KNIGHT OF REN

STAR WARS: THE BLACK SERIES (HASBRO)

“An enclave of masked warriors wielding distinct weapons for ranged and close quarters combat, the Knights of Ren are elite, fearsome enforcers of Kylo Ren.”

First mentioned and briefly glimpsed during The Force Awakens, the Knights of Ren were the source of much fan speculation.  After their more proper appearance in The Rise of Skywalker….well, people are still kinda speculating, I guess.  Like the Praetorian Guard in The Last Jedi, the Knights of Ren had a cool look and did at least get one cool fight scene, so they weren’t quite as pointless as, say, the Sith Troopers.  Of course, they all had unique appearances, so they aren’t quite army builders, either.  We got one of them as a Vintage Collection figure at the Force Friday launch, and now we’ve gotten another as a Black Series release.  So, let’s have a look at this guy.

THE FIGURE ITSELF

The Knight of Ren is figure 105 in the Black Series line-up.  Thought the package just lists him as “Knight of Ren,” this guy is actually meant to be “Vicrul”, since all of the Knights were actually named.  He’s also the Knight named “Grenade Head” by the production crew, because his…head…looks like…a grenade.  Yeah, I guess that one’s pretty cut and dry.  The figure stands just shy of 6 inches tall and he has 29 points of articulation.  His articulation has its ups and downs; the range on the arms is pretty nice, but I found the movement on the legs to be a little bit awkward, especially at the knee.  He’s not really restricted, just the style of movement is a little weird and not as smooth as a lot of the line’s more recent figures.  The sculpt on Vicrul is an all-new affair, and it’s pretty decent.  It’s not quite as close a recreation as some of the other figures in this assortment.  His body definitely seems  a little more squat than in the film, and the helmet’s design has a few elements slightly out of place.  The faceplate is a little bit on the long-side, especially compared to the other details.  It’s still a pretty sharply detailed piece, and the rest of the outfit’s got some decent texture detailing mixed in.  Vicrul’s paintwork is actually pretty nice.  While most of the Kylo’s have just stuck with the clean black look, this guy actually gets some decent grime and dirt on he gear.  It’s the heaviest on his feet, but there’s some spots of it on the jacket as well.  It does a respectable job of getting that worn-in appearance that the character really had in the movie.  Vicrul is armed with a Phrick-Schythe (the pointy thing) and a blaster pistol.

THE ME HALF OF THE EQUATION

The smaller-scale Knight figure didn’t really pique my interest, so I ended up skipping him.  The announcement of this guy didn’t do a lot to excite me either, but I was on board for the others from the set, and I did like the look of this particular figure a little bit more, so I ended up grabbing him.  Of the four figures I picked up from this assortment, I expected to like this one the least, and ultimately that proved true.  However, I did end up liking him more than I’d anticipated.

The Knight of Ren was purchased from my friends at All Time Toys.  If you’re looking for Black Series, or other toys both old and new, please check out their website and their eBay storefront.