Teebo - TVC - Basic (VC207)

Let’s talk about the elephant in the room. How in the world did Hasbro manage NOT to include the alternate head sculpt with The Vintage Collection release? The alternate head sculpt has nearly become an urban legend at this point, and if you don’t own 2012’s Star Wars [The Phantom Menace 3D] Ewok Pack (in the packaging), you will never know how fantastic that “yet-to-be-released” head sculpt is. Regardless, Teebo is one of The Ninety Six that Hasbro must produce to finish the original Kenner line. They phoned it in. Aside from some deco differences and the inclusion of Photo Real, there isn’t much more to expect with Teebo. One of the more aggressive Ewoks from Star Wars Episode V: Return Of The Jedi, this iteration of Teebo seems much too friendly and tame. It’s only through positioning the figure with the included accessories that you realize how lethal Teebo is to the Galactic Empire (and Rebel Alliance, for that matter)! Hasbro did some things right with The Vintage Collection release of Teebo. Both the packaging and the number of accessories included are a significant plus, but the figure by itself doesn’t make the mark.

Hasbro changed Ewok tooling for the better with 2011’s TVC Logray (Ewok Medicine Man) (VC55) figure. But that tooling is a decade old now, and it doesn’t hold up well by today’s standards. As a result, Teebo feels dated, tired, and obsolete at this stage of the game. If they got this figured out sooner than 2021, perhaps it might have held up. But today? Not so much. While it’s impressive that Hasbro worked in 20 points of articulation into a tiny frame as an Ewok, the articulation isn’t very functional or practical. In other words. We get a lot of joints here, but they do little to allow you to position the figure in several ways or provide adequate play value. The paint jobs between the 2012 version and the 2021 TVC version differ by quite a bit. The grays are darker, the headdress is lighter, and the paint operations seem better on the original version. Photo Real is a tremendous enhancement, but it does little for the action figure when applied carelessly. On our sample, the factory missed the nose, and it’s only half-painted. The paint operations throughout look very sloppy, and ultimately we’re disappointed by this supposed upgrade. And in many ways, 2002's POTJ Teebo is better than this one.

Where Teebo succeeds is the packaging. The original 1984 ROTJ Teebo figure came with a character photo obstructed by heavy yellow washes. The artwork was so yellowed that it appeared discolored. Thankfully, Hasbro remedied the aesthetics of the modern Teebo, and the new graphics are gorgeous. Teebo is bright, and the lush foliage in the background is colorful as well. They changed a section of the image, removing the airbrushing, and replaced it with the remainder of the original reference image. The final result is a card that both collectors and Hasbro should be proud of for this action figure. And Teebo looks stupendous carded on the revised card. Collectors are going to be happy to see this figure added to their collections. Overall, for what it is, Hasbro did a decent job. Teebo’s greatest strength is its accessories. Hasbro packed in an astonishing nine accessories, the same amount that came with the original release. All of these accessories allow you to recreate the different outfits Teebo wore in Return Of The Jedi, like the full headdress when capturing the Rebels or the shortened version when getting electrocuted by R2-D2 in defense.