Before the month slips away, I’d like to hop on with a quick post. I had hoped to celebrate May the Fourth or at least the opening day of The Mandalorian and Grogu with a special update but between work, procrastination and artist’s block, it didn’t come together in time and the surprise will have to wait until June.
A Republic Trooper is ready for action on Odessen.
As we await the release of Legacy Reborn, there is a different SWTOR topic, I’d like to discuss. As a part of its May the 4th preview, Hasbro announced that their Black Series line of action figures would feature not one but two new additions inspired by Star Wars: The Old Republic!
Black Series Satele Shan
The first figure revealed, Satele Shan, as seen in the Hope cinematic, was a surprise to be sure, but a welcome one. I can only assume that Satele was selected to join the SWTOR squad because Hasbro saw my review of their outstanding Black Series Darth Malgus figure in 2023 where I wrote “At the very least, Hasbro can’t just leave it here. If they’re gonna do Malgus, they have to do Satele Shan so we can recreate their duel on Alderaan.” So, you’re welcome, fellow collectors.
Satele is ready for her rematch with Malgus.
It may also be because Satele is SWTOR’s most iconic Jedi, and her dynamic portrayal in the cinematics makes her an obvious choice for an action figure. Either way, I’m thrilled that I will be able to have her face off against Malgus on my bookshelf later this year
Black Series Republic Trooper
The second SWTOR figure coming out this year was more unexpected: the Republic Trooper. I had assumed that the flashy Havoc Squad troopers embodied by Jace Malcom would’ve been an obvious choice. However, the version of the trooper represented by this figure comes not from any cinematic, but from the actual game itself. Republic players will have encountered troopers wearing variations of this armor during their adventures across the galaxy. Indeed, players can even don the exact same versions of both this armor and the blaster rifle included with the figure. As I write these, the figures are still available for pre-order on Amazon, Hasbro, Entertainment Earth and Big Bad Toy Store.
Hasbro’s recreation of the Republic Trooper is remarkably faithful and detailed.
This fellow is one of a long line of armored troopers in Star Wars lore, and is a distant ancestor to the infamous Imperial Stormtroopers from the Original Trilogy and the Clone Troopers from the Prequel Trilogy era. If you’re a Republic player you’ve likely fought alongside troopers wearing this armor or at least rushed past them on Carrick Station on your way to the GTN. Imperial players have no doubt laid waste to hundreds if not thousands of these soldiers during their endless battles against Republic forces.
Most recently Republic players donned identical armor as a disguise to aid them in their escape from occupied Odessen at the start of the Master’s Enigma story update.
“I can’t see a thing in this helmet.”
Since the very first days of Kenner’s Star Wars toy line in the late 1970’s up to today’s myriad and endless variations of clones, troopers of all stripes have been the bread and butter of the Star Wars toy aisle. It’s always neat to see what new kind of trooper the latest Star Wars adventure will add to the armies of toy soldiers I’ve collected over the years. This Republic Trooper will make a fine addition to my collection and will stand tall on my shelf alongside his peers.
Just a few of the troopers from my toys in the attic.
All that said, I hope this is not the end. Shae Vizla and Jace Malcom would absolutely look great in toy form. Those figures will require almost completely original sculpts. At this point the Black Series has a deep library of troopers, heroes, villains, aliens and droids. So many in fact that Hasbro often can assemble figures of new characters with parts originally designed for other characters. This cost saving measure makes it possible for more obscure characters that would otherwise never make it to action figure form to appear in the line. This can be seen in the two-pack of Mission Vao and Carth Onasi from Knights of the Old Republic. Mission has bits of Jaina Solo and Aayla Secura and Carth seems to be built from parts of the Kanaan Jarus. Mission and Carth include new head sculptures, and “overlays” so that they match their appearance in KOTOR. I think a similar approach could work for beloved SWTOR characters like Lana Beniko and Theron Shan who could likewise be accurately created with parts new and old.
That’s the appeal and the curse of action figure collecting. There is always another character to collect or hope for. With decades of stories and characters to draw upon, Hasbro certainly has no shortage of inspiration, but as a SWTOR fan, I hope they return to this corner of the galaxy sooner rather than later.
A Quick Review of The Mandalorian and Grogu
Finally, I’d like to finish up with a brief, spoiler-free review of the newest Star Wars movie. I posted this on my social media with the notion that I’d collect my thoughts in longer form later. I feel like this does the job in a perfect bite size, and there is little to be gained by revising and belaboring the topic.
For better or worse, The Mandalorian and Grogu is exactly the movie you think it will be. It’s like they took a big box of Star Wars toys, threw them on the floor and played with them for a couple of hours. If you’re the kind of hipster fan that still hates Ewoks, this is not the movie for you, but something that only ever existed as a toy I had as a kid appears in this movie, and it was a delight to see brought to life. The movie is simple fun, very silly and, in the moments that matter, genuinely sweet. Most surprisingly of all, it does something Star Wars very rarely does, it knows when to shut up for a bit. Is it essential viewing? Not at all. But did I have a good time? I sure did.
