Mae (Assassin) - TVC - Basic (VC328)

Set at the end of the High Republic era, a former Padawan reunites with her Jedi Master to investigate a series of crimes, but the forces they confront turn out to be far more sinister and personal than anticipated.

Ugh! It’s time to review another dreadful character from The Acolyte. Admittedly, Mae (Assassin) is a pretty nice-looking action figure. It’s too bad you must be reminded of the insufferable Amandla Stenberg when you hold it. The character’s full name in the series is Mae-ho “Mae” Aniseya. Therefore, we know this character is the twin sister of Verosha Aniseya. Hasbro built a fine action figure here. It comes in multiple parts to pose it interchangeably and in different styles. For instance, the removable softy-goods robe is stunning. We have never seen a hood perfectly cascade around an action figure’s head when posed left or right, and its drape is also beautiful. What doesn’t work so well is the removable face mask. Unless we’re doing something incorrectly, it looks too large, and the sides cling against the figure’s head. What’s bizarre is that two slits look like they’re supposed to house the sides of the mask and hide them, but you cannot fit them under the hair.

So, the mask is a problem from an engineering perspective. Mae (Assassin) also comes with two daggers that the figure can hold very well in both hands. They are small accessories, and we anticipate collectors will lose them in a short amount of time. Their simple design is perfection here as you don’t need to have much detail on accessories this tiny. As you can see, Mae (Assassin) is a lovely action figure. But with a show so heavily panned, self-described by its creators as the gayest Star Wars ever, you have to wonder why Hasbro is designing action figures based on such content for children. It’s a bit creepy if you think about it. But this is no surprise for Disney as they are obsessed with introducing kids to adult content. It’s no wonder the show has met an untimely demise after one short season. And, of course, it’s because of the bigots, that small, vocal group that have no power but conveniently have power when there is a finger to point.

The paint operations also look great here. But we don’t think that will be enough to support repeat purchases of this action figure. When Lucasfilm and related licensees refuse to accept what a colossal failure The Acolyte is, they continue to waste everyone’s time and money by producing toys that will go on clearance. They will make their way to Ollie’s as their first retail destination. Generally speaking, we wish we didn’t have to add characters from The Acolyte into our The Vintage Collection reviews archive. That’s how much we don’t want to be associated with what will go down in history as one of the worst things to ever come out of Star Wars. And it’s a shame because it’s evident that Hasbro produced another well-designed action figure here. The people have spoken, and it’s time to get Star Wars back to basics and universally beloved again. But they’ve done so much damage to the brand it’s unlikely there is any chance of redemption anymore.