Toy Review: Star Wars The Black Series Boba Fett and Fennec Shand

Price hikes for Hasbro‘s Star Wars: The Black Series are rapidly becoming crazy. Just as we all got used to $22.99 as the new price point, $24.99 became the new normal. Unless it’s for Boba Fett, or any character wearing Boba Fett’s armor, in which case $31.99 is the excessive-seeming tab. So for some collectors who feel more and more priced out, the robed Boba Fett (Tython) and Fennec Shand may feel like the last reasonable purchases, at the $22.99 mark still. If you can find them, that is. Entertainment Earth currently lists preorders with expected April delivery. (Superhero Hype is an affiliate partner with Entertainmenet Earth, and may earn fees based on site links.) Superhero Hype obtained these figures via members-only Hasbro Pulse “Back in Stock” sale.

Also, for now, Fennec Shand is the only official The Book of Boba Fett 6-inch figure, with more slated to follow sometime in…January. This happens when Lucasfilm refuses to share even the most minor “spoiler” material with licensors. The Tython Boba Fett comes from The Mandalorian, officially, though it’s easy to imagine some tweaks to make him Tatooine Boba Fett.

Regardless of anyone’s opinion of his solo TV show, most Star Wars fans felt pumped when the post-Sarlacc Boba Fett returned to beat up Stormtroopers and assist Din Djarin. And this figure became most-wanted ever since. It’s mostly worth the wait, though it features a couple of misguided elements. First: the hood design only works if he wears it down. If it goes up, it looks ridiculous and way too high.

So find a way to roll it back for any display, or it just defies gravity like that.

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The other slight misfire is the white paint on his face. It doesn’t look like the acid scarring on the show; more like a bit of Uruk-hai war paint, haphazardly applied. That’s not necessarily a bad look for Boba, but it’s inaccurate.

Those decisions aside. it’s a generous figure. He includes a bandolier belt and sash with holster under the fabric cloak, and three weapons. The Gaffi stick has a string attached to sling over his shoulder, while the sniper rifle’s attached to an adjustable plastic strap. Finally, a pistol fits in his holster. There’s detail aplenty under his robe.

But with the robe covering so much, Hasbro had a good opportunity to add articulation. Alas, they did not take it. Star Wars seems to have abandoned the double-hinge elbow and knee, in favor of disc-and-pin ball joints. The pinless look = awesome. The range of motion? Not so much.

The neck does include ball joints at both ends. If the lower one’s stiff at first, just work it. The arms would work better with more articulation.

The detail level remains great. The shoes clearly bear the linework of Boba’s original trilogy footwear, while the folds and creases in his clothing give excellent texture. Temuera Morrison’s likeness stays up to date, and looks extra-lifelike compared to some older versions.

Fennec comes in her fully black outfit, which nicely distinguishes between matte and shiny parts, with orange highlights to match her hair braids and fox-themed name. The masked helmet slips on and off with ease, though you might need to manually open up the eye slit after putting it on. This beats the currently tedious head-swap option most companies use for headgear. And the plastic rifle strap is twisted to fit the shape of her torso already.

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Note the different “fabric” texture detail. It’s some serious micro sculpting, extremely well done. What she’s missing is a removable stomach plate to show her cyborg mods. No doubt a future Fennec will remedy that.

The likeness is decent, although trying to replicate realistic scars in smaller size is tough without throwing the look off a bit. The hair braid sits nicely in one pose, and may look “floaty” at more drastic angles.

Thinking about a custom Marvel Agent May? She might look a touch too short. Maybe a head-swap on the right body, though….

Fennec is fine with the articulation she has, which also includes a double neck-ball. With no robes to hide joints, the pinless ones work to get her gun in the right poses, which is the main requirement.

No doubt this won’t be the last we see of her in figure form. But it will be the cheapest, in this scale.

Take a look through the gallery below for more poses and close-ups.

Will these figures make the cut for you? Let us know in comments!

Recommended Reading: The Art of Star Wars: The Mandalorian (Season Two)

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