Today Target.com listed Star Wars The Black Series Commander Pyre and Star Wars The Black Series R5-P8!  Commander Pyre is a rerelease of the figure sold at the theme parks last year (see Commander Pyre, FOTD #2,622) and looks largely the same.  The multi-pack at Disney parks also included a MSE droid.   R5-P8 is a debut - and the 6-inch scale action figures are supposedly hitting stores on Sunday. 

Whatever you think he comes from, the design docs make sure Imperial Stormtrooper (The Mandalorian/Rogue One, The Black Series 6-Inch) covers a couple of bases.  It's a new mold! There's.... an unfinished head under the helmet? The articulation is closer to that of a very good 3 3/4-inch figure. And you  will want dozens.  Read on!

Is it accurate? I don't know! But my friend Phil hipped me to the return of the Star Wars The Black Series Phase I Clone Trooper Lieutenant page on Walgreens.com which comes complete with store tracking info.  I was in a store a couple of times over the last week and found one, once - but it was out of stock last night, and says "in stock" now.  Click here to check availability and if it's correct, who knows.

GameStop has a new pre-order up:  Star Wars Jedi: Fallen Order Scout Trooper The Black Series Action Figure Only at GameStop.  It's the one that came with the bike a few years ago, but with more gear and a higher price.

New pre-order notice:  Star Wars: Knights of the Old Republic Darth Nihilus The Black Series Action Figure Only at GameStop.  The 6-inch action figure is $24.99 and is due around October 26.  It includes a lightsaber and unlike most figures these days, has cloth elements.  Click here to see if you can still order one.

In "if this doesn't make you nervous, nothing will" news, Walgreens Exclusive Star Wars: The Black Series Clone Trooper Lieutenant!  This completes the Attack of the Clones quartet of ranking officers and is expected to be in stores next month.  (There are other non-Star Wars Hasbro exclusives coming too... but those haven't been announced yet.)  It's the repaint you expected, and a handy addition to your Clone gaggles.

GameStop got The Black Series Jedi Fallen Order Purge Trooper with Electrostaff!  Who's surprised? The last version sold out quickly and hopefully will show up again somehow, some day, for those who missed out.  This new version is up for pre-order now for $24.99.  (Protip: shipping is free when you buy 2. That's what I did.  You can trade it for the one you miss later.)

The Star Wars FX Emperor Palpatine Lightsaber - or Darth Sidious Lightsaber, really - is $249.99 and coming out later this year.  It's one of the fancier models, like the Darth Revan one due to ship pretty soon.  The lightsaber blade is indeed removable, and it includes a display stand.

You can order one at sponsor Entertainment Earth or affiliate, Amazon.

Coming soon to Target, Galaxy's Edge The Black Series 6-inch Captain Cardinal Action Figure.  Or "Who?"

The world is changing, and Star Wars fandom has quietly changed from the 1990s original-trilogy focused marketing to kids of the 1970s - which arguably peaked with Rogue One: A Star Wars Story - to an attempt to try to make it a franchise for all people.  Sometimes it works, sometimes it doesn't.  The young-skewing Resistance series just sort of got swept under the rug - and it feels like The Rise of Skywalker is joining it.   To promote the era of the First Order, there are lots of comics, lots of books, and a giant theme park experience that a lot of people just plain can't go see right now.  Captain Cardinal is part of that.  It's a new generation of fan, and one that the olds probably didn't have the time to read up on before being shown this shiny new figure.

Basically a red Stormtrooper in a cape, the figure has two blasters and even though I have not and probably will not read the novel from which he came, I can say it's a cool figure.  I'll buy a red Stormtrooper.  Heck, that's something I pushed hard to do a few years ago.  But I digress - Hasbro says:

You might recognize this one from a gift set last year.   Star Wars Galaxy's Edge The Black Series DJ R-3X seems identical to the gift set version [FOTD #2,618] except packaging and the other figures that are now missing from the box.  It's a nice droid - lots of deco, lots of moving parts, and it's colorful too!  I'd get it if you can.  It's $24.99.  Hasbro wrote:

Also not quite SDCC-exclusive are Pulse's pricey box set at $110.  Due in September, this Heroes of Endor figure set includes four figures, a Speeder Bike, and 6 accessories - or maybe more, it's hard to tell.   In it, we see Endor Poncho Luke, Leia minus the poncho - we're unclear if it's included at press time - Han Solo sans Endor Trenchcoat, and Paploo.  It's a curious combo platter, and we don't even know if the helmets are removable yet.

More information on Han's coat or Leia's poncho if and when we get it.  As of now, this is the only known place to get Paploo.  With Teebo sold separately, these mark the first 6-inch scale Ewok action figures in this line.

Here's what Hasbro has to say:

A few years ago, Hasbro sold a pretty good Wampa with a pretty good Hoth Luke for about $40.  It was a good deal.   This year, Hasbro will be selling a $30 Wampa in a closed box with a fifth panel as part of its not-SDCC Pulse drop in September.   Luke is not included, but the deco has been updated in a few places - his paws are painted, like Kenner's original toy.  (The previous 6-inch wampa's claws were painted.)  The wampa dropped the blood.  Also, the colors around the eyes are a little different.  I daresay it's better, which is good, because it's $30.

The figure is about as nicely articulated as a lot of the other 6-inch figures, and features no action mechanisms like the orignial's cord-powered arms.

Here's what Hasbro had to say:

GameStop is the new go-to for Star Wars exclusives with its  Star Wars: Bounty Hunter Jango Fett The Black Series Action Figure Only at GameStop.   (Thanks for the heads up, Hasbro PR.)  Pre-orders are live at $24.99 plus tax and shipping - and if you order two, shipping is free.  Click here to check availability.

As far as I know, this batch of 5 new figures is the final batch of this collection. (But hey, maybe more are coming!)   Pre-orders go live tomorrow, but Hasbro sent out press images today of Darth Vader (repack of 2020 Wave 1 Black Series figure), Boba Fett (seemingly reissue of the 2019 Archive figure but we'll see when it comes out), Chewbacca (seemingly the Amazon 2-pack figure with a bowcaster on new packaging), Luke Skywalker Dagobah (similar to the 2-pack with Yoda), and Snowtrooper (similar to previously released figure.)

Hasbro also sent along pictures of the Rebel Trooper (Hoth) figure which previously shipped in the 40th Anniversary wave 2.  It is expected to ship with The Black Series 2020 wave 2.  For those of you who don't have the figure, it includes two faces rather than two heads.  The faces are like masks which plug on the hat head, and you can store them inside the backpack so nothing is lost.  It's really clever on Hasbro's part.  If you have not previously bought one, get one - it's one of Hasbro's very best for this line.  (And they've done some good ones!)

All of these releases are due in the fall, but with COVID and everything release dates are subject to change.

The sliding scale of what is on- or off-limits under the Disney regime is tough - does a character being canon matter anymore?  Lucky for us, apparently not!   GameStop's 6-inch Star Wars: The Force Unleashed Shadow Stormtrooper The Black Series Action Figure is up for pre-order now, limit 1 per customer.  At $24.99 with no in-store pick-up option, it's not cheap for one of nearly a dozen figures to use or share this tooling.