Star Wars: Revenge of the Sith: R2-D2 action figure by Hasbro, review by Andrew Lenahan
Star Wars: Revenge of the Sith: R2-D2 action figure by Hasbro, review by Andrew Lenahan
Figure: R2-D2
Property: Star Wars
Series: Revenge of the Sith (Episode III)
Number: III-8
Keywords: R2-D2, droid, droids, Artoo-Detoo, R2 unit, Star Wars figures, action figures, adorable, astromech droid, cute, garbage can, midget-powered
Series Overview:
After a small four-figure preview set, the Star Wars: Revenge of the Sith action figure line was expanded in April 2005 with many more figures. A departure from the simpler retro feel of the previous series, the Sith line features cutting-edge packaging and an emphasis on playability and action features.
Character Overview:
A short, barrel-shaped astromech droid, described as "feisty" on the packaging, R2-D2 should be familiar to even the most casual of Star Wars fans. Though R2 himself hasn't changed much over the course of the two trilogies, new features are sometimes revealed: in this case, R2 has his propulsion jets (as seen in Episode II: Attack of the Clones) as well as some sort of grasping arm extending from the top of his head.
Action Figure Sculpt and Paint: 7.5
R2 is the second astromech droid in the Revenge of the Sith series after the gold-topped R4-G9, and to Hasbro's credit, they didn't try to cut corners by re-using R4's sculpt. Unfortunately, the R2 sculpt is not an improvement. Some of the finer points, like the seperately-moulded foot wires, are absent. On the positive side, R2-D2's paint is slightly better, with plenty of fine detail. R2 is more obviously "dirty" than R4, though not nearly so much as some of the earlier R2-D2 figures.
Articulation: 6.5
Articulation is another category where R2-D2 suffers from not being an R4-D9 repaint. For some reason, only R2's middle ankle is articulated, not the two side ones like many previous astromech units. Other articulation points include the shoulders and head. R2-D2's middle leg can be pressed inward for an action feature allowing the grappling arm to move forward a bit, though it hardly adds any play value.
Accessories: 8.5
This is, without a doubt, the best set of accessories for an astromech droid figue ever, and a strong contender for best accessories of any droid in the entire Star Wars line (I'd say it's pretty easily beaten by the old Attack of the Clones C-3PO who came with a battle droid and factory conveyor, but that was a deluxe figure so it's up to you whether it counts or not). In any case, R2 certainly has nothing to be ashamed of, accessory-wise. His flying jets are removable--and interchangable, if you feel like it. The jets have a cool translucent-blue effect at the bottom, which I guess is supposed to look like a rocket firing. The strange arm attachment also comes off. There's also a dark blue pile of droid debris with a C-3PO head and what looks like some super battle droid parts. Still not enough? Okay, R2's main accessory is a large floor section with a moving panel so you can tap it and flip poor R2 and other figures. The floor base even has a gradient black paint effect so it looks burnt.
Packaging: Above Average
The Star Wars: Revenge of the Sith figures are packaged in very cool oval-shaped bubble, with a menacing Darth Vader-above-molten-lava background. The packaging is slightly hard to open, but gone are the annoying twist-ties which have plagued Star Wars figures since the late 90s. Overall, the packaging is well above average for an action figure.
Overall score: 7.5
Fantastic accessories and decent but unspectacular sculpt and articulation average out to a solid figure which fits nicely with the rest of the Revenge of the Sith line. R4-G9 has a slight edge as a better figure, but R2-D2's superior accessories make him the more playable of the two. He might not be the ultimate astromech figure, but he's close, and definitely deserves a buy if you're collecting droids or the Sith figure series.
Availability:
As of this writing, Revenge of the Sith figures are widely available. I've seen R2-D2 at Toys R Us as well as on Amazon.com.
Figure: R2-D2
Property: Star Wars
Series: Revenge of the Sith (Episode III)
Number: III-8
Keywords: R2-D2, droid, droids, Artoo-Detoo, R2 unit, Star Wars figures, action figures, adorable, astromech droid, cute, garbage can, midget-powered
Series Overview:
After a small four-figure preview set, the Star Wars: Revenge of the Sith action figure line was expanded in April 2005 with many more figures. A departure from the simpler retro feel of the previous series, the Sith line features cutting-edge packaging and an emphasis on playability and action features.
Character Overview:
A short, barrel-shaped astromech droid, described as "feisty" on the packaging, R2-D2 should be familiar to even the most casual of Star Wars fans. Though R2 himself hasn't changed much over the course of the two trilogies, new features are sometimes revealed: in this case, R2 has his propulsion jets (as seen in Episode II: Attack of the Clones) as well as some sort of grasping arm extending from the top of his head.
Action Figure Sculpt and Paint: 7.5
R2 is the second astromech droid in the Revenge of the Sith series after the gold-topped R4-G9, and to Hasbro's credit, they didn't try to cut corners by re-using R4's sculpt. Unfortunately, the R2 sculpt is not an improvement. Some of the finer points, like the seperately-moulded foot wires, are absent. On the positive side, R2-D2's paint is slightly better, with plenty of fine detail. R2 is more obviously "dirty" than R4, though not nearly so much as some of the earlier R2-D2 figures.
Articulation: 6.5
Articulation is another category where R2-D2 suffers from not being an R4-D9 repaint. For some reason, only R2's middle ankle is articulated, not the two side ones like many previous astromech units. Other articulation points include the shoulders and head. R2-D2's middle leg can be pressed inward for an action feature allowing the grappling arm to move forward a bit, though it hardly adds any play value.
Accessories: 8.5
This is, without a doubt, the best set of accessories for an astromech droid figue ever, and a strong contender for best accessories of any droid in the entire Star Wars line (I'd say it's pretty easily beaten by the old Attack of the Clones C-3PO who came with a battle droid and factory conveyor, but that was a deluxe figure so it's up to you whether it counts or not). In any case, R2 certainly has nothing to be ashamed of, accessory-wise. His flying jets are removable--and interchangable, if you feel like it. The jets have a cool translucent-blue effect at the bottom, which I guess is supposed to look like a rocket firing. The strange arm attachment also comes off. There's also a dark blue pile of droid debris with a C-3PO head and what looks like some super battle droid parts. Still not enough? Okay, R2's main accessory is a large floor section with a moving panel so you can tap it and flip poor R2 and other figures. The floor base even has a gradient black paint effect so it looks burnt.
Packaging: Above Average
The Star Wars: Revenge of the Sith figures are packaged in very cool oval-shaped bubble, with a menacing Darth Vader-above-molten-lava background. The packaging is slightly hard to open, but gone are the annoying twist-ties which have plagued Star Wars figures since the late 90s. Overall, the packaging is well above average for an action figure.
Overall score: 7.5
Fantastic accessories and decent but unspectacular sculpt and articulation average out to a solid figure which fits nicely with the rest of the Revenge of the Sith line. R4-G9 has a slight edge as a better figure, but R2-D2's superior accessories make him the more playable of the two. He might not be the ultimate astromech figure, but he's close, and definitely deserves a buy if you're collecting droids or the Sith figure series.
Availability:
As of this writing, Revenge of the Sith figures are widely available. I've seen R2-D2 at Toys R Us as well as on Amazon.com.
posted by Andrew Lenahan at 7:54 AM
1 Comments:
"There's also a dark blue pile of droid debris"
Isn't R2 suppose to be house broken? Or at least paper trained? tee hee! My favorite R2 will always be the very first one they ever made. I don 't know why....I remember when I was a little brat and playing with my little Star Wars guys...I would spend a great deal of time twisting R2's head around and around listening carefully to the little noises it made. I dont think any of the newer ones made quite the same sort of noise.
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