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6-26-2008HasbroJediInsider.com scores photos of the new Republic Gunship coming this year and it looks like it's going to be a Wal-Mart exclusive. The box art looks awesome and if the paint scheme on the toy matches up I'm going to be really happy with this release. Hopefully we'll see this come July 26th which is the launch date for The Legacy Collection and Clone Wars. And while we're on the topic of exclusives, JediDefender.com gets word of another San Diego Comic-Con exclusive figure. This one is offered by ShopStarWars.com and it'll be the Clone Senate Security. It's another Clone Trooper variant but looks good. Hopefully this, along with the HasbroToyShop.com Disturbance in the Force exclusive. Celebration JapanHaven't done much coverage on CJ but it is coming up quickly. And as we all know, Celebration wouldn't be anything without exclusives. Luckily for us, maybe, the exclusives aren't necessarily must haves for a lot of people. Gentle GiantGG looks to have two exclusives being offered, Hologram Qui-Gon Jinn (rumored 1,000 piece edition) and TIE Fighter Pilot Customz. Hot ToysHot Toys will have a Chubby set of Shadow Troopers. The Chubby figures are imported to the US by Gentle Giant but I'm not sure if these are considered a GG or HT exclusive. TomyIf you liked the Tomy remote control astromech action figures you'll like their CJ exclusive; a clear R2-D2 remote control action figure. Blister.jp/Gentle GiantBlister will be offering a bronze version of the the Boba Fett Classics mini bust. At this point CJ is the only known way to get this piece. It's limited to 300 pieces. TargetIf you like clearance prices on your Star Wars toys then start keeping an eye on your local store. My buddy Steve R. reports tonight that his local store in PA knocked 30% off Order 66, Battle Packs, Force Unleashed lightsabers and the Battle Rancor. Your mileage may vary so keep an eye on your local stores over the next week or so. 6-23-2008
Droid Factory ReviewThe Legacy Collection of figures which will be released on July 26th will bring the Build-A-Figure concept to the single carded Star Wars line for the first time. If you don't want to wait that long, Hasbro gives us a sneak peek with their Wal-Mart exclusive Droid Factory 2-packs which have been hitting store shelves over the last week. The set of six 2-packs pairs a named character with an astromech or protocol droid and each set comes with a part to make C-3PX. Read on to hear about the six packs and what I found to be good, or not so good, with each of them. HasbroUpdate on the Q&A front. Raving Toy Maniac asked about the possibility of more padawan figures including human younglings and female characters. Per Hasbro, look to 2009 for human younglings including at least one female. They won't be on single cards, however no hint was given other than they would be in a "very special pack." Not sure what that means unless we're talking about another Entertainment Earth type set. Could it be a Yoda with younglings training session as we saw in AOTC or possibly a Temple purge set with a Cin Drallig figure? Coincidentally, when asked by JediTempleArchives.com who the Hasbro team would like to see, Cin Drallig was one of the prequel character names mentioned. WizKids)
Scum & Villainy I don't think I'd seen this reported anywhere so I was kind of surprised when I found a new WizKids Star Wars PocketModel set at Wal-Mart this week. The new Scum and Villainy expansion set has a bounty hunter theme and was apparently released back around May 28th. Wal-Mart had a box of booster packs and according to posts on SWPocketModels.com there is also a theme deck called Thermal Detonation which includes eight exclusive alternate-art PocketModels. The theme deck runs $9.99 and boosters are $4.99. Both should be on sale now. If chasing the Scum & Villainy set isn't enough look for a new Collectors Tin for The Force Unleashed expansion. Expect a $19.99 price at retail. This should be on shelves some time in the next month or so. I believe it's been delayed somewhat and was apparently solicited in Previews earlier in the year. Later this year we can expect two expansions in support of the new The Clone Wars movie and television show. On July 26th we can look forward to the new Clone Wars release which will include a starter deck, boosters and two Mega ships. Following that release, in October, we should see Clone Wars Tactics. 6-21-2008HasbroThe Question and Answer sessions with Hasbro always bring some good tidbits of info and JediDefender.com gets credit for the first cool piece that I've seen so far; we will be getting an SDCC exclusive Clone Trooper in the new Clone Wars animated style. Stay tuned to ShopStarWars.com for further info. Also from JediDefender it looks like we now have confirmation of a Dice Ibegon figure which will come in a 2-pack this fall in the ANH wave of figures. YakFace.com asked about the lack of a V-Wing pilot in the upcoming Evolution set and Hasbro confirmed that we will see a V-Wing pilot in a second pilot Evolutions pack in 2009. ThePrivateUniverse.co.uk asked about the Lars Homestead Battle Pack that showed up on the web a few weeks back. Specifically they asked about the figures and if they would be updated. Unfortunately, no, no new Uncle Owen or any other figures will be included. Unfortunately, that's a deal breaker in my opinion. I'm not spending money for an "igloo." One thing of interest in this week's Q&A is that Hasbro sent back several questions unanswered. It isn't that big of a deal till you realize there's kind of a pattern. Both JediDefender and ImperialShipYards.net asked about the Dagger Squadron B-Wing and neither got an answer. Not a "no comment," but no answer at all. ThePrivateUniverse did get a "no comment" to this question, however. Yakface.com asked about the vac-metalized R-3PO photo that showed up a few weeks ago. People speculated it was a change on the R-3PO packed with Han Solo in the WM Droid Factory sets. Hasbro returned no answer for this question. The pattern here is that Hasbro didn't give an answer, one way or the other, to items that are all-but-confirmed to be coming later this year. So should we assume by their silence that these items are on their way? Confirmation by omission? One could guess that the Private Universe question was the first they got to on the B-Wing and after that, didn't answer it any more. 6-20-2008Acme)
SDCC Yoda On the heels of the Roron Corrob Character Key, Acme Archives announces the first in a new line of keys supporting the Clone Wars cartoon that will be debuting this August. And three years after they debuted their Character Key line with Yoda during Celebration III, they kick off the new line at San Diego Comic-Con with Yoda! The key will be limited to 750 pieces and Acme will have a pre-sale for pickup. For people not attending the convention you will have a shot at the key on July 24th. Keep your eyes on the Acme Blog and on Characterkey.com. Acme will also be debuting another Character Key at SDCC but it won't be exclusive to the show. HasbroThe Fan to Fan web site has coverage of the Tokyo Toy Fair up on their web site and included along with photos of the new Clone Wars figures, Millennium Falcon and AT-TE is the upcoming Wal-Mart exclusive Green Leader's A-Wing Fighter.
The ship will include an Arvel Crynyd figure that looks to be a kitbashed Tycho figure. On the report page, in the same photo as the A-Wing, you can also see a shot of the Hoth Speeder Bike Patrol set that will be coming later this year as well. Be sure to look for the photos of the Spider Droid and Torrent Starfighter as well. LegoWell, I guess you don't have to wait till July 1st to spend $400 on the new Lego Death Star. Shop@Home is now taking pre-orders for this awesome looking playset. It's listed with a September 16th shipping date and includes 3,803 pieces and 25 minifigures. Both counts are up slightly from what we reported Wednesday.
The Lego site is reporting the size of this thing as well and it's a huge 16 inches high by 16.5 inches wide. Nice. 6-18-2008LegoI hope you all like your Lego sets large because it looks like we're getting a HUGE set in the near future; 10188 Death Star! How about 20 minifigs, 3,802 pieces and a $399 price tag? Feast your eyes on these photos!
It looks like the set covers all the important pieces of the Death Star from ANH with the trash compactor, detention bay, conference room, cavern swing, tractor beam controls and even ROTJ throne room showdown. The Death Star firing deck and turbo laser is included as well. The set will be up for pre-order on July 1st and shipping at the beginning of September. There also looks to be two other sets coming this year that I don't think we've heard about; 7681 Homing Spider Droid and 7680 Twilight which I believe is Anakin's new ship from the Clone Wars cartoon. Thanks to Eurobricks.com for the photos. Around the Toy AisleI took advantage of the nice day Sunday on my trip home from State College and did some shopping. I know the guys down there have the local stores pretty well covered so I didn't stop in town but I did stop in Mansfield, Corning, Elmira and at WM and Target here in Ithaca. All told I stopped at 4 Wal-Marts (3 of which are Supercenters), 2 Target stores, K-Mart and a TRU. Read on for more... HasbroBe on the lookout for the new Droid Factory sets at your local Wal-Mart stores. They've been found in a few stores including one in Allentown, PA. That means they're on the East Coast. Good news is that the report is that they had "plenty." Thanks to Chris C. for the information. 6-17-2008HasbroPreviews Exclusive TIE Fighter)
Pirate TIE Fighter BigBadToyStore.com has photos, and a pre-order, for a Previews exclusive Pirate TIE Fighter. From the photo it has the large wings and appears to use a grey deco. There's a large Rebel logo on the wing and it comes with a kitbashed Hobbie Klivian as a TIE Pilot. The price is kind of high at $54.99 so you may find it cheaper at other on-line retailers that sell Previews items. It's scheduled for a 3rd quarter release. Previews Exclusive Mighty Muggs)
The Previews exclusives don't end with the TIE Fighter, they also have two exclusive Mighty Muggs; Admiral Ackbar and a Shadow Stormtrooper. These are also scheduled for a 3rd quarter release and BigBadToystore is taking pre-orders for them at $34.99 as a set. That seems kind of steep for two Muggs that sell for $10 at retail so check other dealers before ordering. Homing Spider DroidJediDefender.com has a new photo of the Homing Spider Droid that's coming later this year. The photo shows a good size comparison of the vehicles because there are a number of Destroyer Droids and a Tri-Droid included in the photo. It looks like it's a significant vehicle, though, and should be worth the $20 price when it comes out later this year. 6-14-2008PSWCSToday is the annual Summer Social for the Pennsylvania Star Wars Collector Society. This year it's being held in State College, PA and we have a Clone Trooper theme. It's set to have plenty of games and food and maybe even a few collectibles for everyone to pick up. I'll have a photo or two tomorrow night. Acme Archives
Roron Corrob Morly, from Acme Archives, posted today that the final Clone Wars key, Roron Corrob, will go on sale Monday, June 16th at 3:00PM EST. The key will be available directly from Acme on their characterkey.com web site. The edition size is set at 750 pieces and will probably sell in the $35 range which seems to be the standard. Also, if you like low numbers, Andrew's Toyz will have keys 1 though 100. Nothing has been posted yet by Andrew's Toyz on how their sale will be held so tune into their website for further information. HasbroHead over to JediDefender.com if you get a chance. They've posted up two pictures you all might be interested in. First up is a size comparison of the new Millennium Falcon. It's shown sitting on its box and next to it is the OTC version. Huge doesn't quite get it done. The other item of interest is possibly the first shot of the weapons that will be included in the weapons lockers that will pack in with the Saga Legends figures when they re-launch this fall. We know from the Hasbro Q&A sessions that the weapons would come from the Battle Front Clone pack and that seems to hold true. The photo shows six weapons, however, and I thought we were only going to get five. I'll have to go back through the Q&A to see if they ever actually told us that, however. Although one rifle shown is actually a Battle Droid weapon, it looks to be a good selection. 6-13-2008Millennium FalconIt's out! The new Legacy Collection Millennium Falcon was found at a Toys-R-Us in Ontario, Canada near Toronto. The Canadian price is $199.00 and while there is a shelf date of July 26th, a member of Snowtroopers.ca found one and was able to purchase it. Click on the thumbnail below to see the larger pictures over at Snowtroopers.ca.
HasbroRumor lists and packaged photos of upcoming Legacy Collection toys have been flying around all week. Some, like the photos, are awesome while the rumor lists include an odd mix of head scratching "huh?" and "wow!" items. We'll see about the rumor lists as we move forward. What we know, however, is that the new Imperial Pilot Legacy Evolutions set will include three "new" figures. There's an AOTC Clone Pilot with new blue deco, a ROTS Clone Pilot with removable helmet and a Biggs Darklighter as Imperial TIE Pilot with removable helmet. Apparently Biggs is from the Star Wars Empire comic.
It's actually an odd name for the Evolutions pack as the AOTC and ROTS pilots weren't technically Imperials. And not having read the Empire comic, was Biggs actually an Imperial? Maybe it's splitting hairs, it does look like a good set. The AOTC Clone Pilot appears to have the same deco as last year's ARC-170 Elite Squad Battle Pack which is cool. Too bad it'll be expensive to get a pair to fly our ARC or Gunships. The Clone Wars
The newest trailer for The Clone Wars is on-line now and also played in front of the new Incredible Hulk movie last night. There's also a high definition version on StarWars.com. It's on the front page right now but look for it to be moved to the multimedia section of their web site later. eFXThe newest player in the Star Wars license game is eFX, picking up where Master Replicas left off. RebelScum.com has posted a news release today letting us know that on July 8, 2008 we'll be able to order the first eFX prop, Stormtrooper Helmet. Orders go up at 12:00PM EST. The sale will only be on the eFX web site at www.efxcollectibles.com and customers that had their pre-order cancelled from Master Replicas for their Stormtrooper helmet will have priority ordering. The helmet is limited to 500 pieces and will come with a display stand, plaque and COA. The price is $399.00 and limited to one per person. This is not a pre-order, the helmets are ready to ship once orders are placed. 6-11-2008Charity Events DCSWCC Pin Two Star Wars fan organizations are currently running charity events that everyone should help support. DCSWCCThe first is the 2008 Charity Pin sale by the Washington DC Metro Area Star Wars Collecting Club. DCSWCC has done two previous pins and this year they are offering a Boba Fett pin with the Washington Monument as his backpack missile. The pin is limited to 1,000 pieces, sells for $10 and the proceeds will benefit the Aluminum Cans for Burned Children Program. DCSWCC has raised nearly $10,000 with their past two events so help them continue their great work. 501st Legion
R2-KT Challenge Coin The second event is by the 501st Legion and benefits the Make-A-Wish Foundation. You may recall that last year Hasbro and Lucasfilm teamed up to donate $100,000 in the name of Katie Johnson to the Make-A-Wish Foundations of South Carolina and San Diego. This year the 501st is raising money for their own donation and are selling a commemorative challenge coin. The coin features R2-KT on one side and an image of Katie Johnson on the other. The coins sell for $10 each. Details on the sale can be found on the home page of the 501st and an image can bee seen here. HasbroOn top of all the information about the Legacy Collection figures yesterday, Sandtroopers.com also scored pictures of the carded figures from the Clone Wars line which will also be debuting on July 26th. Editor's Note; Sandtroopers.com appears to be offline right now so the link to their site isn't working. 6-10-2008AcmeAcme is getting ready for the 2008 San Diego Comic-Con and to kick everything off they've launched a new blog to keep everyone up to date. Hopefully we'll get some word on exclusives and when that Roron Corobb Character Key will be on its way. HasbroJediInsider.com comes through big with photos of the new Dagger Squadron B-Wing Fighter that should be hitting Toys-R-Us later this year.
Update; I don't know how I missed this last night, but JediInsider.com also has carded photos of the first two waves of The Legacy Collection. They have some back shots as well so now we know, at least for wave 2, which figures come with which droid parts. I've updated the 2008 Checklist with that info. Click on the photos below for the JediInsider.com albums; Vader for wave 1 and Obi-Wan for wave 2.
6-7-20088HasbroCaptain RexFirst up a correction on my post yesterday about the Captain Rex figure. I incorrectly identified the figure in the photos as the mail-away preview figure that will be coming in July. It's actually the regular release figure that will be available in stores. The wide release version is the dirty deco seen in the photos while the mail-away is a clean version. Still, it's a good close look at a character that looks to have a large roll in the new Clone Wars cartoon coming this fall. Q&AQ&A brings new info, as always, straight from Hasbro's PR guys. One of the coolest pieces of info is a photo of the San Diego Comic-Con Vader and Emperor Holo exclusive. Thanks to Yakface.com for the request and post.
In a follow-up to a previous question at JediDefender.com, Hasbro confirms that the clean deco Sandtrooper with black pauldron will not be making it into the current incarnation of Saga Legends. They hint at a possible refresh of this figure for the 2009 Saga Legends replacement line. JediTempleArchives.comm asks about a Return of the Jedi Rancor, using the current TFU Target exclusive as a base, as a Target exclusive. Per Hasbro it was scheduled for November but has been pushed to 2009 and will hinge on the success of the Force Unleashed version. Two different sites asked if the Titanium line was coming to an end and Hasbro's answer to both questions is "no." Apparently the lack of Titaniums on the shelf now, and the cancelled pre-orders, are due to a changeover to the blue and white Legacy and Clone Wars lines coming in July. One thing that Hasbro did mention is that we can expect to see a couple more Battlestar Galactica vehicles and then that sub-line will end as Hasbro's license expires at the end of the year. Finally, from YodasNews.com, word on the next wave of comic 2-packs is that we have to wait till fall. Rather than push them out at the tail end of the current line they skipped to the new blue and white packaging and that pushed them till July, at least. Indiana JonesI've said before that I won't cover too much Indiana Jones info but there are two pieces of info that are too cool not to post. First up, ActionFigs.com asked Hasbro about a future sidecar with a German motorcycle and Hasbro said that yes, we should see one in 2009. It won't come with Henry Jones but a Henry figure is due in the Last Crusade line of figures coming later this year. Also confirmed for 2009 is a Marion in white dress and Toht. Toht was mentioned in a previous Q&A but wasn't exactly confirmed. 6-6-2008Sideshow)
Ambush on Hoth Sideshow has put their latest Polystone diorama up for pre-order. "Ambush on Hoth" depicts Luke Skywalker's tussle with the Wampa on the Hoth tundra. The limited edition diorama is scheduled for a fourth quarter release and runs $299.99. Also, don't forget that today, at 1:00PM EST, is the pre-order for non-attendees wanting the VCD Shadow Trooper. If you will be at SDCC this July you still have time to order your Shadow Trooper as well. This is limited to 600 pieces imported to the US by Sideshow. Hasbro
Captain Rex Captain RexJediDefender.com has two new photos of the 2008 Clone Wars preview figure, Captain Rex. Both are loose and give a good look at the Captain with and without his helmet on. Look for these to begin hitting mailboxes in July. Millennium Falcon & AT-TE
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BMF Millennium Falcon GearLog.com has scored some amazing video of two hotly anticipated collectibles; the Millennium Falcon and AT-TE. The AT-TE video also includes pictures of the Clone Wars action figures and a demo of the new role-play Clone Trooper helmet. The video of the Falcon is on top of yesterday's news by JediDefender.com and GalacticHunter.com that the instruction sheet was found on Hasbro's web site. The instruction sheet is six pages in PDF form and clocks in at about 6MB in size but it's worth a look for some additional information about the features of the ship. B-WingRumors of a new B-Wing have been around for the past few months with a listing showing up in the Toys-R-Us computer at one point and a hint from Hasbro in a Q&A answer. Now, we may have some more news. Along with the instruction sheet to the Millennium Falcon, a PDF instruction file for a Dagger Squadron B-Wing Fighter has been found. The two page PDF file contains some interesting info about possible future figures as well. Near the top of the instructions is the line; "Includes ship, figure and labels." Further down the page is the following info: "Peel and apply labels to create 1 of 4 different fighters in Dagger Squadron."
Although we know the ship will include one figure it's not specified which one. The listing of four different Dagger Squad members has also led to speculation that the upcoming Entertainment Earth exclusive could be Dagger Squadron along with one or two additional characters such as Admiral Ackbar, who created Dagger Squadron. Dagger Squadron is based on characters in the "Star Wars: Rebellion" comic book. 6-5-2008Disney)
Mickey as Anakin Not only is Disney ramping up their Star Wars offerings in anticipation of Star Wars Weekends, they will also be selling four new statues this fall. Each statue will have an edition size of 600 pieces with 500 available at Walt Disney World in Florida and 100 each for Disneyland in California. They all have a light-up feature and are priced at $200 each. The statues represent Donald as Darth Maul, Mickey as Anakin, Minnie as Queen Amidala and Goofy as Jar Jar. These appear to be a follow-up to the Jedi Mickey statue from 2006 and the set of four (Mickey/X-Wing Pilot, Minnie/Leia, Goofy/Vader, Donald/Stormtrooper) from last year. SideshowToday at 1:00PM EST the VCD Shadow Guard goes up for pre-order for those attending the San Diego Comic-Con. People not attending the convention get to place their pre-orders tomorrow, also at 1:00PM EST. Check out previews and place orders for all the SDCC exclusives on Sideshow's web site. HasbroBe on the lookout for the new Battle on Mygeeto Battle Pack. I found one last night at Target along with restocks on The Hunt for Grievous, Droid Factory Capture and one other, might have been the Betrayal on Bespin. 6-3-2008HasbroIt looks like Toys-R-Us will be getting an exclusive figure in support of the new Clone Wars line coming in July. JediInsider.net has photos of a holographic General Grievous which has a TRU sticker on the front. EntertainmentEarth.com has updated their web site with a pre-order for their next exclusive 6-pack of action figures. They have a photo up that shows figures in silhouette and, according to Adam Pawlus, at least one of the figures in shadow is actually in the set.
The set will run you $35.99 and look for a debut at San Diego Comic-Con in July. Star Wars WeekendsStarWars.com updated on Thursday with photos of some cool exclusives that will be available during Star Wars Weekends. Star Wars Weekends starts June 6th and runs through June 29th. This year sees a lot of pins, a Disney standard, as well as action figures, posters, clothing, cups and glasses and watches. The action figures include both Muppets characters as our favorite Star Wars characters and standard Hasbro action figures of C-3PO and R2-D2 with Star Tours droids. Two items I think are pretty neat are the Queen Amidala and Princess Leia Fashion Sets. They're basically paper doll sets only in 3D. 6-2-2008
Wizard World PhillyThis was a big weekend in Philadelphia as it was the annual Wizard World convention at the Pennsylvania Convention Center. Per usual, I attended on Friday with this year's goal being to pick up some comic back issues and attend the first annual ToyFare Hall of Fame Awards. Friday was a short day again this year, with the hours running from 12:00 - 6:00PM, but still left enough time to visit the booths on the floor and sneak in a panel or two before the day was over. Read on for a full review... |
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