Boba Fett (McQuarrie Concept) - Mini Busts

One of the first new characters to be designed for The Empire Strikes Back by conceptual artist Ralph McQuarrie was Boba Fett. The origins of the character can be traced back to early Darth Vader concepts that depicted the Dark Lord as a rogue bounty hunter. Boba Fett's first appearance was in a 10-minute animated segment from 1978's "The Star Wars Holiday Special." Another pre-Empire appearance featured the bounty hunter in a syndicated Star Wars comic strip story-arc entitled "The Frozen World of Ota."

How is it that Gentle Giant Ltd. is able to literally create masterpieces in their extremely favorable mini bust line? For a group of collectibles that are so small in scale, they are able to include parts and details that typically should only be seen in life-sized collectibles. Still somehow Gentle Giant creates these amazing pieces that leave most speechless, including us. And the effort put into Boba Fett (McQuarrie Concept) is so unbelievable, one would stutter trying to figure out on where to start raving about it. From the awesome pose with his arm and fist outstretched to the completely mind boggling detail on the backpack, Boba Fett (McQuarrie Concept) may just be one of the best mini busts Gentle Giant Ltd. has ever produced. We don't claims things like this lightly. But trying to find even one criticism on this mini bust is difficult, if not impossible. They have been guilty of releasing a few "bombs" in the past, but when they make something great, it is excellent beyond words usually. The Boba Fett (McQuarrie Concept) is an example of this. It triumphs in every way and may be their crowning achievement in the entire line. Some may not be into concept art collectibles, but if this piece doesn't change your mind, likely nothing will.

Boba Fett (McQuarrie Concept) comes with an interchangeable head just like the 2007 Hasbro action figure. Both helmets are designed beautifully and match the concept art perfectly. From the smallest of details like the red triangle, to the precise angle of the visor, it is evident that Gentle Giant has done their job to ensure a flawless interpretation of two dimensional art into 3D rendering. The mini bust is mostly off-white, but if you look closely at the mini bust in our photo gallery you will see a very subtle surface wash (almost as if this top coat has been barely brushed on) that gives this piece the most beautiful shadowing and lived-in look that we see with so many other Star Wars characters. For a character that is most done in "white," Gentle Giant's painters have gone beyond the call of duty to give Boba Fett varying shades of off-white. On top of this, Boba Fett has a ton of details like his chest plate symbol and backpack details that are painted in their own unique colors and the final product is truly an amazing feat. Boba Fett is in perfect scale with the rest of the mini busts in the line and he stands apart thanks to his "pure" appearance and commanding action pose. We would have loved to see a fire ball attachment coming from his wrist, but that would have definitely made this collectible way too long!

A word of caution to collectors! The tube coming off of his backpack is extremely fragile and from what we have heard from others, it has broken off very easily in more than one instance. It is such a delicate piece and this is typical for this line of collectibles. So if you aren't an over-cautious collector, this may be a mini bust you'll need to pass by because if you don't watch where you grab it, parts will crumble into your hand unfortunately. This doesn't mean the piece was constructed poorly. Gentle Giant makes things as realistic as possible and as a result, parts are going to be fragile and small. It is inevitable. Boba Fett (McQuarrie Concept) was a 2009 San Diego Comic Con and was limited to only 2800 pieces. There definitely weren't enough made to go around and it will likely be a sought after piece as time passes. It would be great if Gentle Giant continues to bring us McQuarrie inspired mini busts to help complement the ones Hasbro did. But we bet if we continue to see them that they will be set aside for exclusive releases only. In the meantime, be sure to enjoy Boba Fett. It is truly one of Gentle Giant Ltd.'s finest moments!