[wp-review id=”91579″]
In a secret base on the remote planet of Hoth, The Rebellion is regrouping after the victory against The Empire. Princess Leia Organa is one of the leaders there and she has a very memorable look to keep warm.
This time around, I’m reviewing the Princess Leia on Hoth from STAR WARS Episode V: THE EMPIRE STRIKES BACK. She is a 1:6 scale figure by Hot Toys and sculpted after her look from arguably the best installment in the saga.
PACKAGING:
The outer box has the typical black with the grey lines all over it. On the front, there is an image of Leia with STAR WARS and the MMS423 designation. The sides have some of the same with the Hot Toys, STAR WARS, and Disney in a smaller font. The back has the various people over at Hot Toys that works on the team to bring the figure together. Remove the lid and you get to the insert with the hi-res image of The Princess with some various images fromTHE EMPIRE STRIKES BACK. There is one thing on this insert that totally stands out and that’s the image of The Death Star from RETURN OF THE JEDI. It just looks very out of place because it has no mention or presence in the movie…its just weird seeing it there. The figure and all of her accessories are neatly secured in the plastic and very presentable. I do always like that the STAR WARS line in both the Hot Toys and Sideshow Collectibles 1:6 lines match up properly.
LIKENESS:
This is a beautifully done figure. The head-sculpt is spot on for Leia and the artists really captured her look from the movie. They perfectly captured her skin tone from the film and her likeness to Carrie Fisher is uncanny. You can clearly see the difference between this and her figure from A NEW HOPE. Her hair is sculpted because doing rooted hair is way too complicated for this look. Also, her hair doesn’t change at all in the scene that they are going for and only once in the rest of the movie. The sculptors also put the strands running down her sideburns so be aware that they’re there because you could get them caught in something (I’ll get to that in the accessories section).
As for her clothing, she is in a 1-piece snowsuit that is all white from top to bottom. To give it a little style, there are designs and patches on the legs as well as the arms. The material is very similar to the poncho that Jyn Erso wears or the cloth underneath all of the stormtrooper’s armor. On her left forearm, she has a communicator. The detailing on it is stellar and is seamlessly attached to the snowsuit.
Over the suit, she is wearing a puffy vest made of synthetic material. The color is an off-white or crew color. This makes it very easy to see that it doesn’t match the suit and makes it seem brighter from the contrast. There is a rank patch on her left side with some intricate details on it with some marks of color. It has some fine stitching. The material on mine is cut a little off and you can see on the bottom of the patch that it isn’t flush. It’s a super, tiny flaw and not really anything to get upset over but if you are really looking for it, it will easily catch your eye. The stitching on the back is in a diamond pattern that matches up with the film as well.
The boots looks like the rugged snow boots that the rebels use. They’re faux leather that stops at her knees. They are nicely made with three straps to keep them in place.
ACCESSORIES:
She comes with a solid set of accessories that round off the figure. She comes with 7 hands (5 gloved and 2 ungloved), a DH-17 blaster pistol, welding goggles, a welding torch, a breathing mask, and a special snow-covered base stand.
The blaster pistol is a DH-17 and it is one of if not the first weapon that you see on screen in STAR WARS. This is a weapon that is commonly seen with the soldiers in The Rebellion and for her to be using this makes more sense. It’s been perfectly replicated all the way down to the clear “cap” on the scope. It has a glossy, black finish with some silver accents on the grip and barrel.
The welding goggles are a teal color with dark lenses. There is a strap but it isn’t functional but it is there for cosmetic purposes. They are made to be held by Leia in her ungloved hand and up to her cover her eyes.
It goes together with a welding torch that has a lot of detail on the handle and an accurate tip. It is connected to springy, phone cord-like wire that connects to a plastic box. The box is painted to look metallic with silver paint and it has a red button. It weighs next to nothing so there is no fear of letting it hang freely. The box is cool way to not have the torch attached to nothing at all.
Next, we have the breathing mask. This was what Leia, Han, and Chewie wore when they were in the exogorth on the asteroid. It has some really nice weathering and it looks dirty. It looks like it doesn’t get cleaned on the regular by Han or Chewie. They have other things like staying alive that keeps their focus. The breather looks like weathered metal and kind of old. This is made to be worn and it has elastic straps on the mask and a metal clip on the breather/filter. The clip on the breather is similar to the thermal detonator on the backs of the stormtroopers and if you’re familiar, you know it’s not made for thick clothing. Surprisingly, it can fit on the edge of her vest and is secure. The elastic strap can be put over her head to position the mask part over her mouth. The strap is attached by two metal clips and they do worry me. If you put it on the way that you might instinctively do it and down the face, you run the risk of scratching the paint. What I found to be so much easier and safer is to pull Leia’s head off and put the straps on from the bottom up. This minimizes the distance that you have to move the straps and less chance of damage. Also, this is probably not an accessory to keep on her face on the long term because it so snug and it might rub the paint off on the long term. I really love that this is included.
ARTICULATION:
Even though The Princess is in this snow gear, she is very flexible. There is nothing hindering her head or her neck. Her arms have some good movement in the wrists but definitely in the elbows. They must have one of those double-jointed pieces to get the flexibility. It’s especially useful when you put the goggles up to her face and they can be out in more natural positions. I couldn’t get them to go completely vertical due to her snowsuit being too restrictive at the shoulders. She is flexible in the legs and raising her leg can almost go completely horizontal. Like the shoulders, her suit limits the movements but on such a small scale. Also, if you try to bend the legs at the knee, you also get some good movement as long as you work the material and not just try to extend the leg as far as you can. There is also some great movement in the ankles. By the looks of the boots, you would think that they wouldn’t move much at all however, Hot Toys has the foresight to make sure that the feet aren’t limited in the well made footwear. Of course, this figure isn’t as flexible as Rey but she can move better than Darth Vader. Hopefully, that gives you an idea of how much movement you can get here.
THE BOTTOM LINE:
This is arguably one of the best STAR WARS releases that Hot Toys has to date when you look everything at a whole. Her likeness is spot on with no features being out of place. The clothing looks excellent and the details have all been taken into account. The snowsuit does limit some movement but it’s realistic in how the snowsuit moves.
The accessories have been carefully created to match what you have seen on screen since 1980 and get a lot of good poses for display or photos. I like what was done with the welding torch and attaching it to some kind of base. That base is something that they could’ve done for the Wild Gunman pistol to have it attached to something. The breaking mask accessory is also a cool accessory in both likeness and the look. I am a bit leery about the clips and elastic band but that’s just the cautious person in me. Don’t get me wrong because like I said, I dig this accessory and I love that it’s included but I just like to keep collectors informed.
Taking a look at everything and being a huge STAR WARS fan myself, I can easily say that I recommend picking up this figure. She is my first Princess Leia figure and she fits right in with the rest of the collection. The head sculpts for her have improved since her release from A NEW HOPE. The other plus is that you get to have a piece of royalty in your shelf. Make sure to get this one before she’s sold out.
-Purchase Link:
Order your Hot Toys Princess Leia Hoth Version figure from Sideshow Collectibles
