Plo Koon is a Jedi Master whose homeworld is Dorin, where the atmosphere is mostly helium and another gas unique to the planet. He wears protective goggles and a face-concealing antiox mask whenever he is in oxygen-rich environments.
Plo Koon has had
his fair share of time in the spotlight as a Star Wars basic figure.
Debuting in the Power Of The Jedi line in 2000, it still holds
up pretty well today. In fact, that sculpt was most recently used for
2005's ROTS Plo Koon (III 66) figure, the "Holographic Transmission" version. The 2002 Star Wars Plo Koon had a great
and exciting action pose but fell extremely short in the area of acceptable
articulation (by today’s standards). The 2005 ROTS Plo Koon (III 16) figure
was a significant upgrade and has basically held the title for the definitive
Plo Koon action figure until now. (It was also subsequently used for
the 2008 TAC Plo Koon/R4-F5 (1 of 6) Droid Factory set as well as multiple Saga Legends releases.)
The Legacy Collection Plo Koon has good and bad news and we
will start with the bad news first. We don't like the removable mask.
Sorry for those of you out there that may have wanted this and waited
a long time for it. We feel that it doesn’t deliver as Hasbro may
have intended it to and it is more of a nuisance than a cool accessory.
For starters, it doesn't stay on very well and when you do get it to
stick in place, it looks bulky and awkward (only to fall or get bumped
out again which causes much frustration). Maybe the hole where it attaches
on our sample wasn’t cut right, but we think this may be the trend
unfortunately. Perhaps if it plugged in more tightly and closer to the
head we may be inclined to be a bit more forgiving of it, but we don't
think it turned out like we (or Hasbro) had hoped. Don't misinterpret
our complaint here because Plo Koon is a beautifully sculpted action
figure and so is the removable breathing mask/goggles, but its utilization
is lacking (a lot). The good news is that the new Plo Koon figure is
super-articulated and all the parts that you wanted to see enhanced have
indeed seen incredible updates. We were dying to know just how much of
the new Plo Koon may have been originated from the 2005 ROTS Plo Koon (III 16) figure.
And while we are unable to call the 2009 Plo Koon an all-new figure,
we are happy to report that only the upper body/chest and hands have
been reused from the ROTS III 16/DroidFactory/Saga Legends figure. This
is wonderful news, because we popped off the head and hands (of the new
Plo Koon) and replaced them with the ROTS Plo Koon (III 16) parts and we have to
say it alleviates the issue of the mask/goggles popping off while at
the same time making the figure look better in many aspects. We think
this figure could have been perfected by coming with a second portrait
that didn’t have the removable mask. Despite this little issue,
the new Plo Koon is exceptional and he is right on time for an update.
Plo Koon really does
get better and better the longer you play with him. He has wonderful
soft-goods and the hard plastic skirt has been removed in its entirety.
This allows for optimum mobility and effortless posing. It is our desire
to see plastic skirts be ultimately eliminated on all future action figures
(especially the Jedi) because it does inhibit what they can do as an
action figure. Not only does he have soft-goods below his belt, the fabric
has been cut perfectly and the drape is gorgeous. It is not stiff and
falls with clean lines and the silhouette of the figure is stunning.
The flesh parts have been cast in a much more human tone than the previous
versions of Plo Koon (like what we see in the Droid Factory/Saga Legends packages). We think the true color lies somewhere in the middle because
the new version is too light and the Saga Legends version is clearly
too dark. His outfit matches throughout his body (chest to arms, etc.)
and his dark brown pants enhance his reddish upper threads very nicely.
Probably the next best enhancement to Plo Koon are his legs. Swivel jointed
at the hips but ball-jointed at the knees and ankles, his legs have been
crafted with such attention to detail, we once again are amazed by how
much it looks like what we saw in Episode III (or actually production
skills). Cast in a lighter brown than the rest of his costume, the boots
are probably the best sculpted detail on this figure. That is saying
a lot for a part of the costume than can go pretty much unnoticed, especially
in the films. Plo Koon comes with the removable mask, a lit lightsaber
and the “concept art” double-bladed lightsaber gauntlet.
He displays very nicely and can hold them all at the same time without
any issues. Plo Koon’s right hand has been designed flawlessly
with two fingers bent inward so that the lightsaber hilt actually snaps
in place between these two fingers. In other words, that lightsaber is
going nowhere unless you pry it out of his hands yourself. (We love when
designs are this great!) This of course is not new (since the original
hands have been reused) and you are most likely familiar with this awesome
design already. Although the concept art shows that the gauntlet had
green blades, Hasbro opted to be a little more faithful to The Clone
Wars series (we assume) and cast them in blue. It could be said
that this Plo Koon is a realistic version of The Clone Wars Plo
Koon (No. 14) if you display him with this gauntlet. (We won’t, but the
possibility certainly exists.)
The Legacy Collection Plo
Koon is a testament that good action figures can become great once they
are given the full articulated treatment they deserve. Of course the
older Plo Koon figures weren’t terrible but they certainly age
when we see something of this magnitude enter our collections. Plo Koon
is pretty much everything you want your definitive Plo Koon action figure
to be. And you may even like the removable mask. We think it is aesthetically
displeasing to our eyes but you may see it in another light. But no matter
your opinion on this little detail, Plo Koon delivers as a stunning product
to the action figure line and we believe it will be the basis for all
future Plo Koon action figures. (We hope so at least.) And how about
a “Concept Art Plo Koon” action figure to go long nicely
with the recently released Concept Art Ki-Adi-Mundi? Huh, Hasbro? Please?! (Actually, this figure could possibly work as a concept version with the included lightsaber gauntlet.)
It seems all Hasbro would have to do is simply “head swap”.
Then again, we suppose we could just do that ourselves (if the ball socket
fits). The last few Star Wars basic figure lines have been quite well-rounded
for the most part and the Legacy Collection has certainly followed
suit. While each wave focuses on a specific Star Wars source, the figures
within those waves include main characters, background characters, army
builders and collector-focused characters. Our opinion is that Plo Koon
fits the background character definition quite well, and perhaps is just
shy of main character status. But we believe if Hasbro keeps making action
figures like Plo Koon of this incredible quality, he may just become
a more popular mainstay in the action figure line. This action figure
is absolutely an improvement to its ancestors and we know that you will
feel very similarly. On top of a great and authentic costume, he has
awesome accessories and articulation that will make you smile. And Plo
Koon has made us smile, in fact, we are still unable to wipe the grin
off of our faces. He may just put a smile on your face too! We highly
recommend that you pick him up! (*Editor's Note: Plo Koon's lightsaber gauntlet is directly inspired from Revenge Of The Sith concept art and subsequently The Clone Wars and his removable antiox mask is from the Star Wars: Practice Makes Perfect comic, the first place we saw him without the mask on his face.)
Collector Notes
Plo Koon
Status: Plo Koon is a kit-bashed figure that utilizes the torso and hands from 2005's ROTS Plo Koon (III 16) with all-new arms, all-new legs, and a brand new head sculpt with removable antiox mask. Of particular note, Hasbro maintained the same-sized neck peg as the 2005 ROTS Plo Koon (III 16) figure, so the heads and hands are interchangeable if you prefer to have a figure without a removable antiox mask.
Articulation Count: 22 points (14 areas of articulation)
Articulation Details: ball-socket head (1), ball-jointed left shoulder (2), ball-jointed right shoulder (2), ball-jointed left elbow (2), ball-jointed right elbow (2), swivel left wrist (1), swivel right wrist (1), swivel waist (1), swivel left hip (1), swivel right hip (1), ball-jointed left knee (2), ball-jointed right knee (2), ball-jointed left ankle (2), ball-jointed right ankle (2)
Accessory Count: 3
Accessory Details: lightsaber, double-bladed lightsaber gauntlet, removable antiox mask
Original Droid Factory/Build A Droid Part: YVH-1 head/blaster
Date Stamp: 2009
Assortment Number: 92284/87535
UPC: 653569444688
Retail: $7.99 USD
Market Value: Click here to check the latest prices based on listings.