Saelt-Marae - TVC - Basic (VC132)

Wow. Did Hasbro actually make the 3.75-inch super-articulated Star Wars collecting community wait over 20 years to bring us an all-new definitive update to Saelt-Marae (who is more affectionately known as Yak Face)? Goodness, gracious us. Believe it or not, the two-decade-plus wait has paid off incredibly, as we have an absolutely definitive modern release of the elusive 1985 The Power Of The Force Yak Face action figure. When Kenner/Hasbro relaunched the modern line in 1995, they only made us wait two years before bringing us 1997’s POTF2 [FF/TKC] Saelt Marae (Yak Face) figure. We were all excited to see the figure released, but he sadly aged quicker than expected, thanks to his upward-looking head sculpt and wonky pose. For years, the Star Wars collecting community begged Hasbro year after year for an update. And nothing happened. Then, right before the release of The Force Awakens, JTA broke an exclusive rumor report that “Yak Face” was coming very soon. But Hasbro canceled that 3.75” super-articulated line as a general marketplace item and made the biggest mistake of their lives by giving the format to Walmart as a store exclusive. Yak Face got lost in the mix, and nothing was heard about it again for years. By the way, a new Han Solo in Stormtrooper disguise was ALSO part of that rumor report we posted, and now that figure is coming soon too! We’ll come out and say it. Saelt-Marae is one of Hasbro’s finest achievements. Steve Evans and company should rest on the fact that they created a marvelous gift for longtime Original Trilogy Star Wars zealots, and Saelt-Marae is it.

Saelt-Marae comes with an astounding 30 points of articulation. While many 3.75” super-articulated figures in the past have come with similar articulation systems, we’re amazed at how functional they are in the Saelt-Marae figure. We managed to fold him sitting “Indian style” and also pose him in an inordinate amount of action poses like running, wielding his vibrostaff, and standing upright talking to the various other aliens in Jabba’s court. We didn’t have any trouble balancing him or achieving almost any pose we desired. Saelt-Marae has an articulation system that rivals The Black Series 6” line, and we’re honored Hasbro worked this high-quality articulation into a line they don’t seem to care much about anymore. There is no way any collector can fault them on anything they did for Saelt-Marae. He’s beautiful. He’s also tall. While his body up to his neck seems comparable to other Jabba’s palace aliens, the height of his head makes him tower over most other action figures in the Hasbro line. He still isn’t as tall as the VOTC-styled Chewbacca figures, however. Hasbro utilized both molded outfit parts with beautiful soft-goods. The results are mind-blowing. Hasbro tailored his vest, so it hangs close to his body without encumbering any movement. The soft-goods vest doesn’t appear removable, but we honestly haven’t had the time to see if it can be removed or not. Hasbro also nailed its color. It’s impressive how it still mimics the vintage Kenner figure, but yet stands elevated to the nth power. He comes with a single vibrostaff accessory, and it holds well in his right hand. His left hand is more opened and doesn’t stay in place as well.

Saelt-Marae’s paint job is gorgeous. On top of picture-perfect paint operations that are clean and crisp, Hasbro gave the figure a final wash which allows “dirt and other things” to collect throughout the figure. It also provides texture to the figure’s skin. His head is huge, and the wash does wonders for the figure. But there’s more. Hasbro also shined up his nose a bit, which is screen-accurate and recreates the personality of the character beautifully. His eyes are also a tad shiny which gives them a very realistic feel. We couldn’t have asked for a better approach to Saelt-Marae. Hasbro deserves every accolade for designing, tooling, painted and producing a figure that looks just as awesome as the prototype. One place where Saelt-Marae fails is the figure’s card back. Those of you who backed Jabba’s Sail Barge (The Khetanna) will live in relief thanks to a stunning presentation of the recreated The Power Of The Force Yak Face figure with collector coin. Hasbro mimicked every square inch of the card back perfectly, and we have a true replica of the vintage Kenner packaging. Those who didn’t #backthebarge are going to be disappointed with Saelt-Marae’s packaging. Hasbro made the bubble unnecessarily large, and it floats too high on the card back image. The oversized plastic packaging forced Hasbro to shift the “name pill” to the right. It looks dreadful and were thoroughly disappointed that Hasbro took this shortcut instead of forming a smaller-sized bubble/blister so everything could fit on the card back as needed. It looks awful. For those of you who open your figures; there likely won’t be any loss here for you either.

Editor's Note: Hasbro re-released The Vintage Collection Saelt-Marae (VC132) figure in April 2023 with a significant number of changes. Updates include: (1) revised paint operations/deco, (2) different color boots (3) less dirt wash on skin, (4) refreshed 2023 packaging with Return Of The Jedi 40 logo, and (6) different placement of action figure and accessories in bubble

Review Status Update: The original publication date of this review is January 11, 2019. It was subsequently updated with a new Photo Gallery and revised General Analysis and republished on August 19, 2023 after Hasbro reissued the figure.