From our sponsors at BriansToys.com: The Star Wars Mission Series sets have arrived at Brian's Toys! Also new this week are new pre-orders for the Sideshow 12" Clone Troopers Echo & Fives and Gentle Giant Padme Amidala (Ilum) statue.

Our coverage will be starting fairly soon, so make sure to like our Facebook Page or follow us on Twitter for breaking news and photos inside the convention. The countdown begins!

Just in time for Comic-Con, here's our review of the Hasbro SDCC (and Celebration Europe) exclusive Black Series Boba Fett and Han Solo in Carbonite. Will collectors jump in to this new scale? Based on this piece, it's hard not to get excited of what's to come. Check out our review and photos after the jump, and check back tonight as our 2013 SDCC Preview Night coverage begins!

Here's more! Is it time to part with ten bucks? The 5-point-of-articulation experiment continues with a look at Hasbro's brand span-danker-in' new Star Wars 2013 Mission Series Battle Droid with 212th Battalion Clone Trooper Action Figures. If all you're after is one of each new mold, the Battle Droid and Clone are both repeated with different paint jobs elsewhere. And if you're looking for the best examples of each mold ever, these aren't them. They are decent vehicle pilots and the Clone stands up well - but are they worth army building, assuming they become available?

SEE! The pictures.
HEAR! Me speak in the video review.
READ! The review. Reading is fundamental!
Check it all out after the break. Because it's not like you're going to get much SDCC coverage until Wednesday anyway.

Want to know how to wipe off some yellowing from your Vintage 2010 Clone Trooper helmets and many 2002-2004 releases? I have discovered one solution! We also look at retro action figures, more anti-prequel sentiment and the usual stuff. Send in your questions for our next column - I can't guarantee next week due to SDCC, but it'll be soon, I promise! Read on for more!

Now in 2-packs! The 5-point-of-articulation line continues with a look at Hasbro's brand span-danker-in' new Star Wars 2013 Mission Series Anakin Skywalker with 501st Legion Clone Trooper Action Figures. Both figures are repaints of other figures sold individually, and Anakin has more than a couple of changes from the single carded release. The clone is, of course, much bluer than the other releases.

While not necessarily an essential release, it is different enough to warrant your attention. And as usual, we have a short video for those of you who gave up reading for Lent back in 1997. Click through for belt variations and more!

The experiment continues! The 5-point-of-articulation experiment continues with a look at Hasbro's brand span-danker-in' new Star Wars 2013 Saga Legends Obi-Wan Kenobi Action Figure. It's a corporate response to inflation, rising labor costs, and a shifting set of priorities in the world of toy retail, but it has one action figure lacking of previous figures.  Namely, it can sit in your vehicles without a fuss.

We're hoping to get a few more of these up before SDCC 2013, so please do read on and watch the video, too! As the great Jim Osterberg once said, "thank you for your kind indulgence."

How are you liking this format? Love it? Hate it? Can't stand my terrible voice? Let me know!

I'm trying a brand new review format today kids - below, find pictures, a written review, and a video for the new Star Wars Saga Legends R4-P17 Action Figure which literally showed up at my house about 9 hours ago.

...and yes, we do have comparisons of all 4 models of this figure so far, you lucky so-and-sos!

We hope you enjoy this experiment - we might not be able to do them all this way, but it covers a lot of bases!

Oh boy! You know we're excited because Funko revealed a Star Wars: Droids Boba Fett Pop! Vinyl Bobble Head as one of its 2013 Comic-Con exclusives! It will go on sale next week in San Diego, where you can buy yours if I don't get them all first.  See more after the jump.

Finally!  #7 in Star Wars: The Black Series is Greedo, which Entertainment Earth has revealed in full today in all of his 6-inch tall glory. He looks great, with big shiny eyes and an appropriately puffy costumes.  You'll want to see more after the jump.

If you like Star Wars, and you like pinball, you might want to know about Star Wars Pinball which has just been ported to the Wii U.  It's available to download today for $9.99.

Our sponsors at BigBadToyStore.com have posted their latest arrivals and pre-orders. Pre-orders are now being taken for the new Attakus 1/10 scale R2-D2, C-3PO, and Yoda statues. Click through for the full listing!

Released in stores today is Crucible, the new Star Wars novel from prolific author Troy Denning.  Taking place after the events in the last two major story arcs Legacy of the Force and Fate of the Jedi, this book focuses on Han, Luke, and Leia in what could be their final adventure (in this version of the expanded universe, anyway).  On this week's Star Wars Action News podcast Arnie sits down with Troy to discuss the impact of Episode VII on the existing Expanded Universe, his intents behind Crucible, and the Mortis trilogy's impact on Apocalypse.

Hasbro's been getting a lot of negative press lately, some of it legitimate. We recently received an e-mail from reader J. Cap that was quite refreshing that we had to post. Regardless of Hasbro's missteps in 2012 and what direction the toy company will take going forward, their customer service, at least in this case, was stellar and on point.

ToysRus stores are beginning to receive the new look "Lava Vader" branded Anakin to Darth Vader electronic figure and Class II vehicles featuring the repackaged Jango Fett Slave I and new Episode III Anakin Skywalker and Obi-Wan Kenobi Starfighters.