Funko Smuggler's Bounty - 40th Anniv

What better way to wrap up a week celebrating Star Wars' 40th Anniversary than the Funko Smuggler's Bounty which happens to have the 40th Anniversary as its theme?

This was the largest box by far, and you'll see why. I was going for the opening crawl effect with the box photo, can you tell? There's usually an info card in the box that tells you about the items and what the next theme will be but my box didn't have one. I don't know if it got left out or if they stopped doing it.

The traditional Funko box pin and patch. X-Wing Luke looks a little...weird? Maybe he's talking to Obi-Wan's ghost.

Funko has a track record of debuting new types of items in their boxes. I'm not sure if this is one of them (because I didn't get an info card) but it's definitely the first Funko wristbands I've seen. Yep, they sure are wristbands that say Star Wars.

See if you're going to Funko-ize something, this is how you do it! I don't know about leaving these two characters on my dining table though, they might get into some shenanigans.

Who shot first, salt or pepper? Wrong! 

The correct answer is no one shot first. 

Han shot. 

End of story.

And here's why this box was so large! Not a Dorbz Ride but a full on Pop Ride Luke in his Landspeeder. I really wish I had a work space where I could put this out. It's just so much fun to look at! The used clear plastic rods to give it a hover effect.

The paint job is great. Not only the weathering but also in the detail on the exposed engine. And check out the ripples in the sand. Of course I can't look at this and not think of the original Landspeeder toy with its pop-up hood.

Well, that's it for the Funko Smuggler's Bounty for me. I've been wanting to cancel my subscription for awhile but every time I see the next theme I think "How can I stop now?" The next one is droids, not that I don't love droids! I just don't have the space to keep piling up all the boxes of stuff.

So May the Force Be With You, Smuggler's Bounty. 

I'm sure our paths will cross again in the future.

Funko Smuggler's Bounty - Rebels

Seems like this was some good timing on Lucasfilm's and Funko's parts as the box arrived just a couple days before the Rebels season finale aired.

Despite the box reminding me in huge letters that the theme is Rebels, it took me a minute to figure out the character is Ezra. Maybe it's because this is a look from a couple seasons ago.

Awesome! The patch and pin are my two favorite main characters: Zeb and Sabine!

A very cool shirt featuring the entire crew of the Ghost. Totally digging little Pop-ified Zeb baring his teeth but still very cute.

This was an extra long box which means extra figures!

Just like the Vader Hikari figure from the Rogue One box, this figure of Chopper is a few inches tall. Subscribers got one of a handful of random colors. I would have preferred an orange one because he's more associated with that color. It's not as transparent as it looks, I lit him up to show off his details. The foot in the bottom right is a better representation of what he looks like under room lighting.

Funko has started revealing an exclusive from each of their sub boxes in advance and for this one, it was Maul. I have to admit I wasn't thrilled about it. While it was fun to see him make a come back in the series, there are other characters I would have liked to see. But, having it in hand, it's a great looking Pop!

On the flip side of that coin, I was like a kid on Christmas when I saw Rex! He's been a favorite of mine since the animated Clone Wars series began way back when. I was genuinely excited to see him come back in Rebels so having this Pop be a surprise was amazing.

And that wraps up the penultimate Smuggler's Bounty post. I say every post it's going to be my last one and then they announce the next theme and I get pulled back in. Next theme? Star Wars' 40th Anniversary. How can I say no to that?

Funko Smuggler's Bounty - Death Star

I could have swapped this with the Monthly Movie Recap to put it closer to the end of the month but today is my birthday (yay me!). I'll be spending the day at Disney's Hollywood Studios, riding Star Tours a ton, meeting Chewie and Kylo Ren, and catching the Star Wars fireworks show. #notsohumblebrag So you can see how this is appropriate.

That's no moon, it the Funko Smuggler's Bounty Death Star box!

Well, it's got us caught in a tractor beam, we might as well see where it takes us.

Now that's quite a welcoming committee! These patches almost make me wish I had a denim vest so I could put them all over it. Of course the front would be covered in the pins.

I really like that they started including these cards in the boxes. They cram a lot of info on them about the contents. Like the fact that this is the first ever Funko luggage tag. It's just in time for my Disney trip and I've got the perfect Stormtrooper carry bag to attach it to!

I would have been packing this shirt for the trip but as with most sub box shirts, it doesn't really fit. Remember back when you got a t-shirt and the size was the size when there were no "fits"? Yeah, I miss those days.

If you were checking out that info card above, you noticed this is the first of two exclusive Funko Pop Vinyl figures in this box. If you're doing Death Star as a theme, I think Vader is a no brainer but this is clearly a Bespin "Join me" Vader. It may not fit thematically, but it's a great Pop! Now if I only had the con exclusive Luke with missing hand.

If you thought you detected a foul stench at the top of this post, you weren't wrong! Here's the real star of the box: Grand Moff Tarkin. The info card mentions how this is the first time Funko has deviated from the standard round human head shape to recreate Cushing's cheekbones. Charming to the last.

Not only did they replicate the "throat lozenge" badge but they also go the little silver data sticks in his pockets (the things that look like pens). They're hard to see on the Pop, but I can assure you, they are there!

That about wraps it up for this Smuggler's Bounty box. There's still time to get your order in for November's box which is Rogue One themed. They're already showing off the two exclusive Pops that will come in that one. You can check them out and subscribe at the Smuggler's Bounty site.

Funko Smuggler's Bounty - Bounty Hunters

I look at May the 4th as the modern commercial Christmas equivalent of Star Wars days. Companies have special products and sales to celebrate. But to me, today is the true Star Wars day! The original movie was released 39 years ago today and the world was never the same. I truly cannot imagine what my life would be like without it. It's helped me meet awesome friends and my wife and I might never have met without it.

So Happy Birthday, Star Wars!
And now back to your regularly scheduled post...

Some people root for the Rebels, some people egg on the Empire, but others appreciate the bad -assery of bounty hunters! Playing with my Star Wars figures as a kid, the aliens and bounty hunters were always the coolest ones. Because they weren't the main characters, we knew nothing about who they were so there was no preconceived limit on how to play with them. A lot of my cantina alien figures wound up being bounty hunters for Jabba. But that's enough waxing nostalgic, let's check out the box!

So I finally decided to decipher the Aurabesh on these things. The pins always say Smuggler's Bounty, which makes sense. I tried to translate the Boba patch but was having a hard time matching the letters so I gave up. It's still a pretty cool patch.

We got a great shirt this month featuring most of the bounty hunters. For some reason, poor Dengar gets the short end of the stick and was not included on the shirt. Just because he looks like he's got toilet paper wrapped around his head is no excuse!

IG-88 is the first of two exclusive Pops this month and he might just be one of my favorite Pops of all time! You can't really tell from the photo but his eyes look really cool the way they stick out. Actually, I'm not even sure if those protrusions are his eyes. I mean, he's a droid so who knows, right? I always though the big light was his eye. Just like his original action figure, he's packing a Stormtrooper blaster and a DLT-20A long rifle

The second exclusive is the junior Fett in mid-flight. Funko continues the streak of another damaged Pop box. You can kinda see on the left of the photo where the box is dented. I don't really care that much but if it keeps happening, it's going to get annoying. They should really consider packing these exclusive items better for collectors.

That aside, he's freakin awesome! He was designed by the former Overlord of the Dorke Horde, Reis O'Brien, who you should be following on Instagram. I really like the jetpack effect and it's an inventive way to give us an exclusive Boba that's not just a pose variation. 

With the theme being Bounty Hunters, I was definitely expecting a Boba and was curious what it would be. When you do bounty hunters, everyone expects Boba, but I would have been pleasantly surprised with a Jango instead. 

(Stage Whisper) I actually like Jango over Boba.

I say this box collects the full bounty it deserves! The Pops are amazing and the shirt is very nice, even if it's missing Dengar.

Smuggler's Bounty is an every other month subscription box.

The next theme is Jabba's Palace.

You can sign up at Smuggler's Bounty.

Funko Smuggler's Bounty - Resistance

Last week, both Loot Crate and Smuggler's Bounty arrived on the same day! I already posted the Loot Crate, so here's the latest Smuggler's Bounty box from Funko.

This is only the second Smuggler's Bounty but it seems like they're going to keep changing up the character on the box to fit with the theme.

Here are a BB-8 patch and Poe pin. Poe pin! C'mon everyone, say it with me a few times. Poe pin, Poe pin, Poe pin. One of these days I should probably translate the Aurebesh writing on these. As big of a Star Wars geek that I am, I can't read this.

I'm still not sold on these Pop! mugs. They look fun but I don't think I'd ever actually use it. I do like the fact that they put a red handle on it to match 3P0's red arm. I'm not a big fan of the red arm but I guess it shows how strapped for resources the Resistance is. I also didn't think the costume looked great in the new movie, it looked more like a plastic molded Halloween costume than metal.

You're guaranteed at least one exclusive Pop vinyl in each Bounty box. After getting Han last time, it's cool to get Chewie. But what makes him exclusive? He's flocked!

If you're wondering what flocked means, here's a close up. He's kind of fuzzy.

Best bros foreva!

Finally, here is an exclusive Pop shirt. Just like last time, it's a great design that I'd love to wear but will never be able to because it's not made for someone that grew up with the original movies and doesn't wear skinny jeans.

This box was okay for me. I love Chewie but don't really care about the mug or shirt (because I can't wear it). I'll probably cancel my subscription at some point and only get the ones where the theme sounds like it will be good. The next one is slated to be Cantina themed so I'm still along for the ride. Really hoping for a band member Pop!