Star Wars Figure of the Day: Day 2,895: Bib Fortuna (The Vintage Collection)

BIB FORTUNA Re-re-redux
The Vintage Collection 3 3/4-Inch Action Figure
Item No.: Asst. E7763 No. F4463
Manufacturer: Hasbro
Number: #224
Includes: Cloth robes
Action Feature: n/a
Retail: $13.99
Availability: December 2021
Appearances: Return of the Jedi
Bio: Those attempting to do business with Jabba the Hutt first needed to maneuver past his pasty-faced majordomo, the Twi'lek Bib Fortuna. (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: Existing most likely thanks to his cameo and exit from The Mandalorian's second season, Bib Fortuna is the fifth 3 3/4-inch action figure we've received. For those keeping track, they came out on 1983, 1997 (with a repaint in 2004), 2006, and now 2021 - so about every 9-15 years. Each revision tended to offer some minor improvement, like changing his accessories or changing the figure's functionality in some way. This is the first version of Bib Fortuna to have cloth robes in 38 years.

He's good, but not great. The sculpt and articulation is pretty good for a recent-ish figure, using the old bend-and-swivel hip joints. Those are pretty awful under the robes, mostly because they're tough to manipulate if you don't have tiny fingers. The arms have a perfectly good range of motion, which is important for Bib specifically. Most of his communication in Return of the Jedi was done with a lot of arm gestures, moving his fingers, and generally being creepy - and this figure can replicate that nicely. (The previous figure was a chess piece with swivel shoulders, elbows, and wrists - which was also a good figure given all I needed from him was to stand and not fall over.)

Hasbro did a good job articulating the legs, but that sort of thing is kind of worthless given his armor vest gets in the way of legs moving, and his robes cover so much of the figure that you're unlikely to ever want him sitting anywhere. The "salt shaker" figure of 2006 was good, and with new arms and a new head would have been fine - this one allows you to do more. But will you take advantage of those joints, is it worth the 100% price increase with no accessories? That's up to you. The face has a better sculpt this time around, but the eyes are almost crossed and the mouth without the lower teeth looks like he's mocking someone or something. The deco is great, the sculpt is very good, and the personality comes close to what you want - but it's not perfect. I assume a repaint of the head could result in something extraordinary. (The recent 6-inch figure had rubber robes and a better face, we'll get to him soon.)

I love getting new figures from Jabba's palace, but I'd love for them to be new. This is my fifth version of this figure from these scenes, and he doesn't have a knife or staff or blasters like previous releases - but at least he works better as the JabbaMart greeter we need him to be. (2006 Bib will likely remain on Jabba's Sail Barge, though.) If you have a Bib Fortuna that makes you happy, I wouldn't deem this one essential - but it's good if you can find one for a fair price, and this figure's current retail price is still roughly half of what the 2006 one will set you back. Also I should note Hasbro did a good job with the robes - they hang well and seem cut nicely, not too thick, not too thin, and certainly not something that obstructs mobility. Good hunting to you when it comes to this one.

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

--Adam Pawlus

Day 2,895: February 1, 2022