Finn (Starkiller Base) - TFA - Armor Up (Snow)

A trained warrior desperate to escape his past, Finn is plunged into adventure as his conscience drives him down a heroic, but dangerous path.

It’s almost inconceivable that all of the products released on Force Friday (and even some products released after) only make up the first 25-30% of The Force Awakens. Clearly Hasbro has made some of their own unique concepts to help pad the line, but even with this considered part of the calculation, it’s quite overwhelming how many characters, vehicles and planets we’re going to see in such a small portion of Episode VII. Unique off-screen concepts are nothing new for Hasbro. It’s been happening ever since the vintage Kenner era. Remember Mini Rigs? So now in 2015, Hasbro reaches back into its ancestry and reinvents a concept originally developed for the MASK line and reconfigures it for Star Wars. Obviously, the Armor Up line is designed to include a little extra play value for kids, but we sincerely wonder how successful the line will be with that age group. Aside from a few new fans, we’re pretty sure it’s going to be the one-of-everything adult Star Wars collector begrudgingly picking these up to keep his/her collection complete. We could be off on this assessment, but kids just aren’t into toys these days like we were when we were young. It’s almost ironic that the Star Wars line has turned into the beast it has because of this alone.

Because we don’t know anything about The Force Awakens yet, kids of all ages can put together their own unique scenarios and play scenes. In this aspect, this is where the Armor Up line stands a chance of being successful. Sure, the costume-like Armor Up accessories can look ridiculous at times, but when Hasbro approaches a figure in a snow scene and borrows elements from the Battle of Hoth into it, isn’t it easier to overlook the glaring continuity issues? Accepting that Finn (Starkiller Base) is an action figure to be played with, we think that Hasbro has sort of done right by this action figure. Based on 2015’s Finn (Jakku) (Build A Weapon) (Desert) figure, Hasbro has now repainted him with snow residue on his outfit and his shoes, which now we know is somewhat accurately based on the latest leaked footage of the film (where he wields a blue lightsaber). The background is clearly a cold and snowy planet. What has been exaggerated here, however, is the parka Armor Up accessory. Reminiscent of both the figure from 2008 TAC Han Solo/R-3PO (3 of 6) Droid Factory set as well as 2010’s TCW [SOTDS] Plo Koon (CW53) figures, Finn (Starkiller Base) captures the spirit and feel of both of these characters and we have to say it didn’t turn out as bad as we thought it would (accepting again that this is a figure with extra play value and nothing more).

Where we struggle with this figure (and we believe Hasbro may struggle with this too) is the high MSRP. Hasbro has confirmed that the Armor Up line was not intended to retail for $12.99. While we couldn’t get an exact number for the originally planned MSRP for them, we would venture a guess that the Armor Up line was geared for $9.99 price range. Hasbro has always taken accountability for the high prices of action figures, but here they shifted the blame on retail. We’re choosing to trust them that this is the case. Anyway, with a completely different paint job (this is true for the accessory as well) and a cold weather specific Armor Up accessory, Finn (Starkiller Base) may be one of the better figures in the Armor Up line. Even though Hasbro reused a previously existing sculpt instead of giving us a new version of Finn, they made it different enough which warrants another purchase. But if this line is out of your price range or focus, then we certainly aren’t trying to “sell” you something you do not want or need. The Armor Up line is a mixed bag for us. There are some really terrible choices in the line and there are some that seem to make sense. But until the price is right, we’re just going to hold out on a final verdict on it. After all, cost is a big part of the equation anymore.