Kellytoy — a subsidiary of Jazwares — dropped the news a short time ago in a galaxy not too far away that it would add Star Wars Squishmallows to its squad of huggable plush. The Toy Book exclusively revealed the first character — The Child Squishmallow — and now more huggable versions are joining in. The 10-inch Chewy has a surprising amount of flaws. I’ve noticed the stitching still pulls at the fabric, like the smaller size, and the seams at the bottom are very noticeable.

These four characters come from various Star Wars projects. Only Chewbacca and R2-D2 share an origin in the original trilogy. Then BB-8 comes around from the sequel trilogy and Baby Yoda from The Mandalorian. Guess the prequel trilogy didn’t have the right stuff to be included. Baby Yoda To be fair, I don’t think there was a way for Kellytoy to make R2-D2 into a satisfying squishmallow. The soft sphere just doesn’t translate to hard robotics very well. Yet, the collection would feel far too small with just Chewbacca and Baby Yoda, droids are a huge part of the Star Wars universe, and BB-8 and R2-D2 are the most popular ones. So while their choices are understandable, they just didn’t work out. ProsAs someone who grew up watching the original trilogy, R2-D2 was always my favorite droid. They somehow managed to convey so much personality and sass with beeps, head swivels, and violent shaking. That’s why this squishmallow disappoints me so much. Then there’s Chewbacca. While he’s the same shape as a human, his most recognizable features are animalistic. His nose is wide and flat like a dog’s; it’s even a bit connected to his mouth like a muzzle. Not to mention, he’s entirely covered in fur! Squishmallow focuses on animals, so translating Chewy’s features is no problem.

There’s not much special about the 10-inch plush. It has the same problems as the 5-inch, so I would only recommend it to the same groups of people looking for something larger. In fact, I’d recommend this one over the 5-inch cause at least this one would be huggable. The Baby Yoda squishmallow is an excellent example of the bountiful merch this character has received. Translating a character with so many wrinkles is a challenge. Too many wrinkles and they start to look weird and old, not enough, and it doesn’t look like the character anymore. Yet they managed to find the correct balance that even doubled as a way to give the little guy some eyebrows for a playful expression. They even added extra highlights to the eyes to give them that cute, watery look. Are you looking for a new friend? Then look no further. Squishmallows has been whisking up the snuggliest of companions since 2017, the British toy brand’s iconic marshmallow-like texture making it an instant winner with little ones and adults alike. Boasting everything from cuddly cows to mythical unicorns and zingy fruits, the label’s whimsical designs are just waiting to be collected and squeezed. The 20-inch is really the only BB-8 that might be worth it for the average buyer. It’s still not a great representation of the droid but giving more space for the head, and the larger eye-lens mean it’s a bit easier to connect with the character. I would still recommend Chewy or the Child over this one, but if your heart is set on a big BB-8, this will do the job. R2-D2

Then there are the droids. Their problem is that while they are non-human characters, their designs heavily rely on their silhouettes. You can look at the outline of pretty much any droid in Star Wars and identify it. Any good character design should have a distinct profile, but when there’s no face or clothing, that and the color palette are really all you have. I wouldn’t recommend either the 10-inch or 20-inch plushes. They simply don’t resemble R2-D2 enough, and when you look at them too long, it really sinks in that he is missing his body. Get another 20-inch plush, or get an R2-D2 figurine instead. In Summary Of the four choices and three sizes, I would choose the 20-inch Chewbacca as my favorite. Baby Yoda does come in at a close second, but I am far more interested in Chewbacca as a character than Grogu. The loyal best friend archetype has always been one of my favorites, so I’ve been a fan of the Wookie. I think R2-D2 looks the worst. Since Squishmallows are all made from one round shape, they are, essentially, all just heads. However, they never feel like that. The face positioning and body patterning make the plushes feel like a whole being.