Val (Mimban) - SW [S] - Basic

Love or hate Solo: A Star Wars Story, Val was one of the greatest female leads Disney Star Wars has seen to date. Her role wasn’t as developed as we’d hoped, but her short time on screen proved to be fruitful, and she sacrificed her life for the greater good, something you rarely see in modern films these days. The stunningly beautiful Thandie Newton portrayed Val perfectly in the film. And the short actress walked around like she was ten stories tall with her swagger, attitude, and overall sexiness. She was perfectly paired with Tobias Beckett, and they worked together as a team until that was cut short during their heist on Vandor-1 as they battled both the Imperial Range Troopers and Enfys Nest and her team of pirates while Beckett’s team attempted to steal coaxium from the Imperial conveyex. The scene was intense and action-packed, but ultimately Val paid the price and forever changed the rogue team for the worse. Severely delayed and under-articulated, Val (Mimban) finally enters the Star Wars [Solo] line unacceptably tardy. The figure is far from perfect. But most of the important details are captured. She also speaks thanks to Force Link 2.0 technology, although that whole pack-in premium is wearing thin with most collectors at this point. Like most Force Link 2.0 action figures, Val (Mimban) has minimal articulation, a stunning sculpt and a controversial paint job. Let’s take a close look at her.

Val (Mimban) comes with seven points of articulation. They include a ball-socket head, two swivel shoulders, two swivel gloves, and two swivel hips. If there is an action figure that needs a ton more of articulation than this, it’s unequivocally Val (Mimban). She was a feisty female lead in Solo: A Star Wars Story, and Hasbro should have reserved her for The Vintage Collection so she’d receive the articulation treatment she deserves. The Black Series [Phase III] 6” fans got a FANTASTIC version of her as Val (Vandor-1) (71), now it’s time for The Vintage Collection collectors to reap the same benefits. By the way, this isn’t Val (Mimban). Hasbro got the name incorrectly here. The correct name (with subtitle) for her is Val (Vandor-1). At least Hasbro got this designation correctly in The Black Series [Phase III] 6” line. In the scenes on Vandor-1, Val is wearing a close-fitted black outfit strewn with colorful details like red wiring and a faux fur collar. She’s a stunning woman with fine features, and Hasbro has etched this into the 3.75” version wonderfully. Her hair, her facial features, and her body shape are just some of the details perfectly captured in this action figure. Sadly, also like most Force Link 2.0 action figures, Val (Mimban) has a controversial paint job. It looks great in most areas on the action figure, but it needs a lot more work in the face, especially her eyes. Will Hasbro implement “photorealistic” technology in the 5POA range too?

Val (Mimban)’s eyes are disconcerting. She looks like a deer in headlights. While we’re quick to criticize how Hasbro painted them, we also have to concede that we do see improvements on this figure when compared to those from the past. We’d give Hasbro a “good try” grade but at the same time would hope that they can improve these processes further in the future. Other than how her face looks and her sore lack of articulation, we believe that most collectors will be satisfied with how Val (Mimban) turned out in the Star Wars [Solo] basic figure line. The 5POA figures will have to function like statues in our dioramas. We can’t place them into any meaningful action poses. Still, they look very much like the onscreen characters, so that should be in and of itself a strong selling point for collectors (and not kids). Val (Mimban) comes with a heavy blaster rifle. It fits into both of her hands very well. The rifle is nicely detailed too. We’re impressed with how much work Hasbro puts into the weapons of the figures that make up the 5POA lineup. Val (Mimban) is better than your average action figure. But she still needs some work before we think we can give Hasbro a full pass. While the 5POA figures will never rank as purely definitive by Star Wars collectors, the reality is that the format will be the only way we’ll see most of these characters. Yes, we know that’s a sad sentiment. But it is what it is.