We at Star Wars Toy Museum are usually so up-to-date on Star Wars toy collecting news that we're unflappable. However, we got an e-mail on Aug. 15 from a loyal reader that really got our blood pumping.
Rick Barrett of Meridian, Mississippi, wrote to say he'd just found the Endor AT-AT at his local Toys 'R Us. No offense to Rick, but we thought he was full of Bantha poodoo until he sent us photos of the new Endor AT-AT alongside the rest of his Star Wars toy collection.
Why so shocking? The Endor AT-AT was not scheduled to be released until September 2006, so imagine our surprise when one of our favorite Star Wars Toy Museum visitors found it in mid-August! Sure enough, we called all four Toys 'R Us outlets in the Kansas City area, and three of the four had already sold all of the Endor AT-ATs they had in stock.
Hasbro's sneak attack in launching the Endor AT-AT early really threw us for a loop at Star Wars Toy Museum. We have spent the last two weeks in a quest as desperate as that of Vader in "The Empire Strikes Back," only we didn't have thousands of probe droids at our disposal.
Finally, we had the eureka moment last night - Wednesday, Aug. 30, 2006. We found the Endor AT-AT at our favorite local Toys 'R Us store. As every Star Wars toy collector knows, there's nothing like the rush of finding a major new Star Wars toy. This was definitely one of our finest moments on the hunt for Star Wars toys.
May the Force be with you in your own quest for the Endor AT-AT. Remember - if you can't find it in stores, don't despair. You can always buy it here!
