I just picked up the Disturbance at Lars Homestead set from Toys "R" Us. The $49.99 gift set includes several pieces of plastic of varying quality-- I don't have time to do up pictures, but I can tell you what to expect from the set itself.
The action figures aren't terrible, but they break no new ground-- if anything, they're worse than previous incarnations. Uncle Owen seems to have some darker dirt on his limbs, but still keeps the waxy plastic face which could have been fixed up nicely. He has no accessories. The 1999 release of Aunt Beru was fondly remembered for including blue milk, a cup, and a droid. You'll find none of these here, and her face deco seems a little more askew and, overall, not as well executed as before. (I examined two samples.)
Thankfully, the rest of the figural components were decent. The Sandtrooper is basically a darker dirted version of the 2006 black pauldron edition, only this time there's no grenade or prod accessories. All you get is a blaster and a backpack, and when you consider the package art shows two Stormtroopers, that's a little weird. The Womp Rat is a solid piece PVC rodent with exaggerated teeth and a rat-like tail. It's pretty decent, honestly, but it doesn't register as more than a big accessory or maybe a half of a figure.
And how do the environmental pieces rank? Well, the homestead is a decent plastic with good paint, a nice little panel, and comes in a size that, while small, doesn't seem ridiculously tiny. It is, however, close. As an element of a background, it's great, and as a place for Jawas to live, it may be perfect. It just doesn't register as a particularly large or imposing piece, which one might hope it would for $50.
The saddest part of the set is the desert base itself. Made of what feels like a vac-formed plastic (similar to what you see in cheap Halloween masks), this feels downright fragile. If you pick it up, it feels like it could crack if left in the wrong conditions, whatever those may be. Considering this piece ties the set together, it really, really hurts. I was expecting it to be at least as sturdy as the bases in Kenner's various Hoth and Death Star playsets, but it doesn't make the grade. It certainly does cheapen the package, and made the set go from off-puttingly expensive to almost comically overpriced.
Finally, the set includes a moisture vaporator, a slight redeco of the one included with Luke Skywalker in the 30th Anniversary line. The decoration seems a little cleaner, but it's essentially the same nifty, large accessory you saw about a year ago. It's neat, and feels just as sturdy as the original. If you need extras of these, and are planning to buy this set anyway, you'll be happy with it.
The sum of its parts is, to say the least, disappointing. $49.99 for 3 old figures, 1 new creature, and 1 new environment doesn't sound terrible but when all the figures are missing many of their accessories and the newly tooled base is made of an incredibly cheap plastic, it's quite disappointing. I'd break it down like this, and keep in mind, this is being generous.
Beru figure - $5
Owen figure - $4
Sandtrooper figure - $6
Womp Rat - $4
Moisture Vaporator - $3
Hovel with Base - $14
TOTAL VALUE - $36
I know many say don't wait for clearance, and to support Hasbro's experiments into larger price points. But I think it's an item that, if you're trying to cut back, you should hold off for sales or a clearance.
