Mace Windu (Geonosian Rescue) - SW [S - P1] - Basic (’02 #28)

It’s clear from the earliest waves that the Star Wars “Saga” action figure line that Hasbro focused on sculpts more than meaningful articulation. This approach is a sacrifice that many collectors aren’t willing to make. Although collectors didn’t reject all of the action figures released thus far, they offer a cold reception. To make matters worse, the action features, some more obtrusive than others, are focuses of the Collection 1 characters, much to the chagrin of the adult collecting population. Under no circumstances can we accept inferior action figures, so logic dictates Hasbro will need to produce another all-new version. This approach seems futile. Why not get it right from the start? Admittedly, Hasbro has crafted some of the most aesthetically pleasing sculpts, even if the poses are extremely scene-specific. But one action figure that succeeds only to fail quickly would be Mace Windu (Geonosian Rescue). We generally dislike the figure, but we would be remiss not to mention that most of its tooling is rather excellent. Sure, the figure has limited articulation, and one of the most annoying action features Hasbro could ever adulterate a figure with, but Mace Windu looks good…. from a certain point of view, perhaps. Or perhaps not.

The biggest stumbling block on Mace Windu (Geonosian Rescue) is the head sculpt. You may want to ask Hasbro, “What were you thinking?” when you look at it. Is this action figure angry, is it laughing at a joke, or does it have to poop? Any guesses seem to befit the misfit portrait. The correct answer is that Mace Windu is fighting Separatists in the Geonosis Arena during the opening skirmish during the Battle of Geonosis. It might be easier to think more that this particular version of Mace Windu should complement the Jango Fett (Final Battle) (’02 #31) figure to ease the pain it creates. They shipped Mace in the same wave, and Hasbro designed it perfectly to interact with each other. Your opinion may vary. We do not recall this specific expression of Mace anywhere the duration of Episode II, so we believe the expression on the action figure’s face is exaggerated and contrived. Without a good head sculpt, it’s hard to apply what emotion the character is feeling at that moment. In this case, Mace Windu (Geonosian Rescue) looks more like a buffoon more than a Jedi, so it’s hard to take seriously the fact that the character is fighting in a major battle in the Star Wars saga. We wished Hasbro would have thought twice about this approach before approving the final version.

Mace Windu (Geonosian Rescue) has the aforementioned annoying action feature. You press a button on the figure’s back, and the arms flail and flit away to imitate a swinging lightsaber action. Hasbro added this feature for the kids, and it ruins the aesthetics of the figure. There is a magnet in the figure’s hand for the silly “Force attract” feature. Hasbro designed the body very well. Unfortunately, there is limited articulation, but the costume, the drape, and the coloring are all on par with what we see in the film. For us, the best part about this figure is the included lightsaber accessory. It has a metal hilt (for the “Force attraction” effect) and a removable purple blade. We’re impressed with how much attention to detail Hasbro has given the metal hilt. It may be too chunky, but the multiple coloring and excellent design make it stand out incredibly well. It’s sad when the accessories are more interesting than the action figure, but that’s how we feel about Mace Windu (Geonosian Rescue). The Star Wars “Saga” line has some winners, but this action figure falls short in so many ways. If action features are discrete, then we can accept them, but if they’re this blatant, well, we’ll move along until something better comes our way.