I am a bit of a Tusken Raider fanatic.  Back in the vintage Kenner days, I hornswoggled my dad into taking me to the store during a snow storm to look for the latest Empire Strikes Back figures.  When we got there, a place called Spags that is only known to Massachusetts locals, the carousel display was freshly stocked. Despite the fact that there were some new figures there, I was blown away by the fact that the Tusken Raider was available again on an Episode V card.  I bypassed those newer figures and came home with my third Raider. I’ve always been drawn to this character, and I still am today.  There is something about theses masked menaces with their hoarse, bark-like speech that sucks me in every time.  I was thrilled to see the Tusken Raiders return in season 2 of The Mandalorian.

This figure is based on 2006’s Vintage Saga Collection Tusken Raider.  I loathed that figure.  It was ceaselessly re-released.  My most recent review of the figure was for 2012’s Vintage Collection Villain Set where I wrote:

Hasbro clearly loves this [Tusken Raider] sculpt A LOT more than the fans do. They’d probably be shocked to find out it’s actually borderline reviled by fans for a trifecta of hatefulness:  1) swivel elbows that 2) easily come apart 3) under the figure’s robe.

A collector friend of mine once asked me if the only thing wrong with that figure was the elbows, and I said yes.  In retrospect of the advancements in modern articulation, I wish I could take that back. I would give my eye teeth for a Tusken Raider with ball jointed everything, rocker ankles and thigh swivels.  Waiting for that figure as described to get slotted into the main line would probably have taken the better portion of a decade.  Alas, to expedite the process, Hasbro elected to fix the fatal flaw of the 2006 figure, and release it with ball jointed elbows.  Moreover, the larger modern discs were used, which provide for great range of motion.

This salvages a sculpt that I once couldn’t stand, but now rather like.  When I first opened it, I decided I would try to pose it similarly to the way the character appears on the card.  When I could achieve it (picture 3 above), the figure put me in its pocket a bit.  This one change greatly improves the pose-ability, but it’s not the end of the changes.  Hasbro darkened the overall color palette, and sculpted a new head.  I didn’t think a new head sculpt was necessary, but seeing it side by side with the previous release (picture 20 above), it makes a huge difference.  These incremental changes make for a significant upgrade, and this figure is definitely worth multiple purchases.

Having said all that…there are some issues.  Many collectors have reported that the joints on their samples are essentially stuck out of the package, and freeing the wrist joints can result in breakage.  This actually happened on one of mine. It’s hugely disappointing.  On the subject of the wrists, I really wish Hasbro had gone a little further on the upgrades and given this Raider new hands.  The right hand is sculpted with an angled grip to accommodate the cycler rifle.  That angle complicates interaction with the gaffi stick.  This frustrates me to no end.  I’m never going to pose this figure with the rifle.  It’s such a secondary accessory that I wouldn’t care if Hasbro omitted it entirely, yet it impacts the way the figure interacts with the primary and most important weapon.  “Grrrr,” says I.  It would be like Chevy sacrificing a few horse power on the Corvette so they could cost in a nicer radio.

Lastly on the subject of the accessories, they are very rubbery. This is another big frustration.  Accessories should be rigid, and the hands should be pliable.  This is the ideal combination.  Here we have rigid hands and bendy accessories, and the result is the gaffi stick contorts into an “s” shape.  If it weren’t for the rubbery accessories, and fused joints, this would easily get a score of eight, but with these issues, it’s a 7 out of 10.