Toy Review: Boba Fett's Starship (EP 5) from Star Wars: Micro Galaxy Squadron by Jazwares

 

   It's been a few years since I last picked up and reviewed one of Jazwares' Star Wars: Micro Galaxy Squadron ships but I've really been admiring them lately and have got back into them. As a fan of the old school Galoob Micro Machines and Action Fleet Star Wars lines, these really scratch an itch for me. I also have this real infatuation with the idea of living inside of a spaceship. Like, I'm just oddly intrigued and comforted by the idea of a vehicle that's also like a little apartment, and looking at the Micro Galaxy Squadron vehicles that open up kind of channels that feeling. Weird, right? Anyways, today I'm checking out what I believe is the third release of Boba Fett's Slave I in this line (there was an earlier release based on the ship from The Book of Boba Fett and a release based on Episode II), which is based on the Episode V: The Empire Strikes version of the ship. Yeah, this one definitely stuck out to me. Now, like most stuff featuring Slave I these days, Disney and Lucasfilm are having licensees call it "Boba Fett's Starship" instead of Slave I, but we all know the ship's name. Ready to check out Boba Fett's Starship (EP 5)/ Slave I? Then join me after the break...

The Facts:

Dimensions: 7 7/8ths inches long, 3 inches tall, 7 1/8ths inches wide

Articulation: Hinged cockpit window, swiveling wings, swiveling cockpit, hinged side panel, hinged rear door, sliding ramp, 2 rotating blaster cannons, and hinged seismic charge panel.

Accessories: Boba Fett, jetpack, Stormtrooper, Han Solo in Carbonite block, floating stand, and weapon rack.

Non-Scalper Price: $35 dollars

The Positives:

* Here's a look at Slave I so you can see the rather impressive paintjob and weathering on this ship. It's a heavily modified Firespray-31-class patrol and attack craft that originally belonged to Boba's dad, Jango Fett. You can tell it's seem some action as the ship is covered with paint that has been chipped and worn away. Considering these are fairly inexpensive toys sold at mass retail, I'm rather impressed by the paintwork Jazwares has produced here. Lots of paint effects and washes really captures the "lived in" look of the ship.

* The sculpt is really impressive, too. I thought Galoob's Action Fleet sculpts were good back in the day but Jazwares is producing a line of ships that really look like high-end models. The body is covered with all of the lines and panels and little greeblies you'd expect. The ship looks quite accurate to the ESB model of Slave I and definitely captures the appearance of the distinctive ship. It's really a fun piece to just hold in your hand and explore with your eyes as there are a ton of cool little details you'll discover.

* Here's a shot of the ship from the back. Or the bottom. Remember, Slave I lands and takes off with this flat, but then flies upright, looking kind of like an elephant's head. The back of the ship shows off all of the thrusters, the repulsor generator, and plenty of other little bibs and bobs that you'll have to pull out a technical manual to learn about. The paintwork is awesome back here and far outshines anything I remember owning from Kenner or Hasbro (though, to be fair, the last Kenner or Hasbro Slave I I owned was the POTF2 version that came in that beautiful purple box. 

* Here's the front of the ship. Well, I think it's the front. Again, Slave I is so odd with how it flies that I think you'd call it the front when it's landing or taking off, but when it's flying this the top. It looks good, though, especially the weathered red and grey paint and that smoky cockpit dome. 

* Check out this cool opening panel on the bottom that reveals a seismic charge! Just flip it open and you can see one lined up inside. It's not painted, but it's a pretty fun detail that definitely makes me think back to the kind of stuff that was so thrilling about Galoob's Micro Machines and Action Fleet line.

* The blaster cannons on the "trunk" of the ship (you know, if we're still using the elephant head description) rotate and are molded in a nice gunmetal silver. Very dark, very coo looking. They rotate separately, too.

* Let's talk about the microfigures that come with this set. First up is Boba Fett (obviously), the most feared bounty hunter in the galaxy and the captain of Slave I. These are tiny little guys, only around an inch, but they do have some nice paint work. They're not quite as nice as Galoob's Action Fleet figures, but they're more impressively painted than the Micro Machines micro figures from either Hasbro or Galoob. This actually looks a bit more like a Return of the Jedi Boba Fett than an Empire Strikes Back Boba Fett due to the darker greens and brighter yellows but, at around an inch, it feels like it's not as big of a deal. 

* Like previous Mandalorians in the line, Boba Fett comes with his jetpack with attached cape. It's actually removable, so you can seat him in the cockpit of his ship with no issues. 

* The second microfigure is a Stormtrooper. I imagine the thought process here is that the Stormtrooper is there to help escort the frozen Han Solo to Fett's ship. He's a nice looking little figure when you consider he's just about an inch tall. Not a lot of paint, but Stormtroopers are mostly just white anyway. It's kind of a nice extra as there have been multiple vehicles released where you might want more Stormtroopers to populate all of the seats. The Imperial Troop Transport jumps out at me as one where there are at least a dozen spots for microfigures but the set only comes with two. I'd actually like to see Jazwares sell a little pack of microfigures like Stormtroopers and Clone Troopers to populate some of the larger vehicles. 

* Also included is a miniature Han Solo in Carbonite piece. It's a simple piece that's hollow on the bottom and there isn't a Han microfigure hidden inside or anything. Still, it's quite cool and a neat little extra for the set.

* There's a little clear stand included which can be used to keep Han leaning upright (like above) or floating (like in the picture to the right). It's a loose fit, but the block can stay on.

* Both microfigures have articulated hips and shoulders. Both arms and legs are on the same peg, so they swivel in unison. I didn't have any trouble with the articulation on these two as everything moved smoothly. This line is absolutely vehicle centric so having the figures be able to sit in a variety of cockpits is a must. 

* The tinted canopy opens up so you can place Boba Fett and his passengers inside the cockpit of Slave I. It's a little tricky getting the figures in as the seats sort of have little clips, but it does (mostly) keep them in place. The seats are nicely detailed and the main controls are sculpted with a lot of detail. There's actually a lot of sculpted detail inside of the ship, too.

* Similar to the vintage Kenner and POTF2 Slave 1 ships, this one also replicates the way that Boba Fett's cockpit rotates. Or the way the rest of the ship moves around the cockpit. The cockpit and the wings are connected, so when the cockpit automatically rotates into position, the wings rotate too. It is a cool design, though I do have a little complaint about it I'll get to in a minute.

* The back of the ship can be entered by pulling out the long, sliding ramp and opening up the rear hatch. The hatch folds up and clips into place below the "elephant trunk" of the ship.

* There's another hatch that opens on the side, showing off more of the inside of the ship. I wish we could see more of the storage area and maybe even Boba Fett's cot (which is up in the "trunk"), but Slave I seems to be a bit out of scale compared to the figures. That's pretty common with the larger vehicles, though, and it's not a huge issue. What we do get is pretty cool and detailed. 

* There's a spinning weapons rack that can be attached in here, so it can kind of be up against the wall or flip out. Lots of cool stuff on there like Thermal Detonators, Boba Fett's EE-3 Carbine, some DL-18s, grenades, an E-11, and a DH-17. Nifty.

* You can also store Han Solo here. The Carbonite brick snaps in and can rotate in and out, too. 

The Negatives:

* I mentioned that I do like the design of the cockpit and how it rotates with the wings when you position the ship from flying mode to landing mode, and back again. Unfortunately, sometimes you're wanting to try to pose the ship or put figures in the cockpit rather than have the ship rotate on its. This could have been easily fixed by allowing one of the wings to have a small latch securing it to a strut, thus you could lock it in place if you wanted to. It would have really improved things.

* I know that most ships in this line do not come with stands, but Slave I really feels like it needs one. Yes, I know it can be displayed in it's landing mode, but it really just needed a stand so you could display it upright. I'm cheating in this pick as I have it leaning against my backdrop, but you really couldn't display it like that for long. A stand really feels like a missing part here.

* Both the Razor Crest and the previous Slave I releases have allowed you to store the removable jetpack somewhere, usually on the weapons rack. This time? The pin for the jetpack is way to small to fit in here. There's no way to attach it. Weird, huh?

   I've really gotten into this line recently and seeing some ships I really love like The Ghost, Slave I, and the Tydirium shuttle were definitely motivating factors. Boba Fett's Starship (Ep 5), Slave I, is a pretty impressive model. On it's own it's just a really cool representation of the ship with really nice paintwork and detailing. The little extras like the microfigures, the Carbonite block, and the cool features like the opening seismic charge port, the opening back ramp, and the rotating cockpit just sweeten the deal. I do wish it had a stand, a way to store the jetpack, and a way to manually keep the cockpit positioned, but as it is it's still a lot of fun. It's a Great ship and a very nice classic Original Trilogy vehicle.


Looking for more of Han Solo? I've reviewed so many Han Solo figures that he has his own review archive. Check out The Kessel Run for all of my Han Solo reviews. 

 If you're a fan of Boba Fett then check out my other Boba Fett reviews on the site, including the Black Series Phase I Boba Fett, the Walgreen's exclusive Boba Fett (Prototype Armor), Boba Fett (Carbonized), Boba Fett (Tython), Boba Fett (Throne Room), and the deluxe ROTJ Boba Fett, both the standard Hero Mashers Boba Fett and the Han Solo Vs. Boba Fett two-pack version, the Funko POP! #102 Boba Fett, and Micro Machines Boba Fett from the Bounty Hunters set, and as a background character in the Bossk Micro Machines Mini Head and the 4-LOM Micro Machines Mini Head.

   Are you a little short on Stormtroopers? I've reviewed quite a few! Besides the basic Black Series Phase I Stormtrooper and Phase IV Imperial Stormtrooper I've also reviewed the Stormtrooper (with blast accessories), the Remnant Stormtrooper, the battle damaged Stormtrooper from the Amazon 4-pack, Stormtrooper (Mimban), and the Crimson Stormtrooper from the Entertainment Earth 4-pack. I've also reviewed the Hero Mashers Stormtrooper, the Vintage Collection's TK-421, three of the Rebels sets with Stormtroopers (Garazeb "Zeb" Orrelios and Stormtrooper, Sabine Wren and Stormtrooper, and Stormtrooper Commander and Hera Syndulla), the Micro Machines Ice Planet Hoth playset with a Stormtrooper microfigure, and the Stormtrooper Mini Head.

This seems to be the first model of Slave I I've reviewed on the site.

For more Star Wars: Micro Galaxy Squadron reviews check out the following:
Outland TIE Fighter
Razor Crest