It's Time For The Retro Collection To End

 You have no idea how much it hurt to write that. I do like the Retro Collection, finding the entire Mandalorian wave in a store started me on a path to making additions to my very limited Kenner Star Wars era figures. But, yes, for all intents and purposes, and for the future of Hasbro Star Wars toys, Retro has to go.

Before I get into why it has to go, I'll go into what I have liked about the line. Getting the Mandalorian figures has been neat, more villains for Luke and Han to fight, while new allies like Din Djarin and Cara Dune to help them. This year, we got the ultimate Kenner era Darth Vader figure, one so good I'm putting my Kenner Vader in storage. Getting a new troop builder in the Deathtroopers is welcome because my Kenner Stormtroopers are all yellowed due to age, and I couldn't find any Retro Stormtroopers when that wave appeared and vanished in Target. Add other figures from Kenobi like Reva, the Grand Inquisitor and Fifth Brother and Luke, along with Ben Kenobi have some cool lightsaber battles ahead of them. Add Ahsoka Tano and the Jedi vs Sith battles can unfold!

But, that's the problem with Retro figures from new shows. Remaking Vader is simple. But Ben, Reva, GI & FB were all new sculpts utilizing the Kenner style. When that happens, it takes tooling money away from not only the Vintage Collection but the Black Series as well. It was fun to get Mando figures, not just one wave but two. A Kenobi wave made sense, but in all seriousness, when and where does it stop? Andor from what I've seen isn't what collectors would call "toyetic" aside from Cassian. Kids wouldn't want any ISB figure, or Mon Mothma. Collectors would, but I've seen many peg warmers in my time, and ISB figures have the word "Pegwarmer" written all over them.  Depending on how the Black Series Andor figures go, I don't see a Retro Wave but wouldn't be shocked if one is announced. No word on a Book of Boba Fett wave, which would be toyetic. Boba, Fennec, Black Krrsantan, all would make good Retro figures, no doubt.

But then what? With the 40th anniversary of Return of the Jedi and figures announced for that, the OT era comes to an end. But what else? Will the prequels go Retro? What about the sequels (actually I'm not opposed to that)?  What about the 2nd wave Droids figures? A Rebels crew for the 10th anniversary in 2024? While the VC and Black Series have 11 movies, new TV shows, etc. No shortage of material. Retro, IMO has only 1 era they can go, and that's the OT up to Mandalorian. I wouldn't mind Retro Kylo Ren/Ben Solo, Rey, Finn, Poe, FO Stormtrooper but that requires new tooling. Making a Retro Kenner Jedi Luke is simple: buy a Kenner one over eBay, take it apart and use push molds. Simple, and cheaper than making brand new molds. Okay, that probably isn't the way they make them but it wouldn't surprise me if they did.

But as I've pointed out, tooling budgets play a big role in who gets made. Hasbro has a limited one, which is why so few "new" figures are made. Hasbro has GI Joe (which they own), Transformers and Marvel along with Star Wars have tooling budgets they share. Like I said, making the OT film characters is easy. For Vader they gave him a new right arm and voila, a "new" Darth Vader. For making new characters outside the film era, you need new tooling which takes away tooling from the VC (something Hasbro admitted in previous live stream Q&A's).

Which is why the line MUST end. The global economy isn't going well right now, budgets are being cut, and not just by households. Companies and corporations who must answer to shareholders also have to do that. And Hasbro, Retro just doesn't pull its weight. It makes sense to let it end (check out all the Obi-Wan Retro figures clogging shelves at Wal-Mart and Target). It will make VC & Black Series collectors a little bit happier (not that they're ever happy), and take that tooling budget from Retro and put into the VC and give us worthy new Han, Luke, Leia and Ben Kenobi from A New Hope!