Star Wars Micro Galaxy Squadron Series 2 Review

Last year, Jazwares launched the Micro Galaxy Squadron line. A new collection of ships and vehicles from all Star Wars media: Original Trilogy, Prequel Trilogy, Rogue One, The Clone Wars, Rebels, The Bad Batch, The Book of Boba Fett, and The Mandalorian (so far).

After many months of hunting, waiting for orders to arrive, and even trading I’ve finally managed to get almost every ship that I wanted from Series 2. Let’s see if Jazwares managed to maintain the quality and variety of the first releases.

This is not a sponsored review, I paid for everything you see in the pictures.

Micro Galaxy Squadron Series 2 Lineup

Scout Class

Just like Series 1, the Scout Class vehicles come in mystery boxes. Each one includes a 2-inch vehicle, a 1-inch Micro Figure, and a Fight Display Stand (with the exception of the Hunter’s AT-RT and RD-D2’s Escape Pod).

I was pleasantly surprised with the selection of Series 1 and Series 2 is no exception. I really love how every era is considered in all classes.

There’s a total of eight Scout Class Vehicles: AT-RT Walker (Hunter), 74-Z Speeder Bike (Leia Organa), STAP (B-1 Battle Droid), BARC Speeder (Clone Trooper), 712 AvA Speeder Bike (Din Djarin), STAP (Anakin Skywalker)* and an Escape Pod (R2-D2)*, BARC Speeder (Obi-Wan Kenobi)**.

*Rare 1-of-15000
**CHASE 1-of-5000

Light Armor Class

The smallest of the fighters are in this category. Bigger than the Scout Class but not big enough to fit into the Starfighter class. The Light Armor Class ships and vehicles include one 1-inch Mini Figure.

I’d say that many of the Interceptor ships would also fit into this category. Fast, agile, and perfect for dogfights at the cost of sacrificing shields, armor, and heavier weapons.

Series 2 included four new Light Armor Class vehicles: Tie Fighter (Battle damage), Yoda’s Jedi Starfighter, Hera Syndulla’s A-Wing*, and Sabine Wren’s Tie Fighter**.

*Rare 1-of-15000
**CHASE 1-of-5000

Starfighter Class

The Starfighter Class includes some of the most iconic and beloved ships from all of Star Wars. These are bigger than the Light Armor ones and some of them include two 1-inch Mini Figures.

The list of the new Starfighter Class ships and vehicles includes the AAT Battle Tank, Luke Skywalker’s Snowspeeder, Bo Katan’s Gauntlet Fighter, Ahsoka Tano’s Jedi Starfighter*, and Antoc Merrick’s X-Wing (Blue Leader)**.

Starship Class

Big, heavy-duty, capable of transporting multiple people, and a threat on their own are the ships that belong in the Starship Class. These have accessories like boarding ramps, removable parts, or opening panels. Two 1-inch Mini Figures are included with the Starship Class Vehicles of Series 2.

The three new additions to the lineup are the Havoc Marauder, Jango Fett’s Starship, and the Republic LAAT.

Battle Packs

Jazwares introduced Battle Packs with Series 2. As their name says, these packs include multiple vehicles and Mini Figures. If you missed some of the Series 1 ships, buying a Battle Pack is a good option. Aside from the Galaxy’s Edge exclusive Millennium Falcon, none of the ships included are new to MGS.

Jazwares Series 2 Collector’s Guide

Series 2 Features

I really like that Jazwares is making sure that all ships can stand on their own. Those that do not are given a stand, even the AAT Battle Tank. Worrying about your figures not being able to stand is annoying and unnecessary. I’m glad that they thought of this since Series 1 and continue with said approach.

I consider most of the ships and vehicles from the Micro Galaxy Squadron line to be decently scaled, with one big exception. Bo Katan’s Gauntlet Fighter was severely reduced in size.

The main thing that made me decide to collect these toys is the fact that they are well-scaled. I understand that sometimes it won’t be possible to achieve due to the monstrous sizes of some of the bigger ships but I certainly didn’t expect that to happen with the Gauntlet Fighter.

I only bought it for the purpose of this review because I genuinely don’t like how it looks standing next to the other ships. Series 2 doesn’t include an Assault Class ship like Series 1 did with the Millennium Falcon so it makes it even worse. The Gauntlet Fighter is massive and it’s such a shame that Jazwares didn’t use the opportunity to add it to the Starship Class lineup.

I wouldn’t mind paying double the price for a properly scaled Mandalorian Gauntlet Fighter and I’m sure many others share this opinion. This is the first time that something like this happens and from what I’ve read and heard, Jazwares is very receptive to feedback so I’m not too worried about it being a constant issue.

Playability

This is one of the strongest points of this line. The relatively small size of all ships allows almost anyone to grab any of them with a single hand. None of them are heavy and pointy parts are made of softer materials to ensure there are as few risks as possible for the little ones.

If you’re not a kid but also want to have fun with the Micro Galaxy Squadron line it’s more than possible. Playing with toys is something that not everyone has the time or intention to do. Recreating scenes, customizing ships, making custom dioramas or simply displaying them is also a good way to enjoy these wonderful ships.

While there aren’t enough ships to recreate a massive battle (yet), it’s now possible to recreate something like the Echo Base hangar or the landing bay of a Venator-class Destroyer from a Clone Wars episode.

I recommend keeping your Mini Figures inside their ships. They’re so small that even losing sight of them for a couple of minutes could lead to hours of searching, especially if you have children and/or pets.

Distribution Problems

The biggest problem I and many more have is the fact that Series 2 was such a pain to get. And I’m not even talking about the extremely elusive Rare and Chase ships. Common ships like the Havoc Marauder have proved impossible to find for many people.

The most frustrating thing is how irregular the distribution is. Some stores are fully packed while others barely have the ships from Series 1. It varies from store to store, whether you are in the same country or state doesn’t matter.

I’m only talking about North America, Series 2 is nowhere to be seen in some European countries. I haven’t heard anything about Asia or South America but I doubt things are better over there.

Many people are already giving up on collecting Micro Galaxy Squadron due to how hard it is to acquire some of them. The fact that there are scalpers trying to sell the Rare and Chase ships for more than 10x the MSRP doesn’t help the situation either.

I understand that after 2020, distribution has been quite a challenge for toys and collectibles all over the world but I wonder how much the collectors and fans can resist before giving up on this line.

Jazwares is making a great job in many aspects of MGS but ensuring that everyone is able to buy one is not one of them. Things are looking better with Series 3 but I’ll expand on this later.

Pros

Excluding the Gauntlet Fighter, I’m very pleased with how scaled every ship/vehicle from Series 2 is. The details are very cool and looking closer will let you find some cool easter eggs like the Omega’s Tooka Loth Cat plush in the Havoc Marauder.

The accurate colors and details are one of the stronger points of MGS. I’m still amazed about how good the ships look, especially considering how small some of them are. I really wish I knew about photo editing so I could recreate some of my favorite scenes.

Jazwares has made sure that everyone gets something from their favorite Star Wars era, movie, or show. Series 2 introduced iconic ships and vehicles that appear for the first time in The Phantom Menace, Attack of the Clones, Empire Strikes Back, The Clone Wars, and Star Wars Rebels. Rogue One and The Bad Batch also join the list of shows that Micro Galaxy Squadron has covered so far.

You might love Tartakovsky’s Clone Wars or perhaps your interest only lies in the original trilogy, it doesn’t matter. There’s something for you in the MGS lineup.

So far, the MGS online community is super generous and always helps each other. Whether it’s spreading the word about a new release, helping other collectors find what they’re missing, or re-selling at fair prices. This isn’t something directly related to the ships themselves but it’s nice to see a supporting community.

Cons

I’m not a completionist but I’ve still bought the majority of ships available and let me tell you, this collection will require a huge amount of space. We’re just into Series 2 out of seven confirmed so far and I’m already wondering about where I’m going to put some of them. Many people don’t care about this but I think it’s worth considering.

Most of the ships are coming out at the same time, if we assume that the distribution problem is going to get fixed then it might be problematic for some people. Having to spend two or three hundred dollars per series isn’t something that all wallets can withstand. Of course, assuming that everyone can get what they want at MSRP.

Chase and Rare items are a magnet for scalpers and sadly MGS is no exception. I understand that making these limited-quantity batches allows Jazwares to give the more dedicated Star Wars fans some incredible products. But at the same time, I understand why so many people are disheartened about collecting when there’s some guy on eBay selling the ship they want for a stupid amount of money.

What’s next for the Star Wars Micro Galaxy Squadron toy line?

As the Micro Galaxy Squadron Series 3 article came out, so did pre-orders. Originally most of them were listed with a May 4th release date. It makes perfect sense, Star Wars day is the best occasion to release new products just like other big brands like LEGO or Hasbro usually do.

But something very strange happened, the shipping dates were pushed months in advance. Less than 24 hours after the announcement some ships have already been delivered and many more are being sent in the next few days.

I don’t know if this was a mistake or not but it’s certainly a good surprise for most of us (though, not for our wallets).

One thing worth noting is that “Solo: A Star Wars Story”, “Kenobi”, and the sequel trilogy are getting their first MGS vehicles.

This is the list of every confirmed Micro Galaxy Squadron Series 3 ship and vehicle.

Here’s every Scout Class vehicle from series 3. Count Dooku, Cad Bane, and the Snowtrooper are the rares/chase.

Revenge of the Sith fans can rejoice with both Obi-Wan and Anakin’s Jedi Interceptors.

Even if their appearances are brief, Aayla Secura and Plo Koon’s Starfighters definitely stand out from the other Jedi fighters.

General Grievous’s Starfighter aka The Soulless One will be a fine addition to your collection.

The V-Wing Starfighers is the first for recreating big space battles between the Grand Army of the Republic and the CIS.

The sequels are finally getting a few ships. The First Order Tie Fighter and Poe Dameron’s black T-70 X-Wing.

While this wasn’t officially announced, another Poe Dameron’s X-Wing image was shown. Take this one with a grain of salt.

The Obi-Wan Kenobi series gets its first vehicle, the Intimidating Inquisitor Scythe.

Clone Wars showed us how the Clone Troopers customized their LAATs and I’m so excited to see some of these variants get released. “Separatist Nightmare”, “Plo’s Bros”, “Coruscant Guard”, and “Crumb Bomber” come in Battle Packs that include a BARC speeder, one pilot, and four regular troopers.

My favorite ship so far and one that I wanted to see since I started this collection. The Muunilinst Gunship includes one Clone Pilot and two Arc Troopers.