Sadly, New Zealand is yet to see a full release of the new Star Wars Micro Machines sets. This is the line I was most excited about post-Force Friday, so was top of my shopping list when I visited Houston last week. Despite a severe stock shortage State-side, there were still a few of these packs on shelves - and I was able to track down all but one of the sets on my wishlist.
I'm thoroughly impressed with every one of these sets. The molding and paint-apps are true to the old Micro Machine aesthetic (i.e., simple and robust) and are dripping with nostalgia. It's also great to see non-The Force Awakens gaps in the line (especially from Episodes II and III) being filled. I'm no expert on plastics - but it seems that there are two different materials being used in producing these. One is the sturdier substance we saw in old Micro Machines (used for most of the 'blockier' vehicles - like the various speeders, and Kylo Ren's Command Shuttle), and the other is a slightly more rubbery materials used for thinner detailing such as the X-Wing and TIE Fighter wings. The latter seems prone to a small amount of warping, but so far the old hot water / cold water trick seems to fix up these imperfections just fine.
My one piece advice for other Micro Machines collectors is to pick your packs carefully. It seems the vehicles aren't being inserted into the blisters with great care, and I spotted a few X-Wings which had had their cannons bent back a full 180 degrees by the way they'd been packaged. It's most likely fixable, but better if avoided.
Words cannot describe how excited I am to see this line back on shelves - and I hope it performs well enough to justify Hasbro continuing to produce Star Wars Micro Machines for a long while yet!
