Why can't hasbro get R2-D2 right?

[Jargo]

Seems every time they upgrade or refresh the sculpt on R2 or an astro droid, they take one step forward and one step back. There's been advances that are cool like gettig his third optical doodad on the top of his dome or the little cables on his feet molded separately. non chrome domes. retractable middle leg. better detailed legs.

and then there's things that are never right like the panelling on the body. R2 doesn't have sunken body panels he has a smooth body and dome with grooves around the panels. hasbro never gets the shape right on the front manipulator arm covers (the blue bits under the dome) or the lightpipe which messes with the line of the dome and even without the lightpipe there's always a bump on the top where a lightpipe was originally sculpted. the colour of the blue is always always wrong.

we need a definitive accurate sculpt on an astro droid with all the fine details and moldings and bells and whistles and have all other astro droid molds destroyed. Simply re-use the one superior mold for all body needs and keep one good R2 dome, one R3 dome, one R4 and one R5 and just switch the head molds as and when required.

I'd the like them to utilise this new superior sculpt and create a pack of unpainted astro droid parts that you can put together and paint as you like. sort of like a droid factory playset throwback only without the poopyness of that set.

for those who want all these astro droids it would be a cool way to do it. assemble the body, pick the droid head and paint away til you got what you want. plus it'd be a neat way to get younger kids who like astro droids into creative activities without it being twee like most painting projects for kids are.

I know this is a bit of a rant/ mess but i was just looking at the flame burst flying R2 figure from the first wave next year and thought it looked really bad. besides how awful the paint deco is. the body is all wrong on that one again.

[Old Fossil]

I KNOW. I'm actually still using my Bar-2-D2 for my "R2 on display" figure. I never got the Saga Hoth R2 with the shiny chrome dome, though that sculpt is arguably superior to the one I have.

And I'm gonna pass on the flame-burst R2 next year. Never liked the concept of a "flying" R2 much...

[JediTricks]

Yeah, I've been campaigning for a more accurate R2 for a while now, the gap between the body and the legs, the panels, the dome elements, they're never right. The closest thing we've gotten is the VOTC figure, it looks better with weathering a la the Hoth repaint, but is still far from right.

[Luuuuuuke]

If they came out with perfect R2 people would probably stop buying the imperfect ones that came after. So Hasbro would make less money.

Nah, even I don't believe that But you would think a little astromech droid would not be so hard to do right.

[JediTricks]

I think they started with a flawed concept - the POTF2 version - and never wanted to move away from that, so it's taken them a very long time to slowly change 1 little thing at a time to get it to where it is now. I really don't understand why they could get friggin' 2-1B right in 1997, FX-7 right in 2001, yet the most popular droid in the whole saga is still wrong.

[2-1B]

I liked the '95 version, I was just glad to get one that didn't have a sticker on it.

[Mad Slanted Powers]

For me, I prefer to have one with a retractable middle leg. I was just going through them now and it seems the ones that have that are the Commtech version, Episode I version, and the Saga bartender version. What they need to do is repaint R4-P17 or R4-G9 to look like R2-D2.

[pbarnard]

What they need to do is repaint R4-P17 or R4-G9 to look like R2-D2.

That sounds like Hasbro's plans according to the Q&A's for next year.

I also like all with the retractable or removable 3rd leg. I don't mind the vac-metal finish on most of them either. The little it has been done a lot and given a lot of variation to his sculpt and some have worked better than others.

[Jargo]

even those sculpts are not right. though it's mostly the body that's wrong. I can see why hasbro would sculpt the figure with recessed panels, on something so small it makes it visually more interesting. but considering the attention to detail on other figures to achieve accuracy a flat body with the panel lines etched in rather than recessed panels should be even easier to sculpt. for me it's kind of like the original vehicle molds that had the panel lines as ridges. it just looks so wrong.

certainly keep the legs as they are. they're fine. just a bit of retooling on the dome and body and he'll be perfect. And getting the colours right too. And then use that sculpt for all astro droids.

something else I'd like to see is a sculpt where the front of the body is removable and you can then atach different body fronts with different tool attachments sculpted on. Same with the dome. plug in accessory tools leave holes in the sculpt and ruin the aesthetic. whereas if the whole body front came off from seam to seam it wouldn't really affect the overall look no matter which front piece you were using. or which dome you were using.

And if you think about it in ters of a deluxe/boxed set you could have one astro droid with all the different body panels and domes which if taken in conjunction with my paint your own astro droid idea, seems like a cool idea.

Four distinct astro droid heads (R2/R3/R4/R5).
One body with complete back and missing front panel.
One body front with all panels closed.
One body front with all panels open and all tools deployed.
One body front with a couple of panels open and computer interface arm and pincer arm deployed.
One set of normal legs
One set of legs with flight jets deployed.
One third leg.

have all the pieces be plain white plastic. Include a pamphlet with different astro droid colour schemes clearly illustrated. Plus a guideline on what sort of paints to use.

And if you consider that hasbro has as it's mascot a potato you can customise, I can't see why this wouldn't sit well with the company ethos or the line that star wars is part of boys toys and it's a customisable robot we're talking about. It's also something creative and involves hand eye co-ordination, imagination and ultimate satisfaction when you create the droids you want.

And it allows I suppose for further enhancements if there were to be a set that was battle damaged. Sure it means if you buy multiple sets you'll end up with lots of spare droid heads but at least you have a choice as to which head you use with which droid body. endless combinations are possible. a different droid each day.

yeesh I'm a crap salesman.

I want this set now.

[JediTricks]

For me, I prefer to have one with a retractable middle leg. I was just going through them now and it seems the ones that have that are the Commtech version, Episode I version, and the Saga bartender version. What they need to do is repaint R4-P17 or R4-G9 to look like R2-D2.

1995's POTF2 R2-D2 had a retractable leg. I like the ones with articulated ankles, that's usually a sign they're giving half a crap, and most of them have retractable middle legs as well. The Ep 1 figure actually doesn't have a retractable leg, it goes in about a fifth but then stops.

That sounds like Hasbro's plans according to the Q&A's for next year.

Except they're giving it a wonky paint job to ruin the effect, it's the one with the flames coming out in January.

I also like all with the retractable or removable 3rd leg. I don't mind the vac-metal finish on most of them either. The little it has been done a lot and given a lot of variation to his sculpt and some have worked better than others.

I don't understand what you mean about the vac-metal, "the little it has been done a lot"?