Leia (In Boushh Disguise) - SOTE - Basic

HEIGHT: 1.5 Meters
STATUS: Princess of Alderaan, Imperial Senator, Cell Leader of Rebel Alliance
CLASSIFICATION: Human
AFFILIATION: Rebel Alliance
WEAPON OF CHOICE: Blaster Pistol

After Han Solo was captured by Boba Fett, several attempts were made on Luke Skywalker's life which threatened the future of the Rebellion. Princess Leia Organa and Chewbacca sought to protect the young Jedi, and traveled to Coruscant to follow up leads surrounding these attempts. They hoped to draw from the extreme intelligence gathering network of the Black Sun, a criminal organization whose operations extended to the farthest reaches of the galaxy. Because Coruscant is the homeworld of the Empire – a dangerous place for any member of the Rebel Alliance – Leia disguised herself as the renowned Ubesian bounty hunter Boushh. Boushh's helmet concealed her entire face while a built-in voxscrambler altered her voice to resemble that of an Ubesian; a false I.D. and code taken from Black Sun completed her disguise and provided a safe level of anonymity. Little did she know that Prince Xizor, Underlord of Black Sun, was behind the murder attempts on Skywalker, and had his sights set on Leia as well.

Leia would later use the Boushh disguise during an attempt to rescue Han Solo, still frozen in carbonite from Jabba the Hutt's palace. Though the rescue failed and she became Jabba's prisoner, Leia would play a crucial role in the battle over the Great Pit of Carkoon. There, she destroyed Jabba and helped Luke Skywalker, Lando Calrissian and Chewbacca to liberate Han Solo from Jabba's clutches.

When the Shadows Of The Empire basic figure line was released, collectors made a mad dash for Leia (In Boushh Disguise) because it was the only character based from the Original Trilogy. Many wondered why should an Original Trilogy character be relegated to an Expanded Universe multimedia event? Ultimately it didn’t matter because we were happier to get the figure than not get it. Leia (In Boushh Disguise) was far from perfect, but it was exciting to get a modern version of the classic 1983 Kenner figure. In all honesty, carded collectors were indeed thrilled to see Leia (In Boushh Disguise) on any card back, and because Hasbro packed her with other great figures from Return Of The Jedi (along with other Shadows Of The Empire figures), we forgot what was out of place and instead focused on the good stuff instead. Far from rare, Leia (In Boushh Disguise) became one of the most popular figures of 1996.

As the first modern update to the classically beautiful 1983 ROTJ Princess Leia Organa (Boushh Disguise) figure, Leia (In Boushh Disguise) served an important part in the Shadows Of The Empire line. This story which takes place between Episode V and Episode VI went on to explain how she donned this infamous outfit to squeeze her way into the clutches of Jabba and his retinue of villains. Even if one couldn’t care less about her EU backstory, it was still an incredible thing to get the very first modern version of her in 3.75” scale, even if she wasn’t “all that and a bag of chips.” Again, Leia (In Boushh Disguise) is far from perfect. Collectors instantly criticized her permanently sculpted thermal detonator in her left hand. But the removable cape, updated helmet, and tall black staff accessories were almost enough to forget about the figure’s trespasses. Still unable to produce an attractive likeness of Princess Leia Organa for one strange reason or another, many collectors were dissatisfied with the likeness on Leia (In Boushh Disguise) and we're already wishing that Kenner/Hasbro would find a way to make her pretty again.

Obviously, if you have the Shadows Of The Empire version, it doesn’t mean you’re a fan of the multimedia event. Kenner may have been better off releasing her in the standard The Power Of The Force “2” line instead. (Editor’s Note: This figure eventually made its way to the green phase of the POTF2 lineup.) The figure is alright, but we think it’s far from what collectors will accept from Kenner/Hasbro at this point. As we all know, many of the 1995 and 1996 action figures already seem outdated almost from their release. The bulkier features don’t work. Adding features like a removable helmet is a must (and we’re thankful for it), but we feel that it is not properly shaped and doesn’t imitate the on-screen prop that well. Obviously this figure has issues that will require an all-new tool to be developed. Regardless, Leia (In Boushh Disguise) looks pretty decent fully outfitted in her bounty hunter gear. Leia (In Boushh Disguise) proves that Kenner/Hasbro is intent on getting out some of the most popular figures. Let us hope that they offer them the way they were intended.