R2-D2 - SW [Y/AOTC] - The Clone Wars (CW05)

R2-D2 helps the natives of the planet Aleen. (European packaging)

R2-D2 helps the natives of the planet Aleen. When C-3PO falls through a hole in the ground, R2-D2 goes in after him. The two Droids discover an underground world and come to the aid of the beings who dwell there, saving them from a deadly threat. (North American packaging)

One of the biggest and unannounced surprises of the “Shadow of The Dark Side” phase of The Clone Wars line was the inclusion of an animated-styled astromech Build A Droid figure. It was so surprising I fact that it bordered on shocking. Plo Koon’s astromech droid, 2011's TCW [SOTDS] R7-D4 (CW64) figure was not only an all-new sculpt, but it was based on the conceptual design of the very popular Build A Droid astromech figures from The Legacy Collection and Legacy Collection basic figure lines where the figure could be cobbled together from separate parts. What was so surprising about this was that Hasbro had a couple of very good astromech droid sculpt (which all went back to 2008’s TCW [B] R2-D2 (No. 8) figure) so an all-new sculpt didn’t seem to be the most cost-effective measure they’ve employed. Still, it was a welcome addition to the line and collectors couldn’t wait to see what other animated astromech droids Hasbro had up their sleeves that would also utilize this Build A Droid sculpt. Sadly, if Hasbro did have plans to release more animated Build A Droid sculpt, plans were shelved for other things instead. And now that it's been formally announced that the animated The Clone Wars line is dead, the future of any more animated Build A Droids is bleak at best.

But on a more positive note, Hasbro decided to release the most famous astromech of all in this sculpt and make it part of the final animated The Clone Wars line. Although it's fantastic to get the most popular astromech droid in this sculpt, it's not our first Build A Droid R2-D2 action figure. Hasbro already gave us him in 2012's SW [TPM 3D] Royal Starship Droids Battle Packs set from the Discover The Force lineup. It's awesome to now have him in animated form. It should be noted that R2-D2 has never looked better in The Clone Wars line. The R7-D4 sculpt looks fantastic and R2-D2 wears it well thanks to expertly applied paint operations and a brilliant and screen accurate sculpt. The properly rounded dome and its accurate brushed nickel finish, the accuracy of the panel details and an exactly matching widened third leg all show why the need to bring R2-D2 into the line again working this revised sculpt was such a necessity. R2-D2 is a tad too clean, but we’ll sacrifice a dirty paint job for accuracy instead. And we’re thrilled to see R2-D2’s legs without holes in them from the propulsion jets, although we’re sure some will find fault with the holes on his sides that is part of the general Build A Droid sculpting. There is one error on the new R2-D2 however. Hasbro painted a wide solid blue panel on the right side of his dome without a break. This is such a shame because there won’t be any time to correct this now.

R2-D2 breaks down into five unique parts as you already expect. Because it’s the idea that the Build A Droid subset of figures are to be universal with one another, you can interchange parts between R7-D4 and him and create a few unique droids of your own if you’re so inclined. No matter how you slice it, this update to R2-D2 is a significant upgrade. Of particular note, R2-D2's dome is perfectly sculpted and is a vast improvement from the non-Build A Droid sculpt. Sometimes its hard to see the forest for the trees when Hasbro bangs one astromech droid out after another. But upon careful inspection, you’ll quickly notice just how far off Hasbro was with the earlier sculpts. It almost makes us wish that Hasbro could go back and rerelease all of their earlier astromech units with this fantastic sculpt. Obviously that isn’t even a remote possibility at this point anymore. So if yo're lucky enough to secure this version of R2-D2 for your collection, consider yourself fortunate. Still, it won’t prevent us from saying that if you’re looking for the best animated version of R2-D2, it’s without a doubt 2013’s SW [Y/AOTC] R2-D2 (CW05) sculpt. It’s updates like this that make us depressed that the animated The Clone Wars line is no more. What a sad turn of events indeed.