Hasbro Star Wars - The Princess Leia Collection: Princess Leia and Han Solo Review

Star Wars has always had a multi-cultural, multi-generational and cross-gender appeal which is partly based on the universality of its roots as a "modern myth"  for our times, and partly because Lucas was smart enough to take archetypes such as the hero on a quest, the mysterious wise man, the rogue with the heart of gold and, of course, the damsel in distress and tweaked them for the sensibilities of the late 1970s.

Thus it's safe to say that even though guys have always been in the majority within the Star Wars collecting community, lots of girls and women of all ages like the Kenner/Hasbro Star Wars action figures and other toys, too.

Hasbro's erstwhile competitor, Kenner Toys of Columbus, Ohio knew that many girls were fans of Princess Leia Organa, the cosmopolitan, politically-well connected Senator from Alderaan who was as fast with a quick quip ("Would someone get this walking carpet out of my way?") as well as with a blaster pistol. Thus, in the early days of the Kenner/Star Wars partnership (1977-1985), the toymaker offered several 12-inch dolls bearing the likeness of the Princess as well as the "basic" figures all collectors - boys included - needed for a complete collection.

Kenner and Hasbro have, of course, produced a plethora of "standard-issue" action figures and large "Collector's Edition" dolls of Princess Leia Organa. Most of the figures reflect Leia's dual nature of cosmopolitan diplomat/warrior and usually have some sort of blaster or other weapon to attract boys/men who would otherwise not buy a "girly" figure.

Although I'm pretty sure Hasbro would deny that the "Kenner: Power of the Force/The Princess Leia Collection" quartet of two-figure sets pairing off Leia with various characters from A New Hope, The Empire Strikes Back, and Return of the Jedi is marketed exclusively with girls in mind. I tend to think otherwise.

The truth, I suppose, is in the details of the 1997-era Princess Leia Collection, which includes Princess Leia and Han Solo as seen in the "Betrayal at Bespin" sequence in The Empire Strikes Back.

Princess Leia and Han Solo

The formidable sight of Darth Vader strikes a reflex reaction in Han Solo's trigger finger, but the Dark Lord's power proves too great and Princess Leia and her band of Rebels are taken captive.

As in the other two-figures sets of this collection-within-a-collection, Princess Leia's wine-colored "Bespin Gown" is a hybrid of the traditional plastic molded-and-painted "sculpt" blended with some detailing done in fabric to better replicate costume designer John Mollo's Art Deco-ish 1980 design.

Following the patten set by such figures as Leia from A New Hope, the basic figure's outfit consists of the wine-colored "dress" done as a sort-of monochrome painted-on leotard-like costume, with a matching cloth skirt and a white plastic-and-cloth cape that give the Bespin Gown a more dress-like appearance. (In the original packaging, which is the way I have my set, the illusion created by Hasbro makes the outfit look really nice.)

Considering the size of the figure (it's in the 3.75-inch scale), and also considering how hard it is to get the details of either Carrie Fisher (Princess Leia) or Natalie Portman (Padme Amidala, Leia's mom) "just right," this rendition of Leia's face and hair isn't too bad, really. If one doesn't hold the figure up close for a thorough examination (and very few kids do), the sculpt is good enough to pull off the whole "this looks a lot like Leia" illusion, with no big glaring flaws in the detailing of the face and hair, which has been done in a two-braided coif that gives Leia a more feminine look than her infamous "Mexican revolutionary" cinnamon bun braids from A New Hope.

Han Solo, here wearing his spacer's brown trousers/belt combination and a white long-sleeved shirt (all sculpted), comes with a DL-44 blaster pistol and a cloth rendition of his spacer's jacket. The sculpted portions of the outfit look all right, I suppose, but like the Luke Skywalker figure in the Princess Leia and Luke Skywalker set, the cloth jacket is somewhat sloppily done; it looks baggy and ill-fitting, plus the detailing, especially the pockets, is rather carelessly executed.

Weapons and Accessories:

The blaster looks a lot like the "real" laser pistol Han uses in all three movies, but it looks a bit bigger than it should, proportionately speaking, and it can't be placed in the holster molded on to Han's right hip.

Although I've seen better Han Solo figures that more closely resemble a 30-something Harrison Ford, this one's sculpt is okay. Not the greatest, mind you, but the face and hair conform a bit to the character's on-screen appearance.

Again, the articulation points on the Princess Leia Collection figures are somewhat rudimentary, being limited to the basic head/neck, shoulders, and hips. Young kids who are into "pretend" Star Wars adventures won't care, but the more detail-minded collectors might take off points for the limited posing potential of the figures.

As with all the Star Wars action figures, Hasbro recommends this toy for children 4 and up since the small parts pose a clear and present choking hazard, especially for