Asajj Ventress - Premium Format Figures

Deep and layered are the schemes of the Dark Lord Sidious, Sith Master and architect of the fall of the Republic. Perceiving in young Anakin Skywalker a strength as yet unseen among even the greatest of the Jedi, the Sith Lord engineers elements into his plans, rich in contingencies, that might either turn the troubled Jedi to his own purpose, or else destroy him altogether. One such element is the dark Force warrior Asajj Ventress.

Found by Sidious' apprentice Count Dooku on the harsh world of Rattatak, Ventress is recruited into the service of the Sith. Gaunt and bitter, the wiry assassin is trained in the Jedi arts, but her heart is a cold, blackened stone, scorched by resentment against the Jedi who abandoned her and hardened by the cruelties of her brutal world. In a savage gladiatorial contest, Ventress displays lethal excellence. Her remorseless slaying of her competitors, either with precise lightsaber strokes or cruelly innovative wielding of her ample Force powers, impresses the Sith, though Dooku himself tests her to determine the true depth of her resourcefulness and mastery of the darkest applications of the Force. Ventress is provided with a ship, new weapons and a purpose – to destroy Anakin Skywalker – a task to which she takes with glee. Though Dooku is confident in his new assassin's abilities, Lord Sidious knows that her victory or failure is immaterial. Ventress, for all her Sith aspirations, will only ever be a tool for him to wield and throw away. She will either kill Anakin, removing one more Jedi impediment to his own ascension, or through death by his saber, she will move the youth ever closer to the Dark Side and assist Sidious' acquisition of him as a disciple.

One of the most beautiful pieces in Sideshow Collectibles’ Premium Format Figures line is Asajj Ventress. After banging out one Original Trilogy Premium Format Figures release after another (with a very heavy concentration of characters from A New Hope specifically), Sideshow Collectibles decided to make a sharp left turn and produce a stunning piece based on a character from the Clone Wars series. Although The Clone Wars was the new multimedia event front and center, with a film release that July, Sideshow decided to acknowledge fans with a passion for the original micro-series shorts (and supplementary comics and books as well). Asajj Ventress has now been produced in glorious one-quarter scale and is quite honestly one of the most beautiful interpretations of this character we have come across. On top of a sexy silhouette, Sideshow Collectibles have included an alternate portrait for exclusive collectors of Asajj Ventress as she appeared in animated form in Tartakovsky’s Clone Wars micro-series. And for us, that’s exactly the reason why the Sideshow Exclusive edition is the must-have version of this Premium Format Figure release. Asajj Ventress has a huge underground as well as a new mainstream following. So it makes sense why Sideshow Collectibles placed her in the line so soon for production.

Asajj Ventress has been molded in a way where her back is arched and her right leg is placed behind her in a balancing motion. She has a beautifully athletic body frame, and close-fitting clothing to show it off respectfully. Tucked behind her back in her right hand is a lightsaber in an upright position (the blade is significantly protruding behind her head) while her left hand is resting against her body with the other lightsaber pointing in a downward motion. Her outfit is very layered. Her outfit is completely covering her from boot to neck. We feel that this interpretation of Asajj Ventress lends itself to a Gothic inspired appearance, but she is so darn cool that it won’t bother you if you’re concerned about such things. She is wearing a skirt that covers most of her lower body and a very pronounced shapely belt that contains ringlets for accents and/or places to store her lightsaber hilts when not in use. She is very “black and white” and very little color, save for her lightsaber blades, adorn her. But we believe that’s what makes her so eye-catching and interesting. She is accurately wearing a collar which runs up her long neck and then her forearms are covered with a similar material which gives her complete symmetry and balance. Lastly, she comes with a removable cloak that contains shaping wire in the hem. This allows you to pose her wearing the cloak in more dramatic ways.

Both of the included portraits are gorgeous. And when you decide to “hide” them in the hood of her cloak, she has an even eerier appearance. Sideshow obviously thought long and hard how to make this Asajj Ventress Premium Format Figure the most engaging to collectors. The standard portrait of Asajj Ventress is hauntingly beautiful. When you gaze into her eyes, you know you can’t trust her, yet you sense the allure and interest of all things “dark”, especially the Force. Her full lips are jet black, yet shiny, and emphasize the fact that all that glitters is not gold. Her dark and dreary eye makeup accentuate her evilness and her confident eyebrows only strive to reinforce that she isn’t one you’d want to duel in a lightsaber battle. We couldn’t be more pleased with the final results of this portrait and without a doubt it’s one of the finest Sideshow Collectibles has made to date. Still, we’re more impressed with the Sideshow Exclusive portrait, which again pays homage to her appearance in the Clone Wars micro-series. She looks even more evil than the standard portrait, and her pupil-less eyeballs will no doubt make you lose sleep at night. Sideshow even sculpted her with a subtle snarl in her lips which totally reminds us of her battle with Anakin Skywalker on Yavin. As you can see, we’re easily impressed with the Asajj Ventress Premium Format Figure. Female villains are always awesome, but when they’re from Star Wars, they’re even better.