Han Solo (In Hoth Gear) - POTF2 [R/G] - Basic

HEIGHT: 1.8 meters
STATUS: Pilot and Smuggler
CLASSIFICATION: Human
AFFILIATION: Rebel Alliance
WEAPON OF CHOICE: Blaster Pistol
VEHICLE OF CHOICE: Modified Correllian Stock Light Freighter Millennium Falcon

In his history as a smuggler, Han Solo has been in a lot of hot spots. As a reluctant hero for the Rebel Alliance in the years following the destruction of the Death Star, he found himself in a cold spot... on the ice planet of Hoth, to be exact. Hiding out from the intergalactic crimelord jabba the Hutt, Han and his copilot, Chewbacca, had stayed with the Rebellion for several years, adventuring, piloting, smuggling, and ranking up an impressive rap sheet and bounty not only from Jabba, but also from the Empire. Following the evacuation of the Rebel base on the fourth moon of Yavin, Han helped the Alliance scout out new locations for their base, and helped establish Echo Base on Hoth.

The newly commissioned "Captain" Solo worked with his friend, Luke Skywalker, and others to scout the barren planet for life-forms. Riding the smelly, two-legged tauntauns, Han wore bundled, thermal clothing and protective gear to brave the harsh, icy winds. When Luke failed to return from a scouting mission, Han braved the elements at dusk, facing a high possibility of death. Although he lost his own tauntaun, Han did find Luke. Erecting an emergency shelter, Han managed to save both of their lives until Rebel search teams could find them the next morning.

Shortly thereafter, the Empire launched an attack on Hoth. Han helped evacuate Echo Base, taking Princess Leia Organa and C-3PO with him and Chewbacca, aboard the Millennium Falcon. As he escaped into the stars, little did Han know that his future lay an Imperial trap on Bespin and a deeper cold in a carbonite prison than any he had ever felt on Hoth.

Han Solo (In Hoth Gear) is proof positive what can go wrong with a modern update to a classic Star Wars figure. This particular iteration of Han Solo was never seen in the film! Unless we’re having a lapse in judgment, Han Solo was never seen wearing his cap with his hood down. Of course, had they provided a removable cap as an accessory, then all could be forgiven, but this approach is just plain silly. Add to that an overly muscular frame and a ridiculous exaggerated action pose and you really just have a complete mess of an action figure. But then what if we told you his right hand couldn’t even accommodate a weapon because of a bizarre open hand design? (Kenner actually revised the latter fail so all is forgiven there. Open and closed hand versions exist.) Obviously Han Solo (In Hoth Gear) is not one of Kenner’s finest moments, nor is it a highlight in The Power Of The Force “2” lineup, so we imagine collectors will just be purchasing him to have them all, because he really is pretty bad no matter how you assess him.

Fans wanted a “hood up” version of Han Solo (In Hoth Gear) to match the cherished 1980 vintage Kenner figure, but this figure didn’t really perform all that well and Kenner has expressed they didn’t know when they would revisit him. (Editors’ Note: In 1998 Kenner released the Han Solo And Tauntaun set which finally gave us an accurate modern update to the Han Solo (In Hoth Outfit) vintage Kenner figure.) Sadly, Han Solo (In Hoth Gear) just isn’t going to cut it because it is just too much of a drastic departure from the original release.... or any semblance of accuracy based on his appearance in the film. Perhaps more notably however is the debate this figure caused with the color of Han Solo’s coat on Hoth. Kenner went with an ambiguous and noncommittal color (despite conceding that there must be some Crayola crayon out there that can easily identify the true color of this figure’s coat). It not blue, it’s not brown and it’s not gray, but it’s some mix of the three colors. That’s the way to avoid drawing any lines, isn’t it?

Despite the need to provide collectors a modern update with a core character (and outfit) from The Empire Strikes Back, Han Solo (In Hoth Gear) just doesn’t deliver the goods needed. We honestly feel it’s one of the worst action figures in the line, and dare we say that even “monkey face” Princess Leia Organa has more things going for it than this one. It appears other collectors feel similarly because it piled up at the stores and was one of the first figures to be granted the title of “peg-warmer” in The Power Of The Force “2” lineup. It literally rotted on the pegs. You can understand why Kenner might be gun-shy to approach another version of him anytime soon. But instead of being worried, they should focus on screen accuracy and then they’d have very little to be concerned with because that is what collectors want. We wish we had better to say of the Han Solo (In Hoth Gear) action figure, but we truly feel it was a wasted effort. We look forward to seeing what improvements Hasbro can make with future versions.