Tag Archives: Epic World of Action

#4127: Paz Vizsla

Posted by Ethan Wilson in Reviews and tagged with , , , ,

PAZ VIZSLA

STAR WARS: EPIC FORCE (HASBRO)

“A descendant of the esteemed house Vizsla, brawny warrior Paz Vizsla is protected by the strongest Beskar armor.”

Would you believe I’ve finished up all my Saga reviews?  Well, I guess I haven’t *really*, but I’ve finished all the reviews of figures that are ready to go, since all the ones I have left are pretty woefully incomplete.  I’m past the days of incomplete figure reviews…mostly.  Anyway, I’m actually jumping a fair bit further ahead for today’s review, to something “modern” era, though still a couple of years old at this point.  I don’t get much into the Mandalorian-based stuff anymore, but I’m doing at least this one jump back with a look at this Paz Vizsla figure that’s, you know, actually named Paz Vizsla, rather than just “Heavy Infantry Mandalorian.”

THE FIGURE ITSELF

Paz Vizsla was part of the debut assortment of Hasbro’s Star Wars: Epic Force line, back in 2024.  He was one of two deluxe figures in the set, the other being Sabine.  Paz has pretty much always been relegated to the deluxe sizing, so it makes sense that it happened again here.  The same core figure, with a different selection of accessories, was also available in the “Unite the Clans” three-pack at the end of the year.  The figure stands 4 inches tall and he has 5 points of articulation.  The Epic lines are all technically 4-inch lines, rather than 3 3/4-inch, and it was especially notable on the earlier Star Wars stuff.  Thankfully, in the case of a character like Paz, they stuck to that strict 4-inch mark, which means that he scales okay with earlier figures, since Paz should be a little taller than the others.  His sculpt is unique to him, and it’s based on his design from the show.  The level of detail here is definitely not as in depth as, say, a Vintage Collection figure, but it’s a little more than a Retro Collection figure, making it kind of feel a bit like a mid-run Power of the Force figure.  Gee, I wonder who around these parts might like such an aesthetic? Honestly, it works well.  It gets all the important details down, with a decent degree of sharpness, but it still lets them do more of a basic feel overall.  The paint work here leans heavily into the basic side.  The broad colors are present, but there’s a lot of spots where things are just left unpainted.  This is where the figure feels more like a Retro Collection or even proper Kenner figure over, say, Power of the Force, because after the ‘90s, it was very rare to just get straight up unpainted details.  The torso is definitely the most stripped down, with a lot of just unpainted dark blue.  Other sections get more variation, though, and the actual application is clean.  Paz is packed with his jetpack (which is definitely a fair bit oversized), his large gun (which has been converted into a missile launcher and is *comedically* oversized), a missile for said large gun, and a removable flame-thrower effect that clips onto either of his forearms (though it has a gauntlet attached which is quite clearly meant to match the left side).  They cover all of his standard extras, and there’s enough more there relative to the standard releases that it feels like “deluxe” was justified.

THE ME HALF OF THE EQUATION

When Epic Force launched, I liked the idea, especially with the similarities to Power of the Force, and the fact that I’d really been bummed out by the ending of the basic 5-POA line after Resistance, but I’d also kind of moved on and was focusing on scaling back on my Star Wars collecting in general.  That said, one of the collections I more or less kept intact was my modern era Retro Collection stuff, and Paz was notably absent from that set-up, so this figure offered a decent little “close enough” set-up.  I wouldn’t say it was enough to make me go out hunting, but when a loose one came into work, I really had no good excuse not to, and so he got added to my collection.  And, you know, sat in a box for two years waiting to be reviewed.  Look, I got to him, didn’t I?  It’s interesting to look back at this figure now, given how quickly the Epic line evolved into something totally different than what it was here.  He’s a weird sort of middle-ground figure, and while I’m happy to have a Paz that fits with my Retro figures, it’s not hard to see why this incarnation of the line really struggled to find its footing.  He’s a good figure and a good toy, but just feels so very much like he’s from an entire different era than the one that spawned him, which is odd for a figure that’s not intentionally a throw-back. 

#4071: Clone Captain Rex

Posted by Ethan Wilson in Reviews and tagged with , , ,

CLONE CAPTAIN REX

STAR WARS: EPIC WORLD OF ACTION (HASBRO)

“Rex served the Republic on the front lines during the Clone Wars, taking orders from Anakin Skywalker and Ahsoka Tano.”

It would seem that after finishing up Power of the Force, my comfort zone for Star Wars reviews is just Captain Rexes.  I didn’t plan it like that, but it sure did end up that way, huh?  My personal favorite parts of the Disney era figure tie-ins were the more basic toyline elements, which were unfortunately dropped after Solo.  Hasbro’s toyed with some other takes on the more all-ages approach to the toys, and the latest is Epic Force, the Star Wars equivalent to the Epic Heroes branding they did for Marvel.  The line started as more of a 5POA thing, but has slightly evolved.  It’s been a rather eclectic selection of characters, and today I’m looking at one of the line’s takes on Captain Rex.

THE FIGURE ITSELF

Clone Captain Rex is a 2025 release for Hasbro’s Star Wars: Epic World of Action line, the re-branding of “Epic Force.”  Rex is specifically part of the “Power the Force” (note the lack of “of” there, because it’s important) branding of the line.  The figure stands 4 inches tall and he has 15 points of articulation.  While the earlier Epic offerings for Star Wars went back to the 5POA roots, “Power the Force” upgraded most of the figures to the same articulation scheme as the Epic Heroes, and Rex reflects that.  It’s a solid set-up, and while he might benefit from wrist joints, he otherwise covers the bases.  Scaling wise, the line maintains its 4-inch scaling, different from the classic 3 3/4-inch set-up for Star Wars, so he’s a little on the large side, but with the gradual shifting of the main line over time, he’s not actually that out of place.  Design-wise, the figure is based on his realistic Phase I armor, as seen in Ahsoka, which makes a degree of sense, it being his most recent appearance and all.  The sculpt is a solid one, with a decent level of detailing, matching up pretty well with the on-screen look.  It’s clean, well defined, and has a nice solid feel to it.  It also looks sufficiently different from prior figures, giving him a good reason to exist.  I do wish he had trigger fingers on the hands, though.   His paint work is decent, but notably basic and clean for a Rex figure.  I guess, it being a Phase I Rex, he should be a little cleaner, but it does seem a bit more scaled back than even that would explain.  Still, it’s far from bad, and the most important details are all still present.  Rex is packed with a pair of blaster pistols, as he’s prone to do.  In an effort to get into the “Power the Force” gimmick, which largely translates to clear plastic, they’re molded in translucent blue.  Also, one of the two of them has a permanently attached blast effect, which is cool and theory, but becomes a problem when it comes to the sculpted holsters on the figure.  Though both are functional, only one can be used, since the blast effect won’t fit, so, he can’t use it.  It’s an odd choice, for sure.

THE ME HALF OF THE EQUATION

I don’t do a bunch of big box retail shopping these days, so I miss out on a lot of more basic toy releases.  I knew this guy existed, but never put the effort into finding one.  But, it’s a Rex, so if it lands in front of me, I’m gonna want it.  A few weeks ago, I was killing some time walking my daughter around the mall while my wife and son saw a movie, and she wanted to walk through the (apparently no longer a temporary pop-up) Toys “R” Us, and this guy happened to be one of the two Epic figures they had.  Yay, new Rex for me!  He’s neat.  Nothing special or ground breaking, but neat.  I think if they’d included an extra not blasting blaster, he’d be pretty much all you’d need, but even so, he’s a fun little basic figure.