Hands-on With Chatter Back Chopper, the ‘Ahsoka’ Toy That Shouts at You

If you’ve been watching — and loving — Star Wars: Ahsoka on Disney+, you’ve probably dreamed of some of the toys you might purchase associated with the series. A plush Loth-cat to cuddle and love? Sounds good. A space whale to put on the shelf and wonder at its majesty? Delightful! Or how about an animatronic version of Chopper, the borderline-insane droid who hates everyone and won’t stop screaming?

Good news about the latter: Hasbro is unleashing Star Wars: Chatter Back Chopper, a 7.5-inch tall version of the droid first introduced in Star Wars Rebels, now making his live-action debut on Ahsoka. Even better news, Decider got hands-on with the toy, which was released in stores last week, but for some reason, we were told we couldn’t review it until today. Anywho, thanks Hasbro, we appreciate you.

For those not in the know — aka those folks doing a Google search for “shouting” who have never watched a Star War and decided to click this article — Chopper is the nickname of C1-10P. He’s an astromech droid, so just like R2-D2 from the movies, though much, much grumpier. He helps Hera Syndulla (played on Ahsoka by Mary Elizabeth Winstead, who is nearly unrecognizable in the role), pilot her ship, both in the animated series and on Ahsoka. And despite the latter taking place years later, Chopper hasn’t gotten less ornery with time.

The toy, which costs a suggested retail price of $79.99, and Hasbro touts has, “40 sound and movement combinations by pressing the button on Chopper’s body, posing his front arm, or by making sounds of your own,” responds to noises like talking, clapping, or music. With that in mind, the folks here at Decider plugged in the four AA batteries required but not included, and got ready for a cacophony of droid noise.

So is this toy Chopper your Chatter Back Girl? Well, yes and no. A few important logistical notes once you get your Chopper out of the box… Beyond the four batteries, you’re going to want a small screwdriver (Phillips preferred). And once you take off the back panel and put the batteries in, it’s actually highly important that you take his legs and pull them back so Chop is standing in the classic Star Wars “droid belly out” position; otherwise, the weight of his head is going to make him capsize over.

With that out of the way, press the little button on his front panel and Chopper is ready to run amok. Kind of. This isn’t the rogue element you saw on Rebels or the (mostly) helpful droid you’ve seen on Ahsoka. This is an extremely cute toy that moves its head around, has two little arms that clap on its head like a Jewish grandpa saying “oy” and lightly rocks back and forth thanks to the weight of that motion/physics.

It’s also not speaking at the same level as TV Chopper… That droid is clearly speaking English, despite the beeps and boops and whirs; that Chop is way beyond your regular Star Wars droid indicating language through only movement and intention. As seen in the second episode of Ahsoka, Chopper has dialogue. Not this toy, though. This is droid noise, plain and simple. And as a Star Wars fan of course there’s that soft spot for some classic-sounding nonsense. But you can ask Chatter Back Chopper questions and 45% of the time he seems to respond; 45% of the time he responds but with an incongruous movement or noise; and the other 10% he sits there and does nothing until you push the button on his front again to reset his mechanism.

To be clear, when it works, it’s delightful. I asked Chopper what he thought of various Ahsoka characters, and while he gripped his head and whirred about Hera, he practically cooed when I mentioned Sabine. Same, Chop. Same. And when I asked my other robot, Alexa, to play the “Imperial March,” Chopper pretty much lost his mind, quacking like Batman villain The Penguin and waving his little arms around.

But while Hasbro might tout the 40 sound and movement combinations, given the limited motion — a rotating head, waggling arms, a dongle on the front that flips out and back, and the forward motion caused not by moving legs but by gravity slowly pulling the unit forward — it doesn’t quite pan out that way, visually.

That said? I’m a grown adult who is writing a review of a child’s toy (it’s labeled ages 4 and up). While I quickly tired of playing with Chopper, my actual children hung out for at least another 10 minutes having a delightful time shouting commands at him, despite the fact that he neither responded directly nor followed any of those orders.

…actually, I guess this is very accurate to Chopper, a droid who never listens to anyone?

@alexanderzalben

Chatter Back Chopper hands on (thanks Hasbro!) #starwars #ahsoka #handson #chatterbackchopper #toys #hasbro #demo

♬ original sound – Alexander Zalben

The other side of the spectrum: this is a really well-made collectible, regardless of the “chatter back” of it all. It looks like Chopper, the mold of the droid is great, and if you’re a die-hard fan of Rebels or Ahsoka and want something nice that fits on your shelf, you could do far worse than this Chatter Back Chopper.

As for the casual fan who may not want to spend $80 on the Star Wars equivalent of a Big Mouth Billy Bass that, instead of singing songs, sputters incomprehensible nonsense? I leave that up to you.

If you want your own Chatter Back Chopper, you’re in luck! Right now, the little droid is 9% off on Amazon, bringing the price down to $72.99.

Note: This Chatter Back Chopper was provided for review to Decider.

Here’s the official info on the toy, via Hasbro:

STAR WARS: CHATTER BACK CHOPPER ANIMATRONIC

(HASBRO/Ages 4 years & up/Approx. Retail Price: $79.99 / Available: Fall 2023)

Bring the fan-favorite droid from a galaxy far, far away right into your home with this STAR WARS: CHATTER BACK CHOPPER ANIMATRONIC. This 7.5-inch-tall animatronic edition of the beloved and cranky droid toy features character design and weathered deco inspired by the STAR WARS: AHSOKA live-action series on Disney+. Unleash his sassy personality and unlock more than 40 sound and movement combinations by pressing the button on Chopper’s body, posing his front arm, or by making sounds of your own! This interactive toy responds to background noises like talking, clapping, or music with different combinations of droid sounds and motorized movements. Watch as he really responds with different sound effects and movements with his arms, body, and head!