After the past few Star Wars Black Series reveals from the European con circuit, I am rejuvenated with my love and excitement for this line, and Star Wars in general. As such, when that happens, I usually go right to the tired old exercise of wish listing. So here we go again…
I have to say, as much as I enjoy getting new Star Wars characters and getting to see new movies in the theater, I am actually a bit glad that the theatrical releases are going on a bit of a hiatus for a few years. I am positive that Disney will be back some great flicks at that time, but the new Disney+ platform provides a VERY interesting avenue for expanded stories, so focusing on those efforts is a good call, in my opinion. The Mandalorian is kicking it off and expectations are sky high, so I am sure its success and reception will be an indicator of what we can expect in the future for the streaming service.
Plus, I have to be honest, I want some new figures of some old favorites. Like I said, I like getting new characters, but seeing all of the Prequel guys show up in the more recent reveals has given me some nostalgia feels. There are a LOT of characters from previous flicks that need their time in plastic, and I am ready to stock my shelves with more classic aliens, Jedi, and scum and villainy. My plan was to bring several of these lists and start at the chronological beginning with Episode I, but then… I watched Rogue One this past weekend. I still plan hitting all of the movies in the lead up to Toy Fair, but I suppose we can toss a logical ordering out the door.
That’s okay though, because being honest, R1 is my favorite Disney Star Wars movie (Solo is a close second) and, in my opinion, is VERY underrepresented in the Black Series. There are a LOT of cool-looking dudes in this movie, and more than any of the other “new” SW movies, this has a feeling and aesthetic closer to the Original Trilogy. It makes sense due to the time line, but still, there are several background characters who are just screaming for some plastic representation. It was difficult for me to keep this to just ten characters due to that fact, but maybe, just maybe some of those who had to be left off will feature in the upcoming Cassian Andor Plus series to give us more of a chance at getting them in the future.
Anyway, here are ten characters I really want from R1. They are in no particular order, but I would like to see all of them as soon as possible, okay, Hasbro?
EDRIO TWO TUBES
Admittedly, all of the recruits from Saw Gerrera’s crew have dynamite, “old school” Star Wars looks, but even before R1 was released, there was a buzz around Edrio. As it turns out, he has a twin “egg mate” in Benthic that would cool to get as well two have both of these guys, but I am going to just go with one here. His design is intimating and he can fit into a lot of different outposts and locales, so he can look natural going into all kinds of situations on Saw’s behalf.
GALEN ERSO
One of the most pivotal characters to the movie, and the classic Rebellion saga, Galen is a pretty glaring omission to the current SWB roster. I get it, he is not quite as exciting in terms of design as some of the other characters in the movie, but he does have an interesting Imperial look to him that is a bit different than our normal troopers and military officers. I struggled quite a bit between including him or the Rebel’s Blue Leader (Antoc Merrick), but Galen’s importance pushed him over the edge. Though, I still really want Blue Leader, too.
COMMANDER PAO
More Rebels, and more aliens – that is what I am talking about here, and Commander Pao has a great design, and he should be honored as a hero of the Rebellion for his sacrifice and Skarif. He is humanoid enough though to be able to take advantage of some likely part reuse from previous figures. There were several featured Rebel troops from R1, and I would love to have them all, but first things first, and Pao needs some plastic.
MOROFF
Moroff is one of those classic Star Wars characters in the vein of Hammer Head and others who don’t really do a lot, but it doesn’t matter, because they look rad. Like an all-white, shaggy Wookiee-looking dude (he is actually a Gigoran), Moroff would help to fill in the ranks of Saw’s crew with the previously mentioned Two Tubes. I see a lot of potential for further adventures of Saw’s splinter cell throughout the galaxy, and this bruiser definitely needs to provide the muscle.
ADMIRAL RADDUS
Admittedly, I am an Admiral Ackbar mark, and a fan of the Mon Calamari in general, but I am not shy to say that Raddus is one of my favorite new Rogue One characters. His ship ferried the storied Tantive IV, and he was instrumental to the Rebellion’s success on Skarif. A bit more aggressive and blustery than his protégé, it is cool to show the diversity of personalities amongst the Mon Calamari, plus his build and color palette is unique to him, but very much in line with the outfitting of the senior Rebellion leaders.
GENERAL DRAVEN
Like Raddus, General Draven is no-nonsense military man whose work helps to support the idealist leadership of characters like Mon Mothma and Bail Organa. His instruction to Cassian to kill Galen Erso on-sight was striking for its place in a Star Wars movie, but it also shows the urgency of the situation the Rebellion is as the Death Star looms closer to completion. Like I said, I want ALL of the heavy hitters of the Rebellion, and having Draven as the unapologetic military man is something I need.
MON MOTHMA
Speaking of Rebel leadership, by the time R1 rolls around, there are no members more important than Senators Mon Mothma and Bail Organa. Mon Mothma is one of the few characters who spans both the PT and OT, and her clam and dedicated leadership cannot be underestimated. She is iconic due to her appearance in Return of the Jedi, but since she has more to do in Rogue One, it seems like she fits better here. Plus, the looks are essentially the same, so you could use the figure for multiple functions.
BAIL ORGANA
You can pretty much take everything I said about Mon Mothma and her importance to the Rebellion and paste it here. Add to that the fact that he is Leia’s adoptive father, and the fact that he is overdue as well, and it makes for plenty of reasons for why it is time to get Bail. Plus, I think his look in R1 is his best with it’s senatorial, yet military feel, so I will take this over the flowy robes any day.
SAW GERRERA
I mean… how do we not have Saw yet? I have done a lot of talking about guys in his crew, but they don’t mean anything without the man himself. His story concluded with R1, but he raised Jyn through her formative years, and had important appearances in Clone Wars and Rebels. Plus, I mean, Forrest Whitaker, you guys. All that said, Saw should get a figure based on his look alone, and much like Vader, he was as much machine as man at the end.
BODHI ROOK
Um… it pretty unbelievable that not only do we not have Bodhi yet, but the fact that he was left out of the Rogue One supporting waves in the first place. I mean, he is the ONLY member of the actual Rogue One squad, and the one that gave them their name, and he doesn’t have a Black Series figure yet. That is pretty unreal, and it needs to be rectified right away. Case closed.
Like I said, I want so many more characters from this flick, but getting these ten are a good and needed start. At the very least, Saw and Bodhi need to see the light of day soon, because they are glaring omissions. I will be able soon with another Top Ten covering another Star Wars movie.