As commander of the Alliance fleet, Admiral Ackbar led the Rebel capital ships into the Battle of Endor. A member of the Mon Calamari species, Ackbar and his people manned the distinctive warships supplied to the Rebellion by that aquatic culture. Ackbar developed the attack strategy for the Battle of Endor, and commanded the Mon Calamari star cruiser Home One.
Who doesn’t associate Admiral Ackbar with the line “It’s a trap”? The Mon Calamari hero was instantly embraced as soon as Star Wars fans feasted their eyes upon him, which makes us want to say "Admiral Ackbar please!" Looking a whole lot more like a humanoid lobster than a squid, Admiral Ackbar proudly played a significant role in the Battle of Endor to defeat the Galactic Empire once and for all to restore peace to the galaxy. He appeared slightly gruff in Return Of The Jedi, yet his compassion was evident in his eyes and facial expressions. His species are peacemakers but will defend their freedom to the death if need be, so they were to perfect allies to help the Rebels in their battle for freedom. As an alien Star Wars character, George Lucas had to rely on designing an actual prop of the character. Thankfully he couldn’t rely on CGI and had to make aliens and like look authentic with art and not computer science. To his credit, the time designing Admiral Ackbar and company paid off in full and they remain one of the most cherished group of characters in the Original Triology.
Licensees, mostly Hasbro, have released a fair share of Mon Calamari collectibles and figures throughout the years, but one of the most accurate came in the form of Gentle Giant Ltd.’s Mini Bust in 2008. The detailed attained in this line is quite unprecedented. In nearly the same exact scale as 1:6 Scale Figures (or more commonly known as 12” figures), these collectibles are cure from the waste up and set on a uniform base and they freeze in time one of the most accurate representations of Star Wars characters you can purchase. The Admiral Ackbar Mini Bust is beyond excellent. The sculpt is of course beyond impressive, but the artists who painted the piece have really done it justice. Admiral Ackbar looks absolutely fantastic and he will definitely rank as one of Gentle Giant’s finest works. The off-white costume is contrasts beautifully with his dark red “shell” of a head. And his hands are incredibly detailed with features we didn’t realize until we owned this Mini Bust. The only feature missing is his baton, but that’s because we love the 1983 Kenner figure so much.
In a rare move, Gentle Giant Ltd. has added clear eyes to Admiral Ackbar. They could have easily just molded the eyes as part of the sculpt but attaching clear yellow eyes with a black pupil has done so much for this piece. They are in perfect scale to the Mini Bust and add more to the piece than we ever expected. But his head housing these eyes is more impressive. Carefully inspect the pattern on his head. Can you imagine a more accurate paint job than this? The darker “spots” are not as subtle as they should be, but are still blended in with the rest of his head as to not appear obtrusive or stand out in a distracting manner. The “gobblers” dangling from his chin are fine and delicate (don’t touch them or they might break off). And all of the wrinkling in his neck and the crevices in his facial structure are expertly crafted to make this a definitive collectible. Even the details in his costume including his ranking badge and the yellow striped running down his sides just prove how obsessed Gentle Giant Ltd. is about getting everything just right. Admiral Ackbar is without a doubt a Mini Bust to acquire.
