I got him! The phantom that made a man out of Kanan. Well, a Jedi Knight in a Star Wars Universe where that didn’t seem possible at that point in the story-line, which is pretty awesome in and of itself. You can watch a scene from that epic episode right here….
*For those who want to get a better understanding of who and what the Jedi Temple Guards were, check out this video from YouTube User the StuppendousWave, by clicking HERE. Tell ’em Jim sent ya 😉
Now… isn’t that the most bad ass piece of Star Wars you’ve ever seen? Well, outside of the showdown with Darth Vader between Kanan, Ezra and Anakin Skywalker’s former apprentice Ahsoka Tano. That was simply incredible. Oh, and Kanan’s battle with Maul. And… you know what.. I could go on and on … but I won’t. I’ve raved about the REBELS show for a long time now and it’s for these reasons. Great story with great characters. And with that said I will repeat myself on this one point: This is IMO the first new Star Wars in a very long time. I’m in no way knocking Episode 7 at all and most certainly not Rogue One which I find to be the BEST Star Wars movie to date, in regards to it being a fantastic MOVIE that HAPPENS to be set in the Star Wars Universe. But back to my point:
With REBELS, in my eyes, being the first NEW Star Wars in some time, I really connected with this show as a fan. And being a product of the original merchandising golden age of the 70’s and 80’s, I had to have the figures and ships. Too bad I was late to this party and revelation because the first issues get pretty pricey on the secondary market. Which is cool. I have no issue with supply and demand dictating price when it comes to vintage or out of circulation collectables. Now in regards to toy scalpers and hoarders, I still say they should be executed in a hardcore Darth Vader manner. Which leads to my next point and question:
How do you and how do you like to collect?
For me, the thrill was always in the hunt, pre-internet. Flea Markets, random junk shops and thrift stores, regular retail when the new stuff came out and before the “greedy toy mongers” raided everything and of course local comic book shops, when they still existed. But nowadays, it’s so easy to just “go buy it” online. Well, if you have the cash of course, but if you do, you can. I’ve done that plenty times over the past few years but it wasn’t very fun. It was a bit of a bummer really. So what I’ve opted to do is create a set of guidelines for my online hunting. The main one being price. It’s no secret to anyone who’s followed this blog at any point over the past decade that I’m a cheap guy who is a sucker for a sale. You can see that in my blind bag obsession series.
What this has done though, has put a challenge back into my collecting. And I like it. I do admit it took some time to develop the patience but thankfully, a line such as the Star Wars REBELS series has given me something to focus on and want. This Jedi Temple Guard has actually been on the list for a long time but there was no way I was going to pay the crazy money people were asking. So in the end I scored this guy via an eBay auction for $10 less than the best price I had ever seen. And that thrills me. Now there’s only one figure left of the existing releases I need: Grand Admiral Thrawn. And now I face the same old situation of figuring out where to buy him.
Thrawn if you don’t know, is part of the most recent wave of Rogue One figures that have been released, along with the REBELS version of Princess Leia. I’ve held out from just buying him and Leia online even though she was pretty cheap. Right at or just under MSRP with free shipping in many instances. My patience paid off however, as I did score Leia in the wild at a Walmart out of town from where I live. There was only one left and no sign of the Grand Admiral but it has encouraged me to keep looking, although the reality is It’ll probably never happen due to the really spotty releases from Hasbro and the apparent reluctance of retailers from ordering more Star Wars products since most places still have a glut of Force Awakens and Rogue One toys on the shelves. So, I’m going to hold out a little bit longer.
Now I pose the question to you; How and where do you buy your favorite little playthings? Ebay, Amazon, from a Facebook group or other online source. Or are you like me and establish guidelines for your purchases or trades? Speaking of trades, what’s your thoughts? I’ve made some fun one’s just for the sake of it. Like anyone I could use and would prefer cash but at the same time it’s nice to freshen up a collection AND make someone else really happy. Isn’t that one of the biggest aspects of this hobby? I know I think so. But more importantly I want to hear what your take. My inquiring mind wants to know.
P.S. If you do like to collect via online retailers (or don’t have many local options like me) do me a favor and click around the links here at the Toy Box and check out the cool stuff that Entertainment Earth has to offer. They have some really cool exclusives you can’t get anywhere else. Plus there’s always some cool sale going or free shipping offers. And when you do make a purchase it helps me earn some brownie points and hopefully do some more reviews for them. I do appreciate it a lot!
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