With Ahsoka season 1 recently coming to a close on Disney+, the toys are hitting stores in full force (pun intended), a big improvement over the Obi-Wan Kenobi figures still showing up a year after the show. The COVID-lockdown supply chain issue seems to have been resolved for Hasbro, and fans of the TV show can grab at least some of the major characters as toys. (Others, like masked Stormtrooper Enoch or Ezra in his new bearded look, were pretty obviously delayed for spoiler reasons.)
Hasbro sent several samples over for review, including four six-inch Star Wars Black Series figures, one deluxe 3.75-inch Vintage figure, a 12-inch light-and-sound Ahsoka, and two 2.5-inch scale Mission Fleet playsets. While most are about what one would expect, there were a few surprises in the bunch.
New and Old
The Ahsoka Tano Black Series figure appears to be the same figure as her Mandalorian figure, since her initial outfit in the series is one and the same. They could have added a hooded robe, but nah. The only reason to buy this one is if you don’t have the previous edition, or are such a completist you must possess the full mural that the side panels on each figure come together to form.
At least everyone who has ever wanted a 6-inch Rosario Dawson Ahsoka will have a chance to get one. On the other hand, we can likely expect at least two more figures of her from season 1, as the spacesuit and white-robed looks are all but made to sell further toys. Note that Black Series has gone back to its classic appearance, following an unpopular plastic-free shift that didn’t allow buyers to actually see the figure inside, and made theft easier.
The Ezra figure is based on his appearance as a hologram — though not literally, or Hasbro, would have made him from clear plastic. It’s based on production designs, as the final onscreen version of Ezra had a more white shoulder armor. The yellow matches his classic cartoon colors better. Ezra’s never seen in action like this on the show, but since his last figure depicted him looking younger, this works for fans who wanted his final Rebels appearance in plastic. It’s hard to judge the face relative to Eman Esfendi since he spends the series looking completely different in his final Jedi outfit. We can, however, judge that long, double-balled neck. Looks a little weird, right?
No Big Suprises
Morgan Elsbeth suffers a bit from spoiler-alert syndrome — since she only gets her glowing sword and full power in the final episode, her figure comes weapon-less, which makes it feel like a lesser value. Hasbro did look ahead enough to make her skirt soft plastic in four parts, allowing for dynamic crouches and kicks, like they knew she’d be doing some action. It’s more than likely, however, that we’ll see a future version with sword and Nightsister head. As is, it’s a great likeness but has nothing to fight with unless she steals something from another figure, as her left hand is shaped to hold.
Sabine is quite different from the previous figure based on her animated look. For one thing, that figure came out when Hasbro was still doing double-jointed knees, which was the best way to execute figures with prominent kneepads. Now that knees and elbows are all pin-and-disc, they’ve chosen to attach the kneepads to the upper legs, which is an odd choice. The 3.75-inch figure has them attached to the lower legs, which is a superior execution.
Size Matters
And this brings us to a really odd point: the small Sabine figure costs more than the large one. $27.99 versus $24.99. This makes very little sense. The small Sabine does include extra thigh cut joints and has the bonus accessories of a paint nozzle, shoulder bag, and her cat Murley, with a cut neck joint. Aside from that, she has the helmet, lightsaber, and guns of her larger counterpart and about the same amount of deco.
My guess is that level of deco costs more on a smaller figure, and they threw in some extra accessories to make the price increase feel like more value, but really, there’s no excuse for this to cost more than the larger version when it’s basically the same but smaller, with a few unnecessary extras.
Fold little Sabine’s legs enough, and she does fit into the Mission Fleet T-6 Jedi Shuttle, making it feel like one of the vintage line’s Mini Rigs.
The 2.5-inch Ahsoka figure meant to fit it bounces around a bit. Considering there’s a hole in her back, this makes little sense. It couldn’t be that hard to put a back peg in the seat to hold her in place unless they wanted to leave space for a 3.75-inch figure for flexibility. Hmmm.
Junk in the Trunk
A proper scale T-6, even for Vintage Collection, with two cockpit seats and a full cargo area with an armory, bedroom, and training room, would probably require a HasLab to fund. In the meantime, if you don’t mind the interiors cheating a lot, the Mission Fleet version looks good and runs an affordable $40-$50. The firing missile cannons peg into holes and can come off easily for collectors who prefer a cleaner aesthetic. The wings, however, only rotate 90 degrees and not the full 360. They go up and down in a clockwise (if it’s facing toward you) direction only.
The vehicle features three fold-out landing struts, but they’re basically invisible when you set it down and are just there for the sturdiness of the display. Surprisingly, there’s a training room that opens up in the back, with foot pegs that allow for another Mission Fleet figure to stand in place, even with the roof closed.
The very same Ahsoka figure that comes with the T-6 also comes in a multipack with Luke Skywalker, R2-D2, and Grogu. If ever a set demonstrated the flexible, stylized scale of Mission Fleet, this is it. Grogu is way huger, proportionately, than he ought to be. But that allows for Murley to play well in this size, too.
There’s a mini-action feature in this set. Put either a frog or a training drone on the clear stand, and a lever lets you move it back and forth. It’s a small thing, but it’s the kind of feature kids love.
Speaking of features kids love, Galactic Action Ahsoka has lights and sounds, matching quite well to the recent whip-cracking Indiana Jones figure.
Light in the Darkness
This Ahsoka isn’t super-poseable — the legs are a solid piece. She can move her head, shoulders, and wrists to a point. Two separate buttons control lightsaber lights/sounds and phrases, though once the sabers turn on, they eventually turn off as she says, “May the Force be with you.” If it isn’t Dawson’s voice, it’s a convincing impersonation.
This figure’s particularly fun in the dark, illuminated only by her weapons. $30 feels like a decent deal for that — and it’s only $2 more than for tiny Sabine! Yes, tiny.
That’s a decent array to choose from for now, with the likes of Baylan and Shin coming later. Don’t expect any “surprise” characters from the show to appear until at least a year from now — if we’re lucky, we might see Thrawn and some Stormtrooper repaints sooner.
We’ve got a lot more images for you to check out below:
