A Millennium Falcon Transformer? Just Take My Money
As a kid the two coolest toy lines (and therefore the ones I owned the most of) were Star Wars and Transformers. A few others came and went (G.I. Joe was a bit of a distant third) but The Empire, The Rebellion and the original Robots in Disguise dominated both my imagination and my toy shelves during my early childhood. When both lines faded out I felt like I had lost close friends.
So imagine my nerd glee when I discovered that a Transforming Millennium Falcon will landing on toy shelves this June. That’s right, the Corellian freighter that completed the Kessel run in less than twelve parsecs will be able to transform into not one, but two iconic Star Wars characters. The Falcon will be able to split in two, with one half transforming into Han Solo and the other into Chewbacca. It will also come with mini figures small enough to fit into the cockpit.
This isn’t the first time the two mega-franchises have clashed. Hasbro (who owns the toy rights to both Star Wars and Transformers) put out a line of Star Wars Transformers in 2008. The line consisted of Star wars vehicles transforming into related figures and lasted until 2012. The Death Star, for instance, transformed into Darth Vader, there was an X-Wing that transformed into Luke Skywalker and an AT-AT (one of my personal favourites growing up) that transformed into a Stormtrooper.
That line also had a Millennium Falcon whose alternate mode was Han Solo and Chewbacca, and while designer Tomy Toys has been sparse on specifics separating the two, images of the new Falcon appear better proportioned. Collectors may also be hoping this new model is also more durable (the previous line was notoriously fragile and easily broken).
While the Millennium Falcon is currently the only new Star Wars Transformer on deck, a strong consumer response may encourage an entirely new product line (dare we say, just in time for next Christmas?), perhaps using vehicles and characters from the new movies. Then again, this may also be exploiting the Han Solo movie being released at the end of May (possibly just days before the new Falcon goes on sale).
Either way, you can expect it to receive tonnes of nerd love (or rage if it falls shy of expectations). Fans the world over are probably drooling as I type this, unconsciously reaching for their wallets.
The Transforming Millennium Falcon 2.0 will be available June of this year. Pre-orders are already available at bigbadtoystore.com and it will retail for at $130.00 U.S.
Image via bigbadtoystore
