Jabba’s Skiff Guard - TBS [P1] - Basic (#27)

This skiff guard works for Jabba the Hutt. Skiff guards are usually mercenaries or slaves whose duties include defending the skiff from attack and keeping prisoners in line.

Star Wars is wrought with controversy. Even action figures feel the brunt of decisions made by Lucasfilm, Ltd. or so we assume: correctly or incorrectly. Conspiracy theorists by nature, we believe that the once listed “Sergeant Doallyn” that appeared on Hasbro lists (who in actually is Brock Starsher) has a name that has been relegated to the hyper-generic Jabba’s Skiff Guard moniker. Could you imagine if every last skiff guard going forward is called “Jabba’s Skiff Guard” or “Skiff Guard” just because we're forced to accept that most of the previously established EU doesn't exist? It’s pure insanity. That's what we believe because most of what we knew to be true as the Star Wars Expanded Universe has recently been boxed up and shelved under the Legends banner now. What is canon now has greatly changed and Sergeant Doallyn and/or Brock Starsher are are two examples that show how this new directive from Lucasfilm Ltd. will affect the toy line. Well, enough of the drama. Let’s talk about the action figure itself. Jabba’s Skiff Guard [Brock Starsher] has pleasantly surprised us. While not one of our own top choices for skiff guards, he is very needed as an action figure and was very visible on the “second” skiff in Star Wars Episode VI: Return Of The Jedi right up front and the first henchman to encounter (and be taken out by) Luke Skywalker. Hasbro has done another incredible job on this action figure and we have very little to complain about here. We suspect the same will be true for you. A simple repaint of this figure could also probably give us an accurate Sergeant Doallyn. (So come one, Hasbro.)

Jabba’s Skiff Guard [Brock Starsher] has well-hidden joints which is quite surprising for a character who is wearing light-colored clothing, but that’s also a testament to the power of matching joint color. In a shocking move, Hasbro ensured that all of the articulation points match the color of the plastic where they sit. It’s of course a very basic notion that this would be the most aesthetically pleasing, but after countless figures with blatantly mismatched joints, it’s nice to see the issue taken care of, at least for this figure. How it's a crapshoot whether an action figure will receive matching joints or not is beyond us. But hey, at least this is all good here. Jabba’s Skiff Guard [Brock Starsher] is fully articulated with 14 areas of the figure with many of those parts with premium articulation. There was initial concern that this figure didn’t come with ball-jointed ankles, but we had always felt otherwise about this detail and with this sample our initial assessment has been proven true. We’re thrilled to confirm that the final figure has this articulation detail and they are essentially a requirement for these types of characters and offer the figure a range of movements and poses that wouldn’t be possible without them. See, there are some figures that require this articulation, but many figures do not need it and it’s wasted money and time. Jabba’s Skiff Guard [Brock Starsher] has a few splotchy areas of deco here and there, but overall we’re quite please with how he turned out. He is lean and athletic, and at first glance reminds us of an Original Trilogy version of the Firespeeder Pilot, as anachronistic as that is and sounds.

The prototypes of this figure concerned others because the head sculpt looked too small. After all, this character wears a helmet. The helmet isn’t its head. It should be larger. We’re however on the fence about this when it comes to this particular character. When watching the film, there does seem to be some disparity in the helmet size and a bigger one could have been more beneficial, but we really can’t find fault with the action figure as is. Jabba’s Skiff Guard [Brock Starsher] really looks to be wearing a close-fitting helmet, almost body glove styled, and we think it looks rather great. We also can’t help but notice the “H.R. Giger inspired” appearance of the helmet. Whether this was intentional or not, likely the latter, a close up inspection of the helmet will make you think of the “Alien” franchise, even in the slightest. All in all, Jabba’s Skiff Guard [Brock Starsher] is an excellent action figure. He can be posed in so many ways and all of his articulation is fully functional. He comes with a force pike and skiff guard blaster. He doesn’t have a holster for the gun, so you’ll probably have to use the accessories independent of each other. That’s OK though, because you should be more concerned that Hasbro didn’t decorate them, which is something that bothers us a little. (The accessories match his copper/bronze costume details. Weird.) Still, this figure’s positives heavily outweigh his minimal negatives. Jabba’s Skiff Guard [Brock Starsher] is a must-have for fans of Return Of The Jedi. We just wish his name didn’t become a generic mess. But that hardly affects the quality of the figure, so feel free to call him what you want.