It wouldn’t be the holiday season without toys, right? I’ve got a special Holiday Gift Guide entry for this Figure Friday for the Star Wars fan on your list because I haven’t celebrated a Christmas in forty one years without something from a galaxy far, far away.
Special thanks to Sachin Hingoo for last week’s wrestling-themed Figure Friday! Wrasslin’, as it’s colloquially known, is a huge blind spot for me and the collectors of AEW and WWE action figures are among some of the most enthusiastic out there and I was glad to see the genre represented here. Thanks again, Sachin…you really RKO’d that column outta nowhere…from the top ropes! (Please like me, I’m trying.)
Now, back to the relative safety of Star Wars!
The Mandalorian S.H.Figuarts The Mandalorian (Beskar Armor)
It wouldn’t be Star Wars unless every possible variant of a character was immortalized in action figure form. I knew that my previous Figuarts Mandalorian was dead to me, dead, once Din Djarin showed up in his shiny, new Beskar armor after only a couple episodes.
Last year it was all about Baby Yoda, The Child, Gogurt, Grogu but I think we can all agree that THIS year it’s time for our favorite Space Daddy to be given his due. This is one of Figuarts’ finest and it comes absolutely loaded with accessories: multiple interchangeable hands, a pistol, a flame thrower effects pieces, a whistling bird effect, a knife, an Amban Rifle, and a jet pack with flame effects.
With just a couple episodes left in the season of The Mandalorian I don’t know if the character will receive ANOTHER upgrade to make this figure obsolete, but for now this is probably one of the best high-end collectible versions of the character available….if you can find it. Mine was a real pain in the ass to get.
I’m hoping that Figuarts continues to produce stuff from The Mandalorian because I could really go for some updated versions of REDACTED and REDACTED.
Star Wars The Black Series Din Djarin (The Mandalorian) and The Child
This Target-exclusive (sorry, Canada) Din Djarin and Baby Yoda, The Child, Gogurt, Grogu is a little more budget friendly than the Figuarts version but just as awesome. A minor quibble, Figuarts is going to stick you for an extra SIXTY BUCKS for a Grogu which is sold separately. The Black Series is a line of figures that has steadily increased in quality over the last several years and while this year has seen the re-release of several old figures with improved head sculpts, Hasbro still manages to crank out some new and exciting releases.
My favorite detail of this release is the tiny bricks of Beskar the figure comes with that are almost certain to be lost upon opening the package, same goes for the tracking fob. This figure was just released a couple of weeks ago and it has been flying off the shelves, I’ve yet to see one at my local Target but they should probably be restocked prior to the holidays (fingers crossed).
Target has been slowly making some moves to court collectors in recent months with various store exclusives, but the trick is being able to secure one online or be lucky enough to find one in the store. Also, I saw some idle chatter online that they may be doing their part to combat the scum of the earth…toy scalpers, by not allowing for purchases of multiple units of the same item. I’m not sure exactly how they’re doing this because I’m pretty sure I could take 8 Marvel Legends Gambit figures through the U-Scan and no one could stop me. But I wouldn’t, because only a bastard would do that. If you’re a toy collector, the best way to embody the holiday spirit is to DONATE SOME TOYS and also leave one on the shelf for the next collector.
