“But in the arena, anything goes. That’s your best chance”
For the Summer Conventions of 2022, Hasbro moved away from their normal convention format established over the previous 3-years and instead dipped into the Publishing Series for a new exclusive offering. The War of the Bounty Hunters Boba Fett in disguise was a simple repaint of the existing Boba Fett figure alongside a new tooled weapon. The packaging was pretty much in line with the other Publishing releases to date, replicating the look of a Book with an opening front cover, but to mark the exclusivity of the figure the cover was given a foil finish.
The packaging was adorned with artwork from the 2021 comic series and the front cover depicted Fett in his black armour against a stark red and grey backdrop as seen on the ‘Directors Cut’ comic book cover. Inside the opening cover was more artwork from the comic series and a short piece of background text. The packaging is essentially plastic-free but the figure is still visible, with Hasbro having simply removed the plastic window from this set and then tying the figure into the inner cardboard tray with twist ties.
The figure is designed to replicate Fett’s disguise that he uses during the events on Nal Shaddaa at the start of War of the Bounty Hunters. Boba has to earn some credits and to do this he fights in an arena against a series of foes. To avoid causing offence to the Kanji Hutt Clan, he paints his armour black to disguise himself and uses his father’s name Jango. As these events are set almost immediately after Fett leaves Cloud City with Han Solo, Hasbro has chosen to use the older Empire Strikes Back Boba Fett figure from 2013 as the base rather than the much improved 2021 base.
The Fett armour has very simply been cast entirely in black plastic with no discernable shade or finish variation between the armoured panels and the suit underneath. All the weaponry on either wrist and the backpack are finished in the same colour and the soft goods cape is now black fabric. The cape is pristine in its finish and folded flat behind the backpack - in the comic art, this is shown as ragged and torn after a few battles which would have been a nice tweak for the figure release.
The helmet carries the same moulded dent and is similarly coloured in a matt black, but there is a gloss finish to the visor. The look is a strange one as it is accurate enough to the comic artwork, but it does make the figure look like it's been undercoated in black and is pending more work. We really needed something else over the black to liven the whole figure up - whether that be a wash of some description, some battle damage and chipping with silver-flaked paint, or some detailing on key components to make them pop.
The accessories include a black cast version of Boba Fett’s blaster, a simple piece that can be wielded in his right hand, or holstered in the working holster on the figure’s belt. There is then the new tooled piece a 7-inch spear with spikes at either end and a twin blade sitting at the top section like an axe head. This is thankfully not the same black as everything else and uses a very glossy deep brown almost grey finish. The smooth shaft fits into either - or both - hands for posing purposes.
Posing is limited as the 2013 Boba Fett figure base was not particularly hot on articulation. While there are 16 points in total the single elbow joints won't quite reach the 90-degree mark due to the bulk of the forearm gauntlets. The shoulders are similarly held back by armour, with the figure pre-dating the flexible pauldrons or those that retract into the torso as the arms are raised.
The legs fair better with double-jointed pinned knees sitting above an ankle rocker and beneath both a ball joint hip and thigh swivel. While the legs have a good range of motion, the shaping isn't quite right and Fett can look a tad bow-legged. The hips are also very loose and Fett has a tendency to slide off into the splits.
Releasing a Boba Fett convention exclusive based on a unique comic book look at a time when his stock could not have been higher - thanks to his return to live action - should have been a huge success. Unfortunately, the figure has not done as well as expected and went from convention-exclusive to being available more readily at other retailers for a fraction of what Con attendees would have paid. The figure suffers from using a ten-year-old body with limited articulation to replicate a Boba Fett whom we find fighting in an arena - we needed more movement to take advantage of that setting and the huge new melee weapon included in the set. The paint finish too is lacklustre. Colouring the whole thing the same shade of black bar the visor has not worked and it looks flat and boring. There should have been other paint apps on top considering the price and some battle-worn detailing like a tattered cape and paint scratches. All-in-all this one is for the hardcore Boba Fett and comic book collectors.
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About Me : As a child of the 70's and 80's I grew up in a golden age for action figures and in my youth bought and sold myself through collections of Star Wars, G.I. Joe (Action Force) and M.A.S.K. while also dabbling in He-Man, Transformers and Ghostbusters. Roll forward and I am now reliving that Youth with the action figures of today and am a collector and fan of the larger 6-8 inch figures from my favourite movie and TV licences - including the ones mentioned above, but also the Marvel Cinematic Universe, Doctor Who and the Aliens. I launched The Mephitsu Archives in 2015 with a view of creating a UK focused site or these figures where fans can pick up the latest action figure news, read reviews and get information on where to buy their figures and what is currently on store shelves. I hope I am delivering that to you guys...
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