There's a lot of pressure to making toys, and a whole bunch more when those are Star Wars toys. As one of the most beloved franchises in the world, its action figures (not to mention collectibles) come under more scrutiny than Rebel scum being interrogated by Darth Vader. It's also the series that kickstarted merchandise as we know it today, so there are standards to uphold. This is something you must get right, or millions of fans will let you know about it. As an example, social media is awash with opinions on the new Grogu animatronic right now; fans are going nuts for its features, but less so the cost.
How do you make sure things are up to a standard the Empire would be proud of, then? And how are these collectibles made in the first place? That task falls to a crack team at Hasbro Pulse, so I tracked down their leader Chris Reiff (manager of product design for Star Wars action figures, replicas, and beyond) to pick his brain about everything that goes into making merch for a galaxy far, far away. As it turns out, forging some of the best toys in the Outer Rim is... well, it's a lot more complicated than you might think.
