Action Figure Review: R5-D4 #180 from POP! Star Wars by Funko

 The Unfinished C-3PO POP! vinyl I looked at yesterday was one of two POPs in the July Smuggler's Bounty box, so today we will be looking at the second: R5-D4. While R5-D4 is a pretty minor character, he gets more credit than most other droids because: A. He actually affects the plot, and B. He had an action figure in the vintage Kenner line. He also had a cool as heck missile firing variant in the Power of the Force 2 line, but I think that figure only resonates with a few of us. Overall, I'd wager R5-D4's enduring popularity (granted, I'm not sure I'd call him mainstream or anything) can mostly be attributed to having a vintage Kenner figure. If you scored a vintage Kenner figure, you're guaranteed to be loved forever. Let's take a look at this very cool R5-D4 POP! vinyl after the break...

 The Facts:

Height: 3 1/2 inches

Articulation: Bobbling dome

Accessories: Display stand

Non-Scalper Price: Included with the July Smuggler's Bounty box that retailed for $25 bucks and contained two exclusive POP! vinyls, a t-shirt, a patch, and an enamel pin.

 The Positives:

* R5-D4 has a great sculpt! I really like the look of this guy as it's a nice blend between the droid's film appearance and the POP! styling. It's kind of funny that Funko took R5-D4's three optical ports and made them larger with the standard "soulless black eyes" that most POP! vinyl figures have.

* There's a really nice covering of sandy paint on top of R5-D4's dome. One of the weaker aspects of the recent Black Series R5-D4 is the lack of weathering, a weakness that Funko avoided here. Funko really made sure that this guy looks like he's been cruising around Tatooine with a bunch of Jawas for a minute.

 * While the proportions of the body are stylized, the details are all present and accounted for. This is a great astromech droid body. Is it reused? Probably. Does it accurately resemble R5-D4? You bet it does.

* The back further shows off the tight paint apps on this guy as well as the heavy weathering. While he's not "realistic" I find myself liking this guy a bit more than the Black Series version.

* Nearly every Star Wars POP! includes a display stand just like this (although the peg placement varies based on the character's design) which I think gives the collection a nice bit of uniformity. The simple black and silver looks very clean and classic and adds to the prestige of any collection of little vinyl Star Wars toys.

I feel like POP! vinyls pretty much hit the mark so long as you're a fan of the property they represent and the style of the line. R5-D4, I'm happy to report, is a another solid release in the Smuggler's Bounty exclusive series. Funko does a great job balancing new characters and obscure variants across multiple different sources (prequels, Original Trilogy, new era, Rebels, etc.) and R5-D4 is another example of a solid character choice. He's a Great and a 1/2 POP! vinyl and well worth picking up for collectors of the character or Star Wars POP! collectors in general.


If you're an R5-D4 fan, make sure to check out my review of the Star Wars: 40th Anniversary Series R5-D4.

If you want to check out more Star Wars POP! vinyls, why not peruse my other reviews?

Ahsoka #130
Ben Kenobi #99
Boba Fett #102 
C-3PO [Unfinished] #181
Captain Cassian Andor #139 
Captain Phasma [Chrome] #91
Captain Rex #164 
Chewbacca #63 [Flocked]
Chirrut Imwe #140
Darth Maul #165
Darth Vader [Bespin] #158
General Grievous #129
Grand Moff Tarkin #159
Greedo/ Hammerhead/ Walrus Man 3-Pack
Hera #136
Hoth Han Solo with Tauntaun #125
IG-88 #103
Imperial Death Trooper #149
Jyn Erso #138
Jyn Erso #148
K-2SO #146
Kanan #132 
Luke Skywalker with Speeder #175
R2-D2 (Jabba's Skiff) #121
Red Snaggletooth #70
Sabine [Masked] #131 
Sabine #135 
TIE Fighter Pilot #89