Figure of the Day: Day 297: Aayla Secura

AAYLA SECURA Battle of Geonosis
Saga Collection 2
Item No.: Asst. 84861 No. 84928
Number: 0311
Includes: Lightsaber, Force Effect, Display Base
Action Feature: Magnet in hand attracts lightsaber
Retail: $4.99
Availability: Spring 2003
Appearances: Attack of the Clones

Bio: An agile and adept Jedi Knight, Aayla Secura wields her blue lightsaber with graceful precision and sensuous form. Many adversaries are lured by the sultry Twi'lek's notable style, but few are a match for her empathic reponses and shrewd parry. Although often more impetuous than her fellow Jedi, Aayla never relinquishes to anger or agression - an indispensible Jedi trait during the galaxy's current state of turmoil. (Taken from the figure's cardback.)

Image: Adam Pawlus' toy shelves.

Commentary: With lots of articulation and a huge fan following from Dark Horse Comics' Republic series, what could go wrong with Aayla Secura? Well, my first figure snapped and several joints were so stiff, they would never move. My second Aayla proved slightly more poseable, but just because a figure has 10 points of articulation designed for high kicking and action poses doesn't mean it's any good. Of course, the figure is pretty good-- the sculpt is excellent, and the decoration is great. She looks a little bit meaner, which tied in to her earlier appearances in the comics, and of course her pose is very much an action-oriented one. The texture on the outfit is great, and this release showed a lot of promise for figures that would come later. Due to the paint used, the thin plastic at the joints, and what some consider a less attractive face, this isn't the best Aayla out there you can buy-- but on the cheap, she's pretty good. If you're not a collector who aspires to collect them all, you can skip this one.

Collector's Notes: As a comic book character that made the transition to the movies, fans went nuts over Aayla. Here's some fun trivia: the first sketches and sculpts for this figure were revealed at Celebration II in 2002, where the figure was initially proposed to have her lekku going up-- in other words, she looked more like the mini Unleashed figure. Given that a super-poseable version came out in 2005, this figure isn't exactly in demand these days. She'll probably cost you about $5.

Day 297: February 27, 2007