thoughtful! The paint is perfectly fine for a Disney exclusive, with bright green stripes and a Cresh letter (C) on the side of the body. The eyes are painted, there are some decorated vents, and even the bottom of the feet got some black paint. They didn't skimp on deco, but what my theory presupposes, maybe they should have. A simpler 4-pack at $30 might have sold out, or maybe Disney knew this would be a struggle and decided to get as much as they could from a smaller potential customer base. Theme park fanatics know these guys from walking around and seeing or interacting with them, while the rest of us probably are unfamiliar with them outside their movie cameo. While I love a good droid cameo, this guy isn't 75% as good as one of Hasbro's increasingly impressive and robust The Vintage Collection offerings.

I assume theme park fans will get more juice out of these than Star Wars collectors. There doesn't seem to be much interest in building out a 3 3/4-inch Republic Base, so these guys will likely have to be adopted by another display or one of your many boxes or drawers. If the set didn't just happen to coincide with pre-orders and a free shipping offer, I likely would have skipped it. They're good enough that I would not say "avoid," but I'm finding I might have been happier to keep the fifty (now sixty) bucks.

Collector's Notes: I got mine from Disney Store's web site. It did not sell out.

--Adam Pawlus

Day 3,371: August 13, 2026

Star Wars Figure of the Day: Day 3,362: Zeb Orrelios (New Republic Pilot, The Vintage Collection)

ZEB ORRELIOS (New Republic Pilot)
The Vintage Collection 3 3/4-Inch Deluxe Action Figure
Item No.: No. G2766
Manufacturer: Hasbro
Number: #400
Includes: Bo-rifle (pole mode), Bo-rifle (blaster mode)
Action Feature: n/a
Retail: $27.99
Availability: July 2026
Appearances: The Mandalorian and Grogu

Bio: The Mandalorian and his young apprentice Grogu embark on a thrilling adventure as they travel the galaxy. (Taken from the figure's cardback. At some point I hope Hasbro realizes the space for bios that say nothing may be better used for other purposes.)

Image: Adam's photo lab.

Availability: Click here to buy it at eBay now!

Click here to buy it at Amazon now!

Commentary: "Is it worth it?" is a question I should probably stop addressing, because on the whole the answer is "not really." Is Zeb Orrelios (New Republic Pilot) good? Yes. Does he have a great sculpt and good articulation? Absolutely. Does he have as much stuff in the box as previous Zeb figures at a lower price, including 6-inch scale ones? No.

Hasbro's engineering is, without a doubt, excellent. I assume at this point they get some sort of digital model from Disney consumer products and turn it over to a vendor to slice up the design, insert some joints, and budget out what paint and accessories you get. There's really little reason for anything to look any less than "very good," especially at current inflated price increases, so you'll be glad to know that the elbows have an exceptional range of movement so he can touch his own face. Or double-grip the bo-rifle, which is not a euphemism. The joints on this Zeb are all very similar to the previous cartoony models from The Vintage Collection with slightly more subtle settings and generally improved ranges of motion. Functionally, we're better off with one of the best mid-torso joints ever hidden by his flight vest. I assume Hasbro had more time to design these guys, given how far in advance this movie was shot and mostly completed.

Historically, some of the all-digital characters were a little off-model for their first action figures from the films. Boss Nass was weird. Jar Jar's personality was wrong. Several of the first Geonosians were based on their nude alien maquettes rather than the digital armored model in the movies. Zeb avoids those indignities with a blue flight suit and a white flight vest that seems like it could have been a leftover asset from the sequel trilogy. He has a Rebel/Resistance symbol on his chest, plus very subtle upside-down Aurebesh text reading "PULL TO INFLATE." Sensible! The quilted white vest feels much softer in texture and detail than many other figures, lacking the exaggerated cuts we got in the old days. It's probably truer to the reality of being a 1:18 scale replica of a digital model, but those who know things realize a lot of action figures have oversized heads or other exaggerated details to bring out memorable features. For being a digital purple giant cat man, it's odd to say "it's more realistic" but it's certainly truer to the films.

His face is incredible. The eyes are shiny, the lips are painted and parted slightly, and depending on the lighting you might see his teeth peek out from behind a smirk. He has his beard and other hair, with hints of furry arms and painted toenails. His fingers and toes are pinker - a bit exaggerated, and that's good - and all of the textures seem a little less shaggy than his Rebels figures from this collection. He feels more alive and colorful, with gear that's a little less impressive. You get two bo-rifles, and each one has two paint applications - the grips, and little rings. It's not as impressive as the wraps in the TV-specific ones, which had energy bits that this figure also lacks. I'm sure there's some accounting reason (tariffs, oil, Q3 EBITDA) that are why they left out the extra goods but this doesn't feel like a particularly "deluxe" release. It's good - but there used to be something more to a figure, like hands and extra gear, that warranted the price. Being tall isn't "deluxe" if we get Chewbacca or a Dark Trooper as a basic figure.

Price aside, this is a good figure. If it existed for $19.99, you'd go "Oh, this has the same articulation as a regular guy and looks like a happy guy." If he goes on sale, I'd strongly recommend it.  At $28 he's not terrible, just not impressive or visibly worth the $8 mark-up. As the first live-action Zeb, Hasbro nailed it. This is good, because I don't have it in me to pay another $28 for version 2.0.

Collector's Notes: I got mine from Entertainment Earth

.

--Adam Pawlus

Day 3,362: July 14, 2026

Star Wars Figure of the Day: Day 3,359: Ahsoka Tano (Peridea, The Vintage Collection)

AHSOKA TANO (Peridea)
The Vintage Collection 3 3/4-Inch Action Figure
Item No.: Asst. E7763 No. F9798
Number: #338
Includes: Two lightsabers
Action Feature: n/a
Retail: $16.99
Availability: October 2024
Appearances: Ahsoka

Bio: Ahsoka Tano's quest to stop Grand Admiral Thrawn brings her beyond the galaxy once more to the World Between Worlds, where she gains newfound wisdom. (Taken from the figure's cardback.)

Image: Adam's photo lab.

Availability: Click here to buy it at eBay now!

Click here to buy it at Amazon now!

Commentary: A good figure that people decided they didn't want, Ahsoka Tano (Peridea) is "Ahsoka the White," which makes her previous live-action costume her take on "Gandalf the Grey." Disney-era Star Wars seems intent on keeping people in the same clothes day after day after year, so a new costume (and new toys) can be pretty refreshing. Poor Fennec Shand wore the same armor since her The Bad Batch appearances, which is just kind of ridiculous - Ahsoka had numerous costume changes during The Clone Wars, so it's good she has yet another one. It shares parts with the previous The Mandalorian and Ahsoka live-action The Vintage Collection figures, with a new head, hew belt, and new boots.

I don't know that her lekku are a big improvement, the stripes are a different layout and it's not a perfect match for the show. Does that matter? Good question, I'm glad I asked it - not really. Unless you hold this up to the TV screen, you won't notice - but in the era of $17 (now $20) figures, plus the fact that the figure lagged the show by a year, I think accuracy is fair to expect. The face is improved, with a better paint job and skin color to more accurately match the show with a darker, more saturated color. The white markings are very similar, and there's a new "hair band" to mask the transition from the face to the head tails. For the improved face, I would say this is the kind of thing that makes the purchase worth it.

The body is functionally the same as previous releases, which is good. Hasbro did a really great job with the pants. They're not quite as baggy as on TV, but that's good - if they were, the figure's legs couldn't swing forward. The ball joints let her sit well, so if we ever get vehicles for her? She's all set. The arms have the standard amount of movement, her wrists bend and swivel, and the knee joints are just superb. The knees are hidden in the pants! How great is that? The ankles rock, and that's good - but they're stiff, so you have to get it just right or she just might face-plant. The new belt has a separately sculpted braid - with paint! - that looks better than the previous one, and the painted metal ring also looks great. Her shins and forearms have armor, and the silver has a decent shine to it. Despite being a retool, I can't knock Hasbro for taking shortcuts. They improved her where it was needed to authenticity, mostly, and didn't fix what wasn't generally broken.

I would have liked hilts for her belt - we didn't get those. Instead she just has the same two milky-white lightsabers she's had before. There isn't anything wrong with them, but again, for $17? I'd like some hilts or removable blades. I assume a cloaked version of Ahsoka the White will come in 2027 for the show, unless Hasbro has decided it has tired of seeing this mold on markdown shelves. It's not a bad figure, but the edition size for the Collector's Notes: I got mine from Entertainment Earth. She's sold out, and about $10 on the secondary market - get her before the show returns next year.

--Adam Pawlus

Day 3,359: July 2, 2026

Star Wars Figure of the Day: Day 3,352: The Mandalorian and Grogu (The Vintage Collection)

THE MANDALORIAN AND GROGU Gear Galorian
The Vintage Collection 3 3/4-Inch Deluxe Action Figure
Item No.: No. G2532
Manufacturer: Hasbro
Number: #395
Includes: Jet pack, pistol, rifle, knife, sword, Grogu shoulder sitter
Action Feature: Grogu slots on backpack, pistol fits in holster
Retail: $27.99
Availability: March 2026
Appearances: The Mandalorian and Grogu

Bio: The Mandalorian and his young apprentice Grogu embark on a thrilling adventure as they travel the galaxy. (Taken from the figure's cardback.)

Image: Adam's photo lab.

Availability: Click here to buy it at Entertainment Earth now!

Click here to buy it at eBay now!

Click here to buy it at Amazon now!

Commentary: This gets long, but it's the best version of this character yet - and you're charged accordingly. You can pose him with a sniper rifle. His son can hang on his back. He has an extra hand, and an alternate sword, and a knife I assume we'll all lose. Considering version 1.0 was $12.99, $27.99 is a lot to ask. At least you know it has more stuff, and a revised sculpt, and the articulation is as good as Hasbro ever gives us at this scale.

This The Mandalorian and Grogu set for this year's movie occupies a territory between "the best" and "boring." I waited to open it until after the movie. I didn't grasp the significance of the accessories being new or if the armor had many changes until seeing the movie. I can tell you that this seems to have a lot of new sculpted parts, with a chest plate bigger than TVC #312A. The helmet has some added grooves in it. The thigh plates aren't the precise same shape or color. But there's absolutely no way you could tell without a side-by-side comparison, and Hasbro has made so many versions of Mando that I have lost count. I haven't reviewed or opened them all, despite each new release having something unique about it. If what you had was amazing, and what you are being asked to buy yet again is slightly more amazing, it might be hard to spend the money unless you demand The Very Best.

Little tiny details in the Beskar armor are indeed barely changed, but it seems that Hasbro had the budget to do a new mold of a guy and spent it on this rather than tweaking and repackaging an existing figure. It's a very good mold, but I imagine long-haul collectors will not appreciate the fact that they're being asked to spend $28 on a figure they may have six or seven other versions of at home. They might appreciate the chest plate is bigger and covers more of the torso. But they may also not have even been aware the previous one was in any way coming up short. Extremely online collectors who need to have the very best version are going to find it here, while those of us who were happy with what we have at home just wanted something new.

A Grogu figure that comes in the package is arguably the biggest selling point. This little guy has a hole in his chest that fits on a large peg on Mando's jet pack. It would be disingenuous to call it a separate figure as it can't stand and both of them look silly when separated. Heh olds on incredibly well, and Grogu's ear and face paint both look fantastic. The sculpting on his robe looks good, plus his tiny hands are holding specific parts of Mando's armor. Hasbro did a nice job with the assets available to them. Grogu's neck can turn, but he has no additional moving parts.

Mando's new gear is specific to the movie, with a sniper rifle, his classic pistol, a sword from the arena fight, and a knife. I am confident I am going to lose one or more of these over time. He also has an alternate right hand with an extended trigger finger for resting the rifle over his shoulder. The hand is very similar, includes extra paint, and requires assembly - so it adds a fair bit to the cost of a figure. (This is $8 more than a current standard release and you could convince me the extra stuff and Grogu is worth $8 for those needing the very best.)

I don't believe this is a great use of the budget, as a pared-down $20 figure probably would have sold better and fans might not have even realized they were missing the extra stuff. He has no problems holding or holstering any of his parts, and it would seem Hasbro went out of their way to make an exquisitely detailed figure with the best-yet articulation and gear for toy photographers. Is it fun for collectors? I don't think that was ever the intent - they know this item is going to sell on Amazon and would be the most popular character, so we're getting the very best figure set that the price point could warrant.

The sword is perfect for his fight with Rotta the Hutt. (There is no Rotta the Hutt figure to buy from Hasbro right now.) The leg articulation is great and would fit perfectly in a ship. (Hasbro doesn't have any ships scaled for this figure in its product line right now - but you may have an old one at home.) It's a weird place to be in when we're getting the top-of-the-line figure like this, but it's kind of a letdown because there are no dioramas to build, no vehicles to pilot, indeed no toys to play with anymore. This guy exists as a souvenir from a very good movie. I suspect more figures are coming, and sure he can pal around with the forthcoming Zeb, but there's no "collection" of stuff to go with the movie. Which dropped to #3 in week 2. Unfortunate - I really do wonder if a massive toy launch with creatures and ships might have helped capture the public's interest, or if what is effectively a season 5 pay-per-view special of a TV show couldn't muster that level of enthusiasm.

I have no complaints about Mando's articulation. It's super easy to get a good pose out of him, although balancing him may take some time. On the bright side, his hands can both grip the rifle and look awesome doing it. Hasbro really did a bang-up job carving out the joints in a way that might make you ask "why can't the other figures do this, too?" and I don't have an answer for you. All I can say is that they really went to town making sure Mando's hip joints, thigh swivels, knees, elbows, shoulders, and wrists all function well enough for an arena combatant with nobody to fight.

If you have no Mando figures, this is the one to get. I'm really happy with the quality of paint, the range of movement, and the amount of gear that you get. I also would like to see if Hasbro could see what they can do to bring costs down so more fans can enter the hobby and participate with the rest of us. In the early 1990s, the secondary market prices would squeeze out fans who weren't in early enough - and we're seeing that again. For those of you seeking incremental steps toward perfection? You need this. For newbies? This is very, very good. But the rest of us know the score - Hasbro will find ways to alter the same costume and improve it, again and again, and we'll probably have another version of this guy if and when a new season or movie see release. That is the way. And if you're happy with what you have at home, keep being happy unless you want to use this specific gear for him to take on the various Remnant figures we got so far.

Collector's Notes: I got mine from Entertainment Earth. I have found this figure at local sellers of Hasbro wares. This is a good thing for new fans wanting to jump in, but given that scarcity (artificial or otherwise) has driven purchases since 1995? Maybe we're seeing the end of mass interest in The Vintage Collection.

--Adam Pawlus

Day 3,352: June 9, 2026

Star Wars Figure of the Day: Day 3,351: BDX Droid (Orange with Dorn symbol, Droid Factory, Boxed)

BDX DROID Orange Dorn
Star Wars Droid Depot
Item No.: ???
Manufacturer: Disney
Number: n/a
Includes: 3 other droids
Action Feature: Hatless - I repeat, hatless
Retail: $49.99
Availability: May 2026
Appearances: The Mandalorian and Grogu and theme parks

Bio: All different types of droids populate the Star Wars galaxy. Each droid is different and has their own unique personality and colors. These four were featured in Star Wars: The Mandalorian and Grogu. May the Force be with you... and your Droids! (Taken from the packaging.)

Image: Adam's photo lab.

Availability: Click here to buy it at eBay now!

Commentary: I fully intended to skip this set (and indeed, most Disney droids) after some fast sell-outs left some gaps in my collection that exceeded my willingness to pay on eBay - but then there were some restocks, and things worked out with free shipping, so I now have an orange BDX Droid. If you haven't seen the new movie - shame on you - but these guys were just background cameos on a New Republic base. They're blurry and in the background, presumably included to canonize them as something greater than a theme park gimmick. I'm assuming and projecting, at any rate - they look like they came from a different design school. These guys seem more in line with Tomy's 1980s robots and Nintendo's R.O.B. with vestiges of video game droids.

It is incredibly difficult to put a dinger on why some droids seem "Star Warsy" and some don't, and I assume it boils down to novelty. If Star Wars were Pokemon, the BDX is the Raichu to BD-1's Pikachu. I think. Someone correct me if I have that wrong. It's a bigger bot, with what seems to be an opening belly. Mine doesn't seem to open, but the seams for the mold have a big enough gap in it that it's either poorly assembled or maybe it really does open. I don't plan to break it and find out. Stock photography seems to be more cleanly assembled so it appears I just got a figure from (say it with me) the bad batch.

The general design philosophy seems to match some other Disney droids, with colors and shapes that closely match Delta Squad from Republic Commando. The shapes look very much like they come from the era of the original Xbox, with heads that look like a 1980s toy robot, and greeblies that seems unmistakably Star Wars. For half-pint robots they seem a little small, but Disney did try to make them worth the asking price with a couple of neck joints allowing them to look up The head can also fold down to the body. Each leg is jointed at the hip, the knee, and the ankle. For such a small figure, there are a lot of joints here. But for $12.50 a droid, it still comes up a little short. You can get more action poses out of these guys than an astromech droid, but I don't think anyone would have missed it if they just had swappable limbs or static legs. The range of movement is somewhat limited, and you can't really get them to emote outside of the neck.

The paint applications are pretty much the same on each figure. All of them are molded in white (cost savinfs), with the same beige, pink, and black paint applications. They mix it up with the spot colors - each one has a unique icon on the left near the back. Orange has the Aurebesh character "Dorn," which is a D. I suppose this makes it educational.

This is an item that makes sense as a bit of corporate synergy. These little guys have been walking around the Disney parks for a while, and they put them in the movie - so of course it's a good idea for a theme park souvenir. In Disney's shoes I might've put it in a set with a different droid at a lower price point, because $50 for four nearly identical little guys is something that might appeal to a collector more than a child. I think it's a more interesting "toy robot" than "Star Wars figure," if that makes sense, and the kind of thing I'd probably be weirdly more excited about without Star Wars branding on the box. As there are no New Republic ships or playsets which need to be built out with wacky droids, this figure serves no real purpose right now other than to take up some space until a better home for it makes itself evident, or I retire and then just start selling this stuff off or something. I think Disney did as good of a job as they could have done to make this design at this scale, but I am not charmed by the very visible seams or how repetitive the set is. If it weren't for the free shipping coupon at a time there were 2 other droids I wanted in stock, I'd have skipped this set and probably never thought about it again. 

 Collector's Notes: I got mine from Disney Store's web site. It did not sell out.

--Adam Pawlus

Day 3,351: June 4, 2026

Star Wars Figure of the Day: Day 3,202: KE4-N4 (The Vintage Collection)

KE4-N4 (E-Wing Fighter Pack-In Figure)
The Vintage Collection 3 3/4-Inch Pack-In Figure
Item No.: No. F9395
Manufacturer: Hasbro
Number: n/a
Includes: A whole E-Wing Fighter
Action Feature: n/a
Retail: $99.99
Availability: November 2024
Appearances: Star Wars: Ahsoka

Bio: Astromech droid KE4-N4 served alongside New Republic E-wing pilot Lieutenant Callahan on Lothal. (Taken from the packaging.)

Image: Adam's photo lab.

Availability: Click here to buy it at Amazon now!

Click here to buy it at eBay now!

Commentary: The KE4-N4 is the kind of thing that makes me happy. The little guy basically was nothing more than a cameo in a TV show, but it was memorable. It's a weird place we're in with entertainment, when the story isn't a complete thing what we remember is a cameo for applause - but if it's obscure, it's more of a subtle head-nod to a certain person. Since I am that person, I'll accept your pandering, Lucasfilm. I think it's great Hasbro made this figure. I think it's a weird decision to bundle him with the E-Wing (rather than the human pilot) because this droid could probably sell more units to customizers - but hopefully Hasbro will repaint him in R2-D2 colors for an exclusive for some handsome devil's online retail shop.

I like this figure, and I feel kind of like a dork for saying "it's not necessary." The ship on the TV show only showed a dome, and I don't know if there is a full prop or if Hasbro just made up a body. The body itself is a reuse of the build-a-droid mold that has been around since 2008, so you no doubt have several figures with this exact body. It differs from most of the droids Disney sells in a few ways, the most obvious of which are the visible wires on his feet. The body itself has a jointed dome, removable third leg, and rotating legs on the sides. It's nothing particularly new - it's also probably a cheap add-on (depending on the factory whims) for a $100 vehicle.

I would have bought the ship with or without the figure. I prefer figures sold separately so I can get extras, and the ship itself is pretty good - it doesn't feel like a $100 toy, and the deco is fine. It's big enough that you won't complain, but you're going to need very skinny humanoids to pilot it. (I started with the first figure on my desk, a Retro Clone Trooper, and it didn't fit - but the TVC X-Wing Luke body used for those Rebel Pilots 4-pack fits.) The droid fits in the droid socket, but you have to pop off a panel to fit him in there. There's even a little indentation so you don't have to remove his third leg - Hasbro did a good job here in terms of droid compatibility.

Collector's Notes: I got mine from Entertainment Earth.

--Adam Pawlus

Day 3,202: December 31, 2024

Star Wars Figure of the Day: Day 3,016: New Republic Security Droid (The Black Series)

NEW REPUBLIC SECURITY DROID or N5 Sentry Droid
The Black Series 2020 Line Look The Mandalorian Packaging
Item No.: Asst. E8908 No. F5526
Manufacturer: Hasbro
Number: 23 - The Mandalorian
Includes: Blaster
Action Feature: n/a
Retail: $24.99
Availability: July 2022
Appearances: The Mandalorian

Bio: The New Republic ued these security droids for protection and combat, including aboard high-security correction transports like the one Th Mandalorian boarded in an effort to rescue the prisoner Qin. (Taken from the packaging.)

Image: Adam's photo lab.

Availability: Click here to buy it at Entertainment Earth now!

Click here to buy it at Amazon now!

Commentary: I sat on the New Republic Security Droid in my review pile for ages, in part because I just wasn't excited with it, but mostly, because there wasn't much cause to play with it. (Unrequested tangent: 6-inch makes a great fan format, but for weird stuff, 3 3/4-inch is probably the way to go. Without prisoners to guard, why make a droid prison guard?) Unsurprisingly to long-term readers, I opened it up and absolutely love the design. I just wish it were Vintage or Retro, and if it were Retro, I would greedily pick it up in at least one alternate color. It looks a lot like something that might menace C-3PO in the old Droids cartoon.

It's a good figure. It's not great - given the price increases, Hasbro probably could have used a better gray plastic that doesn't look quite so much like a toy, or perhaps painted it more, but it's a nice sculpt. If you have a K-2SO - which he resembles - you'll recognize the clear plastic in the elbows, wrists, ankles, and knees. He stands nicely, posing him is easy, and he holds his gun in his three-fingered hand without a fuss. It's a good sculpt - they did a nice job translating the show's design with its tiny eyes and long face into something that retains elements of Battle Droids and the K-2SO designs, but also looks new enough that you won't be too upset by what I assume were shared digital assets in spots.

The figure is arguably more interesting from the back. He's got some sort of robot spine on his lower back, a light on his butt, various access ports and switches, and a second New Republic symbol printed over there. They didn't seem to skimp back here.

Deco, again, could have been better. There are chest lights that don't exactly pop - they match the muted New Republic symbol too closely, and just look like part of the droid's painted decoration. Similarly, the eye light doesn't quite sing - it's just a yellow stripe, and lacks something vital I can't quite put my finger on. It also feels a tiny bit small, but at least it's where it should be. The torso, neck, and hips have a little paint on them but it seems this was a pretty cheap figure to make. There's not a lot of extraneous bits here, with no special features and minimal paint applications.

I like droid figures and we get very few new models - so I'm happy this exists. I would've expected a character with more dialogue from that episode first, and honestly, something in 3 3/4-inches first, but this is certainly better than nothing. We've also had so few New Republic toys of any kind (other than Trapper Wolf, really) that this faction is really unexplored territory. So in short: it's fine. Hasbro could do better, especially given the price, but it's not like there's an alternative Security Droid for you to pick up as of my writing this. The fact that it seems to be cheap on Amazon because nobody wants it is just a nice bonus.

Collector's Notes: I got mine from Entertainment Earth.

--Adam Pawlus

Day 3,016: March 30, 2023

Star Wars Figure of the Day: Day 2,912: R1 (The Mandalorian Droid Factory Set)

R1 Robot Cop
Droid Factory The Mandalorian Boxed Set
Item No.: No. n/a
Manufacturer: Disney
Number: n/a
Includes: Stand, 3 more droid figures
Action Feature: n/a
Retail: $44.99
Availability: December 2021
Appearances: The Mandalorian

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 are featured in Star Wars: The Mandalorian. This is the way... for 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: The Mandalorian and his crew roughed up some New Republic R1 droids in the first season of the show, and unfortunately the boxed set will not make it conducive to army-build this one. While incredibly similar to other R1 droid figures, each part seems to have new tooling so despite appearances it's not just an old droid with a few new greeblies. It's a new droid.

It's pretty good, but the colors seem off - the gray is too light, the eye doesn't seem blue enough, the yellow pinstripes and New Republic symbols seem a little pale. The general shape seems spot-on, and you can rotate the head and the, uh, secondary head. (It's a distinctive shape down there.) Thanks to the lack of jointed limbs, the figure is basically an accessory - it can stand around and turn the head, and that's about it. If you like what you see, that's the figure.

I can't say I'm overly impressed by this one, but the form factor is correct and the colors could be improved a bit. It's fine, but it's not great. "Fine" works for figures that are made before the show airs, or from unfinished reference files, but they had a couple of years to get this one right and the colors just feel off. It should look fine on a shelf of robots, and if Hasbro or Disney ever build out the crew from the jailbreak episode you'll undoubtedly want more R1 droids. This figure might be worth getting to future-proof your display, but the set is off-model in enough ways that some may want to wait for a better version later. I am hesitant to believe that day will ever come unless a lot of people at Hasbro, Disney, and Lucasfilm get rotated off these brands and bring a new direction to the line, so get this one and enjoy it. It's a lot better than nothing.

Collector's Notes: I got mine from my pal Shannon. Thanks, Shannon!

--Adam Pawlus

Day 2,912: March 31, 2022

Star Wars Figure of the Day: Day 2,873: Trapper Wolf (The Black Series)

TRAPPER WOLF Pulse Con Exclusive
The Black Series 2020 Line Look Orange Star Wars: The Mandalorian Packaging
Item No.: No. F1265
Manufacturer: Hasbro
Number: #13 - Star Wars: The Mandalorian
Includes: Blaster, helmet
Action Feature: n/a
Retail: $26.99
Availability: October 2021
Appearances: The Mandalorian

Bio: A veteran of the Rebellion against the Empire, Trapper Wolf now serve as a pilot in the new Republic. He flies his X-wing as part of a squadron which patrols the outer reaches of the galaxy. (Taken from the packaging.)

Image: Adam's photo lab.

Availability: Click here to buy it at Amazon now!

Commentary: A quick sell-through, Trapper Wolf is Dave Filoni's character on The Mandalorian - and with two appearances, he should have a figure! (Hopefully Carson Teva is coming, also 3 3/4-inch equivalents.) This one is, sadly, a convention exclusive, which I think everyone can infer was meant for San Diego Comic-Con International, most likely, which was canceled two years in a row due to the COVID-19 pandemic. A small "Special Edition" is set for next weekend, although it sounds like the toy industry and all of popular culture is largely giving it a pass. So Hasbro sold this one online with a limit of one per customer, and should probably consider another run.

The figure itself is the 2013 X-Wing Pilot Luke Skywalker figure from the very first wave in this scale, but with minor deco changes and a new head.  That means a 47-year-old man's head is on a 26-year-old man's body. The lightsaber hook is there, but now the straps around his waist and legs are white instead of gray. The switches on the figure's chest match Luke's, which qualifies as "good enough" but not necessarily accurate. In his first appearance on the show his suit's orange collar is unbuttoned and is open over his white vest, plus he has a white chin strap and what appears to be white areas in his helmet.

This doesn't mean it isn't neat - Hasbro doesn't sculpt a ton of pilot bodies these days, so whenever they do one it gets used repeatedly. A new body would probably be appropriate here due to Filoni's different build and it could give us a crack at deco improvements, but given you never get a really good look at the man walking around I can also throw my hands in the air and say "well, it's better than nothing." The head sculpt is excellent and the helmet deco looks really cool with his wolf symbol and everything, and it seems to match his second appearance quite nicely. (I guess they changed it a tiny bit.) The blaster also looks just like his appearance when he met Mando on the planet of the ice spiders.

Much like the upcoming George Lucas Stormtrooper figure and other special and weird cameos, we've come to accept that a lot of figures in this line over the past 20 or so years - since Power of the Jedi on - are likely to reuse existing molds because it's sensible to do so. It's not like there are full-body shots from the show to compare to, and as long as it's Dave Filoni's head on a pilot body you really can't make a huge fuss about them needing to make a series of changes. More recent figures have far more forgiving joints when it comes to posing, so I hope there's a Pilot 2.0 body in the works for Biggs or other pilots. But this figure? He's fine. There are no special improvements, he meets expectations and you'll likely be disappointed if you missed him and are a The Mandalorian or pilot completist.

Collector's Notes: I got mine from Hasbro Pulse.

--Adam Pawlus

Day 2,873: November 16, 2021