Star Wars Advent Calendar - Day 18

The scores for Harry Potter and Star Wars for day 18 are tied! Who will win?

Harry Potter wins this round in my book. Flitwick is a much rarer figure and the Star Wars trooper is very generic. They are both good characters, but Flitwick has more detail and is much more interesting than a basic army builder.

Battle of the Licensed Advent Calendars continues. With Day 17’s loss, HP and SW are neck and neck once again heading into a critical Day 18. Trailing by a single point, will SW be able to tie the competition up or will HP restore its two point lead? Let’s take a look and find out.

Behind HP’s door 18 stood a rendition of Professor Filius Flitwick. As the reviewer points out, this character has only appeared twice before- 9 years ago in a premium retail set, and more recently in the Wizarding World Collectable Minifigure Series 1 set. That said, this figure is exclusive to this calendar, offering new printing on the torso. A double-sided head adds depth to the figure and the bowtie element pays homage to the source material. Short legs are generally more rare than normal legs and it’s nice to get another pair here as it is figure-appropriate. While the reviewer points out that there are many other characters to be represented in the Wizarding World, I think Prof Flitwick is as worthy an inclusion as any other named character for this calendar. Overall, this is a fantastic figure, and like McGonagall earlier in the calendar, isn’t easily obtained.

On the flip side, SW fans were treated to a Rebel Fleet Trooper on Day 18. This minifig is as rare as Flitwick, having only appeared twice before, and one of these times in a premium retail set (Tantive IV). The double-sided face is great, especially the chinstrap. Color tones and printing are on point. The reviewer notes that the inclusion of the weapon with figure is due to the designer, and this is welcome in place of the dreaded weapon rack (which is probably SW’s version of a house flag). In all this figure will be a welcome addition for SW fans, especially those who are looking to bolster their armies.

In conclusion, today’s matchup represents the first head-to-head minifigure battle between the calendars this season! I for one was curious if we’d see this occur at all and Day 18 has finally delivered the goods. Comparing minifigs is a tough exercise and today will be the first day that one of the two minifigs loses its matchup. It is also the first day that the reviewer gave both offerings the same score! But alas, there can only be one champion. Let’s make an evidenced-based case to determine the winner.

Design- Considering design metrics, both figures are fantastic and no edge goes to either one. It would be purely subjective to select one design over the other in this matchup.

Rarity- Rarity metrics are a little more nuanced. At face value, both figures would score the same having each appeared only twice before. However, this exact variant of Flitwick is exclusive to this calendar whereas to my knowledge, the trooper variant can be found in previous sets, albeit, only two with one being an expensive retail set. Furthermore, one could argue that the only guaranteed way to obtain Flitwick previous to now would be through the purchase of the 2010 Hogwarts Castle set. The other method, via blind bag from the Wizarding World Collectable Wizarding Series, requires luck, and would not guarantee the purchaser a Flitwick. Whereas on the flip side, to obtain this variant of the Rebel Fleet Trooper, one could purchase the smaller 75237 Tie Fighter Attack set in place of the Tantive IV.

Character Role- This metric might be the deciding factor. HP fans get a named character in “Professor Flitwick” while SW fans get an unnamed, generic character in “Rebel Fleet Trooper.” Each character’s importance in their respective stories could be debated, but an edge certainly has to go to a named character vs a generic one.

In conclusion, based on the above metrics, today’s point goes to HP in what has evidently been the closest battle of the holiday season. It is fitting that in a race so tight, a pivotal Day 18 saw a head to head minifig battle, each with the same score. No competition is without controversy but one hopes that this rationalized reasoning will provide the basis for today’s result. Both calendars and fanbases should be thrilled with their respective entries today.

... as it stands, HP has regained its 2-point advantage, and the score is now:

HP- 10
SW- 8

To be continued…

@lamby750 said:
"Excellent minifigure. Again, the source material for the helmet is superb and again the Lego rendition is a brilliant reproduction. This figure is still too rare for my liking, I would to see more of them and some variants in the future.

Couldn’t give a monkey’s about Harry Potter, you guys are on the wrong page."

I've been running this little Battle of the Licensed Advent Calendars from the start of the holiday season. I'm just doing it for fun but today's matchup was the closest yet. This is probably why you're seeing some comments about HP here. So they're not on the wrong page.

@Matt_Z_ said:
" @lamby750 said:
"Excellent minifigure. Again, the source material for the helmet is superb and again the Lego rendition is a brilliant reproduction. This figure is still too rare for my liking, I would to see more of them and some variants in the future.

Couldn’t give a monkey’s about Harry Potter, you guys are on the wrong page."

I've been running this little Battle of the Licensed Advent Calendars from the start of the holiday season. I'm just doing it for fun but today's matchup was the closest yet. This is probably why you're seeing some comments about HP here. So they're not on the wrong page. "

Did anyone ask you to? If you need to please keep it brief just to respect other users who aren’t as interested. Your first post was like 2000 characters?

@lamby750 the battle of the licensed advent calendars is frankly why I read the comments on these advent calendars. I think it's an innovative and fun way to compare the two calendars.

Eh, I'm enjoying this little competition between the licenses. Personally, unless HP really runs away with the points in the last few days, the SW calendar will be the winner for me because it's more consistent- when HP is good, it's great, but when it's bad, it's godawful. And not just the flags, the food days surely could have been consolidated as well.

Back on the main topic, I'm glad to have this little trooper. He's rare, and unlike the FO trooper, I like the way the design has become a minifigure. Good stuff, and I hope that the rest of this final week is as good or better.

@lamby750 said:
" @Matt_Z_ said:
" @lamby750 said:
"Excellent minifigure. Again, the source material for the helmet is superb and again the Lego rendition is a brilliant reproduction. This figure is still too rare for my liking, I would to see more of them and some variants in the future.

Couldn’t give a monkey’s about Harry Potter, you guys are on the wrong page."

I've been running this little Battle of the Licensed Advent Calendars from the start of the holiday season. I'm just doing it for fun but today's matchup was the closest yet. This is probably why you're seeing some comments about HP here. So they're not on the wrong page. "

Did anyone ask you to? If you need to please keep it brief just to respect other users who aren’t as interested. Your first post was like 2000 characters?
"

Merry Christmas to you and yours!

@lamby750
It takes a tenth of a second to scroll past a comment you dont like. No need to be such a grouch. Cheer up a bit and Merry Christmas!

@Matt_Z_ said:

" I've been running this little Battle of the Licensed Advent Calendars from the start of the holiday season. I'm just doing it for fun but today's matchup was the closest yet. This is probably why you're seeing some comments about HP here. So they're not on the wrong page. "

I have been thoroughly enjoying the battle of the calendars that you are running and I hope some negative comments won't discourage you from continuing. Very grateful for your entires.

@Drog said:
" @Matt_Z_ said:

" I've been running this little Battle of the Licensed Advent Calendars from the start of the holiday season. I'm just doing it for fun but today's matchup was the closest yet. This is probably why you're seeing some comments about HP here. So they're not on the wrong page. "

I have been thoroughly enjoying the battle of the calendars that you are running and I hope some negative comments won't discourage you from continuing. Very grateful for your entires. "

I appreciate the kind words. I'm glad others are enjoying it. Don't you worry- I'll be seeing you on Day 19. Cheers!

@lamby750, @Matt_Z_ , @Drog,

Ditto, I thoroughly enjoy this ongoing commentary with the Battle of the Calendars. Thank you for the entertaining posts!

@lamby750 said:

Did anyone ask you to? If you need to please keep it brief just to respect other users who aren’t as interested. Your first post was like 2000 characters?
"

Did anyone ask you for your comments? The comments are for people to write their opinions, not to be rude, which is what you are doing. If you don't like Matt's reviews, skip past them. They have every right to write as many words as they want.

I personally enjoy the little battle. I'm guessing you're in the minority.

Everyone ready for RoS in 2 days? Still can't believe it.

I do like the advent-calendar battle, too. Keep up the good work. And I like the generic Rebel Trooper. Much needed figure!