Adam's Star Wars Newsletter #001 **************** CONTENTS I. Hello Again II. New Toy Pre-Orders and Announcements III. New Star Wars Entertainment Programs for 2021 IV. Adam's Other Star Wars Writings This Week V. Convention Watch VI. Comics Incoming VII. Fin **************** I. Hello Again On August 1, 1995, I started a newsletter to help keep track of the new Kenner stuff, and to hopefully get more information from the readers to share in each new installment. It worked, and it gave me a career! It ran until late 1999 and early 2000, when constant complaints about "spoilers" in the form of character names kind of ruined it for me. Since then I've been writing for sites like Rebelscum, then Yakface.com, and then Galactic Hunter while doing other fun toy things behind-the-scenes. I don't like clickbait, I don't like watching videos for a bit of promised information that isn't actually there, and I don't want to like or subscribe to anything. I just want to learn things and get toys, and it's a lot more fun to do when there's no new movie to tiptoe around. Like my old email newsletter, this will be graphic- and code-free. I write it quickly, you can read it on the toilet. Print it, use your phone, maybe they will invent a printable toilet paper so it can serve more than one purpose. Right now, it will debut on the Patreon and go up live free for everybody 3 days later. Should you pay for it? Probably not. But it's $1 a month if you are feeling generous and want to kick in for my lunch. Watch http://www.galactichunter.com/aswn for the free archive, or https://www.patreon.com/galactichunter?filters[tag]=ASWN for the early access. Your pal, Adam Pawlus **************** II. New Toy Pre-Orders and Announcements Hasbro skipped Toy Fair in New York, along with everybody else, thanks to the continuing COVID-19 pandemic. Instead, a number of new announcements have been dripped out and Friday's Hasbro Pulse Fan Fest resulted in a lot of new reveals. Here are some links with pre-orders. Please note that if you order through Amazon or Entertainment Earth links, I may get a small percentage of the sale. I am told that I am supposed to divulge that it is possible I could earn enough money over the course of a year to almost buy myself a few lunches at the drive-through. Pre-orders will be up at Entertainment Earth at 5:00 PM Eastern: https://bit.ly/3s2wZ7J 3 3/4-Inch Stuff The Vintage Collection Vault Vote Poll On Thursday, Hasbro revealed a new Fan's Vote for reruns, most of which are from the 2010-2012 era. __ Ahsoka Tano (Season 3 The Clone Wars) __ Republic Trooper (The Old Republic) __ Imperial Assault Tank Driver (Rogue One) __ Starkiller (The Force Unleashed II) __ Weequay (Return of the Jedi) The Vintage Collection Reissues __ Admiral Ackbar (new skin texture) __ Emperor's Royal Guard (revised fabric, head deco) __ Han Solo (Endor Trenchcoat - new head and coat deco) __ Luke Skywalker (Hoth - new head deco) The Vintage Collection Gaming Greats __ Battle Droid (Battlefront) __ Electrostaff Purge Trooper (Jedi Fallen Order, Entertainment Earth Exclusive) __ Shadow Stormtrooper (The Force Unleashed II, similar to existing Toys R Us exclusive) __ Scout Trooper (Jedi Fallen Order) The Vintage Collection Vehicles __ Antoc Merrick's X-Wing Fighter (Target Exclusive, Rogue One) 6-Inch Stuff __ Aurra Sing (The Clone Wars/The Phantom Menace) __ General Lando Calrissian (ROTJ) __ Koska Reeves (The Mandalorian) __ Tech (The Bad Batch) __ Zero (The Mandalorian) Everything Else __ Wedge Antilles Helmet Prop Replica **************** III. New Star Wars Entertainment Programs for 2021 a. Star Wars: The Bad Batch: New Trailer! https://www.starwars.com/video/trailer-the-bad-batch This spin-off of The Clone Wars begins May 4, which means it's one of few new things to premiere on that date that actually matters beyond a sale. Four action figures of Bad Batch-specific Clones are up for pre-order or currently available at an online store near you. Don't kid yourself - they're probably not going to be in stock at your local big box store. At this time there are no known plans for a 3 3/4-inch or animated-style line. b. Star Wars: Obi-Wan Kenobi Casting! https://www.starwars.com/news/obi-wan-kenobi-series-cast Of particular note is Kumail Nanjiani, who you may know from Silicon Valley or The Big Sick, but I also hope you know him from his stand-up comedy album "Beta Male." It is excellent. You will be quoting it to your friends and loved ones. c. Coming 2021: Star Wars: Visions An anime-inspired animated anthology series is scheduled for streaming this year with at least 10 episodes. At this time, nobody has a lot of specific information about who will be involved or when it drops. d. Coming 2021: The Book of Boba Fett I doubt anybody missed this, but the side quest to The Mandalorian is expected to begin in December 2021. e. Star Wars Vintage - Disney+ https://www.starwars.com/news/star-wars-vintage-collection-disney-plus Available now are five notable additions to Disney+. The Ewok Adventure (Caravan of Courage if you're European), Ewoks The Battle for Endor, The Story of the Faithful Wookiee (the Holiday Special Boba Fett cartoon), Ewoks (both seasons), and the 2003-2005 Clone Wars (the Tartakovsky 2D series.) The Ewok stuff is particularly notable in that it was the last gasp of Star Wars before the pre-Thrawn novel revival in 1991. The Ewoks movies are nifty low-budget made-for-TV fantasy features, but everything is worth watching once. Just be sure to spread it out - this isn't binge-era television here. Buried in a post-release news dump was confirmation that the Droids series is slated to join later this year. Why isn't it there now? I have no idea. **************** IV. Adam's Other Star Wars Writings This Week a. Star Wars Q&A at Galactic Hunter: Star Wars Retro Figures, Malls, Filler http://www.galactichunter.com/gh/story/qa-star-wars-retro-figures-malls-filler b. Star Wars Figure of the Day - Disney Purple R5-Series Astromech Droid http://figureoftheday.blogspot.com/2021/04/star-wars-figure-of-day-day-2796-r5.html c. Star Wars Figure of the Day - Hasbro The Black Series The Child http://figureoftheday.blogspot.com/2021/04/star-wars-figure-of-day-day-2797-child.html d. Star Wars Figure of the Day - Hasbro The Vintage Collection Greek Karga http://figureoftheday.blogspot.com/2021/04/star-wars-figure-of-day-day-2798-greef.html Question submissions and requests for un-reviewed figures are welcome. **************** V. Convention Watch Believe it or not, a number of in-person fan gatherings are still on the calendar for 2021. We don't know how the future will look, but you may want to add these to your calendar if you're in the United States. Here are some of the big events currently planned for 2021. It is worth noting that Star Wars Celebration is still on deck for Anaheim in August of 2022. September Dragon Con in Atlanta, GA September 2 - September 6 October New York Comic Con in New York City, NY October 7 - October 10 November DesignerCon in Anaheim, CA November 12 - November 14 Comic-Con International in San Diego, CA November 26 - November 28 December Emerald City Comic Con in Seattle, WA December 2 - December 5 C2E2 in Chicago, IL December 10 - December 12 **************** VI. Comics Incoming April 2021 Star Wars: Bounty Hunters #11 Star Wars: Darth Vader #11 Star Wars: Doctor Aphra #9 Star Wars: The High Republic #4 Star Wars: The Empire Strikes Back - The 40th Anniversary Covers #1 May 2021 Star Wars #13 Star Wars: Bounty Hunters #12 Star Wars: Darth Vader #12 Star Wars: Doctor Aphra #10 Star Wars: The High Republic #5 Star Wars: War of the Bounty Hunters Alpha #1 Star Wars: War of the Bounty Hunters Director's Cut #1 **************** VII. Fin With the sequel trilogy over, we're kind of in a weird lost place. Small-screen Star Wars has proven to be viable and fun, the sequels took the place of the prequels as the franchise whipping boy, and the toys are basically nowhere to be found in stores. When I started writing in 1995, there were dozens of places I could look to find toys - almost all of these are long gone. When I started doing the original newsletter in 1995, one of the goals was to get Vlix made somehow, so not only I but anyone else who has been pining for one since the late 1980s could get one. And so was the toy industry job. When I started writing this in late March I had no idea Droids was set to stream this year - so I have a project. If you don't have a project this year, please help me with mine. I said hello again. I hope you enjoy it. If you do, please share it with your friends. --Adam ****************