The 2008 Commander Cody Maxi-Figure
The Rarest Clone in the Galaxy
Produced in the Czech Republic. Distributed through a UK Toys R Us raffle. Winners notified by phone the week before Christmas 2008. And then nothing.
In July 2008, LEGO produced 32 brick-built Commander Cody maxi-figures at their Czech Republic manufacturing facility. Each was numbered, glued, and packaged with a certificate of authenticity. Twelve were sent to Toys R Us stores in the United Kingdom as prizes in a consumer raffle. The other twenty were distributed through channels that have never been publicly documented. Winners were drawn on December 12, 2008 and notified by phone the week before Christmas.
Nobody has reported seeing one in collector hands since.
The Promotion
The Commander Cody maxi-figure was produced to celebrate the launch of Star Wars: The Clone Wars animated series. Toys R Us UK partnered with LEGO to run a consumer raffle — the prize being one of twelve figures allocated to UK stores. Entry forms were available in-store and could be submitted either in a competition entry box at the store or by post to:
Commander Cody Competition, Promotions Department
Toys R Us Ltd, Vanwall Business Park
Vanwall Road, Maidenhead, Berkshire, SL6 4UB
The Maidenhead, Berkshire address is Toys R Us UK’s headquarters — confirming this was a UK-specific promotion. Entries required a parent or guardian signature for entrants under 16 years of age.
The Timeline
- July 10, 2008 — figures produced and labeled at LEGO Production s.r.o., Czech Republic (confirmed from foot label date)
- July 11, 2008 — figures distributed to UK Toys R Us stores for display
- November 20, 2008 — competition closing date
- December 12, 2008 — prize draw
- December 19, 2008 — winners notified by phone
The four-month competition window — July to November — is notably long for a retail raffle. Winners received their figures just before Christmas 2008, which means the twelve UK recipients almost certainly opened them as Christmas gifts or alongside them. Most of the people who won this raffle were children.
The Entry Form
The entry form — documented here for the first time in full — is a two-sided page. The front reads:
WIN 1 OF 12 LIMITED EDITION COMMANDER CODY FIGURES!
The front carries the LEGO, Star Wars, and Toys R Us logos, and an orange circle in the lower right corner reading “ONLY 32 FIGURES WORLDWIDE.”
The back carries the full promotional description:
TO CELEBRATE THE LAUNCH OF STAR WARS™: THE CLONE WARS™
TOYS R US has teamed up with LEGO® to give 12 lucky winners the chance to own one of these exclusive limited edition Commander Cody figures.
There are only 32 of these figures in the world!
Each figure is 30cm high by 18cm wide, built out of LEGO® bricks and comes with a certificate of authenticity.
Each figure has its own unique number, which can be found on a label on one of Commander Cody’s feet.
Commander Cody serves as Obi-Wan’s second in command of the 212th Attack Battalion and places duty above all else.
The Figure
The Commander Cody maxi-figure stands 30cm high and 18cm wide. It is a glued brick-built construction modeled after the Commander Cody minifigure as it appeared in set 7676 Republic Attack Gunship — orange-marked white Clone Wars armor with distinctive helmet detailing.
Each figure carries a paper label on the bottom of the right foot with the following information:
LEGO Production s.r.o. CZ
Model category I
Model No: 4550819-[XX] (handwritten)
Date: 10.7.2008 (handwritten)
The date format — 10.7.2008 — is consistent with European day/month/year notation, confirming July 10, 2008 as the production date. LEGO Production s.r.o. CZ is LEGO’s Czech Republic manufacturing facility — the same facility that produced the life-size Times Square X-Wing in 2013. The “Model category I” designation is unexplained but may indicate a production category used internally at the Czech facility.
The Certificate
Each figure came with a Toys R Us certificate of authenticity. The certificate carries the LEGO and Star Wars logos at the top, followed by:
Limited Edition LEGO Commander Cody
Certificate of Authenticity
A circular seal on the certificate reads “Limited Edition Commander Cody.” The figure’s unique number is handwritten in black marker at the bottom — for example, “15/32” — alongside a signature that appears to read “Dawn Shah” or similar, though the handwriting is not entirely clear. This is presumably a LEGO Production employee at the Czech facility responsible for certifying each figure.
A community-documented example — a replica MOC built by Chubbie on Rebrickable — estimates the build at approximately 1,214 pieces, though this has not been tested against an original and should be treated as an approximation rather than a confirmed piece count.
The Other Twenty
The UK Toys R Us raffle accounts for 12 of the 32 figures. The distribution of the remaining 20 has never been officially documented — but photographic evidence suggests they were used as in-store display models rather than given away as prizes.
A Reddit post in the r/legostarwars community includes a photograph described as “an example of one of the builds outside the UK being used as a store model” — showing a Commander Cody figure in a display case alongside a similar-sized brick-built Darth Vader maxi-figure. This is consistent with the FBTB forums reference from 2016 noting that stores had the figures on display with a parts list available at the time.
If the other 20 were used as store display models rather than prizes, several things follow. First, the 12 UK raffle winners may hold the only examples that were ever intended to leave stores in collector hands. Second, the store display figures could be anywhere. A Toys R Us employee who took one home in 2008 might be reading this right now with no idea what they have. Third, the entry form’s description of “12 lucky winners” makes complete sense if only 12 were ever intended as prizes — the other 20 were always display stock.
The Mystery Vader
The store display photograph shows Commander Cody alongside a similar-sized brick-built Darth Vader maxi-figure. This Vader appears to be a comparable construction — large-scale, brick-built, display quality. It has never been documented anywhere in the collector community as a distinct promotional item.
Whether the Vader was produced at the same time as the Commander Cody figures, in the same Czech Republic facility, and in similar quantities is completely unknown. It may have been numbered and certified like the Cody figures, or it may have been a pure display piece with no collector documentation at all. If you have ever seen or handled one of these Vader maxi-figures, please get in touch — this may be an entirely undocumented LEGO Star Wars promotional item.
Known Examples
Two specific examples have been photographed and documented:
- No. 4 of 32 — photographed and listed on BrickLink. Certificate documented.
- No. 15 of 32 — photographed extensively including multiple angles, certificate, and entry form. Listed on eBay in 2016 where bidding reached $11,800 with four days remaining. Also photographed by Reddit user r/legostarwars.
- Unknown number — a third example photographed on Reddit (r/legostarwars, April 2021) showing a UK raffle example from a single angle with no number visible. No additional provenance information available.
Three examples have been publicly photographed. Twenty-nine of the 32 figures remain completely unaccounted for in the collector community.
A Note on the 2012 BrickLink Vader
A separate brick-built Darth Vader glued model is listed on BrickLink under gear ID DarthVader with a year of 2012. This is a completely different item. It measures 103cm tall, 70cm wide, and 70cm deep, and weighs approximately 23kg — more than three times the height of the Commander Cody figure and roughly the scale of a LEGOLAND display piece. The build style, lightsaber, head, and body construction are all visually distinct from the Vader seen in the 2009 anniversary display photograph. The 2012 BrickLink Vader is almost certainly a large-scale retail or LEGOLAND display figure from a different era and context. It is not the item documented in this article.
This Collection Is Looking for One
A serious offer is on the table for any example in any condition, with or without the certificate. If you won one of the twelve UK raffle prizes in December 2008, if you know someone who did, or if you have any information about where any of the 32 figures ended up — please get in touch.
What We Don’t Know
- The other 20 — photographic evidence suggests they were store display models, but this has not been confirmed officially. Were they used in stores worldwide? Were any preserved after the promotion ended?
- The mystery Vader — a brick-built Darth Vader maxi-figure of similar scale appears in the store display photograph alongside Commander Cody. Has this item ever been documented? Was it produced at the same facility, in similar quantities, and at the same time? If you have seen or handled one please get in touch.
- The exact piece count — the Rebrickable MOC estimates 1,214 pieces but this is unconfirmed. Has anyone disassembled an original?
- The certificate signature — the name appears to read “Dawn Shah” or similar. Can anyone confirm the identity of the LEGO Production employee who signed the certificates?
- The “Model category I” designation — what does this mean? Were there other model categories used for other promotional figures from the same facility?
- The in-store display — FBTB forums referenced stores having the figures on display with a parts list available. What did the display look like? Does anyone have photos or the original parts list?
Commander Cody Maxi-Figure (Glued)
BrickLink: 4550819
Produced: July 10, 2008 | Manufacturer: LEGO Production s.r.o., Czech Republic
Distribution: Toys R Us UK raffle (12 figures) + unknown channels (20 figures)
Quantity: 32 worldwide
Dimensions: 30cm high × 18cm wide
Status: Actively seeking — contact The Collector
