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'06 | #008 Major Bren Derlin - Battle of Hoth (Reviewed 01-22-2006) 

Includes:
• Blaster Pistol

Click thumbnail for large image Spice: It seems the powers that be are not dead from the neck up. It seems like they are starting to get the hint new is better. There is nothing a collector wants more than to get something he or she does not already have. There is nothing better to keep the interest alive in the hobby more than bringing some of these background characters to life. While we only saw Bren Derlin make one decision in the Empire Strikes Back, the choice to close the blast doors and the sad growl of Chewbacca shortly afterwards is one of the most memorable scenes in the film for me.  As in the entire film where you keep getting this gnawing feeling something really bad is going to happen to the good guys!

Click thumbnail for large image Okay this is really putting it in the proverbial piece pipe but they really stuck it to us as far as recycled goods go. While he looks much like General Rieekan in the arms and torso, there is something about the face that screams Hoth Luke Skywalker with a bad moustache. It just seems like the head is just a little bit out of scale with the rest of the body. While the gun holster was implemented, I'm pretty sure it's simply a small change on the old body.

Click thumbnail for large image There are many drawbacks to the design that was put into this figure. The arms pop off, as do the heads and once again the rolling elbows create a product that seems to almost fall apart without a whole lot of effort involved. If the small rubber band is removed from the hand, the blaster doesn't fit as snug as you would think it should. I do like a Major with the ability to have a pointy index finger but I still think the extra mile needs to be taken and articulation should be in the knees and feet, just because!

Spice - It's better than some of the other choices that have come in the Saga collection. If there are to be any sort of highlights at all to these lines, it will have to be the "new" characters which we are finally seeing on card for the first time. Seeing as it's not a release from a little under two years ago, I'll give it a thumbs up for adding to all of our Hoth dioramas!

(Figure '06 | #008, Asst. No. 85928, Item No. 85770, Backing Card P/N 6495800800, Window Insert P/N 6518260000) 

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