Aayla Secura (Jedi Knight) - SW [S - P2] - Basic (’03 #11)

Ten years after the fight to save Naboo from invasion, the galaxy is on the brink of civil war. Under the leadership of a renegade Jedi, thousands of solar systems threaten to secede from the Galactic Republic. A courageous Jedi Knight, his impulsive and headstrong apprentice, and a queen-turned-senator are drawn into the heart of the conflict... and the beginning of war.

An agile and adept Jedi Knight, Aayla Secura wields her blue lightsaber with graceful precision and sensuous form. Many adversaries are lured by the sultry Twi'lek's notable style, but few are a match for her empathic reponses and shrewd parry. Although often more impetuous than her fellow Jedi, Aayla never relinquishes to anger or agression – an indispensable Jedi trait during the galaxy's current state of turmoil.

When it comes to the Battle of Geonosis, Hasbro probably feels sensory overload when trying to decide which Jedi to make into action figure form for Star Wars collectors. Obviously there are clearly some first-choice candidates like Aayla Secura, but imagine what they have to decide for the lesser known. The saving grace of Star Wars Episode II: Attack Of The Clones is undoubtedly the Battle of Geonosis. Those scenes introduced something already familiar to fans (the Jedi) in a completely new and illuminating light. In Episode I, we saw plenty of Jedi, but we saw them in a reserved Jedi Council format. They didn’t do any kind of battling and they certainly didn’t brandish and wield their lightsabers. All of that changed however (significantly) with Episode II. In fact, not only did we see them I action, but we also saw many alien species of Jedi (that we swore were bad guys up to that point) that were now good Jedi and fighting alongside the heroes. It took away some of the ethnocentricity we unconsciously developed or had over the years for alien species and allowed us to see that they too could fight for good. That is a long way of saying that Hasbro has their hands full producing the 200 Jedi that fought during the opening battle of the Clone Wars. Thankfully these action figures are coming steadily into the basic figure line. And it seems that if the latest is better than the previous. This is always a great sign.

As you know, the Star Wars “Saga” line brought forth a new approach to how action figures were made. Accuracy in the design of the sculpt took precedence over loads of articulation. For a collector this can be bittersweet. Collectors want the best of both worlds and their desire is warranted. And from certain point of views the Star Wars “Saga” line brought just that: a good balance of realism and healthy doses of articulation. We feel that best describes Aayla Secura (Jedi Knight). She has a dynamic sculpt and is posed in action. Her posture is believable and accessories included with her tie everything together. But she also has a decent amount of articulation to help make an excellent looking action figure. The head sculpt in particular is done very well. Her lekku are flowing behind her a bit and her portrait looks like the onscreen character very much. (It could use a little more work.) Hasbro matched the color of her bright blue skin almost perfectly and her costuming couldn’t have been approach in a better way. Aayla Secura’s sexy midriff is showing and her legs are in a widened position ready for the next member of the Separatist Droid Army to give her some grief. Keep in mind that Aayla Secura (Jedi Knight) isn’t super-articulated. But the pose she has been given look phenomenal and is well suited for this action figure. In fact, Aayla looks quite perfect in our eyes. This action figure certainly turned out better than expected.

Besides the awesome sculpts in the Star Wars "Saga" line, some of the figures' best attributes are the accessories. Aayla Secura (Jedi Knight) is really no exception. Hasbro created many environmental display stands for so quite a few action figures in this collection. But Aayla Secura’s is one of the nicest we have seen in the entire line. Her base has been sculpted in the shape of a small hill and with her widespread stance, she looks fantastic when posed on top of it. What’s more, she comes with a magnet molded into her left hand which “Force attracts” the metal lightsaber hilt for extra play value. (She can also firmly hold the lightsaber hilt in her right hand too.) We understand the metal lightsaber hilts have their own issues. (The blade attachments break off very easily, but the metal hilts look awesome.) Aayla Secura (Jedi Knight) also comes with a Force effect accessory that just adds extra value to the figure as well. Again, this action figure looks great from head to toe and even better when used as a standalone display piece. As the Star Wars “Saga” went through another line look change into the third phase of its evolution (Aayla Secura was released during the second phase), she also received a name change. You’ll find her in third phase packaging as “Aayla Secure (Battle Of Geonosis)” with the same sequence number. She was worthy as of getting carried forward into the new line look because Hasbro did a great job on her. Whatever your decision, there is no denying just how nice this figure is.