Star Wars Figure of the Day: Day 3,180: X-Wing Pilot (Miralan, The Vintage Collection)

X-WING PILOT (Mirialan Female)
The Vintage Collection 3 3/4-Inch Shared Exclusive Action Figure Set
Item No.: No. F9395
Manufacturer: Hasbro
Number: n/a
Includes: 4 Pilot figures with 3 Rebel Blasters like the Troopers and 3 Rebel Blasters like Luke's Pilot blaster
Action Feature: n/a
Retail: $54.99
Availability: September 2024
Appearances: ???   

Bio: Mirialans were a near-human species native to the planet Mirial. They had skin tones ranging from green to yellow or pink to purple. Most had traditional geometric tattoos on their faces which symbolized personal achievements. (Taken from Wookieepedia.)

Image: Adam's photo lab.

Availability: Click here to buy it at Amazon now!

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Commentary: I am of two minds of these trooper sets. I love getting Stormtroopers or generic guys. The X-Wing Pilots and unmasked figures are a little squirrelly. Hasbro's copy places these figures in Ahsoka, and their helmet designs look similar to ones on the show - but I don't recognize this Mirialan from the show. Given the hubbub about SKU count and the capacity to make new products, it's a little weird to see effort going into a set that's X-Wing Luke's body with four new heads. It's certainly interesting, but not as interesting as getting actual characters from one of the shows, or comics, no matter how obscure. Back in the 1990s and 2000s I was a lot more interested in "let's make up new stuff" because a few thousand figures in, I'm starting to be concerned we'll never get the original Power of the Force Imperial Dignitary Sim Aloo and I'm about 335 days away from assuming a mass release of Vlix is being saved for when my body is in the ground. As a kid I loved the idea of figures with no story and going on fun new adventures. As an adult, I still do - but these are less toys than collectibles, despite the packaging.

All four figures are basically the same, and the savings were passed along to us. The Mirialan is a green-headed lady person on Luke's body with a ponytail. They did a very nice job sculpting the face, which is expressive and has great eyebrows. And eyes. The tattoos are no slouch. Really, they poured a lot of love in the design and it shows. They even painted her lips, which is the kind of thing we didn't get on toys when we were kids, or much at all until more recently. Her hair is a separately molded piece, and it looks amazing. If you got this 20 or 30 years ago, your mind would be blown, although you would probably still be surprised it's on a Luke body.

The Luke body was OK for its time, but today it's not great. I'm a big fan of functionality, and this body had some rotten hips. Old Kenner figures and new "kid" Hasbro figures usually have hips that only swing forward - these are what you want when you have a vehicle pilot. This particular body has a joint that is similar to the shoulder joint, with the peg going up into the abdomen rather than the side. This means you have to do a ton of fidgeting to get her to sit in anything, it's not fast and it's certainly not fun. This kind of articulation is good for dioramas and playsets, but Hasbro doesn't make either for X-Wing pilots and certainly not for post-Return of the Jedi Rebel pilots. For a figure that will just stand around, they're great - but these white boxed figures beg to be opened and enjoyed, there's just not a heck of a lot of good places for them to live other than on your shelf with your thousands of other figures.

Her flight suit does look good, given how much of it is molded in color I assume it's also slightly cheaper to manufacture. Sculpted details are crisp, and painted elements - like the glossy boots and gloves - look excellent.

The figure's deco is as good as can be expected, with an otherwise good sculpt and a nicely painted helmet clearly inspired by the paint on the props on Ahsoka. It fits perfectly, and isn't too snug or too loose - Hasbro should, again, be proud of the engineering of what was done here. She has a good head on her shoulders. If Hasbro had a pilot bar or some similar locale, she'd be right at home. Maybe she'll hang out in the Cantina next year. I feel like a bit of an ingrate for poo-pooing the choice - they did a good job - but as aliens go, "human but green" is about as boring as they come. Unless they're reusing this tooling later for another human figure in one our species' many fine colors, in which case, kudos for planning ahead.

Collector's Notes: I got mine from Entertainment Earth.

--Adam Pawlus

Day 3,180: October 15, 2024