Action Figure Review: Dryden Vos from Star Wars: The Black Series Phase III by Hasbro

   Today I'm checking out another figure from the newest series of Star Wars: The Black Series figures and this time it's the public face of the Crmson Dawn crime syndicate, Dryden Vos. Played by Paul Bettany after the original actor couldn't be present for the Ron Howard directed reshoots (Michael Kenneth Williams originally played the role with the intention of Vos being a motion captured character, possibly a Lasat), Vos provides Han Solo a charming yet menacing introduction to the true nature of the criminal underworld. Since Bettany joined the cast later it took longer for Hasbro to get us an action figure of him. Where's a decent Qi'ra now, huh Hasbro? Anyways, Dryden Vos is one of the two Solo characters in this series. Let's check him out after the break...

 The Facts:

Height: 6 3/8ths inches

Articulation: Swivel/hinge ankles, "boot" swivels, double hinged knees, swivel thighs, balljointed hips, balljointed mid-torso, swivel/hinge shoulders, swivel/hinge elbows, swivel/hinge wrists, and a balljointed head.

Accessories: Cape/ jacket combo, 2 Kyuzo petars.

Non-Scalper Price: $20 dollars

 The Positives:

* Overall Hasbro continues to do a stellar job of offering realistic, authentic looking figures in this series. While on the surface Dryden Vos is a fairly regular looking guy dressed in black there's actually a lot going on here. His jacket/ coat combination does make him seem like a much more complex figure as does the various textures on his vest and trousers. He also has a few cool details on his chest such as the datapad that he wears attached to his midsection and the ornamented clasp of his cape.

* Dryden Vos is well articulated and can take quite a few poses, particularly if you remove his cape/ jacket. He actually looks pretty decent without the cape, too, unlike many figure with a removable coat or such. He's sturdy and well made.

* The faceprinting here goes a long way towards making this figure greatly resemble Paul Bettany. The hair is just right, too, and you can even see the mechanostaple near his hairline. The striation on his face is slightly visible. This was a cool element of the character in the film and seeing it here goes a long way toward giving Vos a menacing presence. But wait...there's more!

* Maybe I missed it but a user at JediTempleArchives mentioned this morning that Dryden Vos reacts to the cold (thanks Jaken Wraith!). I immediately threw Dryden in the freezer and was amazed at how quickly the marks on his face turned a bright, crimson red! How cool!

* While he doesn't have the weird thumb claws that the character has in the film, Dryden does have his Crimson Dawn signet ring on his right hand and his wrist communicator.

* Dryden Vos includes the dual Kyuzo petars he uses at the end of the film. The look cool and easily fit in his hands. They're sharp looking, huh?

* Guess what else? Pop these babies in the freezer and they'll also begin to "glow" with energy. Yup! The petars turn red, too. On the petar to the right you can see how the left side is red after being in my freezer for a minute or so while the right side, which I rubbed with my fingers to heat up, is just gold. Neat! What other Star Wars figures do I need to be freezing?

 The Negatives:


 * Dryden Vos' cape has this cool clasp that keeps it in place but it is kind of finicky and feels a bit fragile. It doesn't stay in place very well.

 * From everything I've gathered, Dryden Vos is supposed to be wearing a Pantora-silk suit jacket and an off the shoulder cape. It seems that Hasbro combined the two into one piece and while it looks OK from the front, it looks weird from the back. Personally, I would have liked to have seen the jacket as the plastic piece with a soft goods cape off the shoulder. That would have been the way to go here. This looks fine on display but it falls apart when posing the figure.

   Hasbro continues on a role and Dryden Vos is another solid entry in the Black Series. While he may not be the most exciting figure, the little details and the thermochromic paint go a long ways towards giving Vos some much needed pizazz. While I do wish his cape were handled differently and the presence of a coaxium container or one of his artifacts would have been cool, finally having Dryden Vos in the line is very welcome. Now we just need a new Qi'ra! Come on Hasbro! Make it happen!





This is the first action figure of Dryden Vos I've reviewed. For more Star Wars: The Black Series figures check out the following:

442nd Siege Battalion Clone Trooper, 212th Attack Battalion Utapau Trooper, Coruscant Guard ---(Phase II), and 501st Legion Clone Trooper 4 pack
4-LOM
Admiral Ackbar and First Order Officer
Admiral Piett
Ahsoka Tano 
AT-AT Pilot 
Battle Droid
Baze Malbus
C-3PO
C-3PO (Resistance Base) 
Captain Cassian Andor (Eadu) 
Captain Phasma
Captain Phasma (Quicksilver Baton)
Captain Poe Dameron
Chewbacca (Target Exclusive)
Chewbacca (The Force Awakens)
Chirrut Imwe 
Clone Captain Rex (HasCon Exclusive)
Clone Commander Gree
Clone Commander Wolffe 
Constable Zuvio
Darth Revan 
Darth Vader (Emperor's Wrath)
Death Star Trooper
Dengar
Dewback/ Sandtrooper
Director Krennic 
DJ (Canto Bight)
Elite Praetorian Guard
Elite Praetorian Guard (with Heavy Blade)
Enfys Nest's Swoop Bike/ Enfys Nest
Finn (First Order Disguise)
Finn (FN-2187)
Finn (Jakku)
First Order Flametrooper
First Order General Hux
First Order Snowtrooper
First Order Snowtrooper Officer
First Order Special Forces TIE Fighter
First Order Stormtrooper
First Order Stormtrooper Executioner 
First Order Stormtrooper (with Gear)
First Order TIE Fighter Pilot
Gamorrean Guard
General Leia Organa
General Veers
Grand Admiral Thrawn (SDCC Exclusive)
Grand Moff Tarkin 
Guardians of Evil 4-Pack
Guavian Enforcer
Han Solo (Exogorth Escape)
Han Solo (Solo)
Han Solo (The Force Awakens)
Hera Syndulla
Imperial AT-ACT Driver
Imperial Death Trooper
Imperial Death Trooper, Captain Cassian Andor, and Sergeant Jyn Erso (Jedha) 3 pack
Imperial Hovertank Pilot 
Imperial Patrol Trooper
Imperial Shock Trooper 
Imperial Royal Guard 
Inferno Squad Agent
Jaina Solo (Legends)
Jango Fett
K-2SO
Kanan Jarrus
Kylo Ren 
Kylo Ren (SDCC 2016)
Kylo Ren (The Last Jedi) 
Kylo Ren (Starkiller Base)
Kylo Ren (Throne Room) 
L3-37
Lando Calrissian (Solo)
Lando Calrissian (The Empire Strikes Back)
Lando Calrissian (Skiff Guard)
Luke Skywalker 
Luke Skywalker (Jedi Master) 
Luke Skywalker (Jedi Master)- Ahch-To Island
Maz Kanata 
Moloch
Obi-Wan Kenobi (Force Spirit)
Obi-Wan Kenobi (SDCC 2016)
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
Porgs 
Princess Leia (Bespin Escape)
Princess Leia Organa 
Princess Leia Organa (Hoth)
Qi'ra (Corellia)
Qui-Gon Jinn
R2-A3, R5-K6, and R2-F2
Range Trooper
Rebel Trooper
Red Squadron (R2-D2, R5-D8, and R2-X2)
Resistance Tech Rose
Resistance Trooper
Rey (Island Journey)
Rey (Jakku) & BB-8 
Rey (Jedi Training)
Rey (Jedi Training)- Crait
Rey (Starkiller Base) 
Rey's Speeder (Jakku)
Rio Durant
Sabine Wren
Sandtrooper Sergeant, Crimson Stormtrooper, Lieutenant OXIXO, and R2-Q5
Scarif Stormtrooper
Scarif Stormtrooper Squad Leader 
Sergeant Jyn Erso (Eadu)
Sergeant Jyn Erso (Jedha)
Snowtrooper 
Stormtrooper (Mimban)
Stormtrooper (With Blast Accessories)
Supreme Leader Snoke (Throne Room)
Tobias Beckett
Tusken Raider 
Val (Vandor)
X-34 Landspeeder & Luke Skywalker (SDCC Exclusive) 
X-Wing Pilot Asty 
Zuckuss