Figure of the Day: Day 174: Barada

BARADA Battle of Carkoon
The Saga Collection
Item No.: Asst. 85770 No. 85804
Number: 004
Includes: Blaster, display base, bonus holographic figure
Action Feature: n/a
Retail: $6.99
Availability: January 2006
Appearances: Return of the Jedi

Bio: When Jabba the Hutt needs a goon to push his prisoners into the Pit of Carkoon, the remorseless Barada is the perfect creature for the job. Armed with a staff and trained to serve and protect Jabba, Barada is usually regarded as a formidable opponent in hand to hand combat. That is until he becomes quick work for the expert lightsaber skills of Luke Skywalker, Jedi Knight. Luke knocks Barada into the Pit of Carkoon and Sarlacc makes a quick meal of him! (Taken from the figure's cardback.)

Image: Adam Pawlus' toy shelf.

Commentary: When the 2006 line was initially announced, fan reactions were mixed-- sure, there were three brand new sculpts of popular characters, but there was also this confusing selection of Barada, which has been released twice before. As an old Power of the Force 2 release from the late 1990s, the figure was once hard to get. And then it was reissued, and it wasn't. So this release was an oddity in that nobody asked for it, but it was a huge improvement and seems to have sold reasonably well. The figure is an upgrade if the first modern release in that the face isn't extra splotchy, and the more even coloring makes this easily the definitive version of this particular action figure. With the standard 6 points of articulation, it's a little chunky compared to the new sculpts as of late, but it's still a very good looking figure and a fairly worthy upgrade-- especially if you need figures for your dioramas.

Collector's Notes: Many fans were crossing their fingers for an update of the 1984 Barada, which had red pants and was basically a different character. (No dice.) Still, this is a pretty popular release. It's also the first modern individually packaged Barada. The first release was in a Cinema Scene called Jabba's Skiff Guards, and the figure was later released in a similarly themed Toys "R" Us exclusive multipack. So contrats, Barada, on getting your own carded figure. He's still shipping to some major retailers, so with a little luck you might find one at retail.

Day 174: October 27, 2006