Star Wars Figure of the Day: Day 2,952: The Mythrol (Carbonite, The Vintage Collection)

THE MYHTROL (in Carbonite)
The Vintage Collection 3 3/4-Inch Vehicle Pack-In
Item No.: No. F0938
Manufacturer: Hasbro
Number: n/a
Includes: Ship with 4 Carbonite blocks, Offworld Jawa Elder, The Mandalorian, Grogu
Action Feature: n/a
Retail: $349.99
Availability: February 2022
Appearances: The Mandalorian   

Bio: "The Mythrol" was a Mythrol male who worked for Greef Karga until he stole from him and fled. By the time he had a bounty placed upon him during the New Republic Era, the Mythrol was on the ice world of Pagodas, where he was harassed by a group of trawlers within a bar. After a Mandalorian bounty hunter named Din Djarin entered the bar and incapacitated the trawlers, he captured the Mythrol, later freezing him in carbonite before delivering him, along with others, to Karga, who worked as an agent of the Bounty Hunters' Guild, in order to collect the rewards. Karga later let him pay off his debt at work. (Stolen from Wookieepedia. There is no bio.)

Image: Adam's photo lab.

Availability: Click here to buy it at Amazon now!

Commentary: "But is it a figure?" is a question that has come up at quite a few conventions over the years. This figure of The Mythrol (in Carbonite) was not solicited as an action figure, but it is a unique representation of a character which does exist in a 3 3/4-inch format, and in a distinctive form. Precious few figures get slabbed. There are three nameless ones that came in the set with Horatio Sanz plus there's a Jar Jars Binks and a few Hans Solo. Generally speaking there's something interesting about a Carbonite block as a toy, like stickers, or the ability to shove a Han figure inside it for play reasons. The Mythrol's block is just a block.

Unadorned, this gray silvery block looks great. It fits in the big Slave I storage area because it's smaller than the most recent Han Solo blocks, and it has a place on top for a claw to clamp on - which, admittedly, doesn't look as good. There's a hole in the back which I don't think presently serves a purpose, but it's on the back, so you don't see it. The toy has sculpted instrument panels on the sides too.  The close-up looks a lot like Shrek.

Unlike recent blocks, these ones are completely unpainted. A lot of Han Solo figures have some silver paint to separate the gas from the frame, but not this one - it's all the same color. Some have stickers, or painted lights on the sides. Again, not this one. You just get to enjoy the molded-in-color alien with some sort of snot or fluid frozen back on his face. It's striking, to say the least - it really captures how unpleasant the freezing process must be.

While arguably not an essential part of a complete figure collection, I would want these because they represent distinctive (and mysterious) characters. Season one of The Mandalorian was a fun ride because, much like the old movies, there's no guide book explaining who some of these people or things are. They just are. This character never got a proper name, and it's kind of a shame that the block wasn't an accessory with The Vintage Collection figure. But hey, we got it! And we got a claw on which to hang it, or you can shove it in the freezing closet! It even stands on his own thanks to the flat base! It can be found sold individually on eBay from the people who broke up the set to sell at a mark-up, which makes it easier to display than some of the Han Solo-popsicles from over the years.

Collector's Notes: I got mine from Hasbro Pulse.

--Adam Pawlus

Day 2,952: August 18, 2022

Star Wars Figure of the Day: Day 2,891: The Mythrol (The Vintage Collection)

THE MYTHROL Toy Debut
The Vintage Collection 3 3/4-Inch Action Figure
Item No.: Asst. E7763 No. F4464
Manufacturer: Hasbro
Number: #225
Includes: Pistol, puck, binders, tool
Action Feature: n/
Retail: $13.99
Availability: December 2021
Appearances: The Mandalorian
Bio: Once the Mandalorian's bounty, the fledgling Mythrol is now trying to make a living in the office of the Magistrate of Nevarro. (Taken from marketing copy. There is no bio.)

Image: Adam's photo lab.

Availability: Click here to buy it at Entertainment Earth now!

Click here to buy it at Amazon now!

Commentary: The Vintage Collection has really turned itself around with its new releases - it seems every wave or two, a figure seems like the very best 3 3/4-inch action figure Hasbro ever gave us. The Mythrol is another one of those "best ever" candidates, thanks to a great sculpt, a surprising abundance of gear, superior articulation, and paint that goes above and beyond what we're trained to expect. It feels like Hasbro read a bunch of reviews and decided to make something amazing purely to spite critics to have nothing to say.

The blue, semi-anonymous alien was one of the first characters we met in The Mandalorian and was one of few sniveling cowards in a sea of sincerity. The heavily made-up Horatio Sanz had on a brown costume presumably meant to keep his character moist, and it was replicated here nicely looking something like a bomber jacket or old-fashioned pilot's suit. Uneven lapels struck me as a surprise, but it and every detail on the costume look great. The boots are a different brown, as is the pouch on his belt. He has special embellishments on his shoulders, and they're painted - as are other silver and gold accents. The wrinkles all look good, the pleats and creases all align nicely. Be it Disney's asset team or Hasbro's sculpting department, just the outfit is pretty amazing - and then they do a bang-up job replicating the alien head and gloved hands, too. With little to no articulation, it would be one of Hasbro's best sculpts in recent memory.

Deco makes up for some lackluster figures lately. With the recent The Emperor having very little neat to show for it, the Mythrol has so many decorated accents and trims to his outfit, you may almost miss just how insanely ornate the head is. A shiny blue skin has additional pink and blue accents! The eyes really pop, and after being used to most alien heads being molded in color, this is a really excellent figure. With reissues of other figures at $14 it's easy to complain what we're getting just isn't that great, but The Mythrol is a figure you look at and can see where the money went. It's better than a typical figure - and it has great articulation, too.

Whoever engineered this one deserves a medal. He can use all of his accessories - binders rarely fit well, but here? They fit. The blaster fits in his left hand, the pick and the torch fit nicely in the right. His arms swivel and bend so he can look decent using all of his equipment, which can be tough when anything demands a weird hand shape or specific arm pose. What I really love, though, is the hip articulation - they designed this guy with sitting in mind. You'll have no problems getting him to sit in a chair, and I assume once my Razor Crest shows up he can plop in the seat right behind Mando without any problems at all. Future figures may be measured against this one, as his wrists and elbows even have a little more give in them than usual.

If that weren't enough, you get a tiny little holographic bust in the form of his "wanted" puck. Hasbro painted it with red letters, which was pretty spectacular, but also ensured the image went from blue at the top to colorless near the base - just like on the show. His other gear is molded in color and is generally great, but I don't have any specific praise other than "it's good, it's really good." The puck itself was a surprise winner, mostly because it's the kind of thing you would expect to be held back for a convention exclusive. But no, it's here, for $14.

Hasbro hasn't made all that many figures for The Mandalorian (not counting metallic repaints) at this size. I believe this is #13 since the show's 2019 debut, which is kind of astonishingly slow - but it's good. It wouldn't have been this perfect had it came out in December of 2019 when the character first appeared, so I'm glad we're seeing better figures as lead times (and prices) go up. You can go ahead and buy this one and you'll be glad that you did.

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

--Adam Pawlus

Day 2,891: January 18, 2022