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So a lot happened today. Indiana Jones V is (as far as we know) still set for 2021, but Disney has delayed and announced a ton of movies with a few still yet-to-be announced. Avatar 2 got pushed to 2021 with sequels every other year - so 2023, 2025, and 2027. For those keeping track, that means Avatar 2 will be out 12 years after the first movie. The time between Return of the Jedi and The Phantom Menace was 16 years.
3 unspecified Star Wars movies are now set for Christmas 2022, 2024, and 2026. Marvel movies from Fox are also getting delayed, or possibly retooled or buried. Click here for more from Variety.
Over at EW, you can preview Star Wars: Galaxy's Edge merch. The good news - there are custom droids. The very good news - I don't see any 3 3/4-inch scale stuff just yet. (I break out in hives trying to think of how to gather parts from those bins from one or more states away.)
One of the last new astromech parts we've seen, the R6-Series Astromech Droid White with Brown Markings (Droid Factory) brings you a dome with no matching body. That doesn't happen much. Read on!
The Disney takeover has resulted in more Hasbro-compatible toys at theme parks, like this year's ice sculpture-inspired Christmas robot R4-H18 (Droid Factory Line Look). It's a typical R4 unit cast in a clear white plastic, frosty with silver highlights and decorated with festive and removable drinks. It can't make use of the third leg and the drink tray at the same time, but that's how these things go. Read on!
Is this the worst action figure of 2018? Yes. The Disney Sandcrawler pack-in Jawa (Droid Factory Line Look) is clearly cobbled together from Hasbro parts someone cast and didn't resculpt over the joints. It's crude, and if you told me it was a bootleg I'd believe you. At least the droid is OK and the Sandcrawler is nice. Read on!
A Sandcrawler pack-in at Disney theme parks, the Gonk Droid (Droid Factory Line Look) has a pop-off chassis and jointed legs. It's very similar to the Hasbro one from a few years ago, down to sculpted joints that worked on Hasbro's but are ornamental here. Read on!
Disney theme parks have been selling an extra large $100 Sandcrawler, and now it's on ShopDisney.com. It's been popping on and off the web site, but it's there now. Check site for special offers, like free shipping. It's compatible with 3 3/4-inch Hasbro figures, and looks like it has two figures loosely copied from previous Hasbro designs. (Mine isn't here yet.) If you're in the market for a big vehicle and the Sail Barge is too long to wait for, go get one today.
This is a favorite. The R3-B0017 (Droid Factory Line Look) was from last year and, sadly, long gone - it tackles three favorite subjects of mine. One, it's a droid. Two, it glows in the dark. Three, it shoehorns something goofy in as an "off-camera" figure in the existing storyline - in this case, Dathomir during The Clone Wars. If you get a crack at this and are a fiend for glow-in-the-dark toys, you should get one. Read on!
New this year! The R4-B0018 (Droid Factory Line Look) may be at a Disney park (or an unrelated auction site) near you right now. It has a unique claw arm and a piece of candy corn - colored incorrectly, just like the robot. It's cute! It's charming! And it's a heck of a lot cheaper than last year's awesome droid, which we'll look at next week. Read on!
For the first time in ages, we have only one known Star Wars movie release date. Disney CEO Bob Iger talks about the possibility of having too many movies in THR's feature "Bob Iger Talks Disney's Streaming Service, 'Roseanne,' James Gunn and a Coming 'Star Wars' "Slowdown." A choice quote:
"I made the [annual Star Wars theatrical release] timing decision, and as I look back, I think the mistake that I made — I take the blame — was a little too much, too fast. You can expect some slowdown, but that doesn't mean we're not going to make films. J.J. [Abrams] is busy making [Episode] IX. We have creative entities, including [Game of Thrones creators David] Benioff and [D.B.] Weiss, who are developing sagas of their own, which we haven't been specific about. And we are just at the point where we're going to start making decisions about what comes next after J.J.'s. But I think we're going to be a little bit more careful about volume and timing. And the buck stops here on that."
One of the many figures you forgot existed and won't realize you don't have until 5 years from now, Disney's R5-232 (Droid Factory Line Look) can be bought right now. It has a new restraining bolt, but otherwise is just a fancy redeco of a mold you've had access to for quite some time. It's still one of the more interesting droids in this set based on Solo: A Star Wars Story. Read on!
The Solo 4-pack is pretty hit and miss with two fairly interesting robots and two that do not impress. The R2-S8 (Droid Factory Line Look) is my favorite in the set - not only is it black and white and red all over, but there's weird and colorful writing on the dome. It's good! You should get this one. Read on!
We were shown this on Twitter, and well, why not just show it to you? Here's this year's Halloween Disney parks droid R4-B0018. Thanks to @Jesse_James77 on Twitter for sharing in a tweet.
Because of the candy theme for this year’s Halloween droid at Disney, I’m predicting red white striped candy cane holiday droid! You heard it here first whenever it happens. It will happen.
