The Good: Great sculpt and coloring, Good poseability, Good collectible value, Decent accessory
The Bad: Could use a little more articulation.
The Basics: The supporting alien from Return Of The Jedi, the Jabba's Sail Barge Tanus Spijek is an exceptional figure!
As Hasbro has gone through the last of the Star Wars supporting aliens in action figure form, there have been some that have been highly anticipated, like the recast of Squidhead, as the Power Of The Jedi Tessek (reviewed here!). Then there are obscure characters that one might be surprised were made at all, like Tanus Spijek.
If you are unsure which Star Wars character Tanus Spijek is, you are not alone. In fact, I only know who he was from a puzzle I had as a kid that had various aliens from Jabba's Palace on it! Tanus Spijek is one of many furry aliens seen servicing Jabba The Hutt's court in Return Of The Jedi (reviewed here!). The giant, furry creature is seen in the background on Jabba's Sail Barge as well and it is one of many aliens that fleshes out the full Star Wars universe.
The 4" Tanus Spijek figure is pretty impressive and could only be improved with the increased articulation the newer figures have. However, given that the character is so obscure it is tough to make the argument that it is worth it to make a new mold for this figure!
Basics
The Jabba's Sail Barge Tanus Spijek is a great sculpting of the obscure alien from Return Of The Jedi. Here, he is cast in all his shaggy glory with only his belt bags and fur. The figure stands an impressive 4 1/16" tall and he made to look solid, furry and somewhat menacing! The figure is made entirely of hard plastic, except the skunk-like tail that is made in a slightly flexible plastic.
This toy is an incredible sculpt, looking precisely like Tanus Spijek from the background of Jabba's Palace. What that means is that he has a tiny head and large eyes. Tanus Spijek also has clawed feet, four claws for nails on his hands and weird tusks in its mouth. The skunk alien is not wearing any costume.
As for the coloring details, the Jabba's Sail Barge Tanus Spijek looks great. Tanus Spijek is seen in Return Of The Jedi as a black furred creature. It has a white stripe down the back of the creature and brown for the nipple area white for the tusks. The shaggy creature is molded to look hairy and the sculpt is pretty incredible in that regard.
Accessories
The Tanus Spijek is realistically armed for a bounty hunter or scoundrel alien in Jabba's Palace. As such, Tanus Spijek is armed only with its large blaster rifle. The blaster rifle was created for Tanus Spijek and other Jabba's Palace aliens and, rather improbably, the gun looks a little small in its huge claws. As it stands, it is a 2 3/4" long black plastic blaster rifle which has a circular clip attached to the top of the weapon. It has great surface details including an extended, wider barrel which makes it look even more menacing as a firearm. It is cast entirely in black plastic and does not include any additional painted details.
The Original Trilogy Collection figures come with stands, including the Tanus Spijek. This stand is the standard 2 1/2" by 1 3/4" gunmetal colored plastic stand which was universal to most of the figures in the 2004 figure line. Tanus Spijek comes with two tabs and two slots so the stand may be attached to other stands in the assortment. The stand has a single peg to fit in either of the holes in the bottom of Tanus Spijek's feet. On the base, Tanus Spijek is appropriately solid.
Playability
The four inch toy line was designed for play and Tanus Spijek is most impressive in that regard. The figure is wonderfully articulated and has excellent balance when off his stand. Tanus Spijek has great articulation and the figure is designed look large and menacing and he does that quite well! As part of the Original Trilogy Collection, Tanus Spijek represents a significant step up in terms of figure articulation compared to what had come before. This Tanus Spijek figure easily becomes the ultimate Tanus Spijek in terms of sculpt with its ten points of articulation!
Tanus Spijek has joints at the groin socket, shoulders, elbows, wrists, neck, and waist. All of the joints are simple swivel joints and all work well. The tail has minor flexibility and looks appropriate as far as scale goes. The tail's flexibility prevents it from inhibiting any poses.
Collectibility
The Jabba's Sail Barge Tanus Spijek is part of the 2004 Original Trilogy Collection four-inch series, a series of Star Wars action figures that was not very common at all, but largely recast figures that had been previously released by Kenner. Hasbro sought to improve the old figures by having a greater attention to detail, coloring and accessory detail and proportion. Tanus Spijek was one of the few unique figures in the assortment and became highly coveted, quickly exploding in value as a result. Released as Original Trilogy Collection figure #10, this figure is a good idea for those creating an ultimate collection of supplemental characters. It is hard to imagine how this figure might be improved upon, save with more articulation.
Overview
The Jabba's Sail Barge Tanus Spijek is an incredible sculpt that has a cool accessory that it is articulated enough to hold in an interesting way. Because it is such a bulky figure, there is little sensibility in recasting for greater articulation. This well-balanced action figure is pretty much the best for the obscure character as it could be.
For other Star Wars Original Trilogy action figures, please check out my reviews of:
#006 Tatooine Transaction R1-G4
#09 Jabba's Sail Barge J'Quille
Deluxe Hoth Attack Wampa with Hoth Cave
9.5/10
For other toy reviews, please check out my index page!
© 2011 W.L. Swarts. May not be reprinted without permission.
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