This weekend saw the annual American International Toy Fair take place in New York City. Thanks to the combined efforts of JediNews.co.uk, YodasNews.com, and Rebelscum.com we've been given some great insight into what Hasbro is in stock for Star Wars collectors over the coming months.
(Image courtesy of Rebelscum.com)
It seems that, as many have been predicting, Hasbro is moving away from having 3 3/4" figures as a collector-targeted line. Only four new figures were announced for the super-articulated 3 3/4" Black Series line, and only two of these were on display. Instead, Hasbro is targeting collectors with the new 6" Black Series figures while catering to younger fans with the five-points-of-articulation Saga Legends, Mission Series, and upcoming Rebels lines. As I've mentioned before, this puts 3 3/4" collectors such as myself in something of a quandary. I'm not interested in beginning all over again at a new scale, but the reduced articulation and detailing on the new 3 3/4" figures will be hard to stomach (even at their reduced price). Fortunately, it's a decision I won't have to make for a while yet. While the Rebels line looks to be featuring some excellent characters, its non-realistic styling will see me give it a miss as I did with The Clone Wars line. Crunch-time will come when the first Episode VII figures begin hitting shelves later on next year.
Also of interest in the 3 3/4" scale were the announcement of three new vehicles to be released in the Rebels line. The first of these is the Inquisitor's TIE fighter, which does an awesome job of blending elements of Maul's Sith Infiltrator with the more traditional TIE design.
On the side of the Rebels is the Phantom, a ship that would look perfectly at home in Echo Base.
(Image courtesy of Rebelscum.com)
I love both of these designs, but for now they're still a "maybe" for me. If you want to know what's got me already reaching for my wallet, it's this glorious piece of plastic right here:
This walker is also from Rebels and - taking it's cue from the AT-AP (All-Terrain Attack Pod) - is being referred to as an AT-DP (All-Terrain Defence Pod?). It's an incredible sculpt, but what makes this vehicle truly special is its lineage. It is, in fact, an exact duplicate of the 1979 walker design that Joe Johnston produced for The Empire Strikes Back. It would eventually be replaced by the more familiar AT-ST design, but did make its way into a handful of Star Wars Marvel comics.
(Images courtesy of StarWarsUnderworld.com and StarWarsWikia.com)
It's great to see Lucasfilm delving into the archives and reviving some of these incredible designs. For this reason alone I'll be eagerly awaiting the chance to add one of these to my collection.
Hasbro will be supplementing the 3 3/4" and 6" lines with a handful of new 12" figures (mostly based on characters from Rebels), several roleplay items, and a massive 29" long X-Wing Fighter. For those of you interested in miniatures, there will also be the new Star Wars Command line - a cut-price army-men style series of figures and vehicles that will (presumably) be used in some kind of strategy game. It's great to see miniature Star Wars figures and vehicles hitting shelves again - particularly at such an excellent price (packs of nine miniatures will be selling for approximately $5.00US each). These miniatures are unpainted however, so still won't quite fill the void left by the now defunct Micro Machines, Action Fleet, and Miniatures lines.
Overall, I'd say Toy Fair 2014 has given us a fair bit to look forward to. While there's arguably a move away from collector-focussed lines, Hasbro has got its priorities right by planning some great quality (and incredibly affordable) items for younger fans. In doing this, they're ensuring that Star Wars - and Star Wars collecting - will be around for a long time yet.
What are your thoughts on this year's Toy Fair? What are you most excited for? Be sure to send me your thoughts at relicsoftheforce@gmail.com or tweet them to @Archon_Revuge!
What are your thoughts on this year's Toy Fair? What are you most excited for? Be sure to send me your thoughts at relicsoftheforce@gmail.com or tweet them to @Archon_Revuge!
