Antoc Merrick - TBS [P4] - Six Inch Figures (RO08)

Antoc Merrick commands Yavin 4’s starfighters before the Battle of the Death Star, flying as Blue Leader.

The Black Series [Phase IV] Antoc Merrick figure seemed lost in time for quite a while, so lost that collectors began finding this Target-exclusive action figure at other retail chains like Walgreens. But after close to a year of waiting, the figure finally made it out, but will it meet collectors’ expectations? There isn’t much new tooling here, and you’re probably well aware of this. A retailer-exclusive action figure typically means “reused parts,” so none of us should expect much. Hasbro did its best to make the existing tooling feel “new enough” for a new character. With the body of the first 6-inch figure, Luke Skywalker (#01), and the arms of a much-improved modern figure, 2020’s TBS [TESB40] Luke Skywalker (Snowspeeder) figure, Hasbro added a new head sculpt in the likeness of Antoc Merrick. They then repainted the helmet and figure to be accurate to the Blue Leader character. We don’t think the portrait is perfect. The character has wider eyes and a slightly different shaped head than the action figure, but overall, you’ll find a resemblance, and it will likely meet your needs for an action figure.

With Hasbro repainting the whole main cast of Rogue One: A Star Wars Story in The Black Series [Phase IV] lineup, it only made sense to include some never-before-released characters like Antoc Merrick and others to complement their efforts. We have a refreshed-looking bunch of Rogue One action figures in the 6-inch scale now, and honestly, they’ve never looked better. The tooling of the Luke Skywalker base figure isn’t perfect, but the figure looks better than the previous versions thanks to updated paint operations, a new color scheme, and refreshed parts to make the figure close to screen accurate as possible. With an all-new head sculpt, collectors don’t have to worry about a skin tone that isn’t chalky and flat. Thanks to Photo Real technology, Hasbro knows how to breathe life into plastic human flesh. It no longer has a sheen to it either. It simply looks terrific. Perhaps Antoc Merrick isn’t perfect, but for us, it fits in nicely with the rest of the characters from Rogue One: A Star Wars Story. The details here are richly and cleanly applied. The flight suit is also more accurate than the on-screen costume. Hasbro matched its blue-green color to give us the best representation of Blue Leader.

Although Antoc Merrick comes with the oldest buck in the line’s history, it’s still a markedly excellent figure. The figure achieves any position you want as Hasbro loaded the figure with ball-jointed articulation, including the “life-saving” rocker ankles (or double ball-jointed ankles if that makes more sense to you). All are unbelievably functional to give Antoc the required range of motion. These are premium points of articulation and do wonders for the action figure. The newer 2020 arms fit in seamlessly with the notably older parts. And the latest piece, the portrait, also fits seamlessly on this action figure. Again, we accept that Antoc Merrick is not perfect, but this figure looks good. The straps hanging around the legs and the hose coming from the chest box look phenomenal. Also, the details like the maps on the left upper arm look fantastic. The accessories are decent here. The helmet fits snuggly over the head, and the chin strap rests oddly but works. The revised paint operations on the helmet are attractive and realistic too. Merrick also comes with a blaster pistol. It fits very nicely into the right hand. Antoc Merrick is another expensive 6-inch figure exclusive to Target. And if your local Target has the Disney shops in them, that’s where you’ll find this action figure.