Sonic Action Figures Title
Sonic Riders Free Riders Figures
Sonic Riders & Free Riders featured Sonic & everyone on flying air boards.
It also featured new gloves, shoes or outfits for a lot of the characters. These things combined means it's a good idea for a small figure line. The figures come with their own (unique) air boards which they fit onto. Instead of flying, the boards roll. The games also introduced the Babylon Rogues who you'll also see on the line.
Figures should be about 11.99 each

The Toys R Us exclusive expired in late 2010. (BigBad Toy Store has them now, at a lower mark-up than all other online retail. If your TRU isn't stocking the figures, this, OR Suncoast Video Stores (in malls) may be the best place to get them, possibly also FYE stores (in malls). "Big Lots" (clearinghouse style store in USA MAY have some 3.5 line) Also BooksAMillion (book & item store) may have FreeRiders. Tip by Bombermanwinner

SonicGear Main Page * Jazwares Small line 1 * Small Sonic line 2 * Small Sonic Line 3 * Jazwares General *
Jet Hawk Free Rider Jet FreeRider Hawk Box Sonic FreeRiders Figure MIP Naturally, they chose Jet & Sonic to go first on the line. These were released well before the 20th Anniversary celebration figures began to appear. They were re-released with the rest of the Riders figures.
Here are the MIB shots for Jazwares first 2 Sonic Free Riders figures. Of course, they chose Jet Hawk & Sonic. Each one comes with hover board & goggles accessory. You can remove the figure from the board, and snap the goggles onto their head. Sonic's no clone either, he has the different shoes, open hands, and banded gloves. The box sticker says "Removable Figure" Riders Figure Box Back
(Jet shown here at 2 angles because his beak looks kind of odd from below) The package resembles their new re-made 2011 packing style, only with Free Riders logo in the bottom, to help it tie in with the Xbox Kinect Game. *Goggles may be difficult to remove from figure once placed. (*info by SupergamerBros) Photos discovered by SonicHedgehog11 and BoltTH.

The box back (left) has a larger version of Jet & Sonic art from the front, along with a picture of the game's cover-art, to promote the tie in, and encourage people to get the game. Should be 7.99 each. Box-back photo by ShadowPlace1

Sonic Glove & Jet feather detail FreeRider Figure Feet Detail Sonic & Jet on Board Accessories
While only 1 of the figures is really new, Sonic still has good added detail. At right, notice his Riders-style glove, with wrist-band, and seam around all the fingers. He also has is board riding shoes, and both figures have the little hole in their head for the pegs of the glasses. The shoe bottoms both have holes for the sturdy pegs on their boards, and as shown, they can stand quite well on them. . These guys are much sturdier than their other figures.
You'll notice these figures have the NEW BETTER PLASTIC. The joints feel stronger and the plastic will feel different
Sonic & Jet hover boards details
Jet Hawk Jazwares Figure Jet Hawk Figure Side Back Photo
The air boards are detailed nicely with both paint & stickers. They roll on unobtrusive wheels, & have pegs for the figures' feet.
Jet looks pretty much fantastic. The better plastic has good detail (notice the little flame designs on his arms in the top photo!) His head can turn, but his bottom points stop it. He does turn at the hip, though it can't be seen in the photo. He may have a paint flaw, so do inspect him in the box. Tail seems flexible but sturdy, & the goggles are likely to fit him/stay on. He stays on the board well, & poses easily. The Sonic from this duo is also a good one to get, if just for the sturdyness & nice joints. His goggles DO NOT always fit though (can be too small) & there's no way to detect this while MIB. The boards & goggle accessories are a nice addition & justify the 7.99 because they're sturdy, they roll & are properly detailed. Even if you don't like FreeRiders, these new figures are quality & fun!
FreeRiders Figures Wave 2 Collection FreeRiders Knuckles & Board Free Riders Tails Figure MIP FreeRiders Storm Albatross
Above photo by BombermanWinner
With these in-box photos, you can see the size comparison for the figures. Storm is nice & big, as he should be (look where his head & feet are in the box) The boxes all have good smooth bubbles, & the figures attempt to be posed somewhat dynamically, so leaving them MIB isn't bad. Each figure has about 12 points of articulation, and as you'll note here, Tails & Knuckles have their 'Riders style' new shoes & slightly special gloves. They also have their goggles from the game, and come with rolling boards.
Jazwares Storm Figure Turn Around photo Storm Albatross & rolling board accessory Here's Storm & his board. His details look good here, you can see his necklace, non-remove-able goggles & the wiggly arm lines that the Babylon Rogues have. His board looks slightly small for him though...
Storm Figure Above/Below The missed detail (seen at right) are his socks. They should be white, but they're unpainted. He has a waist swivel--very low due to his shape... but no knees because of his super short legs. He seems proportional, and the face looks good. His eyes are small/circular like Big's, so the black marking around them makes him look a bit skulley. Storm Figure Sock & Face Detail
All Storm loose photos & individual MIP photos by SonicToast
FreeRiders Version Tails 3.75 line figure Free Riders Tails' Hover Board Free Rider Tails Joint Details
Here is Free Riders Tails, who as you can see is nicely detailed, but pretty close to a regular Tails, since his only real differences are the glove texture & hand pose, & his different sneakers/board riding boots. Like Sonic & Jet, his goggles are removeable
they're not stuck to the figure's head. They did not re pose his tails, which is a little unfortunate, because they are solid, & can give him trouble balancing on his board. The board (as usual for the line)
Riders Tails has Removable Goggles is nice & detailed. They didn't try to pass off pallet swapping as different boards--everyone's got a unique one, which is great. Look at the joints in the photo to the right. For some reason, he has these little peg shaped things for the joint stops. Why did this start with this figure? Does he feel more sturdy than usual? You can see these while he's in the package. Photos by Taaron, goggles photo by Knuxfan Free Riders Tails on Board
Wave the Swallow Babylon Rogue Figure Here is Wave the Swallow MIB. For some reason, her figure came out way after the other Free Riders. She looks good here, nice & visible in her box, & you can see the details of her board, clothes & gloves. Photo discovered by ScourgeSonic
Wave Swallow Detail Wave is another great figure, as seen here with these turn-arounds and close-ups. Her top has the pointed edges, jewel like red thing in the middle, & her gloves have the right painted accents. Her head cloth is well sculpted, & her pants are jointed
Wave Swallow Figure Turn Arounds Wave's Riders Hoverboard at the knee (as they should be) without messing up their design. Her eyelashes are painted on & she looks
somewhat sneaky, as she should. Out of everyone though, her goggles seem the least detailed, they're just 2 flat disk things. Her board is good too, game-like in its design. All photos for loose Wave by Taaron.
Will Wave end up being a rare figure?
It's certainly possible. With her late release, and non-main-cast stauts as well as having to deal with the re-release of the Sonic & Jet Riders squeezing out newer figures...it seems likely that she could become sought-after. Buy her if you see her in stores, because these factors may contribute to make her uncommon.
All Riders Figures Rogues & STK With the release of the final figure Wave the Swallow, this line now appears to be complete as it has the main cast from the games. As you know, there were 'hidden' characters to get, such as NiGHTS, but it seems likely they'll only do the main cast.

There are enough differences for these guys (shoes, gloves, goggles) with the air board accessories that they DONT feel like a 're-buy' or a tacked-on line. If you liked the games at all, or the designs for the costumes, these should be on your list to get. Every board is different too, so they weren't cheaping out on anything.

The figure prices are a little steep, but this is also likely to be the only chance at people like the Babylon Rogues.
Recommendation: Get this line!
It's not 100% flaw-free, but it's still really good thanks to the usual great JW sculpting.
Group photo by Taaron
Wierd Variation Quality Wave Figure Quick, somebody call Quality Control!
And tell them they're doing a bad job. Look at this messed up Wave figure. The original is on the left, but it makes the right-side one look like a knockoff. They forgot her eyelashes completely, making her eyes look wierd. They didn't paint her head-bandana, so her head looks lumpy. They forgot her necklace string/chain, so the stone seems misplaced. Instead of the cool flames on her pants, it's just sort of lame little triangle things, like someone trying to imitate her design. The oddest bit is her shoes. They neglected the soles, but added a certainly-purposeful lace pattern to the top. What exactly is going on here?
Do note the different colored plastic body for the original, sometimes a figure can turn out with a slightly miscolored portion if they're assembled from different parts.
So far, this is the most 'varied' figure JW has ever turned out for any character. It's a mystery how this figure made it to some shelves. Photo & owned by WakeAngel2001
Odd Paint Jet Hawk Figure Similar, but not as dramatic as Wave above...here's odd paint Jet.
This looks like another figure where a bunch of them snuck past quality control and got onto shelves. He's missing the pupil to his eyes as well as the dark tips for his mowhawk & tail. Then, you can see that those feathers are actually lighter colored than the rest of him, unlike the normal figure above on this page. His goggles are likely to be correct, even though he's not. This is yet another reminder to thoroughly inspect figures before buying, or you could end up with an inaccurate one like this. Photo by PacmanSonic