Original Review:  Chris - 04/29/2012 11:40 PM

If there are two things I love, it’s cantina denizens and Jabba’s goons.  So this has been a satisfying one-two punch for me (previous review Dr. Evazan).  Kithaba is one of two Klatooinian guards at the Battle of the Pit of Carkoon.  The other was Barada who was released in the old (and mostly erroneously named) Skiff Guards cinema scene.  This is the first attempt in the modern line at a Kithaba figure, and it definitely does not fail to please.  The detailing on the figure is outstanding.  Little things, like the removable bandolier, add an extra sense of depth to the sculpt.  The head sculpt is fantastic and captures the Kaltooinian bulldog appearance. 

The articulation and range of motion is sufficient to strike most fighting poses.  The sculpt does limit the range of motion at the shoulders.  The narrow stance can make some fight stances a little challenging especially when balancing the figure to stand.  The pelvic part of the sculpt was cast in the cream color plastic of the torso and painted red.  When rotating the legs forward or backward, the cream plasitc can be seen at the hip junction.  These minor gripes keep the figure from scoring a perfect score.  9 out of 10.

Updated Review:  Bret - 7/24/2018 07:05 AM

In case you haven’t heard, here’s the background to this character.  (Editor’s note:  the details may be up for debate, but this is pretty much the way it went.) Way back in 1959 when George Lucas was writing his first draft for Space Stuff Volume 3! (which later was reworked into The Wrath of Hudsol, and then was finalized to become Return of the Jedi,  Lucas wanted to pay homage to the 1951 classic, The Day the Earth Stood Still by naming some aliens in his film “Klaatu, Barada, and Nikto.”  Unfortunately, some of the production crew didn’t get the memo in time, and botched the whole thing.  This character ended up being a combo of the three.  In the final cut, this figure was named Mr Klaatu Barada, from the planet Nikto   Later, the awesome canon comic book Star Wars: Guardians of the Skiff, featured a character that looked exactly like this one from ROTJ, but was named Klaatu Luxury Yacht.  This caused confusion until the legendary Colecovision video game, Star Wars: Skiff Racer renamed the character Nikto Klaatu, from the planet Barada.  Failing to clarify, Lucasfilm tried again by releasing a series of mass-marketed Tatooine-themed jet skis, one of which was nicknamed Enough Already.  Here we are with TVC, and Hasbro ended the debate by naming him Kithaba, because it has a “K” in it. 

Kithaba is important because it brought us one step closer to completing the all-important prisoner skiff ensemble.  At the time of this writing, we are only missing Vedain and Velken.  It’s one of the more important subsets in the line, and we will beat this drum until Hasbro delivers.  Then, we will find another incomplete subset to whine about incessantly.  The figure is perfect standing guard on the skiff. I guess it would be nice if he had a better skiff on which to stand guard. 

This is a great looking figure. It’s not the most “action”-oriented figure of all time, but it’s beautifully sculpted and painted with a ton of great detailing.  The bandolier as a separate piece is a nice touch.  The blaster fits snugly in the separately sculpted (but not removable) holster.  The figure grips the blaster well.  The vibro staff isn’t the sturdiest of plastic, but it works well enough, and Kithaba can hold it in one hand, or perform the vaunted THWG to wield it menacingly.  The figure stands well.  As Chris pointed out, the articulation isn’t top of the line (no ball jointed hips) but that’s not a big deal with this type of figure.  The negative, as mentioned, is really about the joints/hinges being a different color than the surrounding areas.  The face sculpt is impressive, with a nice paint application that gives it personality. 

Outstanding figure, perfect for your Khetanna display.  No need to update.  The figure, surprisingly, can still be found on eBay for a very reasonable price.  Pick one up if you don’t have it.  You’ll be sorry you passed it up.

Updated Review for 2023 Release:  Bret - 6/19/2023 07:05 AM

Revisiting and reviewing an older figure can be a tricky proposition.  As we have done a few times with Hasbro re-releasing so many TVC 1.0 figures, we have to balance what it was 10+ years ago, to how it compares to today’s more advanced sculpting and painting technology.  In some cases, a figure shows its age, and probably could have stood an upgrade.  In others, it’s perfectly cromulent the way it exists already.

Kithaba is a tough one.  It was absolutely an outstanding figure in 2012 - and maintained that awesomeness when we took a second look in 2018.  But as is often the case, the recent advancements in 3.75” sculpting, painting, and articulation do have an impact on this review in 2023 - despite some minor upgrades to the figure’s paint applications.

Kithaba is excellent, even today.  However, due to the current prevalence of ball-jointed hips, waists, wrists, and ankles, the limited poseability of the figure can be a bit frustrating.  But as both Chris and I write often, not every character needs Jedi-Level Articulation.  Kithaba is no exception.  You can coax enough of an action stance from the figure to satisfy most of your diorama setup needs.  Most of the time he is, yes, “just standing there.”  But if you want him to defend himself against the maniacal Jedi Master wannabe, he can do just enough to keep collectors happy. 

Here’s the good part:  Hasbro corrected the mismatched joint colors.  This time around, the ankles are black like the boots (instead of red), the hips are red like the pants (instead of cream colored), and the elbows are the lighter color of his sleeves, rather than the darker color of his bolero.  The face also received the PhotoReal treatment, so the eyes are little more natural looking, and the teeth are less bright white.  For good measure, it looks like an attempt was made to give the metal accessories a shinier look, such as the buttons on the pouches, and the buckles on the bandolier and the belt.

Unlike the VC147 Death Star / VC232 Imperial Gunner that we looked at last week, I can focus in on exactly what about this figure struggles to hold up today.  It’s the waist/crotch/hip assembly.  The very small waist, the prominent “T-crotch” shape, and the narrow hip placement give this figure an oddly dated look.  There’s no hiding behind a skirt, kama, or tunic; this guy’s crotch is fully visible to all who wish to stare at it.  While it was part of the accepted aesthetic in 2012, this type of sculpting is very dated.  I’m not suggesting that Hasbro should have retooled the lower body, but I am saying that the figure as it is just falls short of what we expect today. 

One additional note:  When the figure was originally released, there were two variants.  One had a black (or very dark brown?) bandana that matched the color of the bandolier, belt/holster, and boots.  The other had a red bandana that matched his pants.  There seemed to be some effort by collectors at the time to have both, and I believe there is still some debate as to which is the rarer variant.  I only purchased one at the time, and it happened to be the black/brown version.  The 2023 sample I just acquired has a red bandana.  I’m not sure if this new release will also have both colors, but it looks like I now have both. 

So we originally gave Kithaba a 9/10, and then upheld it 5 years ago.  While the figure is tremendous for 2012 and still maintains enough goodness to be good figure today, it’s hard to hold onto that lofty score when compared to the modern upgrades.  I love this figure, and I still wouldn’t want Hasbro to use its currently limited tooling budget on improving the articulation or sculpt.  The fixes to the joint colors are a nice improvement, but unlike the case of the recently re-released VC24 Wooof, it can’t help Kithaba from being taken down a couple of pegs by the inexorable march of time.  I have to reluctantly give this a 7, but it doesn’t diminish how much I enjoy it being in my collection.