Monday, March 21, 2016

Action Figure Review: Ahsoka Tano from Star Wars: The Black Series Phase III by Hasbro


 One of the things I absolutely love about Star Wars now is that it has so many different eras when the storyline takes place, each populated with a different cast (with some overlap of course! One of the areas and casts I'm currently finding the most interesting is that found in Rebels. While Ahsoka Tano was the star of Star Wars: Clone Wars, this figure is taken from her appearance in Rebels where she has returned to the fight older, wiser, and as the mysterious agent "Fulcrum" who assists the Lothal rebels. I just can't express enough how cool it is to have watched Ahsoka's story told over the six seasons of Clone Wars and now to watch it continue in another story that seems like it it could affect the events of the original film. Personally, I hope that Ahsoka appears in Rogue One (played by Ashley Eckstein, of course) and thus we get to see her storyline continue all the way to the events of the Original Trilogy. In this current series of The Black Series figures, Hasbro has released the first two figures from a Star Wars animated series. Uniquely, they've changed their appearance so that they still fit in with everyone else; almost as if they were film characters. It reminds me of how Hasbro integrated some of the earlier The Clone Wars figures into the main line back in the mid 2000 and later in the Vintage Collection. Ready for a closer look at the new Rebels era Ahsoka? Then join me after the break...




 The Facts:

Height: 5 7/8ths inches (to the top of her montrals)

Articulation: dual swivel/hinge ankles, double hinged knees, swivel thighs, ball jointed hips, ball jointed mid-torso, swivel/hinge shoulders, swivel/hinge elbows, swivel/hinge wrists, hinged neck, and a ball-jointed head.

Accessories: Two lightsaber hilts and two lightsaber blades.

Non-Scalper Price: $18-$20 dollars
The Positives:

  * Ahsoka is as nicely articulated as most other figures in the line. While her head doesn't move as much due to her montrals and lekku, her torso and arm articulation his incredible. She really can take on some excellent lightsaber dueling poses! She also feels quite sturdy, which is always a plus.

 * Hasbro did an excellent job of Ahsoka. She's certainly one of the most visually interesting figures in the Black Series to date. Her outfit is rather complex and features a number of great design details and different paint applications. This is a fantastic Ahsoka outfit and I'm really glad that Hasbro went with this one.

* The headsculpt is incredible. It's a great translation of Ahsoka's likeness into a more realistic form. If Ahsoka were to appear in a live action film such as Rogue One, this is probably what she would look like. The paint work is excellent and the detail on her montrals and lekku looks incredible. This is just such a gorgeous figure and is definitely on the higher end of everything Hasbro has released in the Star Wars universe.



*  Here's a shot of Ahsoka from the back so you can see her rear Lekku and the back of her outfit. Again, the Lekku look fantastic and have excellent paintwork.


 * While there are some problems with Ahsoka's hip movement (which I'll get to in a minute) I do really like how Hasbro handled her waist guards. They're made from a softer, more pliable plastic with some actual fabric in the middle. Not only does it look good but it gives her a bit more functionality than she would have had with just plastic alone.


* On both sides of her thigh padding Ahsoka has two small hooks that can easily hold her lightsabers via the hooks on their hilts. These fit really well and look awesome when being toted around.
* Ahsoka comes with two lightsabers, both of which feature detachable blades. One saber features a curved hilt and a standard sized blade while the other is a shoto lightsaber, a shorter blade used in dueling with two lightsabers. While the blades look bluish in the pictures, they actually are quite translucent (the blue appearance seems to be coming from the grey background they're positioned on). Ahsoka's hands feature tight grips to hold both blades very firmly.
The Negatives:

* Both of Ahsoka's lightsaber hilts are rather soft. Perhaps this was done to prevent them from being overly brittle? It's not too frustrating to insert and remove the lightsaber blades from the hilts but I really wish Hasbro just included one set of hilts and one set of ignited hilts with blades permanently attached. I'm not a big fan of the removable blades, myself.


* When it comes to the figure itself, I only have one complaints: It is very difficult to get Ahsoka posed in a wider stance. I think that has to do with her waist piece, but it does make it difficult to find a cool standing pose for her that's more dynamic than just standing around.
 Ahsoka Tano is a pretty incredible figure. In all honesty, seeing her and Kana Jarrus from this series (who I'll be reviewing soon) actually makes the Rebel crew the "faction" from Star Wars that I'm the most excited about seeing complete. Not only do I just love this cast but I'm loving how Hasbro has recreated them so far. Though  I believe Ahsoka is a significant enough character in Star Wars lore to warrant multiple versions (her original and season 3 Clone Wars outfits would make great figures), it's a relief to know that Hasbro at least feels like she warranted one figure and that they did an incredible job with her. She's a Great and a 1/2 figure and is well worth picking up as quickly as possible. I fear that she's going to be a tough figure to find and is going to be almost invisible on store shelves.

I haven't reviewed any other figures of Ahsoka Tano yet but I have reviewed plenty more figures from the Black Series:

Star Wars: The Black Series (6 inch) by Hasbro (2013)
Anakin Skywalker
Boba Fett
Darth Maul
Greedo
Han Solo
Luke Skywalker (Bespin Outfit)
Luke Skywalker (X-Wing Pilot)
Obi-Wan Kenobi (Revenge of the Sith)
Princess Leia (Slave Outfit)
R2-D2
Sandtrooper
Stormtrooper

Star Wars: The Black Series Phase II (6 inch) by Hasbro (2014)
Boba Fett (Prototype Armor)
Bossk
Chewbacca
Clone Commander Cody
Clone Trooper Captain
Clone Trooper Sergeant
Darth Vader
Emperor Palpatine
Han Solo & Tauntaun
Han Solo (Stormtrooper Disguise)
IG-88
Luke Skywalker (Jedi Knight)
Luke Skywalker (Stormtrooper Disguise)
Luke Skywalker & Wampa
Princess Leia Organa (Boushh)
TIE Pilot 

Star Wars: The Black Series Phase III (6 inch) by Hasbro (2015)
Captain Phasma
Chewbacca
Constable Zuvio
Darth Vader (Emperor's Wrath)
Finn (FN-2187)
Finn (Jakku)
First Order Flametrooper
First Order General Hux
First Order Snowtrooper Officer
First Order Special Forces TIE Fighter
First Order Stormtrooper
First Order TIE Fighter Pilot
Guavian Enforcer
Han Solo
Imperial Shock Trooper
Jango Fett
Kylo Ren 
Kylo Ren (Starkiller Base)
Phase 1 Clone Trooper Commander, Phase II Clone Trooper, Imperial Stormtrooper, and First Order ---Stormtrooper Officer four pack
Poe Dameron
Poe Dameron and First Order Riot Control Stormtrooper
Resistance Trooper
Rey (Jakku) & BB-8 
Sandtrooper Sergeant, Crimson Stormtrooper, Lieutenant OXIXO, and R2-Q5
X-Wing Pilot Asty 

5 comments:

  1. Oh I loves me some Ahsoka. She has always been my favorite since Master Poe found her and trained her as a youngling. Love her fighting style and sense of justice. I will be chasing after this figure for sure.

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    1. It's amazing to me that Ahsoka is becoming as significant of a character to so many Star Wars fans as Luke, Anakin, Leia, Padme, or Obi-Wan. I mean, she's been around for coming up on 10 years and has appeared in tons of different forms of media. I'm a second generation fan (I didn't get into the series until the early-mid 90s) so it's cool to see how Star Wars has really expanded beyond just three movies. I just wish some of the characters that I grew up with and whom felt significant such as Prince Xizor, Mara Jade, Grand Admiral Thrawn, Kyp Duron, and others could find their way back into the canon universe in some way.

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  2. Whoa, I didn't know these were out yet! She looks awesome, man! Might have to pick this one up.

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    1. I hope you can find one! Star Wars Black figures seem to have the worst distribution of any line I collect. And yes, I'm even including World of Nintendo.

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    2. I hear you there! I've seen the same pile of first-wave Force Awakens stuff since the movie came out and the toys first hit. Not that they haven't been restocked - various places have restocked tons of times! It's just...that, over and over. And no Phasma.

      Anyway, we'll see what I can find! They eventually come around, someday.

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