To celebrate May The 4th Be With You, Nerdist journeyed to Hasbro‘s special “lightsaber lunch” to check out their latest line of Star Wars toys, and speak with two of the masterminds behind them, Senior Principal Designer Mark Boudreaux and Andy Ochiltree Senior Manager Global Brand Marketing Partner. What all this means is we got some face time with some of the coolest new toys in the galaxy, and you can check out them out in gallery below!
As they guided us through the selection seen below, Ochiltree and Boudreaux spoke with passion about the stellar responsibility and honor they have in transforming the cinematic world of Star Wars into toys that allow fans to collect, play, and build out-of-this-world adventures of their own. And Bourdreaux has been doing just that since the first Star Wars line of 3.75 inch action figures back in 1977. With an awed expression, he recounted how he was still in college, working at Kenner toys when Vice President of Preliminary Design Dave Okada invited him and fellow designer Jack Farrah to watch a VHS tape that would change his life forever. It was a trailer for Star Wars: A New Hope, an upcoming movie for which Kenner was looking to make toys. The three toy developers were blown away by the trailer, and would go on to make iconic toys that would shape not just childhoods, but also movie lovers and movie makers for generations.
Both Boudreaux and Ochiltree take that legacy very seriously, developing toys from the original trilogy, the prequels, and the emerging franchise like The Force Awakens and Rogue One with an eye to pleasing grown-ups, collectors, kids, and anyone who just wants to bring the cinematic experience of Star Wars into playtime. That’s why they put such thought and detail into everything from the classic light-up light saber, to a new wave of action figures, interactive helmets, and the cutting-edge nerf-dart shooting, walking AT-ACTs from Rogue One.
But both of these long-time Star Wars fans were most excited about the nostalgic 6-inch vintage Black Series 40th Anniversary action figures. The 12-piece collection recreates the original Kenner line down to the box art. But the figures themselves are far more articulated than their ancestors, boasting finer sculpts and more detailed paint jobs. And Hasbro’s even rolled out a revival of the Legacy Pack, a staging area that comes with Darth Vader, and hearkens back to the placeholders Star Wars fans bought at Christmas to assure they’d get these hotly sought toys as soon as they hit the market that spring.
Naturally, we asked if these in-the-know toymakers might tip some details of the sure-to-be coveted toys that’ll hit this Christmas with Star Wars: The Last Jedi. But all we got in response were tight lips, and great big grins.
What’s your favorite Star Wars toy past or present? Tell us in comments!
Images: Kristy Puchko for Nerdist
