Asajj Ventress - Unleashed

Asajj Ventress is a deadly and tragic disciple of the dark side. She has the talent to be a powerful Jedi, but violence and loss have filled her with hatred. As a child, she watched her parents die at the hands of a brutal warlord. A kind Jedi, stranded on her planet, took her in and began teaching her the ways of the Force, but he was murdered before he could finish her training. Alone again, Asajj clawed her way to a powerful position and was discovered by Count Dooku. She joined his cause and is one of the military masterminds for the Separatist forces. With her incredible piloting abilities, she lured Anakin Skywalker into a trap - and nearly defeated him, so great is her skill. With savage precision, she leaps headfirst into battle, eyes burning with hate, wielding her curve-handled lightsabers in a never-ending quest to destroy all that is good in the galaxy.

The first Star Wars: Unleashed character based on Genndy Tartakovsky’s Clone Wars micro-series is Asajj Ventress. And this interpretation has been ripped right out of chapter 19 from Volume 1 where Asajj Ventress and Anakin Skywalker meet on Yavin IV. Before they engage in battle, Asajj Ventress takes out a fair share of clones and it’s either this massacre or her engagement with Anakin Skywalker that we feel is the sources of inspiration for this Unleashed figure. With pupil-less eyes and a soulless expression on her face, it is evident that Asajj Ventress is aligned with the dark side of the Force. She believes she is more powerful than she is, but that doesn’t stop her from accomplishing her nefarious goals, up to and including disintegrating an entire clone trooper battalion in the lush Yavin IV jungles in an execrable manner. There is a strong support for anything Tartakovsky, and Hasbro’s realistically interpreted Unleashed Asajj Ventress provides enough variety for those that have fallen in love with the Tartakovsky micro-series, as well as those who adore the Expanded Universe in general. The Unleashed Asajj Ventress figure is the best of both these worlds, and introduces new fans to a character that will have a lasting impact on the Star Wars universe and storyline.

Asajj Ventress has been posed in an agile forward moving position. In the Clone Wars micro-series, she moved at breakneck speed. The Unleashed Asajj Ventress figure freeze frames this movement so you can actually gaze upon her and her contemptible ways. Although realistically styled, this horizontal interpretation of Asajj Ventress directly mirrors the look of the character from the television show, but not in an animated way of course. She has been perfected in realism beyond our expectations and this piece has captured all of her hate and rage towards the Republic so well that it’s almost scary. Intertwined with the Asajj Ventress sculpt is some of the Yvin IV terrain which includes some vines and foliage as she makes her way throughout the jungle in search of her quarry. You cannot mistake the expression on her face as anything but intense hatred and rage. It’s evident that she will stop at nothing to destroy all that is good and exceed the expectations of Count Dooku who in actuality is utilizing her as a pawn, just like all the Sith involved are doing. All of these characteristics and more are reflected so well in this piece. As you can imagine, the Unleashed Asajj Ventress figure will be a highlight for many already collecting this line, and will likely bring in a few of the collectors that just buy their favorite characters in nontraditional scale.

The paint operations on Ms. Ventress are astounding. Her face has been given texture thanks to the remarkable washes Hasbro gives their figures generally speaking. Although Asajj Ventress has a two-toned style about her clothing, Hasbro accented this simplistic color palette with lots of detail given by these washes. It’s actually quite incredible to see the dimension that they bring a simple plastic statue. Asajj Ventress’ arms are back behind her as she rushes forward on Yavin IV. You can display her with or without the red blades on her twin lightsabers. We love this option very much and it’s a detail we hope Hasbro doesn’t stop doing with the figures in this range. We rave about the deco Hasbro gave this figure, but they wouldn’t have allowed the figure to shine were it not for an explicit and perfect sculpt (even if you don’t particularly like the exact pose of this figure). But for us, we thoroughly enjoy what Hasbro has accomplished here. The pose alone shows that Asajj Ventress is very athletic, agile and capable of high speeds. Amidst the green lush planet terrain is a plume of dust which helps to reinforce the fact that she is travelling at a high rate of speed. We really appreciate the “outside of the box” approach with this version of Asajj Ventress. It shows that Hasbro is on their toes and working hard to make sure everything is the best it can be.

As a bonus feature to this review, we have provided the original artwork created for this Star Wars: Unleashed figure. Click the thumbnail to the left to see the amazing illustration.