Anakin’s Jedi Starfighter - ROTS - Vehicles

Anakin Skywalker is one of the most skilled and daring fighter pilots in the Republic. His amazing piloting abilities make him a powerful ally and a formidable enemy. Anakin and his former master Obi-Wan Kenobi battle deadly droid fighters while on a dangerous mission to rescue Chancellor Palpatine, who has been kidnapped by Separatist forces.

The Revenge Of The Sith line is here and Hasbro has teased collectors unmercifully by releasing four basic figures and a vehicle under the “Sneak Preview” banner for a taste of what is to come in the toy line. Although the four Sneak preview action figures won’t be released in the regular lineup, Anakin’s Jedi Starfighter will be. In fact, the only thing that separate the two versions is the “Sneak Preview” label on the box itself. Nothing else differs between the two. This all-new vehicle by Hasbro shows a new level of excellence achieved. Hasbro’s sculpting gets better and better throughout the years and the paint operations are generally stunning in most respects. And the inclusion of optional battle-damage decals give the mid-size vehicle lineup that extra pizzazz it needs to stay a cut above competing toy line. Anakin’s Jedi Starfighter is a beautiful vehicle. With elements of the Original Trilogy combined with the “new” technology of the Prequel Trilogy, this Eta-2 Actis-class light interceptor fought gallantly in the Battle of Coruscant as Anakin Skywalker and Obi-Wan Kenobi attempt to infiltrate General Grievous’ Invisible Hand in an effort to rescue Senator Palpatine. Technically making its first appearance in Star Wars: Obsession, Anakin’s Jedi Starfighter was seen throughout Tartakovsky’s Clone Wars as well. But it was in Revenge Of The Sith where we see it in live action as it left its mark as a powerful and agile starfighter.

Anakin’s Jedi Starfighter is an excellent sculpt. The cockpit with very, very wise which allows you to accommodate a huge selection of action figures of various shapes and sizes in it. Obviously most of us will have one choice in mind, Anakin Skywalker, but the option is there if you’re a little more creative than the average collector. This vehicle fires missile projectile with the flick of a button. And if you pull down on the lever on the back of the vehicle, the wings deploy for attack mode. This starfighter also has retractable landing gear (which in our opinion doesn’t work all too well). As you can see, there are plenty of play features here which make this a great toy for kids and collectors alike. But this vehicle is also a collectible because of how great it looks and how well it is painted. It literally looks like a model used for the film it has been done so well. Even if you look at the underside of the vehicle you’ll be amazed with how much effort went into the tooling there as well. Why Hasbro would expend time and energy to make the bottom of a vehicle look this great is mind-blowing to us. But we’re just as thankful for it too. For boxed collectors, you have two variations. One is the “Sneak Preview” version while the other is just part of the normal mid-size vehicle assortment. Absolutely no differences at all exist between the two actual vehicles, so if you’re not into packaging, just pick one or the other.

If we did have to find fault with the vehicle, it would have to be with regards to the droid socket and “R2-D2 action figure” that accompanies is. There have been many theories surrounding this detail of the Eta-2 Actis-class light interceptors. It’s against physics how an astromech droid could fit inside this spot on the vehicle (or has one theory described). So it makes sense that Hasbro would have to tool a version of R2-D2 that would fit inside of it. So what we get is a hollow half R2-D2 “accessory” that fits inside of the droid socket like a glove. It’s disappointing that Hasbro couldn’t have just made a hold that went through the vehicle (where R2-D2’s legs would dangle from) and then perhaps a cover when R2-D2 wasn’t co-piloting it. Anyway, that design idea wasn’t in the mix. Another fault we must point out is the application of decals. Hasbro has decided that instead of painting on details or applying the decals prior to assembling the vehicle, that the parent or collector would have the joy of doing this instead. Let us tell you that it is maddening trying to get the interior cockpit decals on without wanting to throw the vehicle through a glass window. It’s so impossibly difficult that we know of other collectors who won’t even bother applying them. Unless you have tweezers and a steady precise hand, they aren’t going to go on with any ease. Our hands and fingers were too big to make any good progress. Other than that, Anakin’s Jedi Starfighter is an excellent vehicle.