Editor’s Note:  This review has been updated with our second look at TVC…

Original Review:  Chris - 06/18/2011

We’ve been waiting a while for this one.  Is it worth the wait?  I think so.  It is perfect?  Not much is.  It has a couple of warts. The left hand seems purpose built to reach back to grab Leia’s hand when Lando pulls a goof on them at the Bespin dining hall.  As such it sacrifices some universal utility just to satisfy one scene. The head doesn’t look like Harrison Ford from all angles.  Sometimes it appears dead on, but from other angles the sculpt reminds me more of Timothy Olyphant staring down Al Swearengen in the Deadwood Gultch saloon.

Some have complained about the floating holster and wished for one with a leg strap like the wave 1 Bespin Luke Skywalker.  I like to think that Hasbro erred on the side of posability when going with the floating holster.  I personally love the lower body articulation.  I was able to have the figure strike a lot of cool poses with little effort AND I was able to get the figure to stand without transforming into a giant green monster of rage. The negatives are minor. I love this figure and I don’t care who knows. Another 9 out of 10.

Updated Review:  Bret - 7/07/2018

As Chris pointed, out, it’s a great figure, even with a couple of negatives.  Personally, I don’t have a problem with the likeness, but I do have a problem with the floating holster.  It probably could have been solved with a compromise of sculpting a thin strap on the thigh, that wasn’t actually connected to the holster, giving it the look, without hindering the posability.  The articulation is great, though perhaps ball-jointed wrists and swivel thighs would be a more modern improvement.  I also don’t like the hand sculpts, but I can get over that.  Additionally, I think it would have given the figure a little bit better depth if the vest was a separately sculpted piece.  And one last nitpick:  there’s something off about the shoulder joints.  They’re very…angular.  Hasbro can do a better job of hiding the articulation.

Han, in this outfit, represents a large chunk of his scenes throughout ESB.  Han went through a lot in those clothes.  I would assume he at least took the chance to clean them or change shirts before his fancy dinner date with Darth Vader, but regardless, he pretty much wears this same style throughout the whole movie after he rescues Luke on Hoth.  The accessories that are included point to a specific scene, in which Han and Chewie are repairing the Hyperdrive on board the falcon while the ship is at rest inside the asteroid (or, is it?).  In coming up with the shots for this gallery, it would seem that we need a Chewbacca that comes with the safety goggles he uses in this scene. Sure, he comes with goggles and a welding tool from the scene in Echo Base when he’s repairing the exterior of the Falcon, but there’s nothing from Hasbro to represent this scene.  They should get on that. 

So a thigh strap, better hands, more modern articulation, maybe an improved likeness would make this a perfect Han, and a few other minor items would make this a perfect Han.  It sounds like a lot.  Each of those things taken separately would be extremely minor.  Even taken together, the net negative is pretty small.  It’s an outstanding figure, but maybe time has shown that it could be made measurably better.  As it is, you should own it.There are enough aspects of the figure that Hasbro could improve upon to make this a not-quite definitive sculpt, but it is, without any doubt or hesitation, by far the best version of this Han that you can own.  A search on eBay shows that the figure isn’t cheap, but compares favorably in pricing vs. many of the other TVC figures we’ve re-reveiwed so far.  Hasbro can consider an update at some point down the line if they have an opportunity, but as with many other candidates for re-sculpt, the slot rarity should put that project on the backburner.  Pick one up if you don’t own one already.  You might want several, if you have a lot of Empire Strikes Back shelf dioramas.

Updated Review:  Bret - 8/14/2020

If you read the prior reviews, you’ll see that Chris and I both really like this figure, despite several minor annoyances.  Hasbro tried to address one of them by adding Photoreal technology to the face paint applications.  Just as with the VC04 Luke Bespin update, it seems that reports of horrendous Photoreal applications were greatly exaggerated.  Again, it’s possible that the earliest samples were released and then corrected, but whatever that early rage was about, I have no real issue with the results on my sample.  Photoreal isn’t a perfect science, and sometimes the same figure can look amazing or terrible depending on the angle, light, and distance from which one views it.  I would say it’s an improvement.

Other nitpicks with the hands, holster straps, and angular shoulder joints remain unchanged.  Besides Photoreal, it seems the figure is less glossy (a plus), while Hasbro for some reason opted to drop “Outfit” from the parenthetical sub name on the cardback. 

Very slight improvements from the original, but the real win here is that this outstanding figure is back in circulation.  As mentioned in the earlier review, Han spends a lot of time in this outfit during ESB, so being able to obtain multiples without paying exorbitant Ebay prices is a win for everyone.  The score will remain a 9/10.  It’s not perfect, and there are room for minor improvements, but Hasbro shouldn’t spend resources sculpting a new one any time soon.

*This figure was meant to be a “fan channel” (online) exclusive, but a shipping error sent some cases to brick and mortar (especially Target).