Tis the season for randomly marked-down products!  Walmart has marked down their Ultimate Gift Sets for Star Wars as well as Transformers and Beyblade, but prices vary by store-- the $30 sets were as little as $15 in my neighborhood, which is a steal given you get 5 figures in the set.

This is the Yoda which was delayed from 2010.  It's... well, it has a lot of articulation, but is it worth ten friggin' bucks?  Probably not, but read on!

Hi - Here is a quick update from http://www.bigbadtoystore.com about Hasbro's 2012 Star Wars lineup as well as our last sale of the year.

Ad: After many months of waiting, new Hasbro Star Wars Pre-Orders are listed. New vehicles! New action figures! New Clone Wars! New Fighter Pods! There's so much new, it'll just make your head spin.  Click through for pricing, availability, and highlights.

It's R2-D2, the way you always wanted him... as a reindeer.  This 2002 exclusive was in short supply, but thanks to the collective short attention span of modern collectors he's cheap again!  Rejoice, and read on!

Brian's Toys wishes a Merry Christmas and safe holidays to all! For this week's newsletter, check out new products from Sideshow, Gentle Giant, and Hasbro.  Pick up the Wicket the Ewok mini bust, the 12" Vintage Jumbo Death Squad Commander, or the complete set of G.I. Joe Wave 4 Renegades.

This 2009 Han Solo gave us the figure with a stormtrooper belt, helmet, and armor for some reason.  Well, it's still a decent figure, but getting his head right seems to be dang near impossible.  Read on!

Happy Holidays from BBTS! - Here is a quick update from http://www.bigbadtoystore.com about a huge list if new preorders and new arrivals:

There are two Silver R2-D2 figures.  One was a vac-metal sold carded based on the 2000 Power of the Jedi figure mold.  The second was a Saga Collection figure in a UK-only boxed set with a matte finishe, based on the Vintage 2004 mold.  The set was pretty tough to get in the USA... but now you don't need to get it.

Ad: It's time for the Entertainment Earth After Christmas Clearance Sale! (Yes, we know it's early.) Over 1,000 items are on sale for amazingly low prices. Get great prices on Star Wars, including Gentle Giant, Hasbro, Attakus, and more... including action figures and statues, plus enjoy free shipping on in-stock orders over $99. If that weren't enough, new Gentle Giant shipments and the LEGO Star Wars Character Encyclopedia with exclusive Han Solo arrived this week! As always, click through for pricing, pictures, and availability.

He's green now! The second attempt on R2-X2 seems to be the "official" one thanks to some bunghole suggesting the 2006 release be black. Ah well. Whose fault do you think that was? I sure don't know.  Anyway, read on!

Welcome to day 1,700 of Adam Held Hostage with Lumiya, a figure I assumed would never, ever see plastic.  I'm thrilled she exists, but did the Marvel villain turn out acceptably?  Read on!

Jabba's Palace is just one of several new sets coming to LEGO in a 2012 preview over at Hoth Bricks, a French fan site.  Preliminary packaging mock-ups are shown and these are presumably legit-- we'll know more in February for Toy Fair! Read on!

Ahhh the Battle Droid Commander.  The token repaint of a decent mold, this guy also includes binoculars which make it just a little more different.  Should you get one for your tanks?  Read on!

RANCHO OBI-WAN (ROW), home of the largest privately held Star Wars™ collection in the world, is now a California nonprofit corporation whose purpose is to serve the public through the collection, conservation, exhibition, and interpretation of Star Wars memorabilia.

Fans can now play an active part at Rancho Obi-Wan by getting memberships, taking tours, planning events, and making donations. “The best part of Star Wars for me has been getting to meet and become friends with thousands of enthusiastic fans all over the world,” says collection owner, Steve Sansweet, who is President and Chief Executive Officer of Rancho Obi-Wan, Inc. “The saga has become a multigenerational touchstone of popular culture worldwide, and one role of the museum and its outreach program is to show how that happened.”