Mos Eisley Cantina – Band Nook - 1:6 Scale Figure Environments

A welcome oasis in the middle of the blazing desert of Tatooine, the Mos Eisley Cantina hosts a bizarre and sometimes dangerous array of alien patrons, from Ithorians to Rodians, seeking shade, business and refreshment. A few steps into the dimly lit main room, one finds a scattering of booths and tables. An alien band plays a lively tune in the corner, and a gruff bartender slings exotic concoctions from behind a rounded bar.

Now owned by a Wookiee proprietor named Chalmun, deals of all kinds are made in this infamous meeting place, including the one struck between Luke Skywalker and Obi-Wan Kenobi hiring Han Solo and Chewbacca for transport. Chalmun's personal distaste for Droids lead him to install a Droid detector in the foyer to alert patrons of any mechanicals entering the bar.

When Hasbro developed the Build A Droid line during The Legacy Collection/Legacy Collection era, collectors immediately began asking them if they would ever move beyond droids and onto other figures and/or modular playsets. We all know how that turned out, but that doesn’t mean that this concept can’t be approached in a similarly different way, does it? While technically very away far from the “build a figure or playset” concept, Sideshow Collectibles has been doing a bit of building on their own with the various 1:6 Scale Figure Environments they’re creating for the accompanying 1:6 Scale Figures line. They first introduced us to the Mos Eisley Cantina and Mos Eisley Cantina (Nadon’s Nook) 1:6 Scale Figure Environments. But Sideshow surprised and impressed us all when they decided to add the next portion of Chalmun’s Cantina to the lineup with the extraordinarily large and beautifully sculpted Mos Eisley Cantina – Band Nook which is big enough to accommodate all five members of Figrin D’an And The Modal Nodes as well as some extra space for some complementary denizens like Greedo (Bounty Hunter) and Momaw Nadon (Hammerhead). (Come on Sideshow! Give us more cantina aliens ASAP please!)

The Mos Eisley Cantina – Band Nook structure is really beautiful. It has been approached with a cut-away style. You will see the interior of the beams and “stucco” that makes up the walls of the building. It’s really only a tiny 90 degree section of the very large cantina, but they have scaled it appropriately and it can accommodate quite a few 1:6 Scale Figures from their impressive line. The imitation stucco is unbelievably realistic. It looks hand done and you will see the corners of it flooded with darker paint to simulate dirt and/or shadows in the dark, dank drinking hole. In the center of the back wall is a “window” which comes with its own accessories and is a really nice feature of this environmental display piece. The window comes with two Plexiglass panes as well as two prints: an interior shot and an exterior shot which can be placed back to back. This means that no matter if you’re from the outside looking in or the inside looking out, you’ll see the appropriate viewpoint of the rest of the aliens seen in the film. It’s a simple construct, but it works extremely well. The window’s final feature is the top of the frame which allows you to “lock in” the panes and pictures of the adjacent “goings on” in the Mos Eisley spaceport.

To the right of the window are two lamps that illuminate beautifully via battery power. While we aren’t fans of Sideshow’s light-up lightsabers, we do have to state that little frills like this are most welcomed. These two lights looks so incredible when lit. Then when you add the cantina tables from earlier 1:6 Scale Figure Environment releases, well, the displays looks unbelievably unreal. There is not much you can fault here. On the “outside” of the Mos Eisley Cantina – Band Nook wonderfully textured walls. Again, it’s evident that Sideshow Collectibles wishes to use a “cross-section” type of approach with their many 1:6 Scale Figure Environments, and this release is really no different at all. You’ll even find a power box and its cables on the outside of this piece. Sideshow Collectibles add whatever they can to make these as real life as possible. We should note that although large, the Mos Eisley Cantina – Band Nook is very, very lightweight. You almost get the sensation that if you grip it too tightly that your fingers are going to puncture the hollow structure. That of course is disappointing, but it these were solid pieces, the shipping costs would not be affordable to collectors. That said, we love this piece and can’t wait to see what’s on tap next!

This sample has been provided to us by Sideshow Collectibles.