“They're no match for Droidekas”
Considering the depth of the Star Wars Black Series and the Clone figures released to date, the opposing Separatist forces have not been as lucky with figures. Up to 2023 we only had B1 Battle Droids to choose from. But late 2023 and 2024 are now providing to be a bumper year for Separatist Droids with the arrival of the MagnaGuards, the Super Battle Droids, and now the Droideka Destroyer Droid.
The Droideka arrived in June 2024 and is a Deluxe release in the Black Series, exclusive to both Amazon and Fan Channel retailers. It arrives in the slanted side packaging and is aligned with releases from The Phanom Menace and using the yellow colour scheme and side artwork. While most Deluxe releases are a standard depth but are widened across the front to include the larger character or contents, the Droideka is the first Galaxy Collection release to see the depth widened to twice that of a standard figure to incorporate the larger footprint of the Droideka and to avoid the need for any assembly. The Destroyer is only the fourth Galaxy Collection release from The Phantom Menace and is numbered accordingly with the artwork connecting directly to Padme Amidala.
The design of the Droideka is a difficult one to replicate in figure form as seen across the history of the Hasbro figure lines. For the Black Series, the team have followed the usual principles of Droideka design with the circular dome reactor housing base leading up into a complex central spine onto which are connected the weapon arms at either side and the upper dome. The dome, circular base, and a couple of supporting panels are cast in a deep pearlescent burgundy as seen on screen, while the rest of the figure is predominantly a dull grey. Despite the complexity of these mechanical fixings, the inclusive wiring and the jointed sections there is no wash or metallic finish applied which would have enhanced the figure no end. In fact, the only paintwork visible is on the front sensory antennas which are painted silver and black with a red sensor, and a handful of smaller silver sections around the arms and legs.
Our Droideka stands at the same height as most 6-inch figures, accurate to their onscreen proportions, and therefore perfect for display across any era of the Prequels. Hasbro have created a 6-inch Droideka previously back in 2000, and this Mega Figure is comparable in both size and design as the new Black Series version with the Black Series perhaps edging it on stability and articulation.
The articulation is difficult to measure, but I have found around 24 joints throughout the droid's body, some of which have been enhanced with metal pegs to support what is quite a precarious design. The three legs are all jointed in two places and again with a final pivot where they connect to the domed reactor section. From here the spine piece has a couple of joints to adjust the stance and height as well as a pair of hinged panels that can extend out or fold in.
The arms appear to have a joint where they connect to the central body but don’t move within this joint. They are then joined at two further joints down the length of the arm with a clever piston movement seen on the elbow, as well as with flexible wiring that moves with the joint. The upper carapace moves marginally within a clipped hinge that holds it in place, while the front section can be moved more extensively on a very tiny ball joint.
This articulation allows you to vary the Destroyer in a number of positions particularly by splaying out the feet or bringing them inward and by adjusting the gun arms to varying firing positions.
Hasbro did market this Droideka as being able to achieve the rolling travel position, with some photos of the Destroyer in that pose shown with the initial marketing. The release itself does not come with any instructions or clarity on how to make those changes. With some trial and error - and the help of a few YouTube videos - there are a couple of semi-folded options that can be achieved. These are done by folding in the main spinal section, unclipping the carapace and moving that forward, and then pulling out the ‘head’ via an extending pivot. The arms are the main issue as these do not want to, or have the room to fold inwards, but overall a form of ‘Rolling’ travel position is possible, albeit more aligned with the Droid just starting to fold up or unfold ready for battle.
The Droideka is an imposing-looking design, replicated well enough into the 6-inch Black Series but perhaps missing a level of paint application on the exposed workings to give it some added realism. The Articulation works sufficiently for upright posing, but by trying to incorporate a rolling position there are some joints that are perhaps unnecessary in the long run but that do pose a risk of deterioration - an issue that plagued the original Mega POTF2 release leaving some of them (I have two to compare) unable to support their gun arms or upper dome and carapace. So far my Black Series Destroyer is just about holding its poses, but I can already feel a looseness in that upper body and see a sag here and in the arms despite the metallic joints. This feels like a release that has tried to do too much and not done any of what it set out to achieve brilliantly.
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About Me : As a child of the 70's and 80's I grew up in a golden age for action figures and in my youth bought and sold myself through collections of Star Wars, G.I. Joe (Action Force) and M.A.S.K. while also dabbling in He-Man, Transformers and Ghostbusters. Roll forward and I am now reliving that Youth with the action figures of today and am a collector and fan of the larger 6-8 inch figures from my favourite movie and TV licences - including the ones mentioned above, but also the Marvel Cinematic Universe, Doctor Who and the Aliens. I launched The Mephitsu Archives in 2015 with a view of creating a UK focused site or these figures where fans can pick up the latest action figure news, read reviews and get information on where to buy their figures and what is currently on store shelves. I hope I am delivering that to you guys...