When it comes to the rides of a galaxy far, far away, you’d be hard-pressed to find a more legendary vehicle than the ship that made the Kessel Run in less than 12 parsecs. Indeed, the Millennium Falcon is the most famous example of the Corellian Engineering Company’s YT-1300 Light Freighters – albeit a heavily-modified ship that managed to consistently defy the odds under Captain Han Solo and his Wookiee companion, Chewbacca, along with Lando Calrissian and most recently, Rey. To celebrate the legacy of this ship during the 40th Anniversary of Star Wars, the folks at Mattel have issued the Hot Wheels Collectors Millennium Falcon Special Edition – a highly detailed Metal/Metal fully-diecast version of the ship as it appeared in 2015’s Star Wars: The Force Awakens.
Limited to just 5,000 pieces produced worldwide, the Hot Wheels team sent one to Rock Father HQ for review, and immediately presented a conflict – albeit a brief one: to open or not to open? It’s a question that will forever pester collectors, but as most know, we open the majority of toys and collectibles here at Rock Father HQ, and the do get played with. For those who prefer to keep their toys packaged (and yes, the artwork is both beautiful and simplistic), Mattel ships this in a custom clamshell protector, allowing you to protect the card from damage, while removing it to handle.
Unfortunately, if you do want to free the Falcon from its plastic bubble, you will have to cut into the blister in order to do so as the standard packaging is not intended to be resealable. But, to truly appreciate the craftsmanship of this piece, you really have to see it out of the package, and placed upon the included display stand.
Compared to the standard edition Millennium Falcons that are out there as part of the Hot Wheels Star Wars Starships collection, there’s some real weight to this – and the detail just blows the others away. That fact alone makes this stand out not just as a piece for hardcore collectors of both Hot Wheels and Star Wars, but a fantastic gift idea for Star Wars fans who may not have a massive collection, but who would appreciate a definitive version of the Falcon as a display piece for home or office.
With the holiday season approaching alongside the release of Rian Johnson’s Star Wars: The Last Jedi (which is set to bring the Millennium Falcon back onto theater screens this December), now is the perfect time to grab one of these now. Individually-numbered on a holo-foil sticker, they’re available now for just $19.99 direct from Mattel’s Hot Wheels Collectors website while supplies last.
