Nomadscout Reacts To SDCC ‘26 And Stuff!  (Part III !)

More ramblings from me. Yay for everyone!

A few weeks ago I wrote a reaction article to the SDCC reveals, along with some brief thoughts on The Mandalorian & Grogu. I felt pretty positive about the whole affair, although apparently from some of the comments it seems it didn't come across that way. Then this past Monday I wrote a rather lengthy complaint about Hasbro seemingly polling (trolling?) the community about questions that have no business being asked at this point. My format was tongue-in-cheek, but the frustration was real. Now I'm going to discuss something that I feel is a huge positive, which makes me very happy about TVC next year.

Before I move on to "Part III" of my Post-SDCC brain droppings, I do want to address something about the Asajj/Anakin pack. As I wrote Monday, my complaint centered around Hasbro's choice to use the alien, all-white eyes from the highly stylized Microseries. This was her first appearance to the world, and it's burned into many fans' brains. Years later, her (still animated) on-screen appearance was updated in TCW to give her more human eyes. Even before the Disney reset, TCW and other sources contradicted much of what was seen in the Microseries. For such reasons, in my own head-canon, I had dismissed the Microseries as an alternate telling of the "real" events of The Clone Wars. For the record, I LOVED the Microseries (and still very much do), but for the sake of canon appearance, TCW wins out for me. Do I think the white eyes are a better look for the character? Yes, I do! Nevertheless, her TCW appearance trumps her TCW appearance to me, so the white eyes don't work, and therefore her SDCC figure does not count as a truly realistic interpretation of the character. It falls in the same category as the 212th figures from the 4 pack. Close, but not realistic enough. However, please know that I'm sure I will still like these figures once in hand, I just wish she had irises and pupils. Of course, we'll never really know what she is meant to be until Assaj appears in live action (portrayed by someone other than Kiwi Man).

Okay, on to Part III...

I feel very strongly positive about this. I have been beating the drum (I'm sure I'm not alone) that the Haslabs need continuous annual support. If I'm going to shell out $350-$500 for a single item (and without fail I have bought multiples of every Haslab), I expect it to be a centerpiece of my collection that immediately knocks my socks off and levels up my current display. But just as importantly, it should serve as a constant focus for Hasbro to continuously expand, update, and improve upon over the years. Buying The Barge shouldn't be a one-and-done experience. I expect it to be the reason for Hasbro to give me all the glups from the skiffs and the barge - and probably the palace, too - within a reasonable amount of time. Not 40 years, but maybe a few years. You know, so that I can fully enjoy my investment before I'm dead. While there has been the occasional supporting release beyond the initial campaign halos, Haslabs have been woefully short-served over the years - and believe it or not, it's been 8 years since The Barge launched the Haslab concept. Aside from the mostly glorious Jabba's Denizens 4-pack, there has been little, aside from an update or two to an existing figure, to expand upon the Barge. Similar lack of attention has been provided to the other 3 TVC Haslabs that have already delivered. We have a 4-pack coming for the Cantina, which is good - although the figure choices therein aren't great, in my opinion.

I've not only written about this multiple times here, I've also penned strongly worded emails to Hasbro insisting that they meet my demands! I even hired a plane to fly a banner in the skies over Hasbro HQ, letting them know how I feel. But seriously, I have brought this up at every opportunity I have to personally interact with the Brand Team. During " title="Victoria SDCC26" target="_blank">Victoria's interview at SDCC, Brandon stated this:

All of it is in direct answer to the community's calls: "We've backed 5 Haslabs, we've supported so much, Hasbro please do your part to fill out these worlds, rather than giving us more worlds to fill out." Let's focus on what we've already given you. The Barge, The Razor Crest, The Ghost, The Cantina, The Gunship - every single one of those centerpieces of your world-building heritage scale will have support in '27.

For me personally (and on behalf of those that agree that Haslab support is the way to go), I feel heard! This is a big step to making our investment in the line feel worthwhile. Brandon's statement sums up my feelings quite well. If they want me to continue to dump absurd amounts of cash into each Haslab, I need a commitment from Hasbro that I'm going to be properly rewarded over time. And, at least for 2027, that's something I can look forward to.

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