YVH-1 - LC - Build A Droid

We aren't sure if we are reviewing a Star Wars figure or a Terminator figure when it comes to YVH-1. Its skeletal face and frame are something very reminiscent of what one would see in the Sarah Connor Chronicles rather than in some Jedi tale. And we apparently aren't the only ones who feel this way. Interestingly, Wookieepedia even points this out. The entry states: "Some fans have pointed out that the YVH 1's skeletal appearance looks quite similar to the automatons from the Terminator movies. However, this could be a coincidence, as the YVH droids were designed to look like the Yuuzhan Vong, who also have a very skeletal appearance." Clearly there is a trend here. But no matter what you personally think this droid looks like or favors, we can make an early and definitive claim that it is indeed a pretty neat action figure. Part of the Build A Droid pack-in premium for Legacy Collection figures, YVH-1 is perhaps the thinnest and tallest we have yet to receive in the basic figure line. And it is the second Build A Droid to come with a gun. Droids with guns definitely have an alarming feel to them. YVH-1 succeeds in creating this atmosphere too, and it makes us a bit empathetic to what the Yuuzhan Vong must have felt when encountering them. Imposing, threatening and foreboding are three great adjectives that can be used to describe the character (as well as the action figure) of this awesome droid "species". By the way, Hasbro "misspelled this droid's name as there is no dash between the H and the 1, just in case you're interested.

First appearing in Star By Star (part of The New Jedi Order series), YVH-1 (also known as the Yuuzhan Vong Hunter One combat droid) was a battle droid developed by Tendrando Arms and were used to combat the Yuuzhan Vong warriors. If you recall from the story, the Yuuzhan Vong abhorred technology, so just the very creation of these droids were a very clever and effective method to start the combat against them. Less impressive (in our eyes) is that Lando Calrissian was the person to create the very first model of this droid. In fact, even Lando's voice was used in the masculine programming of the droid. We don't like our Star Wars worlds colliding this harshly against each other. Space is large and vast, why must everything be related? We may never get an answer to this, but if you can look past these little details, we think that you will be able to enjoy the YVH-1 droid with great affection. You may have already figured out that YVH-1 simply describes the type of protocol droid it is, not the individual name of the character (hm, awfully familiar, just like how the T-800 represents the "type" and not the specific "name"). Most of the droids are named with a "dash" and then a number then ending in a letter, most common is an "A". Likewise, this Build A Droid figure can be one of many multiple droids in The New Jedi Order series. Apparently, the droids can come with either red or yellow photoreceptors (hm, another Terminator reference?) but the action figure comes with yellow ones.

YVH-1 has 14 points of articulation, but comes without ball-jointed shoulders and hips. While all the joints are great, they are slightly limited in movement. Not to worry though, the figure functions perfectly well as designed and we think it has more than enough articulation. YVH-1 has been cast in off-white (or the lightest shade of gray) and has dark metallic gray details throughout its tall and slender frame. The droid has humanoid hands and feet and with its humanoid head, it is no wonder why it looks so much like a skeleton in our eyes. Even its limbs share enough similarities of the human form. The best part of YVH-1 is its gun and it has been cast in a very light aluminum gray color and its design is small and sleek. It fits very well it YVH-1's hands and this is always a basic necessity for our action figures, but we are thankful that Hasbro didn't give this droid hands that were too big to not hold it good enough. Very authentic to most of the production stills and the pictures from the novels and comics, YVH-1 has been replicated flawlessly. Fans of The New Jedi Order will be thrilled to build this droid in their collections. Parts come from the figure in the 2009 Revenge Of The Sith wave (in the red phase) as well as some repacked and repainted figures too. We expect this droid to be fairly easy to build and we hope this turns out to be true because it is really a quite impressive droid action figure. Could this be one of the last Build A Droid figures we will be getting? Rumors abound that we are approaching the end of this great pack-in premium. We certainly hope not because we feel they are just starting to really heat up. YVH-1 is a prime example of how far this pack-in premium can go!