Leektar & Nippet - TLC - Basic (BD 4)

Leektar is all too familiar with the threats of stormtroopers, having earlier saved an Ewok scouting expedition from attacking stormtroopers. Nippet the wokling is too young to take part in the Battle of Endor, but is delighted by the victory celebration that takes place in her village.

The Leektar & Nippet two-pack is special for a couple of reasons. For starters, the character of Leektar had the rare exception of being a figure available in the 12" scale prior to the 3.75" scale (and for a significant amount of time no less) until the 2008 basic figure line to be exact. We can count on one hand how many times this has happened. In fact, we can only think of one other example at the moment (we aren't denying other examples exist) and that is R2-A6 (which finally got released in an Entertainment Earth exclusive multi-pack during 2006 in The Saga Collection). Interestingly, the 12" scale Leektar from the Ewoks (Battle Of Endor) 12" Figure set was incorrectly named as Keoulkeech on the packaging (but this has been a notorious issue with Hasbro ever since the vintage line). Hasbro does their best, but sometimes characters get mixed up. Secondly, this is the first time we have seen a Wokling in the line, and what a cute Wokling she is! Actually, Nippet is about the most adorable "action figure" the basic line has ever seen. Rumors abounded that a Wokling was inevitably due for quite some time, but the initial reports intimated that the young Ewok would have come with a female Ewok (which we guess means an Ewok sans headdress). This didn't come to fruition however, but we sincerely hope a female Ewok is on tap for some future release in the basic line. After Hasbro attacks all the vintage Ewoks first, we would love to see a female Ewok thrown into the mix as well. And we hope that Hasbro has more Wokling surprises up their sleeves, as Nippet is a great Ewok accessory and will no doubt add distinction to you Ewok village display! Plus, there are many more baby Ewoks in the Ewok village. Nippet obviously needs some daycare playmates so we truly hope more are on the way. Hasbro excellently sculpted the basket (or Ewok basinet) she calls home and her face has been captured flawlessly from the puppet we saw in Episode VI.

Leektar is another great Ewok for the basic line as well. He is a retool of 2007's TAC Romba [& Graak] (30 43) figure. Enough changes have been made to the figure to make him nearly unrecognizable to the base figure from where he was altered and retooled. We do hope that Hasbro changes up the Ewok body design a bit. We fear that otherwise, Ewoks are in danger of looking too much the same as each other. But to be fair, they definitely made enough changes to Leektar. Leektar's headdress is very well sculpted and decorated and looks very authentic to the film (and also what they did for the 12" figure). He has more than enough articulation and Hasbro continually proves to us that they can knock the Ewok species out of the park and make some great fur balls for our collections, especially since the release of 2006’s TSC Chief Chirpa (SAGA 039) figure . And now that the basic Ewok body design has the perfect amount of articulation they will probably ever need, we can expect good Ewoks to come down the line to us from Hasbro. Additionally, Hasbro also designed the accessories so well-crafted and they look perfect when displayed in his hands. Simply put, Nippet is basically a miniature statue. She has no articulation, but fits in her basket very well and looks great sitting in it. We suppose she could be considered the "accessory," but we want to emphasize that her sculpt is excellent and we count her as another figure in our collections. The white markings on her body (especially the face) may look a bit too bold depending on your sample and it may have been better if Hasbro made them more muted and not so striking. We have seen dramatic variances on this detail from figure to figure. Again, this doesn't detract from her being an awesome addition to the basic line.

For years, fans and collectors both discounted the relevance of the Ewok species in the Star Wars saga. But every year, Hasbro gives us a few more of them and they sell through completely and we still want more. Whether there are “closet” Return Of The Jedi fans or not, we do know that after all these years of bad-mouthing Ewoks, they seem to be one of the best sellers in the basic figure line. We’re huge unabashed fans and collectors of all Ewoks and even bigger fans of Return Of The Jedi as well. We welcome new Ewoks every year and it appears that Hasbro will be obliging us and many other fans. If you notice, all the fan websites tend to eagerly post all Ewok action figure announcements with much energy and zeal when the new information becomes available or leaks out. This two-pack was one of these exciting releases and in fact was one of the most popular from The Legacy Collection wave 1. Leektar & Nippet was a great spin on an Ewok two-pack. Since we have been so used to getting two adult Ewoks, the Wokling was a very cool touch to this set. It is still an awesome thing to get never-before-made characters for the first time in the basic figure line. We think this is one of the most important things that we ensure the success of the line. The original eight vintage Ewoks are slowly but surely being updated in the modern line and with new announcements every year, this will soon be completed. We welcome any Ewok Hasbro decides to manufacture. Leektar & Nippet are only two characters in a very large species, but something tells us, they won't be alone for too much longer! In fact, we expect to receive at least two Ewoks per year for a very long time. We hope there is no end in site and we think it will be the wisest decision for Hasbro to make if they decide to release one, two or three Ewoks every year here on out!