Lando Calrissian - OTC - Basic (OTC #32)

Lando Calrissian is in disguise as one of Jabba the Hutt's skiff guards as part of a daring plan to free Han Solo. An old friend of Han's, Lando fools the Hutt and the other skiff guards into believing he is one of them, so that he is in place when Luke Skywalker launches his rescue mission at the Great Pit of Carkoon.

If you were a kid in the early 80s, you probably remember getting a ton of Kenner Star Wars toys inspired from Return Of The Jedi for Christmas in 1983. Hasbro introduced over a dozen of new characters for the Star Wars basic figure line that year, but they also introduced a the concept of removable helmets that would inevitably become one of the most popular features of basic figures for years to come. One figure, Lando Calrissian (Skiff Guard Disguise) was one such figure with this newly enhanced feature and it was only one of several that would make us even more obsessed than we already were with the Kenner Star Wars line. Almost a decade and a half would pass before Kenner/Hasbro would bring us the next action figure iteration of Lando in his skiff guard disguise, but 1997’s POTF2 Lando Calrissian (Skiff Guard Outfit) was a welcomed upgrade. Still, Hasbro needed to find a way to reduce the beefy proportions and scale back the much too large weapons and overly enlarged hands. We had to wait seven years, but the revised yet misnamed 2004 SW Lando Calrissian (Jabba’s Sail Barge) (‘04 #07) figure took Lando to the next level.

Hasbro worked hard to reduce the exaggerated proportions of the 1997 POTF2 figure. With a much leaner and scaled back silhouette, Lando Calrissian has really never looked better. Besides the extra articulation and the thinner accessories, Hasbro really surprised collectors with the Star Wars “Saga” version. As Hasbro prepared to gear up for The Original Trilogy Collection, they knew that Lando Calrissian needed a second chance at retail so they proudly included him in this collector-friendly lineup as well. With enhanced packaging, Hasbro dropped Lando’s subtitle and just called him Lando Calrissian for the first time ever in this outfit. (They simplified things very much in the OTC line, much to the confusion of many.) We should note that Lando looked awesome in the new packaging, but it was more than the packaging that improved his looks. At face value it’s hard to tell, but the paint operations were tightened up on the OTC figure. They were much more sloppily applied with the Star Wars “Saga” version. You need to see a side by side comparison to witness this. (Unfortunately our photo gallery does not contain a comparison shot.)

Simply put, Lando Calrissian truly looks wonderful. We have never been fans of upper body swivel articulation, but the angled cuts Hasbro added to the figure are more beneficial than detrimental. He is able to hold his gun at a 90 degree angle from his body, yet he is also able to hold the force pike with two hands in a very screen accurate pose. The figure has incredible versatility and is just visually pleasing to the eye. Even the head sculpt is excellent and the helmet isn’t overly large to accommodate the head. because of this you’ll notice that the helmet fits very closely and tightly to the head. This may aggravate some collectors, but at least Hasbro didn’t sacrifice authenticity in the slightest. One bone of contention we have however is the flimsy plastic Hasbro manufactured for the force pike. It is pitiful to say the least. It can’t withstand gravity and you’ll find over time that it will bow while being held in his hands. And if you store your figures in poly bags, just forget about the force pike remaining straight. It will bow terribly. Despite this accessory malfunction, Lando Calrissian looks better than ever and we’re proud of Hasbro for doing such a great job on him.