It's almost here! In the latest Star Wars Blog entry, Steve Sansweet reminisces about his beginnings as a sci-fi reader and eventual writer as the release date nears for his highly anticipated Star Wars The Ultimate Action Figure Collection, which ships in November.

This week in Q&A: Slave I 2013 speculation! Let's talk MTT. Did you buy one yet? And can you trust eBay sellers calling something rare? (OF COURSE NOT.) All this and me complaining about Kmart's substandard AT-ST, arguably the worst Hasbro release of 2012, after the jump!

This Passel Argente redeco is orange, and it sports a lightsaber slash on his chest.  That's really about all there is to it.  Should you get one?  Eh.  Read on!

The Droid Factory Star Tours-exclusive Red R5-Series Astromech Droid isn't R5-D4, but it's kind of close!  The unique dome has slightly different deco, plus it lacks the antenna of the build-a-droid mold seen at retail.  Is it worth buying, or should you ask for a red robot refund?

Sideshow is now taking pre-orders for the new Sixth Scale Padawan Obi-Wan Kenobi. The Sideshow exclusive version includes an alternate "Lightsaber Duel" portrait for display.

Here's the latest arrivals and pre-orders from our sponsors at BigBadToyStore.com including the latest assortment of Star Wars 1/144 scale vehicles from FToys and the latest pre-orders from Gentle Giant!

The formerly Walmart exclusive 104th Battalion "Wolf Pack" Clone Troopers Ultimate Gift Set is now available as an online exclusive at Hasbro Toy Shop for $29.99 each. The set includes Commander Wolffe, Plo Koon, Clone Trooper Sinker, and Clone Trooper Boost. 

This is a good one.  If you're one of the few readers who still believe it's important for an action figure to be a good toy, this Anakin Skywalker is one of the better ones.  Not only does he have the first entirely-new sculpt of Jake Lloyd as Anakin in over a decade, but he has a wacky fun toy backpack that feels like it was ripped right out of the 1990s... when the first Anakin came with a backpack which did absolutely nothing. 

Hey kids, it's Flitchee!  This is one of thse figures who didn't really have a name until the toy came to pass.  He looks different than the figure on the box, too!  Want to know more?  Read on!

Gentle Giant is now taking pre-orders for the upcoming and very excellent Jumbo Rocket Firing Fett! Double that excitement in that the cardback is the classic Star Wars 21 Back "flamethrowing" version! Pre-orders are also being taken for the Jumbo Vintage Kenner Cantina playset, Jumbo ROTJ Gamorrean Guard, and Droopy McCool minibust.

The Clone Trooper Lieutenant is starting to finally trickle into stores, just in time for you to go "Didn't I get this in San Diego?" (Yes.)  It's still quite good, and as a repaint it's OK.  If yours has eyebrows, anyway.  Read on!

You can score some good deals in store and online at Target this week as all Battle Packs, including the new and awesome Darth Maul Returns exclusive, are on sale for $18.

So you want a Vintage Wampa. Do you just want everything reissued in a Vintage box at this point? How come reduced articulation didn't bring reduced prices in some SKUs? Well, tough to say. All this and vehicles await you in a regular installment of Q&A!

The K-Mart exclusive AT-ST Driver and Ewok 2 Packs are out! Our pal DarthChuckMc gives the heads up with some photos on his Twitter feed and Tom A. sends in a report from Peachtree City, GA.  Sightings have also been reported in Southern California.

The Target exclusive Darth Maul Returns Battle Pack in now IN STOCK online at Target.com for $19.99 each! Click here to order yours today!