For collectors, casual buyers, and possibly even Hasbro, TLJ 5POA figures seem to rank pretty low on the desireability scale.  While vehicles and deluxe type offerings were generally a step above their predecessors for TFA and Rogue One, the basic figure line lacked pop appeal.  The designs were uninspired, and the colors were drab.  Many of the characters were very similar to their TFA counterparts.  There were a few standouts.  Paige was about as awesome as a 5POA figure could be.  R2-D2 was on par with a collector-grade offering, and Princess Leia Organa was a beautiful sculpt that probably benefitted from under-articulation.  But otherwise, the figures were rather lame, and there didn’t seem to be too many characters that fans were looking for, (even with low expectations for the line). 

One possible exception is Force Projection Luke.  When it was first leaked/reported that this Battle on Crait set was on the way, we probably were hoping for that Luke to be included.  Previous iterations of this format came with at least one all new and somewhat desirable figure.  The TFA Takodana set came with Maz Kanata, and the even better RO Jedha set came with Saw Gerera and Edrio Two Tubes.  This set comes with one all new character, but it’s an underwhelming choice, and the repacks/repaints choices are also fairly lame.

First, we get another Rey.  The only difference from the three that were already offered is that her boots have that pesky Crait salt on them.  Considering she was planetside for what seemed to be only a few minutes and didn’t do much in the way of physical activity, I don’t know why her boots are so dirty.  Beyond that, same Rey, same accessories.  Salty boots aside, this figure is very overplayed by now.

Second, we get another Rose, but it is a mostly new figure.  She’s got the legs from the FO officer disguise, but the rest is new.  The torso is a simple shirt, and there’s a removable poncho that is sculpted to allow arm movement.  And those arms have a surprise…the wrists are articulated.  7POA is less not OK than 5POA.  I do wonder why Hasbro opted for the wrist articulation for this character.  Anyway, Rose has a new headsculpt, although it is very similar to previous versions.  The paint application on the face is outstanding, with sharp eyes and lips, and the separately sculpted hair is nicely done.  One last bonus, Rose is wearing her half of the medallion she shared with her sister, Paige.  The figure comes with a small pistol, which Rose grips decently, but she has no holster, unfortunately. 

Third, we get another repaint of Hasbro’s favorite figure, the FO Snowtrooper.  This time, he has some grey stripes, and is designated as a walker driver (which seems to be a contradictory job title, but whatever).  It’s a lame choice for a repaint, but it was executed decently.  Not sure if this was ever on screen, as I don’t recall the inside of the walker cockpits being shown, so I just stuck him in that last photo inside the command ship, because, where the hell else is he supposed to be displayed?  Inside the imaginary AT-M6 we’ll never get?  (This would be a terrible HasLab project).  Maybe these troopers were with Kylo when he marched into the Resistance Base.  But then they’d just be walkers, not walker drivers, so that would be weird.

Fourth, we get the one all new character, the FO Gunner.  It’s not a bad figure, but it is dull.  The helmet design, through no fault of Hasbro, is strange.  The actual character in the film has a clear visor, but Hasbro opted for all black,  At least it’s not bright yellow.  The gunner has almost no paint applied, save for a silver belt buckle and a FO shoulder patch tampo.  He has a blaster, but sadly, no holster.

The set is okay, but could have been better.  Force Projection (younger) Luke would have been a superior choice to replace Rey, and if Hasbro really wanted to get freaky, they could have included a Resistance General Ematt, instead of the walker runner skipper punt pass kick driver pilot. Rose gets a 5 for the attention to detail, Rey gets a lazy 3.  The rest stay on par with the baseline.  The set gets a 4.