The Mandalorian is battle-worn and tight-lipped, a formidable bounty hunter in an increasingly dangerous galaxy who finds a mysterious alien pursued by bounty hunters on behalf of Imperial interests.
It appears that Hasbro is going to produce every single version possible of The Mandalorian in every single scale. And it seems that the collecting community is generally happy with this delivery. We’re not sure everyone shares the same sentiment about the main character from The Mandalorian Disney+ series, but there is also no doubting the bounty hunter’s popularity. This new update to The Black Series 6-inch line focuses on an earlier version of The Mandalorian from the character’s appearance on Arvala-7. During a visit to Arvala-7, The Mandalorian encountered an enraged mudhorn, a giant beast that inhabited the area. It laid eggs, and they were a delicacy to the Offworld Jawas that also inhabited the area. The exterior of the mudhorn egg is woolly, not unlike the adult mudhorn, and the interior yolk of the egg was yellow, not unlike the eggs in the Milky Way galaxy. For the first time in the line, 6-inch collectors get a two-piece mudhorn egg that reveals the yolk inside as an accessory in this set. The only thing we need now is a 6-inch mudhorn. Maybe Hasbro will attempt this creature for the next 6-inch HasLab project. You also get a new version of The Mandalorian and Grogu in this set, so let’s go over those updated figures too.
The Mandalorian is based on 2019’s TBS [P3] The Mandalorian (94) figure and comes with quite a few updates. The figure now has an all-new torso featuring battle-damaged chest armor. The bandolier/belt combination piece is also new. Lastly, the cod section has received a few changes as well. The rest of the figure includes parts from the 2019 release. However, the most significant difference, in our opinion, is the paint job this figure received. Hasbro COVERED the figure in brown paint to recreate the scene when Din Djarin went into a “corrida de toros” battle as matador versus bull in a fight to the finish. The scene also reminded us of the battle between another Mandalorian and a beast. That scene was, of course, during the Battle of Geonosis with Jango Fett and the reek. The battle was energetic, but Din Djarin took a beating and became covered in mud from the terrain. This version of The Mandalorian looks decent, but Hasbro couldn’t give the mud texture, so it doesn’t look much more than a brown version of the character. We imagine that’s all Hasbro could do to recreate this scene-specific version of The Mandalorian. The Mandalorian comes with a removable cape, a blaster, and a ray staff. The weapons didn’t receive any muddy paint operations, so they are out of place. However, the cape did, so all is not lost here.
This set also comes with a revised version of The Child but called Grogu (Arvala-7) here. Hasbro gave the figure an all-new “closed eyes” head sculpt, but the figure still comes with the same “left pointed arm” tooling. We feel that it’s lazy Hasbro didn’t tool an all-new version of the character for this set, but Hasbro is seemingly cutting costs wherever possible these days for The Black Series 6-inch line. One thing is true about The Mandalorian merchandising. Target continues to show Hasbro the greatest amount of interest regarding exclusive retailer products from the show. They have the most exclusive Star Wars action figures from the show thus far, and there are more coming as well. Conversely, Walmart typically gets all of the 3.75-inch The Vintage Collection exclusives. But no matter how you count them, The Mandalorian is driving interest and sales into the Hasbro Star Wars brand, which is great for the line’s longevity. And after a dreadful Sequel Trilogy that nearly killed merchandising, it’s fantastic to see new life breathed into super-articulated action figures again. We take exception with the MSRP when it comes to these “Deluxe” sets. They keep climbing higher and higher. The Mandalorian & Grogu (Arvala-7) two-pack has an MSRP of $36.99, and that’s laughable.
Collector Notes
The Mandalorian & Grogu (Arvala-7)
Assortment Number: F2882
UPC: 5010993903603
Retail: $36.99 USD
Market Value: Click here to check the latest prices based on listings.
The Mandalorian (Arvala-7)
Status: The Mandalorian (Arvala-7) is a retool and repaint of 2019's TBS [P3] The Mandalorian (94) figure. This time the figure has an all-new torso, a new belt/bandolier combination, and a revised cod section. The figure has also been given a deco to imitate the character covered in mud.
Articulation Count: 30 points (19 areas of articulation)
Articulation Details: ball-socket head (1), hinge-jointed neck (1), ball-jointed left shoulder (2), ball-jointed right shoulder (2), swivel "butterfly left shoulder (1), swivel "butterfly right shoulder (1), ball-jointed left elbow (2), ball-jointed right elbow (2), ball-jointed left wrist (2), ball-jointed right wrist (2), ball-jointed torso (2), ball-socket left hip (1), ball-socket right hip (1), swivel left thigh (1), swivel right thigh (1), double hinge-jointed left knee (2), double hinge-jointed right knee (2), ball-jointed/"rocker" left ankle (2), ball-jointed/"rocker" right ankle (2)
Accessory Count: 5
Accessory Details: ray staff, blaster pistol, removable cape, mudhorn egg (2 parts)
Date Stamp: N/A
Grogu (Arvala-7)
Status: Grogu (Arvala-7) is a retool and repaint of The Child from 2020's TBS [P4] Din Djarin (The Mandalorian) & The Child Target exclusive set. This time the figure has an all-new head sculpt and has been repainted.
Articulation Count: 3 points (3 areas of articulation)
Articulation Details: ball-socket head (1), swivel left hand (1), swivel right hand (1)
Accessory Count: 2
Accessory Details: pram, "invisible" display stand
Date Stamp: N/A