Last week, we checked out the mini-bust for one Star Wars bounty hunter, Zuckuss. We have ourselves a theme going here, with another review of a Star Wars bounty hunter this week. This time it’s Bossk, and it’s his new Vintage Original Trilogy Collection (VOTC) version just hitting stores.

The first series of VOTC figures was part of the 2006 Galactic Hunt. If you bought the full series, you could send in for a George Lucas figure. Big whoop. If you pick up this second series, you get a much cooler mail away. Buy all six figures (or any combination of six figures), place the gold stickers inside each package on the redemption form, and send it in. Hasbro will send you back a set of the six metal coins for these VOTC figures, plus a seventh Toy Fair exclusive coin, all in a nifty box! I’m tempted to pick up the other five figures just to snag the coin set, which is the perfect example of an excellent mail away offer.

You can find these guys at regular retailers right now for a whopping $12 each. Target is where I picked mine up, but you can snag them online as well if need be.

VOTC Bossk

Packaging – ****
If you love vintage figures, you’re going to love this packaging. There’s an outer clamshell designed to keep the interior vintage style package safe and sound. This outer clamshell is heat sealed unfortunately, which means you’ll have to cut it open and not be able to reuse it.

Inside is a terrific vintage style bubble/cardback. Anyone who has fond memories of picking the original line up off the pegs will enjoy the flashback these provide.

Inside the package is the small gold sticker and redemption certificate, both inside a small plastic bag and taped to the clamshell. Remember to pull these out before you toss the packaging.

Sculpting – ****
On occasion, I hear from collectors that complain that I’m too hard on sixth scale figures, busts and statues for the sculpt. That it’s difficult to capture detail and appearance at that small of a scale. But if that’s true, how is it possible for Hasbro to manage to do this amazing of a sculpt at this tiny scale? This figure is just under 4″ tall, yet has excellent skin texture and scaling.

The figure has several outfit pieces that are separate pieces and added later. The suit straps are done in a softer material, and hang fairly well on his body. His hands are sculpted to hold the gun, and he stands great on his own as well.

All the VOTC figures have been above average, but Bossk is clearly one of the nicest of the series. For fans of this particular bounty hunter, he’s the perfect version.

Paint – ***1/2
The paint isn’t *quite* as strong as the sculpt, but it’s still strong. There’s a nice wash on some of the outfit, along with a good use of paint to bring out the details in the skin and face.

The teeth aren’t quite perfect, and there’s a little bit of slop. But considering how small the scale is, it’s still a tremendously impressive job.

Articulation – ****
This is the most impressive set of joints in this scale I’ve seen, using what they’ve learned with some previous figures and engineering all the joints to work extremely well.

There’s a ball jointed neck that tilts and turns extremely well. There’s ball jointed shoulders, cut forearms, and the pin/socket elbows that allow both forward and backward motion along with turning 360 degrees.

The knees work the same way, with a very good range of movement. The ankles are pin joints, and there’s a great ball joint at the chest. Finally, he has the usual T hips, but the uniform straps would reduce the usefulness of any sort of ball joint here.

That’s some truly impressive articulation, and the fact that all the joints work extremely well is icing on the joint cake.

Accessories – ***
Bossk comes with one accessory, his blaster. It fits nicely in his sculpted hands, and he can hold it in one or both. The strap that holds it around his shoulders is formed into a rather large loop, and it’s somewhat stiff plastic so that it doesn’t easily conform to his body. It looks much better in his hands, and that’s the way most folks will display him.

Fun Factor – ****
This figure practically defines fun. Excellent sculpt and paint, with terrific articulation, all in a sturdy package that won’t break easily under normal play. What could make it better? This guy is an alien! He practically screams “play with me”.

Value – *1/2
Unfortunately, the one category that hurts this figure is Value. At $12, he’s definitely overpriced. Eight bucks I can see, and even ten wouldn’t be terrible, but at twelve it might be hard to convince folks to pick him up, especially after most of the first wave ended up on clearance.

Things to Watch Out For:
Nothing with the figure, but don’t forget to snag the small gold sticker and redemption certificate from inside the bubble before you toss out the packaging.

Overall – ***1/2
This was *almost* a four star figure. Had the price been more in line with the regular line, he would have easily gotten four stars. With the amazing sculpt and great paint and articulation, this is easily the finest version of Bossk we’ve ever gotten, and one of the nicest figures in the whole line up.

But at $12, you really are paying a huge premium. Even at eight bucks, I’d give this guy the full score, but at this high of a price tag there’s no way I can do it and still sleep at night. Okay, I’d still sleep just fine, but you get the idea.

Where to Buy –
You can find these guys at Target stores, but for a terrific online option for all things Star Wars, check out Andrew’s Toyz.

Related Links –
The latest reviews of the smaller figures I’ve done include the 30th Anniversary Galactic Marine, Lava Miner, concept Stormtrooper, and Airborne Trooper; Hem Dazon; Foul Moudama; and the Firespeeder Pilot.

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