Sand People - TSC - Vintage

Celebrate the legendary Star Wars films that changed the universe forever, with The Saga Collection. This collection brings to life the incredible story of good versus evil that captured our imagination and took us to a galaxy far, far away. The finest re-creations of the iconic Star Wars heroes and villains are back with incredible detail and premium features to commemorate each epic tale in the Star Wars saga. And, as a tribute to the dedication of Star Wars fans everywhere, we are re-releasing elements of the original packaging that harken back to the creation of Star Wars action figures, which began over 25 years ago with the Original Trilogy. May the Force be with you!

The Sand People (more commonly known as Tusken Raiders) are one species that we have seen multiple times throughout the basic figure line. Hasbro produced some great moments and then not-so-great moments for collectors. Despite the rollercoaster ride, fans and collectors kept clamoring for more, because we knew each successive release would be better than the previous. 2006’s “Vintage” The Saga Collection sub-line may have been too soon for Hasbro to delve into this character again. They did significant work and produced a version of the character, which is far superior to all the other past efforts. However, the Sand People action figure isn’t perfect, and it’s high time we got a perfected one. When it came time to schedule what characters would make the “cut” for the returning “vintage-styled” sub-line for 2006, Hasbro determined that the Sand People would be one of the limited five courses served. We’re on the fence if that was a wise choice or not. Their sabbatical year gave them some time to think of the most-needed cast of characters for definitive status. And the Sand People ultimately made the final cut. The Sand People is unique for a couple of reasons, but it’s one of the few “vintage-styled” figures to get the most substantial use of premium soft-goods and heavily rely on them for screen authenticity. This decision thrilled many and disappointed others. We’re impressed with the success of the included soft-goods materials. But the figure lacks in other ways which take away from the accomplishments they made with the soft-goods. To be upfront with you, Hasbro needs to take another stab at this character because this one doesn’t meet our standards. They can produce a significantly better action figure of the Tusken Raider characters by changing one articulation area.

It’s not that we don’t like how this Sand People action figure turned out. We do. It has merit. But in the sea of phenomenally-sculpted figures that possess mind-blowing on-screen accuracy, collectors may want to throw this one back until something more significant and better comes our way. There are two specific issues we take exception to with the 2006 VTSC Sand People action figure. First, the figure’s head is too small (or too round – we can’t decide either way or both). The pea-sized portrait became an ongoing issue for Hasbro as far back as 1995. But during the 2002-2004 Star Wars “Saga” era, the Tusken Raider action figures remain the most-accurate and proportionate of all of them. Of course, nothing will match the charm of 1978's SW Sand People figure. The head mostly matches the body frame, and the sculpting looks flawless, but it did have issues because the hard plastic robes made posing and movement nearly impossible. Hasbro did their best to remedy the head size issue by giving the 2006 VTSC release soft-goods from neck to boots. But to accomplish this, Hasbro also sacrificed a few unfortunate things. There are other issues. The Sand People figure also comes with swivel-cut elbow joints. We despise these joints, and we hope that Hasbro never utilizes them again. It’s difficult to achieve specific poses due to how the joints affect the arms, and you’re limited with how many ways you can situate them. There is no doubt that Hasbro put a massive amount of time, energy, and effort into this action figure, so why did they take the wrong route for its elbow joints and head size? As a part of the premium vintage-styled assortment, Hasbro should expend all of their tooling budgets on the figures in this lineup. In other words, the extra pennies should have been “wasted” on the Sand People figure.

Despite the figure’s two significant issues, Sand People does have its moment, seven if it’s not many of them. We adore the beautiful tan crepe soft-goods fabric they’ve woven for the action figure. They are free of dirt and grime, but they have a fantastic tattered look to them that is quite stunning. After posing the figure, you’ll find threads “everywhere” as they pull out from the main garb. The top portion of the soft-goods functions like a cloak and is removable, and the Sand People action figure looks splendid with or without it removed. For the modern vintage-styled update, Hasbro threw in an extra weapon, the long rifle, and the signature gaderffi stick. For the last few years, our opinion remained steadfast that gaderffi sticks seem too small for the figures. However, there are dissenting opinions about that detail. Also, we should note that Hasbro cast the gaderffi stick from flimsy plastic, so it doesn’t hold its intended shape that well. Interestingly, the rifle is much sturdier, but it too appears to be bending a bit right out of the packaging. The final wash on the figure is incredible, and it looks nomadic as this species is. Unlike the soft-goods, all of the “dirt” is on the molded parts of the figure, not the soft-goods. We feel that Hasbro did a beautiful job here. While our opinions may come across as a mixed bag, we genuinely do like aspects of this action figure. We’re just frustrated by Hasbro’s shortcuts. Specifically, the swivel elbows are no longer an acceptable medium for Star Wars figures, and that’s the root of our frustration. Regardless, Sand People is a pleasant update to the many satisfactory previous versions we have received throughout the years. We think this tooling will need a few more tweaks and another chance at enhancement before we say it’s knocked out of the park. But for now, it will certainly do!