JAXXON THE STAR WARS SPACE BUNNY

One of Star Wars oldest characters who apparently been in carbonite hibernation after George Lucas took a disliking to him has recently made a comeback. Jaxxon, a space bunny-style alien, initially appeared in Star Wars #8 (1978) as part of the first story arc following Marvel devoting the initial issues of the comic book series to the official movie adaption of A New Hope. Teaming up with Han Solo and Chewbacca in a number of misadventures, Jaxxon was one of the first characters to join the Star Wars galaxy expanding upon those in the 1977 movie.

A Lepi smuggler and mercenary from the planet Coachelle Prime, Jaxxon captained the starship Rabbit's Foot. Piloting a ship prone to breakdowns, Jaxxon often finds himself stuck in spaceports looking for trouble to either barter or pay for needed repairs. In his Star Wars comic book debut, Jaxxon is recruited to help protect a nearby village from bandits known as the Cloud-Riders and as well as a gigantic roaming monster known as the Behemoth from the World Below. Jaxxon added some looniness with Bugs Bunny-style quick witted humor to stories and appeared in a number of the early issues of Marvel's original Star Wars comic book series.

After being featured in Star Wars comic book issues 8-11 & 16, Jaxxon disappeared! George Lucas thought the character created by Howard Chaykin was too goofy and a blemish on the Star Wars image. So, he put a kibosh on the character. Ironic coming from the creator and number one proponent of Jar Jar Binks! Maybe Jaxxon instead of being overly silly was just ahead of his time.

A little bit of silliness though is just what IDW Publishing was looking for when it came to producing a comic book series called Star Wars Adventures aimed at tween aged readers. Nearly forty years after he disappeared, Jaxxon made a return. In addition to exploits in Star Wars Adventures, Jaxxon also joined in on the hijinks of IDW Publishing's Halloween themed Ghosts of Vader's Castle mini-series. Marvel even hopped in on giving Jaxxon a second chance by including him in a humorous variant cover in the first issue released after Marvel regained the comic book publishing rights for the brand paying homage to the character's role in the first ever original Star Wars story published.

To celebrate Lucasfilm's 50th anniversary, Hasbro even created an action figure of the six-foot tall, green-furred Lepi known for his wise-cracks and karate kicks. The toy comes packaged in a box with artwork inspired by Jaxxon's appearances in Star Wars Adventures comic books. It is part of Hasbro's 1:12 scale Black Series collection of Star Wars action figures. I couldn't resist picking up one of these Jaxxon action figures for myself.

What do you think is next in store for Jaxxon? An appearance in The Bad Batch animated series of The Mandalorian live action television show? His re-emergence in Marvel's comic book series? I'm looking forward to seeing more of Jaxxon now he has returned to the Star Wars galaxy.

BOBA FETT EE-3 NERF BLASTER

With a renewed focus on the Star Wars universe's most notorious bounty hunter due to the Disney Plus show THE BOOK OF BOBA FETT, Hasbro has created a Nerf blaster that I'd be so geeked to get my hands on. Modeled after Boba Fett's EE-3 weapon it is meticulously detailed to capture the look of the blaster as it is seen on the Disney Plus live-action Star Wars series. The only difference is this Nerf version fires foam darts instead of plasma bolts. 

The Star Wars Boba Fett EE-3 Nerf Blaster includes 3 drums, each with 4-dart capacity, so you can switch them out to reload Nerf Elite darts. This 30-inch Nerf blaster also has an electronic scope with an illuminated lens and makes series-accurate blaster sound effects. It comes fully assembled in premium packaging that is designed for displaying. 

To fire a dart, load a drum, prime, and pull the trigger. Simple as that! This will be so fun to play around with, especially if you are donning a Star Wars Black Series Mandalorian helmet while hunting your prey.

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Walgreens Looks to be a Player in the Toy Arena

When I think of WALGREENS what comes to minds is filling my children's food allergy epi-pen prescriptions or picking up some cold medicine.  I'd never really though of the pharmacy as a place to go toy shopping, but Walgreen's is working to change that impression as it becomes more of a player in the growing arena of market challengers to Toys-R-Us.  This fall, Walgreens will be enticing toy shoppers to their stores with 2 exclusive action figures from the Star Wars and Marvel brands.

A Boba Fett action figure from Hasbro's popular 6" Black series collection will be sold exclusively in Walgreen's toy aisle.  This isn't just a generic action figure based upon a popular Star Wars character though, this toy is designed based upon the original Ralph McQuarrie concept art for Boba Fett that has the bounty hunter clad all in white, rather stormtrooperesque I would say, that was big enough news to warrant an announcement and rather detailed post on the official STAR WARS website.

Looking at this promo pic of the upcoming Ralph McQuarrie concept art Boba Fett action figure, I have to say "impressive, most impressive."  The actual price and launch dates for this Walgreen's Hasbro 6" Black Series exclusive haven't been announced yet but expect it to be around $20 and out around mid-September / October like the other toys in this lineup.  This will absolutely be a popular pickup for both children and adult collectors so keep your eyes peeled for it if you are interested in it as they will probably sell out quickly.

Joining Boba Fett this Fall on Walgreen's store shelves will be Marvel's Agent Venom which will be an exclusive action figure from Hasbro's Marvel Legends Infinite Series.  This is another 6" line of action figures from Hasbro based upon Marvel's comic book and movie superheroes.  Agent Venom is the bad guy alien symbiote that attached itself and took over control of Spider-Man's body for awhile in the comics and movies.  Venom has been taken over by a special agent for the U.S. government named Flash Thompson who is trying to use the symbiote as a tool for special ops missions.  This looks like a pretty cool toy too!

These six inch action figures are becoming more popular because the size allows for increased articulation, details, and durability compared to the three inch sized figures that most people associate with action figures but aren't as lanky and awkward as Barbie styled dolls (and the original GI Joes from the 60s & 70s)...plus they can command a higher price point at the cash register.  Walgreen's partnership follows recent exclusive offers from Todd MacFarlane Toys that included action figures from the Assassin's Creed & Halo video games and The Walking Dead television show.  So now that Walgreen's is drawing in consumers with "action figures" will they start branching out to other types of exclusive toy offerings? Will we see an increased toy area at stores?  Like these upcoming Star Wars and Marvel toys we'll just have to wait and see.

 DISCLAIMER:  My son bought me a Hasbro 6" Black Series Stormtrooper for Father's Day that I keep displayed on my desk...and I think it is pretty cool!