Dannik Jerriko (Cantina Encounter) - OTC - Basic (’05 #8)

Dannik Jerriko is a very dangerous Anzati. When he attacks a victim, he uncoils small, trunk-like organs (called proboscises) hidden in his cheeks, inserts them into the victim’s nose and ingests the person’s blood and brain matter. Even the nastiest creatures in the cantina stay away from Jerriko.

Hasbro could never go wrong by including a few cantina patrons in the basic figure lineup each year. What is it about this hive of scum and villainy that just makes collectors drool at the thought of getting each and every one of them permanently cast in plastic? The zeal for them seems to have no end in sight. If you’re a Star Wars fans, you know the importance of aliens species and just how significant they are to Star Wars lore. Throughout the years, characters without even a name have been given highly developed backgrounds in books and comics as part of the rich Expanded Universe. From that we have adopted their EU name as their modern name, much to the chagrin of Original Trilogy purists. But it goes without saying that we’ll probably never tire of them until Hasbro gives us one of everyone in definitive status. (We’re a bit far off from reaching that goal, but it can theoretically happen one day.) The 2005 [P]OTC figures are in general excellent additions to the basic figure line. They have enhanced articulation (but still not perfect), a great number of accurate accessories and sculpts that show just how far Hasbro has indeed come for basic figures.

Dannik Jerriko (Cantina Encounter) is another excellent action figure from The [Post] Original Trilogy Collection. He was scheduled timely enough to make it to the 2004 collection, but at least he comes packaged in a line look of silver and black that mimics the card backs of the vintage Kenner era. He isn’t perfect and you probably will either love or despise the Expanded Universe additive that Hasbro decided to include with him. The bumpy-faced cantina patron comes with two distinctly shaped proboscises that plug into two holes carved into his face. (There is also a third hole in the corner of his mouth to accept the hookah pipe – more on that in a moment.) Admittedly, it makes the character look creepier than ever, but the holes in his face are aesthetically displeasing should you decide to remove them. This is the type of Star Wars character that beckons comings with two separate portraits: one with proboscises permanently attached and one without holes in the face and instead screen accurate. Still, we appreciate the efforts made here. Dannik Jerriko (Cantina Patron) does look really good either way. It’s just that we would have preferred not seeing holes in his face in his natural state.

He also comes with a hookah pipe that actually attaches to a special holster on his right side. The accessory and holster feature are excellently sculpted and stay in place without any issue at all. We’re very impressed with how well it turned out. At the end of the cord is a pipe which fits like a glove into a smaller sculpted hole in the corner of his mouth. When you have all three detachable accessories in place Dannik Jerriko is relatively perfect. His articulation is sadly a bit lacking. His swivel shoulders and elbows aren’t completely ideal. In fact, it’s very difficult to have him hold the end of his pipe at his mouth and still have the base portion rest in his holster because the arms cannot get close enough to the body to manage it all. His paint job on the other hand is excellent. He has a dirty wash over his face and his head sculpt is just gorgeous. The outfit looks ripped right out of Episode IV and aside from a slightly wonky stance, we really love this figure with all of our hearts. All three cantina patrons from this wave are very well done. They all have “Cantina Encounter” as their subtitle. We imagine they have multiple cantina encounters through the course of any week.