Lando Calrissian In Smuggler Outfit - TAC - Basic (30 39)

Lando is once again at the helm of the Millennium Falcon, but it is a bitter reunion: he is fleeing Bespin after thwarting Darth Vader from capturing Luke Skywalker. Lando and Chewie blast into space on a desperate mission to rescue Han from his carbonite prison.

The closing sequence of The Empire Strikes Back was good for a whole bunch of last minute outfit changes for our Rebel heroes. Luke Skywalker was in his medical robe, Leia was in her original outfit from the first film with a new hairdo and Lando Calirissian donned Han Solo’s threads. After making the splendid 2004 VOTC Lando Calrissian, Hasbro knew that they just had to find a way to use it again. They didn’t waste much time and created Lando Calrissian in Smuggler Outfit for the 30 (77-07) line. The figure is much better than you may think. And since we really don’t know what he is wearing below the belt in the film, we have to chalk up what Hasbro did for the action figure as either an educated guess or privilege to some rare reference materials at Lucasfilm, Ltd. Lando Calrissian utilizes the arms and legs from the 2004 figure and the rest of him is all-new. He looks rather dapper in clothing that was first made famous by Han Solo and it is extremely cool that Hasbro has immortalized forever an outfit that was only seen in the tail end of Episode V. But that’s what the Star Wars collecting hobby is all about: figures like this. Sure we love the heroes and the villains, but we also thrive on the obscure. And this is one figure we thought would never see the light of day. But we are thrilled it did.

The portrait is new and there is something you should take note of when trying to find one for your collection. Sometimes Hasbro Star Wars figures have terrible paint jobs in the eyes. Every now and again the figure will appear to be looking up or the whites of the eyes overtake the pupils and irises. We roughly estimate just from our own toy travels that 75% of the Lando Calrissian in Smuggler Outfit action figures have extremely poor paint jobs in the eyes and have that bizarre “looking up” result. If you check the various toy guides or photo archives around the web, you will see that this was a chronic problem. We were patient and found one that we think looks pretty good. (Check out our photo gallery to see what we mean.) Believe it or not, how well the eyes were painted on this figure definitely makes or breaks it. We wonder what goes awry at the factory level. While there may be a language barrier of some sorts between Hasbro and their overseas staff, basic human form and all of its features should technically be universal. Can’t the factory workers fix something as simple as “eyes” without Hasbro’s intervention? Let’s move along because we’ve ranted too long about this already. Lando Calrissian also has a very nicely tooled holster which can house his weapon. It hangs perfectly on his body and completes the outfit nicely. Due to his swivel elbow joints, getting his arms in various natural looking poses is a bit of a challenge, but is you’re looking just to have them resting at his sides, we think they have ample articulation to execute this.

Probably the best part of this Lando Calrissian figure is the legs. While his doesn’t have ball-jointed hips, he is able to stand with his legs outstretched or in other action poses. We find this particularly refreshing and it certainly makes up for his swivel elbows. The extra articulation in the ankles also makes this figure quite a pleasure and we think overall it should make most collectors very happy. From the buttoned-up shirt to the Han Solo-esque vest, Lando Calrissian In Smuggler Outfit is a very exciting figure to have in your collection. Lando Calrissian is a Star Wars character that didn’t have many outfit or uniform changes in the film he appeared, so it is awesome that Hasbro made sure that we would get every one now. And what anniversary collection would be complete without a Lando Calrissian action figure? Lando Calrissian is indeed a fan favorite and now that we have some pretty awesome renderings of his in action figure form, we hope that Hasbro will revisit some of the most popular versions including his skiff guard disguise and general’s gear. We think that this Lando Calrissian action figure was a nice complement to the rest of the figures in The Empire Strikes Back wave in the 30 (77-07) line. And Lando is a figure that can not only check off a candidate on your wish lists, but can also offer an alternative to who pilots your Millennium Falcon. It is indeed an awesome time to be a Star Wars collector.