DR. EVAZAN Cantina Showdown Cinema ScenePower of the Force Wal-Mart Exclusive
Item No.: Asst. 69650 No. 69738
Manufacturer: Kenner
Number: n/a
Includes: Blaster, additional figures, display stand
Action Feature: n/a
Retail: $14.99
Availability: Early 1997
Appearances: Star Wars
Bio: On the run from Imperial stormtroopers, Jedi Knight Obi-Wan Kenobi and Luke Skywalker enter the seedy Mos Eisley Cantina in hopes of finding swift passage to the planet Alderaan. Inside, among the gallery of criminals are the murderous Dr. Evazan and the brutal Ponda Baba--both of whom are thirsty for a fight with Skywalker. Reaching for their blasters, the villains are suddenly cut off from Luke by the pulsating blaze of Obi-Wan's lightsaber! Will Obi-Wan triumph and save the Rebellion's only hope? (Taken from the figure's box.)
Image: Adam Pawlus' box lap thing.
Commentary: Virtually no characters in the Cantina had any dialogue. This is not remarkable. What is remarkable is how uninteresting the talky ones were, and how long it took for them to be made as toys. Dr. Evazan took 20 solid years, and when we finally got him he didn't look all that great. While fans had a lot to complain about when the Star Wars line started up in 1995, this figure just didn't quite click. He had a weird pose, a strange outfit, and a likeness that really didn't look a lot like the scrap photos I've seen. (Maybe they used different ones.) His hair color seemed off, he wasn't pudgy enough, he needs to be balding more, and to look a little more freakish. I mean seriously, the guy's a freaking troll. The figure looks like Father Jack on the show Father Ted more than a character from a sci-fi movie. It seems like Kenner took some liberties with the design, and a 2004 resculpt didn't prove to be all that much better. If anything, it's only a slight improvement based on this very same design. There are few figures from the 1995-1998 era that Hasbro hasn't updated in the past several years, and some of the very minor ones are actually getting a little love. In the coming year, Hasbro has figures like Malakili, Ugnaughts, and even a Spacetrooper in various stages of development. In case you haven't guessed, this translates to "buy it if it's cheap, but wait for a new one if you can."
Collector's Notes: This figure was really hard to get, then it hit wide. Then it went on clearance for as little as $2.00 (I got a few with the tag still.) After all that, the item became a wide release, turning up at other stores. In case you haven't yet figured it out, this is not a rare figure.
Aside from ol' Evazan here, there are a few other movie characters from the modern Kenner days that haven't been completely redone (that is, beyond a new arm or leg) yet. There's about 15-- many of which are about to be announced and shown to the public in New York, I assume. I believe this is the only Cantina alien from before 1999 that hasn't been redone at least once. Several of the others have been redone twice in some cases.
Day 954: February 9, 2009
Now that's a card back I can get behind (pun intended). I complained about making up too much of a back story on one of the new Legacy cantina aliens. But this one is descriptive yet stays movie friendly, leaving the rest up to the kids (and our) imaginations! But yeah, as a figure, kind of whatever. I got it, because what diorama would be complete without him, but quickly replaced it with the updated-ish version only because he looked less like he was straddling the crest of a ridge looking out over the plains of victory!
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