Tag Archives: 90s

#2468: C-3PO with Removable Limbs

Posted by Ethan Wilson in Reviews and tagged with , , , , , , ,

C-3PO w/ REMOVABLE LIMBS

STAR WARS: POWER OF THE FORCE II (KENNER)

“A short stay on Bespin’s Cloud City left protocol droid C-3PO dismantled and dependent on his Rebel companions.”

There’s a bit of difficulty in Star Wars lines to offer decent variants of a handful of the characters, specifically the ones whose designs don’t really change throughout the movies.  For instance?  C-3PO.  He’s got the exact same design in all three of the original films, so any OT-based line definitely has a little trouble differentiating.  Fortunately, there’s at least one solid gimme for a 3PO variant: removable limbs.  Yep, if you want to really want a good Empire variant of 3PO, all you gotta do is make those limbs removable for his encounter with the Stormtroopers in Cloud City.  The vintage line started things off, and Power of the Force II followed suit, with the figure I’m taking a look at today.

THE FIGURE ITSELF

C-3PO with Removable Limbs was added to the Power of the Force line in 1998, and was the line’s third variant of 3PO, following the initial release and the Purchase of the Droids variant.  The figure stands 3 3/4 inches tall and has 6 points of articulation…or at least he should, though the waist joint on mine definitely isn’t moving.  Stylistically, the sculpt on this guy is really similar to the revamped 3PO sculpt from the Purchase set.  Much like the various nearly identical Farmboy Lukes produced later in the line, the two sculpts aren’t really the same, but are virtually indistinguishable for the most part.  The main difference between the two, aside from the whole “removable limbs” thing, is the lack of restraining bolt on the upper torso.  Also, there’s the removable limbs.  Those are a difference, too, I suppose.  They come off pretty easily, though the way they attach does ever so slightly impact the posability a little bit.  You can still get full range out of them, but they might need to be popped out and repositioned for some poses.  Like the “Purchase” figure, this 3PO’s color scheme starts out with the vac metalizing again, but this one takes the grime even further than that figure did, making for what is probably the dirtiest of the PotF 3POs.  I’m not entirely sure why the Empire version would be the dirtiest, but I guess it could be worse.  3PO is packed with a cargo bag, perfect for placing him in and allowing him to be carried on Chewbacca’s back.

THE ME HALF OF THE EQUATION

I didn’t have this 3PO figure as a kid, but I remember seeing him on the back of the packaging, and always kind of wanting him to do the whole “carried on Chewy’s back” set-up.  I never did get it as a kid, but it was definitely on my short list when I started filling in the holes in my collection.  He’s pretty darn nifty.

Thanks to my friends at All Time Toys for setting me up with this guy.  They’ve got a decent back stock of Power of the Force, and other cool toys both old and new, so please check out their website and their eBay Store.

#2461: Ugnaughts

Posted by Ethan Wilson in Reviews and tagged with , , , , , ,

UGNAUGHTS

STAR WARS: POWER OF THE FORCE II (KENNER)

“Ugnaughts, the humanoid species found on Bespin’s Cloud City, manned the controls of the freezing chambers where Han Solo was encased in carbonite.”

Okay, right, weekend.  Time for another Power of the Force review.  What am I reviewing this time?  Ugnaughts?  What are the Ugnaughts?  Well, it says right up above, doesn’t it?  That’s pretty convenient isn’t it?  Too many questions, Ethan.  You need to move onto some declaratives.  Right.  Ugnaughts.  Let’s do this.

THE FIGURE ITSELF

The Ugnaughts were added to the Power of the Force line in 1998, and were our second go at this particular race, following a figure in the vintage line.  They joined Lobot in filling in some of the Bespin crew the year they were released.  Much like the Jawas, Kenner took advantage of the Ugnaughts’ smaller stature to offer up a pair of them, rather than one single.  The two included are distinctly different Ugnaughts, both of them from the film.  The vintage figure actually amalgamated a number of elements from these two, before they were split apart for this release.  Both figures stand 2 1/2 inches tall and each have 4 points of articulation (they’re articulation ceases below the waist).  Both sculpts are completely unique parts-wise, though they do share the same basic pose and build.  They hold up well given the time they were produced, and honestly wouldn’t look too terribly out of place with more modern lines.  Of the two, I think the one with the smock is the slightly better offering, as the separate smock piece adds a little more depth, and his facial features are a little more distinct.  He also pulls ahead a little bit on the paint front, thanks to a few more details, though it’s worth noting that both figures sport decent base level paint work.  Curiously, the red-headed Ugnaught’s skin tone is molded, while the smock Ugnaught is painted.  Not sure why they’re different, but they both look decent enough.  The two Ugnaughts include one single toolbox for them both to share, as well as a freeze frame slide.

THE ME HALF OF THE EQUATION

The Mandalorian is legit the first time I’ve ever cared about an Ugnaught, so I can assure you I didn’t get these two new.  In fact, they were one of those things I didn’t even realize were even in the movie until I was an adult.  They definitely don’t have the same fun factor as, say, the Jawas, but I guess they make for a decent scene filler.  I have spoken.

I got this pair from my friends at All Time Toys.  They’ve got a decent back stock of Power of the Force, and other cool toys both old and new, so please check out their website and their eBay Store.

#2460: Batgirl

Posted by Ethan Wilson in Reviews and tagged with , , , ,

BATGIRL

BATMAN & ROBIN (KENNER)

“Gotham City becomes a very cold place when Mr. Freeze, Poison Ivy and Bane triple team to plot the icy demise of Batman and Robin. The crimefighters respond immediately by using the Batcomputer deep within the Batcave to develop an array of cutting-edge weapons that can be used in their battle against this multitude of fiendish foes. Discover the Secrets of the Batcave! – secret technology that gives Batman , Robin and Batgirl the ultimate ability to save Gotham City!”

Back in April, I jumped into the Batman & Robin line with a look at the “& Robin” portion of the film.  Today, I look at the central character who doesn’t get named at all.  I mean, seriously, isn’t it a little odd that the film where you explicitly call out Batman and Robin as your title characters is the one where you add in Batgirl as your third protagonist?  Isn’t that a little weird?  I think it’s a little weird.  Look at me, armchair quarterbacking a movie from 1997.  That’s a real good use of my time, right?  Yeah…

THE FIGURE ITSELF

Batgirl was released in the first wave of Batman & Robin product from Kenner, hitting shelves in 1997 to tie-in with the film.  Unlike the various Batmen and Robins, she didn’t get any sort of adjective in front of her name; she’s simply “Batgirl.”  Man, no goofy Kenner name is just a bummer.  Did they even try with Batgirl in this thing?  Oh, right, I’ve seen the movie: the answer is “no.”  The figure stands 4 3/4 inches tall and she has 5 points of articulation.  So, right off the bat (heh), let’s address the inaccuracies of the figure.  As I brought up in my Robin review, the whole Batman & Robin process was quite expedited, so the figures were working from early costume designs.  In Robin’s case, that was all well and good, because he kept his design, but in Batgirl’s case, that means she’s a bit off from her film appearance.  The big change is the full cowl in place of the domino mask she was sporting in the final product.  It’s not a particularly attractive design, at least as implemented on the figure.  She’s also got the wrong version of the bat symbol, and is missing a lot of the ribbing and such that ran throughout the body suit, making for a much more basic looking design.  There is also a removable cape, which actually is a pretty decently designed piece. Her paintwork is fairly basic stuff.  She’s rather monochromatic, but that’s honestly a bit more faithful to the film than most of the color schemes to come out of this movie.  Batgirl was packed with a “Battle Blade Blaster” and “Strike Scythe,” which are the weird green and black things.  They don’t correlate to anything in the movie, but they certainly exist, now don’t they?

THE ME HALF OF THE EQUATION

As I mentioned in my Robin review, Batman & Robin was the first Batman movie I saw in theaters, and despite its lackluster quality, five-year-old me really enjoyed it.  Being the big thing of the summer, a whole bunch of the tie-in figures wound up as birthday presents for me that year, including Batgirl here.  She’s not necessarily one of my favorites, and that was the case even as a kid.  She really only served as my Batgirl until the Animated figure found its way into my collection and replaced her.  She’s okay, I guess, and like the rest of the line, honestly better than the movie that spawned her.

#2455: Lobot

Posted by Ethan Wilson in Reviews and tagged with , , , , ,

LOBOT

STAR WARS: POWER OF THE FORCE II (KENNER)

“As the cyborg administrative assistant to Cloud City, Lobot made certain that Lando Calrissian and his Rebel companions would safely escape the Imperial occupied city.”

That he sure did.  Yeah, so, it’s, uhh, Lobot.  You know?  Lobot?  The cyborg administrative assistant to Cloud City who made certain that Lando Calrissian and his Rebel companions would safely escape the Imperial occupied city?  Like it says in the bio?  …Yeah, I don’t have a ton to say about Lobot, I guess.  He’s the guy with the funny looking techno earmuffs who dresses like he’s going out to the discotheque.  Seems like he’s pretty fly.  And hey, he’s had a few toys, so how about that?

THE FIGURE ITSELF

Lobot was released as part of the basic Power of the Force II line in 1998.  It marked his second figure, following his vintage release.  He’d get one more in 2004, and then that would be it for poor Lobot.  I guess not everyone’s rushing out to get those funky techno earmuffs.  The figure stands 3 3/4 inches tall and he has 6 points of articulation.  Sculpturally, this figure feels like something of an anomaly for the year he was released.  By 1998, Power of the Force had lost a lot of its early installment weirdness, what with the wonky proportions and the goofy posing and all.  The original likenesses for both Luke and Leia had been dropped in favor of slightly more accurate ones, and in general earlier core figures were getting reworked into slightly less weird monstrosities.  But Lobot?  Well, you’d be forgiven for assuming Lobot was a year one figure.  He’s oddly proportioned, rather light on detailing, and one of the more heavily pre-posed figures to come out of the line (further highlighted by the fact that Lobot never does much other than just stand there, making the usual Star Wars pose kinda perfect for him).  He’s got a disco-esque pose that rivals the original Lando, further pushing that “year one” feel on this guy.  You almost have to wonder if Kenner knew that Lobot was destined to stand right next to that Lando, and rather than doing an updated Lando so that neither would look out of place, they opted to instead make Lobot a proper companion piece.  Alternatively, maybe he was just a leftover sculpt from earlier in the line that took a while to get a proper release.  It could really be either.  Whatever the cause, it’s really darn goofy looking.  I do have to give them some credit on the paint front, though.  He could have been quite bland, but there’s quite a bit of detailing going into the headset, and it actually looks pretty cool.  Lobot is packed with a blaster pistol and data pad, for both sides of the sensible disco cyborg’s life.

THE ME HALF OF THE EQUATION

My first introduction to Lobot as a kid was not via the movies, or even via this figure, but rather via Lego’s Cloud City Car set, which I got as a birthday gift the year it was released.  I had no clue who the heck this guy was, and the internet wasn’t quite the fountain of knowledge that it is today, so I went a little while without knowing anything about him, until I noticed him in one of my rewatches of Empire.  This particular figure was another from the large batch of figures I picked up a couple of falls ago, as I was working towards filling in my PotF collection.  He’s sooooooo goofy, but if I’m honest, after a bunch of “they’re fine figures, but a bit boring”, Lobot’s something of a breath of fresh air.  I mean, at least he’s memorable.

Thanks to my friends at All Time Toys for setting me up with this guy.  They’ve got a decent back stock of Power of the Force, and other cool toys both old and new, so please check out their website and their eBay Store.

#2448: Bonebreaker

Posted by Ethan Wilson in Reviews and tagged with , , , , ,

BONEBREAKER

X-MEN (TOY BIZ)

“The villainous cyborg known only as Bonebreaker desires nothing more than the chance to wreak havoc. Employing his robotic abilities first as a mercenary and then as a member of the nefarious Reavers, Bonebreaker leaves a trail of destruction wherever his travels lead him!”

Man, we are just jumping into the deep end with the obscure ’90s X-Men characters, aren’t we?  I mean, it’s kinda hard to top Senyaka and his lack of any staying power in the slightest, so that does give today’s entry a slight leg up…okay, so not “leg up”…because, you know, the lack of legs and all.  Tank up?  Tread up?  Ah, this is definitely way too much thought to put into a Bonebreaker intro.  Look, he’s half-man, half-tank.  It’s pretty cut and dry stuff, really.

THE FIGURE ITSELF

Bonebreaker was released in Series 7 of Toy Biz’s X-Men line.  It was the final series to be released solely on the more character-specific short cards, which actually proved a little tricky for the breaker of bones here, since they had to manage fitting his lower half into the package with him.  You have to wonder if that may have slightly influenced the decision to go to the larger cards.  By and large, Series 7’s line-up is one of the softer selection of characters in this line, with only two real “heavy hitters” in the line-up, one of them being quite possibly the most boring Wolverine the line ever produced.  Of the remaining five figures, Bonebreaker may possibly be amongst the best known (although I myself tend to favor Ch’od and Raza on that front; it really comes down to which era of the comics you’re most familiar with).  Why am I talking so much about all of this not Bonebreaker stuff?  I don’t know.  I’m honestly not sure I can bear to talk only about Bonebreaker for quite this long.  But, I suppose I’ve stalled for long enough.  The figure stands 3 inches tall and has 7 points of articulation, as well as rolling wheels (though not proper moving treads, unfortunately).  There aren’t exactly a lot of potential posing options with this guy, but it’s not exactly for lack of trying; there’s really only so much you can do with the design.  The sculpt is decent enough for the time, with a pretty on-brand sculpt for the human portions.  His lower tank half is actually pretty impressive, with fairly sharp and solid technical detailing throughout.  It rivals Ch’od for the best sculpting work in this assortment.  The paint work on Bonebreaker is fairly drab and basic, which I guess is more or less a clean translation of the source material.  The tank’s sculpt kind of suffers here, because the nice detail work ends up getting a bit lost in all that un-painted turquoise plastic.  It’s perhaps not the best choice of coloring.  Bonebreaker was originally packed with two guns, one hand-held, and the other for mounting to the tank.  I have neither.  For shame.

EDIT 12/25/20 – I now have both of the two guns.  Less shame!  Also, I found one of his included missiles that I didn’t even list before.  For shame again!

THE ME HALF OF THE EQUATION

Bonebreaker’s a figure I remember seeing…a lot.  This whole assortment (barring Rogue) was everywhere for a long time, but Bonebreaker is the one I recall seeing the most.  I didn’t get one, I guess because the design didn’t really speak to me, and because his appearance in X-Men: The Animated Series wasn’t one of my favorites.  But, I’m getting pretty serious about the Toy Biz X-Men collection, so I ended up picking up Bonebreaker here loose while on vacation last summer.  He’s honestly a bit better than I’d expected, and I’d like to see how he might turn out in Legends form.

#2447: Dengar

Posted by Ethan Wilson in Reviews and tagged with , , , , , ,

DENGAR

STAR WARS: POWER OF THE FORCE II (KENNER)

Why is it Dengar always ends up the last Bounty Hunter I review in a given Star Wars set?  I mean, it’s probably that he’s my least favorite.  That’s probably it.  I made a lot of fun of him in my review of the Black Series figure.  I guess I’ll spare him the mocking this time around.  Even if his idea of an imposing look is wrapping himself in toilet paper… I mean, in this day and age, I guess that could be seen as a status thing, couldn’t it?  That’s some pretty valuable armor, right there.  Perhaps Dengar was just getting ahead of the game.  Yeah, that’s it.

THE FIGURE ITSELF

Dengar was added to Power of the Force in 1997, the same year as both Bossk and 4-LOM, making it a bounty hunter-heavy year.  While most of the bounty hunters were Empire-based, Dengar is actually based on his brief appearance from Return of the Jedi, as denoted by his lack of backpack.  The figure stands 3 3/4 inches tall and sports 6 points of articulation.  While the pre-posing was working its way out by this point, Dengar still gets just a touch of it, which has the unfortunate side effect of making him quite difficult to keep standing. That’s rather annoying.  Aside from that, the sculpt’s an okay offering.  Obviously, it’s not as technically impressive as the Black Series release, but for its era, it’s a fair recreation of his gear from the movies.  Some of the details are a little soft, but, well, that doesn’t look super out of place on Dengar.  By design, this guy’s a little schlubby.  Dengar’s paint work isn’t the most thrilling combo of colors, but it’s certainly accurate.  There’s also a fair amount of solid accent work on the grime and dirt, which makes him look appropriately like he’s been mucking around in…uh, muck, I guess.  Dengar is packed with two blasters, one long, one short, which is a solid arsenal.

THE ME HALF OF THE EQUATION

My general dislike of Dengar goes back to when I was a kid, where I never really found him to be terribly impressive.  The result of that, of course, is that I didn’t own this figure growing up.  He got added to my collection in the last two years, as I’ve been really laying into this “complete run of PotF” thing.  He’s okay, but he’s still Dengar, and the fact that he’s so darn hard to keep standing certainly doesn’t help him out.

I got this guy from my friends at All Time Toys.  They’ve got a decent back stock of Power of the Force, and other cool toys both old and new, so please check out their website and their eBay Store.

#2441: Senyaka

Posted by Ethan Wilson in Reviews and tagged with , , , , ,

SENYAKA

X-MEN (TOY BIZ)

“A member of the humanity-hating Acolytes, Senyaka is perhaps the most ruthless soldier in Magneto’s war against mankind! Often leading the other Acolytes into battle, Senyaka uses his psionic whips to course pain into his ensnared foes! Even more deadly, however, is his power to energize his own energies by sapping his victim’s very life forces. Though struck down in battle by Magneto himself, Senyaka has returned to plague humans once again, with each attack more lethal than the last!”

Remember in my last two Toy Biz X-Men reviews, where I was discussing characters who were pretty much only relevant during the ’90s?  Yeah, so today’s focus wasn’t even particularly relevant *then.*  That bio up there? Probably the most that’s ever been said about Senyaka.  I think I actually learned stuff from that bio, which I guess is the point, isn’t it?  Well, Senyaka got an action figure, so I guess I should maybe review it.

THE FIGURE ITSELF

Senyaka was released twice during the Toy Biz X-Men run.  Initially, he was offered up as a TRU-exclusive alongside Series 7 in 1994, and then was added to a proper assortment in 1995 as part of the Mutant Genesis Series.  He’s the same figure either way, and mostly it just served to make him *incredibly* easy to find.  The figure stands 5 inches tall and he has 8 points of articulation.  He’s got no movement at his neck or right elbow, due to how the figure is designed, making him a bit on the stiff side.  Apparently, Senyaka’s had multiple costumes?  Who knew?  Well, he’s sporting his Alcolytes costume, which seems reasonable enough.  The sculpt is pretty typical for the line.  He’s stiff, he’s buff, and he’s got pouches and shoulder pads.  There’s not a ton of detailing going on, but it looks like all of the important stuff is there.  Senyaka’s paint work is pretty standard.  The base color work is all pretty clean, and the colors seem to more or less match what Senyaka was usually sporting.  Senyaka had a slightly different accessory selection depending on release.  Both included his whip, but the Mutant Genesis release also added a nunchuck-looking thing.  Mine has neither, so I guess doesn’t really matter.

THE ME HALF OF THE EQUATION

Senyaka’s another one of those “if I’m getting the rest of the line, I might as well” figures.  I’ve got no attachment to the character, but then who really does?  I got mine loose, hence the lack of accessories.  Perhaps someday I’ll find them.  Ultimately, there’s nothing really impressive about this guy, but he’s certainly not the worst thing the line offered, and fills in a line-up of villains alright.

#2440: R2-D2

Posted by Ethan Wilson in Reviews and tagged with , , , , , , ,

R2-D2

STAR WARS: POWER OF THE FORCE II (KENNER)

“Inside the Imperial Death Star, R2-D2 uses one of his many mechanical assets to rescue his Rebel companions from certain death within a rapidly closing trash compactor.”

As I was mentioning last week, droids make up quite a subset of the Star Wars universe, be they background, or even main characters.  Of note are C-3PO and today’s focus R2-D2, who have appeared in every film in the franchise to date, making them the real connective tissue that holds things together.  Being as frequently appearing as they are in the films, they are similarly pretty frequently appearing in the accompanying toy lines, usually with some sort of gimmick to help set them apart from prior releases.  Let’s dig into what makes this specific R2 so unique.

THE FIGURE ITSELF

R2-D2 was released in 1998 as part of Kenner’s Power of the Force line.  He’s the second R2 to be released in the line, following the more standard version from ’95.  The figure stands 3 inches tall and has 3 points of articulation.  This R2 was a totally new sculpt.  It’s not terribly different from the initial figure, but it’s different enough to be noticeable.  Unlike the prior R2, he doesn’t have the retracting third leg, or any third leg at all.  Instead, he makes use of the extra space in the torso to add a slightly different gimmick: a retracting datalink arm.  It’s a cool enough feature, though it would probably be cooler if it hadn’t immediately broken on mine.  Maybe I’m just too rough on my toys?  He’s also got another built-in gimmick, a  pop-out scanner in his head dome.  That one works a lot better, and is probably my favorite part of this particular release.  The paint work on this guy is a definite step-up from the prior figure.  He keeps the chromed head (this was a wonky licensing thing with Lucasfilm, despite its inaccuracy), but corrects the missing third blue stripe on his “face.”  He also gets quite a bit of weathering on his lower portion.  While he’s *technically* a New Hope R2, this added dirt means he pairs quite well with the ESB Dagobah figures, which is another plus in my book.  R2 is packed with both a grasper arm and a saw arm, both of which can plug into the front of the figure.  He also included a Freeze Frame slide depicting R2 and 3PO on the Death Star, though I somehow managed to misplace that one.

THE ME HALF OF THE EQUATION

I really only had the need for one R2 growing up, so this guy got left out.  He’s one of the ones I was more interested in when I started to go back and fill in the holes in my collection, though, and wound up as part of one of my earlier splurges of PotF figures back in 2018.  He actually sat packaged for a good while before I finally got around to opening him.  Issues with the datalink aside, I think this guy was the best of the R2s offered up by this line.

Thanks to my friends at All Time Toys for setting me up with this guy.  They’ve got a decent back stock of Power of the Force, and other cool toys both old and new, so please check out their website and their eBay Store.

#2434: Random

Posted by Ethan Wilson in Reviews and tagged with , , , ,

RANDOM

X-MEN (TOY BIZ)

“If the price is right, there’s almost nothing that Random won’t do! And with forearms that transform into powerful blasters, there’s almost nothing he can’t do!”

Perhaps the most enthralling thing about Toy Biz’s ’90s X-Men line was how many “product of their time” characters made their way into the line, just by virtue of their brief moment to shine being during the line’s hey-day.  Though not quite as exaggerated a case as some of the characters, Random is still a character who really hasn’t found his footing since the decade that created him, which is probably why his only figure to date comes from that same period.

THE FIGURE ITSELF

Random was released in Series 6 of Toy Biz’s X-Men line.  He was hardly the most obscure character in the line-up, and marked the second figure in the X-Factor subset started by Strong Guy.  The figure stands 5 inches tall and he has 6 points of articulation.  He lacks any elbow or knee movement, which is a little bit of a bummer.  The left elbow makes some sense, but the knees in particular really just don’t add-up.  Maybe the extra plastic that went into making this guy a little larger meant they couldn’t cost out those extra joints?  The sculpt was unique to Random, and its a pretty respectable translation of his comics design.  He’s maybe a little bit squashed, but that’s about it.  There’s a lot of pretty nifty details, including sculpted stubble on his face.  That’s pretty easily missed, so the fact that they included it is pretty darn impressive.  Random’s paint work is mostly pretty basic, but the coolest bit by far is the inclusion of the tattoos on his arms.  Those are a lot of fun, and take what could have been a somewhat drab looking character and make him really pop.  Random included three missiles, which work with the spring-loaded launcher on his left arm.  The two spares can actually be stored to either side of the launcher, which is a nice little touch, allowing you to actually hang onto them when not firing them.  The launcher itself isn’t terribly impressive, since there’s not lock or release; you just put it in and it launches right back out.

THE ME HALF OF THE EQUATION

In my quest to fill in the holes in my Toy Biz X-Men collection, I actually picked this guy up a couple of years ago from a small place called Shazam Comics.  He was, I believe, the only action figure in the store, and the owner didn’t even realize he had him.  I don’t have much connection to the character, but he does make for a rather nifty figure, and the little touches in the sculpt and paint really make him work.

#2433: 2-1B Medical Droid

Posted by Ethan Wilson in Reviews and tagged with , , , ,

2-1B MEDICAL DROID

STAR WARS: POWER OF THE FORCE II (KENNER)

“Height: 1.5 Meters
Status: Industrial Automaton Surgical Droid
Classification: GeenTech 2-1B Series
Affiliation: Rebel Alliance
Weapon of Choice: Medical Diagnostic Computer”

Droids make up one hell of a subset of the Star Wars universe, and much like the Stormtroopers, they have lots of specialized models.  Also like the Stormtroopers, they’re a really easy thing for toy companies to make bank on, especially when it’s a droid that got some decent screen time.  Today’s focus, 2-1B, showed up in Empire two separate times, patching Luke up first after his run-in with the Wampa, and again after losing his hand to Vader’s lightsaber.  That’s not a bad spread of appearances, now is it?

THE FIGURE ITSELF

2-1B was added to Kenner’s Power of the Force II line in 1997.  He’s the second figure of 2-1B, following up on the vintage release.  This sculpt would remain in service through The Vintage Collection in 2011, so clearly Hasbro thought it was a fairly worthwhile effort.  The figure stands 3 3/4 inches tall and he has 6 points of articulation.  As with many of the droids released in this line, the poseability’s a little bit restricted on this guy.  That said, he can pretty easily move his head and arms, which is just about all you need from him.  The actual sculpt is quite a nice one.  It’s pretty faithful to the film design, which is quite good for a PotF figure.  I really dig the texture work that went into him, and I especially dig the transparent torso with the visible mechanics within it.  Very fun.  His paint work is also pretty solid.  There’s not a ton going on with it, but all of the appropriate colors are there, and the application’s all pretty clean.  2-1B is packed with his handheld Medical Diagnostic Computer, for all your handheld Medical Diagnostic Computing needs.

THE ME HALF OF THE EQUATION

Like so many of my Power of the Force figures, this guy was a more recent addition to my collection, added during a PotF buying-spree in the fall of 2018.  As far as this line’s droids go, he’s honestly one of the best, and has the benefit of slotting in pretty alright with the more recent stuff as well.  He’s also one of the cooler, more unique droid designs, and one with some decent screen time, making him one of the best in general.

I got this guy from my friends at All Time Toys.  They’ve got a decent back stock of Power of the Force, and other cool toys both old and new, so please check out their website and their eBay Store.