Super Battle Droid - TVC - Basic (VC37)

OK, we are royally disappointed. Just like the old adage “don’t count your chickens before they hatch,” so should collectors not expect Hasbro to repaint the awesome updated Super Battle Droid (from the Geonosis Arena Showdown set) with the ball-jointed ankles for The Vintage Collection basic figure. We can’t say that we’re furious, but why update the 2008 TLC Super Battle Droid Saga Legends figure (you know, the one without the holes in its chest) to include ball-jointed ankles for the 2010 LC TARGET exclusive Obi-Wan Kenobi/Super Battle Droid Geonosis Arena Showdown set and not bring that enhanced version over to the premium realistic styled line known as The Vintage Collection? We are at a loss for an answer. And what makes this particularly worse is that the Geonosis Arena Showdown version is oddly colored and not truly authentic to its appearance in Star Wars Episode II: Attack Of The Clones. (So we kind of still need this "super-articulated" version that's movie accurate.) If you recall, we posted an article where we surmised that the Geonosis Arena Showdown figure was a “pre-paint” to The Vintage Collection version, but alas, we were sadly wrong.

It’s not that the Super Battle Droid isn’t a great figure because it is. But we have to be honest and state that the inclusion of ball-jointed ankles on the TARGET exclusive did significantly help it out. For reasons unknown, the older 2008 TLC Saga Legends Battle Droid was repainted (beautifully by the way) and became what we now see in The Vintage Collection. (You may want to note that the first time we received the Super Battle Droid with its chest holes filled in was in 2008's TAC Battle On Mygeeto Battle Packs set.) The figure is undoubtedly gorgeous. Hasbro first and foremost gave the Super Battle Droid a stunning base coat of metallic gray and silver. And then they added additional details like the Geonosis dirt on its feet and a few carbon-scoring received from the Grand Army of the Republic and as a whole, the Super Battle Droid is one nice figure indeed. So the figure scores high marks for deco. And there is something about its presence in The Vintage Collection that makes the Super Battle Droid extra-likeable. Thankfully, Hasbro noted the historical reference correctly on the back of the figure’s card. The first issue of the Super Battle Droid (which pales in comparison to The Vintage Collection version by the way) is the 2002 SW Super Battle Droid (’02 #06) figure. (The line has come so far, we need to be mindful of that.)

Bizarrely, the figure comes with a small blaster pistol which is eclipsed by the heavy artillery that is naturally present in its right arm design. The Super Battle Droid almost looks silly holding it. Perhaps somewhere in the very far background there are droids holding these blasters. We don’t know, but it certainly makes for an odd way to accessorize this figure. (Hasbro should have saved the plastic in the gun and applied it to the ball-jointed ankles. Sorry, but we’re having a hard time letting this go.) Still, extra weapons are always a fun thing and you can give it to someone else if you choose to pose your Super Battle Droid without it. We do like this figure a great deal, but keep in mind that this sculpt has the legs in different ankles and you need to situate the droid in a “walking” or “stepping forward” way to pose it so it doesn’t fall over. It may be a small flaw in the design, but this is still a great figure nonetheless. It will certainly be interesting to see where that enhanced version of the Super Battle Droid ends up. Could Hasbro have made a mistake and there will be a running change? We don’t know, but we’d like to see it out there in heavier numbers. While we wait and see its fate, the TVC Super Battle Droid is the best one out there. It may just have to be a mandatory purchase for you.