Star Wars Figure of the Day: Day 3,112: Tusken Chieftan (The Black Series)

TUSKEN CHIEFTAN Big Retool
The Black Series 2023 Window Box Line Look The Book of Boba Fett Packaging
Item No.: Asst. E8908 No. F9984
Manufacturer: Hasbro
Number: #06 - Star Wars: The Book of Boba Fett
Includes: Staff, cloak
Action Feature: n/a
Retail: $24.99
Availability: December 2023
Appearances: Star Wars: The Book of Boba Fett

Bio: The leader of a tribe of Tusken Raiders, the Tusken Chieftan captured Boba Fett after his escape from the Sarlacc in the Great Pit of Carkoon. (Taken from the box packaging.)

Image: Adam's photo lab.

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

Click here to buy it at Amazon now!

Click here to buy it at eBay now!

Commentary: Despite having a very small line, The Book of Boba Fett for The Black Series is mostly made of old molds and/or figures from other shows. The Tusken Chieftan hides it well - but you can't hide the C2142 on his foot. And I know you know what it means - it's the SKU for the 2017 Tusken Raider [FOTD #2,382] figure. The arms and legs are reused, but the head, cloak, skirt, torso, necklaces, and accessories are new. And that meets my standards of "new figure." While I would vastly prefer Hasbro treat its "premium" line as such, I know tooling is expensive and sales on action figures seem a little rocky. (That's no secret, check Amazon or eBay to see what the free market decides what new releases are worth.)

As of my writing this, it's still selling for SRP - which means Hasbro probably made a hair too many for the needs of the market, which is largely par for the course for a lot of figures lately. I'd go as far as to say this one feels a bit better than a lot of recent rleeases, with painted robes, extra neck accessories, and a very nice staff. They sculpted new lower robes - honestly, they didn't have to - you can tell because they're nice and clean, not tattered like the 1977-style figure. The chest is new, without the bandoliers. The painted elements look superb, but the sculpting seems a little soft and the brown plastics on the chest and feet are just the tiniest bit opaque. It would work great for skin, but for clothing, you don't want there to be any indication that light is passing through meat. Still, it's dark, and it more or less works great except under bright light.

The head looks great, better than the 3 3/4-inch one and painted well to boot. The painted wrappings look good, and so do the faux metal and leather bits. They did a nice job - the textures on the head are excellent overall. The breathing tubes hang on his neck strangely, but the necklace looks acceptable. I think it could look better, but I also assume someone is making an argument about "value" and may not be taking into account that a Tusken Chieftan without the lady warrior or the prisoner Rodian or Suns-bleached Boba may not be a compelling argument, regardless of relative quality. You can really see that they made a figure with shortcuts that doesn't feel like they took the cheap route, which is great, but I think we all get to a point where you want to see some savings when you see reused parts so often. That ship has likely long since sailed, so the real question is... can this guy be worth the $25?

I'd say "yes but." I love aliens, and things related to Tatooine and adjacent to original trilogy stories - and I love building alien cultures out in the toy box. This ticks all the boxes for me, but if we didn't get a new body I'd be a little grumpy, and if they didn't give us a new staff I'd be furious. If it were a $20 figure I'd be singing its praises and its cleverness, and at $25 I'd say I like it a lot more than many recent arrivals. (It takes me a while to get through these things as I write them up as I go.) With so few figures from The Book of Boba Fett I can't say it's a rewarding line to collect, but if you accept that you're just going to get a few and have an anemic collection? This is a good one, this is one to get. You should get it.

He can stand, he can hold his staff, but he can't sit and it's not like you were going to put him in a ship anyway.

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

--Adam Pawlus

Day 3,112: February 29, 2024

Star Wars Figure of the Day: Day 3,061: Tuken Chieftan (Tusken Raiders, The Vintage Collection)

TUSKEN CHIEFTAN (Tusken Raiders)
The Vintage Collection 3 3/4-Inch Hasbro Pulse and ShopDisney Shared Exclusive Action Figure Set
Item No.: No. F8301
Manufacturer: Hasbro
Number: n/a
Includes: 4 figures with cloaks, rifles, gaffi staffs
Action Feature: n/a
Retail: $59.99
Availability: August 2023
Appearances: The Book of Boba Fett   

Bio: Survival in the unforgiving desert of Tatooine requires strict training and discipline for the members of a Tusken tribe. Led by a chieftain, each member of the clan must learn to be useful. (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!

Click here to buy it at eBay now!

Commentary: I'm surprised they debuted the Tusken Chieftan in this set. As a recognizable character and a cool design, this is the very kind of thing I want in my Star Wars action figures. It's familiar, and it's new. It's a recognizable character. It's distinctive. And somehow, it didn't kick off on a cardback in stores.

While mostly new parts, our Chieftan does re-use the arms from Walmart's exclusive Tusken Raider [FOTD #2,860] from 2021 - but since they're under the robes, you'll never see it. He has a new torso, a great new robe with printed dark brown on it, a nice new head with distinctive mask, a unique torso, and startlingly good leg joints. They swing forward without obstruction, and they have those swivel thigh cuts. This is as good as it gets! Well, a Bantha would be better, but this is still great. The sculpted chest with bones looks wonderful, but overall, it could be better. This figure's colors are a little more saturated than what we saw on-screen, and the mask could be improved. The "mouth" has vertical lines on it on the TV show, and it's a bit wider than what we seem to be getting with the figure. There's a black fade at the bottom of the figure's head that seems to mimic some of what we're seeing on the show, but it's too stark. The extra stuff on the shoulders of the costume are missing on the figure too - the painted detail is better than nothing, but there's still room for improvement. The staff, though, is excellent.

I don't know if this is the Chieftan or a Chieftan yet. It's good - certainly better than nothing - but you could see Hasbro reissuing it with one or two more alterations within the next year and people like me will buy it again, begrudgingly. If that does not happen, this is a must-get figure set and just a cool addition to your clans, even if the price isn't a deal. It's OK. It's good enough - but most importantly, right now, it's new and interesting and the kind of reason we are in this hobby in the first place. "Here's a new figure of a guy you remember from that show!" is important in keeping me from completely quitting and selling my collection. The rest of the set isn't as distinctive - but we'll get to them soon enough. $60 is a lot to pay for just one specific character (and some trooper buddies) but I made no complaints when I pulled out my credit card to get this, and I don't think you will either.  

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

--Adam Pawlus

Day 3,061: September 5, 2023