Doctor Aphra, the silver-tongued archaeologist from Marvel’s “Darth Vader” comic book series, will soon be immortalized as a purchasable 3.75-inch “Star Wars” Vintage Collection figurine. The figurine will go into production as a result of a user poll held by the Hasbro toy company. The “Star Wars Rebels” version of Ahsoka Tano was a close runner-up, but the former Jedi Padawan and Rebel informant failed to the close the gap on the nefarious Doctor Aphra.
Doctor Aphra is the creation of writer Kieron Gillen, who penned the “Darth Vader” comic book series along with artists Salvador Larroca and Adi Granov.
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“I’m of a generation that some of my earliest memories are of ‘Star Wars’ figures and the magic herein,” Gillen said in a press release. “The idea that someone Salva [Larroca] and I made up is going to be one of those, immortal in plastic, feels all kind of magical.”
“Darth Vader” was the first ongoing comic book series to follow its eponymous Sith Lord as he embarked on a subversive quest against the Empire, delving ever deeper into the dark machinations of his mentor, the Emperor. Having been demoted after a series of blunders, Vader spends much of his time solo, tracking down enemies of the Galactic Empire and building his own army in secret. Along the way, he comes across Doctor Aphra, a morally ambiguous archaeologist who aids him in his journey and keeps two psychotic droids in her service.
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Doctor Aphra became a fan favorite upon her debut, along with her two droids, BT-1 and 0-0-0. BT-1 is an assassin droid created by the Galactic Empire’s Tarkin Initiative, a think tank devoted to devising advanced weapons in service of the Empire’s greater goals. 0-0-0 is a repurposed protocol droid who specializes in torture, along with the usual protocol regimen of etiquette, customs and translation. The two droids are visually reminiscent of Darth Vader’s childhood robot companions, R2-D2 and C-3P0, respectively.
Doctor Aphra, BT-1 and 0-0-0 are slated to star in their own comic books series, “Doctor Aphra,” which follows the aftermath of the “Darth Vader” series. The announcement that Doctor Aphra will be cast as a figurine is likely ironic to fans of the “Darth Vader” series. One of the series’ variant covers depicted Doctor Aphra as a figurine, packaged and ready for sale.
Aside from Ahsoka Tano and Doctor Aphra, “Star Wars” fans could vote on four other characters to be turned into figures. Those characters were Sim Aloo, Saelt-Marae (Yak-face), ARC Trooper Fives and Emperor Palpatine.
(via StarWars.com)