Just a few weeks late. I could have played with Han and the Tauntaun in the snow. Missed opportunity…
I seem to be one of the few people out there that liked the Star Wars Black Series Jabba, and was part of the mass run on the Speeder Bike with Biker Scout. When it comes to deluxe sets I can’t get enough. So when the Han with Tauntaun (and Luke with Wampa) set was announced I couldn’t wait. It’s nice to get get bigger items sometimes without have to buy a whole set of figures to build it. And it’s also nice to see The Empire Strikes Back get some love. For me, win-win.
The packaging is your standard Black Series minimalist box. Lots and lots of black with some simple pictures and a big window. The more I get of these, the more I like it. And you know I don’t care for packaging in general.
I care more about what’s in the box! So let’s get to Han Solo in Hoth gear.
All the details are there. Sure, like we’ve been seeing lately, the paint is a little lacking, but at least there is not a lot of skin showing to make it blatantly obvious. What gets me the most is how white and clean the legs are and the lack of any kind of shading on the fur trimming the hood. Hasbro did go out of their way to paint the studs on the belt, so that’s something.
They also gave us several options for Hans look.
With goggles, without goggles, and without hood. He just doesn’t look right without the hood but I could see some Hoth inspired customs coming out of it. The goggles look great up on the hat but it’s hard as hell to put them over his eyes and put the hood on. Or, at least I haven’t been able to do it yet. The extra bulk of the goggles makes the hood ride up a bit though, so I prefer no goggles. It still leaves a slight gap between the shoulders and hood but it’s not nearly as apparent.
This Han is slightly taller than our ANH Han. The top of the head is higher, along with the shoulders. But the bulk of the Hoth gear hides it. I didn’t even notice it until I stood the two side by side. And for me, he’ll always be on the Tauntaun so it doesn’t bother me too much.
Han also comes with a blaster and the binocular type device. The device is bulky and doesn’t hang well over his shoulder and it’s impossible to get him to hold it, much less look through it. The blaster is nice though, the changes made from ANH to ESB represented in tiny toy form.
That picture also magnifies one of Han’s big faults; The lack of wrists. That’s right, he only has a swivel at the glove top. I have no idea why the wrist joint was removed. Maybe because of the cost of producing the Tauntaun? Seems like an odd joint to omit.
You can check out the rest of the articulation, or better yet, the articulation of the Tauntaun itself, in my video review.
Thankfully, Han’s jacket bottom is made of a very soft material and doesn’t hinder his ability to sit at all. Which is good, considering the fact that he’s packed with a steed to sit upon.
The sculpt is slightly soft, the eyes are a little cartoony, and the fur paint is a lot flat, but damn it, it’s a Tauntaun. Something about that just makes me giddy. But you’re not going to get a lot of dynamic poses out of him.
He’s mostly hollow, even in the legs. That along with a wonky center of gravity means you’re not going to get running poses. That’s on top of the fact that there are no knees and the arms and legs are just swivels. The neck is on a hinge and swivel and gets good forward and back. But like I said, try to get a running pose and he’s going to fall over. Add Han and it throws the center off even more. So basically you’re looking at displaying him in an upright stance.
The fur is a flat gray transitioning into a white underbelly. I think most of the paint went into the face and saddle. I said the eyes are a bit cartoony, and they are, but at least they are nicely painted. And for some reason I’m enamored with the feet. I had no clue Tauntauns had heel spikes!
Again, a little extra work went into the saddle, with the various pouches, doodads, and studs getting paint.
Is the set worth $50? That’s up to you. For me, I’d say yeah, but that’s a lot of nostalgia talking. I remember back in the day stuffing Luke into the belly and galloping the vintage Tauntaun around the room.
He’s not going to be the most dynamic piece on your Star Wars shelf. The lacking articulation is a slight bummer. But with Han in the saddle he stands at nearly ten inches to the top of Han’s hood, which would look pretty sweet standing in the back and overlooking the rest of your display.
Now I need a General Rieekan.
You can pre-order yours at BigBadToyStore!
