Tag Archives: Rey

Guest Review #0043: Rey & BB-8

Posted by hodgeppodge42 in Guest Reviews and tagged with , , ,

REY & BB8

FORCES OF DESTINY

Heyo! Welcome back to Super Awesome Girlfriend Tries to Review Action Figures! Today, I’ll be reviewing one of the figures from one of the new toy lines from Hasbro.

THE FIGURE ITSELF

This Rey and BB8 combo figure pack is modelled after the costume design at the end of The Force Awakens. After doing some research, I found out that this line is paired up with the web series Forces of Destiny on Disney’s youtube channel. I haven’t heard much about the series, but each episode is only a couple minutes and they focus on one character from the line at a time. So I guess I’ll have to check it out at some point. On another note, Rey does show up in the first two episodes but not in the costume of this figure here.

Rey stands tall at about 11 inches with 22 points of articulation, though I have to note that one of those points is in her waist joint that has slight restricted motion. I feel it safe to say that most of her parts are unique to this figure, the only thing I think she might share is her head sculpt with the other Rey figure in the line. Her pants and linen tunic are the only pieces of clothing that are actually apart of the figure’s mold. The rest of the outfit is made of either cloth, for the jacket and arm sleeves, or rubber, for her gun holster, the bottom of her tunic, and shoes.  The hair style is still her signature triple bun, which I still can’t replicate for myself, made with realistic hair that is tied with like colored rubber bands. Most of the hair in the buns and hanging loose are stiff to try and keep the hair all together, though my figure still got some hair pulled out from the style. Her tunic has a nice rough texture to stimulate the roughness of the material, and the bottom part is made of flexible rubber to allow the legs some free movement. Also, if you look closely enough you can see some slight creases in the top part of the tunic to indicate folds. Her jacket is made of a weird, smooth cloth material that is stitched together in some places and looks to have the jacket’s detailing printed onto the material. The end of the jacket is a little moldable, so that you can give the bottom of it a slight flare if need be. Her arm sleeves are made of two different cloth materials; the top is a striped gauzy fabric that is sown to and disappears under the second material which is the same as the jacket, including different printed designs. Rey’s pants are all plastic with simulated folds and texture in the mold and crafted knee/shin pads. Lastly, her shoes are made of a similar rubber as her gun holster, a different color of course, with texture and boot straps included in the mold. Her shoes aren’t fully attached to the figure, and they kind of remind me of a larger, rougher, and harder version of the little Polly Pocket boots.

The figure’s paint/print job is pretty good! I really like the printed detailing in the jack and arm bands. Her face is absolutely fantastic. The detailing in her eyes and brows are meticulous, including dark individual slashes in her eyebrows.  Her freckles are there but not overpowering, and it looks like there’s a slight pink tint to her cheeks that is also very subtle.

This Rey comes with a few accessories and an action feature. She has her (or rather Luke’s) lightsaber which has a simple, but decent paint job in the hilt with the blade made of clear blue plastic. Her other weapon is the pistol Han gives her, it’s made of plastic and has ridges and other detailing included in the mold of the gun. Her gun can either be held or stay in the holster. The action feature is quite simple and involves her lightsaber, but don’t let me foul you because it took me several tries to figure out how to get her to swing. Basically, you cock her right arm back until you hear a click, then you bring her legs together and twist her waist. It’s not a fantastic action feature, but it allows her to swing her lightsaber.

Then there’s BB8. I don’t know if I should count him separate or as an accessory, so I’ll do the former. BB8 is only a couple of inches tall with one point of articulation, ladies and gents he can spin his head around (wooooooo). He’s made of hard plastic with lots of grooves and ridges included in the mold to help make him look more realistic. His paint job is ok, it’s rather simple with a few mistakes here and there; not everyone can paint within the lines. Also, his antennae are made of a thinner and slightly shinier plastic, with some ridges.

THE ME HALF OF THE EQUATION

I’ve been a Star Wars fan for as long as I can remember, apparently my favorite character when I was two was Yoda when he was still a puppet. Ethan showed me these figures a while ago and I was really excited for this new line from Hasbro. I had Barbies growing up, but I was never satisfied with them. And now that I have this Rey figure I feel like I just gained something I was missing when I was a little girl: a kick-butt female doll with realistic body proportions! One of my favorite things about this figure is that she looks so real, not like she hasn’t eaten in days and is about to snap at the waist. Yes, she’s really pretty but that’s because Daisy Ridley is super pretty. This figure can be marketed to girls and boys and it makes me so happy to own her! It’s a pain in the rear to get her to stand because of her infuriating Ugg-boot-thingies, but once I get it right she looks so killer on my shelf and I love it! BB8 is cute too, but he’s nothing special.

#1147: Rey (Jakku)

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

REY (JAKKU)

STAR WARS: ROGUE ONE

reyro4

This Friday will see the release of the latest installment in the Star Wars franchise, Rogue One.  In honor of the movie’s release, I’m going to be doing a week of Star Wars reviews to countdown to said release.  “But Ethan, didn’t you just do a Star Wars week?” Listen you, if you’re just going to ruin my good time, you can just go read someone else’s toy review site!  No. Stop. Come back.

All of this week’s reviews are coming straight from Hasbro’s various Rogue One product, but as we determined earlier, that doesn’t always mean that the figures are Rogue One-themed, strictly speaking.  There’s a steady helping of Force Awakens product mixed in with all of the new stuff, including today’s figure, Rey!

THE FIGURE ITSELF

reyro2Rey is part of the second series of Hasbro’s smaller-scale Star Wars: Rogue One line.  She takes Kylo’s spot from Series One as the resident Force Awakens character in this particular line-up.  We’ve gotten quite a few different Rey figures, and a lot of them look rather similar.  What sets this one apart from the others?  She’s got a new hat!  Okay, it’s more of a head wrap thing.  And, it’s not actually “new,” just in a different configuration from the last two times we saw it.  This figure takes the Starkiller Base Rey and the Rey’s Speeder Rey and sort of averages the two looks, giving us a Rey that is sporting her head wrap and goggles, but one you can still see the face of.  Perhaps not the most noteworthy look, but she does appear like this in the film, for like, seconds.  Maybe even a whole minute!  I look forward to the eventual wearing Poe’s/Finn’s Jacket Rey, that way I can have all three of the mains wearing the *same* coat!  Oh, the continuity nightmare!  The figure is about 3 3/4 inches tall and has the usual 5 points of articulation.  The main body appears to be the same mold as the Starkiller Base Rey; it’s not a perfect mold, but there’s at least some consistency.  My only real complaint is the thinness of the arms, but that’s minor.  This figure gets an all-new head, as well as an add-on piece for the additional wrappings on her torso.  The head is a pretty solid piece, and seems to have a slightly better likeness than the Starkiller figure.  It’s not like it’s spot on, but it’s decent, and there’s plenty of solid work on the rest of the head to make the sculpt worthwhile.  The torso add-on is a nice addition, mostly because it hides the slightly flat torso of the original Rey figure, and makes her look much more on par with the Rogue One stuff.  As far as paint, Rey’s pretty standard fare. She’s got all the right base colors, and everything’s pretty clean.  She’s the sort of figure that might be benefited by some accent work to bring out more of the sculpted details, but I guess this way she matches up with the rest of the line.  Rey includes her staff, a back pack, and, of course, the requisite giant missile launcher.  The launcher is patterned after her speeder, so I guess that’s kinda cool.

THE ME HALF OF THE EQUATION

So, against our better judgement, my family, Super Awesome Girlfriend, Tim, Jill, and I all went out early Black Friday (well, late Thursday, I guess).  Rey was not purchased at this time, because oh gosh the insanity.  Instead, I got her when we went back out much later on Friday, when things had calmed down.  This isn’t a Rey figure I knew I wanted, but I gotta say, I was pretty excited to find her.  Sure, she’s in that weird area of not really being a default Rey, but also being really similar to the default Rey, but she’s actually a pretty fun figure, and a great way for Hasbro to get the character out there one more time.

#1133: Rey – Resistance

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

REY – RESISTANCE

STAR WARS: THE FORCE AWAKENS

reyresistance2

I think it’s about time we had another theme week.  And, since this is my site, my word is law, so here’s another Star Wars week!  (That’s code for “Ethan’s been buying a lot of Star Wars stuff lately and sometimes it’s hard to space it all out).

Star Wars has long been keen on giving us lots of costume changes for the main characters (because it’s easier to sell more toys that way), and The Force Awakens did a little of that, giving each of the three main characters (and Han and Leia) at least two distinct looks.  As luck would have it, however, the only character who could have both looks represented in the initial TFA assortments without violating Disney’s strict embargo on certain parts of the film was Poe.  Now, for Finn, you could get his second look easily enough by swapping his head onto a standard Trooper, but this left poor Rey without a second figure until after the film’s release.  To make matters worse, the assortment featuring her was held up by the second assortment not moving at retail, meaning it took today’s Rey figure as much 10 months to show up in some areas.  That seems excessive.

THE FIGURE ITSELF

reyresistance1Rey was released as part of the second “Forest” assortment of Hasbro’s Star Wars: The Force Awakens figures.  She and the other two figures in the set technically hit in February, but as I noted in the intro, they didn’t arrive a lot of places until after the Rogue One stuff.  Rey is presented here in her Resistance garb from the end of TFA.  It’s only in the movie for like five minutes or so, but it’s there for the film’s final shots, and is a pretty sharp design in general, so it was begging for a figure.  The figure stands about 3 1/2 inches tall and has the usual 5 points of articulation.  Rey is head-to-toe a new sculpt; nothing re-used from her prior figures here.  Across the board, this figure’s sculpt is a pretty substantial improvement over the Starkiller Base version.  The proportions feel a bit more balanced, she doesn’t feel as frail, and the pose seems a bit more natural.  The vest is an add-on piece, and it adds some depth to the figure.  The head is probably the best Daisy Ridley likeness in the smaller scale (only the Titan Heroes figure is a challenger in terms of all the scales).  It’s still not perfect, but it’s a lot closer, I think mostly because rather than upscale the strands of hair at the sides of her face so they wouldn’t break (and thus making them look like braids or something), they just left them off, which looks much more accurate at this size.  Rey’s paint is generally pretty good, with one caveat on my figure.  The basic scheme is nice, and matches alright with what we see on screen.  There was some controversy about what the color of her vest should be, grey or tan.  It seems Hasbro went with the color of the actual costume, and didn’t replicate the effect of the lighting from the film.  It’s Han’s jacket all over again!  The application is mostly pretty clean, but my figure’s missing most of the paint representing the bottom of the shirt at the top of her left leg.  It’s really weird, because the app isn’t missing entirely; there’s a small sliver of it around the hip joint.  Not sure how it ended up like that.  Rey was packed with the blaster given to her by Han, Luke’s lightsaber, her staff, and a piece of the build-a-whatsit.  The blaster’s definitely the coolest piece.  The saber is neat too, though she never actually wields it ignited in this particular garb.  The staff is frustrating because it’s worked into the build-a-thing, and so it’s got this big block right in the middle of it, which is really annoying.  Sure, I’ve got several of them, but not everyone does.

THE ME HALF OF THE EQUATION

I’ve been on the lookout for this figure since January, to no avail.  I refused to pay scalper prices for her, so I held out that I might find her in an actual store.  Hasbro recently announced she’d be getting a re-release in a Target-exclusive 7-pack, so I figured that would be my ticket.  As luck would have it, while I was up visiting my parents for Halloween, I went to pick up my comics, and my store had just randomly gotten in a case of this series (these would be the first Force Awakens figures they’ve gotten).  So, hey, I’ve got a Resistance Rey!  Yay!  I really hope this is a sign of the series getting a wider release, because this is probably Hasbro’s best small-scale Rey. 

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#1112: Rey

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

REY (JAKKU)

STAR WARS: TITAN HEROES (HASBRO)

reytitan1

Let’s talk disappointment.  No, wait, that’s not quite right, let’s talk misplaced expectations and poor decision making.  Shortly after the release of The Force Awakens last year, social media became aflutter with the hashtag #wheresrey.  After seeing the film, a number of people wanted to rush out and buy figures of Rey, the film’s unquestionable lead.  Unfortunately, as far as conventional figures went, there weren’t really any Reys to be found. No figures of the main character on shelves?  Foul villainy must be afoot!  …maybe not quite.  See, it’s important to note that #wheresrey started cropping up about a week after the film’s release.  Now, right after a film’s release, it’s not uncommon for figures from that movie to become a little scarce (for instance, a week after Pacific Rim came out, the figures were gone from shelves and commanding as much as three times their retail value on the aftermarket).  On top of that, the week after the movie came out, we also had this little event called Christmas, which has a tendency to leave toy aisles rather barren.  So, maybe expecting to find a ready supply of figures of the main character of one of the biggest movies of the decade the week of Christmas wasn’t the most realistic expectation.  That’s not to say Hasbro did everything spot-on, mind you.  While they did put out a number of Rey figures, she (and all the main characters barring Kylo in the 3 3/4-inch line and Finn in the 6-inch line) was only available in the initial assortments of figures, released three months prior to the movie.  What really kicked off the whole hashtag, though, was Rey’s absence from the Target-exclusive Titan Heroes 6-pack (and really, Titan Heroes as a whole).  Now, there are a number of credible reasons she was left out of this set, but ultimately, it’s the sort of thing that Hasbro should have avoided (and is looking to avoid in the future, if Rogue One has been any indication).  To their credit, one of the earliest items Hasbro released following the film’s release was a Titan Heroes version of Rey, who I’ll be looking at today!

THE FIGURE ITSELF

reytitan2Rey was released in the second round of Force Awakens-based Star Wars: Titan Heroes, alongside a Stormtrooper Finn and the Fifth Brother from Rebels.  She’s wearing her Jakku gear that she spends the vast majority of the film wearing.  The figure stands just under 12 inches tall and she has 7 points of articulation.  Structurally, Rey is rather similar to her first 3 3/4 inch figure.  The only real difference is the size and the actual materials being used.  She’s made of a much harder plastic than the smaller figures, and her torso and legs are hollow, which makes her slightly weird feeling (and also a bit creaky when you move her).  Aside from being rather stiff, the sculpt on this figure is actually pretty strong.  The head is definitely the best part, and it gives us Hasbro’s best Ridley likeness so far.  It’s really spot on, in part, I think, because the strands of hair in front of her ears didn’t have to be sized up quite as much and thus don’t look like dreads or curls or something.  The rest of the body is all pretty solid work; not Hot Toys level or detail or anything, but still solid.  The paintwork on this figure is actually pretty impressive.  The base color work is all strong, but I think the best part is the subtle accent work on the skin-toned areas.  There’s just the slightest bit of a red hue there, and it makes her look incredibly lifelike.  There are still a few spots of bleed over here and there, and it’s worth noting that the harder plastic makes this figure more susceptible to paint scuffs, but for a $10 figure, this is pretty great work.  Rey included her staff, which, thanks to the wrist swivels, she can actually hold with two hands, albeit rather awkwardly.

THE ME HALF OF THE EQUATION

I have to admit, because of the whole #wheresrey thing, I ended up buying just about every Rey I could get my hands on just to prove a point, and this figure was included.  I don’t actually have any of the other figures in this style, but beyond the novelty of it being another Rey figure, this figure really surpassed my expectations, and, from what I’ve seen looking at the other figures in stores, the quality of the rest of the line as a whole.

#0965: Takodana Encounter

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

MAZ KANATA, REY, FINN, & BB-8

STAR WARS: THE FORCE AWAKENS

Takodana1

It’s hard to believe it’s been six months since The Force Awakens hit theatres. What’s harder to believe is that finding the figures from the film hasn’t gotten any easier, despite Hasbro putting out several new pack-outs of figures. It seems like every store I go to has the same 6 figures they’ve had since last October. Fortunately, there are a few new products trickling in, giving us a few characters who were missing from initial assortments. One of the film’s more popular additions to the mythos was Maz Kanata, a well-traveled bar owner who seems poised to be the next Yoda (well, if Luke doesn’t beat her to it!). She’s been mostly absent from the various toy lines (she was in a Lego set, but that’s it), but Hasbro’s finally put out their own figure of her. Of course, you have to buy three other figures to get it, but that’s not the point.

THE FIGURES THEMSELVES

Takodana6Maz, Rey, Finn, & BB-8 were released in the “Takodana Encounter” set as part of Hasbro’s 3 ¾-inch line of Star Wars: The Force Awakens figures. Maz is the only new figure included, and the other three are re-packs. Rey includes a lightsaber that her single release didn’t have, but other than that these three are the same figures I reviewed here, here, and here.

MAZ KANATA

Takodana2Maz stands about 2 ½ inches tall and she has the standard 5 points of articulation. Her sculpt is 100% new to her, and it does a pretty admirable job of translating her on-screen appearance into toy form. The head should perhaps be a touch larger than it is, but other than that, they’ve got her pretty much down. Despite her smaller stature, this figure still has quite a bit of detail work, especially on the shirt and vest. Perhaps the only minor drawback I can think of is that the goggles aren’t articulated. They’re still separate pieces, so she’s got fully detailed eyes under there, the lenses are just fixed at the sides. As it stands, the goggles are just the slightest bit misaligned, which a tiny bit annoying. Maz’s paintwork is decent, if not quite as good as the sculpt. The colors are a little TakoDana3brighter than what we see on screen, but not so much so that it stands out as a bad thing. While areas such as the face and feet are quite expertly detailed, there’s some rather noticeable slop right around her belt, where the green of the shirt goes down too far and the yellow of the belt is rather thinly applied. All in all, though, she looks pretty good. Maz includes a blaster, an unlit lightsaber, and a box of junk for the saber to be placed in. That’s a pretty great assortment of pieces, and I love that we finally got a 3 ¾-inch Force Awakens figure without a useless build-a-thingy piece.

THE ME HALF OF THE EQUATION

This set was given to me by my friends Cindy and Lance Woods as a graduation gift, which was very thoughtful of them. I had been wanting to pick this set up, since Maz is one of my favorite parts of the new movie. Maz is undoubtedly the main focus of this set, and I personally feel the whole purchase was warranted just for her, but I can understand why others might feel a little taken advantage of. For new fans, this is a fantastic starter set. For fans who have been following the line the whole time, being forced to buy another Rey, Finn, and BB-8 is probably a little frustrating. That said, one can hardly fault Hasbro for offering another way to get Rey, and I can’t imagine it would be too had to find someone who wants the three repeat figures.

Takodana5

#0847: Rey’s Speeder

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

REY’S SPEEDER (w/ REY)

STAR WARS: THE FORCE AWAKENS

ReySpeeder1

Remember a few days ago when I was talking about how I was still making my way through all the Star Wars stuff I bought over the holidays? Well, how about a little more of that? Before seeing The Force Awakens, I mostly stuck with the relatively inexpensive small-scale figures, on the off chance the movie wasn’t as awesome as I’d hoped. Once I had seen the film and knew just how cool it was, I went back and got a few of the larger items, specifically the vehicles. One of the cooler new vehicle designs was Rey’s speeder, seen during her opening scenes on Jakku. Hasbro put out a version of the vehicle in their 3 ¾ inch line, packed alongside its owner, Rey.

THE FIGURE ITSELF

ReySpeeder2The included Rey figure is based on her appearance while riding around on her speeder, when she has her head covered up (presumably to protect her face from the sand being flung at it at high speeds). The figure is 3 ¾ inches tall and (technically) has 5 points of articulation. I say technically because, while there’s definitely a neck joint under that head gear, there’s no way it’s getting any sort of motion. Also, the lack of any sort of knee joints (such as the ones sported by the Elite Speeder Bike’s Trooper figure) really hurts this figure’s ability to sit properly on her speeder. Structurally, you might think that this figure shared parts with the single release figure, however, there are no shared parts between the two. A few pieces (especially the legs) are quite close, but all of them are just slightly different. It’s odd, because a bit of re-use would seem perfectly excusable here. The new sculpt is decent enough. The arms seem a bit skinny and noodle-like, but ReySpeeder4aside from that, the proportions feel pretty balanced and she looks about right. The head/wrap looks really nice; it appears to be the same piece that was included with the small-scale The Black Series Rey. Regardless, it’s a really nice sculpt, with lots of cool texture work. The paintwork here is pretty standard for the rest of the basic figures; it’s not perfect, but it’s serviceable. Rey is packed with her staff, which is the same as the one included with the regular figure (albeit a bit more warped).

THE VEHICLE ITSELF

ReySpeeder3Rey’s speeder is certainly an intriguing design. It was dubbed the “popsicle speeder” by a number of fans, which I guess I can see, but I don’t mind it. Tim referred to it as an engine with a seat, which I think is quite apt. The speeder is 8 ½ inches long, 2 inches wide, and 3 inches tall. The two flaps on the back are articulated, but aside from that, it’s mostly just a hunk of plastic. Not that there’s a problem with that, though. The general structure of the speeder looks to be a pretty good match for what we saw on film (it’s perhaps a smidge too thin, but that’s really minor). The detail work is generally pretty nice, and everything looks to be about where it should be. The cargo net is a separate piece, however, the actual cargo beneath it is molded to the side of the speeder. Unfortunately, there are four rather obtrusive screws on the right side of the speeder, as well as a somewhat obvious button for the action feature on the left side, poking through the net. The button pops up the top of the speeder, revealing a missile launching cannon. You remember that from the movie, right? No? Okay, yeah, I think Hasbro may have added that. The paint on the speeder is a bit on the basic side; mostly it just uses straight colors. However, there are a few spots that actually look sufficiently worn, which is nice to see. There is, however, a fair bit of slop, especially around the edges of the machinery in the cargo net, which is less nice to see.

THE ME HALF OF THE EQUATION

After the whole Christmas holiday and seeing The Force Awakens twice in the space of a week, I was really eager to pick up a few more of the toys from the movie. Rey’s speeder ended up being one of the few items I was able to find at the rather picked-through Walmart nearby where I was staying. While this particular Rey has become a little less necessary now that I have the Black Series version, she’s not a terrible figure in her own right, and it’s nice to have a figure purely dedicated to this look. The speeder’s not perfect, but it’s certainly fun enough, and it’s a nice complement to the X-Wing and TIE Fighter.

#0839: Rey (Jakku)

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

REY (JAKKU)

STAR WARS: THE BLACK SERIES

ReyWM1

“Rey is a resilient survivor, a scavenger toughened by a lifetime of dealing with the cutthroats of the harsh desert world of Jakuu.”

There’s one more major character I haven’t looked at in this latest round of The Force Awakens figures. In fact, she’s the lead character! Let’s take a look at Rey!

THE FIGURE ITSELF

ReyWM5Rey is part of the third series of the Walmart-exclusive Star Wars: The Black Series figures, alongside the previously reviewed Poe and Finn, as well as a re-released Han Solo from Return of the Jedi. The figure is 3 ¾ inches tall and has 26 points of articulation. I do wish her waist joint offered more movement, but her articulation is generally pretty solid. Rey is noted as being based on her “Jakku” appearance, which isn’t all that different from her look from the rest of the film. That said, this figure does feature Rey wearing gloves, which she only does during the film’s Jakku scenes, and all of her accessories are Jakku specific. Rey’s sculpt is similar to the larger 6-inch figure, but like Finn and Poe, there are enough differences to show that this is an original work. It’s definitely a top-notch sculpt; there are lots of great small details, and the texturing on her cloths is very nicely handled. Her proportions are fairly balanced (perhaps her arms could be just a touch less gangly, but that’s minor), and the head has a passable likeness of Daisy Ridley. The hair’s a little thicker than Ridley’s was in the film, but that’s forgivable, given the small scale. Rey does take a bit of a hit in terms of paint. The general application is not terrible, ReyWM3but she suffers from some rather sloppy spots. In addition, the joints for her ankles are cast in flesh toned plastic, which makes them stand out quite a bit against the brown of her boots. Lastly, she has the same slightly rosy cheeks as her larger scale counterpart, which, while a bit more subtle this time, exhibit a dot-matrix-style patterning (suggesting a printed paint app of sorts), which is a little distracting up close. Still, she fairs a bit better than either of her previously-reviewed figures, which show’s Hasbro’s at least getting a little better. Rey makes out quite well in the accesories department, including her signature staff (now with proper painted details), a back pack, and an alternate head featuring the head wrap and goggles she wears in her introductory scene. While thes parts are all re-used from prior Rey figures, the improved paint apps elavate them to a new level, and the complement the figure very nicely.

THE ME HALF OF THE EQUATION

Rey was the last of these figures I got. I ended up having to stop at five different Walmarts to find her, and when I finally did find her, she was the last one the store had, and she’d even been hidden under a Darth Vader figure. Rey was packed into cases in the same quantities as Finn and Poe, but as the lead, she’s proved to be the first figure to get picked up by most collectors (and she’s also become scalper-bait. Yuck!). In addition, she’s hands down the best figure in Walmarts’s exclusive line, and the best Rey figure currently available. Here’s hoping that Hasbro can find a way to get more of this figure out there, because everyone should have this figure.

ReyWM6

#0695: Rey (Jakku)

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

REY (JAKKU)

STAR WARS: THE BLACK SERIES

ReyTBS1

Alright, here’s part 2 of The Black Series figures from The Force Awakens. Today is another repeat character, Rey, but I do also get to look at a new character in a roundabout sort of way with that highly sought after little droid BB-8, who serves as Rey’s pack-mate. Hasbro seems to want to avoid the issues that arose with packing Leia and R2-D2 solo earlier in The Black Series. For the purposes of this review, I’ll be treating Rey as the main figure and BB-8 as an accessory, given his size.

THE FIGURE ITSELF

ReyTBS2Rey is figure #02 in the first series of the Force Awakens re-launch of Star Wars: The Black Series. The figure is a little under 6 inches in height and has 27 points of articulation. Rey is listed as being based on her “Jakku” look, though it doesn’t look like this design is any different from the “Starkiller Base” look in the 3 ¾ inch line. Maybe her having BB-8 is what makes it her Jakku look? I honestly don’t know. Anyway, Rey gets her own all-new sculpt. In general, I like this sculpt a lot more than the 3 ¾ inch one. Right off the bat, she’s less frail, which looks more accurate to Daisy Ridley in the role, from what I’ve seen. The detailing on the clothing is also far more consistent here, with the higher level of detail and texturing continuing past the top half of the figure. The lower portion of her “robes” is an add-on piece this time, allowing for a more normal set of hip joints without compromising the look of the figure. The head sculpt features a much better likeness of Ridley, though her hair feels a bit too neat and tidy. Well, it’s time for the one area that consistently gives Hasbro trouble: paint. To be fair, Rey’s really not that bad, compared to other figures from The Black Series. What’s there is mostly pretty clean, and I was happy to see a return to a painted flesh tone for the face. However, the hairline is pretty uneven, and the face paint seems just a little too thick. Also, the slight red of the cheeks is not as slight as they were aiming for, which makes it look like Rey’s putting her makeup on a bit too heavily. She honestly just looks too clean; all the shots we’ve seen so far show her sufficiently covered in dirt and grime, and the figure doesn’t really reflect that. Rey includes her signature staff, which is very nicely detailed, and the previously mentioned BB-8. BB-8 has a two-piece ball joint on his head, which allows for some variation of how the head is lined up in regards to the “ball” that is the body. BB-8 has a very nicely, evenly handled sculpt, and has a paintjob that really brings out the details of the sculpt. The paint is certainly more satisfying than what we saw on Series 1’s R2-D2. The droid is a little hard to get properly oriented, so a stand would have been appreciated, but you can get him standing if you put a little work in.

THE ME HALF OF THE EQUATION

Like Finn, Rey was picked up from Walmart, my third Force Friday stop. This was actually one of the figures I was most hoping to get, due in no small part to the included BB-8. Rey’s definitely one of my favorites of the stuff I’ve picked up so far. I do sort of wish we’d gotten an extra masked head for her, but BB-8 means I can’t really say she’s under-accessorized. BB-8 is pretty fun himself, though I can certainly see why this one wasn’t packaged solo. All in all, a very nice pair here. The rest of the line has a bit to live up to.

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#0692: Rey (Starkiller Base)

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

REY (STARKILLER BASE)

STAR WARS: THE FORCE AWAKENS

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Coming up with intros for characters you don’t actually know anything about isn’t the easiest thing in the world, if I’m being completely honest. And yet, here I am, doing it for the third day in a row. Today, I’ll be looking at the third member of the Star Wars universe’s new “power trio.” Ummm…so, her name is Rey, and she’s a scavenger from the planet Jakku. There’s what I know about her. I also know she has two action figures, and I’ll be looking at the first of those in this review.

THE FIGURE ITSELF

Rey2Rey is part of the first assortment of Hasbro’s 3 ¾ inch Star Wars: The Force Awakens figures. She’s from the “arctic” subset of figures. Like Finn, she’s one of the lower price-point figures, and I still can’t figure out exactly how that pricing works out, but, whatever. Rey is just shy of 3 ¾ inches tall and has (can you guess how many?) 5, count ‘em, 5 points of articulation. Officially, the figure is listed as being the “Starkiller Base*” version, so I think it’s safe to say this is what she’ll be wearing in that location. With that said, this appears to be the look she’ll be sporting for at least most of the movie, going by what we’ve seen. Rey has an all-new sculpt, and it’s pretty decent over all. She does seem just a bit frail, but her proportions seem pretty close to what they should be. The detail on the clothes is good, but somewhat on the inconsistent side; the torso has much finer detail on the texturing and folds than the legs do. Also, the hip articulation is definitely worked in very awkwardly and obviously. It’s not far removed from how robed characters were handled in the vintage line, but it looks clunky nowadays and the design would have been far better served by an overlay piece of some sort. The feet are somewhat pidgeon-toed, which makes her a little hard to stand and looks a little Rey3unnatural. The likeness on the head sculpt doesn’t seem quite as close as what we saw on Finn and Poe. I suppose there’s a little of Daisy Ridley in there, but when I look at the figure, all I can see is Kiera Knightley. Paint-wise, the figure makes out well enough. Paint is once again pretty sparse, but what’s there is fairly well applied. It’s rather hard to tell, but she does actually have two different tones to the over and underlying portions of the robes, which is a nice touch. She also has the cleanest hairline of the three figures I’ve looked at so far. Rey is packed with a staff, backpack, and another weird build-a…..thing. I wish she could hold the staff a little better and the random piece of whatever is still somewhat confusing, but it’s a nice enough accessory compliment.

THE ME HALF OF THE EQUATION

Rey was the third and final of the 3 ¾ inch figures I picked up at Target on my second go at the Force Friday thing. It’s yet another character I don’t really have a lot of knowledge about, but she’s at the very least pretty cool looking. Unfortunately, she ended up being the weakest of the 3 ¾ inchers I’ve picked up so far, which was somewhat disappointing. She isn’t terrible or anything, and perhaps I’ll like her more after seeing the movie. All in all, the 3 ¾ inch figures aren’t without issue, but they do feel like an improvement on the earlier 5 POA figures.

*For the record, I think it’s a pretty cool touch using Luke’s original last name for the name of the base. That attention to the mythos’ beginnings makes me at least a little more hopeful about how the film will turn out.

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