This is yet another repaint at the tail end of The Saga Collection, but instead of one repainted figure, we get two.  That’s neat.

Nabrun Leids

This figure was first released in the POTF2 (Power of the Force “2”) Cantina Aliens cinema scene.  The following is copied and adapted from that review:

Nabrun Leids is the four-armed Morseerian smuggler who takes up residence right at the front of the bar.  The character is male, but it was actually played by a woman, Janice Burchette.  The reason I mention this is that the character has a decidedly womanly shape, and I have a habit of referring to Narbun Leids as “she.”  Fans questioned the accuracy of the original release’s bright white costume.  There is no question that the actual wardrobe is a pearlescent white, but in the darkened interior cantina shots, it looks gray or silver.  Even in some behind the scenes still shots, the character looks light gray:

(click for the full sized photo)

For this updated The Saga Collection (TSC) release, Hasbro to decided to err on the side how the character appears on-screen, and painted the jump suit silver.  This more closely reflects how the actual pearlescent white of the costume appears in the dimly lit interior of the cantina.  Additionally the inaccurate white gloves from the original release are corrected.  Unfortunately, the inaccurate white boots are retained.  For display purposes, you’d have to decide which you prefer, either accurate to the actual wardrobe, or accurate to what your eye perceives on-screen.  I personally prefer the latter, but of course I’m also a “blue coat Han Hoth” guy, so there’s that.  For those subjective reasons, I am calling this release “marginally superior” to the POTF2 release.

Out of all the limited articulation cantina aliens, this Nabrun Leids figure does the best job of sitting, which is ironic because she he is never seen on screen sitting.  Meanwhile, the figure isn’t very easy to stand.  Awesome.  Hasbro, you did the opposite thing!  The included blaster is quite silly.  It has two grips, each of which are intended to fit into the upper and lower hands on the figure’s right side.  Technically, this is one of the first two handed weapon grip (THWG) figures in the history of the line, but that is really violating the spirit of THWG.  Moreover, the hands doesn’t really hold that weapon well.

The original release earned a 4 out of 10.  This release gets a 5 out of 10 for the improved accuracy of the hands, and the subjective improved accuracy of the costume.

Kabe

This figure was first released in the POTF2 (Power of the Force “2”) Kabe & Muftak internet exclusive set.  The following is copied and adapted from that review:

The cantina scene was meant to jolt the audience.  According to special effects makeup artist, Stuart Freeborn:

Because [the cantina] was supposed to be a kind of ‘shock’ scene. Everything’s pretty normal up to that point in the film.

It worked on this five year old, and perhaps a little too much.  I can remember staring to get a little scared by what is essentially an extended monster sequence.  Then the diminutive Kabe shows up on screen and begs to be served at the bar with a whine that is similar to a dog begging for a treat.  It was the perfect tension cutter for me, so I’ve always loved that shot in the movie.  Being such a diminutive figure, Hasbro reduced the standard six points of articulation of the time to four.  The lower body is a solid piece without individual legs.  It would be almost impossible to get any meaningful movement out such short limbs had they been independently sculpted, so it’s not much of a loss.  There is a swivel at the waist which saves the figure from full blown “salt shaker” status.

Where the articulation could be faulted is at the arms.  While on-screen Kabe does not employ a two-handed-weapon-grip (THWG), she does perform a THBGG (two-handed-bar-glass-grip). I often say that every character has an iconic pose, and the figure must achieve that pose to fully pass muster.  Two hands reaching up to grab the glass that Wuher hands her is that pose for Kabe.  Truth be told, I’m not sure that could be achieved with modern ball jointed articulation because, again, the limbs are too short.  But perhaps cut swivels at the shoulders could have the arms come together as they are raised for that pose. 

The paint application on the original release of the figure results in two highly contrasting browns, but they are crudely done.  It’s distracting and actually makes it hard to pick up on the details of the sculpt.  For this The Saga Collection are greatly improved.  The figure, particularly the head sculpt, look much more natural as a result. Because of the much improved paint details, this release of Kabe gets a 4 out of 10.