Review: Star Wars Black Series R2-D2 (Artoo-Detoo), Revenge of the Sith Anniversary
- Mephitsu
- Oct 15
- 6 min read
“R2, do you copy? R2, do you hear me?”
To celebrate the 20th Anniversary of Revenge of the Sith, Hasbro released another series of Star Wars Black Series figures on cardbacks inspired by the original 3.75” releases from 2005. Like most Anniversary releases to date, these were a mix of re-packs and tweaked characters picked from the existing line-up of figures.
R2-D2 has been part of the Black Series line since its launch in 2013, although the initial Astromech sculpt was slightly undersized for a six-inch scaled line. In 2023, the droid got a makeover with a brand new sculpt that not only resolved the size issue, but also built in some extra features for any Astromech release secreted away in the domed head and cylindrical body. The first R2 release on this new body was also an Anniversary line with the Return of the Jedi Anniversary series, with the figure packed shortly after into the Galaxy Collection, but as part of The Mandalorian collection following his brief appearance at the end of Season 2. The Revenge of the Sith series provided another opportunity to get R2-D2 back on shelves, and this time with a slight enhancement.
The Revenge of the Sith Anniversary series cardbacks are taken directly from the original 2005 toyline, with a cardback shaped as Darth Vader’s head, with the head sitting over a flaming lava scene from Mustafar as the bottom third of the cardback. Vader’s red eyes stared out from behind the blister, while reflected in his helmet was the duel on the Lava Plains between Obi-Wan and Anakin. The cardfront is the same for all releases with the circular shaped bubble including the character image and details as an inserted sleeve section that wraps around the front of the figures feet and with the cut out of the character raising upward on the left hand side of the packaging while the central portion is turned over to the original Revenge of the Sith logo in orange and yellow. The cardback carries further imagery of Artoo as well as an image of the posed figure, but it lacks any background for the droid, with the text turned over to a positioning piece about the Anniversary series as a whole. As with any cardback, the packaging is damaged to open the figure.
R2-D2 is constructed using a white cast cylindrical body with sculpted panel lines and vents, with several of the major ones down the front panel of the droid picked out in blue and silver. The dome head is a silver cast piece with a visible join line across the front and back half, which does detract a little from the overall aesthetic. Like the body, panel details and vents are sculpted with the dome and painted, the majority of these in a rich blue finish around the side, and across the top segments of the dome. The main eye piece is a gloss black, and under this sits a red receptor. A similarly sized circular receptor in green sits around the back half of the dome.
The legs are stubby and connected to the main body at the top of each side. They are the same white as the main droid with sculpted workings down the length of them and into the angled feet with a pair of copper painted solid plastic wires connecting the front part of the foot to a rear section. Blue and silver is again used here to pick out key details.
The third leg can be withdrawn from a socket at the base of Artoo’s body. On the older, smaller versions, this could be wound up or wound down by rotating the head. On the newer Astromech’s this function is no longer in place, so the leg is pulled down or pushed back manually. The travel leg is cast in the same white plastic, and while sculpted components are visible and as seen on the left & right legs, the finish is left plain with no additional paint work.
Artoo is presented ‘clean’ overall with no weathering or wear and tear around any of his component parts. He is essentially identical to both the Return of the Jedi and Mandalorian versions released in 2023, although, as we will see, the contents and accessories for the figures do vary.
The original releases of this new Artoo included six different tool accessories, two of which were scanners used on the upper dome and four of which were tools used on the main body. The ROTS version loses the two scanners, although the socket is still there under one of the upper triangular blue dome panels, which still pops off. This would allow you to share parts from the other releases to this Artoo if you wanted.
The other four tools are designed to fit in the opening panels of the main body. While there are four opening sections to operate on the front of the Droid, only the side ones accommodate the tools while the two horizontal blue panels, which hinge outward from the body, are additional utility arms. Beneath the two opening ‘doors’ on either side, there are three sockets to choose from, giving six slots in total for any of the four included arms to be located. You can choose between a welder, a terminal data probe, a hyperdrive manipulator arm, and a grapple claw, all of which are cast in plain grey plastic with some black paint on the welder and a bronze band on the data probe.
The newer functionality of these larger Astromech’s is to replace the mechanism to raise and lower the central leg with a storage compartment that sits directly under the dome and is revealed by pulling the dome upwards. While this is not at all screen accurate, Hasbro has built in detail to these inner workings that look like internal components rather than leaving it plain. Within the main shaft are six built-in clip slots to accommodate the accessories. Two of these will, of course, go unfilled on this release as they are where the scanner and periscope would normally sit.
The relatively big change for this Revenge of the Sith R2-D2 over the prior two releases is the inclusion of his rocket boosters, as seen in the opening battle of Coruscant, where he torches some Super Battle Droids. These were first released with the 2024 R5-D4 version of this Astromech from The Mandalorian and in particular the Pelli Motto Droid Set. These boosters have now been rolled into this ROTS Anniversary set as a point of difference to the earlier sets.
vs R5-D4 (Pelli Motto Droid Set) 2024 (right)
These work by clipping off the long blue panels from each leg (these were fixed on the first releases). This reveals a two-slot socket underneath into which the extended rocket boosters fit. These boosters are cast in grey with blue and black details added. The look can be further enhanced with a pair of blue translucent blast effects that sit in the base of each booster to simulate Artoo about to take off. Posing R2-D2 in flight is more difficult with no flight stand included, and nothing specific on the market to hold the girth of an Astromech droid. Something in line with the original Chopper release might have been nice.
Articulation on R2 in either configuration is just 6 points in total, in terms of moving the dome or the legs into a posed position, with another 5 opening/closing panels and joints to further enhance the look of the figure. These all work relatively well, although the opening front doors are fiddly to get a grip of to open.
R2-D2 from Revenge of the Sith is a solid addition to the Anniversary line, going beyond a simple re-pack of an existing figure to a figure that includes new parts that are directly linked to Artoo’s role in the events of Revenge of the Sith. He looks great both in and out of packaging, with plenty of display options despite the limited articulation that his Astromech design dictates. It is a shame Hasbro couldn’t include all six of the original accessories, or couldn’t fashion a flight option to work with the boosters and effects to give him more dynamism on display. A worthwhile addition to a Revenge of the Sith display, but equally of use to collectors who need an R2 for any era of Star Wars - particularly as he is now more accurately scaled.
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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...
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