Battle Droid [Lucasfilm 50] - TBS [AC] - Six Inch Figures

In a galaxy far, far away, an evil force is gaining strength and threatens an entire civilization.

The greedy Trade Federation has created an army that requires no food, no drink, no sleep. Millions of these high-tech battle droids amass into a virtually unstoppable armed force.

Commemorate the first 50 years of Lucasfilm with figures inspired by the Star Wars prequel trilogy!

Hasbro gave Best Buy four Lucasfilm 50th Anniversary action figures based on Star Wars Episode I: The Phantom Menace to celebrate the landmark event. Placed on recreated (and very large) Episode I line look packaging from 1999 and 2000, Hasbro tweaked some of the figures and gave some of the figures fewer accessories in this collection. One of the characters added to this collection is the Battle Droid. Surprisingly, Hasbro didn’t do much to change things for this release. Hasbro followed the same deco patterns as they did for the 2019 version of this action figure. Why couldn’t they have implemented a different paint scheme to rearrange some battle-damage markings or add a couple of extra carbon-scoring marks to make it look and feel like another character? The inability and unwillingness to help collectors army-build have become a point of contention for Star Wars collectors. And we’re not sure why Hasbro rarely thinks outside the box anymore. At least for the Battle Droid, Hasbro decided to carry forward all of its accessories. Any sacrifice here would have been problematic. Still, collectors will have to pay $5 more for this version of the figure, and that’s a problem in and of itself.

Unbelievably, it took Hasbro seven years to get the first Battle Droid into The Black Series 6-inch line when first released in 2019. Now, two short years later, the figure is once again available, but this time, it is a Best Buy exclusive and in commemorative packaging to celebrate Lucasfilm’s 50th Anniversary. You’d think they would have amortized the tooling costs for this character more than they have. They have only released a couple of B1 Battle Droid characters utilizing this tooling. But there are countless B1 Battle Droids in the Star Wars universe. Hasbro could make a killing. But no, they decided to re-release a version that already exists. Perhaps a clean version would have been an excellent decision for an exclusive release. With an astounding 30 points of articulation, including premium ball-jointed articulation and a paint job as beautiful as the tooling, the Battle Droid ranks up with some of Hasbro’s finest 6-inch figures. The Battle Droid holds its poses well, thanks to great anchoring in the sculpt and a sleek design. Some poses require a little more attention than others, but the Battle Droid can generally attain almost any position you decide. Whether folded up or blasting the Gungans on Naboo, the Battle Droid can do it all.

The Battle Droid is also adequately accessorized. It comes with a removable backpack that snaps on firmly to the figure’s dorsal side. It comes with an articulated antennae, which is a lovely touch. You can remove the backpack and replace it with the more extended antennae attachment, so you can own both kinds of B1 battle droids in your collection. The figure also comes with its signature droid blaster. Precise articulation allows the Battle Droid to hold it with one hand or two. It’s marvelous to have a Battle Droid action figure hold a droid blaster with two hands. They’ve done a fantastic job with it; it looks natural and screen-accurate. We noticed that the original The Black Series [Phase III] 6” version of the Battle Droid came out of the packaging a little distorted and misshapen. This Best Buy exclusive version doesn’t have that problem. It sits in the plastic bubble firmly, but the packaging doesn’t affect the contour of the figure’s body. It’s a much better way to package this figure. We’re unsure how many collectors were looking for another opportunity to buy another Battle Droid from The Phantom Menace, but this one seems slightly better. And if you’re into army-building, this is one you’ll need for your collection too.