Gamorrean Guard - POTF2 [FF/TKC] - Basic

The brutish nature of Gamorreans, along with their great strength and violent tendencies, made them excellent mercenaries and guardsmen in Jabba's desert palace.

Who can forget the announcement when Kenner/Hasbro alerted the collecting community that the Gamorrean Guard was going to be part of the basic figure line? It was an announcement worth celebrating because up until that time, they’d been sluggish with releasing more of the background characters from the Original Trilogy, especially aliens. But as we turned the corner to the end of 1997, we were heading into our third full year in the modern Star Wars line. Although Kenner/Hasbro managed to churn out an incredible amount of new action figures, they still needed to crank out a lot more of the background aliens, especially from Return Of The Jedi. Since 1995, collectors asked themselves consistently when Kenner/Hasbro was going to make the main guards of Jabba’s palace. The 1983 ROTJ Gamorrean Guard Kenner action figure always held a special place in the hearts of collectors, and we all wanted to see what Kenner/Hasbro was capable of with modern technology at the forefront of action figure making. They got the Gamorrean Guard out to store shelves, and it exceeded collectors’ expectations. The 1997 POTF2 [R/G] Gamorrean Guard action figure is an impressive action figure. The figure is large, threatening, and has an expression that should strike fear inside anyone that crosses the brutish guards of Jabba’s Palace. Now, Kenner/Hasbro smartly repacked the figure for the 1998 Power Of The Force "2" [Freeze Frame/The Kenner Collection] lineup as one of the Collection 2 action figures which focused on more of the background characters (especially aliens).

As an action figure, the Gamorrean Guard meets or exceeds most of our expectations, save for the articulation. It’s why it makes a fantastic candidate for the Freeze Frame Action Slide line that contains so many repacks. The Gamorrean Guard comes with six points of articulation. A swivel head (a feature missing from the vintage Kenner figure) is joined by two swivel shoulders, two swivel hips, and a swivel waist. As is true with all vintage Kenner action figure, 1983’s ROTJ Gamorrean Guard didn’t come with waist articulation either. Coming with standard articulation as most figures in the POFT2 lineup, the Gamorrean Guard doesn't possess anything out of the ordinary or surprising. It is a large action figure, and its size will impress. Thanks to clever tooling, the angles of the arms and legs enhance the limited articulation. We’re also impressed with the sharpness of the applied paint operations here. And by that, we mean Kenner/Hasbro added final washes were necessary to breathe life into these plastic statuesque action figures. The Gamorrean Guard’s skin has multiple tones, and the outfit shows collected dirt and grime. The deco is impressive here. That said, we also still believe that the skin tone of the Gamorrean Guard is significantly too light when compared with the on-screen character. You can also tell from the image presented on the Freeze Frame Action Slide that Kenner/Hasbro didn’t get the shade of green perfectly, which is a bit of a shame. We’re quite impressed with both the quality and approach were taken with this sculpt and the deco of the Gamorrean Guard.

The Gamorean Guard only comes with a vibro-ax accessory. It is beautifully sculpted and painted and represents one of the three weapons utilized by the Gamorrean Guards in Jabba’s Palace. The vibro-ax only fits into the Gamorrean Guard’s left “open” hand because the right hand is in a fisted position. The lack of display options here doesn’t work adversely against the figure. You want the Gamorrean Guard to wield a weapon, but you’d also like to see the character employ more “organic” force when attempting to make drunkards and unwanted guests “toe the line.” Also, the Gamorrean Guard looks fantastic holding the vibro-ax with one hand. There is no need to have an infinite array of posing options here when it comes to that accessory. While so many action figures in The Power Of The Force “2” lineup are getting two accessories, perhaps the extra “weight” of the Gamorrean Guard action figure expended its budget, and Kenner/Hasbro had to cut costs somewhere. As we’ve previously mentioned earlier, to help meet the demand of a high-quality and popular action figure, the Gamorrean Guard was repackaged and included in the Freeze Frame Action Slide phase of The Power Of The Force “2” lineup. As with all Freeze Frame figures, we suggest you pick up this one for the collectible pack-in premium. The tiny addition contains a still from Jabba’s palace with two Gamorrean Guards smack-dab in the middle of the image. It’s the same reference image for the 1983 ROTJ Gamorrean Guard figure’s card back. Get a couple for your collection because you’ll need them.