Tag: film

Recommended music: Tori Amos – Winter (Live)

For this #StarWarsSaturday post from the archives, we’re moving further into Echo Base during The Empire Strikes Back. From the Hasbro Star Wars The Black Series 3.75” line, it’s Toryn Farr!

Toryn Farr is one of the few female characters in The Empire Strikes Back. As the Rebel Alliance’s chief communications officer, she stays at her post until the last evacuation from Hoth, sending attack commands to the Rebels. Although the script calls her ‘Woman Controller,’ she appears in several Command Center scenes and says the memorable line, “Stand by, Ion Control… Fire.”

This Toryn Farr figure is the first time Hasbro or anyone has made the character in 1/18 scale. I think she’s also the only female character, besides Leia, from The Empire Strikes Back, to receive a figure in the 45 years since the movie came out. She was released in the 3.75” Black Series line in 2014, while The Vintage Collection was on a five-year hiatus. I consider the figure a TVC release, since it’s mostly a repaint of the Leia (Hoth Outfit) Vintage Collection figure from August of 2010, with a new head sculpt, different forearms, a higher collar, and an appropriately scaled set of headphones.

The Empire Strikes Back turned 45 years old this year! I “figure” there’ll be a new Episode V figure to share here for the rest of the year. Happy 45 years of ESB!

#ActionFigurePhotography
#EmpireStrikesBack45
#ESB45
#ToyPhotography

Recommended music: Handsome Thing – Fuzzy Tauntaun

For this #StarWarsSaturday post from the archives, we’re staying in the backyard on Hoth. From the Hasbro Star Wars Shadow Of The Dark Side line, it’s Han Solo’s Tauntaun!

When Hasbro released “The Search For Luke Skywalker” set in 2011, this creature introduced a completely new sculpt. This version of the Tauntaun includes a removable saddle, flexible reins, and articulation at the neck, shoulders, hips, and ankles. These joints are sufficiently sturdy to allow for stable posing. The tail is not articulated; however, to be fair, I am unsure about the original film miniature’s flexibility.

The Empire Strikes Back turned 45 years old this year! I “figure” there’ll be a new Episode V figure to share here for the rest of the year. Happy 45 years of ESB!

#ActionFigurePhotography
#EmpireStrikesBack45
#ESB45
#ToyPhotography

Recommended music: Nine Inch Nails – Head Like A Hole

For this #StarWarsSaturday post from the archives, we’re staying in the backyard on Hoth. From the Hasbro Star Wars Shadow Of The Dark Side line, it’s (Hoth Outfit) Han Solo!

Just moments after the opening scenes of The Empire Strikes Back:

EXT. HOTH – REBEL BASE ENTRANCE – DAY

A stalwart figure rides his Tauntaun up to the entrance of an enormous
ice cave.

…

While technically the next character we see in the film is the wampa who pops up to kill Luke’s tauntaun and drag Luke back to his cave, the figure face doesn’t really match the furry creature we see on screen, so I’m skipping it for now.

This Han figure is a kit-bash of the 2007 VTAC Han Solo in Hoth Outfit, combined with some new parts. Released in 2011, the figure was only available in this Search For Luke Skywalker set. The face and head are well sculpted and look good even without the hat and goggles. The hat is meant to protect Han from Hoth’s harsh weather, but it fits better when he’s not wearing the hood—though that leaves his neck exposed. The figure also has a cloth piece for the bottom of the jacket and ball-jointed hips, allowing him to sit more naturally on the tauntaun.

The Empire Strikes Back turned 45 years old this year! I “figure” there’ll be a new Episode V figure to share here for the rest of the year. Happy 45 years of ESB!

#ActionFigurePhotography
#EmpireStrikesBack45
#ESB45
#ToyPhotography

Recommended music: The Steve Miller Band – Winter Time

For this #StarWarsSaturday post from the archives, we’re staying in the backyard on Hoth. From the Hasbro Star Wars Power of the Force Collection, it’s Luke Skywalker in Hoth Gear!

Just moments after the opening scene of The Empire Strikes Back:

LUKE
(into comlink)
Echo Three to Echo Seven. Han,
old buddy, do you read me?

After a little static, a familiar voice is heard.

HAN
(over comlink)
Loud and clear, kid. What’s up?

LUKE
(into comlink)
Well, I finished my circle. I
don’t pick up any life readings.

HAN
(over comlink)
There isn’t enough life on this
ice cube to fill a space cruiser.
The sensors are placed, I’m going
back.

LUKE
(into comlink)
Right. I’ll see you shortly.
There’s a meteorite that hit the
ground near here. I want to check
it out. It won’t take long.

Luke clicks off his transmitter and reins back on his nervous lizard.
He pats the beast on the head to calm it.

LUKE
Hey, steady girl. What’s the
matter? You smell something?

…

This POTF2 version of Luke doesn’t have elbow joints, so he can’t actually bring his wrist comlink up to his mouth. The hips and knees swivel, but they don’t bend enough for him to sit well in the saddle. The hat and goggles are fixed in place. On the bright side, his face looks pretty good, and he can hold the reins and his blaster. However, he can’t hold the electrobinoculars shown in the pictures, since they were released later. 😄

The Empire Strikes Back turned 45 years old this year! I “figure” there’ll be a new Episode V figure to share here for the rest of the year. Happy 45 years of ESB!

#ActionFigurePhotography
#EmpireStrikesBack45
#ESB45
#ToyPhotography

Recommended music: Tool – Forty Six & 2

For this #StarWarsSaturday, we’re on the icy plains of Hoth during The Empire Strikes Back. From The Power of the Force Collection, it’s the Laser Turret!

EXT. HOTH – ICE PLAIN – POWER GENERATORS

Near the base power generators, troops rush to set up their heavy battle equipment.  Buzzing loudly, the generators send along, sparking fingers of energy into the bitter Hoth wind.
…

While I have previously mentioned the underscaled power generators, a rotating laser turret was also included with the ‘Hoth Battle’ playset during The Power of the Force 2, a call-back to the vintage Kenner Empire Strikes Back line. Though the turret also appears to be too small, it works to add variety to your Hoth diorama. The part of the playset that is most accurately sized for 1/18th-scale action figures is the included trench. The turret has both a side door and a top hatch for simple features, and a slider that extends a fake flame in place of a projectile-firing action feature.

I have to believe the $15 retail for this set seemed like a great value when it was released in 1997, but I’m sure glad Hasbro has continued to put out updated versions of these scene accessories over the years that are more accurately scaled. Now, it would be nice for them to make new playsets, or at least diorama pieces of some Echo Base interior scenes.

The Empire Strikes Back turned 45 years old this year! I “figure” there’ll be a new Episode V figure to share here for the rest of the year. Happy 45 years of ESB!

#ActionFigurePhotography
#EmpireStrikesBack45
#ESB45
#ToyPhotography

Recommended music: TAUNTAUN – For The Lost (Skip to track 7 below)

For this #StarWarsSaturday post from the archives, I originally ventured out to my snowy backyard to bring you this beast. From the Hasbro Star Wars Power of the Force 2 Collection, it’s Luke Skywalker’s Tauntaun!

Just moments after the opening scene of The Empire Strikes Back:

EXT. PLAIN OF HOTH – DAY

A small figure gallops across the windswept ice slope. The bundled
rider is mounted on a large gray snow lizard, a Tauntaun. Curving
plumes of snow rise from beneath the speeding paws of the two-legged
beast.

The rider gallops up a slope and reins his lizard to a stop. Pulling
off his protective goggles, Luke Skywalker notices something in the
sky. He takes a pair of electrobinoculars from his utility belt and ,
through them, sees smoke rising from where the probe robot has crashed.

The wind whips at Luke’s fur-lined cap, and he activates a comlink
transmitter. His Tauntaun shifts and moans nervously beneath him.

…

This creature received an update here for the first time since 1980, with not only an upgrade in sculpt and paint but also an action feature: a press of his saddlebag would result in “realistic running action.”

I always liked this shot in the film. It resembled Ralph McQuarrie’s “winterized lizard” concept and showed off the detail on set. This went beyond just the miniature used in the preceding shots of the tauntaun. Luke’s tauntaun with the broken horn received another update about 15 years later, but I skipped that release in favor of tauntauns with two full-size horns. 😛

The Empire Strikes Back turned 45 years old this year! I “figure” there’ll be a new Episode V figure to share here for the rest of the year. Happy 45 years of ESB!

#ActionFigurePhotography
#EmpireStrikesBack45
#ESB45
#ToyPhotography

Recommended music: Angus McSix – Laser-Shooting Dinosaur

For this #StarWarsSaturday, we’re on the icy plains of Hoth during The Empire Strikes Back. From The 30th Anniversary Collection, it’s the Laser Turret!

EXT. HOTH – ICE PLAIN – SNOW TRENCH – DAY

Rebel troops carry heavy bazooka-type weapons and position them along the snow trench. Men hurriedly respond to their officers’ yelled orders and brace themselves against the rhythmic gusts of bitter-cold wind.

Other troops load power packs into a gun turret and swing its guns into position.

…

While only getting that lone mention in the script, the laser turrets are an iconic fixture on the snowy landscape during the Battle of Hoth. In the vintage Kenner toy line, a rotating turret was included in the ‘Turret & Probot Playset,’ with another one included in the ‘Hoth Battle’ playset during The Power of the Force 2.

Hasbro included this laser turret in the ‘Battle of Hoth Ultimate Battle Pack’ in 2007. The Target exclusive set also came with eight figures and an AT-ST, all for just $49. While the action figures and AT-ST were all either kitbashes of previous figures or slight repaints, the laser turret is all-new.

While similar to the POTF2 version from a decade earlier, it is scaled up and much more accurate to the weapon seen on-screen. Not only is it large enough for a figure to stand on the platform for the opening top hatch, but other troops can also use the opening door to stand inside at the same time. The inclusion of a firing projectile is a nice play feature, and the slightly damaged and worn paint deco is a great look.

The Empire Strikes Back turned 45 years old this year! I “figure” there’ll be a new Episode V figure to share here for the rest of the year. Happy 45 years of ESB!

#ActionFigurePhotography
#EmpireStrikesBack45
#ESB45
#ToyPhotography

Recommended music: Jango Kett – Probe Droid

For this #StarWarsSaturday post from the archives, I originally ventured out to my backyard, amidst temperatures in the low teens and snow falling, to bring you this figure. From the Hasbro Star Wars The Legacy Collection, it’s the Probe Droid!

From the opening scene of The Empire Strikes Back, the viewer immediately knows they’re in for something visually different from the original Star Wars after the crawl:

EXT. GALAXY – PLANET HOTH

A Star Destroyer moves through space, releasing Imperial probe robots
from its underside.

One of these probes zooms toward the planet Hoth and lands on its ice-
covered surface. An explosion marks the point of
impact.

EXT. HOTH – METEORITE CRATER – SNOW PLAIN – DAY

A weird mechanical sound rises above the whining of the wind. A
strange probe robot, with several extended sensors, emerges from the
smoke-shrouded crater. The ominous mechanical probe floats across the
snow plain and disappears into the distance.

…

This silver repaint with snow highlights is a big upgrade for the sculpt originally used for the POTF2 Probe Droid back in 1997. The droid was available in the “Hoth Recon Patrol” 5-pack, which also included Han, Chewbacca, K-3PO, and R5-M2. It has some action figures for a projectile launch, a head that pops off, and movable limbs. There has been a newer 3.75” probot released a few years ago in a 2-pack with Darth Vader, but the style and black paint job don’t seem to match The Empire Strikes Back like this one.

The Empire Strikes Back turned 45 years old this year! I “figure” there’ll be a new Episode V figure to share here for the rest of the year. Happy 45 years of ESB!

#ActionFigurePhotography
#EmpireStrikesBack45
#ESB45
#ToyPhotography

Recommended music: REO Speedwagon – Time for Me To Fly

For this #StarWarsSaturday, we’re still flying above the icy plains of Hoth during The Empire Strikes Back. From the Shadow Of The Dark Side line, it’s Luke Skywalker’s Snowspeeder!

EXT. HOTH – ICE PLAIN – BATTLEFIELD

The cannons mounted on the walker head fire at the speeders. Other
walkers loom in the background. Two speeders race away past two of the
enormous walkers and bank to the right.

INT. LUKE’S SNOWSPEEDER, ROGUE LEADER – COCKPIT

LUKE
All right, I’m coming in.

He turns his speeder and heads directly at one of the walkers, flying
toward its towering legs. The horizon twists as the speeder banks
between the legs.

LUKE
(into comlink)
Hobbie, you still with me?

…

The Star Wars Shadow Of The Dark Side toy line made it’s debut on store shelves in August of 2010, in tandem with the start of The Vintage Collection. Though this line lasted only three years, it featured some excellent new releases, including Luke’s Snowspeeder.

Luke previously came with a snowspeeder in 2002 as part of the Power of the Jedi line. That release still used the mold from the Power of the Force 2 release from 1995, with the electronics removed, and has an oversized cockpit so your figures appear loose inside. Also, the POTJ version had a weathered paint job that I never really cared for.

This upgraded SOTDS version is an all-new mold, with a more accurate size for your 1/18 scale battles. Hasbro also added in landing gear and flaps that can be adjusted manually, and included two harpoon and laser cannon options (one of each actually shoots). The paint deco is “clean,” which gives you the option to weather it as desired, but the ship looks fine to me without any painted-on damage if it’s going to be flying around Hoth.

The Empire Strikes Back turned 45 years old this year! I “figure” there’ll be a new Episode V figure to share here for the rest of the year. Happy 45 years of ESB!

#ActionFigurePhotography
#EmpireStrikesBack45
#ESB45
#ToyPhotography