Star Wars Easter Goodies

With all of the excitement surrounding The Force Awakens, it was inevitable that we'd see a range of Star Wars-themed Easter treats in stores this year. Over the weekend, I was lucky enough to be given a bunch of these goodies by my nearest and dearest.

Park Avenue (the company responsible for my Star Wars Christmas stocking and last year's Star Wars Easter goodies) put out two great tins - one featuring Kylo Ren (from my partner) and the other featuring Darth Vader and Stormtroopers (from my parents). Both tins feature fantastic embossed designs and contain a number of hollow milk chocolate Easter eggs. Also included in the Park Avenue range was a First Order Stormtrooper egg and bags of "exploding" Death Star-shaped chocolate popping candy balls (both of which came from my girlfriend's mum and her partner along with a three-pack of the new Star Wars Kinder Surprise eggs).

Did you receive any Star Wars-themed Easter goodies? If you did, be sure to share them with us via Twitter or Facebook, or by emailing relicsoftheforce@gmail.com!

Vintage Collection 3 3/4" VC53 Bom Vimdin and VC56 Kithaba

With it's gorgeous detailing and superb articulation, Hasbro's Vintage Collection represented the pinnacle of 3 3/4" Star Wars action figures. Every now and then a few more of these figures will trickle out of store rooms and on to shelves. This is exactly what happened a few weeks ago when I spotted this VC53 Bom Vimdin and VC56 Kithaba reduced down to $5.00 at the Wellington Farmers and Moore Wilson's stores respectively.

Ordinarily, characters like Bom Vimdin and Kithaba would fall slightly outside of my collecting focus (which tends to aim for main characters and military figures). Nevertheless, it was difficult to turn these down at such a great price. As with most of the figures in the Vintage Collection line, both Bom and Kithaba have a generous fifteen points of articulation and phenomenal paint jobs. Bom comes with a blaster pistol, blaster rifle, working holster, and even a cup of blue milk! Kithaba is instead packed with a blaster pistol, staff, working holster, and a removable ammo satchel around his neck.

While I've come to terms with Hasbro's return to 5POA, it's figures like this that give me a painful reminder of just how good we had it in previous years. Either way, Bom Vimdin and Kithaba will both make great companions to my 3 3/4" Jabba set!

Star Wars Is Everywhere - New World Thorndon Supermarket Baking

It looks like the staff at the New World Thorndon supermarket have been bitten by the Force Awakens bug. Over recent weeks, a number of incredible Star Wars-themed creations have been turning up in their bakery!

Have you seen any Star Wars-inspired baking around your town? If you have, be sure to share it with us via Twitter or Facebook, or by emailing relicsoftheforce@gmail.com!

Darth Vader Claw Machine Plush Toy

A few weeks ago, the claw-machine at the Newtown Countdown supermarket was restocked with a line of Star Wars plush toys. I sunk a few dollars into the machine, but the claw got the better of me. That all changed last weekend, however, when my partner gave it another crack and won this fantastic little Darth Vader.

The same toys have been popping up in other Countdown claw-machines, but I'm yet to see these retail in any other New Zealand stores. That added rarity just makes these cuddly little guys even cooler collectibles though!

The Force Awakens Coming to Blu-Ray, DVD, and Digital HD in April

Yesterday, StarWars.com announced that The Force Awakens will be released on Blu-Ray, DVD, and Digital HD this April. You can watch the in-home trailer (containing some spoilers) below.

The film will be available on Digital HD from April 1st, with the Blu-Ray and DVD versions hitting shelves on April 5th in the USA and April 13th here in New Zealand. The 2-disc Blu-Ray will come with a raft of special features, including:

• Secrets of The Force Awakens: A Cinematic Journey – For the first time, discover the complete story behind the making of The Force Awakens, revealed through in-depth footage and exclusive interviews with the actors and filmmakers in this feature documentary.
• The Story Awakens: The Table Read – Cast members familiar and new reflect on the memorable day they all first came together to read the movie’s script.
• Building BB-8 – See how the filmmakers brought the newest droid to the screen, creating an instant fan favorite in the Star Wars universe.
• Crafting Creatures – Watch movie magic as the filmmakers bring a cast of new creatures to life.
• Blueprint of a Battle: The Snow Fight – Go deeper into the epic, climactic lightsaber battle between Rey and Kylo Ren.
• John Williams: The Seventh Symphony – The legendary composer shares personal insights of his work on Star Wars and The Force Awakens.
• ILM: The Visual Magic of The Force – An insider’s look into the remarkable digital artistry of the movie’s visual effects.
• Force For Change – Heroes come in all shapes and sizes. See how the Star Wars: Force for Change initiative has united Star Wars fans all over the globe to help others.
• Deleted Scenes

Mighty Ape currently has the Blu-Ray and DVD listed for $39.99 and $32.99 respectively. JB Hi-Fi will be selling the Blu-Ray and DVD for the slightly cheaper prices of $34.00 and $28.00, while also stocking an exclusive steelbook version of the Blu-Ray for $44.00.

[Update: The prices in the original version of this post were mistakenly taken from the Australian (not New Zealand) JB Hi-Fi website. These have now been amended. Apologies to anyone for the confusion!]

The Force Awakens Captain Phasma Aluminium Drink Bottle

As The Force Awakens enters its final weeks in theatres, a lot of merchandise for the film is making its way into clearance bins. I ventured out to the Porirua K-Mart last weekend and found a number of items heavily reduced - including this great Captain Phasma aluminium drink bottle for only $3.00.

It's a sturdy little bottle, and does a fantastic job of keeping its contents cool (yes, field tests have been carried out). There were several different designs to choose from, but the minimalism of the Phasma bottle was the best of the lot. The bare brushed-steel finish is a particularly nice touch - very appropriately referencing Phasma's chromium armour in the film.