Star Wars Figure of the Day: Day 2,871: IG-11 (The Vintage Collection)

IG-11 New Sculpt
The Vintage Collection 3 3/4-Inch Action Figure
Item No.: Asst. E7763 No. F1901
Manufacturer: Hasbro
Number: #206
Includes: Pistol, rifle
Action Feature: n/
Retail: $13.99
Availability: October 2021
Appearances: The Mandalorian
Bio: One of a series of dangerous assassin droids largely outlawed in the galaxy, IG-11 is a hired gun programmed to follow Bounty Hunters Guild protocols to the letter. (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: Since Hasbro re-rebooted The Vintage Collection it can be hard to know if we should get excited or not - sometimes we get reruns, sometimes we get new guys, and sometimes we get new guys who could be reruns. It turns out IG-11 is a reason to be excited - it's not just IG-88 with new parts, but a new figure with an exceptional amount of articulation that exceeds the quality of the slight retool we got for The Black Series. You should get this one. This one is good.

As far as I can tell, other than maybe the weapons, there's a lot of newness here. There are at least 29 moving parts, with articulated ankles and multiple swiveling elements on the head. The wrists rotate, and the excellent hand designs showcase individual fingers like he had on the show - and they're sculpted far enough apart to serve a function and finally hold the blasters better than any IG-88 figure to date. It's really impressive - he stands well so far, and seems surprisingly sturdy for a spindly guy. With thin limbs it's entirely possible he will sag or face-plant over time, so a stand with upper body support is probably a good idea to keep him from starting a domino rally in your displays.

The legs swing forward and have joints to go out to the sides. The shoulders are the same - there's actual movement here. The hands swivel, the waist has a joint, and the head has multiple moving parts. If some day you could give this figure articulated fingers (which in 2021 I am going to say will never happen at this scale, prove me wrong) you might be able to improve it - but I think this is one of those end-of-the-road figures with top-notch paint, a great bandolier vest, excellent deco, and wonderful painted details. Much like the character in the show, this is better than IG-88 ever was.

As I mentioned in reviews of other new new figures this year, Hasbro's skill is amazing when they apply it. Reruns tend to just be... fine. Not amazing, just fine. These figures are so good I don't mind paying $14 for them. There's no asterisk, there's no disclaimer - he's awesome. I can only hope to see so much amazing work going into future figure's engineering, and I'm sure there will be, because all the newest new stuff since they introduced thigh swivels with Rogue One supera-articulated 3 3/4-inch figures, it's been pretty hard to be disappointed with anything new that comes out.

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

--Adam Pawlus

Day 2,871: November 9, 2021