Hasbro loves prototype Boba Fett.  This is the third release of the character to date.  On the other hand, Hasbro has never made a prototype Boba Fett.  Not an accurate one that is.  For both the 3.75” and 6” figures, Hasbro decided to reuse the tooling from existing movie-based Boba Fett figures.  In the case of the 6” figure, it’s a straight repaint. Well, that’s not right!  There are some differences between the prototype and movie costumes.  The two previous releases of a prototype Boba Fett are the 6” scale Walgreens exclusive, and the mail-away exclusive Vintage Collection release.  This TBS 3.75” figure is a re-release of that Vintage Collection figure.

Ben Burt introduces Boba Fett.

Let’s take a rundown of where this figure is not accurate to the true prototype armor.  First, Boba Fett’s iconic helmet dent is not present on the prototype helmet.  This was added later.  Next, the wookiee scalps were not present at this stage in the costume design (but were intended to be added).  Finally, the pistol with the shoulder stock was attached to the costume via a sling, and not a holster.  This is a case where we can forgive Hasbro for taking a degree of toyetic artistic license.  The holster makes for a better toy.  The last difference is a bit of a nitpick.  In Ben Burt’s Boba Fett introduction video, the stabilizer fins on the rocket (then a grappling device) were in the up position, so that is thought of as another unique identifier for this armor.  But since those fins do retract, this figure cannot be criticized as inaccurate in this case.  The fins are just in the down position.  Sideshow Toys did release a truly accurate Prototype Armor Boba Fett.  If can be seen here in Jedi Temple Archives’ review.

This figure is largely based on 2004’s VOTC Episode VI Boba Fett.  Aside from the above mentioned discrepancies, that sculpt is fairly accurate to the source.  The lower torso was re-tooled to replicate the belts and pouches of the prototype armor, and to add the inaccurate, but more functional holster.  That VOTC sculpt was a revelation in 2004, and it is still perfectly passable thirteen years later.  It’s amazing that some of those VOTC figures remain definitive to this date.  The legs are still a great example of usable articulation with easily engageable ball joints at the knees and ankles. The ankles have some of the best range of motion we’ve seen at this scale without being “rocker” ankles.  The arms are somewhat limited, but it may be a case of form being prioritized over function.  The large, blocky gauntlets are inherently limiting as they get in the way.  The separately sculpted hoses running from the figure’s right gauntlet to the right upper arm are an amazing detail, but do limit the functionality somewhat.  The figure employs upper forearm swivels meaning that the hoses need to rotate as the right forearm rotates.  The attachment point on the upper arm is a separate piece which can indeed rotate in concert with the lower arm, but when the elbow is bent, it appears to limit this movement.  It almost feels like a degree of over engineering for the time.  If the gauntlet and upper arm attachment were fixed, and the wrist swiveled instead, it would offer better functionality without sacrificing aesthetic.  I’m sure Hasbro will go back to the Episode VI Boba Fett source at some point, so this would be a great area of improvement. 

The articulated range finder is perhaps one of the neatest aspects of the figure (thanks to it inheriting that feature from its 2004 ancestor).  It can be be lowered in front of the iconic t-visor as is demonstrated in the introduction video (embedded below).  Unlike previous releases, the range finder on this sample appeared to use a more rubbery plastic.  As a result it appears to curve and bend around the helmet in the up position.  It can be bent back to a perfectly straight alignment, but my sample tends to revert to have a slight curve.  Overall, this is still a very nice figure.  I’d personally prefer to live with the inaccuracies detailed above rather than have Hasbro invest any more tooling dollars in perfecting this off-screen version of Fett.  As the figure was originally sculpted to interact with the BlasTech EE-3 accessory, it doesn’t really interact perfectly with the included smaller side arms, but they are accurate to the costume.  All of this sums to a standard super articulated score of 7 out of 10.  The biggest problem with this Prototype Armor Boba Fett figure is that Hasbro insists on making access somewhat difficult.  It was first released as a mail-away figure in the Vintage Collection, and now re-released as a Walmart (for now) exclusive. Reports of finding this figure (and the other figures from this assortment) at brick and mortar Walmart stores are far and few between.  Most collectors purchased this figure from the Walmart website where it is still available at the time of this review:

Black Series Prototype Boba Fett on walmart.com

If, as you read this, the figure is sold out on Walmart’s website, you have two Ebay options:

Black Series Prototype Boba Fett on Ebay

Vintage Collection Prototype Boba Fett on Ebay

There is, and will probably always be, a high premium for the Vintage Collection release.  Finally, here is the Boba Fett introduction video: