A somewhat random entry into the Solo line, a Darth Maul and Qui-Gon Jinn 2-pack gives us a rare taste of the prequels, which Disney seems to have disowned for the most part, other than the occasional…you guessed it…Darth Maul product. 

This is an interesting set.  As frustrating as it is surprising.

Let’s start with Qui-Gon Jinn.  The last time we got a Qui-Gon figure was the oft-repacked VC75 figure.  While decent, the figure lacked the most modern Jedi-worthy articulation level, and the face sculpt was a pretty poor likeness of Liam Neeson.  This figure actually looks great, to start.  The body sculpt is outstanding, to include the clothing textures and boot details.  The face sculpt, while not perfect, is actually light years beyond the VC75 version.  The eyebrows are a little too pronounced, but Hasbro went for a beard paint technique that came out pretty well.  I particularly like how the beard juts out at the chin in that very Qui-Gon-y manner.  The hands are sculpted in a way that can give the figure some character.  The right hand grips the lightsaber well, while the left hand is in that Force-wielding configuration…or he’s just wishing you “peace.”  The lightsaber itself is a new sculpt, and looks great.  One surprise is that this figure is actually 7POA.  The wrists are swivel jointed, which gives some display variation for saber-wielding, while also allowing for natural looks to the Force-y hand.

That’s the good stuff.  The bad stuff starts with the obvious fact that even at 7POA, this is simply an unacceptable articulation level for a Jedi.  The VC75 version lacked ball jointed hips and wrists, while this figure lacks almost any meaningful articulation at all, beyond the aforementioned wrists which elevate the figure almost imperceptibly.  There is a hole in the belt, which fits the peg on the saber hilt, but since the saber is permanently lit, it serves no purpose, unless you think image 13 in the gallery makes any sense whatsoever.  This pose could be appropriate on your shelf where you keep figures from that rare offshoot sect of the Jedi Order, the Deathwish Jedi.  I’m not that big a fan of non-neutral poses.  Qui-Gon is in a very slight open stance.  It’s not bad from a display standpoint, but it’s actually not the most stable figure, which is a bit unfortunate.  Lastly, Qui-Gon is packed sans robe, which is an essential part of any respectable Jedi’s attire.

As for Darth Maul, there’s a lot more going on here, and a quick look at the positives would lead you to think this might be an outstanding attempt at a budget figure.  The first thing you’ll notice is that the hooded cloak is removable.  This would immediately give you two very different display options.  The cloak fits well and looks great.  Maul’s arms emerge from the sleeves, and we are greeted with another surprise:  this figure is also 7POA.  The arms have swivel cuts at the elbows, which, like Qui-Gon’s wrists, allow for a bit more posability.  (Emphasis on “a bit.”)  Maul comes with several accessories, and the cut joints help the look.  Maul can hold the included binoculars tightly, and while he can move his elbows, he’s not really able to achieve a believable pose to look through them.  He can wear the included droid communicator gauntlet, and again, the elbows help make it look natural in some poses.  The gauntlet would be silly without the included probe droid and clear stand, which look pretty awesome.  Finally, Maul comes with a double-bladed lightsaber.  In yet another surprise, the hilt can actual split into two, allowing Maul to do the Ahsoka thing, for whatever reason.

On the bad side, like with Qui-Gon,  Maul’s lightsaber is permanently lit.  For movie accuracy, he can either wield the full double-blade, or a single, traditional saber after Obi-Wan (figure not included) busted it.  But he can’t wield the complete hilt with one blade like when he fought Qui-Gon on Tatooine.  One major drawback is the face sculpt.  The paint applications are pretty strong on my sample, but the sculpt looks nothing like Ray Park.  It’s arguable whether or not it’s actually just a better looking face than previous Maul figures, but it definitely isn’t Ray Park.  Again, even though the 7POA is a very slight upgrade from usual, it’s still woefully inadequate for a dynamic character like Darth Maul.

Lastly, as you well know, as of this writing, the Force Link 2.0 capability is not yet available.  Once Hasbro updates the app, we will revisit the sound effects generated by these figures.

Including the FL 2.0 play feature, I’ll give this a rather nice grade of 6.  The extra articulation, improved likeness to Liam Neeson, and the inclusion of several surprises with the multitude of film accurate accessories make this a decent value pack.  Thankfully the giant, weird, kid-friendly, non-film accessories are gone from these 2-packs.  Overall, it’s a nice set, and maybe a Qui-Gon head swap with your VC figure is possible.  Even if you already have plenty of SA Mauls and Qui-Gons, this set may still have something to offer.