Star Wars Revenge of the Sith - MON MOTHMA!

Star Wars: Revenge of the Sith - Republic Senator Mon Mothma - Hasbro 2005

I recently watched Star Wars: Episode III - Revenge of the Sith (2005) again specifically to see the Mon Mothma scenes which I didn't remember. I'm not a big fan of that movie, nor its two predecessors, but Genevieve O'Reilly's performance in Andor (I just finished season 2 last week) was so amazing that I wanted to see how she first played the character 20 years ago in Revenge of the Sith. Unfortunately, that was an effort in futility because I didn't realize all her scenes were cut. The footage and screengrabs I see on the internet are only from DVD bonus footage. And that is a shame because the scene I just watched on YouTube is great. Plus it gives a lot more depth to Padme Amidala. I suppose Hasbro didn't get the message of these scenes ending up on the cutting room floor, because we still got this great action figure representation of her non-appearance. I love that the character of Mon Mothma was such a major player in Andor. She's truly become an obsession of mine. Watch the show if you haven't!

Star Wars: Power of the Force - MON MOTHMA!

Star Wars: The Power of The Force - Mon Mothma w/Baton - Kenner/Hasbro 1998

In the late 90s, the excitement over the upcoming film Star Wars: Episode I - The Phantom Menace (1999) triggered an absolutely flood of nostalgic Star Wars product. I was pretty unaware of this movement at the time. Oddly enough, I remember my sister obsessively stopping in toy stores hunting for these Power of the Force figures that her boyfriend was collecting (this was several years before the action figure collecting bug bit me). When I revisited all the Star Wars collectibles years later, I was overwhelmed by the numbers of toy released in the late 90s. They were mostly in the same scale as the vintage Kenner figures, but had slightly more dynamic sculpts that gave them a unique aesthetic in the history of Star Wars collectibles. This Mon Mothma figure was the first time she was produced in plastic. As such an iconic character and such a long-awaited release (15 years), I'm surprised this figure isn't more valuable (I picked her up last week for $4). She's pretty great. Let's check her out below!

Star Wars Retro - MON MOTHMA!

Star Wars Retro Collection - Return of the Jedi - Mon Mothma - Hasbro 2023

Star Wars was a big deal in my home growing up. We had picture books, toys, and bedsheets emblazoned with the characters. But interestingly, due to the era, I didn't see A New Hope or Empire Strikes Back until the mid-80s when we finally got a VCR. So my focus was on Return of the Jedi which I saw in the theatre and which had all the spinoff TV movies and cartoons feeding my childhood awe. A unique character from Return of the Jedi was Mon Mothma, the poised and commanding leader of the Rebel Alliance. I found her captivating. Princess Leia and Oola also stood out to me, but something about Mon Mothma's presence really shaped my early respect for powerful women. When Hasbro started releasing the Retro Line a few years ago, this is exactly the type of figure I wanted; unproduced core characters missing from the vintage line. Frankly I'm surprised there haven't been more like this, it's really a missed opportunity. Check out her eBay prices if you want to see the demand. Let's check out Mon Mothma below!

Ewoks - PRINCESS KNEESAA!

Star Wars: Ewoks (TV Series) - Wicket and Kneesaa 2-Pack - Hasbro 2023

It's hard for me to put into words how impactful Ewoks were in my childhood. I was very young when Return of the Jedi came out (I believe it was my first movie in the theatre). I was never into kid genres focused around vehicles, martial arts, or fighting (which eliminated most properties aimed at my demographic). But things like fantasy, nature, and animals were an absolute obsession for me. Star Wars was all the rage in my house and in the toy aisles, but my focus was 100% on the Ewoks. While my siblings were desperately fashioning light sabers out of brooms, I was in the woods making weapons and tools out of sticks, rocks, and packaging twine. I was kind of awesome like that. Ewoks became very popular. They received eight vintage action figures from ROTJ (more than any other "faction"), two spin-off movies in 1984 and 1985, and a two-season animated series. I both loved and hated this cartoon. I hated it because it was childish, the Ewoks spoke english, and the villainous Duloks seemed like Grinch knock-offs.

Star Wars: The Bad Batch - OMEGA!

Star Wars Black Series The Bad Batch #10 - Omega (Kamino) - Hasbro 2022

I still haven't seen any episodes of Star Wars: The Bad Batch, but all the young kids in my life seem to love it. When I first saw this Omega figure, I honestly thought it was a adolescent male character, but I was happy to leard that she was female because I was super curious about a smaller youthful sculpt in the Black Series line. Omega is a clone of the Mandalorian bounty hunter Jango Fett (supposedly a pure replication of him). She stayed on Kamino during the Clone Wars, but when the main conflict was over, she became intrigued by Clone Force 99 (aka The Bad Batch) and eventually joined them. the Bad Batch were a group of Mandalorian clone with specific mutations that granted them individual enhanced abilities (like sight, strength, or intelligence). The mutations had an unforeseen side-effect that allowed the clones to disobey Order 66 (the programmed directive to view all Jedi as enemies). It's a great plot for a show and make me excited to watch it someday. Let's check out Omega below!

Star Wars: Andor - MON MOTHMA!

Star Wars Black Series: Star Wars Andor - Senator Mon Mothma - Hasbro 2023

If you would have told a young nerdy me that someday I would be overwhelmed with new Star Wars content, I never would have believed you. But ever since The Mandalorian debuted in 2019, it's been a whole new world. Sure, we saw five films in the five years leading up to The Mandalorian, but the sheer hours of screentime and depth of character development on Disney+ was a new ballgame. I was onboard for the majority of these shows, but after a few years of seemingly constant releases, I can admit I was fatigued with interest waning. Then in late 2022 an old friend was visiting me and in every spare moment he would be obsessively watching Andor on his tablet. He sang its praises to such a degree that I had to watch. And I completely agree that it is an amazing show. There are several storylines threaded throughout the show, but the most intriguing to me is the backstory of Senator Mon Mothma, who has personally fascinated me since her first appearance in Return of the Jedi back in 1983.

Star Wars Retro Collection - AHSOKA TANO!

Star Wars Retro Collection: The Mandalorian - Ahsoka Tano - Hasbro 2022

I was reading recently about how when Ahsoka Tano was first introduced, she was met with a lot of fan hostility. I never watched the animated Clone Wars series (or movie), but this is where Ahsoka Tano was introduced as a 14-year-old Padawan under the tutelage of a 19-year-old Anakin Skywalker. Without reading any more details, I can imagine the writers falling prey to same tropes of teenage character stereotypes. I bet she was surly, cool, obnoxious, witty, and scrappy - yet promising. And I'll bet she came off as annoying. That's all just my hunch based on decades of seeing teenage elements inserted into a serious genre. But thankfully the fanbase came around and the character matured. Because the character we see today is pretty awesome. Rosario Dawson's portrayal in The Mandalorian and The Book of Boba Fett was masterful. And the fact that her solo show, Ahsoka, is premiering in August 2023 is no surprise at all - and I can't wait! Let's check out the Retro Collection Ahsoka Tano below!

Star Wars Retro Collection - THE ARMORER!

Star Wars Retro Collection: The Mandalorian - The Armorer - Hasbro 2022

The Armorer has surprisingly become one of my favorite characters in the Disney+ Star Wars Universe. When she first appeared in The Mandalorian, I was excited to hear a female voice behind one of the helmets, and I thought it was very interesting to see a detailed view into a weaponry-and-armor-centric culture like the Mandalorians. But she definitely didn't seem like a character who would play a part in major plot developments. She seemed non-combative in role and Din Djarin was literally only visiting the planet when we met her. But as the years have passed, we've seen her become an influential leader and voice of reason among the Mandlorians. She's been prominent in later seasons of the The Mandalorian and even appeared in The Book of Boba Fett. I should have realized there were bigger plans for her since we've seen her 6" Black Series figure released three times already. It's amazing how clairvoyant the toy world can be. Let's check out the Armorer below!

Star Wars Retro Collection - BO-KATAN!

Star Wars Retro Collection: The Mandalorian - Bo-Katan - Hasbro 2022

I'm amused by my love of the Star Wars Retro Collection. When Star Wars figures were all the rage in my youth, I only cared about Ewoks. When I got into Star Wars figures again in the early 2000s, I found the world of 3.75" figures overwhelming. The modern ones were plentiful and the vintage ones cost a fortune (and had a fair number of reproduction accessories being passed as original). I probably only picked up a dozen figures before I got burnt out. The Black Series 6" line provided the fresh start I was looking for as a collector. But I didn't have any nostalgic connection to this universe in that scale. But then the Retro Collection started and I was ecstatic. Finally I could satisfy my modern (read: more-than-ewok) love of the Star Wars franchise with the retro Kenner style that is so signature to the brand. And I love that the line tends to focus on the new properties, letting the vintage Kenner collectors retroactively incorporate these new characters into their displays. Let's check out Bo-Katan below!

The Mandalorian - BO-KATAN!

The Mandalorian - Bo-Katan Kryze (Limited Articulation Figure) - Hasbro 2022

Limited Articulation figures are a very interesting trend in the modern action figure market. I presume that the big toy companies wanted to tap into the dollars being "stolen" by the knockoff and bootleg market by producing their own lower-budget, lower-quality, and limited-articulation figures. I personally love these figures. They show up in weird places like grocery store checkout lines and drug stores and they tend to look pretty great since they are using simplified, re-scaled versions of the collector lines. The main downfall for me is that they very rarely include female characters. The only ever female ever made in the Star Wars assortment was Rey back in 2016. The inclusion of Bo-Katan was a surprise and also a foretelling of her prominence in the Disney+ Star Wars Universe. So far, only the A-Listers ever seem to get recognition in these discount lines. And after seeing The Mandalorian Season 3, I can see that prediction was correct. Let's check out Bo-Katan Kryze below!

Mission Fleet - BO-KATAN!

Star Wars Mission Fleet: Gauntlet Starfighter - Bo-Katan - Hasbro 2021

Star Wars Mission Fleet is a fun line of miniature articulated action figures with stylized vehicles. They seem more like a maturation of the Playskool Galactic Heroes line (which I loved) as opposed to the more "serious" Micro Galaxy Squadron miniature line. The Mission Fleet line started out strong back in 2020 with a lot of initial releases, but there has been a steady slowdown ever since. I've had this Bo-Katan set in my stash for quite a while but delayed opening her since I assumed she would be the last lady in the line. But to my surprise we got a Reva Third Sister figure late last year and there is an upcoming Fennec Shand this Summer. So the line is definitely alive, just really slow. This figure also marked a turning point in collecting for me as she was the first Hasbro figure I saw (and purchased) in plastic-free windowless packaging. It may be commonplace now, but back in October of 2021 we were still waiting to see if it was real. Luckily mine looked good. Let's check out Bo-Katan Kryze below!

Star Wars Retro - REVA (THIRD SISTER)!

Star Wars Retro Collection: Obi-Wan Kenobi - Reva Third Sister - Hasbro 2022

One of my favorite trends in modern collectible toys is the Retro Kenner-Style aesthetic being applied to every property under the sun. The simple five points-of-articulation and simplified details are both cost-effective and extremely nostalgic. The amusing thing is that I always avoided collecting 3.75" Star Wars figures from the Vintage Collection because I thought it was an overwhelming undertaking (and I would feel compelled to dive deep), but when the lesser-articulated "Retro" line started back in 2000, I didn't hesitate because I knew they would be released at a manageable pace. So far, there have been only eight females with no signs of speeding up to the seemingly frenzied level of the Vintage Collection. I especially like that the Retro line seems to focus on producing the modern Disney+ characters, which I view as a way to retroactively include them in the vintage canon. Boushh Disguise Leia and Fennec Shand are coming, but I'm excited to see who is next. Let's check out Reva below!

Star Wars - REVA (THIRD SISTER)!

Star Wars Black Series - Obi-Wan Kenobi 03 - Reva (Third Sister) - Hasbro 2022

One of my favorite types of characters is an insolent villain who doesn't follow orders and undermines their leaders. This can only really work when the antagonists are part of a larger militaristic organization. The best part about G.I.Joe is how the Cobra leaders are always crossing each other and pursuing their own agendas - if they could just unify under one strategy they would be unstoppable, but that in-fighting is what makes a great story. Reva is a member of the Inquisitors, the Empire's elite group of Jedi-hunters. Right away, it is clear she fits this role of not respecting authority. In fact, some of her main goals include becoming the Grand Inquisitor and killing Darth Vader - obviously neither on the Empire's agenda. In the first few episodes of Obi-Wan Kenobi, I admit I wasn't immediately a fan of this character. Despite liking Moses Ingram (she was great in The Queen's Gambit), I felt that character just wasn't creepy enough. The other Inquisitors were visually chilling and conveyed an alien sense of evil. 

The Book of Boba Fett - FENNEC SHAND!

Star Wars: The Black Series - Fennec Shand (Book of Boba Fett) - Hasbro 2022

The Book of Boba Fett wasn't my favorite show, but a couple things kept me tuning in. The Jaba twins and Jennifer Beals as a Twi'lek were amazing, but they all had limited screen time. Fennec Shand on the other hand was featured on every episode as Boba Fett's major domo. Her appearances in The Mandalorian intrigued me, but her presence in Boba is what made me a superfan. I already was pretty obsessed with Ming-Na Wen. She was the best part of Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. as Melinda May, she was the voice of Mulan (my favorite Disney movie), and she played Chun-Li is those 1990's live-action Street Fighter movies. Plus she had major roles in geeky shows like Stargate and Eureka and countless voices in animation properties ranging from Batman to Gremlins. Almost all of the iMDb credits are for the kind of shows that get a panel at SDCC. Her role as Fennec Shand is her latest contribution and it's the first time we've seen her likeness in plastic (the 1993 Chun-Li figure doesn't count).

The Mandalorian - AHSOKA TANO!

Star Wars: The Black Series 6" - Ahsoka Tano (The Mandalorian) - Hasbro 2022

I love how popular Ahsoka Tano has become. She was introduced in 2008's Star Wars: The Clone Wars CGI animated film, and was a major character in the following animated series as well as 2014 follow-up series Star Wars: Rebels. I admit I've never watched any of the modern animated Star Wars installments, but I would see this character in the toy aisles all the time and her design intrigued me. She was the only character in the preschool Galactic Heroes lines (which I was obsessed with) to get multiple figures (aside from Leia and Amidala). And I even got a PEZ dispenser of her. But I still didn't know anything about her character until she stepped out of the fog in that amazing 2020 episode of The Mandalorian. Almost immediately there was buzz about an Ahsoka solo series for 2023. And then we were treated to an unexpected appearance in The Book of Boba Fett earlier this year. I'm impressed by what I've seen so far and am excited to see more of character when the show debuts next year.

Star Wars - PRINCESS LEIA ORGANA!

Star Wars: The Black Series 6" - Princess Leia Organa (Yavin 4) - Hasbro 2022

A wonderful thing I discovered in the past few months was the Toys R' Us Experience pop-up in Macy's department stores. With the loss of the main TRU stores, as well as K-Mart (and a ton of individual Walgreens and GameStop locations), there have been a palpable void in my toy hunting grounds. But then this pop-up came into existence around the 2021 holiday season and gave back a tiny smidgen of what was lost. If you haven't been to one yet, it reminds me of the toy section at Kohls, but five times as large. Almost every time I stop in, I find something that's not in Target or Walmart. A recent find was this Yavin 4 Leia figure. I actually think this is the most attractive of all Leia's outfits. It's simple, regal, and iconic - plus I really like the necklace and belt. In A New Hope, she wears this at the Rebel stronghold on the moon Yavin 4 as she awards Luke and Han with medallions after they destroy the Death Star. It's kind of a cheesy ending to such a groundbreaking film, but I still love it. Let's check out Leia below!

Star Wars - PRINCESS LEIA (EWOK VILLAGE)!

Star Wars: The Black Series 6" - Princess Leia (Ewok Village) - Hasbro 2022

Princess Leia truly did have a bizarre number of costume changes throughout the original Star Wars trilogy. Even as a child, I was always left wondering when she had time to change - and where was her luggage? But no outfit raised more questions for me than this Ewok Village outfit from Return of the Jedi. She wears this the entire time she is in the Ewok Village on Endor and I wanted nothing more than to see little Ewok tailors creating this outfit out of thin air. Even the twine in her hair seemed elaborate and detailed. Obviously the Ewoks are skilled at many things, so hair and clothing are not unthinkable, but if there was ever a need for a fashion montage, it would be Leia being groomed, measured, and cinched by a bunch of fussy Ewoks. I've been fantasizing about this for almost 40 years. This figure marks my ninth Black Series Leia - all in unique outfits, and all very iconic. I can't wait to see what version is next. Cloud City is top of my list, but I'm down for anything at this point. Let's check out Lea below!

Galaxy of Adventures - AHSOKA TANO!

Star Wars - Galaxy of Adventures 5" Series - Ahsoka Tano - Hasbro 2020

Of all the recently-introduced Star Wars toylines, I think Galaxy of Adventures is my favorite. Unfortunately, I also suspect it is also dead in the water. The animated series was a short-lived webseries in 2018 and since the toy line's debut in 2019, there have only been about 20 releases, with only one in all of 2021 (an exclusive Mandalorian set). This Ahsoka Tano figure was released in 2020, but I didn't find her until almost a year later when Walmart did a holiday restock with big assortments of Galaxy of Adventures toys. But even so, there was only one Ahsoka in a giant shelf display of 40+ figures (in my experience at least). And it's a shame because this is a really great toy. My favorite part is the elfin-like face sculpts. They are adorable and quirky, but oddly enough they don't look too juvenile or cartoony. It's a lost cause, but it would be awesome to see Princess Leia made. (She is the only other notable female I remember from the show). Let's check out this adorably awesome Ahsoka Tano below!

The Mandalorian - KOSKA REEVES!

Star Wars Black Series - The Mandalorian #12: Koska Reeves - Hasbro 2021

As an adult toy collector, the thing that always drew me into the Star Wars market was the rare instances (historically only in the Expanded Universe) of female characters in the different established (mostly male) factions of the Star Wars mythos: Female Storm Troopers, female Imperial Commanders, female X-Wing Pilots, female Ewoks, female Twi'leks, etc. My goal was to have a recognizable Star Wars collection with all female characters. My favorite of these factions was always the Mandalorians. Years ago they released two 3.75 female Mandalorians (and of course Sabine Wren) and I assumed that would be all we would see. But then The Mandalorian came into my life and everything changed. Suddenly there were multiple Black Series toys in the pipeline of amazing female bounty hunters. I'll confess I haven't had my Star Wars ladies on display in years, but these new additions now qualify them for a prominent spot. The latest figure is Koska Reeves and she is amazing. Let's check her out below!

Star Wars - AURRA SING!

Star Wars Black Series - The Clone Wars #08: Aurra Sing - Hasbro 2021

Action figures give you a chance to really take in the physical details of a character. In movies and cartoons, characters are always in motion so it's nearly impossible to take in all the details. But toy makers get detailed specs, sometimes even the actual costumes and bodyscans for reference. In the case of Aurra Sing, she had such a brief cameo on The Phantom Menace, that I only had a vague idea what she looked like: orange uniform, stark white skin, and a big ponytail on an otherwise bald head. (I never watched any animated Star Wars shows so I missed out on her character development there). So when I got this toy I was taken by two cool details that I had never noticed. First, the antenna-like protrusion coming out of her head. And secondly, she has really creepy long fingers. My first reaction upon opening her was "ohhh man. The factory melted her hands." But now I think they are such a cool detail that I never would have noticed if not for this figure. Let's check out Aurra Sing below!