Baze Malbus - Elite Series

A one-time freelance assassin, Baze Malbus found a higher cause than money by fighting the Imperial occupation of Jedha. A battle-hardened veteran of countless skirmishes, Baze has a bravado that provides a marked contrast to the spiritual centeredness of his best friend and moral compass, Chirrut Îmwe.

Huh. After “years” of complaining how terribly the human characters look in the Elite Series line, here is one that looks pretty fantastic. It might be in Disney’s best interest to avoid human likenesses at all costs, but if they can produce a figure like Baze Malbus, we think it’s a safe bet to continue in this path. Baze Malbus turned out incredibly better than expected. Yes, he comes with a painted face cast in die-cast metal, but Disney added enough detail to breathe life into it that is realistic and authentic. Whether it’s the rosy cheeks or the shadowing in the forehead, this Elite Series Baze Malbus figures turned out splendidly, and we’re pleased with how well his likeness turned out. From the intentionally sloppily applied facial hair to the braids in his hair, the Elite Series Baze Malbus captured the spirit and attitude of the onscreen character in a remarkably beautiful way. Let’s check out the other details of this figure.

Baze Malbus has a stunning paint job. There isn’t one detail that we believe Disney missed. They’ve recreated the onscreen character with precision and extreme accuracy, that we’re having difficulty picking anything apart on it. That proves this figure is a success for the line. Baze Malbus has a colorful costume. And Disney ensured that they recreated every last detail of it with preciseness and care. His bland tan jumpsuit is accented wonderfully by red chest armor, red insignias on the pockets and other parts of the costume. There is also a healthy amount of brown added throughout his outfit and Disney did a great job to give all of the paint operations natural textures which makes die-cast metal look like real clothing and other materials that normally shouldn’t look that way. In short, Baze Malbus looks beautiful. And this figure might rival what Hasbro accomplished in The Black Series [Phase III] 6” line, and that’s saying quite a bit.

What we’re not crazy about when it comes to this figure is something that cannot be helped. The bulky cannon blaster he comes with is very obtrusive and limits how the figure can be positioned. The gun comes with a very rigid ammunition belt and inhibits how Baze Malbus can hold his blaster. The canister/blaster rifle combination piece attaches via plugs into his back, but the material isn’t very pliable at all, and we find it disappointing how it limits the various poses that are attainable with this release. In fairness, all Baze Malbus figures are limited in this way, so perhaps it’s not the end of the world. The gun (and related parts) is (are) all nicely painted, however. Like all Elite Series figures, Baze Malbus comes with an oblong Star Wars display stand with a single peg. He also has a single peg-hole in the bottom of his right foot. It’s a functional display stand, but the figure doesn’t attach too tightly too it. Baze Malbus is a wonderful release aside from the issues.