The Good: Great coloring details, Good accessories, Good balance
The Bad: Poor articulation.
The Basics: Menacing in appearance and well-accessorized, 4-LOM makes a welcome addition to the Power Of The Force line and any Star Wars fan's collection!
Sometimes, I absolutely love merchandising. Indeed, when I look over my collections of trading cards and action figures, I am often filled with joy. After all, there is something to be said for being able to surround oneself with the trappings of their favorite books, television shows and movies. Arguably one of the most merchandised franchises is the Star Wars film franchise, which has several big licenses. Back in the 1990s, to revitalize interest in the franchise, Kenner began remaking Star Wars figures under the Power Of The Force line and the impressive aspect of the line was just how many figures got treatment. In fact, in revitalizing the line, Kenner made many characters as both 4" figures and 12" dolls. While the principle characters make for obvious choices for either (or both) treatments, secondary characters make less sense for the dual toy treatment. And yet, some of the obscure characters made it. One of them was 4-LOM.
4-LOM is one of the bounty hunters from "The Empire Strikes Back." It is a droid seen briefly on the Star Destroyer in the bounty hunter scene in The Empire Strikes Back (reviewed here!). Later media would create a whole backstory for 4-L0M, but basically it is a droid bounty hunter who stood while Darth Vader lectured the bounty hunters on not disintegrating Han Solo. 4-LOM, rather impressively enough, arrived as part of the Power Of The Force line and was also made into a 12" doll.
The 4" 4-L0M figure is rather cool and if it has been improved upon by the subsequent Hasbro 4-L0M in the bounty hunter multipack, I will not fail to endorse this one. Regardless of possible improvements (I am still awaiting my multipack to review), this one is not a bad toy and is worthy of one's time, attention and money.
Basics
4-L0M is a droid (robot) bounty hunter seen in the bounty hunter scene in the middle of The Empire Strikes Back. The figure stands 3 3/4" tall to the top of his insect-eyed head. 4-L0M is an armored droid unadorned with any clothing, looking like a darker version of C-3P0 with an insect head. This badass robot is gunmetal colored with rust accents all over. The figure is made entirely of hard plastic.
This toy is a decent sculpt, looking precisely like the bounty hunter. 4-L0M is fairly impressive in his coloring detail, as far as tones and shading go. The figure looks just like the briefly-seen bounty hunter, which is pretty incredible as this figure bears the look of a droid that has seen some action and is worn out. Still, Kenner got right coloring details like 4-LOM's abdomen which is an unmarred silver-gray.
Accessories
4-L0M, efficient bounty hunter that it is, comes with only two accessories. That's all this droid needs in get its quarry. The most important, of course, is 4-L0M's blaster rifle. The 2 1/8" black firearm has one long barrel and just enough of a hand grip to allow 4-LOM to hold it. The droid is able to support itself by holding the blaster rifle on the barrel or it can hold the trigger handle and look like it is ready to shoot something at quite a distance. This weapon fits easily in either of 4-L0M's hands, but given how long it is, it is more likely to tip the figure over if it is aimed outward. The gun is light on surface details and absent any coloring details.
Also devoid of coloring details is 4-LOM's blaster pistol. This gun is an inch and a half long and unique to 4-LOM. The droid's blaster has an open stock, which allows the robot to hold it with two hands, though the figure is not all that articulate. This is a wicked looking gun with wonderful molded details, even if we never see a gun like it in the film.
Playability
The four inch toy line was designed for play and 4-L0M is a little better than fair in that regard. The figure is poorly articulated, though it has great balance. Flatfooted, 4-L0M is well-balanced and manages to stay up even on surfaces that wobble. Outside that, 4-L0M lacks significant articulation to make it interesting. In addition to low articulation, 4-L0M is barely poseable. It comes with only six points of articulation, all of which are simple swivel joints. He has joints at the groin socket, shoulders, neck, and waist. The elbows do not extend, so all arm posing is straight-armed.
Fortunately, the legs and arms can be spread without the figure tipping over. This is a very stable figure, and he has the additional benefit of holes in the soles of his feet that may be stuck in pegs on various playsets. With those, he may be posed better.
Collectibility
4-L0M is part of the Power Of The Force four-inch series, a series of Star Wars action figures that was incredibly common. 4-L0M was overproduced, appearing on at least two different cards as an identical sculpt. The simple Power Of The Force figure was later improved with a Freeze Frame. The figure without the Freeze Frame slide is a poor investment and it may often be found inexpensively and might well be better for fans looking to play than make money eventually off it.
Overview
Still, it is hard not to like this simple and deadly droid. Kenner got the coloring details on the face and body right, making this a bounty hunter every fan of the bounty hunter figures will want to collect!
For other Star Wars figures in the "Power Of The Force" line from The Empire Strikes Back, please check out my reviews of:
Hoth Han Solo
Dengar
Deluxe Hoth Rebel Soldier
Mynock Hunt 3-pack
Deluxe Probe Droid
R2-D2
Deluxe Boba Fett
7.5/10
For other toy reviews, please be sure to visit my index page by clicking here!
© 2011, 2009 W.L. Swarts. May not be reprinted without permission.
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